Irish Examiner: 9 ways to be more eco-friendly at home
3. Think carefully about what you’re buying
Could you be more mindful with your purchases – perhaps buying new things less often, enabling you to spend a little more on sustainably-produced goods that are made to last?
“Sustainability starts with not consuming. Ask yourself if you really need what you think you need,” says TV interior designer Naomi Cleaver, who’s teamed up with Moda (modaliving.com) on projects to help revolutionise city centre living across the UK. “Look on websites like Freecycle and eBay (plus charity shops) before you buy anything. There are lots of sharing websites and apps popping up enabling you to hire household equipment, such as occasionally-used tools, so you don’t have to buy them. Only buy things for your home that, to paraphrase William Morris, you love and will endure years of use, as well as passing trends.”
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The Star Democrat: Oh, to be organized
7. Furniture. Place an ad in your local paper, or post your items up for sale on Craigslist. If you want to give the stuff away, post on the FreeCycle website. Or call the next fundraiser auction that comes along and ask whether your items could be picked up. If your furniture is really as great as you think, it’ll be gone before you know it.
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Bath Chronicle: Seven of the weirdest things on Freecycle available to Bath bargain hunters
Lavender hair dye, a batch of carrier bags and a slightly broken Hammond organ are some of the unusual things currently listed on Freecycle in Bath.
If you’re not aware of the website, it’s a non-profit organisation where people can post their unwanted items for free.
You can get a great bargain, like a three-piece Harrods suite, and it helps stop more reusable items ending up in landfills.
So, here’s a list of some of the strangest, quirkiest things being listed right now.
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Muncie Star Post: Get Up and Grow: Build your garden with reclaimed materials
For people at home, curb alerts and “free stuff” message boards offer an abundance of materials for a range of projects. Sites such as Craigslist, Facebook, Freecycle and the newspaper provide a space for people to offer free items to those who may want it. Free lumber, glass, bricks and other leftover or old materials are available within a short distance of where you sit now.
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Indian Link: Recycled garden: Jugaad in action
Sources of materials are op shops such as Salvos and Vinnies, free stuff picked up from friends, kerbside clean-ups and listed on websites such as Gumtree, Freecycle and Zilch. As they say, one man’s trash is another’s treasure. You can also get unique pieces for your garden at bargain prices on ebay.
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Redditch Advertiser: Residents in Alcester and Studley urged to recycle as much as they can
Anyone who received presents they didn’t want and can’t return, could consider organising a present swap with friends or relatives.
They could also be swapped or sold online at freecycle.co.uk and ebay.co.uk.
Unwanted presents could also be donated to a charity shop rather than just thrown out or put away, never to be used.
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Simi Valley Acorn: The blessings of giving
I’ve been a part of the Freecycle group for over a decade. For seven years now we have been doing an “adopt-a-family” event at Christmas.
What we do is find families in need and “adopt” them. Then, with the help of others in the Freecycle group, friends, family and local businesses, we get donations of gently used and new clothing and toys.
Once everything is gathered we have a wrapping party. All the gifts are sorted and wrapped. A few days before Christmas we deliver to the families.
For some it is a little uncomfortable or embarrassing when we arrive. It isn’t easy asking for help. But they relax as we are there.
We usually have the kids open one present and they can save the rest for Christmas morning.
This year we did something different and picked two senior citizens, sometimes a forgotten part of or community, especially if they do not have living family.
The point of the Simi Valley Freecycle group is to keep things out of the landfill by recycling & repurposing.
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Patch.com: How To Get Rid Of Christmas Trees In North Potomac
If you have an artificial tree, request a bulk trash pickup. If your artificial Christmas tree is still in usable condition, consider offering it for reuse on your neighborhood email list, Craigslist, your local Freecycle group, or similar places.
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The Corvallis Advocate: Did Someone Say ‘Free’?
FREECYCLE:
Similar to Craigslist, Freecycle is a website that makes it easy to get free items. While there are not as many posts on the website as on Craigslist, the competition for posted items is also lower. If you are searching for something in particular, like a queen size bed, you can also post on the site so people will contact you if they
have what they need. Go to freecycle.org and enter in Corvallis, or your town, to see available items.
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