Some years back paper towels were never an item on our list of necessities. Somehow over the course of time they became one. I hate to think of the money spent and trees destroyed on behalf of my purchasing of them alone. Granted, over the past few years I have lessened the number of rolls purchased and made sure the ones I bought were made from at least some percentage of post consumer waste.
Recently I've been thinking back to the time when we actually managed without some of these costly (environmentally and monetarily speaking) products. As a result I've decided to return to my paper towel free days. We'll be using more cloth napkins at meal times and I'll be keeping a stack of clean cloth rags handy for spills and clean ups. Today I'll be taking some old cotton towels I have, cutting them down to size and hemming the edges. They'll be just the right size for everyday napkins and quick clean ups. Just one more small yet significant way I can tread a little more lightly. Being green usually helps save a little green, too. :)
My first visit to your blog and I enjoyed it so much. Traveled back through several of your posts and I will be checking in regularly. I've strayed from my canning and home vegetable garden since spending summers at 9000 feet. It's hard to grow vegetables when we only have 30 minutes of true summer. But I do admire you and your efforts.
ReplyDeleteI've been trying to train both of us to NOT throw out old t-shirts and towels this year. We go through a lot of paper towels and I think about it every time I head for the roll. I have a decent pile to cut up for rags now. I noticed they are selling rags in the store now too - made out of that soft cotton diaper cloth. Might pick some of those up.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great idea and cloth napkins are so much prettier too
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! I'm thinking I need to do the same thing. Maybe some nice linen napkins for the table and I have plenty of cleaning rags. Thanks for the encouragement!
ReplyDeleteyanno, i did away with paper towels and napkins more than a year ago, and i don't even miss 'em. there's something very satisfying, to me, about a nice pile of freshly laundered napkins.....kind of the way i felt about cloth diapers.....like i'm doing something just a little bit special for my family AND the enviroment at the same time....
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