New bride Tabitha Perry O’Sullivan, an Investor Relations and Communications Manager living in London, recently celebrated her hen do by tasking her hens to create a wedding dress made from toilet paper. Here, she discusses how the fun led to a new appreciation of tissue
I recently celebrated my hen do, and my sister, who was also the Maid of Honour, organised a very innovate game in addition to the day’s general frivolities.
We had the task of creating a wedding dress that was to be worn on a real-life model and made only from loo roll! It was great fun. Three wedding dresses were created, and all were in very different styles. Nothing but loo roll was allowed to be used, apart from a few flowers taken from the garden to add a finishing touch. A maximum of four toilet rolls could be used per bride.
It was also very important for me that we made the game as sustainable as possible and that there was no wastage. We used a sustainable loo roll to start with and this idea was driven by my cousin and grandmother who are always showing us all how to be more sustainable. And at the end of the game, all the toilet paper was neatly folded and put in a basket by the door as the going home present so everyone could re-use it.
It was important for me and all of the guests that we did this. We would not have played the game if we could not recycle the loo roll due to the waste it would have created. The game also made me realise that there are so many uses for loo roll that I had never seen or thought of before! It really has so many uses. One guest took it home to help clean up after their puppy whilst they are potty training!
Generally, at home and when I’m out and about or travelling, I am always willing to pay a premium for environmentally sustainable products, and I actively try and seek them out. We all need to contribute to preserving the planet as best we can, and this is a relatively easy way for us to do this.
Sustainability also takes precedence for me over the type of toilet paper or towel product I’m buying. I am indifferent about the label or whether it is a brand or not, just as long as it’s of good quality and is environmentally sustainable.
Since the Covid-19 outbreak, I try to bulk buy (but not stockpile) toilet paper and towel products to reduce the number of trips to the supermarket and to also reduce the need for last minute ordering from Amazon! And I will always look out for items on offer and that are more sustainable.
Covid-19 – and also my newfound knowledge of the uses of toilet paper from my hen do day – mean that generally I am also more careful with the amount of toilet paper and kitchen towel I use. I now try to make it last longer. If napkins or kitchen paper are not used, I now take advantage of how multi-functioning they are and keep them to re-use for cleaning to reduce waste.
