A few weeks ago I did a post on ditching both paper and plastic bags to go reusable to which Matty, from Green Eggs & Planet, left this comment:

Excellent post — I too am trying as hard as possible to get into the comprehensive habit of ALWAYS having a bag with me. Maybe a post about how to establish some new habits with regard to that?

As promised, I have some great tips to get this green habit going.

Mostly, becoming eco-friendly comes down to thinking ahead as we humans tend to be creatures of habit despite what we think. As a long time subscriber to the KISS method (thanks, Dad!) the key is to think about what you normally do, where you normally do it and adjust your routine with those two things in mind.

How to Establish the “Bag-Person” Habit
Cost: Depends – if you have enough reusable bags, then nothing; if you don’t, it’s time to invest in some (think $5-100, depending on what you need and what you’re willing to spend)
Time: about 10 minutes to think/plan, 30 minutes if you need to shop, approx. 20 minutes to execute
Energy to do this: Moderate – requires some thinking and some planting of materials around your spaces.

Step 1: Analyze your habits
Think about when you personally end up using bags. Do you plan regular weekly trips to the grocery store or do you tend to randomly hit up the market a few times a week as you run out of milk or bread? Can you not pass a bookstore or a mall or a <insert your shopping weakness here> without purchasing something? Are you a a book addict like I am? Then a bag that is small and can fit in your pocket, purse, backpack or diaper bag is what you need since you never really plan when you’re going.

After thinking about it, I want you to make this list:

Column 1: Where I shop (list “the mall”, “Borders”, “grocery store”, “Old Navy”, etc.)
Column 2: Planned or spur of the moment
Column 3: Type of bag needed (list “heavy-duty”, “compact but holds a lot”, “small and light”, etc.)
Column 4: Placement – list where a bag would be easiest and most convenient for you to remember to use it again and again

Step 2: Get the supplies you need
Now that you know what kind of shopper you are and have narrowed down what kinds of bags you need from filling out your list, you need to make sure you have them on hand.

For example, I have half a dozen canvas backs and an insulated bag for my grocery shopping. But I need some of those handy-dandy mesh produce bags from ReusableBags.com that I mentioned in my previous post. I also need a reusable bag or two to put in my purse and later, the diaper bag (which looks like a normal backpack – God bless the evolution of baby supplies!). Well, that’s when a handy little bit like ReusableBags.com’s Mini Maxi shopper comes in handy. This kind of reusable bag comes in it’s own little zippered container, which means I throw it in my purse, backpack, messenger bag or even the diaper bag. Now, being my Husband tends to be out without me somewhat often, so I do need to consider a bag or two for him to keep in the car.

After putting this all in a shopping cart at ReusableBags.com, my bag purchases will come to about $70. I consider this a small price to pay considering these bags will last me years and just the spur of the moment purchases I made last week left me with one dozen new plastic bags in my home. Even if I did that once every other week or so, I could save the world use of 260 single-use plastic bags in one year. If every person in my apartment complex did this at the same rate, just over 250,000 plastic bags would be saved from use.

Now, obviously, you can get your reusable bags from anywhere you like – your local market, a second-hand store, EcoBags, or make your own! I just happen to like ReusableBags.com because it’s one-stop shopping – and I LOVE making things easy!

Step 3: Put the bags where they’ll be used
This is simply the execution of taking your supplies and putting them in the places you listed in Column 4 on your list.

If you regularly hit up the market, for example, you can keep all of your grocery bags in the kitchen so you can grab them after you get your list and keys. More the spur of the moment shopper? Stick the bags in your car: you can hang them off the back of your seat so when you are exiting the car, you remember to take a sack in with you or stick a few in the glove compartment if that’s easier. I’ll definitely have two of those Mini-Maxi shoppers in my messenger bag or the diaper bag so I’ll always have them with me for those random trips to Borders and the market. And for the Husband? A Mini-Maxi shopper in the center console of our sole vehicle as well as  this cool Mini-Maxi backpack for heavier loads and some manly pizzazz.

Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?

My hope is that once people start taking responsibility and making reusable bags a daily habit, retailers will start to catch on and follow Whole Foods’ lead, eliminating plastic bag use altogether. It just takes some thinking to make your life a little more environmentally friendly without seriously hindering the convenience of modern life.

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Like the tips but have an even better one? Leave it in a comment!

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