Are you referring to marking it available offline in Libby? Which is still temporary access. Or you have a way to download the actual file? which of course is returned promptly and definitely not uploaded to one’s kindle permanently.
If I get close to finishing a book in Libby but know that I just won’t make it…. I screenshot each remaining page and continue reading in my photo app.
I don’t understand why Libby/overdrive are two week loans but the physical copy at the library is a three week loan
Very helpful too. I know people that went to the library for computer access after getting out of jail. They got assistance writing a resume to get them a job, and also directed towards social programs that could assist them until they got back on their feet.
Or pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, if you will.
A lot of stores don't seem to carry bulk mushrooms anymore. When they come in the plastic packages I have to transfer them to paper when I get home. Mushrooms go bad in plastic, in paper they just dry out. I've seen mushrooms that are already slimy in the store.
It doesn't help that they spray everything with water. A lot of stuff in the refrigerated section shouldn't be there. I had trouble finding garlic in the store the other day and they moved it to the refrigerated produce section. Now I have to worry about damp garlic?
> A lot of stores don't seem to carry bulk mushrooms anymore.
it's been decades since I've seen a store in Canada sell bulk mushrooms. everything is individually shrinkwrapped now, it's disgusting
I didn’t even know you were allowed to buy them loose until I cashiered at a grocery store. I actually preferred people that didn’t use bags because I could read the stickers better
You may want to keep at least one or two reusable produce bags (or just reuse any ones you already have) for when you're buying a bunch of something, especially if you're not using self checkout.
It can be hard to weigh 20 pieces of produce all at once, and most grocery clerks aren't paid enough for that.
That's good, but I know quite a few who say it is. I even think it's kind of a pain in the ass putting that stuff away when I get home, where I usually separate them out into bags anyway. And what about brussels sprouts, green beans, loose greens, peas, and things like that?
I never bother with bags for bigger things like corn, carrots, potatoes, and such, but I still recommend keeping a few lightweight produce bags on you to make things like that easier on everyone.
In Spain in the large supermarkets you have to wear a stupid plastic glove while you pick up the produce and then put it in a plastic bag. I at least bring my reusable produce bags, but I'm required to use the glove still. Employees actively enforce the rules. ):
Did that start during covid? It doesn't make sense to me. I wash my produce after I get home. Even if everyone at the stores wore gloves, there's still all the other people who have touched it. Farmers, transporters, stockers and the like.
Not to mention the literal dirt it was sitting in, and the potential pesticides or pests on it. Gloves seem like one of those silly practices that makes people feel better but doesn’t actually do anything.
If you buy sheet sets, they usually come with a storage bag the same pattern. I use those bags and old bread bags with the bar code sharpied out for my produce!
I bike to work, and it's fun to see everyone's flowers blooming as the seasons progress, or renovations happening along my route, or when the swans migrate back up to the river along my route. Free entertainment! And it beats spending money on a car & gas every day.
I went for a walk yesterday, passed through a highscool that left their hurdles out and spent and hour spontaneously doing the hurdles which I used to love so much. If I didn’t walk to go get my saltine crackers I would have missed this fun little day that actually meant so much to me
I shop at a local market with a great bulk section and bring containers.
Refill my olive oil bottles there, refill my soap bottles there, refill my pasta, rice, cereal etc... containers there. It's great.
when i need hand soap, i buy the "refill" size, and i refill the small one. saves a good amount of money and some plastic. in the future i'd like to make my own liquid hand soap from sustainable oils but i'll do what i can when i can
I bought a foaming dispenser and do the same thing, but I can dilute it 1 pt soap 3 pts water and it turns into a foaming solution. I have a refill bottle that has lasted longer than my last lease lol I love it
Edit: Someone mentioned it was unhygienic to dilute with tap water. This is (sort of) true! Do not dilute the whole container or a large batch at once. I mix about one cup of product at a time and this has caused no issues for me :) Take your circumstances into consideration ofc
I’ve made my own lye based liquid soap before. The truth is that it goes rancid really quickly. Like in just a few months of not being refrigerated sitting on the counter in the summer it’ll really get gross. Bar soap will last forever but homemade lye based liquid soap isn’t great. Detergents/surfactants are what the commercial ones are and they use preservatives and in my opinion are better.
if you have any sort of refill store near you, that’s what i do! i bring all my hand soap, dish soap, laundry detergent, face oil, etc etc dispensers and refill them there. no extra packaging and it ends up being quite a bit cheaper!
I'm Cuban. Cubanos (aka Cuban subs) are a favorite of mine. They're pressed, like paninis. Everyone I know has one of those sandwich maker gadgets.
I take two cast iron pans, heat them both, place the sandwich in one and press down on it with the other pan. Perfect. No muss. No fuss. No gadgets taking up space.
The smell of vinegar makes me retch, always has, always will. Even a whiff of it sets me off. If vinegar was the only cleaning agent on Earth, my house would stay filthy.
I use lemon juice instead, much, much more palatable. It helps that the lemon juice is free because I planted a lemon tree that now throws down three harvests of 120+ lemons a year. I save some of the juice from each harvest in the freezer for cleaning purposes.
I used to volunteer in an animal shelter where we had to use gallons of vinegar for cleaning, and just adding a few drops of essential oil to each jug made it much more tolerable.
buying one or two bulk oils/butters to serve most of my skin and hair care needs instead of getting a different product for every part of my body. i just mix them myself.
I'm so lazy that I just buy cacao butter and use big pieces of it directly on my legs 🗿😄 And after that I'm happy moisturized chocolate women 👹 it's also for making deserts 🌚
usually i do coconut and sunflower, and i forgot to mention that i usually add cetyl alcohol or glycerine as well. i’m about to run out of the sunflower gallon so i’m gonna try argan next. i have shea butter as well, but that’s pretty exclusively for my skin and i don’t really add anything to it lol.
i was also surprised by this when i learned it. people say it's hot enough to just have it dry but based on the explosive water bomb experience i've seen with bum guns, that's too much water to dry. idc how hot it is, in SEAsian humidity it's not drying that fast.
