Summer lovin’

We’re all feeling it, that summer lovin’ relief that summer has finally arrived and the summer outfits can finally make it out of the wardrobe!

Summer is finally here and whether you are staycationing or heading further afield there are loads of ways to make it a sustainable one. Including swaps to plastic free options, reusables and shopping preloved for your summer outfits.

Here are our top sustainable summer ideas to help you make your summer trips and stays as eco friendly as possible, and often saving you money at the same time.

Summer toiletries must haves

Packing for holidays can be a real pain, especially knowing what toiletries to pack to save space, we’ve come up with a list of our favourites.

• Switch to chemical free insect repellent – a solid bar repellent Deet free, but one that really works, we’ve tried and tested it in one of the hottest places in Europe and found it really works
• Bite balm – a must for keeping on top of those insect bites in a chemical free, plastic free way
• Soap bar – the humble soap bar, an ideal option for taking away with you, easy to chop up into smaller bars for travel, so it takes up less space
• Travel tins and soap dishes – perfect for travel and makes it super easy to pack all of your essential bars using less space
• Shampoo and conditioner bars – the best on the market in our opinion with the conditioner bars doubling up as a shave bar, they really help to pack light – cut them in half to fit into the aluminium travel tins, which also means you can have half to take with you and half at home
• Deodorant tins – natural deodorants are fast taking over from aerosol ones

Beauty must haves

Keeping it simple if you’re packing to go away is great and natural skincare is the best for sun-dried skin.

• Lip balms – either wildflower lip tins or cardboard tube options are great for travel, small enough to fit into the travel bags at security 
• Beauty balm – a fabulous balm which doubles up as a moisturiser and a cleansing balm, meaning you only have to take one pot with you

Food and drink must haves

Day trips are also part of our summer planning, so it’s great to get prepped and ready beforehand with useful items to make it easier to waste less and reuse more.

• Travel cups – travel cup with lid is a must have in our book, forget all of those single use disposables that get thrown away, and if you choose one of the insulated ones, they can not only keep a drink hot, they’ll keep it cold too
• Bamboo flask – a great item to pack to take warm or hot water with you or to fill with ice for a day trip – either use for ice for drinks, have the hot water for teas/coffees on the go or warm water for hand washing
• Food pouches, sandwich and snack bags – these are fabulous for pack lunches, picnics, but we also use them for liquids that we might want, such as shampoo and conditioner, use them for condiments, like ketchup or mayo, ideal for camping 
• Ice pop bags – ideal for taking with you to fill when you’re away if you have access to a freezer for frozen treats without the waste or use as individual snack portions
• Water bottles – we stock two sizes, the smaller version ideal for little ones to keep hydrated

Baby must haves

• Wet bags – great for travel as you can keep dry and wet items separately and the removable mesh bag can be popped straight into the washing machine
• Baby pamper pack – which is full of travel sized toiletries for your little ones
• Food pouches – suitable for little ones, making it easy to take their pureed food out and about with you – these can be used in the freezer and popped in the dishwasher for cleaning
• Sandwich bags and snack bags – ideal for food, can double up for cloth wipes, simply wet before you leave, pop in the bag and seal up and go

Summer fashion tips

For all of your summer clothing needs, wear what you already have and for anything else think about preloved shopping – some great items available and for a fraction of the price of new, get friendly with your local preloved stores and charity to shops to find out when their new items arrive in store, don’t forget to include shoes and bags and other accessories, often the shoes are new or barely worn and the bags and baskets so cute!

Small changes big impact

Simple, small changes can have a big impact on both waste and our budgets, so it’s worth looking at where you can make changes to a more sustainable summer, for as long as it lasts!