Going Green (without going crazy!)

April is here! It is the month of showers to bring those May flowers. The month of bulbs starting to pop up from the ground. And to many it is a month dedicated to the environment. April is home to Earth Day and some have dubbed the month Earth Month, a month-long emphasis on the planet, sustainability and how you can make the world a better place. In that spirit we have decided to dedicate our monthly theme here on the blog and over on Instagram to all things environmentally friendly and green living.

This month, we are going to dive into how to incorporate green living into your home’s organization, take a look at spaces we have organized using eco-friendly products and I will be sharing some of my favorite green products in a variety of areas (if you just can’t wait, check out my favorite green beauty products here). To kick things off I want to talk about how to get organized when making the translation to green living.

As many of you know, due to my diagnosis with Hashimoto’s several years ago my family has been on a journey to remove as many toxins from our life as possible and in many cases this means turning to sustainable and green alternatives. I know just how overwhelming it can be to make the transition to green living. I remember feeling lost and hopeless at times as I started to make changes to our daily life and in our home. But just like everything in my life I turned to organization to help streamline the process and make it more manageable for myself and my family.

Here are a few of my tips for staying organized while you make the transition to green living in your home:

• First, make a list of everything you want to change – a good old brain dump! Getting everything down on paper will help you begin to see actionable steps that you can take to make changes vs. simply having the mentality of “I need to change everything in my life”, becoming overwhelmed and giving up.

• Once you have a list in place of the items you would like to change, start with 2 or 3 things to change at a time. It is so important to not try to tackle everything all at once. You will get overwhelmed! Just like with organizing a home it is important to tackle going green piece by piece. For my family we started with our kitchen and switched out things like our food storage containers to glass and our pots and pans to cast iron.

• Be realistic about the changes you are going to make! If you have a busy calendar it might not be realistic for you to grow your own food or if you live in a tiny apartment composting might not be a good fit. Getting started is important but it is also important to feel successful. For me that meant starting by switching over a number of my skincare products but I wasn’t quite ready to give up my red lipsticks at first. I have since found green lipstick options that I love but I needed to take it step by step at the beginning so I didn’t give up.

• Find donation options in your hometown that are convenient to you! Before you start going through your home and removing items that are not the best fit for your new goals it is important to know where those items are going to end up so you don’t just create clutter in your home or fill up a landfill. Find a location donation center and either schedule a pick up or check if they have drop off hours.

• Set yourself up for success! Many of us have every intention of living a more green lifestyle but something gets in the way. A little organization can help you achieve your new goals. For example, we all want to cut down on single use plastics but let’s be real we have all been standing at the checkout counter and our reusable bags are sitting at home. If you take a few minutes to get organized and consider small things like collecting all of your reusable bags and putting them in your car you can make change happen!

• Get organized for green changes in the future. Little changes in our lives can make a big difference for the environment like switching to LED light bulbs. I am not suggesting you change all of your light bulbs today (use those bulbs until they die) but make a list of the light bulb types you need for your home and stock up the next time you are out so you are ready with the green alternative the next time you need one.

• Consider how to reuse items when you are organizing. You know I encourage you to clean out your home of items you are not using to help you stay organized (declutter, declutter, declutter) but maybe consider a second use for those items instead of tossing or donating. Could you cut up t-shirts into cloths to save on paper towels during your spring cleaning? Could you use an old jar to store bulk items instead of buying packages?

I hope these tips help encourage you to start making changes in your home and daily life while staying organized and most importantly sane! If I have learned anything in my family’s transition it is that organization can help support any goal! Make sure you keep an eye on the blog and Instagram this month for more green living tips!