Plastic Free DIY's

Now that it's officially Plastic Free July I wanted to kick off the blog with a list of DIY's that you can do to cut plastic out of your life one product at a time! Personally I'm not huge on doing DIY's so I can guarantee you that if I'm doing these they really are simple, easy, and save money too. 

1. Oatmeal Hair Gel
I absolutely love this DIY! It's a homemade hair gel using just two ingredients: oatmeal and water. And it only takes 10 min from start to finish. Not to mention most hair gel runs at least $10 a bottle. I do use another hair gel on top of this one for better hold but this allows me to use a less each time I do my hair and making the life of my A Simple Planet Hair Gel last longer!

Here's how I make my oatmeal gel.

• 2/3 cup of water
• 1 tablespoon of raw oats

Put both the oats and the water in the pot at the same time and bring to a boil. Then lower to medium heat and begin stirring constantly with a wooden spoon for 5-10 minutes. Strain the liquid out from the oats and then let it cool for several minutes before transferring it into a bottle for gel! Keep this in the fridge and it will be good for 1-2 weeks of use!

2. "Clorox" Wipes
These disinfectant wipes are no joke. Honestly I probably could have halved this recipe because I think we will be using this batch forever (which isn't a bad thing)! We love using these to wipe down large surfaces like our counter tops after we clean any food debris off them. We take out a cloth, ring it out into the container and then clean surfaces and put it right back in! Here's the "recipe" that I used to make this. 

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups distilled water
• 1 cup Isopropyl Alcohol (at least 70% concentrate)
• 1 tbsp of dish soap
• 3 drops of tea tree oil (optional)

Mix everything together in a jar with some cloths and you've got yourself a DIY disinfectant. 

3. Leave-in Conditioner
In case it wasn't clear already I love doing DIYs of hair products because it's so hard to find good products plastic free, and when you do find them they're so expensive! Especially when I know I can just make them at home. This might be the fastest DIY I have too. 

Here's what you need: 

• Spray bottle
• Water
• Conditioner 
• Protein Drops (optional)

All you do is fill your spray bottle with water and add a few pumps of conditioner and a few drops of protein drops! Honestly the amounts will really depend on your own hair type so play around with it until you find exactly what works for you. 

4. Spray Cleaner
Another DIY I just love because it's got all ingredients that I keep on hand with me so it's never hard to whip this up when needed. 

All you need to make an easy at home all-surface cleaner is: 

• Spray Bottle 
• 3/4 cup hydrogen peroxide
• 1/2 white vinegar distilled
• 1 tsp of dish soap or castile soap
• 10 drops of tea tree oil
• 20 drops of another scented essential oil (if desired)

Mix this all together in your spray bottle and give it a shake, now you've got an awesome household cleaner, I haven't found anything better at the store at getting rid of the stains in my shower than this! I will say this definitely smells really strongly of vinegar but the smell doesn't linger on your surfaces, but if you are very sensitive to smells then this might not be a DIY for you. 
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5. DIY's in the Kitchen:
When we think of DIY's I feel like we don't usually think about how there are a ton of things we can do ourselves when it comes to cooking! I wanted to add this in here to highlight a few kitchen DIY's I've tried out since going zero waste. 

Homemade tortillas
Make your own protein bars
My favorite homemade pizza dough recipe
World's best Foccacia Bread

Let me know in the comments below what your favorite plastic free DIY's are! I would love to try them out.