As we wrap up (and unwrap) 2025, I’ve been thinking a lot about what this shop actually represents.
It’s not just ounces refilled or products sold, but shifts in old habits and mindsets, and a community that keeps showing up to work towards something better. It’s a middle finger to Big Plastic and the status quo. It’s something I can be proud of. Something WE can be proud of.
I do have some stats and figures though because I kinda like to nerd out on the numbers and if we don’t post about it – does it really exist?
The Big Picture
In 2025, over 454,000 ounces of everyday products were refilled in this little shop. That’s about 28,400 pounds of product moved through a system designed to reuse containers instead of tossing them. To put that in terms Gainesvillians can understand, it’s equivalent to 189 average sized Florida alligators.
And I bet you’re asking: how does that equate to plastic NOT ending up in the landfill? Well, I’m so glad you asked because now I can tell you that in just 365 days we prevented close to 57,000 8oz or similar plastic bottles from ending up in the landfill. Go us!
What You Refilled Most
The top five refill favorites this year were maybe a little predictable.. Laundry detergent. Dish soap. Pantry staples…
UNexpected Surprises
And there were some overachievers that surprised us too:
Low-waste doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s practical AND makes you feel good.
Your Most-Asked Question at the Refill Counter
“No packaging is great, but does it actually work?”
Short answer: yes.
Longer answer: our refillery products are tried and tested, and in most cases have now been refilled thousands of times. IF something doesn’t perform as it should, we’ll replace it. Simple as that.
More Than a Refillery
A lot happened besides refills:
52 weekly puzzle and board game swaps, where something old became something new (to you)
A spring seed swap and fall trinket swap, celebrating more community and reuse
A mutual aid food pantry fundraiser, where together we raised and donated $1000
And countless jars donated to be used again and again (we don’t keep count, but it was A LOT)
It’s your participation that makes all of this work.
Supporting Small Biz
Every purchase also supported small business of all kinds. Family owned, minority owned, women owned, and/or local. From candles and coffee to honey and herbal products, your dollars aligned your values with your daily life. Good job!
Carrying This into 2026
If there’s one thing that’s “in” in the New Year, it’s this:
Progress over perfection. Always.
And I know that it’s a little taboo to talk finances, but I want you to know that at the end of 2024 I was asking myself if it was worth it to keep going. Things were not really looking good. I promised the project one more year and I made some adjustments and hired some people I couldn’t technically afford. And it is my delight and pleasure to let you know that — it worked! Sales went up 30% in one year and we came incredibly close to half a million dollars spent in a tiny refill shop. In 365 days.
Now let’s not forget, there’s a difference between revenue and profit and this number is probably minuscule in comparison to the revenue an actual grocery store like publix pulls in, and who knows what’s next with the economy… BUT we are doing something here, and I couldn’t be more excited to see how we continue to evolve and grow. I hope we can.
I’m endlessly grateful to you for reading and for participating. Thank YOU.
Our pantry staples are for more than just the pantry!
If you’ve never used one before, a body scrub is simply a gentle exfoliator and usually a mix of something coarse (like sugar, salt, or even coffee grounds), oils (like olive, jojoba, coconut), and skin-soothing add-ins (like honey) that buff away dry skin and leave everything soft, smooth, and hydrated.
And with just a few ingredients, a glass jar, and five minutes, you can make this low-waste gift that looks beautiful, smells dreamy, and has that ‘homemade’ charm.
A homemade gift is nearly always more special than a store-bought one, and when it comes to beauty products, the people in your life will appreciate knowing exactly what’s going on their body. These scrubs are made with simple, whole ingredients, and customized with any essential oil they may prefer.
Plus:
They repurpose what you already have. An old jam jar, pasta sauce jars, spice jars.. can all be cleaned up and transformed into gorgeous packaging.
They aren’t clutter. It’s gifting that doesn’t create more ‘stuff’. The consumables inside are enjoyed, used up, and the jar can be reused all year long.
