Innovative Ways To Be More Sustainable At Home

Do you want to be more sustainable? The answer is probably yes - we all do. However, what we don’t all know is how to do it, or we just know the basics, and that means we’re missing out on a large number of opportunities to do good things for the planet. If you can go beyond the usual tips for sustainability, you’ll make your efforts even better and you’ll have a more positive impact on the environment around you, which has to be your best outcome. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the lesser-known ways to make your lifestyle more sustainable at home - you might be surprised at how easy they are to do once you know what they are. 

Photo by Karolina Grabowska

Upcycling

You’ve heard of recycling, and if you want to be greener, you probably already do it, but what about upcycling? That can work wonders when you want to be more sustainable, so it’s an ideal thing to add to your list of eco-friendly options around the house when you’re able to.

Upcycling means you’re reducing waste because you’re transforming old items into new, useful things instead of throwing them away. You can upcycle clothes, containers, furniture, and so much more, and they can be repurposed into all kinds of useful things. One great example is an old ladder, which can be turned into a bookshelf, or old storage jars than can be turned into pen holders or makeup storage. There are so many options, and it’s a fun thing to do, so why not give it a try? 

Smart Gardening

If you’ve got a garden or any kind of outside space, you’ll need to take good care of it, and you can make that process a lot more eco-friendly as well - that’s ideal, since it’s something you’ll need to do anyway (so you’re just improving how it’s done). The great thing about this is that there are just so many different ways to do ‘smart gardening’, which essentially means sustainable gardening. 

For one thing, you might try companion planting, which means growing plants that benefit one another together - you’ll need less fertilizer and pesticides if that’s the case. You can also set up an eco-friendly watering system using rainwater tanks, or perhaps even try aquaponics where you grow plants alongside your fish pond, wasting nothing. Once you start investigating how to garden in a more sustainable way, you’ll realize there are endless possibilities. 

Clothing Swaps 

We all need to wear clothes, and at some point, we all need to buy new clothes when the old ones wear out. That makes sense, and it’s just something we do without thinking about it, but the issue is that the fashion industry is a big contributor to pollution - it takes a lot of energy and water to make clothes, plus, when old clothes are thrown away, it adds to the massive amount of landfill that’s causing so many environmental concerns. 

To get past this issue but still get some nicer new clothes when you need them, why not consider clothing swaps? You can set this up with friends or even local groups, and you’ll be able to get a whole new wardrobe without buying anything new or throwing anything away - and you’ll save money as an extra bonus!