Top 10 Zero Waste Product Swaps!

Zero Waste product swaps have become very trendy across the U.S., especially in the last few years. But what exactly is Zero Waste?

Zero waste in my simple terms (pun ?) is the simplifying of your life by reducing your intake, output, and footprint on the world. Living a truly zero waste lifestyle can be challenging and diving in full force may not be the best plan as the majority of people get overwhelmed and soon fall right back into old patterns.

However, that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be attempted! Let me preface by saying that I have 3 kids and 100% zero waste just doesn’t work for our life at the moment, but we have taken baby steps and now we’ve made some really nice changes! I’m proud of all the hard work that my family and I have put in to try to reduce!

I KNOW that some of you are in the same position as I am and being so much like me I thought you all would appreciate a list of some of my favorite zero waste product swaps! Switching out these products were some of our first steps. They are simple and I felt like I wasn’t buying into the hype of the easy throw aways that are so convenient these days. All of my pictures have links to amazon products that I’ve either used personally or that have been recommended! So let’s get this list started!

Disclaimer: This post contains some affiliate links. This means that if you click on the links and purchase the items, I will receive a small affiliate commission at zero cost to you. All of the opinions on this post are my own.

1. Zero Waste Shampoo Bars

One of my favorite swaps has been switching to a shampoo bar. This product looks like a bar of soap, but it’s targeted for you hair. Here’s my favorite! It’s by the company Ethique, and, after some research, I decided that Heali Kiwi was the flavor for me. Personal bonus is that it rates a “2” on E.W.G. (more on E.W.G. below). You should check them out!

After dissecting my life piece by piece, taking my time, I found out about an app (and site) called E.W.G. or Environmental Working Group. Go get this app. It’s been so helpful! Within this app there is a mainframe of information about product and food ingredients. This organization has gotten into the nitty gritty of some of our favorite products, and they have created a system that rates products on a letter and number scale. They break down the ingredients helping you to better understand what all those crazy long words are as well as how they could potential be affecting your health.

Ok, back to the shampoo, so whenever I looked into the shampoo that I’d been using for the past 10 years I was disgusted by what I found. Knowledge can be powerful, my friend.

2.No-Paper Paper Towels

Here’s another easy swap. These towels are excellent for reducing your waste! Seriously, I don’t know why I was so addicted to paper towels. Once I swapped to these small cotton towels I became intensely aware of how my instinct was to grab a paper towel at the least little bit of anything (because I’m a clean freak). Switching to paper towels was a great wake up call to my waste. I’m still a clean freak, but I’m more conscientious of my paper towel or napkin use. I still have some paper towels level, but I save those for the truly horrible stuff.

3.Safety Razors

I use to use a standard Gillette or whatever was on the market. It was nothing fancy, but I tried to be environmentally conscious and would buy those with at least a replaceable head. Switching my razor wasn’t really on my radar. I didn’t even think about it! Let me tell you it’s been a game changer. I love the way my safety razor feels. It glides well and cuts close! Even my husband loves this thing!

4. Glassware

During my zero waste beginnings, my kitchen glared at me like a black hole of waste…and plastic (I’ll get to that in another post). I became deliberate to weed out the unnecessary. I donated a ton to my church and friends who needed, but I also was resolved to use it up. Remember it’s just as wasteful to ditch what you already have just to buy something new.

I totally understand that once that revelation hits you of exactly what you’ve been using it can be so tempting to shriek and throw it out! But the way I see it is that I’m not exactly changing my “garbage first” habit if I do that. “Well then, recycle!” you might say. What you’ll soon learn is that recycling in the zero waste community is a actually more of a last resort. Mind you it’s still helpful, but there are several restrictions.

People end up being backed up against a wall and in true flight or fight will often choose convenience. My steps are buy good quality, use it up, donate if it happens to be still usable, and if not then recycle it. My plastic-ware was no different. It was everywhere, and it was incredibly worn out. By switching to glassware I was able to not only reduce waste, but also reduce the possible leaching of plastic into our food.

