I read an article about paper waste the other day, and it hit me hard enough to do math (which is pretty hard…I don’t like math). The article said that the average American household will go through approximately 145 rolls of paper towels per year. ONE HUNDRED FORTY FIVE. There are only 12 months in a year, so I had to break this down.

One hundred forty five rolls of paper towels divided by 12 months in a year gives you about 12 rolls per month. That’s about 3 rolls per week. There are approximately 98 sheets of paper towels per roll (depending on what brand you buy), which means the average American household is using 294 sheets of paper towels PER WEEK. That’s 42 sheets PER DAY.

Now, I know that our house uses more than that. My husband alone probably uses that because he has severe allergies and paper towels are his tissue of choice. Those numbers are insane to me, and that’s just the paper towels. Think about all the other paper products we’ve gotten complacent with. I’ll bet most of you use paper plates to eat your meals on because it saves from having to do so many dishes. I know we do. Then you’re adding on the toilet paper and the tissues…I mean it’s really a lot.

So I made the executive decision to switch out our paper towels for some “un-paper towels”. I didn’t tell my husband because I knew he would not be thrilled. I mean, how else could he possibly blow his nose in the morning? I ordered these cutie reusable cloth towels that wrap right around a reusable roll and stand right up on our already existing paper towel holder. Marley’s Monsters UNpaper Towels, come in a 24 count roll and they have a ton of print options. I went for surprise print because I really don’t care what they have on them.

They shipped quick and as soon as I got them, I put our old roll under the sink and replaced it with this, and I sat back and watched the reactions of everyone in my house. I had no idea how something as simple as this would throw everyone off! My husband, of course, told me I was only making more work because now these had to be washed constantly. Well, the jokes on him because I’m never NOT doing laundry, so I just throw them in with everything else. In just a few short days, they have all grown to love them, and I love not wasting any more paper towels.

Once they’re washed, I just lay them all flat in a stack and then roll them, one at a time, back around the reusable roll and put them back on the holder. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Now, for huge spills I of course still have our roll of paper towels under the sink, but you know what? We have yet to touch that roll in a few weeks, and I feel great about that. One item by one item I will be making the switch to reusable products…I just need to decide which item I will replace next. I’m open for suggestions! What do y’all think?