I'm going a little bit green by accident

**Ramona** · 01-11-2011, 05:03 PM

I ran out of papertowels yesterday, simply by accident. I use a lot of them and I'll take this opportunity to go a little bit green.

I've already covered the bottom of the birdcage in a white paper napkin, he spends time down there so no printed paper.

This feels strange

.

**hotprincesscm** · 01-11-2011, 05:16 PM

I thought about going paper towel less myself...but at this point I do laundry at the laundry mat and using rags and cloth towels for cleaning...would just not be reasonable....once I move and have my own washer and dryer...than it is certainly a possibility!

**akolb** · 01-11-2011, 06:28 PM

We haven't bought or used paper towels or throw-away napkins, plates, utensils in over a year.
Once you decide to do it, it's really no different. Sure I have more dishes to wash after a party, but no huge trash bag to let sit in a landfill...

**shoiji** · 01-11-2011, 06:41 PM

It took a while to get used to not having paper towels. Now I can't even imagine not having my rags to clean up things!!! It has really helped me save a ton of money.

**cottageliving** · 02-08-2011, 11:20 AM

good luck on your green adventure. You probably won't miss the paper twoels as much as you think -- they become a habit to use, but once you replace them wiyj actual cloth there is no going back.

**Jamauk** · 02-08-2011, 12:34 PM

I tried going without paper towels, but I just couldn't do it. Not right now, at least. I don't keep up on my laundry consistently enough. I'm always a few steps behind! LOL!!

Until I'm able to get myself a little more organized, paper towels it is!

**paelthom** · 02-08-2011, 12:42 PM

I try to use paper towels less and rags more. The paper towels are for the big, yucky messes and the rags more for the general clean up. The one thing I can't really get into is using a sponge. To me it's a breeding ground for germs.

**Ramona** · 02-08-2011, 05:24 PM

It's not working out so well. I REALLY missed my paper towels, so I've bought some (on sale) and will be vigilant about them, I need the discipline

**Trishagirl** · 02-08-2011, 07:01 PM

I have a large stash of paper towels in my pantry I bought them when they were on sale + I had a $2 coupon whoo hoo!!!!

**cottageliving** · 02-09-2011, 11:06 AM

Ramona -- no need to feel bad about your paper towel use. Just cut back little by little. I still always have some paper towels on hand for other people to use, but they last forever since I primarily use cloth. Also, if you want to feel green, you can do what I do and purchase paper towels that are made from recycled paper. A combination of cutting back and buying recycled really makes a big difference.
AND even if you don't buy recycled paper, do NOT feel guilty about using a little bit of paper towel. You are making so many other frugal and green choices and you cannot beat yourself up. Just like with our money choices, as we become more aware of how we are using our resources we make slow incremental changes.

**crunchycon** · 10-25-2011, 04:55 AM

I do really well without paper towels...have my 1/2 dozen or so microfiber cloths for cleaning and a milk crate full of rags for really grungy stuff. It's DH and DM I can't seem to wean off the "drug."