Ready, set, SUSTAINABLE!  It's time to chat eco friendly and low waste life hacks that will save money, time, and the planet all in one go!

Being sustainable and leading a greener lifestyle doesn't have to cost loads of money or take a ton of time.  In fact, the biggest part of being more eco friendly is changing your mindset.  Can you get creative with old items to give them new life?  What can you repurpose rather than throw away?  How many ways can one product be used?  It's all about minimizing waste and making what you have go that little bit further...

That's why today I thought it would be a great idea to spend some time sharing a handful of sustainable life hacks.  These are tried and tested methods I use all the time to reduce, reuse, and avoid landfill.  What do you think??

Sustainable Hacks: Reuse Tea Bags

Did you know you can reuse tea bags so that the single use product becomes a multi-purpose one?  There are many ways to give new life to a used up cup of tea - it's just a matter of getting creative!  One of the main uses is as nutrients for the garden.  If you use loose leaf or your teabag is totally plastic free, you can pop the whole thing in your compost pile and let it work its magic.  Otherwise, simply cut open the bag to remove the leaves and separate from the non-biodegradable parts.

You can also use those extra tea leaves for baking.  Earl grey and green tea are especially good for desserts and tasty recipes like biscuits, cakes, and ice lollies.  Or, give a light flavouring to your water by adding the bag into your cup.  Just be sure not to wait too long, as it's never good to leave perishables out in the open.

If baking isn't your thing, try reusing tea bags for a beauty treatment.  Add the tea bag straight to a warm bath for a botanical brew you can soak in, or remove the leaves and mix in with a face mask for a gentle exfoliating treatment with added benefits.  The sky is the limit when it comes to repurposing old tea!

Giving new life to my Pukka tea!

Sustainable Hacks: Multipurpose Products

While sustainable living doesn't have to cost and arm and a leg, it does help to buy effective and long lasting products from time to time.  And when that time comes, there is no better way to minimize waste than by picking a multipurpose formula.  This goes for beauty, cleaning, and more!

For beauty, I find that oils and balms go furthest.  With the right treatment, they can be used to nourish the skin, lock in moisture, tame frizz, remove SPF and daily grime, massage sore muscles, soothe irritation, deeply condition hair, provide an aromatherapy boost, and soften dry patches.  A few favourites are the Husk & Seed Hydration Boost Moisturising Balm, Kyushi Chamomile & Helichrysum, and Terre Verdi The Bianco to name just a few.

If you're looking for a multi-tasking formula that can be used for cleaning, you want to go for a product that can tackle grease, germs, and dirt in a variety of rooms.  Why have separate solutions for sink, counters, stove top, and shelves when you can have one bottle that sorts out bathroom, kitchen, and hard surfaces in one go?  A multipurpose product like the Fiini Naturally solid Cleaning Soap is an eco friendly and low waste option that tackles all those cleaning jobs, or if you want a refillable option then Green N White is one to check out.  I have just started using their All Purpose Cleaner, and so far I am impressed.

fabulous multi-taskers from Husk & Seed, Kyushi, Terre Verdi, and Green N White

Sustainable Hacks: Propagate Plants

I'm a huge fan of plants, both indoor and outdoor, but unfortunately there is a big sustainability issue when it comes to sourcing many popular or rare species.  As demand for hard to find plants grows, natural environments are devastated by poachers trying to earn money.  It's a really complex problem, but the long and the short of it means that the land is being ravaged due to people's greed.  So how can you avoid being a part of this issue while still enjoying your hobby?

Propagation!  By buying locally from trusted sellers who propagate their existing plants, no more specimens need to be taken from the wild.  And once you have the plant you wanted, you can help spread the love by propagating it when it grows larger.  This way, no further harm comes to the environment - pretty cool, right?!

plant propagation station - growing your own is fun and eco friendly

Sustainable Hacks: Repurpose Vegetable Scraps

If you're anything like me, you probably end up with at least a few produce items that have bits left over.  Carrot tops, the ends of courgette, parsnip skins...  It is a lot of excess food when you add it up.  Now, normally I would put small offcuts like this in a pile to go out onto Bug Mountain as we named it (it's our compost heap).  But there is actually another way to repurpose vegetable scraps so they don't go to waste, and it is one that I have been loving this year.

Any peels, stalks, end nubs, and skins can get zipped into a large size silicone sealer bag, then placed in the freezer.  Continue to fill this bag up throughout the week (or until the bag is full), and when all those scraps have been collected they can then be re-purposed to create a yummy vegetable stock that can be the base of a hearty and filling soup!

time to prep for soup thanks to these Net Zero Co storage bags!

Sustainable Hacks: Upcycle Candles

transforming my old Urban Lune candle into a succulent plant pot - how cute is it??