July 2023: Plastic Free July, Slowing Down, & What’s Trending
Say hello to Plastic Free July!
Have you ever heard of Plastic Free July?
I actually have no idea how it got started, but essentially it’s a month-long challenge to rethink your household purchases and ultimately move away from items made of plastic.
A few easy ways you can participate in Plastic Free July this month:
Does your town have a local refillery? Refillery’s usually have things from self care items like lotion to household cleaners & laundry detergent. In fact, mine even offers sunscreen which is pretty dang cool. If you have one nearby, check it out and shop local!
Look around your house and see what single use plastics you use the most. For me, it was Ziplock plastic bags. Research ways to replace them, and try it out! I swapped out my plastic bags with reusable silicone bags from Stasher Bag, and it was one of the best decisions I’ve made.
Don’t forget to repurpose! Just because it’s made of plastic doesn’t mean you should immediately throw away (or recycle) everything made of plastic. Try your best to use your plastic made items (i.e. food storage containers, hand soap bottles, etc.) as many times as possible. My personal goal is to use them until they have cracks and are pretty much broken.
If you’re interested in learning more about how you can participate in Plastic Free July, you can check out my latest blog post here which is filled with so many more ways to work on reducing your plastic consumption!
How are you planning to take part in Plastic Free July? Hit reply and let me know!
XOXO,
Krys
This month’s gentle reminder: “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” - Socrates
Sounds ironic, right? Summer is always when I start to see my social media feeding me photos and videos of people traveling - and to be honest… it’s really easy to feel left out.
I’m bringing up this quote because Socrates, an ancient greek philosopher, said it best. Sometimes hustle culture gets the best of us, and we feel this need to constantly fill our days hour by hour with productivity. While productivity may feel good in limits, we often get wrapped up in constantly doing “things” that we forget to acknowledge our own needs and become disconnected from ourselves and others.
But what if we said “heck no” to hustle culture and instead choose to slow down and smell the roses? To take a walk outside instead? To curl up and read a book for an hour? I challenge you to take a day off this month and focus on the essentials of what brings you joy.
Here’s What’s Trending 🌎
Ever wonder how we discovered climate change? This BBC podcast dives in to answer this question & you can listen to it here.
Beat that mid-afternoon slump by using these tips to energize yourself throughout the day (no nap needed)!
If you’re in Texas, beware of the heat! Temperatures are HIGH due to something called a Heat Dome which you can learn about here. Be safe out there!
Imagine you’re taking a walk when you see light shimmering through the trees that reminds you of a painting. This phenomenon is called “shivelight” and you can learn more about it here.
I always light a candle after I clean, but the amount of leftover candle jars I have is a bit ridiculous. That’s why I love Everly candles which are the perfect refills for my favorite candle vessels - and the scents are absolutely divine.
Looking for upcycling ideas? Check out Scrapiy which is filled with ideas for so many things like old clothes, bottles, cans, and more.
Keeping Up with Krys 🙋🏼♀️
💭 Check out my 3 favorite sustainable kitchen swaps from my recent YouTube video (that’s right, we’ve introduced YouTube into the mix!)
🪴 This week on “Is It Sustainable or is it Greenwashing?” we discussed Mrs. Meyer’s which was highly requested and spoiler alert - it’s leaning towards Greenwashing. See it here. (Pssst… next week we are covering Grove Collaborative so tune in for that next Friday!)
🪸 Some of y’all have asked me about “Reef Safe” sunscreen, and boy do I have news for you. You can see my video here where we dive into it more.
👥 Learning from others & building a community is truly life changing once you learn to accept it. This week’s podcast I’m stepping on my soap box to encourage and inspire you to step out of your comfort zone and try something new.
👇🏻 Also check out below for a sneak peak of next week’s upcoming podcast with Kate Assaraf, the founder of Dip (my absolutely favorite shampoo and conditioner bars!). It drops Monday at 7am CST.
Thanks for being part of the Mind Body Planet community!
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