They’re personal. Customize with their favorite scent, decorate the jar, write a note including instructions on how to get the most out of your scrub.
Who they’re for:
Think of them as a little spa day in a jar. Literally anyone. People who shave, get dry skin, garden, or just enjoy a little pampering. People who are hard to shop for. People who “don’t want anything”. You can make a whole batch, portion them into smaller jars (we recommend trying to source wide mouth and shallow jars), tie on a ribbon, add a handwritten tag, and you’ve got a thoughtful gift for friends, teachers, neighbors, coworkers, or as a stocking stuffer!
Tip: more oats = more soothing, more sugar = more exfoliating
Instructions:
FOR MAKING:
Optional: blend oats in a blender or food processor to achieve a finer scrub
Soften coconut oil in microwave for about 10-15 seconds
Combine ingredients in a glass or metal bowl (not the container you intend to give away)
Mix thoroughly
Scoop into a wide-mouth jar
Dress up with a beautiful ribbon and label
Optional: include a card or tag with the following instructions
FOR ENJOYING:
Use before washing or shaving.
Message gently on wet or dry skin.
Wash off, or rinse off with warm water and a washcloth for an extra moisturizing effect.
Homemade sugar scrubs are simple, thoughtful, affordable, and truly low-waste. They are a consumable gift that gets used up, not stuck in a drawer or on a shelf collecting dust, eventually headed for the landfill. Whether you’re making a single jar for someone special or a whole batch to give out to the whole team, it’s a sweet way to give something that feels luxurious without all the plastic and mystery ingredients.
If you need jars, ingredients, or a little help getting started, we’ve got it all right here at Life Unplastic. Happy homemade gifting! 🎁
Just a heads up that we also have a longer, more detailed composting guide called Composting 101 that you can find here. In it we dive deeper into why landfills create methane, the EPA’s Food Recovery Hierarchy, and other details. This quick-and-dirty guide, on the other hand, is meant to be the “just tell me what to do” breakdown for getting started without overwhelm. Now let’s dig in!
Composting is good for the planet.
In a landfill, compostable organic waste quickly stops breaking down efficiently and starts releasing methane gas into our atmosphere. Properly caring for the same compostable organic waste at home does a lot to reduce emissions, and provides rich, nutritious material for your garden.
But simply putting your scraps in a pile doesn’t do much — there are techniques to composting that will keep your pile breaking down smoothly. Don’t worry though! It’s easy once you have the basics down.
Side note: Not all people are able to keep a compost pile at home, or you may not have a garden to use your compost in once it turns back into soil. Gainesville is a great place for composters like this, because of our local (self-proclaimed) ‘stanky-boys’ over at Beaten Path Compost, an organization that offers affordable compost pick ups and drop offs in the area. If you’re not sure how to fit composting into your lifestyle, but don’t want to send food waste to the landfill, we definitely recommend checking their services out.
Psst: If you prefer a print format, or want to gift this information (& far more!) to a curious friend, consider a Home Composting Made Easy ‘zine!
Starting Your Pile
If you have the space and resources to have your own backyard compost pile, there are a few different ways you can go about it.
Your first decision is going to be whether or not to have your compost touching the ground or in an above-ground container like a tumbler.
Tumblers make it easier to turn your pile, which is necessary to maintain proper aeration and prevent anaerobic decomposition, which releases methane gas. You can buy a simple compost tumbler, or make your own. If you keep your pile on the ground, you can also turn a pile by mixing it up with a pitchfork, or by shoveling it all onto a tarp and then dumping it back onto the ground.
Piles that are connected to the earth allow microorganisms, insects, and worms to help with the process. It’s a great way to give back directly to your own backyard ecosystem! These piles still need to be turned and maintained, though, so try to not just forget about them.
Here’s an extra tip: if you have an above-ground container, you may be tempted to try and replicate that microorganism heaven, but resist the urge to add worms to your tumbler. Compost gets pretty hot when it’s breaking down, and the enclosed space could easily become a death trap for little crawlies when they can’t access fresh, cool air.
