Monday 7 January 2019

Reducing 'fast' homeware - How to have a less wasteful home

Applying the fast fashion ideal to your home and how to have a more wasteful home and reduce waste and things going to landfill

There's been a lot of talk lately about living a less wasteful life, reducing the amount of rubbish we send to landfill and buying less 'stuff' in general. Changing the way we think about 'fast fashion' has been the main focus of most discussions, however I wondered if this train of thought could be applied to the way I shop for my home too? I'll admit I LOVE buying new home bits, and am forever thinking about redecorating and changing things around. However I've come to the realisation that this can be quite wasteful, so there's some ways I intend to change my spending habits in 2019 - and therefore how much waste I'm producing.

Consider every purchase
I think the main change I'll be making in 2019 is to be more mindful about what I'm buying, and whether I REALLY need whatever it is I'm currently lusting over. We live in a small home anyway, which I'm forever de-cluttering, plus its always great to save money, so I'm determined to reduce the amount of impluse buys I make for our home next year (wish me luck!) When shopping for clothes I rarely buy an item there and then, always walking away to think it over. If I'm still in love after a couple of days only then will I consider buying it. I think this is probably a sensible place to start with home shopping too!

Recycle/Sell-on - don't bin! 
I've always been a big eBay-er as I hate throwing things out, so think about selling any unwanted items on there (or Facebook marketplace, for example). Charity shops are always looking for donations too, and failing that most materials can be recycled - is there perhaps a bank locally to you where you could dispose of your items rather than binning them?

Applying the fast fashion ideal to your home and how to have a more wasteful home and reduce waste and things going to landfill


Buy second hand
This can obviously work the other way too - you can track almost anything down on eBay! I love finding a bargain, and have bought lots of the furniture in my home second hand as I truly believe you can bring anything back to life with a lick of chalk paint! I've previously shared some upcycling tips here, and on this instagram post I included my top tips to find a bargain on eBay/Gumtree.

Applying the fast fashion ideal to your home and how to have a more wasteful home and reduce waste and things going to landfill
I upcycled this vintage bureau which I picked up for a bargain £7.50 on eBay

'Shop your home'
This is something I do ALL the time (although predominately because I'm an eternal faffer!) and basically involves moving things around your home, and re-purposing items instead of buying new. You wouldn't believe how many times I've thought 'I need a new candle/plant/cushion' before realising I actually already have something very similar in another room. It's also nice to move things about once in a while to keep areas of your home looking fresh.

Applying the fast fashion ideal to your home and how to have a more wasteful home and reduce waste and things going to landfill
I recently spent ages searching for a new rug for our hallway, only to realise this one from our conservatory would be the perfect fit 
Re-purpose materials 
So you've decided you definitely want to replace the curtains in your living room - why not use the material to make cushion covers or some bunting instead of binning them? There's lots of things in my home I've reused to create something else, you'd be surprised how you can re-use and re-purpose something into a completely different item.


Is a less wasteful home something you'd like to adopt in 2019 too?

Thanks for reading,
Sam Xx

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4 comments

  1. I think shopping your home is the best. We try to buy homewares which are all cohesive in some way (gold or white), and then they go in every room and can be changed often to help keep things fresh. Definitely helps me from splurging on things I don't need

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  2. I love this post! Thanks for all those ideas. I try to be as conscious as possible when I buy - not necessarily regarding the ethicality of the product I am about to buy, I do look at that too- but essentially if I really need it or not. I prefer having a few beautiful things than many things that I get tired of so quickly. It is hard though because the world is telling you to consume. I feel like there is something in the air and people are changing that. Hurray!

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  3. I'm a big fan of shopping your own home. My loft is stuffed with treasures I keep going back to - as well as the christmas tree and a spare set of robin day vintage chairs for when we have people over for lunch or dinner.

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  4. Yes to all of this. We waited 2 years to get our curtains but they are blanket lined and will last a lifetime

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