Is It Expensive To Live Zero Waste?

[@SustainablyVegan]

Thank you for making this video! People always comment on how much money I spend on food too and they forget that I hardly ever buy anything new and so I save a huge amount of money in other ways!

[@Gittemary]

Exactly, I always hear stuff like "oh it is so expensive, I could never do that" - in the end I just thought "Screw it! I am making the video!" Haha!

[@SustainablyVegan]

Haha and I'm glad you did :) Nice to chat to you, I have been following you since you had about 6000 subs ! xx

[@Gittemary]

Sustainably Vegan Wow thank you for the support!! ❤️❤️

[@SustainablyVegan]

[@lexirianne1195]

Great points! And another thing , sustainable products are usually just that - more sustainable! You are truly paying for what you get, without throwing it away because it's a one-time use product or is designed to wear out quickly. A set of stainless steel containers maybe *seem* pricey at first, but will last decades! Also, jars can be free if you collect condiment, sauce jars etc if you are not yet at that point where you are making all your purchases 100%. I think you made a great point that multiple-purpose supplies like oils, bulk items for household and beauty save you as well! Take Care :)

[@agirlwithdreams15]

Lexi Rianne yea but poor people don't have the money upfront to invest in long lasting products

[@jackiepenner-lourdes3374]

Also, I haven't purchased regular laundry detergent nor softener since December 2016. We are using up a "Tide" loose detergent that was in cardboard; also, grating castile soap to make a 'batch' of soap, then adding washing soda, etc, etc, to make more laundry detergent. White vinegar for softener and some drops of lavender oil on a wet wash cloth that goes in the dryer with freshly washed clothes for a nice smell. Thanks Gittemary for your vlogs!! love 'em....Jackie & Elvis in Chicago, IL

[@Gittemary]

Such great tips - and thank you for your kind words! Hugs GM!

[@kate.arnell]

Def noticed the same! Re-prioritised spending so kinda works out the same, just spending more on some things and less on others. Great chatty video!

[@jackiepenner-lourdes3374]

I purchased our toilet paper :) from a janitorial supply store because they are all wrapped in paper instead of plastic and are contained in a cardboard box. Gosh, I can't remember how many in the box, I think 100. Anyways, it lasted 5-6 months and was $50. Had to go our of our way to find the place, but it wasn't too bad. I feel good about non plastic wrapped toilet paper!!! (you can't go in the conventional stores around here and find TP that is NOT wrapped in plastic, so frustrating)

[@angierose1143]

Jackie Penner-Lourdes was the tp made from recycled paper tho?

[@KiaHazel]

This was an interesting pov on Zero Waste. And literally so cool that you are doing so well with that! Really inspiring

[@fortheyorum]

I love how you express it. Just the words I've been looking for. I just redistribute my money in a different way.

[@amandaedgley8821]

I love this! I keep seeing people complaining about it being expensive. But it really isn't if you plan. And good point about jars; it's true you can get tons of jars just in your cupboard or recycle for free but they aren't the pretty mason ones so people think they have to buy new ones.

[@Kyleigha]

Thank you for the video! I love you outfit (especially your nose rings)! You are so beautiful! :) I have had family members comment on how much I spend on food, but they forget that we save money elsewhere! (And we always buy sustainable, which can increase the cost.) We are currently looking to move into a much smaller home to save money, and to be closer to where we shop, work, and socialize. :) In the meantime, we are trying to reduce the amount of plastic and waste in our home. :)

[@ArleneAdkinsZell]

I am unable to be 'zero waste' but I do live a very minimum trash lifestyle. The cost for me is getting to a store for bulk items, the closest one is more than 20miles away and no public transportation, so I have to pay people to take me) so many times I have to get the packaged grains and spices.

[@cristinaborges999]

zero waste cat vídeo please

[@elisahernandezperez7813]

Thank you for the video! I recently started trying to go zero (so far all I've gone is less) waste and since I don't make a lot of money I decided to do what you said on the video, just substituting plastic objects for more sustainable choices as I needed to. I wouldn't be able to afford everything in just one sitting! And I also feel like I make a lot of mistakes (mostly from lack of planning) so it's great to know that's normal and common... Anyway, yes, thanks! :)

[@MrBean729]

I just used glass jars that food came in. I had done a shop not zero waste and then i changed and i still had this food shop so used the glass jars. Like you can get GINORMOUS glass jars for like £1 because the food was sold in it.