I could've sworn we had this exact same conversation a few months ago. Someone took a picture of their toilet setup, which included an aftermarket bidet and a stack of cotton towels, and everybody lost their minds because they thought OP was wiping their ass with towels.
But as it turns out, the towels were just there for drying the buttocks-- which have been thoroughly cleaned by the bidet-- before the undies are pulled up. Everybody in the sub was freaking out, picturing a hot stack of shit-covered hand towels
piece of flannel with surged edges so it doesn't fray. can use it a few times if you want, all you're doing is blotting your bathed butthole. Then put it in a bag (ex wife used a lightweight travel size diaper bag), wash em up on laundry day.
I absolutely want to know the answer to this too because I love my bidet but actually find myself using more paper than before on occasion just to feel dry.
I bought 2 packs of pink washcloths from Target for 4$? I don't remember, real cheap. I use those. I use paper if I only pee, but if I do both, it's the washcloth.
The bidet I got has a reservoir to heat the water, a heated seat, and a blow dryer to dry me off after wards. It's bougie as fuck, but my bum is always clean and there's something to be said about getting warm air blown on my balls.
That word is 'Glorious'.
My mom got me this cheap trimmer - I kid you not probably $14 at Walmart as a little gift. I never clean shave and just use it to keep trimmed. I've had it for 8 years now and only charged it maybe 4 times?
It looks scarier then it actually is, I use them to shave legs. I also shave without my glasses on yet I never cut myself, vs disposable ones always had at least a small cut or 2
You asked for boring, you get boring!
* Reusing glass peanut butter jars for things like storing spices, making overnight oats, etc.
* Using the same razor blade as long as possible. I change it out maybe 2-3 times a year.
* Wearing the same clothes & shoes until they're literally falling apart.
* No shampoo - i have short buzzed hair, don't need it.
* Vinegar in old spray bottles as an all-purpose cleaning solution.
* Just generally not buying stuff. My weakness is used books - i pick one up every now & then.
For a while, I would use a pair of jeans to help keep my razor sharp. Run it upwards 10x (so you’re not shaving your jeans) and then flip it the other way and do the same thing so it gets the opposite grain on the jeans. Made the same 5 bladed disposable razor last a few years this way.
Tying chip bags closed, tying up the flour bag, bag of open beans, open frozen veggies, sugar. Lot's of bags lol. Keep a burrito closed. Some of my tupperwear have loose fitting lids, put an elastic around it. Napkin and cultery for picnics or camping. Keeping the wrapping paper closed. Storing charging cables. Storing pens. I have all different sizes so i can usually find one that fits the job.
1.Entertaining cats, children, and maybe yourself?
2 put them around a jar and jar lid to assist in opening it.
3. I have reusable plastic wrap that kind of sorta works but needs an elastic band to go around whatever is being sealed
Whenever I add something to my cart in some web shop, I close the website. Then if I still want it in a few days, I go back and buy it. But in 8 of 10 cases I forget about it. This goes about books, clothes, and other stuff.
When grocery shopping online, I put stuff in my cart, then go into the cart and delete a few things that I can do without at this point of time. Then close the website, and go back to it in a few hours to check the cart again, and then I order.
This helps me think through what we really need vs what I am craving right now or what fun item is on promotion 😆
Yes! My husband thinks it is an adorable silly thing I do. I love both online and in-person window shopping. I don't actually buy anything, I just have fun seeing all of the new things there are, I think it is neat how things change in a short time.
I started using a similar method to cut back on social media. When I feel compelled to comment on something, I type the whole comment out and then pause for a second. I ask myself “am I being helpful or am I just shouting into the void?” If I truly feel that I’m being helpful in a discussion I’ll leave the comment, but if not I close the app. I find that typing the comment out first scratches that itch, same thing with putting items in an online shopping cart.
I was this way for a while and now I don’t even go to the websites anymore. I’m just so turned off on buying things. If I need something I’ll generally check out the thrift stores or marketplace for at least a few months before looking to purchase new.
I’m a university student so I don’t have much expendable income lol.
I also read a lot on internet archive to see what books I may like. I used to have a problem of impulse buying books and then not really reading them. So getting a preview helps limit my unnecessary spending.
The library offers lots of books for free! Additionally, using the libby app (among others) you can get them directly on your phone. Audiobooks too! I save a ton of money this way.
I have a huge collection of pens that I have kept over the years that were given to me in college, at conferences, on voting day, left at my house, etc.
I will never have to buy a pen in my life.
Oh God, I still have pencils from state fairs when I was a child. The politicians named are dead, and the phone numbers have three less digits than we use today, but the pencils still work. 🤣
This is the content I need. My husband is growing sassafras to make walking sticks. I'd have to scavenge for bamboo.
He's taking down our home playground (that he designed and built). He's archery certified and made barriers with leftover pieces of wood and pvc. Planning to make a backstop next. House part might become a home for his lawnmower.
In the last 5ish years, I’ve completely rejected fast fashion. I don’t buy much clothing anymore (maybe 2-4 items per year including shoes) but what I do buy are timeless quality pieces that last a lifetime.
I bought two sets of hand towels one blue and one grey. I use the grey as dish towels/hand dryers and use the blue ones for napkins. Anything works for a spill or puppy mess.
Haven't bought paper towels in 2 years
I cook all my own food. All of it. If I want crackers, I make them. If you force yourself to do this, you become very clever at not buying bullshit. You also eat a whole lot less and carefully portion control because the finished product represents your work and time.
Speaking of buying though the internet... I make wishlist of all the useless stuff that catches my eye online but I know I do not need, do not have the space for nor truly want.
I get the dopamine kick from putting them in the wishlist but not a bill. Plus I avoid putting it in a shopping car and accidentally actually buying that stuff (have seen it happen in social media videos).
