I did NOT grow up in a paper towel house. Paper towels were a rare item reserved for specific occasions and we often reused them many times. We were a dish rag and hand towel family. The bin of soiled rags went in the washing machine every couple days, and then rags were hung up on the clothesline to dry in the sun. I carried this habit into adulthood because it just made sense to me. In fact, I purchased a roll of paper towels in 2007 and finished the roll in 2013!
Of course, now that we have an entire house to clean, along with multiple toddlers, and a whole lot of cat vomit to wipe up, our paper towel usage has gone up considerably. However, as someone who is very into waste reduction, it doesn’t sit well with me.
How to solve such a problem? Head over to Paperless Kitchen. Paperless Kitchen is an aptly named provider of kitchen products made to replace paper towels, paper napkins, synthetic scrubbers and the like. By offering sustainable alternatives, Paperless Kitchen helps families reduce environmental impact.
I had heard about Skoy Cloths from my eco-minded acquaintances, and at first, I just did not get it. Weren’t they kind of like a really tough paper towel that could be used a few times? Big deal! Use a wash cloth! However, every time I looked at my old, worn rags, stained by time and looking rather gross, I rethought about an alternative. Sometimes it is so nice to toss out a rag and get something new and fresh. But, it seems wasteful. Enter the Skoy Cloth. Once I read up on the benefits and durability of Skoy, it started making more sense. Skoy Cloths are 100% biodegradable, reusable, and compostable. In fact, they can completely biodegrade in five weeks.
My biggest hangup about trying these was the washability and disinfecting. Well, it turns out you can wash your Skoy Cloths right in your dishwasher or washing machine. You can even moisten them and pop them in the microwave for a couple minutes to kill germs and get rid of bacterial odor. While the plant based cellulose makes Skoy biodegradable and sustainable, the cloths are durable enough to reuse again and again. Each cloth can replace up to 15 rolls of paper towels! Once the cloth is worn and ready to retire, just add it to your compost. This is an appealing aspect to me since I can move on to a new cloth when the current one starts getting too stained and nasty looking.
Skoy Cloths are very absorbent and can hold the same amount of liquid as several paper towels. My skeptical self has been won over by these little cloths ad I can understand the appeal now.
You can purchase Skoy Cloths in several different size bundles at Paperless Kitchen.