Buy N Large from Wall-E! Photo credit: http://disney.wikia.com/wiki/BnL_Jingle

After recently becoming a one income family, we had to change some things up. We used to buy paper towels by the bulk often. Too often. Below are two simple paper product changes that have made a positive impact on our budget and living green.

Paper Towels

We used more paper towels than a four person family (it’s just my husband and I). No joke. It wasn’t uncommon for us to use two rolls or more a week. A WEEK! I decided to break our habit cold turkey and switched to cloth. When I ordered the washcloths, or bar mops as they were categorized, I was surprised that they were really a decent quality cloth.

I keep them in a little basket next to the sink. One cloth goes a lot farther when drying your hands and wiping down a wet sink. They’ve retained their fluffiness since purchasing a few months ago and I’ve been very pleased! To clean, I use Oxy Clean and detergent and I haven’t noticed an increase in laundry since the switch.

I bought a lot… These are the extras. Purchasing the larger quantity was cheaper per cloth than the smaller bundle. AmazonBasics Cotton Washcloths, 60 – Pack $29.99

Wal-Mart has rag bundles of 18 for around $4 but they don’t compare in quality. The photo above is one next to the other, both have been used and washed. Left is the Wal-Mart rag and right is the AmazonBasics. The Wal-Mart rag bundles are still a great buy for rag use! They are available for in-store purchase only.

Napkins

We used paper towels for napkins too. Cloth napkins to the rescue!

These are a little more appealing than face cloths and a little more linen-y.  I can toss them in with regular laundry and haven’t noticed an increase in laundering. They don’t take up much washer real estate.

These are a lot larger than I thought they were going to be measuring in at 16×24. These would be good place mats too since they are about the same size. If you sew, making them yourself is also a really good option! NewTrend 100% Cotton Gingham Checked Dinner Napkins 12pcs $12.99 on Amazon.

After switching to cloth, we put the current paper towels in the pantry and the half roll that was left lasted us over a month. This isn’t a huge money saving hack but it has drastically reduced waste along with saving just a little more on our grocery bills.

 Additional Savings

When I do need to purchase paper towels, I use ibotta to receive cash back after shopping in stores or ebates when purchasing online.

Check back next week for more money saving tips!

*FTC Disclosure: All links to Amazon products are affiliate links and I receive commission based on purchases.