It’s been a year since I started striving to create a zero waste household, and over six and half years since I started living simply. It’s the summer of 2016 and I’m wondering what next, and also if I want to continue as I have been. I have no intention to give up on zero waste, but I’ve come across challenges along the way.
Zero waste is not only a huge challenge, but it can feel so discouraging when you are not meeting your goals.
For starters, I’ve completely wimped out on composting in a one bedroom apartment. Without composting it is impossible to be zero waste. If you are new to the concept of zero waste start here.
When visiting Portland, Oregon last fall, I saw that the city supported composting pickup just as most cities do for regular trash and recycling pickup. I wish Los Angeles was also this environmentally driven. I read that one woman in New York City froze her compost and took it to the farmer’s market weekly. The farmer’s market that I attend weekly doesn’t offer a composting service although I wish it did.
I’d love to hear more about others composting in an apartment as I haven’t found much discussion online. I know some have discovered that their buildings do not allow it. I could understand that. I honestly never even asked the management in which we rent from although I probably should.
Although I have made successful changes with a simple beauty regimen and minimizing waste with groceries, I have experienced my usual frustration with shoes.
I’ve also had some new thoughts around clothing, yet let’s talk shoes first. If you haven’t witnessed my traditional shoe rant, I’ll gladly spare you. To sum it up quickly, I have very narrow feet, so I can’t just pop into a second hand store and easily find shoes that fit. I did purchase a pair of brown boots and brown sandals secondhand earlier this year, but they have both failed me.
These were cute on the outside in my opinion, but hurting like crazy on the inside!
I spent more money fixing the brown boots than I did purchasing them. Unexpectantly these boots are killing my left foot specifically. I’m honestly not even sure why since they are not high heeled boots. I luckily have another pair of secondhand boots in black that will hopefully do much better in the long run. So far so good.
I have no words for these sandals!
The sandals were old “new” stock from Etsy, and I also had them altered at my cobbler. The altered area broke once and I had to take them back to get them fixed again. Most recently the heel came off of the sole. Imagine that! This will be their third trip to the cobbler and the summer isn’t even over yet.
Out of complete annoyance and far from divinely guided ethics or zero waste, I stopped by Marshall’s and used a gift card that I had to purchase a new pair of flat sandals knowing they would not be fair trade.
As for clothing, I have been wanting to support more organic and fair trade slow fashion brands. Purchasing new items which can be found secondhand is also not zero waste. I would say that 90% of my wardrobe including shoes and accessories are secondhand, yet supporting small organic businesses are also important to me. I happily purchased four organic and fair trade clothing pieces this summer. I have been really enjoying them too. Read more on my focus on ethical fashion here.
Even after a year of striving for zero waste, we are ways from it despite our efforts. We have greatly minimized our plastic consumption, yet we are not 100% plastic-free either so we recycle. Every city is so different and the challenges that we all face on this journey is uniquely our own based on our lifestyle and desires.
I’m learning to give myself much more breathing room as I strive for making as much of a positive impact on this planet as I can while I’m living.
Sometimes the labels of conscious living goals alone can be stressful, yet they aren’t intended to be. I honestly believe that with each positive change we make for ourselves, our family, and the planet, no matter how small, it should not to be overlooked. You can see some of my zero waste success here!
I remember feeling extremely overwhelmed when I started living with less, yet I found my way. It feels no different on the environmental/ethical path I am currently on with loving our planet and those on it in mind. I’m not perfect, and I’m not striving for perfection either. What I do love most about these conscious living journeys is how much closer I get to learning even more about myself and loving myself in the process.
(Top photo… thrifted dress + bag from Crossroads Trading & vintage shoes found on Etsy)
If you are striving for zero waste, please share any tips that you’ve learned below. They will be immensely appreciated!
(Images by Dawn Michelle)
E says
Hi Dawn Michelle,
If you posted this before, I didn’t see it, but what do you plan to do with kitchen produce scraps after they have been composted? I’ve only known gardeners who compost, but I don’t think you can really garden in your apartment?
I have known 2 city dwellers who composted. 1 used a stainless steel composer that had charcoal liners. There was no smell and it sat right on her counter. The other I know had….wait for it…. a worm bin! It sounds gross, but believe it or not, it also sat in her kitchen and had zero smell. You would never know what it was unless she told you. Both were gardeners though and saved the compost for their balcony gardens. They had gorgeous container veggies.
Zero waste is hard to do, I’m not there either. This year my goal was to be more minimalist and organized, I fell so short of that goal. But I will keep trying.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi E,
I am familiar with vermicomposting, yet I am not sure if I desire to have that type of pet in the apartment. I have read both the good and bad about it. Another reader on Facebook mentioned Bokashi composting, but that doesn’t produce a final product.
I also feel that we possibly eat too much fruit and veggies for a simple apartment countertop composting system. Although I do not have a balcony garden, it would be wonderful to have. I think I just have to continue researching and figure out what will be best for us overall.
I truly appreciate your comment and suggestions! I hope you are having a beautiful day too!
Autumn says
Hi Dawn Michelle,
In response to your compost dilemma and a previous poster’s comment, I wanted to second a worm bin for getting rid of food waste. I used to live in an apartment and used a worm compost (vermicompost) and those little guys are very efficient! While they do produce a finished compost that needs to be dispersed in a garden or potted plant it turns out to be about 1/5 of the original amount of what goes in (i.e. 2 lbs of food scraps = about 3 cups of compost). You can’t smell it at all and the more worms you have the quicker they work of course:) I highly recommend!!!!!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Autumn,
I’m still a bit weary about vermicomposting in an apartment but am always open to learning more. Can I ask what kind of vermicomposter do you use and how many worms did you use for your size bin? Thanks so much for your comment!
