January C3 Challenge: Bring Your Own Bag
Make Your Resolution to Bring Your Own Bag and Start Off a Green New Year
Full Disclosure: the following is the “sample email” that C3 has helpfully pre-written for me. And I ask myself, why reinvent the wheel? So I won’t, but let me just tell you, having your own bags and eschewing littersome, needless plastic bags is just plain cool. It can take a while to really get in the habit, but once you do, it’s awesome. I recommend the string/net bags, available here and here (totally eco-chic and super convenient), but book totes and such are very good too. And many grocery stores will give you a bag credit ($0.05 in my town) for every bag you reuse–be it plastic, paper, or cloth–every time you shop.
Click below to join me in a pledge to Bring Your Own Bag!
Did you know you can reduce your carbon footprint, help eliminate waste and pollution, and give yourself a chance at some great prizes in one simple step? It’s a win-win situation for you, the community and the ecosystem…and you can even win a $5000 prize package from Brighter Planet.
What do you have to do? Just fill out the pledge form at c3.newdream.org and then start using reusable bags when you go shopping. It’s that easy. Just by doing that you’ll start making a dent in the waste of the 12 million barrels of oil and the 14 million trees used to produce plastic and paper bags each year. Plus you’ll curb your carbon footprint by almost 4 pounds each month.
Visit the C3 site to sign up and then tell your friends: you could win a $5000 prize package from Brighter Planet or one of several other terrific prizes.
New American Dream has also made it easier for you to join the new BYOB, when you pledge you get a coupon for 20% off from ReusableBags.com. Worldwide, an estimated 4 billion plastic bags end up as litter each year. Tied end to end that’s enough to circle the earth 63 times. Isn’t it time to start making a difference?
Pledge Now to Bring Your Own Bag!
Click here to join the campaign and learn more about becoming a Carbon Conscious Consumer.
Thank You for Making a Difference,
Artemis
I’m so bad at remembering to bring my bags, the only way I can actually do it is if I “punish” myself when I forget by not letting them use bags, period. On top of which, the reusable bags they sell here are so versatile, DH is always pinching them to tote his stuff. Over Christmas he cleaned out his office. We had about 4 reusable bags left and I was wondering where they all went. Well, he found another 8 of them in his office, storing his stuff.
Comment by Quimby — January 1, 2008 @ 11:16 pm
I gave reusable bags to everyone in my family for Christmas this year. I keep mine on the seat of my car where I see them every time I get in. I always get a smile from a clerk when I say, “I don’t need a bag.” I get an even bigger smile when I put my purchases in the reusable bags myself. Thanks for this post. It’s a good reminder.
Comment by Catherine Ockey — January 2, 2008 @ 2:09 am
that is actually one of my New year resolutions too. started after a I found a cupboad full of plastic bags going nowhere. took them to the local recycling box and dedcided there and then to make an effort to take my own bags. luckily some of our shops are selling eco bags very cheaply so if i do forget i buy one for like 50p and try to remember to use it . found one that tucks nicely into my handbag so no excuses!!
debrauk
Comment by debrauk — January 2, 2008 @ 6:26 am
I got offered money for one of my sunflower market bags the last time I went into safeway. (they stopped selling their nice canvas one’s for a little while and the lady desperatly wanted one.)
found this cool little ‘canvas bag’ video, though you might like it. (hope this link works)
love love LOVE my canvas bags!
Comment by G — January 2, 2008 @ 9:15 am
oh! oh! oh! and (while I am into this youtube thing) here is Jack Johnson’s 3r’s (with a little tribute to canvas bags),
Comment by G — January 2, 2008 @ 9:33 am
People always ask me, “Are you sure you don’t need a bag?” Like I’m retarded. Sometimes I have to show them the bag 3 or 4 times, even after I just got all the stuff out of the bag to ring it up. We got these “bolsas” in Mexico when I was little. They’re huge, and they are sturdy. We still use those, almost 30 years later. Trader Joe’s canvas bags are only about $2.50. You could make bags out of cut up scraps of jeans, since the thrift stores won’t take jeans that have holes. I once saw a project in a make-it-yourself gift book that had you use two cloth placemats, sewn up three sides, and a third one cut into long strips to make the shoulder straps. What’s that, about 10 minutes of work? I’m glad other people care about this.
Comment by sarah k. — January 2, 2008 @ 10:02 am
I have sturdy canvas-type fabric ($1/yd walmart find from 6 years ago) that is doing nothing. Does anyone have a really great pattern? What size do you find the most useful? I’d rather use the fabric I have instead of buying bags.
Comment by sofia — January 2, 2008 @ 11:13 am
sofica, you know, I never thought of that until you said it–that’s a great idea. Here’s a pattern I googled–looks pretty good.
