Life before plastic

[ifigoup]

What did people use before plastics were everywhere? I don’t mean hundreds of years ago when most people lived in filth and had a miserable quality of life; I mean from, say, the late 19th century, when lots of aspects of society then are still pretty recognizable today.

I feel as though if I knew more about what people used before plastics, I’d be encouraged to try some of them and thereby reduce my own plastic use. In the scheme of things it really isn’t very long that plastic’s been ubiquitous, but we seem to have totally naturalized it, and we all know we can’t carry on the way we are.

I know part of the answer is that there are just so many more products now that wouldn’t even have existed in the past and that in all honesty we could probably do without entirely. But what did people use instead of plastic stuff in the following kinds of situations?

Washing up bowls (big ceramic bowls like old-fashioned mixing bowls? Just directly in the kitchen sink?)

Cups and plates for babies/toddlers who are still in the “throw everything on the floor” phase (metal mugs and dishes like you might use for camping? Just accept normal glass and ceramic stuff would get broken?)

Containers for products like facial cleanser and moisturiser (I know we have lots more products now, but in the early/mid 20th century people definitely already used stuff like “cold cream”: what was it contained in? Glass jars?)

Bringing home raw meat, fish etc. (People had their own shopping bags and baskets but what was raw meat etc. actually wrapped up in? Just paper?)

Shampoo, washing up liquid etc. (Did people just use solid soap for everything like this?)

There are problems with packaging produced from plants. Land that is needed for food is getting allocated for the production of materials and also for the production of energy via biomass schemes.

All these needs will ultimately replace one problem with another - the depletion of organic and fertile soil, which is irreplaceable.

Soil, more than water, will become the most competed for resource in around 200-400 years.

When you’re on a limited budget there’s only so much you can do as everything that is ‘sustainable and green living’ seems to come at a very premium price. I've noticed this. I was spending less that £10 a year on sanpro and I've seen people on here recommend reusable pads at £10 each.

But some things are definitely cheaper. We've switched back to bar soap rather than shower gel and it is so much cheaper and lasts a lot longer too.

The problem with bar soap I have found, is that the relatively cheap high street soap is that it is made with Palm Oil. Friendly Soap isn’t, but it’s not 4 bars for a pound territory either.

I've used 3/4 of a 250ml bottle of shower gel since December, so would need 3 a year. DS has just finished his. Would soap really last longer?

I was specifically asking about babies, who are not known for their forethought, thrift or skills in careful handling!
Sorry. I wasn't having a go at you.
I still maintain the 'mentality' approach though: if babies are not known for careful handling etc then you don't put babies in charge! The responsible person spoon-feeds them until they are (halfway) capable of doing it themselves.

I get where the previous poster is coming from on the disposability aspect though.

I recently did a patchwork workshop with a group of 11 year olds. We talked about how in the past clothes were expensive, and how a family would have a dress made, then it would be altered and shortened for subsequent children, and patched, and darned, and once it was past fixing it would be cut up and the fabric used for patchwork, rag rugs and quilts.

The kids expressions were like at the concept of fixing things repeatedly and then cutting them up to use in another way.

Interesting thread, thanks OP.

I believe that plastic wrapped goods came with the introduction of self service shops. I remember our Coop going 'Krazy Kuts' when things were displayed in see through plastic wrapping rather than the traditional brown/tissue paper used in shops that served you.
I actually worked in our local Coop and can remember weighing up the large tubs of butter and lard, wrapping it in greaseproof paper.

Buying brand new white knee socks in the Coop drapers is something I remember fondly. They were all under the counter in neat drawers. They would be wrapped in a paper Coop bag.

What a revelation when our first Asda opened. Everything was wrapped to last until your next big shop.

I remember fondly the lovely colours of Tupperware, particularly the ice lolly moulds. We always seemed to lose the lids though plus there were a lot more juice spills.

My MIL used enamel bowls and Fairy household soap until she died.

I think manufacturers could really make a big difference if they stopped using so much packaging. Amazon is the biggest culprit in my house - a tiny toy guinea pig came in a large box stuffed with bubble wrap. No need for it at all.

‘Salright, senua. I was probably just being touchy.

In the late 50s I had a doll (Veronica) who was made of some kind of china. My aunt who had moved to the USA sent me a doll from the States which was some kind of warm-feeling plastic. I just couldn't take to the 'American doll' and let her go to a young relative.
Going shopping with my mum she had a leather shopping bag she'd had for years, and a cloth one, maybe made out of jute or something like that - it was rough and sturdy. Anyway, the potatoes, carrots and so on were just tipped into the cloth bag, loose. Oranges and tangerines came already wrapped in tissue paper with exotic illustrations of their country of origin - people used to collect them.
Butcher meat, bread, cheese were wrapped in brown paper or grease-proof paper and tipped into the leather bag. The milk was delivered daily in glass bottles. We didn't have any pop or fizzy drinks at that stage (in our house, I mean). My mum used Ponds Cold Cream which came in a glass or ceramic pot. We didn't use any disposable wipes - but flannels, which were then boiled. If I took a packed lunch to school it was put in a paper bag. Gosh, it sounds like something out of Dickens! One thing I do not miss from those days was the toilet paper. It was called Izal and was hard and shiny. Awful stuff.

This is the kind of tissue that oranges came wrapped in.

@NancyPickford oh I remember Izal, but I also remember Bronco, which is what we had, which was the same. I always used to relate it to 'Bronco Lane', the cowboy series. You would have to be in your 60's like me to remember that. Izal or Bronco were brilliant for paper and comb shenanigans. We had soft paper as well in the loo, but that was for no 2s. The hard stuff you had to rub vigorously to soften it - it was just like wiping yourself with greaseproof, so totally useless.

