MY HUGE FOIL BALL! (there's an eco tip in there somewhere....)

 

I'm probably speaking to the great educated on this subject but I thought I'd share, just in case you didn't know.

Aluminium foil is one of the most recyclable materials around- Aluminium in general is brilliant to recycle!  You can turn it 100% back into an equally good aluminium product.

However, do you know how to recycle your foil correctly?  I only learnt this about a year ago.

Aluminium foil is incredibly light and if you put small pieces of it into your recycling, chances are it won't be spotted and seperated for recycling- I am not sure if this is dependent on human-selection or some sort of magnet.

In order to allow your foil to be recycled properly, you need to try and scrunch all your small pieces together into one big ball and don't put it into your recyling until it is the size of a tennis ball as the minimum smallest size.  All, do make sure it is clean and free of grease, food or dirt. I always wash min my washing up water.

I rarely use foil but at last, I have a big enough ball to go into the recycling!!!  My milk bottle tops and juice bottle tops are foil. Luckily, Christmas has brought some minced pie foil tins and in addition, some foil-wrapped chocolates have contributed.  In addition, I am that nerdy that I carefully washed and squirrelled away all the Christmas cooking foil in Northumberland in my suitcase.  I know my mother-in-law (and husband) think I'm mad but I made my pledge that if I saw an opportunity that I could get something into the correct place for reusing or recycling, I would do it, even at inconvenience to me.  (She was not impressed when she saw me trying to save veg peelings to take down the hill to my friends' compost bin...)

It's so satisfying to be able to put this ball out although I've still got a few of the Christmas chocolates left so perhaps I can allow my foil beast to grow for a few weeks more...??

Be the change- eco actions for the person who wants to make small changes to help #1

 Hi there,

I have been meaning to write some small actions and things that I find have worked for me to try and make a change in terms of environmental awareness and doing something.  Many of the things I try to do may not make a huge impact but I strongly believe in EVERY little action mattering and absolutely refuse to bow down to the doubters who maintain that the little things don't make a difference and only largescale leader-led change is worth doing.  Yes, we do need leadership to show us that (and the stinking Tories are not any sort of leadership that I have much faith in) but we all should do things.  One person can do something and eventually it can inspire all of us.   I may be teaching Grandmother to suck eggs, so forgive me if you do any of these, but I still think someone, somewhere may gain something from sharing ideas.

Be the composter at work:

Food waste and putting food into the regular bin is one way that our Carbon emissions are raised.  At my work, I started collecting my used teabags in a small box and I used to bring them home to rip open and put them straight onto my raised bed.  I also always bought home all my food waste, no matter how inconvenient it was.  This year, I decided to try and offer other staff members the option to put their fruit and veg food waste in my box.    I saved one of those large party-size plastic tubs that sweets or chocolate come in and I've invited anyone in the staffroom who I see with banana skins or apple cores or anything they don't finish to put it in the box as well as any teabags.  I do also do some bin diving if I see any teabags or banana skins etc. I'm not too proud to do this, nor too prissy. I think DOING something is more important. All I need to do is wash my hands after doing that.  It sits in a cupboard above the work top in the staffroom.  Then, once a week, I bring it home to put the things into compost bin.  I clean the tub and bring it back on a Monday. It's easy and I've got into the habit of doing this. Today, I came home with a box of discarded strawberries from the bin to add to my compost. 

Even if you don't want to do food waste, a teabag collection box would be small and easy to manage.

What if you don't have a compost bin?  Well, you could still rip open the teabags and put them straight onto the earth in your garden. The worms will soon take it down and deal with it.

If you don't have a compost bin but DO have local food waste, you could put it in that. Obviously, I do have a garden.  Don't have a garden? Do you have a large plant or a balcony with plants? Empty the leaves into the plant pot.  Don't have a plant? Why not empty the tea leaves into a pot (discard the paper outer) Is there anywhere wild near you where you could empty a tub of tea leaves into the earth?  

I don't drive and I carry this with me so it is possible to do this without a car.

Doing repetitive small actions like this is really good for your mental health and sense of well-being. I get such a joy out of making this small difference. I don't want this to seem like virtue-signalling (like me, me, me, I'm so good... PLEASE, I don't want to hear, "You are so good!" in the comments which is what always happens when I share things like this and that's NOT why I do it.)- I just want to share an idea and make a suggestion for something that can make you feel really happy to be doing. I never feel helpless in the face of the climate  and plastic crisis because I know I am trying and doing a few things. I only hope I can inspire someone to make a change or say, "Yes, I am willing to do  THAT little something."  Because, perhaps  you might then inspire other people to try it. And that's when things become normalised and attitudes and actions can change on a large scale.

