Earth Friendly

To save money and to save the Earth through waste reduction, I’ve decided to come out with a “Things you should not buy new!” Do add on to the list if you’ve got something to share!

Books
I love reading and collecting books! But books are often never read more than once! Try scouring books from eBay, library book sales, thrift stores, garage sales and second hand bookstore and never, NEVER, buy them new! If you really have to buy the latest title, form a book club among your besties, split the cost, and take turns to read them!

I’ve been looking for two books by Candace Bushnell – Lipstick Jungle and The Carrie Diaries! Let me know if you want to sell them!

DVDs / VCDs
I’m a movie junkie! I love to give all movie titles a chance even though critics struck them down with harsh reviews. Try going through the piles of used DVDs / VCDs that rental stores try to get rid at a low price! Sometimes you may be surprised to find some classics in there!

Gift wrapping materials
Instead of buying a box from Daiso, try making one from an old box. Instead of using expensive gift wrappers, get creative and make use of old magazines, paper bags or old cloth!

Pets
They are supposed to be your friend, your buddy who stayed behind to listen to all your sobs and grumbles. They shouldn’t be bought at a hefty price tag! Try adopting from SPCA or other animal shelters!

Children’s Toys / Clothes
I often tell my fiancé that if I can dress our future child (I’m not having one anytime soon!) in rags I would! They outgrew them too quickly! Plus, their appreciation for clothes often involves poo or puke! So, get the toys / clothes from your siblings, relatives, friends or friendly neighbours!

What are some items you would not get them new?

Eco-friendly reusable bags, Channel 8, 10pm, 29 May 2010

Many people are unaware that many recycled bags are not biodegradable and if they are disposed of in large quantities, they may cause more environmental problems than plastic bags. When the ‘Bring your own bag’ campaign first started three years ago, only 3% of shoppers brought their own bags to supermarkets. Subsequently, the number rose to 10% in the second year. Although recycled bags are considered environmentally friendly, they are difficult to dispose of if they have imprints on them or are stained with oil. Moreover, it is more expensive to produce these recycled bags, as compared to plastic bags, leading to greater wastage. However, these recycled bags are deemed environmentally friendly as they can be reused and that prevents wastage. They can help to cut down resources and protect the environment if they are better utilised.

I need to rant about this.

People, stop hoarding those reusable bags when you have no intention to reuse them or to stop taking plastic bags while shopping!

Company, stop giving out these bags as goodie bags! It’s nothing but wastage when people are not using them!

There are many ways to save money and reduce waste! Making use of a pretty shopping bag, I cut it open and use it as a gift wrapper. Adding a simple ribbon, tadah! You have a beautiful gift waiting for its rightful owner!

Poor handles! I wanted to incorporate it in the gift wrapping but decided not to in the end.

I was at Daiso yesterday and I came across the perfect reusable bag! Compact in size, water proof and decent looking! I always wanted one of these but they are either overpriced or comes with ugly prints! So I was really excited when I found this compact reusable bag! I picked brown because he refused to hold anything that is pink or girly! HAH. It’s always good to plan for the future, in case my shopping gets too heavy!

Now you have no more excuses not to carry a reusable bag around! Save the Earth!

Source: Google.com on Earth Day!

It’s Earth Day today! Here are three things you can start doing to make our Earth a better place!

(1) Bring your own reusable bag during shopping trips! Here’s why you should do just that!

(2) Create your own recycle bin in your house for paper, plastic, cans and glass! Remember to empty them once in a while or when they are full! You don’t want Mr Cockroach lurking around!

(3) Print only what you need not what you want! (I’m trying really hard in this area! My work is killing a lot of trees!)