Then I saw on some vegan/green blogs people were talking about glass straws...I was super excited to try one! So when my husband got me one (actually two-score!) for Christmas last year I was pretty pumped to use them! I "requested" these from the website Strawesome.com , which has specific smoothie straws, as well as a bead on the straw to keep them from rolling off tables or counters. Here is one of the straws to the right, soaking up some green smoothie goodness! So long plastic straws, it's time for glass!
Here's some info about glass straws:
-they are made from borosilicate glass tubing, the same glass that Pyrex® is made from
-since they are glass, they will not be leaching any chemicals or toxins into your drinks, no matter if they are hot or cold
-they can easily be washed and reused over and over again
-they save tons of plastic from entering the landfill
-they could also be a small savings, since you won't have to keep buying plastic, one-time use straws
Now you know why glass straws are awesome! Let me tell you about my two favorite brands. The first is Strawesome.com, as I mentioned before. They run about $10-14, they have some cool designs and colors, and they offer a lifetime guarantee...so if your straw breaks you can send it back to them for a free replacement (a must have for glass straws)!
My second favorite company is The Glass Dharma. I discovered this company after the two straws I had from Strawesome broke...(unfortunately those two only lasted about 5 months, and at the time I didn't realize they had a lifetime guarantee, oh well!). Anyways, in searching for new straws I found this new company and I figured I would try out their straws, so I bought one of their "Beautiful Bends" straws in the size: 12mm x 9". (You can see it to the right and below.) This specific straw costs $9.50. Other straws at this website run for about $6-12. Their straws are not so fancy with all the different designs or colors like Strawesome has, but they seem to be of high quality (no breakage yet in 2-3 months, I'm also being more careful!), and their prices are a little cheaper. Last bonus...they also have a lifetime guarantee, so if one of their straws breaks, you can send it back for a replacement.
Last tip, they often sell special cleaning brushes for the glass straws, and I haven't tried those yet, but a good alternative to help you clean them is to use an old plastic straw (I have 2 I've saved from my pre-glass days) and I just slide those right inside the glass straws and scrub them with some soap and water. Seems to get the job done, and it puts those old plastic straws to use!
Well, I hope this has helped you learn some ways you could say goodbye to plastic straws and hello to healthy, more environmentally friendly glass straws. It's all about one step at a time, right? I think it's time for a smoothie...with glass straw of course! ( :