One of the easiest switches in the battle to reduce plastic is from shower gel and shampoo bottles to soap bars. Soap has, obviously, been around forever, but there’s been a real revolution recently in making it as eco-friendly as possible, as accessible as possible, whilst not being the skin-drying-boring-smelling compromise that some bars are. Who Gives A Crap, the plastic-free toilet roll delivery organisation, recently launched a new brand called Good Time which sees them branching out into soap and shampoo bars.

A few years ago, boxed wine was the kind of thing you had when you couldn’t really afford the good stuff. It was looked down upon. Apparently, now, that’s all changing, and boxed wine is actually what we should all be buying. Unless you’re buying super posh wine that needs to sit in a cooled cellar and age for a few decades, there’s no actual advantage to having wine in a glass bottle, but that’s such an ubiquitous method of wine delivery, no one has really questioned it.

The zero-waste challenge is still ongoing in my household, or maybe I should call it the reduce-waste-as-much-as-possible-because-zero-is-unrealistic challenge. When I use things and throw things away, I try to take a minute to think about if there’s a better alternative, and quite often find that there is, even if it’s not a perfect swap. That’s good news and it’s always a nice feeling when you embed something more virtuous into your life.

As I’m looking out for more environmentally friendly product options, I couldn’t ignore it when I saw someone promoting Wild deodorant on TikTok and then getting an introductory deal on the same day. I don’t really need to write a long post about this because the concept is simple and really makes sense - you can buy one-offs or subscribe but overall the system is you get a reusable case and then order refills of the deodorants.

The phrase ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ doesn’t really cover everything we need to do to fix our planet, but it’s a really good place to start and does help you think in the right way. Reuse is one of the best options, meaning new items don’t need to be made and we can really get the most out of our products. It’s no wonder that milk delivery to your door in glass bottles has been making a comeback, sped up by the pandemic but also by a convenience/conservation aspect too.

My breakfast habits are inconsistent at best, but sometimes I get into a bit of a rhythm with porridge and enjoy eating it for a few days at a time. The thing about porridge is though, and forgive me because I really am just this lazy, it’s quite a lot of effort and banging around pots and pans in the morning when people are trying to sleep. You can do the overnight oats thing but that’s not quite the same, and that’s why I’ve previously fallen into the trap of the instant porridge pots.

Generally speaking, spirits such as gin, vodka, and rum, are packaged in nicely crafted glass bottles - very reusable, recyclable and perfectly acceptable in Christine’s new regime against unnecessary waste. However, I couldn’t help but be excited by the concept of Gin in a Tin and managed to get my hands on one. It looks like a sleek over-sized hip flask and it’s full of delicious sloe gin. I thought this was genius.

One of the first things I had to address when I started thinking about reducing waste was my meal delivery box. I’ve learnt so much over the years getting a weekly delivery with great recipes and the ingredients all laid out for you - gained a lot of confidence and started to understand how to throw together a meal with the basics in your store cupboards. But I couldn’t ignore how much plastic and waste was coming into my house each week.

Recently, I’ve become obsessed with reducing waste. Although, I suppose it’s not that much of a recent phenomenon, it’s something that I’ve been mindful of for the past few years, with an increasing focus on our planet. I’ve made sensible changes where possible - sourcing toilet rolls from a paper-based subscription service, scrapping all physical mail and magazines where possible (Christmas Radio Times excluded, obviously!), and choosing glass options over plastic if available.

This book has really fired my brain up in terms of reducing waste. It’s a great guide to the concept of zero waste, with hundreds of good tips and a journey to follow if you want to do it that way. It’s got no judgement and lots of encouragement - every little change you make can make a difference so you don’t have to suddenly be zero waste and living a poorer life for it. I was surprised how much of this I already do but there’s still plenty I can look at it in my own life to improve upon. Really recommend giving this a read.