Plastic free July: five top tips
- Words by Peppermint
As Plastic Free July kicks off in 130 countries around the world, we’ve rounded-up some of the easiest ways to show pesky plastics the door. As well as making practical changes, there’s never been a better time to make yourself heard – advocating for reusable straws, cups and packaging everywhere from your local cafe to the shops you pop to. Sure, you run the risk of sounding like a broken record, but it’s for a good cause – and even a broken record can be repurposed into something beautiful.
Coffee cups
A classic villain – most takeaway coffee cups can’t be recycled, and we Aussies plough through a massive
1 billion cups each year. Thankfully it’s becoming way more mainstream to present a barista with a reusable coffee cup (no more looking at you in consternation as they try to work out how to close the lid), and the most forward-thinking cafes are now offering discounts for patrons that BYO. Sleek glass Bontazza and the nifty collapsible Cupy are just a couple of the alternatives out there.
Plastic bags
When it comes to these guys, the stats are particularly horrifying. 160,000 plastic bags are used globally every second, and 5 trillion plastic bags are produced yearly. With so much of our plastic ending up in the oceans and so many amazing reusable options out there, it’s a no-brainer to say no at the checkout. Flip & Tumble’s reusable shopping bags are a clever design that last and last, and Onya’s produce bags do away with that whole one-bag-per-two-apples supermarket dilemma. Get on it (and then put your stuff in it).
Straws
We’ve all seen the videos of straws being removed from the noses of terrified turtles (if you haven’t, do, but warning – it’s watch-between-your-fingers kind of viewing). Reusable straws are a one-off buy that can hide at the bottom of your handbag til you’re next faced with the urgent medical need for a chocolate milkshake or a creamy iced latte. Ecococoon and Biome can help quench your thirst without guilt.
Water bottles
With so many reusable bottle options on the market, there’s really no excuse for buying bottled water. Volunteers for Clean Up Australia day reported that one in ten pieces of plastic they collected was bottled water-related, and that’s one in ten too many. From S’Well to the Rechusable No Plastic! option and lots more in-between, there’s a myriad of slick options for making a bottle your bestie and carrying it everywhere – the planet’ll thank you for it.
Bathroom basics
Shampoo, conditioner, cleanser, bodywash – for the smallest room of the house, the bathroom has a line-up of the biggest plastic offenders. Just think of all the shampooing you’ve done in your life – those bottles still exist somewhere. No hairdo is worth that – in fact we’d say it’s more of a hair-don’t. Instead, think about swapping to packaging-free bars to get your squeaky-clean hair, face and body fix – Ethique and Lush do the trick nicely.
WORDS: HELEN DEWAR
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Look, I don’t want to make anyone panic but IT’S DECEMBER!!! If you’re planning to give homemade gifts, you’re going to have to act fast. …
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🌻 The Paddington 🌻
This is a much-loved staple, created for Issue 50 in 2021. We love seeing the #PeppermintPaddingtonTop continually popping up in our feeds!
How stunning is our model Elon MelaninGoddessEfon – she told us it was one of the first times she had been asked to come to a shoot with her natural hair. 🌻
We worked with South African patternmaker Sarah Steenkamp of @FrenchNavyNow_ to create this wardrobe essential – the perfect puff-sleeve blouse. Raglan sleeves make it the ultimate beginner sew, plus the gorgeous back buttons let you add your own personal twist.
Pattern via the link in bio! 🪡
Photos: @KelleySheenan
Fabric: @Spoonflower
Model: MelaninGoddessEfon
“In the 1940’s, Norwegians made and wore red pointed hats with a tassel as a form of visual protest against Nazi occupation of their country. Within two years, the Nazis made these protest hats illegal and punishable by law to wear, make, or distribute. As purveyors of traditional craft, we felt it appropriate to revisit this design.”
Crafters have often been at the heart of many protest movements, often serving as a powerful means of political expression. @NeedleAndSkein, a yarn store in Minnesota, are helping to mobilise the craftivists of the world with a ‘Melt The Ice’ knitting pattern created by @Yarn_Cult (with a crochet pattern too), as a way of peaceful protest.
