Over the past year, I have had a great journey going green except for one issue. Until very recently, I struggled with my desire to have a paper-free kitchen. I wanted to rid our home of so much throwaway paper, but I wasn’t sure it was possible. How can you run a kitchen with no paper napkins or paper towels?
I understood the environmental benefits and the financial merits of not wasting this paper, but I still wasn’t sure it could be done without it being too complicated. But I have finally evolved a system that’s working great for my family.
As of today, I have been effortlessly paper-free for over a month. But before I jump into the how, I want to focus on the reasons behind why I had such a struggle evolving this system. It seems that once I had solutions to each of these problems, I had created a rather EASY paper-free system at my home.
Here are some of my reasons why going paper-free in the kitchen was difficult.
1. “I just didn’t realize.”
Sadly, I have used paper for so years that very often I failed to realize I was reaching out for the paper towel roll. A habit is a hard thing to break. As we get busy with work, kids and the rest of life, habits created for our convenience are even harder to break.
Solution: To create a paperless system in your kitchen, keep a LOT of cloth at your disposal.
And keep that paper roll stashed away. Today, in our home, we have enough cleaning and utility cloths to last us a whole 10 days.
2. “Where, oh where is the cloth?”
This is something I often heard from my kids and husband. If the cloth is hard to find, the family will not use it. And unless the whole family is on board, going paperless is impossible.
Solution: Be sure to make cleaning and utility cloths accessible to you, your spouse, kids, babysitter, and anyone who comes by.
In our home, we have a drawer full of cloths for kitchen use and a labeled basket with a pile for kids. You could have multiple drawers, but having very distinct places for the cloth works really well, even with my two-year-old.
3. “I have NO idea which cloth to use for this or that.”
A few months ago, I experimented with a system with three colors of napkins — all the same kind, for various purposes in the kitchen. This system failed immediately because none of us could remember which color was for what purpose.
Solution: Create CATEGORIES — not just categories of form, but also of function. Now, we have different kinds of cloth based on what we use them for.
I’ll go into each type in a minute, but this system works well, because each category is easy to recognize and works for its intended function.
4. “The kids, the dogs… they’re way too messy.”
I really used to think that some messes created by my dogs and kids absolutely needed paper — it wouldn’t get clean otherwise. But I really haven’t seen such a need in over a month (and in case there really is a need, there is always paper hidden away). It seems like this fear was just in my head — such exceptions are really no reason to not go paper-free.
Solution: Change your perspective. Once you start using cloth regularly, you will also start to dispose off older cleaning cloths regularly. Such messes are good opportunities to get rid of old rags. And if you have no cloth you can use, there is really no problem with using a little paper, is there?
5. “The guests need paper.”
This was yet another excuse I gave myself. The fact that guests ask for paper napkins does not mean they need paper napkins.
Solution Take pride in what you’re trying to accomplish. When I got excited about not having used paper in over a week, my guests got excited about it as well. They wanted to now how I was doing it. They seemed much more sensitive. All I had to do was get rid of my guilt of depriving them of paper.
Organize for going paper-free
Photo by Jill Doughtie
I have an extremely simple setup in my kitchen, with just four distinct categories of cleaning and utility cloths:
1. For deep cleaning
This category is cloth used to clean dirt, sticky stuff, grease, and pretty much all kitchen dirt. I invested in ten really good industrial strength static cleaning cloths.
I think everyone serious about using cloth to deep clean should invest in them. They’re great, and I go through one cloth every two or three days in my kitchen. The cloth takes stains away on the stove, stickies out from the dinner table, and just about everything else. If there’s a mess that is both deep and wet, I will use the cloth and throw it straight into the washer. They also work wonderfully to dry dishes, clean mirrors and shine surfaces.
2. For the kids
As I put the kids’ old clothes away, I discovered a number of washcloths and burp cloths — some even unopened. I put all of these into a little basket and my girls have that basket of napkins all to themselves for anything they like. They use them at the table, to clean their messes, and even use them while they cook with me.
3. The exclusive
This is the pile of napkins for the guests. A little nicer, these are mostly put away until the guests arrive.
4. The everything else
This category consists of about 20 very generic napkins. This is the critical pile that we use for just about everything else — when in doubt, we just use these napkins. I bring one of these out everyday to use to wipe my hands in the kitchen. If there is a mess that’s too wet to waste a static cloth, we just use one of these.
I have been using this system for over a month, and it’s been working like a charm. I have yet to find something that I absolutely need paper for. All I had needed was a flexible enough solution, a huge change in perspective and a lot of pride in my efforts.
Are you paper free in your home? I would love to hear what works for you!
About Maya
We are trying to go paper free as well. My friend actually sells a product to replace paper towels. These towels are great and she makes them herself from her home. Check out her Etsy shop (Athena Creates):
http://www.etsy.com/shop/AthenaCreates
I will not receive any compensation for promoting her. She is a stay-at-home mom and has created this great product that is very affordable and so useful. She makes plain towels or towels that she hand-dyes in beautiful colors.
We also are paper free. I didn’t realize that I had organized my cloths until your writeup….nice to know my brain did that step for me. I know what you mean about guests….my mother-in-law always uses paper napkins and plates. However, I got to see some excitement pass to her when she purchased me some micro-fiber cloths from Trader Joes for my kitchen. It is important to notice when someone else is noticing!!!
My next challenge is sandwich bags….a friend told me his co-worker is sewing reusable sandwich bags…I’m looking on etsy.
We have been paperless for several months now. I discussed it with my husband months ago, but he didn’t seem ready for it. So the next time we ran out of paper towels I just didn’t go buy anymore. I did what you explained in your article, I had plenty of cloths ready and made sure everyone knew where to find them. It worked wonderfully, no pain involved! The next time we went to the store, my husband commented that we don’t need to buy paper towels anymore, we’ve been doing fine without them.
We also keep a tub of home made wipes in the bathroom for use with diaper changes and any messes on that end of the house. They are also great for a quick bathroom clean-up. However, our bathroom is not paper-free. We still use bathroom tissue, I haven’t been that brave yet!
I scored a large bundle of cloth napkins at a yard sale, they have kept us supplied for quite sometime. I also find that guests are usually impressed to be given a cloth napkin instead of a paper one. They somehow feel like they are special to be given a cloth napkin.
.-= Earthgrlie´s last blog ..Another Reason I love not having a Microwave =-.
Wow…nifty idea but waaaay ahead of me! My hubby and I have a small kitchen built in the 1930′s…paper plates is all we can do to keep from washing dishes by hand, round the clock. Once we get more established and I become a total Simple Mom…I imagine we’d give this paperless kitchen thing a go!
kudos for the neat idea and great effort!
