Don't be self-absorbed. Quit plastic sponges. 😃

The gist: 4 out of 5 stars

First of all, plastic kitchen sponges are gross. Second of all, they are B.A.D. for the environment. Why? Because they are made from plastics, dyes and synthetic stuff (but you knew that). So obviously they don’t break down very easily or ever at all. Think about how many sponges you go through? Yeah, that’s why it’s bad

So I set out to rid my life of plastic dish sponges. It was awkward at first. Like, how do I store them? Will they clean the sauce pan I burnt and then let sit in the sink for two days? A sponge with only one texture? What if it’s a two-texture situation? What I found is it’s mind over matter. It’s like when you first wash your hair after getting it cut and you’re like “where’s the rest of my hair?” It feels different. You might have to adjust how you’ve been hand cleaning dishes for the last 30 years but you get over that very quickly. And if you don’t suck it up buttercup, because you’re saving the world!

I started looking into plastic sponge alternatives and found that cellulose sponges aren’t just better for the environment but they carry less bacteria. There’s a whole science behind it. I won’t bore you with the details (basically because I don’t want to bore myself with them) but the gist is they last longer, they hold less bacteria and they are biodegradable. I also got a boars hair scrubber, bottle brush, straw cleaner (because I use metal straws, ob-v) and stock-piled some trusty old rags. Together they cover all situations I used to use a plastic sponge for. I’ll talk about those guys some other time because this is already way too long…

Boars hair scrubber, bottle cleaner and a dirty old rag (with cats on it)

Here are the dets on the cellulose sponge:

• Just rinse, squeeze and hang after every use (there’s a little hanging loop)
• You can clean it every once and a while by boiling it
• They claim food won’t stick to it but it does stick sometimes, about the same amount as a plastic sponge
• Can last up to a year (can’t vouche for that, yet)
• Compostable if you do that (I’m working on getting there)
• Dries fast

Tip: To help in the transition keep a regular-old sponge or two around in case of an emergency but ask yourself next time:

photo credit: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/436919601328986554/?nic=1

You can buy the cellulose sponge I have pictured here.