G, thanks for the links–the videos are great and I can see some strategic uses for them.
Comment by Artemis — January 2, 2008 @ 11:19 am
I generally go to the market by foot, pushing the stroller. I don’t even use my string bags half the time–just dump the groceries in the stroller basket. But for big excursions, I love my Ikea bag. It’s gigantic and I think they only charged me 99 cents for it.
I also picked up a bunch of canvas totes at the DI. They’re not cute or anything, but they were dirt cheap and they get the job done.
Comment by Janet — January 2, 2008 @ 2:36 pm
I know this is a really dumb question, but I just have to ask. When you use your reusable bags (which I’m almost ready to switch to) what do you use as liners for your other trash cans? I absolutely hate naked trash cans that get so grimy and dirty with food and objects I can’t define from the bathroom and ppl’s snotty tissues. I line all my trash cans with the plastic bags from the store. What do you gals do that I’m not figuring out?
Comment by Julia — January 2, 2008 @ 2:57 pm
I line the kitchen trash can (big, tall thing), but I don’t line the others. I find there’s rarely any gooey thing in the bathrooms and the snotty tissues dry out, so there’s just no need for liners there. And we’ve drastically reduced gooiness in the kitchen can by composting. If we had a vermicomposter, we probably wouldn’t need plastic there either ’cause everything else to throw away would be non-recyclable packaging, which I’m working to reduce as well. I rarely encounter more than minimal grime or goo, and even that (minimal or more) disappears with a quick swish of dishwashing soap (biodegradable, of course!), water, and a little white distilled vinegar.
Comment by Artemis — January 2, 2008 @ 3:23 pm
hey julia… I am pretty regular about always bringing my stash of canvas bags when I shop, but I still find that I regularly have a store of plastic bags. they come from when my shopping trip is bigger than the number of canvas bags I have, or when DH does the shopping trip (he has yet to get on this bandwagon) or when I am out and about in a car other than my own (where I keep my bags)…
but I do want to get to where we never ever use plastic bags, so in that sense I will say that we actually don’t line any of our garbage cans except the 13 gal kitchen can.
like atremis, the other cans around the house rarely have anything gunky in them.
oh, and I used to be addicted to plastic bags to pick up my dog’s poopies… but we just got a pooper scooper and it works like a charm.
Comment by G — January 2, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
Julia, I second what the others have said, we only worry about our kitchen bag - although if you want to be really environmental you can wrap your garbage in newspaper and do away with the kitchen bin liner too. (Can’t talk DH into that one . . .)
Comment by Quimby — January 2, 2008 @ 4:43 pm
Our local Walmart has started selling some bags made from recycled materials for 2/$2. I’ve been happy to snatch some up-part of what had stopped me previously was the high price per bag on everything I’d seen previously (one of the other local grocery stores sell smaller bags for about $6 each). I’ve been happy with the quality so far. I don’t know how they’ll hold up long term, but they’ve had no trouble with heavy groceries so far, and the wide strap certainly makes it less painful to carry!
Comment by Firebyrd — January 2, 2008 @ 4:49 pm
My son-in-law over see the pick up of all trash in LA. I have spoken to many of the drivers and they laugh: ” Some people just dump their ’stuff’ in the street, others gift wrap it!”
Comment by Bob — January 2, 2008 @ 5:53 pm
Julia–We only lined the big kitchen trash as well, until we became parents. I’ve discovered the glories of biodegradable “plastic” bags which can house diapers or other small messes. (Broken dryer and precipitation outside keep messing w/my plans to cloth diaper!) I just found the bags at the supermarket. Sadly I threw away their original packaging or I’d tell you the name–but they allow me to bag stuff up without feeling horrible about overuse of Glad bags and whatnot.
Comment by Janet — January 2, 2008 @ 6:12 pm
Bio-bags makes some biodegradable kitchen bags. We’ll probably get some as soon as we get through our supply of plastic–they’ve lasted a reeeaaally long time, somehow.
Comment by Artemis — January 2, 2008 @ 9:12 pm
Has anyone made a reusable bag that folds up to be very, very tiny? (preferably easily). I need a very small bag to keep in my purse/briefcase for when I stop by the store on my way home to grab a few things.
Comment by ECS — January 3, 2008 @ 10:39 am
Thanks for all the great responses. I guess I”m just a freak about lining all the trash cans as I have a husband who constantly throws his gum in the nearest one liner or no. I detest the scrape and therefore the liners…not to mention when he cleans out the gross hair from the drains (yes it’s mine, but yuck!). Anyway, thanks for the tips about the biodegradable liners etc.
Comment by Julia — January 3, 2008 @ 10:48 am
ECS, there are some very compact bags on the ReuseableBags.com website. You might check those out.