.-= The Pursuit of Mommyness´s last blog ..After 562 Blog Posts and Much Success, The Mom Crowd Says Goodbye =-.
I always find it funny when people act like cloth napkins are so “fancy”–it’s more money to buy paper (especially the thicker ones my MIL uses). While we still use paper towels for some jobs (but we’re trying to phase them out), we’ve been using cloth napkins since soon after we got married in the early 90s. Within the first couple of years of marriage, we had been gifted with over 50 cloth napkins! It was obvious to me that I could save some money by using them instead of paper and they are just so much nicer to use. They feel better on your face, look nicer on the table, and last a LONG time. This summer we had friends visiting from France and we used the napkins they had given us as a wedding present in 1992!
I’ll ditto what others have said about repurposing baby washcloths, burp cloths, and receiving blankets once you’re baby is older and I’ve bought all of my microfiber cloths at Target in the automotive section. They were clearancing out ones a year ago and I got 12 clothes for $5!
I’m still a BIG fan of toilet paper but am contemplating switching from Kleenex to handkerchiefs. That might take a while.
We’ve been ‘pretty much paperless’ for a few months now. We just buy huge packs of cloths at Sam’s and keep the roll or two of paper towels hidden away. It really wasn’t as hard as I had expected, and we were spending WAY too much on paper towels before that.
Probably the main thing I’ve had trouble with doing without paper towels is drying off meat/veggies for searing/roasting. I can’t use my cloths for this, because unless it is brand new just out of the package there is going to be dog/cat hair on it. Even straight out of the dryer there is critter fur. Not a big deal for drying off hands or cleaning up messes, but really not cool to be touching food with. Suggestions?
I’ve had a (nearly) paperless kitchen for almost ten years. We have two baskets sitting on top of the microwave, one for hand-knitted dishcloths that we use for pretty much everything, and one for larger cloths, towels and the old-style thin flat diapers. I admit I still have a roll of paper towels under the sink. We have 4 cats and they throw up and I just can’t get happy with not just cleaning it up with a paper towel and tossing the whole thing. Still, it probably takes me 3 or 4 months to use a roll of paper towels, maybe longer.
Hi Maya!
New to your site, but just wanted to say it’s very enjoyable to read.
Also, we have been doing a paper free kitchen for a while now too.
I have 3 piles of cloths:
1)Dinner napkins- bought 60 of them on ebay (look under wedding lots) for $30
2)Drying cloths- for hands and dishes (acquired here and there over the years)
3)Cleaning cloths- for cleaning surfaces and spills (they are microfiber so are fabby at picking up large spills and also cleaning without much effort. Bought them at the dollar store -labeled as facial cloths but are really just microfiber towels). These are my most prized cloths and I have about 30 of them.
I keep the dinner napkins in the closet next to my dining room table so my girls can set the table easily. The drying cloths and the cleaning cloths are in a basket in the kitchen.
It’s incredibly easy to live a paper-free lifestyle. You just have to let go of excuses. We even do cloth diapers!
.-= Bev´s last blog ..Jane =-.
I never really gave it a thought, but I’ve been using cloth all of my life really!
Cloth diapers for the kids, but also in the kitchen.
I used square towels for drying your hands after washing (terry), teacloths (thin cotton) for drying the dishes etc. and small washcloth-like wipes, all cotton. My mom used to have very thin cotton glasscloths too, especially for drying glasses, but I don’t go that far.
For the floor I use a thick, sturdy cotton, but I found out the old diapers I have left from my kids work fine too, those diapers are lasting for more than 9 years now!
Every day in the morning I get a fresh wipe, towel and teacloth out, and the ones from the day before go in the laundry. They last a day with no problem, except when there’s a party or something, or it got really dirty, I need extra’s.
Funny to read your post, because I’ve always used this ‘system’ as you may call it without thinking.
Great how-to post! The only thing I’ve done along these lines (so far) is paper towels. It’s amazing that when they’re not there, people use dishtowels to dry their hands! I keep a roll for covering leftovers in the microwave and it takes us months to use just one roll. Love it! Next I need to tackle paper napkins. (just stop buying them…just stop buying them…)
.-= Intentionally Katie´s last blog ..25 Things I Learned on my Cruise =-.
This post is quite appropriate. I’ve been thinking about this and how to go about it. I’m going to start with no paper napkins. I’ve got to work up to no paper towel.
Thanks for the good post to think how I can go paperless. I look forward to reading the comments of how others went paperless in the kitchen.
We have been mostly paper free for a long time. We pull out paper napkins and plates occasionally, but other than that it is cloth. Except: puke! I will not clean up puke with a washcloth and then wash it. Nope, not happening in my house. When the kids are sick I am into ease and going with the flow. Momma puking will not help matters at all — so paper it is!
So weird that I blogged about this same thing today. You’ve inspired me to look for some nicer napkins when people come over!
.-= Stefanie Boe´s last blog ..Why I gave up paper towels at my house =-.
Instead of using paper towels to cover food in the microwave, we use a plastic cover that cost $1.00 at Sears. It works great to prevent splatters and goes over almost any size plate. We picked it up 2-3 years ago, not sure if they still carry them.
.-= Laurie´s last blog ..Cooing! =-.
My family switched to cloth at the beginning of fall. We have a large basket of towels and cloths in the kitchen, a basket of cloth napkins in the pantry, and a basket of rags in the cleaning closet. I have really enjoyed the switch, especially since I no longer have to purchase expensive paper towel and napkins when grocery shopping!
.-= Sarah H.´s last blog ..Wet Oatmeal Kisses =-.
I like how you made categories of cloth for use in cleaning, the kitchen and home. I am using more and more cloth in the kitchen, but I haven’t made the total transition yet. At first I thought there would be too much laundry, but it seems to be going fine without adding too much strain. This post has inspired me to try to use even more cloth and less paper than before. Thanks!
.-= Taylor at Household Management 101´s last blog ..Play Chinese Checkers With Your Kids On Family Game Night =-.
To help with a paperless kitchen, my mom has knit me some swifter covers so I don’t have to buy them. The knit one is great you can use it then flip it inside out and use on that side, then wash it. I also use scrap denim and stitch the edges or embroider on them for napkins in my daughters lunchbox. Bandannas work well for this too.
