I was able to be a participant in a conference call with Keiko Veasey, founder of Linden Hills EcoParents, and was inspired. She had reduced a block party’s trash from an over-flowing dumpster to half a bag. That is simply amazing. She gave us tips on how to throw a successful eco-friendly party such as:
- Using reusable plates and cupware.
- Cooking food you can eat without utensils.
- Borrowing & Sharing decorations instead of toss & throw.
Glad has vision of being more responsible in the manufacture of their trash bags. They are not only creating bags with less plastic but now with greater strength. Glad has been encouraging people to recycle and compost by spreading awareness nationwide. I am an example of such a reach out. Glad challenged me to host a party with 10-20 people and only use one trash bag to clean it up. I wanted to take it one step further and use one trash bag for prep, party and clean up for 19 people. Glad has a commitment to bettering the environment, and you can read more on their website about how Glad wants you to waste less. Our Earth is the only one we have, and if we do not start conserving, recycling and managing our waste we will ruin her for our children. It is important for us to start small and take measures in our everyday life to make a big difference. Use recycle bins, compost and the waste saving tactics like Keiko shared. Try to challenge yourself each day to reuse, recycle and repurpose.
Glad One Bag Kit
- Glad one bag tote which will be great to make quick stops to the store. Instead of choosing paper or plastic chose, “Brought my own”
- Collapsible Metro Cooler Market Basket which has a strong base which is also waterproof. I used it as a beer cooler for our party and then again at the market for my produce and frozen items.
- Earth friendly apple soy candle.
- Veneerware Party Kit containing flatware and plates made from Bamboo and compostable cups.
- Green Works All Purpose Cleaner to help clean up the mess with an all natural all-purpose cleaner that can is tough enough to cut through grease and grime. It is 97% naturally derived and will not leave behind harsh fumes or residue. This is awesome for my household full of babies and dogs.
- Glad Tall Kitchen Bags now made with 6.5% less plastic, yet more durable. 6.5% may seem like an minute amount, but this has helped save over 6.5 million pounds of plastic per year. That is the same as keeping 140 million trash bags out of landfills every year.
What I Did To Make A Difference
I asked guests to bring finger foods and bring their food on their own dinnerware they would take home with them. My party-goers used the Veneerware as their plates and for the foods that needed flatware.
The plates and utensils were made from 100% organically grown bamboo. They contain no bleaches or dyes and you can tell they were all natural. Although you can not microwave them (probably would cook the wood), they made for the perfect serving ware. I used the spoons to scoop out the salad in lieu of plasticware, and this is what we gave the kids to eat with. Instead of wasting water to wash more dishes, I kept the salad in the bowl I made it in from start to finish.
The Veneerware Party Kit came with tumblers by Wasara. Those not drinking from recyclable cans or bottles used these 100% tree-free renewable material made cups. These went into the compostable bag when we were done using them. They are oil and water resistant so they made great pasta holder cups for the kids as opposed to plastic bowls. Suitable for hot and cold, they even helped Mary out when she had to heat up water to make cereal for my nephew.
We kept a plastic bag out for trash so my party-goers wold not use our trash can. Our Glad bag had barely anything in it. As a matter of fact, three days later we still have not had to take the trash out. Since we use Glad brand trash bags, we can press the trash down in the can and keep putting more in. The Glad bag is durable enough to handle the smashing and pushing and has not broke on me yet! Pretty impressive to find a company that lives up to what they say. Glad trash bags are stronger, and I love that they are using less plastic.
Completing the One Bag Challenge
Not only did I complete the challenge, I far exceeded my expectations. After opting to not use the plastic tablecloth, reusing the same dishes I created the food in, and utilizing the items in the Glad One Bag kit, I still had a ton of room in my filled bag. I was able to have a party with 3 kids still in diapers, 19 people and everyone brought a dish, and ended up with a trash bag of trash not even 1/3 of the way full. It took time to sort and deliver the compost to my uncles house to deteriorate, but it was worth it to make my difference in helping keep the Earth clean for our children.
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Glad and received a One Bag kit to facilitate my review, a kit to give away, and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
Would love to try this at one of my kids next parties.
I would love to win the one bag challenge because I am planning a HUGE, I mean HUUGGGEEEE combination birthday/high school graduation/off to college party for my oldest niece and I would love to prevent so much trash being added to landfills.
agaphmou at netzero dot net