House Cleaning the Gorgeously Green Girl's Way

Every time you tear off a few sheets of paper towels, remind yourself that you are helping to cut down forests. I don't want to guilt-trip you—actually, I do! The green girl needs to do one of two things: Either switch to 100-percent recycled paper or just use old cut-up towels and rags and throw them in the washing machine when you have a full load. I must admit that using paper towels is one of the hardest habits to kick. It's so much easier to mop up my cutting board with paper and chuck it. I don't relish the idea of having to wash out a cloth that is ingrained with tomato seeds and cheese gratings. Yes, it's more work for sure, but saving the world sometimes requires a bit of elbow grease.

Tip: Keep a large bag or an empty trash can full of old rags. Keep one or two of them handy in the kitchen every day and use for all mopping up and wiping. At the end of the day, chuck them in the washing machine, but wait until you have a full load.

It's true: If every household in the United States replaced just one roll of virgin fiber paper towels with 100-percent recycled ones, we could save 544,000 trees (National Resources Defense Council).