This isn’t an option for everyone, I guess, but I had my husband swipe me a stack of surgical towels from the OR. (He works there). They are lint free, blue towels, and are fairly absorbent. I can trash them if they get too gross, but I have found that having a big stack saves tons of paper. I keep a wire basket on my counter where dirties go, and they get dumped in the wash every day or so. The funny thing is my friend’s husband is a surgeon and I was at her house the other day and discovered that she does the same thing. Get a doc to swipe you some!
Our Goodwill stores sell cut up old clothes/sheets as rags for about $2.oo a bag depending on what type of cloth it is – flannel, terry, or jersey. We use these rags for everything from blowing noses to wiping bums (but not without washing in between!). When/if they get too gross I toss them without guilt because 1, they were already so well worn that they were recycled from clothes into rags, and 2, they’re cotton anyway.
Of course we also have nicer napkins and regular dish clothes/towels for kitchen use and don’t for get the cloth diapers!
.-= Cori´s last blog ..beyond the basics =-.
We are about 99% paper free in the kitchen, but I still use paper towels to clean up spilled oil, because I don’t want to wash an olive-oil soaked cloth with my clothes and it’s too wasteful to do a whole load of laundry for just one dirty washcloth. Anyone else have solutions for this?
.-= Anna´s last blog ..Is There Such a Thing As Owning Too Much Clothing? =-.
We’ve been paper-free for about a year now and while at first I was nervous..it was so much easier than I imagined and now….is completely normal.
I am bemused by all this going without paper towel. I cant afford it or even when i can i cant justify spending money on it. To me it is a luxury and i have been doing without for years even my kids automatically going to the old dishtowel/rag/whatever it was in a former life drawer to clean up messes.
I don’t have time this morning to read every comment, alas, but I did want to mention too the over-the-cabinet-door towel holders. (They are easy to find on a web search; include the word “kitchen” for the small ones.) There is not a space for a wall towel rack for cloth towels in our kitchen, so these hang over a drawer or cabinet door and hold a towel or two. That way I don’t bang my hip on hooks (ow) and kids know where a towel is. (Caveat: it took a long time for the kids to not want to play with them.) We aren’t totally paper free but we’re getting there!
.-= MemeGRL´s last blog ..MPM–In the Swing =-.
We’ve been talking about going paperless for a few months now and we’ve ratchet back almost everything but the occasional paper towl use. I think this has alot to do with not categorizing things – mud on the floor is super messy, so we reach for the paper towl. Having a dedicated cloth would help this 100%…
This is fabulous! What a great excuse to make some cute napkins. I’m really going to try this out with my family. Thanks so much for sharing!!
Supply Source:
Something no one has mentioned is restaurant/bar towels. They are cheap, and can be found in bundles at your local restaurant supply store. You could probably find them online also. They are simple cotton and work beautifully. Having worked in restaurants for years, I find them much more absorbent and easier to use than most other fabrics used for “designer towels”. And for me, the squick factor of using a pretty towel on an ugly mess is non-existant; these are strictly utilitarian. I still use a lot of paper towels and napkins, but this has me re-thinking a lot of that. I just want to make sure my cloth napkins are pretty AND absorbent.
.-= Laurie´s last blog ..Cooing! =-.
You got me thinking of what paper we do still use, which is for special occasions – birthdays and parties. When my kids were young, my mom made them holiday pillow cases (which of course we still have to pass on to their children someday), and I’m wondering if anyone has made their own cloth napkins for parties?
I don’t know if anyone will ever get to this comment
but I wanted to share my solution for smelly rags. (I’m not totally paperless, but I don’t use a lot of paper towel…and I keep it in another room so it’s actually a hassle to go get it, and easier to get a rag. 
I keep a little basket under the counter by the sink…but **I’ve lined it with a plastic grocery bag.** When I’m done with a rag, I just **drape it over the side of the basket.** (If I was using a plastic bin, I wouldn’t need to line it with the bag, but it’s an actual wicker basket and I don’t want it to go moldy.) When the cloths are dry, I throw them in the basket. Whenever I do a load of laundry (only once a week or so…just the two of us) I toss the contents of the mini basket into the big one. Super easy!
My husband lived in England and Germany…families there would often have an individual/ unique napkin ring for each person in the family…..each person knew what his/her ring looked like and used that same cloth napkin all week. At the end of each meal they put their napkin back in the ring and tossed it in a basket (unless it was really dirty from bbq sauce etc.)……then next meal they just grabbed their same napkin. Just another idea….
We have been paper free for about 6 years. I recently stream-lined my system to make it easier for our 4 & 2 1/2 year olds to keep up!
*I bought yardage at Ikea, cut it into squares, borrowed a friend’s serger to finish the edges, and viola! 40 napkins for under $20. They’re cute, 100% cotton so super easy to care for. Nice, fancy napkins are put away for dinner guests!
*Solid baby washcloths are in a bin in the kitchen for after-meal hands/face/table wipe down. I just dampen it.
*Diaper wipes are Gerber or Circo brand baby washcloths in a small plastic bin with a few drops of castile soap & water.
*the baby washcloths with bubbles on them are for bath-time, get it? bath bubbles? This way when it comes to laundry we know what goes in the bath and what is a diaper wipe.
*old or cheap washcloths are in a stack in the laundry room for use as cleaning cloths. Another bin in the kitchen holds old and worn kitchen towels in place of paper towels.
We use all-natural cleansers so I don’t mind just washing it all together. Everything gets thrown into a bin by the washer, and when I do my next load of laundry I throw them in.
I don’t even notice it as extra work anymore, and it has saved us who knows how much on napkins & paper towels.
We have had a paperless kitchen for about a year now and it’s going great! I had been wanting to whip up some cloth napkins for years but just had not gotten around to it yet. My mom passed away from cancer last December and she left behind three stacks of fabric with which I think she had intended to make nightgowns. They were soft and the colors and patterns look exactly like what I would expect my mom to be drawn. My three small kids and I spent an afternoon together cutting and sewing all the fabric into casual napkins. We made them into 5 inch squares ~ they are large enough to use with a meal, but small enough they only need to be stacked and not folded. We had so many we were even able to give half to my sister and she now also has a paperless kitchen.
Love the blog! Keep the good stuff coming…
I have a basket of cut up old terry cloth towels. They became ripped, but stil had great absorbing abilities. I cut them up and these are the cloths that we use to clean up spills (milk, water, soup, etc.) and floor messes (rain, melted snow, etc.).
Laura(Maine)
My family has gone “paperless” in the kitchen as well starting just a few weeks ago. So far so good! Thanks for your tips!
