One of the early decisions I made when my family started going green was to stop buying and using paper towels. Easy change, I thought. Well, what I found out was how much we really relied on paper towels, and making the change took a look more adjustment than I thought. I didn’t help that I had a very small supply of kitchen towels, which quickly became the workhorses of the kitchen. They were being used to clean up messes, dry hands, as pot holders and for everything else you could think to use a towel for.
So here’s what I suggest if you’re trying to go paper towel-less in your kitchen:
- Make sure you have a decent supply of usable towels (at least 10). You will go through them faster than you expect.
- Keep them close at hand. You might select a small basket to keep on your counter, then roll your towels and put them inside.
- Designate specific towels for specific tasks. For instance, great looking towels like the Organic Basil and Parsely Dishtowels shown above may be better used for drying hands or wet dishes — ie. tasks that are unlikely to stain them. Darker colored or older towels can be reserved for cleanups.
Why It’s Green:
- Made of organic cotton
- An alternative to paper towels
Price: $12/ea. (aff)
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I’m Jennae Petersen, and I’m a lot of things. A mother, a graphic artist, a connosieur of beautiful interiors and a purveyor of all things design. Green Your Decor was borne of frustration in my attempts to find eco-friendly housewares that were also beautiful, and inspiration to do something to reduce my own carbon footprint and help others do the same in a beautiful way.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Growing up my mom never had paper towels, only hand towels, she said we did not need to waste trees and money to dry our hands.
using paper towels is a guilty pleasure/luxury of mine – didn’t have them growing up, and I agree it’s a terrible burden to put on the trees to make these things, but they are *so* convenient… I totally agree, I’d need to have lots of pre-designated towels in place before I wean myself off of the paper ones…
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I grew up using a TON of paper towels- for everything except wiping hands haha. for cleaning the bathroom, putting ANY snack on, wiping up spills the list is endless. Living on my own I decided to cut down on the paper towel use- first thing I did was buy paper towels made from recycled paper for cleaning the bathroom use only. I use plates for my snacks and have a ton of cute, colouring kitchen towels for everything else! Now if only i could convert my mom….
love these!
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These towels are gorgeous! I think I might be afraid to put them in my kitchen for fear that my children or husband might grab it to clean up spilled Kool-Aid. You’ve inspired me though…hand towels do seem a bit more grown up than a spool of paper towels.
What beautiful dish towels! These would look great in my kitchen! I might have to get a few of those. I too have replaced paper towels in our household, and switched to cloth towels for everything!
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