Go Green In The Kitchen With PaperlessKitchen {Review & Giveaway}

For as long as I can remember, I have lived in a house that recycled. I'm not sure what year it started back home, but it quickly became something that I did automatically. Besides recycling in the bin that was provided by the city, I didn't usually go out of my way to make sure I was being "green". That all changed when the hotel that I worked for became "green certified". Suddenly, I became very conscious of items that were recyclable, and realized through my clients that it was something that was very important.

When my husband Eddie & I bought our new house early last year, it was outside the city limits. That little blue recycling bin that I had "taken" from our last house suddenly became obsolete when we realized that our new neighborhood had a private trash company that didn't offer recycling. Since I worked at a green hotel, I decided to start bringing my recycling into our back dock and dispose of it there. Twice a week people stared at me as I crossed the street in a suit with a trash bag. We must have had other neighbors that didn't like not recycling, because when the neighborhood contract was up in April, the HOA was able to negotiate recycling into our schedule! The waste company delivered an 84 gallon recycling bin, and I never have a problem filling it up each week.

Besides the recycling, I have also tried to look at other ways to reduce how much waste our household puts out. Haley doesn't eat off of paper plates, we use reusable ones for her. Below our sink we have a bar that holds a hand towel instead of using paper towels to dry our hands. And each morning, I wet a wash cloth for the baby, and reuse it the rest of the day at each feeding to wipe her mouth. Not only is it better for the environment, the soft cloth is much better on her sensitive skin.

While I am constantly trying to think of ways that we can reduce our waste, I also look for websites and manufacturers that are "green" too. I was pretty excited to find out about PaperlessKitchen, an e-commerce site that carries a lot of green products that I know are good for our environment. PaperlessKitchen helps individuals, households, businesses, and organizations adopt greener lifestyles by offering alternatives to kitchen paper products, such as paper towels, plates and napkins.

While I have reduced the amount of paper towels that we use in our kitchen, I haven't removed them completely. I am sure in the near future that I will start looking for options to change that. PaperlessKitchen has some really neat options, including the awesome Skoy Cloth. Not only are these cloths biodegradable and compostable, you can wash them in the washer/dryer or the dishwasher! They last for months and I know that would save us money in the long run!

PaperlessKitchen carries a wide selection of products from many different eco-friendly manufacturers. One of those brands is Bambu - recipient of the prestigious Green Business Network Seal of Approval from Green America. I received two Bambu products for review - Bamboo Curvy Servers and Kids in the Kitchen Tools.

What first caught my eye with the Bamboo Curvy Servers was the awesome kiwi green color! I have several bamboo spoons/servers in my drawer, but they are all the same natural color. I LOVED that these came in green. It was a bonus that they had an ergonomic handle and grooves for portioning. It is also great that the wood is organic, stain-resistant, antibacterial, and a renewable resource. I have used them several times for stirring, as well as serving our favorite spaghetti and casseroles. I have received several compliments on them when we have had guests over for dinner too! It is nice to have such pretty, functional serving spoons that are also great for our environment! The Bambu Curvy Servers retail for $14.50.

The other item I received was the Bambu Kids in the Kitchen Tools. I knew Haley would love these! If you have little kids, you know that they always want to help in the kitchen and do everything themselves. With normal kitchen tools, they have a long handle for an adult to use, which can make it difficult for little kids to control when they use those tools. These tools are the perfect size for little hands! The Bambu Kids In the Kitchen Tools Set includes a slanted spatula, a round spatula, a round spoon, an oval spoon and a large fork. She couldn't wait to try them out!

Haley immediately took her new kitchen tools over to her "pretend" kitchen and got to work on some delicious food for her dolls. After she finished cooking over there, I had her put them in my drawer in the kitchen so that they are always handy when she wants to cook with me. I love that they have the same features as the Curvy Servers in that they are organic, stain-resistant, antibacterial, and made from a renewable resource. You can't ask for more than that in kitchen tools for kids! The Bambu Kids set retails for $19.00.

Haley helped make our "annual" pumpkin cupcakes this week and she had a blast using her new spoons! I love that she will always have memories of helping mommy in the kitchen!

Head on over to PaperlessKitchen and check out all of the other great eco-friendly kitchen products they have available. Which of these products would you like to add to your kitchen?

~*~Giveaway~*~

~*~Ten PaperlessKitchen Skoy Cloths~*~

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Disclosure: All opinions are my own. I received the items mentioned above at no cost, in order to facilitate my review. No other compensation was received.