Review of Sustainable Sunday #2 suggestion.

Using the steps outlined I made several airtight sealers myself using the instructions I found on Angie Padillas’ blog.

It was actually very easy. Personally I don’t think you need to melt the bottom of it unless it ended up being very sharp. The three sealers that I made were not sharp but looked a little rough. However, if this sealer was something you wanted to keep for a long time or make them to give as gifts it would make it have a finished look.

The second one I made one out of a SOBE bottle. The opening was larger and worked well.

I then made one out of a Simply Orange bottle because their lid is big and very easy to open. The lid is big but the opening did not seem any larger.

These sealers worked on the several types of bags I used. However, I feel this is for use with a product that is not a liquid because I tested it and after a while some water did leak out and I think that was because of the bag that was between the two pieces of plastic.

All and all, I think this would be great to use for pretzels, nuts, dried fruit, chex mix or any similar food item. The smaller snack size bags work great. I didn’t have any larger bags to try it on at this time.  

Sustainable Sunday 2

Storing things in plastic bags can be frustrating and this is a great way to alleviate the problem of keeping everything inside the bag.

I found this on Angie Padillas blog and I wanted to share this great idea for reusing a plastic bottle as a green airtight bag sealer!

Enter the solution of using plastic bottles and caps for airtight sealers!

To make your own you will need:

1. Plastic bottles

2. Craft knife  or Scissors

4. Candle (or other source of heat)

Using the craft knife, cut the bottle neck off.

Depending on how thick the plastic is on the neck of the bottle, you will probably end up with a jagged edge. Trim as best you can with the scissors.

If the edge continues jagged, heat it to make it smooth. This plastic melts very easily, so make sure not to hold it to the flame too long.

 

And that’s that. You have your very own bag sealer. Make as many as you like!

To use, insert the bag through the bottle neck. Fold the plastic back down onto the bottle neck and screw on the cap. Nifty, right?

 You can easily store all kinds of things without fear of things falling out of the bag, or having to deal with tight knots.

Picture of the day 2

This looks like a delicate glass or crystal vase.

However it is plastic! It is unbreakable and can still be recycled later if desired because it is made out of a plastic bottle

Make this woven vase yourself!

Sustainable Sunday #1

Because this site is dedicated to all about plastic I will try to keep all blogs on Sunday having to do with plastic and sustainability. However, there might be times when I feel something is important concerning other areas that are connected to sustainability and I will share them here.

 

We have all used a plastic bag that we use one time. Then we throw it away in the trash or recycle it.

Today for our first Sustainable Sunday I urge you to change the way America shops. Get yourself a reusable bag and take it whenever you go shopping.

Many stores sell them with their name or logo on them and they are usually inexpensive.

Kohl's, Meijers, The Dollar Store, Kroger's, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and many more stores offer this for their customers.

 Menard's gives you another way to save because once or twice a year they have a sale where you can get 15% off anything that you can fit in their bag.

Other stores offer extra saving just by using your own bags. Here in the South Bend area Pets Plus will give you 5 cents off for each bag you use. CVS has a tag that you can buy for a dollar then when you use your own bag (or don’t take a bag) you swipe the tag and every fourth time you use it you get $1 to use in the store.

'i love my home planet earth' bag is available at whole foods. Sheryl Crow collaborated to design this bag with Whole Foods and it is available  in the 'gift bag' size for 79 cents. This is a great size and I recommend buying a reusable bag as a gift bag and spread the convenience of reusable bags.

 There are also some really cool bags available. Bed bath and beyond sells ‘Sacs of Life’ where it is a bag within a bag it starts out all folded up like a little clutch bag and then opens up to reveal a large shopping bag. Online “Sacs of Life’  where there are ones that open up to a back pack,an insulated set, baby diaper bag, duffel bag and more.

 I bought a bag that is really useful called a shopping cart bag.  It clips into a shopping cart then you can put the items in it with the bag staying open to load it.

Please feel free to post any great savings on this blog to share where to get the best deals with your own bag.

Picture of the Day

Lamps brighten our nights in our homes and businesses.  Everyone uses them but what distinguishes one lamp from the other is the lamp shade.  The design, texture and materials bring ambiance to the room and reflect the likes and values of the rooms’ owner.

This lamp shade is no different. It is made out of plastic. Not just any kind of plastic though. It is made out of 30 Coke-Cola bottles that create a beautiful lamp shade. It reflects the designers value to help the earth  by not putting the bottles into the trash or to recycle them but to REUSE a bottle that has already been made, used and discarded. TheRecycled Water-Bottle Lampshade by Sarah Turner was the grand prize winner Readers Choice Inhabitat Spring Greening Competition in 2010.

Sarah Turners’ beautiful ReDesignlighting collection  imaginatively recycles plastic water bottles into stunning lampshades, table and floor lamps.

Sarah Turner is an award winning eco artist & designer that makes beautiful products from waste materials. Upon learning that the United Kingdom only recycled 5.5% plastic waste drinks bottle  Sara Turner  wanted to something creative with them and overall save a few bottles from the landfill sites. 

This is just one way to reuse plastic instead of putting it in to the recycle bin. Please share any ideas you have for reusing plastic bottles. 

Recycling is great but Reusing is even better!

Welcome to Plastic Planet Prevention!

I have been interested in protecting our earth for most of my life. I was surfing the internet when I had a life changing moment: I watched a bird eat a plastic bag thinking it was food.I am starting this blog to share what I have learned about plastic. Plastic is a material that has many great uses. What makes plastic dirty is that people do not dispose of plastic properly.

This has cause harm to our planet and its inhabitants. This blog is to share ways to prevent plastic pollution, to reuse plastics and alternatives to using plastic.

This is a photo from Current.com by El Break shows what can be found in a stomach.

This has made me want to prevent plastic pollution. I hope you will join me in this fight to prevent plastic pollution to the inhabitants of our planet.