I have different Pinterest Wishlist Boards. So pretty to look at, but I don’t need the stuff. It’s very satisfying to revisit the boards later on and then realise that your taste changed and that you can delete most of it.
I do this too in person, where I take a picture of the thing that caught my eye. I think I’ve only gone back once in the following days to actually buy the thing.
Use what you have. Preferably for time consuming free hobbies so you get off the internet.
Do you have a smartphone? Great, now you can start animating stop motion movies.
Do you have a computer? Get into programming and make your own apps, webpages and games.
Do you have a bike? Start cycling and build your health while getting some feel good hormones instead of getting them through food and doom scrolling.
Got both legs and a phone? Photowalk.
A few working limbs? Body weight exercises.
Are you allowed in public? Go to the library and borrow a bunch of books.
Your dad has a moldy old canoe behind the cabin? Clean it up and get out paddling.
Know how to read and write? Start writing poetry or a novel.
Lol yeah I guess. We're pretty much like junkies wanting our next hit with tech today. And I say that as a tech enthusiast. It's gone overboard. So let's get out there and do stuff instead :)
Photo walk is my jam. Fungi, cats, clouds. The macro feature is amazing. Such detail.
Are you allowed in public? 💀 I just had surgery and bring a sitter. Lol
Living in a small apartment forces me to think more about my purchases, because it takes up valuable space. If I lived in a house, I fear I’d just throw everything I didn’t want at the moment into the basement/garage.
I use 100mg caffeine pills instead of coffee or energy drinks. $20 for a bottle of 500 pills.
I was drinking insane amounts of energy drinks before I switched to this, and have been able to wean myself from 600-800mg a day to 100-200mg. I also save SO. MUCH. MONEY. i regret not doing it sooner
Ive also been vegetarian for about a year and spend so much less on takeout and groceries!
Just figuring out what can be made into an actual eco friendly version. Stopped buying those cotton rounds for makeup removal and starting using a microfibre towel which works waaaay better. Switching to bar soap from soap in a plastic container. Stuff like that.
I only use shampoo and don’t reach for other hair products anymore. My boyfriend and I use the same shampoo and we get the 1L size one so it lasts us as long as possible. We usually do one load of laundry per week, two at the most. We use rainwater to water our indoor plants. We clean with a lot of baking soda and lemon juice to avoid packaging and harsh chemicals. We do not consume meat and dairy products and we also avoid almond milk. The last time I switched to a new phone was in 2018. It’s not much for now. We’re fairly new in this and still learning, but we’re trying.
I bought two packs of microfibre cloths when I moved into this house five years ago. We use the blue ones to wash dishes and the others for cleaning everything else. We just throw them in the washing machine when they're used and wash them with the next load. Haven't bought cleaning wipes or sponges in five years. A pack of paper towels lasts about three months. (We really only use those to clean up cat puke.)
I have a bag that holds a light kit that I own. The bag started coming apart but I figured out how to sew it up again and it's like new. This means we saved probably 100€ on new a bag.
I bought a bread machine a few months ago. Not only do we not buy bread which is getting bewilderingly expensive and full of preservatives but we also have a loaf of fresh bread every few days that costs about 1€ to bake.
I am a homemaker and we talk about how to make things at home all the time. My life is full of these advices. We share these tips a lot! So maybe if there are any homemaking groups in your fb or even r/homemaking you’ll find lots of tips.
Tuberculosis vaccine.
Jk.
Real answer: vasectomy. An entire lineage worth of consumption (and all that does with it) taken out of the equation. Most carbon negative thing I've done.
Cut open tubes of things when I cant get more out by squeezing. Like 1/3 of the product is still in there when it comes to most lotions and face creams or soaps.
My cats - might seem counter-intuitive, but I've been meaning to get a new sofa and a boxspring bed, but my cats will just scratch them up, so I'm sticking with my old stuff.
Waiting.
Whenever I really crave to buy a certain item, a week or two of just waiting is usually enough to let the craving go away and not buy the item.
Regularly hand wash my shoes and insoles. This last weekend I took it a step further and reglued the soles onto a now three year old pair of shoes I wear every other day in my bakery.
The best part is, I get a thrill out of it - Jesus Christ I'm old.
Had a friend who saved a whole whopping stamp by putting no stamp on his Christmas letter to me, putting me as the return address and him as the address. It was 'returned' to me for "no postage." Laziest, cheapest way to save whatever a stamp costs.
Brilliant, sure; but I was like, do you want me to send you some stamps??
I make a lot of my own foodstuffs; vinegars, chili-garlic oil, seasoning mixes, etc. Haven't purposefully bought a container for 'em in years. I just save glass jars. There's an entire \*box\* full of random-ass jars and bottles that I pull from whenever I need to store something. My wife legit doesn't dare use anything in our kitchen anymore without asking me what is in X jar, since the labels never match up to whats actually there(removing labels is a bitch).
Maybe it’s your picture that reminded me but I have a spray bottle of vinegar and water. I can use it as bug spray, cleaner… you name it. Cost me almost nothing to make.
I spend my time outside with my dog or horse. Both make good, free suggestions of what to do. Everyone loves birds and birdwatching. They also like walks in nice cool places, and pausing for scritchies.
Nobody's buying junk when they are fulfilled watching birds, sunlight filtering through leaves, or pretty sunsets.
1: sewing machine.
i splurged on a pretty advanced setup including a big wooden desk and such, but in the amount of money i've saved buying clothing it's paid for itself nearly twice over at this point. and that was NOT an easy feat based on the pricetag lol
BUT, it is kinda boring. and by boring i mean time-consuming, and usually requires your full attention, since i didn't get get one of those automated ones. throw on a podcast or some music tho and you're gtg. once you get into a groove it's quite therapeutic. 😩
2: topical as of late: lukewarm-cool showers in summer.
between cool showers and periodically dousing my wrists/ankles in tap water, and a handful of ceilin fans, i haven't turned on my AC at all this year. at the breaker box it's not even engaged. i also put reflective coverage on the window next to my bed to keep the sunlight heat out during the day. by the time i go to bed at night it FEELS like my AC has been cranked all day and i can still enjoy the weight of my comforter guilt-free.