Amber says
Hi Dawn! I’m also vermicomposting in my one bedroom. I got a 5 tray Worm Factory off Amazon. I didn’t have access to shrubs and leaf detritus so I got the starter kit with coconut coar. You’ll also need at least 500 red wrigglers. I compost all my junk mail and kitchens scraps. I will say DON’T compost your coffee grounds. It made my soil too moist and acidic so I got an overgrowth of mites, gnats and fruit flies. I now keep my fruit in the fridge or a mesh bag and have gotten the pests under control. I’m happy to discuss further. I LOVE vermicomposting and will never go back to throwing out veggie scraps.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Amber,
Thank you so much for sharing this information. I’m so glad to have this discussion going!
Amelia says
Hi Dawn Michelle, we are in an apartment and keep our compost in the freezer. I’ve tried Bokashi and hated it, super stinky. i probably did it wrong. Like you, we want to compost to eliminate our food waste (we don’t garden so that’s not a side benefit) and we eat a ton of fruits and veggies, and we have found this approach works well. We have a regular size freezer but since we don’t eat many frozen foods we can save up scraps for a few weeks. We also have a compost-only trash can in the bathroom for unrecyclable paper products like used tissues, q-tips, etc. We live in Minneapolis/St. Paul and drop off our compost at a nearby collection site, there are quite a few throughout the area so I am guessing your area may have something similar? They call it organics recycling collection. We don’t have a car so it takes a little extra planning but it’s so worth it, and I do believe that the emissions from the short drive are fewer than the emissions that would result from food waste in the landfill, but maybe that’s wishful thinking 😉 good luck to you in your continued zero waste adventure!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Amelia,
Thank you so much for sharing this! There is definitely composting of yard clippings and the like for single family homes, yet I will do some research on finding “organic recycling collection” that will also take food scraps. Another reader mentioned looking to find a community garden to contribute compost too as well.
I’m feeling much more comfortable finding a place to take compost to after freezing it at this point. I just need to find a place that isn’t too far from where I live. I hope you are enjoying your summer!
Ruth says
I think it’s wonderful you’re taking all these steps, but I’m also glad you’re taking care of yourself (just getting shoes!) when things don’t work out. I think Beth Terry has written about how, while individual actions are important, they can’t be the only changes. Have you found any local groups to connect with in your efforts? I’m always surprised by how much others have already done. There must be other people in LA who want these changes, and maybe they’ve managed to create a compost program, or a gardening program that will take compost. I recently lived in NYC, and our farmer’s market would take compost which I brought after freezing. Then just this year our building installed a compost bin in the same room as the trash, so we could take our frozen compost down whenever we wanted. A few year ago I attended a vermicomposting class, where we made the bin with worms, and then my coworker and I kept it in our office for a year. It did not smell. The one weekend I had it at home it got too dry and some of the worms tried to escape. While sad for them, it wasn’t a mess in the apartment because they just dried up. Clearly taking care of worms requires more work than putting things in your freezer, but not that much more work. However if you try getting involved with local groups I bet regular composting would be he way to go.
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Ruth,
Connecting with local groups interested in zero waste is a really wonderful idea. I also think it is beyond awesome that your apartment building offers a composting option for the tenants. I really appreciate hearing your story and what has worked best for you. Thank you so much for your comment!
G says
hey dawn!
i freeze my compost and drop it off to one of LA Compost’s compost hubs. they have several spots so maybe one is close to you – you can contact them if you want to double check hours/make sure the location or garden is open when you drop off it you want. hope that helps!
https://lacompost.org
Dawn Michelle says
Hi G,
Thank you so much for this information. I will send them a message to see if there is a compost hub near me. I do hope so as this will change this whole dilemna completely. Best wishes with all that you are doing!
Ros says
Hi Dawn! I’ve been an avid reader of your blog for a while now and cannot tell you how awesome it is to know another person living in Los Angeles undergoing minimalism, zero waste, and basically being sustainable in every way possible. I basically look up to you and your tips! Although I don’t live in Los Angeles (recently moved out), I do remember stumbling upon an organization at UCLA (I am a former student) that takes in people’s compost for their community garden. If you live around that area, that could be a possible place to drop off your food scraps if you’re not intent in composting it yourself! I, unfortunately had to move out of the city before getting to use their service so I do not know if their service only accommodates students, but it may be worth a try? They are called Dig: Campus Garden Coalition at UCLA. There is also an organization in Los Angeles that is aimed at creating composting hubs all over the city called LA Compost (lacompost.org) and there may be a couple of locations close to you that will accept food scraps. I hope this helps!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Ros,
Thank you so much for this information and your kind comment! I will definitely look into both options although I don’t live close to UCLA. It is still helpful to know what options we have in Los Angeles so maybe that will be something I can share later on. Best wishes!
jillian clark says
I was searching for an apartment composting option as well! I found a woman on the eastside who does weekly pick ups, no matter what part of the city you live in!
Dawn Michelle says
Hi Jillian,
That’s so awesome! It allows you to have less waste and not have to worry about composting yourself.