I love this post! We kind of surprised ourselves by going mostly paperless last year. We started by switching from disposables to cloth diapers (fuzzibunz) and then it seemed silly to keep using disposable diaper wipes. So I made a bunch of simple flannel cloth wipes (from old receiving blankets) that would fit in a standard wipe case and we made our own wipe solution to dampen them. Then we ended up using the wipes for everything – cleaning up spills, blowing noses, wiping faces, etc. Then we made some simple napkins from old sheets. We still use paper towels, but rarely… maybe one roll every 6 weeks or so. It feels good to be consuming less (and spending less!) and it’s amazing how one positive change leads to another. Between the savings on paper towels, diaper wipes, kleenex and diapers for two small kids, we easily save over $1k a year. Nice!
This is amazing, I can’t believe that this post drew so much attention. That’s beautiful. These are practices that our grandmothers wouldn’t blink an eye at. I remember getting all nostalgic about lady’s hand-kerchiefs when I went back home to the Caribbean and picked up a pretty pack of five. Never really used them until I had my DS and ran out of breastpads.
My system was kinda built since we didn’t really grow up with all those luxuries and yes paper napkins and towels are a luxury. Hand towel (terry), dish towel (tea cloth as Ester said or microfiber), cleaning rag (for countertops, fridge, stove, cabinets anything below that area gets the mop or cleaning sponge). We use to also cut up old clothing for cleaning instead of trashing it. I also used that lonely sock without a partner as a dusting buddy. Paper-towels for fried foods. But I forgot all about cloth napkins! So thanks for the reminder cause I would much rather use pretty cloth napkins than cheap paper napkins
We are mostly paper free, and after reading your article, I think the main thing standing in our way is the fact that we need a few more cloths. Sometimes we run out before the laundry has been folded and dried, and that’s when we turn to our paper towels.
Our kitchen is paper free also. In fact my husband and I design and make attractive “towel houses” dispensers that sit on the counter to house the clean “unpaper” towels. (You can view them at madeintheredbarn.etsy.com) This way, they do not need to be folded, and go straight from the dryer to the “towel house.” We also do as others have suggested and have a small trash basket under the sink that we toss the “dirties” into. One of the kids just makes a daily trip to the laundry room with it during kitchen clean-up!
We’ve been using our unpaper towels made from birdseye diaper fabric in place of both paper towels AND napkins. But, last week I went to Goodwill and bought a cute tablecloth for $2, cut it into 9″ squares and serged the edges. Now we have very cute, inexpensive cloth napkins that are folded and sit in a napkin holder on our table for meals.
For a place to store you unpaper towels. . . my husband and I design and sell decorative “towel houses” specifically to house UNFOLDED, clean unpaper towels on your counter top. Our towel house sits on the counter where our paper towel holder used to sit. It helped make the transition from paper super easy. (You can take a look at: http://www.madeintheredbarn.etsy.com)
We use unpaper towels in place of both paper towels AND napkins. Last week however, I stopped at Goodwill and picked up a table cloth for $2, cut it into napkin squares and serged the edges. Now I have a pile of very cute folded napkins in a napkin holder on the dinner table for only $2.
I’ve slowly been going paper-free. My only concern with completely giving up the paper towels is that I am nervous about washing my other laundry with the cloth used for cleaning. Are you washing those seperately? Or using cleaning products that won’t stain other laundry?
I wash them with my laundry. We don’t use any commercial household cleaners, though, so no worries there. I clean everything with either heavily diluted Dr. Bronner’s or a 50/50 mix of water and vinegar
I’ve recently gone almost paper-free. We still have napkins leftover from our new home BBQ August 2009. And if when we occasionally eat out at “fast food restaurants”, typically we have tons of leftover napkins that had been stuffed in our bags…so we stash those away (husband makes and eats bacon, and so the paper are handy for that). I’m pretty sure I can follow through with my oath to never by paper again.
We’ve gone paper-free at the kitchen table, but I need to work harder to get it going in the cooking space too. Do you have any tips on how to differentiate between cloths used for scrubbing grime (counters, pots, spills on the floor) and drying clean dishes? My husband, though I love that he volunteers to do the dishes all the time, forgets and mixes these up a lot. Yech!
Interesting post but the more I think about it the more I agree with Cynthia and a few others. I doubt the environmental and cost savings. Obviously, the trouble of such a system adds to my schedule.
According to http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/ (which seemed pretty reasonable), the cost of a load of a running a washing machine on warm/cold is about 27 cents. The cost of running a dryer is around 36 cents. Add on the cost of the detergent for a load (I buy the off brand at Costco, never use the full amount, your mileage will vary), that’s somewhere between 30-60 cents. That wash and dry is now costing me upwards of a dollar, not to mention the environmental cost of the water usage, treatment, costs of production of the detergent, recycling of the container, etc.
For all those who say that adding the cloth is just “completing your regular load” – that just tells that for years you haven’t been washing full loads of laundry. If you had space in the washer, why not wait another day and do the laundry then?
I like the elegance of it all – but it isn’t convincing me.
I don’t buy it. Adding that up, if the numbers are correct, you might add a dollar’s worth of laundry to your week. I haven’t used disposable paper products regularly for a long time, so I’m not sure, but my guess is that most people who DO probably spend more than a dollar a week on paper towels/napkins/whatever. Also, there’s another motivation besides monetary savings. I didn’t actually go paperless to save money, I did it because I believe reusable pretty much ALWAYS has a smaller environmental impact than disposable. When you factor in the cost of the raw materials and the procurement of them, then manufacturing, the transportation, marketing, etc etc to get a product from its raw state to your home, it’s huge, it’s not just a couple of bucks savings to a person’s wallet. I’ve heard this argument regarding cloth diapers and I don’t buy it there, either. My daughter was in cloth diapers 8 years ago and I’m still using them to clean my house and they’re still in great shape. I think the amount of laundry they’ve added to my life in the last ten years is far less in resources than all the disposable products they replaced in my home. Just my thoughts, though. But even if you are only speaking about money savings. Let’s say you buy a bunch of new stuff, napkins, towels, whatever (which most people don’t, they use what they have, make their own, find bargains), and aren’t even super particular about price, so you spend $50, and they add $1 a week of laundry, that’s only a little over a hundred dollars in a year. And you still have the cloths the next year, so your only cost is the laundry. Do most people spend only $50/year on paper towels and napkins? I sort of doubt it.
Why in the world would you use a cloth to dry dishes? That is unsanitary and a complete waste of time and money.
A decent dish rack to hold them while they air dry is the ticket. In the early 1980s, Sam Clark wrote a book called “The Motion Minded Kitchen” that showed some clever upper cabinets made as dish racks, with upper shelves perforated and the lowest one sloped to drain into the sink below. Dishes were washed, rinsed, and immediately placed in the rack/cabinet until they were to be used next. They dried in the place they were stored–less handling, more sanitary.