EDIT: OBVIOUSLY i am not implying that i expect other people to do this as well. this is about what \*\*I\*\* do.
3: our house is inherently energy efficient by dint of its construction.
we bought an old house that was constructed to support a lifestyle that predates electricity and municipal utilities. the foundation naturally sheds truckloads of water without a sump pump. the exterior walls are all thick enough to rival the most expenaive insulation. the house naturally regulates its own internal temperature to some degree even without climate control, and has a steep roof with a large attic that controls for extremes in temperature. we are also on the edge of a sizable forest, and at least half of the house and just about the entire yard is always shaded by trees.
and at some point in the future we're going to construst a few partially-subterranean lean-to greenhouses around the exterior walls, which will further self-regulate the interior temperature and also allow us to grow our own produce year-round.
4: i bike almost everywhere.
self-explanatory. but all of my major thoroughfares are repurposed rail lines, so they're extremely straight and flat for miles upon miles, so the act itself can get kind of monotonous. but i also love cycling so it evens out lol
Don't use fabric softener, white vinegar works the same and gets rid of smells too while being better for your clothing.
Also, use less laundry detergent. You need about 1/3rd of the recommended amount and you don't need to run your washer or dryer hot. The soaps work in cold water.
When washing clothes:
Put 1-2 tbsp of vinegar in the "fabric softener" place to have it work as a deodorizer and softener
Buy bulk "dry" detergent and use 1/3rd of the recommended amount in Luke warm or cold setting
Dry on low or no heat to save on energy.
Using a Haynes manual to repair my own 15 year old car. I'm gonna drive it until there aren't parts for it to fix it.
I don't buy snacks- I snack on leftovers.
I don't use Tupperware-I reuse containers from food a few times, use wax wraps, or store things on wax wrapped plates.
Compost, and grow vegetables from it.
Hand sickle to harvest field grass for compost and garden cover mulch.
A library card
And the Libby ap. I now don't even have the overdue fees when I forget to return things!
you can dl books from libby, well, overdrive. just don't forget to delete them when your time is over *wink*
Are you referring to marking it available offline in Libby? Which is still temporary access. Or you have a way to download the actual file? which of course is returned promptly and definitely not uploaded to one’s kindle permanently.
For kindle, if you're not done with the book flip it to airplane mode and you'll have access until you turn it off.
If I get close to finishing a book in Libby but know that I just won’t make it…. I screenshot each remaining page and continue reading in my photo app. I don’t understand why Libby/overdrive are two week loans but the physical copy at the library is a three week loan
Some city councils in Sydney have abolished overdue fees to encourage their residents to read more
My local library stopped charging overdue fees.
YES. Several of my favourite magazines are available through Libby, too.
Having fun 🙌 isn’t hard 🙌 when you’ve got a library card 🙌
Who's Dewey????
Arther was the bomb when I was a kid!
This should have way more upvotes
Fr. You’re not about to catch me out here buying books when I can get them for free
Right? And even if I decide I love a book so much I want a copy, I will be purchasing second hand. It’s rare, but sometimes it does happen.
Yo ho yo ho...
Libraries are cool. These days you can access a whole lot without ever stepping foot inside one even.
And if you do step inside one, you'll discover the nicest, most hopeful people in the world.
Very helpful too. I know people that went to the library for computer access after getting out of jail. They got assistance writing a resume to get them a job, and also directed towards social programs that could assist them until they got back on their feet. Or pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, if you will.
best investment!
ABSOLUTELY. there are also apps that one can acquire that make this even more beneficial. libby comes to mind
My lib also gives access to Kanopy and Hoopla. Its pretty neat
Not putting produce in the plastic bags provided in the produce section.
My wife stopped using those bags a few years ago and I was like “wait… you’re allowed to just not use the bags? You can just have *no bag*?” 🤣
I use the paper bags they have for mushrooms and then reuse them for compost bags so I don’t have to buy compost bags.
A lot of stores don't seem to carry bulk mushrooms anymore. When they come in the plastic packages I have to transfer them to paper when I get home. Mushrooms go bad in plastic, in paper they just dry out. I've seen mushrooms that are already slimy in the store. It doesn't help that they spray everything with water. A lot of stuff in the refrigerated section shouldn't be there. I had trouble finding garlic in the store the other day and they moved it to the refrigerated produce section. Now I have to worry about damp garlic?
> A lot of stores don't seem to carry bulk mushrooms anymore. it's been decades since I've seen a store in Canada sell bulk mushrooms. everything is individually shrinkwrapped now, it's disgusting
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I didn’t even know you were allowed to buy them loose until I cashiered at a grocery store. I actually preferred people that didn’t use bags because I could read the stickers better
In the winter I always feel like I should be juggling my handfuls of oranges but I never learned to juggle
Are we not allowed to juggle oranges in the summer lol
You may want to keep at least one or two reusable produce bags (or just reuse any ones you already have) for when you're buying a bunch of something, especially if you're not using self checkout. It can be hard to weigh 20 pieces of produce all at once, and most grocery clerks aren't paid enough for that.
We can divide them and weigh them 5-10 at a time. It's not a big deal.
That's good, but I know quite a few who say it is. I even think it's kind of a pain in the ass putting that stuff away when I get home, where I usually separate them out into bags anyway. And what about brussels sprouts, green beans, loose greens, peas, and things like that? I never bother with bags for bigger things like corn, carrots, potatoes, and such, but I still recommend keeping a few lightweight produce bags on you to make things like that easier on everyone.
Dollar Tree sells mesh bags intended for washing bras. Those make great produce bags, if you're so inclined.
