We all know by now that single-use plastics are out and Travel Cups are in! They’re beautiful to look at, keep single-use plastics from polluting the environment and are a step towards a circular economy, where disposable culture is replaced by a love of made to last. For those of us already convinced of their vital role, the challenge isn’t coming around to these facts - it's remembering to bring yours with you!
Our Top 4 Tips
1. Set a reminder on your phone!
Check your calendar and set reminders on days you know you’ll need your cup! Be it on your morning commute to work or heading out to your favourite cosy cafe for a catch-up cuppa. Make sure it's set well before you need to leave so you have time to find your travel cup and pop it where you won’t forget it. We also recommend adding a notification sound to ensure you don't get to where you're going and discover a silent text you missed!
2. Keep it in your bag
Make a habit of washing and drying your cup as soon as you’re home so you can place it back into your bag. This way, you’ll be ready for both planned and impromptu hot beverages on the go! To keep you cup safe, we recommend wrapping yours in a tea towel or soft cloth for transportation!
3. Put it somewhere obvious
Somewhere you can’t forget it. This is a good option if you tend not to take a bag with you or change bags regularly. Out of sight and out of mind usually means left at home when it comes to your zero waste swaps, so keep yours anywhere where you’ll see it before leaving home. Next to your keys or where you charge your phone are good ideas. A hallway table or somewhere else near the door are other good spots.
4. Have two!
Alright, so even with phone reminders and strategic placement you STILL managed to leave your cup. Not a worry if you have two! Pick up a second Travel Cup to store in the car (if you usually have your coffee on the go), or at work (for sustainable lunch break runs!).
What To Do If You’ve Still Forgotten
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1. Borrow someone else’s / Create a Travel Cup library
If you’re at the office or with friends heading out on a coffee run, ask around and see if someone might have one to lend you!
If there are a few of you prone to forgetfulness why not start a Travel Cup library at work? Take the library principle, just replace books with Cups by using and returning return your borrowed Cup after each use. This is a great way to ensure you never have to worry about leaving yours at home, as well as helping others adopt reusables! Now your only challenge will be fighting over who gets which gorgeous glaze!
2. Dine-in if you have time
If, despite it all, you’ve still forgotten your Cup - opt to dine in. Take it as an opportunity to indulge some slower sips. Enjoy the sounds of cafe chatter, the smell of fresh house grounds and the view from the corner table. You’ll have saved a disposable cup and given yourself a moment to relish!
3. If worst comes to worst - Skip the lid
It's not a sustainable option, but going lidless reduces waste. Disposable coffee cup lids are a wasteful component of the takeaway cup that you can eliminate - saving them from landfill or becoming environmental pollutants.
What Else Can You Do?
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1. Convince your local cafe to stock Travel Cups or a mug library
Reach out to your local restaurant and cafe if they aren’t already stocking Travel Cups to sell or through a mug library (a collection of mugs that patrons can use and return as an alternative to single-use plastic cups).
You could also encourage them to incentivise their use by discounting the beverages of customers who BYO cups!
Prof Wouter Poortinga of Cardiff University found in her research combination of incentives could increase the use of reusable coffee cups by 12.5%! While that might not sound like a staggering number - with Australians tossing 2.7 million cup daily that's even 12.5% would prevent 337500 cups from being wasted every day.
2. Gift a Travel Cup!
For some people, their primary barrier to this sustainable swap is not owning a reusable Cup, or having a cup that they don’t like/isn’t functional.
Our Cups are designed to be aesthetically pleasing, with a range of glazes and sizes so that there’s something for everyone. Whether you love a pop of colour (check out our Glacier Travel Cup or Raspberry Beret) or something more earthy (try the classic Sandy Cup or the Desert Sand Travel Cup!
All our wares are made from ceramic, a material that neither absorbs nor imparts flavour and keeps its contents warmer for longer when compared to other materials. (Read more about ceramics on our blog, Level up your coffee and lunch breaks with ceramics.
SHOP TRAVEL CUPS
SHOP TRAVEL BOWLS
Don’t forget to send this post to your favourite cup-forgetting friend!
We’d also love to hear about your own tips and tricks for remembering your reusables! You can share them with us on our Instagram account @potteryfortheplanet by sending us a DM or by tagging us!
