Organizing Your Home The Eco-Friendly Way

Sustainability

Home Organizing + Sustainability Can Go Hand In Hand

In celebration of Earth Day, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about home organizing and sustainability.

As much as I like to take pride that my recycling efforts began the day Leonardo DiCaprio introduced me to the 3R’s back in the 90’s, I’m far from a perfect recycler.

I’m totally guilty of not giving it much thought when I organize – even though it should play a major role in how I help families purge unwanted belongings and in how I choose which organizing products to buy.

That’s going to change this year.

So I made a list of ways to tackle organizing in a more environmentally-friendly way.

Recycle “No Longer Loved” Things

As you go about ridding your home of no longer needed belongings, think beyond the trash bin and Goodwill.

Those used up batteries, light bulbs, and Styrofoam don’t need to head to the trash bin.

Do a quick Google search for a local recycling company that can take these off your hands.

Here in Seattle we have this amazing company, Ridwell, that offers this very thing. They’ll pick up those toss-away items that you normally wouldn’t think are recyclable. Yes, even Styrofoam.

Ridwell recycling organizing

Donate The Good, The Bad + The Ugly

When it comes to donating clothes from your closet, don’t stop at gently used clothing.

Did you know that most Goodwill centers accept the not-so-great, crazy worn-out, stained and torn stuff, too?

You won’t see them on store shelves. Instead, they’ll be sent to global organizations to be cut and re-purposed into soft fiber filling for furniture and home insulation. It’s pretty amazing. Learn more here.

Buy Secondhand

Most of us are pros at donating old clothes to Goodwill, but how many of us actually shop Goodwill for our own wardrobes? That, my friends, is where the magic happens.

If the thought of pillaging aisles of random clothing racks makes your head spin (I can’t even bring myself to shop at Ross or Winners for this very reason!), consider finding a personal shopper to help you out. Yes, they exist.

Businesses like @SweetKellyAnne are killing it with helping clients find high quality, high fashion, secondhand pieces that will have you wondering why you ever paid full retail price for anything.

Closet Organizing

Seek Out Sustainable Fashion

More than just a buzzword, sustainable fashion is all about choosing companies that source their clothing in an environmentally conscious way across every step of the production process. Fortunately, more brands are recognizing the environmental impact of textile development and taking proper measures to lessen their footprint.

As you go about purging your closet, this is the perfect time to think about how you plan to re-vamp your wardrobe. It might be time to look beyond this season’s latest trends and focus more on ethically-sourced capsule pieces.

This Good Housekeeping article walks through sustainable fashion in far greater detail.

Sustainable Fashion

Organize With Eco-Friendly Products

I, for one, am fully guilty of buying organizing products like they’re going out of style. But, here are a few ways that I plan to change that (even if just a little bit):

  1. Shop secondhand. Goodwill isn’t just for clothing. Keep an eye out for bins, baskets, and the like.
  2. Buy quality non-plastic pieces. If you’re going to buy new, focus on natural materials like glass, linens and wood.
  3. Get creative with what you do have. It may not look as pretty, but things like empty cereal boxes, shoe boxes and even empty tea tins can make for great drawer dividers and bins. Take a look around your house. You’ll be surprised by just how many things are begging to be re-purposed into organizing products.
Repurposed Tea Tins

Doing Our Part

Leonardo DiCaprio‘s been recycling since before it was cool. If anything, adopting one or two of these eco-friendly home organizing ideas is a step in the right direction. This year, let’s all be like Leo.

#BeLikeLeo

Shop The Look

Ridwell recycling organizing
Lazy Susan_Bamboo
Stackable Bamboo Storage Bin

Full disclosure: As an Amazon and Rakuten affiliate, I may earn a small commission from eligible sales at no extra cost to you.

FYI: This post is not in any way sponsored by Ridwell. Just a big fan!

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