Preserve

As hard as we try to minimize our use of plastic, there are always some corners of our modern lives where plastic endures.

Consider the toothbrush. Odds are, we're all using a plastic one.

(Random thought - What were toothbrushes made of before plastic became a common material? Where there wooden toothbrushes? Thanks to Google and Colgate, I now know the most advanced toothbrushes of the late 18th Century were made of cattle bone with swine-neck bristles. Yum!)

Anyway, these days if you can't avoid brushing with plastic, at least you can brush with a recycled plastic toothbrush. A company called Recycline® makes the Preserve® toothbrush by recycling Stonyfield Farm yogurt containers. (Containers that once held organic yogurt, natch.)

When your toothbrushes wear out, instead of chucking them in the trash, you can send them back to Recycline in a postage-paid package (download the label from Recycline's website). Your old razors will be reborn as plastic lumber for park benches, decks and other sturdy objects.

Recycline also makes Preserve razors. Not only is the handle made from the same type of recycled plastic as the toothbrushes, but the blade cartridge can be popped out and changed. (So you don't have to throw away the whole razor when the blade wears out.)

The newest Recycline products bring Preserve into the kitchen with cheery colanders, cutting boards, mixing bowls and storage containers. Most of these made-in-the-USA products are made from 100% recycled plastic and are also dishwasher-safe. The amazing Paperstone™ cutting boards are created from a combination of natural resins blended with 100% post-consumer recycled paper.

Frankly, the design rocks on all the Preserve products - especially the kitchenware. Credit the folks at Evo Design who partner with Recycline to give all the Preserve products an organic feel plus great functionality. Especially with the new kitchen products, everything looks great and is easy to use. Little cutouts in the Paperstone cutting boards, for instance, make it a pleasure to grab and carry a wet cutting board full of sliced scallions over to a pot of bubbling chili.

Or to give another example, consider the apple-inspired food storage containers. Yes, the design is adorable, but it's also well-crafted. Lots of storage containers use a pop-off lid, but the screw-top lid on the Preserve containers seems to fit more snugly. You'll probably preserve your food better and are less likely to make a mess if someone drops the container accidentally.

In regular use, all the Preserve kitchen products performed great while brightening up the kitchen. My only small gripe is that the the regular cutting boards seem to scratch a little easily. Recycline calls these boards knife-friendly, so maybe the softness is supposed to help your knives last longer? Anyway, I preserved the feel and the endurance of the Paperstone boards certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. (Plus it's just so cool to think you are cutting on a board made partially out of paper!)

One last bonus -- since Preserve tableware and kitchen products (except for the Paperstone) are all made out of 100% recycled #5 plastic, they can all be dumped straight into the recycling bin -- provided of course that your community recycles #5 plastics. Unfortunately, not all communities recycle #5 plastic, so you may have to search a while to find a way to get these items into the recycling stream. (Hint: Put "#5" and your location into the Earth911 search box to find someplace near you that takes #5 plastic!)

Where to buy:
Recycline says that Target has started carrying the Preserve toothbrush nationally (though we couldn't find it on Target's website yet). For now, Preserve Kitchen products are available exclusively at Whole Foods. If you're looking for anything else, check out this store locator and then call to make sure the product you want is in stock.