Looking Back at 2018

Happy New Years, friends!

We covered a lot of ground in 2018 with 33 posts:

Recycling: 
We discovered alternatives to curbside recycling.
We learned about specialty stores for recycling or purchasing used electronics.

Fashion:
I saved $43 on cute office shoes, and had some free entertainment.
We saved about $6 and made the most of our favorite lipsticks by making our own tinted lip balm.
I got Pacific Northwest stylish and saved $23 with a thrifted plaid shirt.
We saved $371 by committing to thrifting and rental fashion.
We easily repaired broken jewelry to extend its life.
We protected ocean life by being choosy about sunscreen.
I saved $70 on a vacation wardrobe.
I saved $65 on a leather purse through local gifting.
Our DIYs failed, but we quickly pivoted.
Our thrifting sometimes failed, but we got amazing pics out of it.

Gifting:
We reloaded or responsibly recycled our holiday gift cards.
We saved wrapping paper, and were influenced by the classic Japanese wrapping style.
We saved a gift bag by sewing reusable gifts bags.

Being Neighborly: 
Our neighbors taught us about free organic fertilizer.
Our other neighbors taught us about creative reuse of packaging waste.
I was on the receiving end of my Buy Nothing group, and saved $6.
We saved room in our garages by borrowing rarely used tools.

Where We Shop: 
We supported businesses like IKEA that are working towards reducing their footprint and educating customers.
We supported businesses like Republic of Tea who are creative about their shipping packaging.
We learned about companies that will incentivize you to recycle your old threads.

In the Kitchen: 
We made an easy DIY goo remover and saved $6.90.
We saved $1 reusing fruit netting to scrub our pots and pans.
We gave new life to past-their-prime veggies through roasting.
We turned leftovers into *cookies*!
We turned orange peels into candy, and had a celebratory cocktail after.

Inspiration and Action: 
I saved $131.34 taking public transit in style.
We participated in our office's Earth Day events. 
We were re-motivated by discovering a plastic bottle washed ashore 50 years later!
We made our voices heard through voting.
We got inspired by TV shows and documentaries.

Overall, we saved $723, and made a big dent in our personal impacts on the landfill. Way to go, and here's to a new year and new ideas!