Simple

A girl, a boy, a dog - trying to live with less.

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Moved!

Hello, friends! We are officially moved into the new place. Stay tuned for some photos, updates, and zero-waste tips.

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Home

Can I tell you about my new apartment, friends? I got the keys yesterday and spent a few hours there. Cleaning some (already clean) surfaces, lining the shelves with contact paper, and taping off the walls I’m going to paint white. Long after I ran out of supplies to do those things, I laid on the living room floor.  I’m ready to move. I’m ready to craft the perfect space to relax and work in. For so long my apartment has felt like a prison. A place I didn’t choose in a city I don’t love. At least now I have the first half. 

Is it naive to think that this new apartment will solve my restlessness and loneliness? Definitely. But I’m a cancerian and we value and cherish our homes and friends above all else.  Maybe if I can make this a lovely place to live, then the rest can be a little easier. 

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Zero Waste Plans

We’ve fallen off the wagon hard, folks.  The other day Boyfriend and I drove out to the market after a long day of work with only an hour before close. We stockpiled the groceries only to realize at checkout...we forgot our reusable bags. And they didn’t offer paper.  Both of us felt pretty terrible hauling the food out of the trunk. It sucked, but it was also a major wake up call. We both care about the environment and its too late to go back to our old ways. We get the keys to the new place in 4 days! We anticipate two days of painting an two days of furniture hauling, then we’ll be in for good. Here are my plans to get us up and running again:

1. Sign up for Compost Wheels - a compost pickup service. If you are an Atlanta local, check them out.

2. Create a recycle sorting center. Right now we only have a spare garbage bin that we use. I’d like to print a graphic of how to properly sort our recyclables and have separate bins for each kind of waste.  3. Implement water saving accessories to our existing appliances. I’ll do a post about that for y’all!

4. Winterize the apartment for the upcoming ‘cold’ season in Georgia. I will also do a post about this.

5. Set up our indoor clothesline and kick the dryer to the curb! 

[pimlicoroad]

[simpleblogsimplelife]

When Zero Waste is Wasteful

I saw someone share a post the other day that criticized the Zero Waste community - and it was a fair criticism. Basically, the idea was that Zero Wasters appear to toss out everything they own and repurchase new items when they transition, which is wasteful! I understand where this idea comes from. When you see beautiful images of color-coordinated ‘zero waste kits’ and look at lists of use-this-not-this, it really can feel like the community is suggesting you trash your current lifestyle and rain down money on a new set of tools.  I am guilty of donating things and repurchasing a similar item later. It happens. I have a nagging voice of consumerism that tells me ‘if you are going to be using X for the next few YEARS do you really want this ugly old one? Why not treat yourself to something timeless? After all, you never get to buy a new one ever againnnnnn’. Sometimes I fight it. Sometimes I slip. No matter what the struggle or the stigma, going zero waste does NOT really mean that you should make this massive overhaul of what you own. In fact, you really should re-use and re purpose the materials you have at your disposal. I made reusable shopping bags out of old t-shirts I was going to donate instead of buying fancy canvas ones. I’m using a steel coffee mug I got for free a year ago when I was a barista. I don’t need ‘travel’ utensils for my lunch - I just bring some of my normal silverware and wrap them in napkin that was previously a dishcloth. Mason jars? Well, my grandma sends me canned goods so I already had a lot, but I also buy canned pasta sauce, salad dressings, pickles, and condiments in glass containers and use those. These are things I buy whether I need jars or not. It’s ridiculous to go buy food I wouldn’t normally buy just for the sake of having jars.  We used to buy paper products in massive bulk at Costco. I still have endless rolls of paper towel and toilet paper in our pantry. You bet your sweet ass I’m using every last bit of that paper! Why would I throw it out and not use it if I already bought it? Same goes for our not-so-eco-friendly laundry detergent, my disposable razors, paper personal hygiene products, and more! The idea is that I will purchase a more sustainable alternative after these disposable items have already been used to their fullest potential.  I am. personally, most guilty of adding to waste when it comes to home decor and clothing. I like to overhaul my house and my wardrobe fairly regularly. As a result, I’m using my boyfriend as a buffer to help me snap out of the habit. Yeah, I want a new coffee table, but I don’t need it. I am not allowed to purchase a replacement unless I find the ‘perfect’ table, pre-owned, under a certain price range. Then I agree to keep the table for 3 years. (Spoiler: this did just happen, so I’m getting my craigslist table and we are selling our current one). The goal is to try and beat the consumerism monster, be content with less, and reduce my impact on the environment whenever possible. That doesn’t mean I am suddenly void of my desire to make things ‘cute’ or to go for a certain aesthetic. It just means I might be spending a long time building up to that ‘look’ and I’ll need to find sustainable, cost-effective (for my income level) ways to do that. We aren’t perfect - all we can do is try.

[pimlicoroad]

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Skin care

I am at my wit’s end with natural skin care products. I had really clear skin for quite a while using Lush’s Fresh Pharmacy solid soap bar paired with a few random drugstore moisturizers (prior to my zero waste change). BUT then I tired a non-hormonal birth control for a year and my body exploded. Face, back, chest....you get the idea.  Now that I’m back on a hormonal treatment I thought my acne would get better. I’ve been using a clay face bar, some LUSH masks, and sweet almond oil to moisturize. Nothing. Is. Working. Baking soda paste, honey spot treatments, lavender soaps, coconut oil... hell I even tried doing nothing but water for a month. I’ve still got clogged pores, cystic breakouts, and blackheads in every crevice. I’m really considering buying a Clarisonic and trying Clinique’s 3-step program because of the good reviews....but is it worth it? That’s a lot of plastic and a lot of manufactured chemicals. Is this considered health over environment or am I being vain? 