Failing that, one of the simple folding Scandinavian-style wooden dish racks would seem extremely useful on the drainboard. One less source of cloth to be washed and handled, too.
I don’t want to sound inflammatory here, I am genuinely curious. Has anyone done any real analysis on the environmental impact of doing more laundry vs throwing away a relatively-quickly biodegradable piece of paper towel?
It seems to me that water is the resource we should be conserving, however I am sure that I don’t enough information to make a truly informed decision.
It may be biodegradable, but also consider the chopping of trees, and usually bleaching and printing the paper. For making paper a lot of water is used as well. Compare that to a towel that my husband bought before we met that’s still in use for more than 18 years, I hate to think about the enormous pile of paper that could have been!
Thanks for the reply. Let the [paperless] mission……………… begin (that’s for any of you with small kids
Paper in the United States also usually comes from tree farms, so it is definitely renewable
Paper towels made with recycled products are always an option too….
.-= Amanda´s last blog ..Confession about coupons… =-.
“Unfortunately, the paper making process is not a clean one. According to the U.S. Toxic Release Inventory report published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pulp and paper mills are among the worst polluters to air, water and land of any industry in the country. The Worldwatch Institute offers similar statistics for the rest of the world. Each year millions of pounds of highly toxic chemicals such as toluene, methanol, chlorine dioxide, hydrochloric acid, and formaldehyde are released into the air and water from paper making plants around the world.” ecology.com
Also, if you do some research on landfills, you’ll be quick to find out landfills are highly controlled so that nothing can biodegrade. Landfills are essentially layered with impermeable tarps, separating the giant mound into different layers. Each layer is then sprayed with numerous chemicals to reduce biodegradation. Keeping everything separated and inactive keeps anything ‘weird’ from happening. Awful, I know, but the more you think about it, the more it makes sense. The result of biodegradation is ‘dirt’ and heat… a pile that big would make so much heat, the consequences are unimaginable.
So all those paper towels aren’t going anywhere.
You can always compost them
I am just advocating balance. Paper towels are useful in some circumstances, but just like anything, moderation and mindfulness are key.
.-= Amanda´s last blog ..Confession about coupons… =-.
Thanks for encouraging us to continue on! I don’t realize the paper towels aren’t in use until we have an overnight guest ask where they are! I have an ample supply of dishtowels (nicer ones in the kitchen and older ones in a basket for outdoor needs). I’m using all the baby wash cloths I had for sink and meal time clean up. The static cloths are great for cleaning as you said, and the nice cloth napkins come out for guests.
.-= Jenni´s last blog ..Birthday Blooms =-.
We have been paper free for almost two years now. You can buy inexpensive bundles of wash cloths at CostCo, Ikea, WalMart, TJ Max, etc. They work great. They get their own load in the laundry each week and are folded in half and stacked in our pantry. Once a few months they get a bleach job so that we feel better about the growing dinginess (they’re still clean but stained and gray).
Great! I have been paperless for so long I couldn’t figure out what your blog title meant for a moment
I thought it had something to do with keeping books, lol.
Anyway, I put up an entry at my blog about it, thanks for the inspiration.
.-= Judith´s last blog ..Mild Sweet Corn Salsa Raw Vegan Side Dish =-.
We’ve been paper-free in the kitchen for the past 4 years or so…I honestly don’t even think about it now, except when I need to kill a bug…I DO run to the bathroom to grab some t.p.!
I do notice it when I go to other people’s homes or when they come to mine and ask for a paper towel or napkin. Everyone thinks it’s so fancy to have cloth napkins, but they are so much easier…you just wash them and never have to put them on your shopping list! I have a bottom drawer in the kitchen with kid-friendly dishes and a bunch of little washcloths and old flannel burp cloths that get used (and are easily accessible to my kids) for any messes.
One of my four-year old’s chores is to take the rags and napkins to the laundry after meals-it works great, except when he throws the wet stuff on the floor in a pile or with the clothes in the hamper!
If you’re thinking about going paper-free, do it! You won’t regret it!
.-= Sharon´s last blog ..Embassy Date! =-.
I do this too – but unlike the pretty cloths in the photos, I just use what I call (good old fashioned) “rags”, kept in a handy unlidded box just near the kitchen. Mostly the rags are just old facecloths, and past-their-best dishtowels, cut up into four pieces. The facecloths are the best, because the nap made by their little loops really helps sweep up the mess, especially crumbs or food particles. I also use the rags for surface cleaning around the house. And when the mess is wiped or surface cleaned, the rag just goes straight in the washing machine, ready for another round! Being a mom, there’s always another load of laundry not far away, and having one or two rags in it is hardly any bother. We have keep a roll of paper towels, but it is rarely used. I think the TV marketing campaigns of recent decades have lured people away from the commensense, no-cost virtues of rags and cloth wipes towards the prettier-looking (but ultimately costly) paper towels.
.-= Kate´s last blog ..Upon the loss of a child =-.
Have you thought of the expense of laundering all these? If you use tableclothes, cloth napkins, cleaning rags, dish towels, handkerchiefs (instead of Kleenex), cloth diapers, etc you are adding a big load to your laundry so I have to wonder if going totally paperless saves that much money or the environment. The necessary hot water, detergent, dryer time will be a hidden expense, not counting your hard work. I try to hit a happy medium. I use dish towels for drying my hands in the kitchen and hand towels in the bathrooms. I tried to use cloth napkins for 6 years and I found that my family just didn’t use them so I went back to napkins. I use old towels and t-shirts for cleaning rags. I use a sponge mop and old towels for mopping instead of throwaways like Swiffers. I wash these separately (not in with my clothes) and don’t use softener because it makes the rags less absorbent and can leave streaks if using for glass cleaner. I use sponges for kitchen. But I keep rolls of paper towels, kleenex and antibacterial wipes. I have 5 little dogs so I use the antibacterial wipes for cleaning up after the dogs, the toilet and other nasty jobs. I mainly use paper towels as a microwave cover to keep food from splattering the inside of my microwave and for windexing. Anything else would need to be washed each time. I think kleenex is more sanitary than washing handkerchiefs. And there is no way I would go back to cloth diapers. So I think I’ve got a good balance.
.-= Sharon´s last blog ..Where Angels Fear To Tread by E.M. Forster =-.
My family keeps a basket of cloths in the kitchen right on top of the counter. You are correct in saying it needs to be easy to get to. It works out great! and it is a cute blue basket that matches our kitchen decor.
