It’s no suprise that sustainable living is growing in popularity. As individuals we are becoming socially conscious with the types of products we buy and more mindful of what we consume.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing fellow biz mum and self professed eco-warrior, Rachelle from Honeycomb Living to ask her all things about her sustainable lifestyle brand & the beautiful products she sells.
In this blog post she shares the ethos behind her eco -friendly business, where she draws inspiration from for creating her bespoke handmade pieces and easy tips and tricks for adopting a more sustainable lifestyle.
Tell us about why you started the business?
I’ve always been concerned about the impact we have on the environment and wanted to try and live a more conscious life.
When my husband and I started thinking about starting our own family this became more important to me. I was aware that by bringing children into the world we would be having more of an impact and I also wanted to make sure that they actually had a world to grow up in.
I wanted to create a collection of eco-friendly and ethically made products, but I wanted them to suit a certain aesthetic. I wanted every piece to be beautiful and something people would be proud to pull out of their bags or display in their homes.
It was also important for me to support local Australian business’s so all of the products I sell are sourced from Australian suppliers and businesses. As the business has grown and I’ve continued to add new products and brands, I really wanted to create my own range of timber products.
As we increased our collection of babies and children’s toys and decor I was able to introduce my own range last year which are extra special to me.
What are the types of products you sell?
We have a variety of sustainable and ethical products for the whole family.
Our biggest range of products are our babies and children’s collection which include cloth nappies, timber toys and timber decor.
We also have eco-friendly lifestyle products including safety razors, reusable goods to help us become less of a throw-away society and a beautiful handmade natural skin care range.
Eco Naps Cloth Nappy and Bamboo Travel Change Mat
Where do you draw inspiration from for your handmade pieces?
Trying to reduce plastic in our lives is really important to me so all of our Honeycomb Living branded products are made from timber. Whenever I create a new product, I try to design something that is beautiful that my friends, family and community will love.
I love creating things with a bit of a unique spin. My first product was a set of baby milestone cards, there are many beautiful sets of these around but I’d never seen them with a stand.
I wanted people to have the option to have their milestone cards self standing for the monthly photos with their babies because I know how hard it was getting my little guy to lie still and flat once he could sit up! And everyone loves a bit of personalisation, so having the option to add a babies name is really special.
Our beautiful rainbow collection came from a desire I had to celebrate the joy I felt upon having my son after a previous loss due to a miscarriage and wanting the same for my friends who had opened up about having a similar experience.
I wanted the birth rainbows to be a special piece, designed to celebrate our precious rainbow babies and a way for us to be more open about a topic that is sometimes a bit taboo.
I’ve absolutely loved creating these for so many babies and they have actually been popular for all babies regardless of whether they are rainbow babies, as they’re such a beautiful and unique piece.
Handmade Timber Birth Rainbows
What are the best sustainable products for those with babies or young children?
Here are a few of my favourite sustainable products when you have kids:
Swim nappies – this is an affordable way to reduce the number of disposable nappies going into landfill and they’re just so cute!
Wet bags – There are countless uses for wet bags when you have babies or children, from keeping wet clothing or swimmers separate from your dry stuff or separating dirty shoes, to storing nappies – cloth or disposable, storing snacks, toys, books etc, the possibilities are endless and they’re a beautiful alternative to plastic bags.
Silicone straws – I’ve just discovered these with my toddler. I found steel straws too dangerous as he is constantly running around with things and I was worried he’d fall over and hurt himself. These are a nice safe alternative for a reusable straw.
Timber toys – I love beautiful good quality timber toys, the fact that they are organic, non-toxic and naturally antibacterial is really important to me, it reduces the potential toxins my son is exposed to. I also love that they are perfect for open-ended play without the distraction of flashing lights and noises so they’re great for more imaginative play.
What advice would you give to people who want to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle?
Every little bit counts. Sometimes it can be overwhelming to try and make lots of big changes to our lifestyles in order to live more sustainably, especially with kids.
But I would recommend making small changes overtime and you’ll eventually start to make an impact.
Little things like:
- Opting not to buy a coffee out if you’ve forgotten your reusable cup.
- Requesting no straw when you order a drink.
- Starting a soft recycling bin at home and dropping it down to Coles or Woolworths to your local Redcycle program when you do your groceries. You can put anything plastic that you can squish into a ball in here, including bread bags, chip packets, cheese wrappers, chocolate wrappers, etc.
- Reduce your meat and dairy intake, even cutting it down a little bit can make a difference.
- If you don’t wish to use cloth nappies full time, you could opt to just do it occasionally, even one a day is one less nappy a day in landfill. If cloth nappies aren’t your thing, you could just choose to get yourself a reusable swim nappy. This means every time you go to the swimming pool or beach you’re not having to throw out a disposable.
An important thing to remember is not to be too hard on yourself, if you have a bad day it doesn’t undo all the good work you’ve done or all the good work you could do in the future.
We can all make an impact by making small changes to our lives. There’s a quote by Anne Marie Bonneau “We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly” and I wholeheartedly agree with this, every little bit counts.
To find out more about the eco-friendly products Rachelle both makes and stocks visit Honeycomb Living.
Rachelle is a wife, mum of one with another on the way and passionate eco-warrior. She is a DIY enthusiast, enjoys growing her own food and lover of all things stylish and sustainable.
Based in Lake Macquarie NSW she enjoys spending time with her family and when she’s not designing or sourcing beautiful products for her collection you will find her exploring all the best foodie spots in the area and beyond.
Discover more about Rachelle here or connect via Instagram
If you enjoyed this blog post you might like to check out – Sustainable Design Trends for 2020
