What I Live Without... Easily

My coupon-clipping habit has scaled back quite a bit. It's kind of funny... I used to be a clippin' fool, but now I just don't use those products anymore. I decided it was time to list the things I have effortlessly learned to live without.

• Shampoo. We use baking soda. I have a few left-over bottles of stuff that I will use on rare occasion, but generally I am saving money AND plastic and my hair is in fine shape.
• Conditioner. Apple cider vinegar and water is a nice rinse. And no I don't smell like a salad. No chemicals here.
• Laundry detergent. We use soap nuts. The contain natural saponin and are biodegradeble and do not come with extra chemicals or plastic. http://naturoli.com/ What does my laundry smell like? NOTHING! Don't even show me a dryer sheet, either. No chemicals in my clothing. That touches my skin, after all.
• Drano. Don't need it. White vinegar and baking soda works fine.
• Harsh cleaners/bleach. We use Better Life products for all our cleaning. http://cleanhappens.com/ Lemon and baking soda and white vinegar also supplement in areas, but I'm good with Better Life.
• Specialty acne treatments. I'm Italian. I have oily skin. I have ALWAYS had pimples. I thought for sure that by the time I had grey hair, I wouldn't have zits anymore, but no. What I HAVE learned is that I don't need special soaps or creams or anything. When I feel a zit coming on, I dab toothpaste on it overnight, and poof it's gone as fast as with even prescription stuff. No extra chemicals, no extra packaging, no extra waste.
• Hair color. I embrace my greys. And I used to feel so much guilt about all that waste and all those chemicals. I'll be natural, thanks. To each their own, but I'm good.
• Straws. Snort... like THOSE are a necessity in life. Gimme a break.
• Paper towels. We don't even have the holder in the kitchen anymore. If there is any mess we feel NEEDS a paper towel, we have a stash of napkins from take-out. We tell them to not include them but they send them anyway sometimes, so we keep them on hand for such situations. But we haven't bought a roll of paper towels in MONTHS, and I can't say I miss them.
• Paper napkins. Who needs 'em? We have cloth. They don't take up much space in laundry.
• Facial tissues. Hankies and bandanas.
• Bath pouf. Loofahs are natural.
• Bottled water. Haven't touched a plastic bottle to my lips in ages. Our faucet-mounted filter is great and my reuseable bottle goes everywhere with me. I don't drink soda. Rarely drink juice. I drink wine, but that's in glass. And wine is a necessity. :)

There you have it. That's a lot of stuff I DON'T buy, don't have to spend money on, don't have to throw away, doesn't have to be produced. I actually had to think hard about some of these, because it's all second nature to me now. I'm sure I'm leaving things out, because I just don't miss them anymore.

This is just me. I hope people can take some ideas from here. I just like to teach by example.

What can you cut?