Chances are you’ve seen that gut-wrenching video of a sea turtle having a plastic straw extracted from its nostril, and felt your heart shatter into a million pieces. You’re not alone – we cried too. With over 35 million views the short clip became an emblem for the “anti-plastic movement”, and resulted in many of us giving up plastic straws. But the thing is, straws really only account for about 4% of plastic waste, so what about the other 96%? It’s time to give all that up too.

Well, that may have been a bit of a stretch. Many of us understand that to live within the realms of modern society it’s near impossible to live without any plastic. However with this month being Plastic Free July, it’s a great time to think about how you can reduce your reliance on single-use items by challenging yourself to incorporate eco-friendly and reusable products into your life for the month of July.

REPLACE BODY WASH WITH HEMP SOAP BARS WITH NO PACKAGING

Beginning with the bathroom, one no-brainer substitute is to replace your plastic body wash bottle with hemp soap bars that come with zero packaging. Hemp Gallery Soap Bars are handcrafted and carved in Australia so that every piece has a little bit of love carved right in. With a blend of all natural olive oil, coconut oil, sunflower oil, castor oil, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, and of course the star: hemp seed oil, our Soap Bars will leave your skin glowing. They come in good-enough-to-eat combinations including lemon myrtle, hemp seed and sandalwood, honey and oatmeal, coco and cinnamon – yum! In addition to being plastic-packaging free, our Soap Bars feature no nasty petrochemicals, PEGs or mineral oils, and are sulphate free, meaning they’re gentle enough for even the most sensitive of skins, and better for Mother Earth.

REPLACE SINGLE USE MAKEUP WIPES WITH REUSABLE FACE WIPES MADE FROM HEMP AND COTTON FLEECE

Let’s stay in the bathroom a little longer. Have you ever thought how many makeup wipes you go through a year? Say you use one makeup wipe everyday, that’s seven a week (duh), and then let’s throw in a couple more for the days you can’t get your eyeliner even, that equals nearly 500 a year just for you alone. Hopefully you’re sitting down for this next bit. Each makeup wipe can take 100 years to break down in landfill, and we haven’t even considering their plastic packaging!

It’s time to say goodbye to disposable makeup wipes, and replace them with reusable face wipes. Hemp Gallery’s Reusable Face Wipes are made from a blend of hemp and cotton fleece, are machine washable and fast drying. These versatile babies can be used to wash your face, to wipe down the kitchen, or as a nappy wipe. Combine them with our Cold Pressed Hemp Oil for a total waste-free cleansing overhaul.

REPLACE PLASTIC PRODUCE BAGS WITH HEMP BAGS

The good news is most states and territories have now banned single use plastic bags at the checkout. The bad news is most major supermarkets still have single use plastic bags with the fresh produce. For Plastic Free July, go ahead and ditch these, and invest in our Produce Bags instead. Available in small, medium or large sizes, these reusable bags are ethically crafted in Sydney from a blend of hemp and organic cotton, and are extremely versatile doubling as lunch bags, toddler busy bags and toiletry bags too.

We also offer Nut Milk Bags which are made from 100% hemp, and could also be used to make cheese or nut milks, sprout seeds, or as a freezer bag. Both styles come with a cotton drawstring to close and are machine washable, making them a secure and reusable option.

It would of course be unwise to go and purge all the plastic from your bathroom and kitchen right now. Rather, when your plastic products run the course of their life, say thank you for their service (à la Marie Kondo) and dispose of as ethically as possible. Then go ahead replace them with these reusable options from Hemp Gallery, and consider other ways you can incorporate Plastic Free July into your everyday. The turtles will thank you.

Oh and don’t worry, all Hemp Gallery products will be delivered to you in packaging that is either reused, recyclable or compostable.