I remember as a child being given sets of cup, saucer and plate made of bone china, It was instilled in me that these were special and not to be thrown or dropped. I didn't. I don't think kids these days have any idea of items being 'special' and to be careful of them - yes, just chuck the whole lot on the floor - why not - never to be admonished!

My mum still has my Bunnykins set I used as a baby / toddler.

"I notice people buying, say, 4 oranges, and they put them in a plastic bag. Why? "

I don't know about oranges, but veg wrapped in plastic lasts longer in the fridge so cuts down on waste.

"I hear the tales from my parents of how they and their siblings all used the same tub of water to wash in on a Sunday night but they fail to connect this with the fact they got every bug going"

I think all the bed sharing probably contributed to that as well.

What about in medical settings ? I used to work in a hospital and we binned about 20 orange bags of plastic clinical waste a day - IV tubing, needle holders, syringes, oxygen masks and tubing , medication bottles , feed bags . Basically tonnes of single use equipment not to mention everything else covered in plastic so as to maintain sterility ... very very rarely did we get metal or glass stuff and if we did it was very specific/expensive equipment - ie stuff for operating theatre . Suppose they had the time to use an autoclave!

And then the hundreds of baby wipes, and incontienence pads and bed pads . Plus single use plastic cups and other ‘domestic waste’ . And absolutely every task that meant you could get dirty meant wearing an apron and gloves .

I dread to think the hospitals daily output . Makes you think what could change there , and how - but I think maybe that would prove impossible .

"When you’re on a limited budget there’s only so much you can do as everything that is ‘sustainable and green living’ seems to come at a very premium price. "

I disagree. With a lower income, you are automatically greener as you consume less.
For me, for example, I don't have a car, don't fly very often and I usually walk or take public transport and occasionally get a lift in a full car. No clothes dryer which is one of the machines that uses the most energy. A lot less electricals than other people.

Yes, there are things I can't/won't do like I won't switch from plastic to glass or buy things in bigger containers because I have to carry everything on foot, and I still need plastic bags for veg because fresh food needs to last longer for a single person, but I think overall I do less damage than someone with a massive car.

"I've used 3/4 of a 250ml bottle of shower gel since December, so would need 3 a year. DS has just finished his. Would soap really last longer?"

You're obviously barely using it. I use much more and soap definitely lasts longer than hand wash. I can't get on with soap in the shower though.

I used the bunnikins china stuff for my babies in the nineties. I just sat with them until they learned not to chuck it on the floor. Was totally fine.

I think the whole supermarket prepacked era was seen as quite liberating for some people. In our village some of the shopkeepers were quite judgmental and definitely played favourites with the customers; think that scene in the Irish shop in the film Brooklyn. Supermarkets were also much cheaper.

Interesting thread.

Taking a slightly more modern approach, one only has to go back to 1980s/70s for a few improvement ideas. For example - strawbs in paper cartons, paper bags for loose fruit and veg (markets still do this), bunched asparagus with a string and a cardboard label, foil tray ready meals, the sturdy shopping bag etc.

Our milk is still delivered in glass. Milkman will deliver a range of other stuff too, all done online, can cancel or order extra before 9 pm for the.next day. Arrives in the wee small hours, so no chance of going off in summer.
Admittedly the milk is more expensive, but quite apart from the plastic issue, it's very convenient - one less thing to have to lug home from the shops. A dd with small dcs who get through a lot of milk has recently opted for this service, too.

As for the rest, , I certainly remember enamel washing up bowls, and a small enamel potty used by younger siblings.

Dishes and mugs for babies/toddlers, if not enamel, were often ceramic - people just had to take more care, since most consumer goods were relatively a lot more expensive - mostly made in the UK rather than in China. Does anyone else remember free glasses at petrol stations in the 70s? Nobody would think of giving such things away now, when they're so cheap to buy.

In general, people,took a lot more care of everything, including clothes, which were also a lot more expensive relative to incomes. When I was a child it was cheaper for my mother, and many others, to make our school summer dresses, rather than buying.
A far cry from today.

This thread is bringing back lots of memories. I had forgotten about string bags.

DP and I boycotted Morrison's when they started wrapping all their fruit and veg in plastic. Then all the supermarkets started doing it.

I can't get over the single use cleaning wipes. I use cloths and cleaning products.

I remember when shampoo bar soap suddenly became trendy. I think in the 90s.
Until recently you could get cheap glycerine bar soap in supermarkets, but they have all stopped doing it.

I remember for camping holidays as a kid we had an enamel plate and bowl. And yes I remember having to take your own set of cutlery and a plate to Brownies for a party. And at school we had glass tumblers to drink out of. I started school at 4.5 and nobody thought it was strange to expect young kids to use glasses.
I also remember feeding kids out of china kids bowls.
We did not have the number of toys that kids now have. We had big toys yet, but not the vast number of cheap toys that kids regularly get now.
I remember my mum using old pants as cloths, which embarrassed me. But my mum thought the idea of buying cloths was a strange one.
You didn't have all the different cleaning products, people used just a few.

I think the whole supermarket prepacked era was seen as quite liberating for some people. In our village some of the shopkeepers were quite judgmental and definitely played favourites with the customers

This. My mum (an older mother) loved supermarkets. She told me when the first one came to our town she was over the moon. She detested having to make up your mind at the counter what you wanted and if you weren't very assertive accepting the cut of meat etc that you were given. Later on when big superstores came in she was even happier!