[@anothernight82]

Thank you so much for this! I was confused because I thought I was supposed to be spending less by reducing my waste when shopping and didn't notice that much of a decrease in my food budget. It makes sense now that you mention the distribution of funds. I do notice that I can go a few days before having to take out the trash as opposed to when it was almost a daily occurrence. I am saving money on garbage bags because they don't waste so fast (fill up) and no fruit flies (ugh!!) in my garbage can from banana peels. I save my food scraps in old cereal or bread bags in the freezer until I get a good amount, then I bring it to my farmer's market because they have food waste compost section bins I could dump mine in. They end up composting it and I think they then use the compost to add vitamin rich soil to the dirt of public trees, bushes and plants and gardens. It's been a new and exciting journey so far and it makes me feel proud to be a part of the movement that will help our planet. I try to do the best I can now that I realize how plastic dependent I have been. I never thought about it before. Thanks to youtubers like you who take the time to bring this to our attention. It's something very important and we all have an impact on this planet and it's up to us whether it's a negative or positive one.

[@Gittemary]

Thank you for your kind words and great read about your progress! Good vibes from GM!

[@marienielsen9012]

Jeg elsker dine second hand lookbooks, hauls og apartment tours. Du laver ikke så mange for tiden, men jeg håber, du snart laver flere. Knus fra Odense

[@Gittemary]

Tak skal du have Maria! Nej, desværre laver jeg ikke så meget lookbooks, da det tager meeeega lang tid, haha! Dog er der snart en lille rundvisning i den nye lejlighed

[@silverhiker4549]

I just love you so much. You are so awesome and help us out so much. I am always excited about learning from you. 💚💚💚🐘🐘🐘

[@Gittemary]

Thanks a lot, I am so happy to hear that you like it! Hugs from GM

[@FinsternisSan]

A lot of people don't mention that time would make the cost go up. Meaning if you have to go out of your way in order to get the item then it'll cost more and it might not be worth it for some people. Especially those who live in a food dessert or food apartheid. I have my routine down, but there are some things that I can't without plastic because it costs more or I would have to go out of my way a great deal in order go get these items (and I'm the only one doing the grocery shopping between me and my partner) and going back to get the rest is also wasteful. Some things it's better to get a big bulk bag of rice even if it's in plastic vs smaller bags of bags that are more expensive in other materials so it's about compromise for me really. I know this wasn't really talked about but I want to make the point that the "invest in quality" sentiment isn't really applicable to those who live in poverty. When you're in poverty you can't always break away from the cycle of investing into better quality items that will last a long time vs items that are cheap and beak faster. It's something that I don't think is really brought up, and that's also another thing on how it is a privilege to be zero waste.

[@Gittemary]

I mention this aspect on my blog, go check it out :) Essentially, I always say that every little bit helps, and if you cannot break free from the frame in which you live, change what you can within it. For instance change out the plastic bags for a canvas bag, bring your own coffee to-go cut etc :)! I agree that living all zero waste require a lot of effort and time, and is sometimes also related to where you live. But zero waste as a mindset or philosophy is not a privilege in my opinion :)

[@FinsternisSan]

Of course! I do think however zero waste as an action is a privilege which is what my point was. Of course you can want to be zero waste and do little things to do so but but with a lot of the community for me there isn't a lot of room of discussion about how it's actually not that easy for some people, and how it's can be a bit classist if that makes sense. I've seen my fair share of people posting images of peoples grocery carts for example and shaming them by saying "we should ask them 'why the plastic'" which is really gross, and people mocking pre-peeled and pre-cut food when people with disabilities benefit for example. Hopefully that makes some sense haha.

[@doinaarapu]

We only got like 3 zero waste shops in our city and all the stuff there is really expensive just like in bio/eco shops. I would really love to switch to buying products in bulk but these shops are not really an option for me.