5.Zero Waste Metal and Silicone Straws

I know the whole straw thing was a stink for a lot of people. Primarily because people started shaming and punishing those who chose differently. This type of bullying will never be found in my posts…because it doesn’t work. Not for true change anyways. I want to inspire and lift people up to a higher potential – not tear them down. Choosing metal or silicone straws is an easy, zippy change that doesn’t require a lot of forethought. I keep mine in my car which is where I need them the most. It’s been so easy, and the kiddos think they’re fun! And I can’t stop talking about how good you’ll feel in you efforts to be zero waste.

6. Bidets

Personal product *beware*. This one became “quietly” popular during the pandemic when toilet paper started flying off of the shelves. However, I didn’t get mine until after the pandemic. It was recommended to me, and the more I asked about it the more people that I knew that randomly had one too. At first, I was a little skeptical of something spraying my backside.

“Wouldn’t that be weird?”

That was my first thought, but then it was explained to me in this way, “If you got um…stuff on your hand, would you just wipe it off? Or wouldn’t you prefer a little water?”. Sold. Obviously we’re not going to shower after ever restroom experience, but a little wash off makes me feel so much cleaner. You can get super fancy with your bidet, but I chose this one because it was relatively inexpensive. This is the one I use for my kiddos and cloth diapers!

*Bonus* – I use less toilet paper than before too!

7.Silicone Zip Bags

If you’re anything like my family of 5 – you need plastic zip bags. We use them for so much: snacks, bread, leftovers, you name it. Unfortunately, we had gotten in the extremely unhealthy habit of grabbing and trashing these guys without a second thought.

OTU (one time use) items are the worst, an excess of waste, and our entire country is filled to the brim with these items. You never realize how many plastic bags you go through until you start recycling. For me, this hit especially hard because many recycling locations do not except bags! This opened my eyes to the multitude of plastic that was inevitably headed for the landfill sitting right in front of me. I had to get ahead of it.

Replacing your plastic zip bags is a great investment. Some that you buy will say hand-wash only, which no doubt increases the life of the product, but I bought these suitable for top rack dishwasher and have had no repercussions. I’m a risk taker though so wash at your own risk! If you do hand-wash just let them dry sitting on a tall cup, and then you’re good to go.

8. Zero Waste Grocery Bags

Since we’re on a bag kick already… 🙂 . Another swap that I made was ditching the plastic grocery bags out for some cotton canvas ones! One thing that I love about these is how sturdy they’ve been. My family and I have put these to the test with our groceries, and the stitching has held well! I washed these when I arrived (as I usually do), but *beware* they are hand-wash only and will shrink. Still it’s a been a great zero waste product!

9. Fountain Pen

My fountain pen, y’all. Ooo mama, I love this thing. I don’t know if you are like me, but I really appreciate a good pen. At first, I couldn’t tell if I liked it or not, but once I started using it the addiction began. You’ll be able to tell the difference, and forevermore you’ll be a bit snooty to all those *other* pens. How is this a zero waste product? Simple, you’re trading out your throw aways for something more permanent. The one I purchased was a good price, and it came with cartridges and a refillable converter. Cartridges pop in to replace the ink, and the converter you can simply refill with ink! Bonus, ink can be bought in a glass jar and then the jar can be recycled!

10. Menstrual cup/ Washable Pads

Ok, y’all, I saved the best for last. This has been my most favorite swap! I love, love, love my cup. It’s been life changing, seriously. Periods are, well, annoying at best and horrible at worst. There’s a learning curve with these, but once you get it down, GIRL.

I’ve learned my body and cycle better. For the first two days, I need to use a pad too (my body – you might not) which is why I added these pads to the list too. After those two days, I BARELY KNOW I’M ON MY PERIOD. I don’t leak! Wearing what I want is a breeze! I literally cannot feel it. There’s no bulky, itchy, crunchy, stringy, *insert you’re least favorite adjectives* feeling…period. (no pun, well maybe a little).

This is the brand that I use, and I bought a size small. I have had 3 babes, and have average periods. I hope this helps because I want you to have the best first experience. Being a bit determined helps. 😉

Now that you’ve seen some of my personal favorite zero waste product swaps, I hope that you’re feeling inspired to start making some of your own first steps towards a more waste-conscious life. Bottom line, perfection is not the goal. You just can’t be that. Do what you CAN do. I’ve made sure to include truly easy zero waste product swaps. You all are real people just like me, and I want to do you right. I hope to move forward together with a common goal to improve our quality of life, and the quality of our products and planet.

Adios!