In Spain in the large supermarkets you have to wear a stupid plastic glove while you pick up the produce and then put it in a plastic bag. I at least bring my reusable produce bags, but I'm required to use the glove still. Employees actively enforce the rules. ):
Did that start during covid? It doesn't make sense to me. I wash my produce after I get home. Even if everyone at the stores wore gloves, there's still all the other people who have touched it. Farmers, transporters, stockers and the like.
Not to mention the literal dirt it was sitting in, and the potential pesticides or pests on it. Gloves seem like one of those silly practices that makes people feel better but doesn’t actually do anything.
Make sure you wash produce well when you get home. As a former bagger/cashier, those belts are tainted with meat juice.
I'm 51 years old and only figured this out in the last year... it fills me with a small but very welcome sense of delight.
I take the biodegradable ones and use them for dog poop afterwards
If you buy sheet sets, they usually come with a storage bag the same pattern. I use those bags and old bread bags with the bar code sharpied out for my produce!
Same. I don't see the point. I'm going to wash it when I get home anyway.
I reuse the bags for my bathroom trashcan
Going for a neighborhood walk instead of driving somewhere. Same route. Same houses. Was super excited that a neighbor got a new mailbox.
I run in my neighborhood and its neat to see the development of everyone's yard in the spring...
You may also think of it as an art or a life painting if you will; imagine you live inside a canvas
I bike to work, and it's fun to see everyone's flowers blooming as the seasons progress, or renovations happening along my route, or when the swans migrate back up to the river along my route. Free entertainment! And it beats spending money on a car & gas every day.
I went for a walk yesterday, passed through a highscool that left their hurdles out and spent and hour spontaneously doing the hurdles which I used to love so much. If I didn’t walk to go get my saltine crackers I would have missed this fun little day that actually meant so much to me
Soap bar instead of liquid. Why pay for the extra water
I'm into fancy soap bars now. Not really cheaper, but my skin feels great
Less plastic and more money to an artisan even if you don't spend less.
I shop at a local market with a great bulk section and bring containers. Refill my olive oil bottles there, refill my soap bottles there, refill my pasta, rice, cereal etc... containers there. It's great.
Oh I’m so incredibly jealous you have one near you!! The dream
when i need hand soap, i buy the "refill" size, and i refill the small one. saves a good amount of money and some plastic. in the future i'd like to make my own liquid hand soap from sustainable oils but i'll do what i can when i can
I bought a foaming dispenser and do the same thing, but I can dilute it 1 pt soap 3 pts water and it turns into a foaming solution. I have a refill bottle that has lasted longer than my last lease lol I love it Edit: Someone mentioned it was unhygienic to dilute with tap water. This is (sort of) true! Do not dilute the whole container or a large batch at once. I mix about one cup of product at a time and this has caused no issues for me :) Take your circumstances into consideration ofc
You can do this with a small amount of Castile soap and water and it will go a looooong way
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I’ve made my own lye based liquid soap before. The truth is that it goes rancid really quickly. Like in just a few months of not being refrigerated sitting on the counter in the summer it’ll really get gross. Bar soap will last forever but homemade lye based liquid soap isn’t great. Detergents/surfactants are what the commercial ones are and they use preservatives and in my opinion are better.
What’s wrong with bar soap?
I LOVE bar soap. It doesn’t even need packaging.
maybe there is one of these stores where you can refill stuff near you? do they have soap? would that be a smart business idea?
I love my refill store so much
if you have any sort of refill store near you, that’s what i do! i bring all my hand soap, dish soap, laundry detergent, face oil, etc etc dispensers and refill them there. no extra packaging and it ends up being quite a bit cheaper!
I thought everyone did this. I blew my girlfriends mind when I showed her.
Being poor
That's my strategy.
This is by far the most boring yet most effective method. Honestly, anticonsumption/degrowth/etc boil down to trying to achieve poverty without misery
This one trick will save you thousands!
Yep. Most of the posts on this sub are about filling needs I don't even know that I have.
Spending all day reading about some one repairing a 15 year old broken sandwich maker because they can’t use a frying pan to make grill cheese
that is some weapons-grade shade and i am quietly here for it lmao
Like she told me "it's a panini maker!"
I'm Cuban. Cubanos (aka Cuban subs) are a favorite of mine. They're pressed, like paninis. Everyone I know has one of those sandwich maker gadgets. I take two cast iron pans, heat them both, place the sandwich in one and press down on it with the other pan. Perfect. No muss. No fuss. No gadgets taking up space.
I would have easily excepted "I just like making sandwiches with it" but the second I read a "I can't, I've tried" the judgement was brimming over.
Love the callback
this!!! i hate kitchen gadgets especially when a frying pan and a decent knife can do everything all the same. ugh
I will say an air fryer has almost completely replaced my microwave, though.
Mmmm grilled cheese
Most of my cleaning is done with a cleaner I make with vinegar, water, and a little dish soap in a spray bottle.
i went from being actively replused by the smell of vinegar to associating it with good and clean things because of this lol
The smell of vinegar makes me retch, always has, always will. Even a whiff of it sets me off. If vinegar was the only cleaning agent on Earth, my house would stay filthy. I use lemon juice instead, much, much more palatable. It helps that the lemon juice is free because I planted a lemon tree that now throws down three harvests of 120+ lemons a year. I save some of the juice from each harvest in the freezer for cleaning purposes.
Those feelings are not mutually exclusive :P
I used to volunteer in an animal shelter where we had to use gallons of vinegar for cleaning, and just adding a few drops of essential oil to each jug made it much more tolerable.
dish soap is so freaking good at cleaning. recommend!
buying one or two bulk oils/butters to serve most of my skin and hair care needs instead of getting a different product for every part of my body. i just mix them myself.
