Counter to the catchy images depicted across the internet, self care extends much farther than face masks and bubble baths. While not as exciting as lathering your troubles away, keeping a clean home can actually clear your mind.
I repeat – doing chores can actually improve mental well-being in addition to bettering your space. In a 2010 study published in Personal and Social Psychology Bulletin, women with more cluttered homes demonstrated higher levels of cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone. Conversely, the women in the study who kept more ‘restorative’ homes showed lower levels of stress.
Next time you come home and feel overwhelmed, think about how you can cleanse your space to cleanse your spirit. What’s more, how can you clean in a way that’s good for you and the environment? Opting for sustainable cleaning products can protect your health by limiting toxic chemicals you expose yourself to and help the environment through greener, recyclable or reusable packaging. This is important because 14 billion pounds of trash are dumped into the ocean every year, which then break down into tiny pieces of plastic that resurface in our food and water supply. Choosing eco-friendly cleaning brands can limit our wear on the planet since many of these brands employ sustainable manufacturing processes in addition to their eco-friendly packaging. The easiest trick? Go for the bulk sizes of cleaning products to minimize your packaging waste and limit the amount of plastic you go through.
While we know it may not be possible to completely convert to sustainable products, we’re here to help you easily integrate green products into your cleaning routine to improve your well-being and reduce your ecological footprint. Take a look at some of our faves below.
Blueland
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Blueland seeks to transform the way we use cleaning products by providing a reusable ‘Forever Bottle’ accompanied by non-toxic, refillable tablets that dissolve into cleaning solution. By changing consumer behavior to buy cleaning solution tablets and forego the disposable packaging, Blueland hopes to “eliminate over 100 billion single-use plastic bottles in the US.” Designed to last, their forever bottles are made from shatterproof acrylic, are 100% BPA-free, and certified C2C platinum for the bottles’ sustainability.
To get started, you can purchase their $38 Clean Essentials Kit, which includes 3 cleaning bottles, 1 hand soap bottle, and 4 types of tablets for the different cleaning bottles. The best part is you only have to purchase the bottles once and then you refill the product by buying the $2 cleaning solution tablets. What’s even better is the solution is made from clean ingredients that are good for the environment. Sustainable and saving money? Count us in.
Dropps
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Dropps is a clean laundry detergent brand that makes plant-based cleaning solutions that can be shipped to your door. They are also committed to eliminating single-use plastic through sustainable business practices including using packaging that is 100% recyclable and compostable. They are so green that the EPA awarded them 2017 EPA Safer Choice Partner of the Year for their manufacturing and formulation practices.
Their signature product, laundry detergent pods, have pod membranes made from polyvinyl alcohol that are 100% biodegradable and water soluble. Say goodbye to toting your giant detergent jug alongside your overflowing hamper to the laundromat – these tiny pods can fit into your pocket and eliminate the need to measure detergent liquid. You can quickly throw the pod into the load and trust that the whole film will dissolve in the washer safely. The added bonus is that you no longer have to agonize over cleaning the sticky, soiled detergent jug to recycle it. The pods eliminate the need to recycle. Dropps allows you to either make a one-time purchase, buy in bulk, or subscribe to save 20%. Pods start at the one-time purchase of 64 pods for $20.
Common Good
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Common Good set out to develop 100% biodegradable products that are as chic as they are safe in efforts to reduce single-use plastic and encourage people to reuse their refillable products. As firm believers that we should know the ingredients in our products, their cleaners are made with plant-based ingredients and scented with essential oils. Their website includes a list of definitions of each ingredient to further empower the consumer to know the function of each ingredient and where it comes from.
You can buy their products from an array of retailers including their website and Amazon. Each product details the essential oil used and goes over its benefits like their All Purpose Cleaner ($6.99) that uses tea tree oil instead of bleach for its antimicrobial properties. When ready to re-up on your cleaner, you can find the nearest refill station through the zip code search on their website – no need to repurchase packaging!
Patagonia’s GUPPYFRIEND
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Our trusted tech bro’s favorite brand does more than just fleece zip-ups. Patagonia has created a product to address the issue of synthetic microfiber pollution. Didn’t know what that was? Neither did we. This type of pollution comes from tiny plastic fibers that synthetic garments release when we wash them, which then go through our washing machines and into our waterways. One academic paper found that microfibers are responsible for “85% of shoreline pollution across the globe.” The GUPPYFRIEND was created to counter this problem and give you more options than washing your clothes less often.
Retailing for $29.75, the GUPPYFRIEND Washing Bag protects synthetic garments to reduce the amount of microfibers that are emitted. An added bonus is that this also prolongs the life of your clothing by decreasing the fiber decay. Made from 100% polyamide, the slickness of the GUPPYFRIEND bag reduces abrasion to minimize the amount of fibers that break off. All you have to do is remove the microfibers trapped in the bag after each wash and throw them in the trash. The fish will thank you!
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Feature Image via Blueland
