Eco-friendly mom explains how she saved herself $6,500-a-year

By Emma Dunn via SWNS

An eco-friendly mom says ditching the family car and making her own cleaning products could save $6,500-a-year.

Eff Coral, 30, from Sweden, sold her motor in July 2022 to help reduce her carbon footprint - saving about $400 USD a month.

She also started living a zero-waste lifestyle three years ago - which she estimates saves another $150.

Eff and partner Andres Kristofferson, 30, cut down their plastic waste by buying shampoo bars, making their own cleaning products and using toothpaste tablets.

Mom-of-one Eff also tries to buy secondhand clothes and reusable nappies for her daughter, Olivia, two.

Eff, owner of a zero waste business, from Uppsala, Sweden, said: “I remember looking at all the plastic bottles in my shower one day and just thinking it was awful.

“Now I’m conscious to try and have a zero waste lifestyle. I buy all second-hand for my daughter, which is also so much cheaper.

“We decided to sell our car and now use bikes to get around."

“We refill all our food and use toothpaste tablets and shampoo bars. It is about balance though, if Olivia or I do want to buy something new, we won’t restrict ourselves.

“It’s about doing what we can.”

Eff also makes more of her own food to keep her waste and costs down.

She said: “I try and cook with as little waste as possible. I use reusable coffee filters and tea bags and don’t buy any cleaning products anymore.

“Instead I use white vinegar and baking soda to clean.

“We don’t want to take it to an extreme. On the whole, I live a minimalist lifestyle and we buy secondhand and reduce our waste where we can.

“I think a lot of people think being zero waste is expensive, but it’s saved us money.

“It might cost more to buy alternative house products in the first place but they last so much longer that it ends up being cheaper.

We’ve halved our monthly budget on household and food products.”