The proceeds from the $5 pattern will go to local immigrant aid organisations – or you can donate without buying the pattern.
Raise those needles, folks – art and craft can change the world. 🧶
Link in bio for the pattern.
Images: @Gather_Fiber @NeedleAndSkein @a2ina2 @KyraGiggles Sandi.204 @WhatTracyMakes AllieKnitsAway Auntabwi2
#MeltTheIce #Craftivism #Knitting #CraftForChange
TWO WEEKS TO GO! 🤩
"The most important shift is moving from volume-led buying to value-led curation – choosing fewer, better products with strong ethics, considered production and meaningful stories. Retailers have real influence here: what you buy signals what you stand for. At Life Instyle, this means using the event to discover and invest in small-scale, planet-considerate brands that align with your values and your customer’s conscience. Consumers don’t need more things; they need better things, and retailers play a key role in selecting, contextualising, and championing why those products matter."
Only two more weeks until @Life_Instyle – Australia`s leading boutique retail trade show. If you own a store, don`t miss this event! Connect with designers, source exquisite – and mindful – products, and see firsthand why this is Australia’s go-to trade show for creatives and retailers alike. And it`s free! ✨️
Life Instyle – Sydney/Eora Country
14-17 February 2026
ICC, Darling Harbour
Photos: @Samsette
#LifeInstyle #SustainableShopping #SustainableShop #RetailTradeEvent
Calling all sewists! 📞
Have you made the Peppermint Waratah Wrap Dress yet? Call *1800 I NEED THIS NOW to get making!
This gorgeous green number was modelled (and made) by the fabulous Lisa of @Tricky.Pockets 🙌🏼
If you need a nudge, @ePrintOnline are offering Peppermint sewists a huge 🌟 30% off ALL A0 printing 🌟 when you purchase the Special Release Waratah Wrap Dress pattern – how generous is that?!
Head to the link in bio now 📞
*Not a real number in case that wasn`t clear 😂
#PeppermintWaratahWrapDress #PeppermintPatterns #SewingPattern #WrapDress #WrapDressPattern
8 Things to Know About January 26 - from @ClothingTheGaps:
Before you celebrate, take the time to learn the truth. January 26 is not a day of unity it’s a Day of Mourning and Survival for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
It marks the beginning of invasion, dispossession, and ongoing colonial violence. It’s time for truth-telling, not whitewashed history.
Stand in solidarity. Learn. Reflect. Act.
✊🏽 Blog written by Yorta Yorta woman Taneshia Atkinson.
🔗 Link in bio of @ClothingTheGaps to read the full blog
#ChangeTheDate #InvasionDay #SurvivalDay #AlwaysWasAlwaysWillBe #ClothingTheGaps
As the world careens towards AI seeping into our feeds, finds and even friend-zones, it`s becoming increasingly hard to ignore.
We just wanted to say that here at Peppermint, we are choosing to not print or publish AI-generated art, photos, words, videos or content.
Merriam-Webster’s human editors chose `slop` as the 2025 Word of the Year – they define it as “digital content of low quality that is produced usually in quantity by means of artificial intelligence.” The problem is, as AI increases in quality, it`s becoming more and more difficult to ascertain what`s real and what`s not.
Let`s be clear here, AI absolutely has its place in science, in climate modelling, in medical breakthroughs, in many places... but not in replacing the work of artists, writers and creatives.
Can we guarantee that everything we publish is AI-free? Honestly, not really. We know we are not using it to create content, but we are also relying on the artists, makers and contributors we work with, as well as our advertisers, to supply imagery, artwork or words created by humans. AI features are also creeping into programs and apps too, making it difficult to navigate. But we will do our best to avoid it and make a stand for the artists and creatives who have had their work stolen and used to train AI machines, and those who are now losing work as they are replaced by this energy-sapping, environment-destroying magic wand.
Could using it help our productivity and bottom line? Sure. And as a small business in a difficult landscape, that`s a hard one to turn down. We know other publishers who use AI to write stories, create recipes, produce photo shoots... but this one is important to us.
`Touch grass` was also a Merriam-Webster Word of the Year. We`ll happily stick with that as a theme, thanks very much. 🌿
