How to get away from Ziplock baggies?

[Beekissed]

We used to use bread sacks when I was little! Kind of hard to do when you make your own bread, though, isn't it? The tupperware style sandwich holders last a long, long time.

 

[unclejoe]

Haven't ventured into bread making... yet. I probably will this winter though.

 

[Cassandra]

I don't know how many you use, but I buy bags of those generic zipper sandwich size bags at the dollar store for a dollar. It's a hundred or two hundred or something like that. And they last for a month or more.

I doubt if I would save a dollar a month if I were washing dish towels or sandwiche boxes instead of using the bags.

On the other hand, I have a HUGE drawer full of plastic containers (dozens and dozens of them) of varying shapes and sizes that I got for free off my local freecycle group.

Still haven't bought any paper towels, tho!

Cassandra

 

[Dace]

Ok, I guess the hunt is on for cheap plastic-ware. Never thought of the dollar store but i will try that.

If I buy my bags at walmart, they are 100 for $2. I do reuse as many as I can but with 15-20 going out the door everyday x 5 days a week... I just feel it is wasteful!

I guess I can slowly acquire a few plastics here and there...now to convince the teens of the coolness of plastic! "no, I am not cheap, I am green!"

 

[ChickaD]

I don't know if this will be any help, but we only use the cheapie non-zip plastic baggies for lunches, as well as those cheapie plastic boxes...the "precious" zip-lock baggies are for special at-home storage uses only...usually we don't even splurge on them.

 

[cknmom]

My mom has washed baggies for years. I tried it a few times many years ago. I got soo frusterated as I had no where to dry them decently and they took so long to dry. I do reuse them if not yucky. Dry things, i reuse them until they don't seal any more. I try to reuse them for the same things so there is no odor transfer.

DH works in the office now, so almost everything in his breakfast/ lunch box is in plastic containers or wrapped in waxed paper squares and foil. DGD has a plastic container for her sandwich, I try not to put many other containers in her lunch as she walks 1/2 mile to the bus stop and it gets heavy in her backpack with all her books and stuff.

I used to save a lot of plastic containers from foods and almost all glass containers. I had so many I didn't use most of them so I threw them away, they were taking up lots of room. I hadn't ever thought of using canning jars, I will have to start doing that.

Monica

 

[me&thegals]

Shockingly, my kids are trained to bring all their lunch home--eaten or not--plus all the containers they used. I get the 1/2-cup and 1-cup Glad plastic containers and use them all school year for applesauce and other canned fruit, carrots, peppers, etc. We reuse bread bags for sandwiches sometimes, but usually I put them in the plastic "Wonderbread" sandwich boxes and have been using them for 4 years now--for a savings of approximately 600 plastic bags for sandwiches alone so far!

 

[Henrietta23]

While we do have a couple of inexpensive Bento boxes here (ichibankan.com) I also have a lot of cheap knock off lock-n-lock boxes I use.

 

[Farmfresh]

I guess I stand up and admit it. I LOVE those stupid Ziplock bags! I literally buy them by the CASE! I get a great deal on them at the wholesale club. I use them constantly AND I almost never reuse them.

I do try to cut back - I now save cottage cheese and yogurt containers to use for as much storing and lunch packing as possible. I am starting to resemble my grandmother! YIKES!

 

[farm_mom]

http://www.reusablebags.com/ is a good source of alternative, reuable bags if you're trying to cut down on your use of plastics. Just type in "sandwich bags" and you'll get all their lunch/sandwich options. I've been really happy with the produce bags I bought through them to help from having to bring all those plastic produce bags home. If you're a seamstress, you could probably use the pics as ideas and make your own!