Sustainable swaps to save you money

You’re wasting so much money by repurchasing the same items over and over again. When you buy cheap you buy twice, and in a lot of cases you buy multiple times. I’ve been making more of a conscious effort to shop more sustainably in order to save money, so here are some of my favourite super easy sustainable swaps. 

Reusable cleansing pads

Reusable cleansing pads are a game changer and I’ve been seeing more of these pop up in different shops recently. You can just put them in the washing machine after use and reuse them as many times as possible, until they literally fall apart. These are so much more sustainable than using makeup wipes or cotton pads which you only use once and then throw in the bin. You can buy them in all colours, shapes and sizes for incredibly affordable prices, they sell them in Primark for about £2 - £2.50 depending on the type, but imagine how many uses you’ll get out of these compared to how many times you’d need to repurchase makeup wipes. You’ll end up saving so much money in the long run. 

Reusable sponges and cloths

Reusable washing up sponges and cloths. Now I used to just buy the cheapest sponges available for like 30p and honestly they’re terrible, they fall apart and the scourer side just disintegrates! I’ve probably spent a fortune rebuying those 30p sponges just for them to end up in the bin after a couple of uses. I’ve recently switched to reusable sponges and cloths made out of recycled materials. M&S do a huge range of sustainable cleaning products and they’re all pretty affordable. It’s a very easy swap to do and as long as you look after the products properly by rinsing and drying them after every use, they will last a really long time and you won’t have to repurchase as often. 

Takeaway cups

Takeaway cups are a must! There are a couple of ways that these will save you money, so the first way is by making your own drinks at home and taking them out with you instead of purchasing an overpriced drink while you’re out and about. This also means you’re not buying single use coffee cups or water bottles. But also if you do want to treat yourself to a takeaway coffee, take your own cup to most coffee shops and they’ll knock a little bit of money off your order. I typically have one reusable bottle for cold drinks, and then one cup for hot drinks and that’s all I'll ever need. The hardest part is remembering to actually take it with you everywhere. You can buy these literally everywhere. I've seen some very affordable ones in B&M and Primark but they also sell them in every supermarket if you look in the kitchen section. 

Food containers

Let’s talk about good quality food containers and tupperware. These are so useful for so many things like keeping fruit and veg fresher for longer or for your meal prep. I personally prefer the glass containers instead of plastic because they’re great quality and I know they’ll last literally forever, they’re super easy to clean and they don’t stain. I got mine from Tesco but again this is something you can buy from literally any supermarket. Take good care of them and you won’t need to repurchase ever, and it also means you’re not using single use materials like cling film or tin foil to wrap your food in which again would just go in the bin after one use. 

Making a few easy sustainable swaps could save you so much money and do a lot of good for the environment as well. So I hope you found these tips useful, and please let me know if you have any sustainable products you want to share.