This is great – you have achieved what it took us probably five years to do, and have come up with very similar solutions! We have microfibre cloths, and pretty cut up T-shirt pieces, in an IKEA plastic bag dispenser in the kitchen, and everyone knows where to go to help themselves. We don’t leave the used cloths hanging around for second use, unless that use is immediate, and we have a laundry bin in the kitchen especially for the used cloths. It works.
.-= Floss´s last blog ..It’s February, so it must be red… =-.
We’ve been paper free in the kitchen for several years, and I don’t miss paper towels/napkins even a little bit. We save lots of money and help the environment in the process.
http://www.homemademothering.com/2009/06/challenge-for-you.html
Oh my we haven’t bought paper towels or napkins since I moved in 11 years ago! It helps that the washer/dryer are right off the kitchen. Every time there is a spill, I reach for my basket of rags under the sink, wipe up the spill and toss it in the general direction of the washer. We use cloth napkins, when they get old they get relegated to the rag basket and I get to buy new napkins. I can’t stand going to the grocery store and seeing women or men with those big bundles of a dozen paper towels falling out of the carriage. What a waste!
I’ve come late to this useful, on-going paperless discussion, and have a few additions. Cut up brown paper bags for draining bacon. For preventing microwave splatters, cover cup or dish with a plate. Drying herbs & lettuce: clean in advance of use, shake off droplets & let air dry; or use a drying basket, go outside, & swing it. It works! To dry off meat before cooking, a paper towel, for most people, might be best. Sterilize sponges in the microwave. For cleaning the bathroom, use old kitchen sponges or brushes, then toss out & replace as needed. Using no paper at all may be impractical. Balance is good in most things and weighing sanitation, environment, cost & quantities will give every family their own best solutions for using less paper.
That’s brilliant! Brown paper bags. I have been racking my brain FOREVER since we used our last paper towel in this house…what am I going to use to drain the bacon. Now…I’m a pescetarian…I don’t eat meat, so that was the easiest solution – not having to cook it. I am, however, not the only person in this household…and definitely sense a bit of edginess from the hubby who likes eating bacon soaked and patted with paper towels. Oh! And check out ENJO…cleaning without using chemical, cleaning in less time with less water (sooooo environmentally friendly), and save money in the long run! Check into it. They sell it like they sell Tupperware…or Pampered Chef…a consultant comes to the home for a party! Quite interesting, actually.
.-= Amber´s last blog ..Lunch Menu Item Monday – Hummus Wannabe Dip =-.
Tell me more about these static cloths….PLEASE!
We’re relatively paper-free, not really by conscious choice but because it just kind of happened. I do keep paper towels around, but rarely use them. I change out my dish towel twice a day and before I throw it in the wash, I wipe down the countertops and table. I already do a load of laundry a day, so adding in 2-3 more small towels doesn’t add up to that much. My husband and I use cloth napkins, and we don’t tend to eat like pigs so they don’t really get messy. I change them out at the end of the day. My kids eat like…well, kids..and I just wipe them down with a wet washcloth at the end of every meal instead of giving them their own napkin.
.-= lindsey´s last blog ..Menu Plan Monday – June 7 =-.
For now, we are not paper free, but I will now turn our home into a paper free one. Great thanks to your post. I have learned something from it.
Yes, we have been paper-free for quite some time now, well over a year. I have 3 small children (8, 4, and 3) and they ALL use cloth exclusively:) I do have more laundry, but the table looks a little prettier and we are doing great things for the environment and my children are learning this from the beginning. I LOVE being paper-free:)
I loved your article about going paperless in the kitchen. Although at first it didnt hit about paper towels, it is a very good idea and I am going to try this. Thanks for the information.
Great post. Something for me to ponder as I still live with my guilt of using disposable nappies.
One “old fashioned” thing we do use in this household is handkerchiefs. Purely because my husband is a hanky carrier so he passed this on to the kids. But I just realised how many tissues we go through (hankies are used when out).
Would love to know where I can buy affordable, kid sized, fun hankies. Can only find great big man hankies in the menswear section!
I guess the hardest part is having to wash them. We normally don’t buy paper towels for the kitchen, we usually use old clothes instead, its cheaper & doesn’t leave much lint.
Ria Thompson´s latest post: The Legend of Acai Berry
We are paper free!!!! and love it! I have cloth napkins and for cleaning i cut up my childrens old stained up t-shirts. Thanks for the post!
About a year ago we decided to go paper free in the kitchen and the method is so simple and user friendly, I can’t believe I haven’t done it sooner. First, I went to Sams Club (or any other big box store) and purchased, by the dozen, their all white packs of 20 ‘washcloths’. They can be found in the commercial food and beverage section. Then for every sink in the house I bought a cute little basket (that fits the decor of the room) that houses no less than 10-15 of these little mini towelettes that I roll into a sweet, bed and breakfast-type display. Underneath every sink I have a large oyster basket (read: open & airy) so that less mold acumulates. As people wash their hands, need to mop up spills, use a quick napkin, dry a dish, anything, they simply grab one. Then, I went to Bed Bath and Beyond and purchased (or about $6 each) an over the cabinet door towel dryer in a color that matches the wood of the cabinet. When the user is through, they simply hang the little mopina (as we call them) on the dryer. Once it’s dry, it gets tossed into the oyster basket under the sink (usually to make room for a new one). In this way we completely illiminate the mold issue, plus it provides the opportunity to re-use any mopinas that are lightly soiled by the simple act of drying clean hands, etc. Lastly, becuase they are all white, I can use some non-chlorine bleach on them and they all come out looking as good as new. An added benefit is that guests constantly comment on how ‘special’ they feel that they each get a fresh little mini- towel with which to dry their hands and/or faces with. It’s been a win-win for us since we implimented it
I just wanted to know if going paperless is actually worth it, since washing and drying more loads of laundry is less “green.” Especially since you’re just trading paper waste for electricity and water.
I’m not sure if I missed it in all of the comments, but what do you do about doggie messes? Just use one of your everyday towels? Or just use different towels? That would be my only use for paper. I have wanted to go paperless for awhile but just haven’t had a system to go by like yours.
Thanks
Jessica
I have been paper free in my kitchen my entire married life (40 years) with the exception of fried bacon. I choose to blot the liquid fat from it before I use it as an ingredient or as a side to pancakes,etc. How do you deal with the bacon issue in a paperless manner?
I am also paper-less in my kitchen, I keep paper towels just to wrap sandwiches sometime. Now I realize that I kept it for more than one year. I have used cloths since ever, I got it from my mom.
You are doing great job with your blog. Congrats!!
