A waste-conscious mum has opened up about why she and her family use 'family cloth' instead of toilet paper and claims she much prefers it.
Mum Ali, who regularly shares content online about trying to cut back on waste, makes the cloth herself by cutting up old pyjamas, and popping the pieces in a little basket next to the toilet.
After using the toilet, Ali cleans herself using a bidet before wiping herself dry with one of the cloths. Any dirty cloths are then put in the bin next to the loo, ready to be washed.
Although not for everybody, Ali says she loves how much softer the cloth is than regular loo roll, and claims that it's particularly good for those who suffer from haemorrhoids.
In a video shared via TikTok, Ali, who goes by the username @tiny_waste, offered followers a peek into her bathroom, and gave a little info about family cloth in a bid to 'remove some of the ick factor'.
Ali revealed: "I don’t know who came up with the term family cloth but it is an unfortunate name for cloth toilet paper. Let me show you the setup in my home to hopefully help remove some of the ick factor.
"This is the toilet in our upstairs bathroom, primarily used by my husband and I. This is a basket of clean wipes - mostly flannel cut from old Christmas pyjamas."
She continued: "When I use the bathroom, I let the bidet do all the heavy lifting, pat dry with a clean wipe and then put the used wipe in this bin, which will eventually go into the laundry.
"No wipe is ever used for multiple bathroom sessions without being laundered - that would be disgusting."
Although Ali prefers the softer feel, her husband apparently isn't a fan, so they also have regular toilet paper on hand for him to use.
Not everyone was one hundred percent convinced by Ali's waste-free swap, with one follower commenting: "Nope. Still poop left. I'm not sticking that in my washer."
Another wrote: "Yeah your idea's good but I don’t want to put any type of fecal matter or blood in my washing machine."
Others however were relieved to see the cloths were actually much more hygienic than the name 'family cloth' would suggest, while other users swore they'd 'never go back to loo roll', adding that a bidet did the job well enough.
A third person confessed: "When I heard family cloth. I was very scared y'all were sharing like a single rag hanging on a hook by the toilet."
A fourth said: "I mean the bidet does the heavy work. this works. I appreciate anyone who goes low waste without pressuring other consumers."
Do you have a waste-free story to share? Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com
