reusable cup both recycled and recyclable? sold!

Found it.

The sixteen ounce Transform Recycled & Recyclable Mug in Fern (read ‘funky lime green’) from Aladdin’s Sustain line.

Spent $9.99 at Target® last week for this snazzy mug. Truth be told, I haven’t put it down since.

Here’s why I like it… and no, I won’t be bashful about the fact that I’m a buyer attracted to color and cause-related marketing…

It’s bold.

I chose a vibrant green, but Target® had a few in ‘bubble-gumball blue’ (please don’t try asking anyone in a red shirt and khaki pants for a reusable coffee mug in this color - that’s just what it looked like to me) and one in brown, perfect for hiding proof you used your mug a few days prior and failed to wash it out.  

It’s recycled and recyclable.

            Yup, this is what did it.

‘Use it. Love it. Recycle it. Begin again.’ The mug is made with eCycle®, Aladdin’s proprietary mix of recycled plastics. Ninety-seven percent recycled food grade polypropylene containing twenty-five percent post consumer content makes this mug (sans lid) recyclable where number five plastic is collected.

Car-cup friendly.

            Tried it. It’s true.

Dishwasher safe.

            Sounds awesome.

Microwave safe.

Neat idea. Not sure how it holds up though; the insulation has kept my drinks hot for well over an hour or until they’re gone.

Leak-proof.

So far anyway. Have yet to turn the thing full of liquid on its head. If you want me to though, I will.

Because the above factors were all I needed to positively influence my purchasing decision (and I would allow them to again and again) I could care a little bit less about the one and only teeny-tiny little nuance in functionality that I realized recently was noticed by another user / reviewer. Thought it was just me. It doesn't deter me from my mug. Not a stitch. But I got a good laugh. You might too.

In the end, for ten bucks and not a whole lot of research on a quick buy, I’d say I made out pretty well…

first few uses of the reusable cup

On Saturday, I hit up Palermo’s on my way to Farmers’ Market downtown (getting a head-start on a future sustainable habit!) and stood behind a woman with my same tumbler in the ‘gumball blue.’ So interesting how we start ‘seeing’ the things we were never ‘seeing’ before they gained importance in our lives, for one reason or another.

Forgot to remove my lid but the woman behind the counter surprisingly did it for me. No big deal.

Palermo doesn’t offer a discount when you bring in your own cup, but that wouldn’t keep me from returning with it. I felt so proud taking this one small step; walking out with my Americano, knowing I’d be leaving nothing physical of it behind.

Walked around Farmers’ for a good forty-five. Drove home. Watered mom’s plants. Coffee was still surprisingly hot.

Sunday I stopped at Barnes and Noble to work on a massive homework assignment. Took my tumbler up to the Starbucks counter; remembered this time to remove my own lid. The cup was clean from the day before, but what do you know! The barista offered to rinse it out. Like magic.

And ten cents off my tea made it taste that much sweeter. 

Alright. I think I’ve dug the introduction of this reusable coffee cup habit deep into the ground, so it’s time to move on. I’ll return to the topic every now and then… When I slip up, am having some difficulty maintaining the habit or when something incredibly hilarious happens.

Habit number two to come very soon. And this one may be a little something for just the ladies...