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Energy Saving Products

I’m arming myself with energy and water saving devices for our new home! So far I have some faucet aerators, toilet tank water displacement bag and flow re director, and an energy saver power strip. I’ll do individual posts about all of these items and how you can also use them to save energy! I might also do some weather-proofing on the windows.

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Update on Moving

Looks like we’re staying in the ATL for another year, at least. The Boyfriend got hired into his internship! We will be moving to a new apartment complex in two weeks, since our lease here is up. I’m excited to share my new space with you all and get back into the swing of minimalism and zero waste living. I’ll also be testing out our new fancy indoor clothesline!

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Buffalo Exchange

Visited an amazing new consignment shop today called Buffalo Exchange!  You can donate your gently used clothing in exchange for store credit and then use it to shop their secondhand wares. Or you could just shop!  I was extremely happy when I checked out with my two new black shirts (a relaxed fit T and a ‘cold shoulder’ long sleeve) - and the cashier explained that they don’t hand out plastic bags! Instead, they give you a token that represents the 5 cents you would have spent on the bag and you can drop the token into 1 of 3 rotating charity donation boxes.  I donated my 5 cents towards the Chattahoochee River cleanup efforts. :) 

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Incoming Product Review

If you live an apartment lifestyle, you probably already know that hanging clothes to dry is a pain. There isn’t enough room for an indoor line. Your drying rack isn’t cutting it for both you and your partner. You’ve used every doorknob, chair cornet\r, and available clean surfaces to hold up your clothes and now you can’t do things like open the refrigerator or the front door. Arrrrrgh. I’ll be honest, I’ve just been using our dryer. We do have a balcony but it tends to be infested with bees or wasps and gets a lot of dust and debris from the uncomfortably close highway. (Besides, I’m not too keen on the entire world seeing my delicates as they drive by).  While browsing Amazon I happened to stumble across this beauty, which seemed to be an answer to all of my indoor-line-drying-woes!  It boasts up to 40 feet of indoor drying space on its’ four retractable clothes lines. It comes fully assembled, claims to hold 5 lbs per line, and is apparently easy to install. I purchased it immediately. Now, I know impulse buys are frowned upon in minimalism and online purchases aren’t the most eco-friendly...but I’m hoping this will help shut off our dryer for good. Stay tuned!

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Meat Shopping Help?

Someone please tell me where in Atlanta I can purchase cuts of meat wrapped in butcher paper and NO PLASTIC. I’m so very, very, very tired of arguing. Places that don’t do this: Sprouts, Whole Foods, Dekalb Farmers Market, Walmart, Kroger

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Compostable Containers

The Boyfriend and I visited a new restaurant for breakfast. Unfortunately, they don’t plate their food during the busy weekends and only serve in to-go containers. We opted to get our food in one container to share, and I skipped on the coffee since I didn’t bring my own mug. The cool thing was that the containers were compostable, made of sugar can, and produced locally! I was disappointed that the place didn’t have a compost container, but we brought ours home and put it in the recycling instead. 

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Small Successes

I dined out at a lovely Mexican restaurant for lunch. I remembered to pack my silverware, napkin, and coffee mug, so I was able to eat waste free! The waiter was perplexed at how I was eating without opening their silverware roll, but I didn’t explain.

[birdasaurus]

Kelly Brown

[simpleblogsimplelife]

Zero Waste Struggles

I made my first attempt at using my own containers at the meat counter. I ended up having to speak with a manager, and although they agreed to let me do this, they weren’t happy. I left without buying everything I needed because I was emotionally exhausted from trying so hard.

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Zero Waste + Minimalism Update

I know I haven’t been blogging a lot about my Zero Waste adventures or my minimalism. Honestly it’s because me and The Boyfriend are still in limbo on our housing situation. Are we moving? Where to? When?  These are the questions on our mind. Over half our things have been boxed up for a month and I’m starting to get to the point where I’m digging through to get out my “occasional use” items because I’m needing to use them. While this is an indicator that I’ve only kept things I truly need, it is also very frustrating.  We are still producing too much waste. The giant supply of Costco paper towels is dwindling, and once it goes there will be no more. Our bulk laundry detergent is also nearly empty and I’ve got a DIY replacement on the bench. I’m planning to give the detergent canister a good sanitizing and a test drive to see if it can be used as a water distributor for camping trips.  Unfortunately we don’t have access to affordable milk in non-plastic containers, and I won’t be giving up my dairy. I do plan on trying to use our own containers for meat when we go to the market this week, though. I’ll give you an update on that. 

Nothing terribly exciting for us! I did inform the family that my gift-giving and receiving criteria for the holidays has changed. Everyone was very receptive and assured me that they would still feel loved if I gave them gift cards, experiences, home made gifts, or edible goods. Also no qualms to be heard about the no-wrapping policy!  OH! I did decorate my house for Mabon. I’m using scented pine cones and an orange-spice potpourri I made myself. Also have some fake leaves I use every year to spruce it up a bit.