We are paper free and it’s fabulous. The BEST cleaning clothes around are chinese prefold clothe baby diapers! When the kids quit using them I kept some and use them for cleaning rags or to clean up big spills. If you didn’t use them for your kids … get some to clean with. We also had clothe wipes and I still have some of those rolling around in my cleaning stash. (my kids are almost 5 now) We bought a pack of plane clothe napkins (I thought about making them, but time was a preventing factor so I just bought them.) When the kitchen towels get a little old and holey they are transitioned to cleaning clothes and we use them until they are thread barren.
Laura´s latest post: Minimalism and Simplicity – The Kids Rooms
We are “almost” paper free. We have used cloth napkins for years. I find it fun when setting the table (they don’t always match). I have to say the paper towels aren’t always around but we still buy them occasionally. I definitely notice that when we have them I get lazy and will grab several a day. I think having a basket of towels on the counter might be a good place to start.
I do think it might be time to replace the napkins so maybe I’ll use the old ones in place of paper towels. Great ideas shared here.
Christa´s latest post: Learn to cook- know whats in your food
My kitchen has been paper-free for about six months now
I just stopped buying paper towels. Working as a waitress, we were expected to use cloth to clean because “paper costs money,” so the change wasn’t that hard for me. My husband was quite resistant. I put a large, wide mouth vase on the counter and overfilled it with cloths. There is a small laundry basket next to the basement door where we toss used washcloths. If they are really messy, they go straight down. I also filled a lower drawer that my kids (almost 2 & 4 yrs) can easily reach. When they spill something, they go to the drawer, grab a cloth, and clean it up, all by themselves! This would never happen with paper towels on a roll because the kids can neither reach the roll nor tear them off!
You’ve inspired me! I’ve always used a tea towel to dry my hands in the kitchen, and hand towels in the bathrooms, but have been very liberal in my use of paper towels.
I recently donated all the old clothing to Goodwill, so I have nothing for rags (and I don’t know how to serge the edges anyway). I did find some really cool microfiber cloths at Bed, Bath & Beyond today though. 30 in a pack for $4.99. They’re 10-inch square, and feel like a really soft thick paper towel.
http://www.the-original-co.com/v2/contentJune2010.aspx?page=reusablecloths
I’ve been paper free for almost a year. I have paperless towels in my kitchen, along with dishcloths, dishtowels and cloth napkins. I use old dish towels for dusting and soft cotton cloths for cleaning mirrors and windows. Any old towels and rags go in the doggy clean-up pile that I keep in the garage. If one of the dogs or cats have an accident, I go out to the garage, grab an old rag, and clean up their mess. After I clean up the mess, I throw the used rag in a bucket in the garage, until I wash them. By going paperless, I have learned to be creative when it comes to cleaning.
I DO!!! And I have no washing machine!!!!.. Doing pretty good for 3 months ..It’s all because money is so tight honestly (and for the amount of trash we had) I switched to cloth diapers 6 months ago and try to use cloth baby wipes and even made me a few cloth panty liners (yes Im that brave)..Ive washed diapers by hand every day since I began and then a few clothes ( I never catch up on laundry mind you) . I got a crank handle washign machine online for $40 it paid for it’s self very fast. It doesnt use electric and only a little water and suds (which I also make my own laundry soap now) it however does soin so you have to wring by hand..We were spendign upward of $40 a week on washing clothes and getting to and from the laundry mat included in that. We live in an apt there is no where to dry clothes and the laundry mat is crazy expensive here $8 to wash and dry a small/med load. So I hang them on a little wooden rack after washing and hand wringing..i see most of you say you are goign thru quite a few towles. I wanted to add that with a one year old we do also! But the savings are so worth it. I have saved us enough money I can stay hoem with my little girl and be the 1950′s house wife of my generation. Its not always easy as I have disc disease in my spine. But its worth the trouble and if I can do it ANYBODY can do it! Note: the partner has to be on board..or I cant see this working..
Thankful for your idea on how i create my paperless kitchen. So nice:)
Jean @ Kitchen Drawer Organizer´s latest post: Wire Kitchen Drawer Organizers – How to Re-Organize Your Cluttered Kitchen
Paper free is a great way to go both for saving money and for being Green.
But there are something that just need Paper Towels.
There is nothing wrong with it, its just the way it is.
If your going to use Paper Towels from time to time but want to remain green, use Recycled Paper Towels.
They are better than new, as well as both biodegradable (for the compost bin!) and as good at normal Paper Towels.
For use in the bathroom why not try using Centrefeed Rolls?
For a full selection, try:
http://www.cheaphand towels.co.uk
thanks it is awesome
I am just reading this almost a year after you wrote this article. I love it! We have been just about paper-free in our kitchen for about five years. It started with doing cloth wipes for my first child. And we do that super simple. Cloth wipes and water. That’s all. Best thing for their little bums. Well, I thought that since we do that, we could certainly do without paper towels! (I forgot to mention that I bought about 20+- white wash cloths super cheap at Wal-mart and Target for the bum wipes.) For the kitchen, I bought about 20 or so wash clothes in packs at Target that had the colors of my kitchen -mostly reds and browns. Five years later, I am still using mostly the same old white wash cloths for wipes (I had to transfer some to the cleaning rag bag because they were torn and I bought about 10 more) and the same colored cloths for the kitchen. It’s almost time to replace those, though. They are torn and knotted and getting super ratty. But hey – they lasted five years! I am now getting ready to go totally to cloth napkins. I am tired of buying the paper ones and having them wasted so often. The one thing I am considering – having a basket for hankies. Does anyone do this? I buy TONS of Kleenex every month and hate that. I wonder about hankies and how people would handle that. Hmmmm….
We’ve been paperless for over 25 years. We started off like you with colorful dinner napkins and kitchen towels. As the years went on, they wore out and we no longer had complete sets for company. Then we streamlined to all white dinner napkins (from Sam’s), white “bread” cotton towels (usually 24″-36″ square) from Walmart or Amish stores, and white washclothes from Walmart. We clean them with borax, bleach, or simple green and rarely have a stain we can’t get out. And when they are too stained for general household, they get tossed into the rag bag for cleaning the house. We use nylon scrubbies that don’t hold bacteria and can be tossed in the dishwasher to handle sink, stove, and oven messes. These have worked beautifully for us for years. Good luck with your paperless kitchen!
wait a minute…why are you excepting advertising from Bounty on the exact page in which you discuss having a paperless kitchen?
sorry “accepting”
I love going paperless! The best part is not having to bring in those big packages of paper towels from the car. I use 2 types: dish towels (or tea towels as they’re sometimes called) and napkins. The dish towels are used to dry anything in the kitchen and when they get grungy at the end of the day they get used to wipe up the counters, floor, or the stove. I use clean fresh from the drawer dish towels to dry veggies. It works great with lettuce after the salad spinner. The napkins are for anytime someone is eating. I use a sponge to wash the dishes and toss it into the dishwasher when I run it every day.