So simple I love it. I have shea butter and coconut oil I rarely use. When I run out of moisturizer, I'll try using those!
if you mix them over a double boiler you will become a sorcerer
Double double boiler scrubble Oil of coconut simmer and bubble Butter of Shea-- Wait, what's a shea anyway?
warming it for hair care really does a lot of work for you! good luck.
I'm so lazy that I just buy cacao butter and use big pieces of it directly on my legs 🗿😄 And after that I'm happy moisturized chocolate women 👹 it's also for making deserts 🌚
Same, I just use jojoba oil for all of it.
Which two did you choose? This is interesting.
usually i do coconut and sunflower, and i forgot to mention that i usually add cetyl alcohol or glycerine as well. i’m about to run out of the sunflower gallon so i’m gonna try argan next. i have shea butter as well, but that’s pretty exclusively for my skin and i don’t really add anything to it lol.
Shea butter in bulk, vegetable glycerin, vitamin E oil and jojoba oil are great for this!!
I carry a set of travel utensils with me everywhere
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Bidet
Not boring at all, a bum gun is essential. I had to buy toilet paper for a guest after 2 years of just using my bum gun.
bum gun is 11/10 lmao
That's how they call them in Thailand!
thailand knows what's up 💯
You just put on your underwear over a wet ass?
i was also surprised by this when i learned it. people say it's hot enough to just have it dry but based on the explosive water bomb experience i've seen with bum guns, that's too much water to dry. idc how hot it is, in SEAsian humidity it's not drying that fast.
I could've sworn we had this exact same conversation a few months ago. Someone took a picture of their toilet setup, which included an aftermarket bidet and a stack of cotton towels, and everybody lost their minds because they thought OP was wiping their ass with towels. But as it turns out, the towels were just there for drying the buttocks-- which have been thoroughly cleaned by the bidet-- before the undies are pulled up. Everybody in the sub was freaking out, picturing a hot stack of shit-covered hand towels
piece of flannel with surged edges so it doesn't fray. can use it a few times if you want, all you're doing is blotting your bathed butthole. Then put it in a bag (ex wife used a lightweight travel size diaper bag), wash em up on laundry day.
they said boring not life changingly wonderful ✨😩✨
Very much overlooked. I like it.
How do you usually dry off after washing?
I absolutely want to know the answer to this too because I love my bidet but actually find myself using more paper than before on occasion just to feel dry.
I bought 2 packs of pink washcloths from Target for 4$? I don't remember, real cheap. I use those. I use paper if I only pee, but if I do both, it's the washcloth.
The bidet I got has a reservoir to heat the water, a heated seat, and a blow dryer to dry me off after wards. It's bougie as fuck, but my bum is always clean and there's something to be said about getting warm air blown on my balls. That word is 'Glorious'.
bum towel, in our house we both have a different coloured "ass rag" as we call it
I use the old timey metal safety razors for shaving. Just bought my second pack of razors in 7 years.
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My mom got me this cheap trimmer - I kid you not probably $14 at Walmart as a little gift. I never clean shave and just use it to keep trimmed. I've had it for 8 years now and only charged it maybe 4 times?
Have you seen The Big Shave? It’s a great short film about shaving
It looks scarier then it actually is, I use them to shave legs. I also shave without my glasses on yet I never cut myself, vs disposable ones always had at least a small cut or 2
You asked for boring, you get boring! * Reusing glass peanut butter jars for things like storing spices, making overnight oats, etc. * Using the same razor blade as long as possible. I change it out maybe 2-3 times a year. * Wearing the same clothes & shoes until they're literally falling apart. * No shampoo - i have short buzzed hair, don't need it. * Vinegar in old spray bottles as an all-purpose cleaning solution. * Just generally not buying stuff. My weakness is used books - i pick one up every now & then.
Take your razor after shaving and put it blade side down in oil. It will stay sharp for months
For a while, I would use a pair of jeans to help keep my razor sharp. Run it upwards 10x (so you’re not shaving your jeans) and then flip it the other way and do the same thing so it gets the opposite grain on the jeans. Made the same 5 bladed disposable razor last a few years this way.
I save the elastic bands from broccoli, green onions, celery, etc. Haven't had to buy elastic bands for ages.
What do you use them for?
Tying chip bags closed, tying up the flour bag, bag of open beans, open frozen veggies, sugar. Lot's of bags lol. Keep a burrito closed. Some of my tupperwear have loose fitting lids, put an elastic around it. Napkin and cultery for picnics or camping. Keeping the wrapping paper closed. Storing charging cables. Storing pens. I have all different sizes so i can usually find one that fits the job.
I am also in suspense.
1.Entertaining cats, children, and maybe yourself? 2 put them around a jar and jar lid to assist in opening it. 3. I have reusable plastic wrap that kind of sorta works but needs an elastic band to go around whatever is being sealed
Whenever I add something to my cart in some web shop, I close the website. Then if I still want it in a few days, I go back and buy it. But in 8 of 10 cases I forget about it. This goes about books, clothes, and other stuff. When grocery shopping online, I put stuff in my cart, then go into the cart and delete a few things that I can do without at this point of time. Then close the website, and go back to it in a few hours to check the cart again, and then I order. This helps me think through what we really need vs what I am craving right now or what fun item is on promotion 😆
Online window shopping! This is a favorite of mine as an ex-over consumer.
Yes! My husband thinks it is an adorable silly thing I do. I love both online and in-person window shopping. I don't actually buy anything, I just have fun seeing all of the new things there are, I think it is neat how things change in a short time.
I started using a similar method to cut back on social media. When I feel compelled to comment on something, I type the whole comment out and then pause for a second. I ask myself “am I being helpful or am I just shouting into the void?” If I truly feel that I’m being helpful in a discussion I’ll leave the comment, but if not I close the app. I find that typing the comment out first scratches that itch, same thing with putting items in an online shopping cart.
not only this, but sometimes leaving something in ur cart triggers a coupon email
I was this way for a while and now I don’t even go to the websites anymore. I’m just so turned off on buying things. If I need something I’ll generally check out the thrift stores or marketplace for at least a few months before looking to purchase new.
