Shopping Guide

So....having survived the scourge of dust and junk laid upon me by my old roommate and having successfully passed up on taking various items that I "kinda, sorta, maybe might like to have" and instead sending the lot on to Goodwill, I am now in the midst of transporting my belongings from one room to another and am trying to find things to lose along the way.

Along those lines I bring you a handy guide to help you reduce your clutter from its very source:

Some time ago Natural Home magazine featured a guide for how to see through “greenwashing” that asks all the right questions to help us buy less in general and buy greener when we do buy. These are best answered in terms of the product and its packaging:

1. How was it made? Are the materials sustainable? Did it take a lot of energy to make?
2. Is it locally made or did it require a huge amount of energy to get to your local store?
3. Is it built to last for generations and would you want to see it around for generations?
4. Is it recyclable or biodegradable?
5. Is it made of recycled materials?
6. Is it natural and nontoxic?

If after answering these questions, you still want to make the purchase, try one more test. Wait 24 hours and see if you’re still thinking about it. If you aren’t, skip it.

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