I have about 30 dish towels so they are always plenty on hand and I only launder once a week. I have enough that if I get behind it’s no big deal. To answer the question of wet dish towels, I hang them on the bar on the stove. They dry fast enough.
Having grown up with a mum who was alive in the war and then scrimped and saved all her life, paper towels are not something we have ever used, I think like you said its a habit! personally we have three types of cloth. tea towels, a few serviets and the others! basically the others are for anything that we need. they are washed in the machine so are clean and tbh are fine for wiping down units, dogs, you name it if I used it around raw meat then ok it goes into the wash, but if it was just on work tops then it will last several days, holey teatowels get cut in half and go into the rag pile. simple
Just ran across this blog post – it’s great! We recently started using cloth napkins and I would like to start using cloth towels for cleaning as well. I have two questions…
1. How do you dry chicken after you wash it? Raw chicken has so many germs and I waste so many paper towels drying it.
2. Have you eliminated tissues as well? What do you use to blow noses? Do these hankies go in the regular wash as well?
Thanks!
I’ve been paperless in the kitchen for years and LOVE it! I feel so much less guilty.
I’ve come up with my solution to paperless and actually sell the idea in my Etsy shop. Everyone gets their own napkin for the week and only uses that one – unless it gets really bad. 
Each napkin is a different fabric, so that everyone remembers their napkin. That way only one napkin per person per week goes into the wash. 
Grace´s latest post: Upcycled clothing, Denim Jacket, Tree of LIfe, recycled, 79
We are trying to go paperless but are struggling with what to do when you are preparing chicken or fish and you want to wash it first. Do you use your cloth towels to dry your chicken?
Try Bambooee. Its easy to make the switch. http://www.bambooee.com
We are going paper-free at our house with the help of Norwex microfiber cloths. They are WONDERFUL! These cloths can absorb 7x their own weight. So when a child spills, rather than grabbing paper towels and sometimes needing what seems like a whole role, we grab our enviro cloth from Norwex and it sucks it all up, I rinse it and hang it up to use again. It also kills all of the germs it comes in contacts with and never gets any on your hands. So not only are we going paper-free, we are all getting healthier in the process! Let me know if are interested in learning more! http://www.facebook.com/happyoiling
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Qu’est-ce que vous avez dit a fait beaucoup de sens. Mais, pense à ce sujet, si vous avez ajouté un peu de contenu? Je veux dire, je ne veux pas vous dire comment gérer votre blog, mais que faire si vous avez ajouté quelque chose à peut-être obtenir l’attention des peuples? Tout comme une vidéo ou une photo ou deux pour obtenir. Pour examiner ce niveau de votre argent devoirs respectifs de garantie de remboursement, visitez les sites Web PRIX à la suite de la recherche de tout cela à travers la recherche google.
I haven’t gone paperless but I have cut way back because for one paper is so expensive. I buy an 8 pk of Bounty every 5-6 months. I don’t go for the paper as soon as there is a spill. They are more used on floor spills or washing windows, cleaning inside the car or things like that. I like your idea though.
I really like your site! Well laid out and attractive. I didn’t see any place where you would collect emails for a newsletter or for building followers. Is that something you are interested in?
We chose to start going paperless about six months ago. We are a family of 9 and buying paper products was just a waste of money for us and did not honor our desire to become a greener household. We did it gradually, when we ran out of a product we replaced it with something reusable. We are still beefing up our stockpile and cloth napkins and reusable sandwich bags are next on the list. We’ve decided to allow each child to pick out an inexpensive cotton pattern to back the cloth napkins and we will also have napkins designated for the adults/guests. We have a drawer of baby washcloths and burpcloths for our 10 month old and for wiping off hands after art projects. We also have a new puppy and we keep a pile of old towels and homemade cleaning spray for her occasional misses. We have a large selection of dish towels and cloths for daily use. As well as an assortment of microfiber cloths, there are ones made specifically for glass as well as inexpensive dollar store microfiber that I use on our swifter (yup, even the swifter is green!) and shower cleaner (Mr. Clean wand, I’m short and this is the only way to clean the entire shower for me). Each bathroom has its own supply of hand towels, cleaning cloths, and microfiber cloths. As we wear out t-shirts and towels they get cut up for rags for cleaning ups spills/messes. I keep garbage cans designated specifically for cloth in the kitchens and bathrooms. I was the cloths on hot in my front loader and put either tea tree oil or grape seed extract in the rinse. I also cloth diaper and use homemade wipes.
It’s funny so much thought is going into green products, that things like paper-usage get overlooked. Definitely one benefit of hiring a professional house cleaning service is that they use reusable cloths for cleaning. As for myself, I’m going to try and make the switch myself. Wish me luck.
The concept of a paperless kitchen was completely foreign to me before reading this. I am going to implement it. The money saved and impact on the environment will make it well worth it.
Back in the day, NO ONE had paper towels, we reused glass bottles over and over again (and got credit for them at the supermarket…I was kid in the 80s and remember keeping soda bottles in the front hall to take back to the supermarket), and I remember bringing the paper bags back to the supermarket every time we went. I remember when plastic bags first showed up at grocery stores…and this was in the 80s. My grandmother used to even reuse the plastic picnic silverware from family picnics and holidays! We’d toss them in a special bin and wash them at the end of the party. No paper kitchens and reusing are nothing new.
I went paper-free in my kitchen years ago after reading this wonderful blog entry. It was super easy and now I would never go back. Better for the environment and save $$! I even enjoy pulling out the cute washcloths and napkins I made out of older clothes, bath towels towels, or worn out kitchen towels to clean up various stuff.
As far as laundry goes, we have a medium sized wicker basket on top of the fridge. All “kitchen laundry” goes in there along with any dusting or bathroom cleaning cloths. I like to keep that stuff separate from our other laundry because it tends to have a number of grotty or damp items that I don’t want to mix with regular clothes. Each week I toss whatever is in the kitchen basket in the washing machine as a separate load on extra hot with bleach or Oxy Clean (depending on colors) for a deep clean I’m confident in.
Now if only I could get my mom to stop bringing HER OWN ROLL OF PAPER TOWELS with her each time she visits us for an overnight stay!