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Bluedot Living’s BuyBetter Marketplace newsletter includes affiliate links, including to Amazon. If you purchase a product through one of our links, we may earn a commission. These commissions help us fund the great journalism that you see on Bluedot. Thank you for supporting us! |
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Dear Readers,
In our last edition, I wrote about the global Plastic Free July movement. Over the past five years, the movement’s participants have made changes in consumption that amount to over 1.4 billion pounds of plastic avoided: an astounding feat. That said, I’d be shocked if any of the individuals managed to actually cut plastic out of their lives for an entire month. To do so would essentially mean reverting to a different time, or living not just off-grid, but entirely off the land.
Journalist A.J. Jacobs, in an article describing his quest to avoid plastic for just one day, illustrated vividly that the stuff is everywhere. He brought his own food containers to a takeout spot; eschewed elevators, with their plastic buttons, for stairs; and eventually spent the night on the hardwood floor — the mattress and pillows being verboten. “Everything looked menacing, like it might be harboring hidden polymers,” he reported. By the end of the day, despite his efforts, he’d still tallied 164 counts of interactions with plastic.
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Wall-E’s world was built on single-use everything. Fortunately, we can all choose to reuse. (Alamy Stock Photo) |
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If you’re looking for good news, I’ll give you some: Even if you can’t really avoid plastic, you can easily cut back. That’s why today I’m sharing a few products that can help you use less plastic overall, even if they contain, well, you know … plastic. Thus: Nearly Plastic Free July. The items in this newsletter fall into the categories below:
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Long-lasting items that use relatively little plastic to replace hundreds or thousands of waste-generating single-use products.
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Items we need for modern living that, despite the plastic they contain, are better-made than their counterparts.
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Items that can help you ingest fewer microplastics!
How have you reduced waste and plastic in your home? What changes have been the easiest, and which the hardest? Are you looking for a replacement to a common item and having a hard time finding one? I’d love to hear about it.
Thanks for reading and happy shopping,
– Elizabeth Weinstein, Marketplace Editor
P.S. If you’re a Prime member, check out our new Amazon Storefront, which includes great picks for Plastic-Free July, great cleaning products, and more.
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Better Batteries
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Paleblue makes reliable, fast-charging lithium-ion batteries that can be reused about 1,000 times, which represents a huge money-savings over time. Like most batteries, they do contain 10–20% plastic by weight, but reusing instead of replacing means much less plastic production. Rechargeable batteries are easier to recycle than conventional ones. Read our review. |
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Bubbles on Demand
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If you love sparkling water, you owe yourself a SodaStream. I’m willing to bet that you’ll soon wonder how you got on without it. (Case in point: Bluedot’s VP literally takes hers on vacation.) The compact device clears space in your pantry, fridge, and recycling bin — and ensures there’s always fizzy water on hand. Each bottle can be carbonated over 3,000 times. Read our review. |
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Excellent Water Filters
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No one wants to ingest microplastics and forever chemicals. Epic Water Filters offers bottles, pitchers, and plumbed-in filters that eliminate more than 99% of tap water contaminants, including microplastics, PFAS, chlorine, and heavy metals. Each pitcher filter cleans 150 gallons of water. Save 15% with code BLUEDOT. Read our review. |
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A Baking Mat Guaranteed for Life
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A reader once wrote to Bluedot’s advice columnist, Dot, to ask if silicone baking mats are a greener choice than baking paper. The answer: yes. The French brand Silpat offers a generous lifetime guarantee on its mats, promising they can withstand up to 3,000 uses in the oven. Read our review. |
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Baggies That Do Everything
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Stasher’s seriously leak-proof zip-top silicone bags can do everything from storing snacks and freezing leftovers to sous-vide cooking. The bags are dishwasher-safe, but to make them last, avoid turning them inside out — instead clean the corners with a bottle brush. Each Stasher Bag can replace about 260 single-use bags. Read our review. |
| SHOP TODAY |
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Long-Lasting Essentials
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LastObject, a Danish B Corp founded in 2018, creates items that will hopefully be the last of their kind you’ll ever need to use — at least for a very long time. Their bestsellers include ear and makeup swabs, tissues, makeup rounds, and sanitary pads. Just one LastSwab can replace over 1,000 traditional cotton swabs. Read our review. |
| SHOP ON AMAZON |
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Next-Level Toiletry Storage
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Cadence creates attractive, refillable toiletry capsules designed to replace travel-size plastic bottles. Made with recycled ocean-bound plastic, the modular, leakproof, TSA-compliant containers snap together for easy packing. They’re a practical way to carry shampoo, skincare, supplements, jewelry, and more. Read our review. |
| SHOP TODAY |
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Long-Lasting Period Care
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Over the course of 10 years, a menstruating woman can use over 2,500 tampons or sanitary pads … or a single menstrual disc or cup. Saalt offers these reusable period products as well as comfortable, absorbent period panties. In addition to preventing waste, the items can save you a lot of money over a decade. Read our review. |
| SHOP TODAY |
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Dear Dot, Are Reusable Cotton Swabs Worth the Cost?
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Dear Dot,
I just love Q-Tips. But I’ve seen a product line called LastObject that makes reusable products, including one called LastSwab. It’s a nubby little swab that’s supposed to replace 1,000 disposable cotton swabs, and is made of silicone with a case made from recycled ocean-bound plastic. But, I just can’t imagine that I'd like a silicone swab as much. If I got the fancy swab and didn’t like it, wouldn't that be very wasteful? Is the production energy involved with the LastSwab higher than for my cotton Q-Tips?
Please help me as I sweat the small stuff!
–Elise, New York
Dear Elise,
Dot knows you’re not alone in either your dedication to Q-Tips and your cotton swab quandary … The average American uses a whopping 415 cotton swabs every year. Those small quotidian single-use products really add up. To help you decide if testing out the silicone alternative is worth it, let’s first consider the environmental impact of disposable Q-Tips.
Read on for Dot’s full answer.
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Want to get in touch? I’d love to hear from you. Tell me about your favorite sustainable products, topics you’d like to see covered, or anything else that’s on your mind — email marketplace@bluedotliving.com.
I’ll see you again in two weeks.
– Elizabeth |
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Elizabeth Weinstein, Bluedot’s Marketplace Editor, lives in Manhattan with her husband; her papillon, Finley; and her cats, SanDeE* and Modell. When she’s not asking the folks at Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom to try on all of their sustainable sneakers in a size 9½, she can be found at the Union Square Greenmarket or gardening on her rooftop terrace. |
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Our audience is informed, intentional, and tuned in to sustainable living. Reach our 300,000 readers by advertising here, or contact adsales@bluedotliving.com to reserve your space. |
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