Compost bins take many forms and sizes, and many are very easy to make yourself, with anything from a small wire trash can from an office supplies store to chicken wire and lumber. Check out one simple DIY here.
What to Compost
Now that you have a receptacle, you need to know what to put in it. All compost piles have browns and greens. In general, you want to have more browns than greens. A good starting ratio is 3 parts brown to 1 part green.
Browns are generally dryplant-based material, like dead leaves, shredded paper, and cardboard pieces. Browns are carbon-rich.
Greens are usually what goes in your countertop compost bin — things like veggie scraps, fruit peels, tea leaves, eggshells, and coffee grounds. This can also include grass clippings* and manure**. Greens are nitrogen-rich.
*Avoid adding grass or yard clippings treated with pesticides or herbicides, and skip any diseased plants as they can transfer contaminants or pathogens to your finished compost. **Avoid pet and human waste as they can carry pathogens that home compost can’t reliably neutralize.
If your pile is moist, and smells rich and alive, that’s good! If it’s wet and smells rank or overpowering, you could probably benefit from a little more browns.
It’s also always a good idea to get your material as small as possible before mixing it into your pile, so it breaks down faster once it’s there. Think about it like chewing your food before digesting it. This means shredding paper, crushing eggshells, ripping up cardboard, etc.
What NOT to Compost
Certain materials may seem natural enough to compost, but if you add them to your backyard pile, they’ll attract animals, stink up your yard, or they won’t break down properly.
Pet or human waste, even used natural toilet paper or compostable litter, will make your compost unsuitable for the growth of any edible plants, not to mention have very detectable odors that will attract animals. Only use materials like this if you are an experienced composter who can be absolutely certain that your final product will not be used to grow anything that will be eaten.
Materials like tea bags, coffee pods, and “compostable” cutlery, trash bags, or other household items often need to be sent to a commercial facility. Backyard compost piles just don’t get to the temperatures needed to break down compostable plastics or treated wood. Greenwashing is also rampant when it comes to disposable items made of “compostable” plastic, so it’s generally a safe bet to avoid tossing those into your home compost.
If you’ve got the guts to start adding more materials to your home compost, like meat, oils, bones, etc (again, not recommended for beginners!) try out these compost microbes from Kenkashi, which boast a two week time frame from countertop to usable soil! They’re also helpful for any compost pile that could use some speeding up or some extra help.
Maintenance
It’s a good rule of thumb to turn your pile once or twice a week. As you continue composting, you’ll learn more about how quickly your particular ingredients, environment, and container work, and you’ll get into the swing of turning your pile whenever it needs more oxygen.
A healthy pile is moist, earthy-smelling, and can reach temperatures of around 130 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit in the center, which is quite warm, but normal and part of the process.
If your pile is too dry, add some water and turn it over a few times.
If your pile is too stinky or wet, add brown materials and mix them in. You can also spread your pile out on a tarp in the sun for a few minutes if you are dealing with a lot of excess water.
If your pile isn’t getting hot, add more greens and mix them in.
Harvesting
A well-mixed and well-maintained pile should be finished in about 3-6 months. Left to rot, a pile may take a year or more to turn into usable soil.
You will be able to tell that your compost is done when there are no visible scraps and it looks dark, loose, and crumbly, like soil. It also will no longer heat up while mixing. Check out this blog post for more tips on how to tell when your compost is finished breaking down.
Once you’ve determined that your compost is ready, leave it to rest and cure for at least 4 weeks. While the finished batch is curing, you can add the newest material to a new pile or just take a break. Don’t be alarmed when you come back to it — it’s supposed to shrink to about a third of its size!
Sift your compost to remove items like twigs or produce stickers you forgot to remove, and then enjoy the rich, fertile, product of your labors. Isn’t it just amazing to see that process to completion?