Comment by Artemis — January 3, 2008 @ 11:35 am
Our family went through a few periods where we used re-usable bags, but things fell through as everyone got older and more and more people were being sent off to do shopping trips. I keep meaning to get back to it; I own enough bags to pull it off for my own shopping at least.
ECS, my uncle gave me one a few years ago that can fit in all but the smallest purse. It even has directions on how to fold it up and return it to its case (which can’t be lost, because it’s attached.) It’s lovely, though I don’t think they make them anymore.
I recommend going with ones with soft cases, and ones that don’t have many zippers and things. The ones Artemis linked to look good to me.
Incidentally, with three teenage/young adult women in the house, we have always had “gooey” items in bathroom/bedroom trashcans. It’s deeply unpleasant to not have liners (thankfully we have no gum problems! Yuck!) However, the volume of trash in bedrooms and bathrooms is quite low even with all of our long hair, and biodegradable plastics aren’t that expensive. The trickier part is getting a supply; rural Ohio trained us not to be able to get things like that. Even now it’s a twenty mile drive to the nearest Trader Joe’s (which didn’t exist till a few years ago,) and we live near the state capital.
Comment by Sarah — January 3, 2008 @ 3:13 pm
Sarah, you could order them. Azure Standard is an online place to buy “natural” items in bulk; the deliver to your neighborhood about once a month and they carry the BioBags. Drugstore.com also carries them, here.
Comment by Artemis — January 3, 2008 @ 4:29 pm
Thanks so much for posting this. I signed right up. My supply of reusable bags usually lives in the car, though I need to pick up a few more since I always end up buying more than I think I will.
Comment by Anne — January 3, 2008 @ 5:26 pm
I bought these bags last spring and they have been amazing. The nylon is probably not as eco friendly as a natural fiber bag (although I have read some articles that say it might be) but it makes the bag incredibly thin (and able to roll up tiny and snap with attached strap) and also really strong. The five bags can all be rolled up and stored in the tiny storage bag (about 5″x8″) which is also included. I can fit all my weekly grocery shopping in those 5 bags ((for a family a 4) instead of double that in plastic grocery bags.
Also, if you want to make your own bag, I would suggest taking a plastic bag from the grocery store, deconstruct it so it lays flat and use it as a pattern. This way, the bag fits nicely on that litlte rack the baggers use to pack your groceries and they might even give you a high five for your ingenuity instead of a dirty look.
Finally if you want to support indie business and handmade (you never know what conditions those super cheap reusable bags are made under) might I suggest browsing etsy’s reusable bags. I even have a few in my shop right now made from cool thrifted sheets (sorry for the shameless plug).
Comment by TftCarrie — January 3, 2008 @ 7:32 pm
Just ran into this little tidbit: Break the throwaway habit. ‘Tis the season, apparently.
Comment by Artemis — January 3, 2008 @ 10:45 pm
I think IKEA bags, at a dollar (?? I think — or maybe even 50 cents) each, are the best. I can’t find a proper link to them, but here’s a picture with the general idea. They fold up TINY and yet hold absolute LOADS of stuff. Plus the straps are plenty long enough to put over your shoulder. I always have one or two in the car for any/all uses. Bonus: They last for ages.
(At my IKEA, they also have a smaller version available as well.)
Comment by RE — January 4, 2008 @ 6:23 am
I know the comment policy says no plugs….but this seems like a good place to mention my new blog about Sustainability/Environment/Consumption from an LDS perspective:
http://www.ldsustainability.blogspot.com
BTW, I like the Trader Joe’s canvas bags.
Comment by Latter-Day Sustainablist — January 6, 2008 @ 4:35 pm
Thanks posting about the C3 challenge and committing to the cause! I work for Brighter Planet, the company giving away the grand prize for the BYOB contest and I definitely agree that the small changes we make to our lifestyle really add up. Don’t know if you checked our site out (www.brighterplanet.com) but we just launched a credit card that helps build renewable energy projects each time someone spends on their card — another good way to take responsibility for the purchases we make. I’d like to give you an invite to some upcoming online events, would you mind sending me a contact e-mail so i can be in touch?
Thanks again!
Comment by emily — January 8, 2008 @ 2:39 pm
Hi Artemis,
I am also into green initiative,and helping bloggers with green initiatives.And I appreciate your initiative to say no to plastic bags rather to use Reusable bags.
Also I will like to mention that all reusable bags are not 100% recyclable.It is becoming trend rather than green initiatives.
Will like to talk(through email) to you,is it the right time or shall we talk during the weekends?
With Regards
Sam Jones
http://sam.pubcon.in/
Comment by Sam Jones — November 10, 2008 @ 9:10 am