[@angierose1143]

And even if you can't afford to go all the way zero waste you shouldn't feel bad only making the smaller swaps like start asking for no straws at restaurants or stop buying water bottles

[@raewolfheart]

I have been trying zero waste for about 5 months now and so far have noticed that where I live it is cheaper and less wasteful to just buy standard small items: such as soap, shampoo, mouthwash, make-up, etc rather than buying the separate ingredients and making it myself...i was looking forward to making a lot of these items myself to save money and trash but looking at it realistically, the plastic involved in each ingredient is much higher and costly...if anyone knows any good zero-waste shops/grocery stores around the LA area, I would love to hear some alternatives. So far I have only found a Sprouts and it's been disappointing. Even Lush has most items in plastic and doesn't reuse their own bottles.

[@elisabethmae6352]

Lush collects bottles and containers and recycles them though?

[@raewolfheart]

Elsie Campbell Their bottles are made of recycled materials which is nice but when i asked the employees if i bought the dental tabs for example, would they take back the plastic container and reuse it or recycle it?, they told me no and that they only recycle a few types of their containers. The rest are basically non recyclable...idk if it is different in different areas but all the Lush stores I found around me say the same.

[@elisabethmae6352]

Very strange, my toothy tab bottle says that if I return it, they will recycle it. Maybe they've changed the packaging?

[@terra3524]

Yes zero waste cat video please!!!!!!!

[@Dizzy758]

Your videos are very informative and helpful! What do you do regarding travel tickets and medicines? Thanks :D

[@vickiemorris3480]

thanks for the information. hope to see more from you.🎄🎅🎁🎈😘

[@juniper94tt]

what grocery stores in denmark have bulk/loose foods? like rice, beans, etc? i lived there for most of the year but never came across loose items except for at farmers markets! :(

[@briandstenner]

very interesting and challenging!!

[@anneliep4586]

Hey Gittemary! I love your videos, you're such an inspiration! My questions is momentally related, because I'm ill as fuck. So what do you use as an alternative to meds and tissues? Do you just use selfmade meds and so on? Or doesn't you get sick sometimes? Really interested in (:

[@Gittemary]

Use cloth tissues that can be washed and reused :) I usually eat a ton of oranges and drink camomile tea when I am sick :) But if you seriously need some sort of medication when choose your battles and do not compromise your health :)

[@marjanjohanna]

Isn't there an Asian store/supermarket in Aalborg? I think I passed it when visiting. They usually sell rice in big quantities =)

[@marjanjohanna]

Really? Here no self respecting Asian store would sell rice in plastic! When I was living in Denmark, I did find a two kilo bag in Lidl once, that was fabric. I'm sure your grocer will be a better option, but if you're ever in need ;)

[@ahusoup3847]

making my own products is easy and very inexpensive for me its food packaging that is an issue. its just finding farmers markets and trying to find bulk items with minimal packaging anywhere and as far as I know there is no whole foods store or any bulk stores in my area also there are a lot of parties with plastic nightmares so people mean well but when I bring my own products for my food its considered rude and unsanitary so I try to live by example but my efforts are often ridiculed :(

[@Gittemary]

I know the feeling, some shade you simply have to brush off and smile, but other times it really helps to explain why you are doing what you are doing. For me, it helps explaining that every piece of plastic still exists, and that is why I avoid it :) Remember some people ridicule because they are either insecure or don't know what to say :) Good vibes from here !

[@ahusoup3847]

very true and thank you! :D watching your zero waste videos really help me with a lot of questions and problems I come across when trying to avoid plastic

[@paolamucino7842]

I prefer to buy food, especially with our diet that is glutenfree, sugarfree, the less processed as possible and the more natural; than other things I don't need. We invest in better food for us, food that is not going to hurt us. And well is true that when you don't have kids, you can stretch the money in a better, easier way, but I've seen and meet families going green with not so much trouble, so it is possible.

[@nickorange4881]

what do you do with the clothes that wears out and is not good anymore? i have this probably. where its too used and not in good enough condition to donate, but not really wearable anymore.

[@Gittemary]

Most natural fabrics you can compost, including jeans :)

[@brittneymorgan7455]

Ever make that zero waste cat vid? I need it! lol

[@brittneymorgan7455]

Never mind, found it!

[@obsessionaddict7699]

Where do you buy coconut oil or ingredients for makeup ? :)

[@voodle48]

ObsessionAddict you can buy them from your supermarket or health food shop. I would recommend organic coconut oil. 😊

[@nickorange4881]

do you have any videos of making your own make up ?

[@Gittemary]

Go look at my channel, I have a whole list of videos :).

[@judylouise4811]

You waste less when you go Vegan