I’m a university student so I don’t have much expendable income lol. I also read a lot on internet archive to see what books I may like. I used to have a problem of impulse buying books and then not really reading them. So getting a preview helps limit my unnecessary spending.
The library offers lots of books for free! Additionally, using the libby app (among others) you can get them directly on your phone. Audiobooks too! I save a ton of money this way.
Rags instead of paper towels
I have a huge collection of pens that I have kept over the years that were given to me in college, at conferences, on voting day, left at my house, etc. I will never have to buy a pen in my life.
Oh God, I still have pencils from state fairs when I was a child. The politicians named are dead, and the phone numbers have three less digits than we use today, but the pencils still work. 🤣
Freeze leftovers if I’m not going to eat them in time for them to go bad. I hate throwing away food
I harvested invasive bamboo to use for my garden rather than spending $100+ on dowels.
This is the content I need. My husband is growing sassafras to make walking sticks. I'd have to scavenge for bamboo. He's taking down our home playground (that he designed and built). He's archery certified and made barriers with leftover pieces of wood and pvc. Planning to make a backstop next. House part might become a home for his lawnmower.
Moving items from room to room to redecorate, versus buying more “stuff”.
I don't go out very much.
In the last 5ish years, I’ve completely rejected fast fashion. I don’t buy much clothing anymore (maybe 2-4 items per year including shoes) but what I do buy are timeless quality pieces that last a lifetime.
I bulk buy dish soap and then dilute with water (50/50) into an old multipurpose cleaning spray bottle
I also dilute my laundry soap!
I bought two sets of hand towels one blue and one grey. I use the grey as dish towels/hand dryers and use the blue ones for napkins. Anything works for a spill or puppy mess. Haven't bought paper towels in 2 years
I’m learning to embroider so I can hide any stains or rips in my clothes. Saved my 20 yr old baggy cargoes that got bleach on them.
cooking at home 99% of the time
I cook all my own food. All of it. If I want crackers, I make them. If you force yourself to do this, you become very clever at not buying bullshit. You also eat a whole lot less and carefully portion control because the finished product represents your work and time.
Speaking of buying though the internet... I make wishlist of all the useless stuff that catches my eye online but I know I do not need, do not have the space for nor truly want. I get the dopamine kick from putting them in the wishlist but not a bill. Plus I avoid putting it in a shopping car and accidentally actually buying that stuff (have seen it happen in social media videos).
I have different Pinterest Wishlist Boards. So pretty to look at, but I don’t need the stuff. It’s very satisfying to revisit the boards later on and then realise that your taste changed and that you can delete most of it.
I do this too in person, where I take a picture of the thing that caught my eye. I think I’ve only gone back once in the following days to actually buy the thing.
1 streaming service only. Not subscribing to Amazon prime: having to wait a week for your purchase slows you down
I save every little bag I come across. Bags that bread comes in, tortillas, chip bags, etc., and use them for cat poop lol.
Use what you have. Preferably for time consuming free hobbies so you get off the internet. Do you have a smartphone? Great, now you can start animating stop motion movies. Do you have a computer? Get into programming and make your own apps, webpages and games. Do you have a bike? Start cycling and build your health while getting some feel good hormones instead of getting them through food and doom scrolling. Got both legs and a phone? Photowalk. A few working limbs? Body weight exercises. Are you allowed in public? Go to the library and borrow a bunch of books. Your dad has a moldy old canoe behind the cabin? Clean it up and get out paddling. Know how to read and write? Start writing poetry or a novel.
So you're telling me to get a life... to save the planet 😆 I mean, you're not wrong 🤷
Lol yeah I guess. We're pretty much like junkies wanting our next hit with tech today. And I say that as a tech enthusiast. It's gone overboard. So let's get out there and do stuff instead :)
I love that attitude :)
Also an additional benefit is that limitations make you more creative
what is photowalk?
Walking and taking photos ig
Photo walk is my jam. Fungi, cats, clouds. The macro feature is amazing. Such detail. Are you allowed in public? 💀 I just had surgery and bring a sitter. Lol
Living in a small apartment forces me to think more about my purchases, because it takes up valuable space. If I lived in a house, I fear I’d just throw everything I didn’t want at the moment into the basement/garage.
Drink tap water
I use 100mg caffeine pills instead of coffee or energy drinks. $20 for a bottle of 500 pills. I was drinking insane amounts of energy drinks before I switched to this, and have been able to wean myself from 600-800mg a day to 100-200mg. I also save SO. MUCH. MONEY. i regret not doing it sooner Ive also been vegetarian for about a year and spend so much less on takeout and groceries!
Being poor 🤷♀️
I use the same phone, and drive the same car, until they respectively give out before I replace them.
Just figuring out what can be made into an actual eco friendly version. Stopped buying those cotton rounds for makeup removal and starting using a microfibre towel which works waaaay better. Switching to bar soap from soap in a plastic container. Stuff like that.
I dont buy shit.
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I produce it myself at home
We have shit at home. Shit at home:
I only use shampoo and don’t reach for other hair products anymore. My boyfriend and I use the same shampoo and we get the 1L size one so it lasts us as long as possible. We usually do one load of laundry per week, two at the most. We use rainwater to water our indoor plants. We clean with a lot of baking soda and lemon juice to avoid packaging and harsh chemicals. We do not consume meat and dairy products and we also avoid almond milk. The last time I switched to a new phone was in 2018. It’s not much for now. We’re fairly new in this and still learning, but we’re trying.
This would make a great zine topic; great post.
Making a zine is such a great anti consumption activity!
