One of our favorite companies is hosting a sustainability challenge this month and we were all about doing our part. We wanted to take today to first and foremost remind you that we are hosting the Lake Effect Co. Pop-up shop, tomorrow August, 13th, at their summer brick and mortar shop along the beach in Pewaukee. We would love to see you there, you can see all of the details in the Facebook group here. And don’t forget you get to take advantage of our 15% off coupon in stores! 

The second and main reason we are writing this post is to hold ourselves accountable and hopefully give more light to this sustainability challenge because the more the merrier. Here is an example of the first few days:

Day 1: Keep your lights off and let the morning sun do the work. Use this same approach for when you get home at the end of the day. One of the biggest perks of this time of the year is that the sun is our fuel, let it naturally do its job for you. You’ll be surprised how well your eyes (and entire sleep cycle) adapt as you start to lose natural light. 

Day 2: Put your reusable water bottle near your bag for the next day so you don’t forget it and become forced to purchase a single use bottle or go thirsty. Same with your silverware. Toss an extra pair into your lunch bag! Worried about forgetting to keep a set in there? As soon as you take out the dirty pair to wash them, toss a new set in right away. Or better yet, clean them at work or on your trip as soon as you’re done using them, so they’re ready for next time. You can use a cloth napkin to wrap them up when you put them in your bag.

We were chatting at the pool a few weeks ago when the challenge started and had fun bouncing the things we do off of each other. I have always been a bit of a freak when it comes to turning lights off. As I am walking in and out of rooms, I’ll constantly shut lights off (even if they aren’t mine-oops!). I also tend to use natural light as often and as long as I can throughout the day because not only is it better for sustainability; it’s better for my bank account. Even if you aren’t big into conservation think about your bank account!

Another way to conserve (resources) and financially is carpooling. Between Jenilee, Nick, and I we are incredible at this. Since we make the four-hour trek to the lake so often we are always trying to be as compact as possible. My friends are all equally as great in this department. Whether we are camping, heading to a local lake, or just to the park they either choose to get there by foot or we make ourselves comfy with three in the back seat. 

In addition to being conscientious of the lights, I have been trying to use minimal plastic bags, rather I reach for a reusable container to pack my lunch instead. Jenilee just invested in some reusable silicone bags. We are both anxious to see how she likes them! I have also been saying no thank you to the plastic bags at the grocery store as often as possible. My memory isn’t always the best when it comes to remembering to bring in my reusable bags. Usually, the internal light bulb turns on as I get to checkout. If I only have a few items I’ll grab everything with my hands or try to opt into using paper which I will then use again at home. 

Another big one for both of us the past few years is using reusable water bottles rather than packing a case of water. I also recently invested in a 64 oz. jug that I can bring out on the boat or on long hikes so I can refill without using any plastic. We still sometimes find ourselves packing gallons of water for camping in the traditional cartons, but always hold onto the empties to reuse them. Maybe a bigger reusable jug is in our future? Along with this, we have been saying no to using a straw when we can or using the metal ones. 

Something else I find myself doing is picking up trash around the lake or along the streets in my neighborhood. I was on a walk recently and was really sad to see multiple cans laying less than 10 feet from a trash and recycling unit. That is something I will never understand, but people can be lazy. 

One last thing we are both extremely diligent with, is donating clothing we no longer like/want/need/fit into. We are constantly giving friends and family hand me downs or donating them to stores that participate in reduce reuse recycle projects. This also reminds me of a high school science project we had to do that was specifically to reduce, reuse and or recycle something. My mom helped me decide on an (ambitious) project for a weekend. We turned all of my old T-shirts that I don’t wear into a quilt. We used an old blanket for the filling and an old flat sheet as the back. I still use this blanket almost everything I go camping and my teacher loved how extreme we went on this one. I have since then made 3(!!) blankets, which may be excessive, however, it helps me hold onto my memories and literally wrap myself up in the nostalgia. 

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Katherine is selling some reusable produce bags at her pop-up event, we just may just need snag those tomorrow. It’s one thing to use a few plastic bags here and there on occasion, especially if you reuse them again at some point. When we get them, we totally are the type to have a plastic bag drawer and reuse them as garbage bags. However, those flimsy little produce bags are so wasteful. If we’re being honest they are way too weak to be used again. So if I can remember to start skipping them I certainly should. 

In the effort to be transparent, the things we are doing are so easy and small. But if everyone started doing these simple small things, they would all start to add up quickly. Everyone can easily help preserve our beautiful planet and the most beautiful gifts God put on this planet (cough lakes).

We both really hope to see some of your smiling faces tomorrow night at the Lake Effect Co. x The Real Tall Pop-Up event tomorrow night! This is the best opportunity to try on some of their goodies in person and avoid needing shipping.