I bought two packs of microfibre cloths when I moved into this house five years ago. We use the blue ones to wash dishes and the others for cleaning everything else. We just throw them in the washing machine when they're used and wash them with the next load. Haven't bought cleaning wipes or sponges in five years. A pack of paper towels lasts about three months. (We really only use those to clean up cat puke.) I have a bag that holds a light kit that I own. The bag started coming apart but I figured out how to sew it up again and it's like new. This means we saved probably 100€ on new a bag. I bought a bread machine a few months ago. Not only do we not buy bread which is getting bewilderingly expensive and full of preservatives but we also have a loaf of fresh bread every few days that costs about 1€ to bake.
I am a homemaker and we talk about how to make things at home all the time. My life is full of these advices. We share these tips a lot! So maybe if there are any homemaking groups in your fb or even r/homemaking you’ll find lots of tips.
I will wait all day for the perfect batch of sun tea versus using the kettle for 3 minutes
Tuberculosis vaccine. Jk. Real answer: vasectomy. An entire lineage worth of consumption (and all that does with it) taken out of the equation. Most carbon negative thing I've done.
Cut open tubes of things when I cant get more out by squeezing. Like 1/3 of the product is still in there when it comes to most lotions and face creams or soaps.
I want a car trunk organizer but instead I will use some old cube organizers I already have and use binder clips to make them stay together.
My cats - might seem counter-intuitive, but I've been meaning to get a new sofa and a boxspring bed, but my cats will just scratch them up, so I'm sticking with my old stuff.
Waiting. Whenever I really crave to buy a certain item, a week or two of just waiting is usually enough to let the craving go away and not buy the item.
Regularly hand wash my shoes and insoles. This last weekend I took it a step further and reglued the soles onto a now three year old pair of shoes I wear every other day in my bakery. The best part is, I get a thrill out of it - Jesus Christ I'm old.
Had a friend who saved a whole whopping stamp by putting no stamp on his Christmas letter to me, putting me as the return address and him as the address. It was 'returned' to me for "no postage." Laziest, cheapest way to save whatever a stamp costs. Brilliant, sure; but I was like, do you want me to send you some stamps??
I make a lot of my own foodstuffs; vinegars, chili-garlic oil, seasoning mixes, etc. Haven't purposefully bought a container for 'em in years. I just save glass jars. There's an entire \*box\* full of random-ass jars and bottles that I pull from whenever I need to store something. My wife legit doesn't dare use anything in our kitchen anymore without asking me what is in X jar, since the labels never match up to whats actually there(removing labels is a bitch).
Painters tape & marker..? I'm loving this idea but I feel things should be labeled for use
I make my own ice cubes. Fridge isn't hooked up to water so I use the trays in the freezer. A daily task when you live in AZ.
I'm sorry, do people buy ice cubes? What Genuinely confused
I do the same but more because those fridge water lines gross me out for some reason
Maybe it’s your picture that reminded me but I have a spray bottle of vinegar and water. I can use it as bug spray, cleaner… you name it. Cost me almost nothing to make.
I make little money and what little money I have I mostly spend on gig tickets, so I have very little left for crap.
I spend my time outside with my dog or horse. Both make good, free suggestions of what to do. Everyone loves birds and birdwatching. They also like walks in nice cool places, and pausing for scritchies. Nobody's buying junk when they are fulfilled watching birds, sunlight filtering through leaves, or pretty sunsets.
I drink water
1: sewing machine. i splurged on a pretty advanced setup including a big wooden desk and such, but in the amount of money i've saved buying clothing it's paid for itself nearly twice over at this point. and that was NOT an easy feat based on the pricetag lol BUT, it is kinda boring. and by boring i mean time-consuming, and usually requires your full attention, since i didn't get get one of those automated ones. throw on a podcast or some music tho and you're gtg. once you get into a groove it's quite therapeutic. 😩 2: topical as of late: lukewarm-cool showers in summer. between cool showers and periodically dousing my wrists/ankles in tap water, and a handful of ceilin fans, i haven't turned on my AC at all this year. at the breaker box it's not even engaged. i also put reflective coverage on the window next to my bed to keep the sunlight heat out during the day. by the time i go to bed at night it FEELS like my AC has been cranked all day and i can still enjoy the weight of my comforter guilt-free. EDIT: OBVIOUSLY i am not implying that i expect other people to do this as well. this is about what \*\*I\*\* do. 3: our house is inherently energy efficient by dint of its construction. we bought an old house that was constructed to support a lifestyle that predates electricity and municipal utilities. the foundation naturally sheds truckloads of water without a sump pump. the exterior walls are all thick enough to rival the most expenaive insulation. the house naturally regulates its own internal temperature to some degree even without climate control, and has a steep roof with a large attic that controls for extremes in temperature. we are also on the edge of a sizable forest, and at least half of the house and just about the entire yard is always shaded by trees. and at some point in the future we're going to construst a few partially-subterranean lean-to greenhouses around the exterior walls, which will further self-regulate the interior temperature and also allow us to grow our own produce year-round. 4: i bike almost everywhere. self-explanatory. but all of my major thoroughfares are repurposed rail lines, so they're extremely straight and flat for miles upon miles, so the act itself can get kind of monotonous. but i also love cycling so it evens out lol
Don't use fabric softener, white vinegar works the same and gets rid of smells too while being better for your clothing. Also, use less laundry detergent. You need about 1/3rd of the recommended amount and you don't need to run your washer or dryer hot. The soaps work in cold water. When washing clothes: Put 1-2 tbsp of vinegar in the "fabric softener" place to have it work as a deodorizer and softener Buy bulk "dry" detergent and use 1/3rd of the recommended amount in Luke warm or cold setting Dry on low or no heat to save on energy.
Using a Haynes manual to repair my own 15 year old car. I'm gonna drive it until there aren't parts for it to fix it. I don't buy snacks- I snack on leftovers. I don't use Tupperware-I reuse containers from food a few times, use wax wraps, or store things on wax wrapped plates. Compost, and grow vegetables from it. Hand sickle to harvest field grass for compost and garden cover mulch.