Have a lovely day.

xx

Eco-moves

Most people I know want to change their actions and things they do to help the environment.  For some people, their circumstances- be that domestic arrangements, location, financial situation, family size, jobs- make it much harder to make all the changes that might be possible for others. I constantly try to find new ways to reuse or reduce packaging but I am really aware that I am very fortunate in my situations that there are things that make this possible- I am able to use public transport easily for work, I have the financial resources to spend a little bit more on buying certain items from a Zerowaste shop (e.g. shower gel....by the way...that shop changed their price after my query!), I have my own garden, I am able to easily access plastic free veg (of some varieties) due to proximity of greengrocers to where I live and work, etc, etc.

However, there are little things we can all do to reduce waste or at least TRY to ensure things end up in a situation where they can be reused, even if we can't do everything we could possibly want to do.

The picture above is an example. The picture above shows three things.

CBC's coffee grounds NEVER go down the sink or in the bin on my watch- they go on the garden- be that the roses, the raised bed etc

Back in Lockdown, I came home from school with 20 banana skins each day which came from the free-fruit the children in KS1 get- if I am with a class eating fruit, I will always collect their peel to put onto my raised bed- apparently, chopped up banana skins are really good for fruiting plants, e.g. tomatoes...  these were all chopped up and go on the raised bed- they go black really quickly and rot down without the need for putting them in the compost heap.  I read a tip today that said that if you soak banana skins either for 24 hours of 72 hours in a closed jar topped up with water to the top, you can make a great fertiliser for your house plants (I have a jar started to see if it works) .  The children are always willing to put their peel in my little plastic bag and they like the fact I am avoiding it going in the regular bin. I think TELLING them these things and actually putting them into action in front of them, is really important in sowing the seeds of the importance of reuse.  They often ask about how composting works when I say I am taking things home for the compost.

The leek end was one I chopped off and put into water which then resprouted.  The little glass pot it is in comes from the plastic-free yoghurt pots from the Milkman which I occasionally buy CBC as a treat.

Today, my Mum came over with CBC's birthday present for next week (a bird bath bought from the RSPB but shhhhhhh!!!!) and we had tea in the garden. As is customary, she has a look round the garden and I manage to inveigle her into doing some sort of gardening work for me.  This time, it was shifting the compost bin a bit with me so I could scoop out some of the new compost for the raised bed.  It's so cool when you see it has completely turned into Earth/compost at the bottom. I put four large pots worth onto the raised bed...it was teeming with worms!  The Robins were then immediately on high alert!  It's SO satisfying to be able to put that onto the garden and know I MADE that (well God and the worms did it but I facilitated the process!).   It was good to have the level of the compost go down as well!  A few bits and pieces had to go straight back into the top as they hadn't rotted yet (e.g. corn cobs!) but it was great to get some back. I ate a satsuma and chopped up the peel into small bits and added into the pot with my Blueberry plants (which need acidic/ericaceous soil).

I came home last week from visiting my Dad for a walk with two bags of wood chips which my Dad had made from a lot of branches which they chipped up- I will be using them to mulch my garden. It was FREEZING in his garden!

My friend Lara came round for a lovely garden catch up on Wednesday (much nicer weather- we sat in sun!) and I passed on about 25 small cardboard boxes as well as brown paper and bubble wrap for her crochet business- mum and I both save them for her- again, finding someone local who posts things as a business is a good way of passing on resources to someone that can reuse them before putting them into the recycling.

Similarly, CBC's new bike came wrapped in some white foam wrap which I am commandeering for the Year 5 Antartica collages for next year.  I've already passed on a load of white tissue paper and bubble wrap for them to have ready for the collage as well as a load of After Eight wrappers- as inevitably, they have a last minute frantic scramble to find materials so I like to have things ready to offer them.  Again, it's much better to REUSE collage materials rather than using brand new materials.  Having a little imagination and knowing where people might be able to make use of things is a good idea.

For example, if you end up with any NEW, not used clean, plastic straws that you don't want to use, as you don't want them to go into landfill as single-use, contact Lorelai LQ to pass them on (as well as other single use plastics) as she uses them for her jewellery but DO READ her Plastic Amnesty list as apparently she has been sent lots of totally unsuitable items by people who haven't read what she uses in her work and has ended up with lots of junk and dirty, unsuitable materials.  I recently sent her about 100 unused white plastic straws from the milk at school when they didn't get used.

I have various friends, some of whom have very tight financial situations, who I often pass on clothes to before I send them to a charity shop as I KNOW they will have ended up with a home (they do get to refuse items!).  We always had clothes passed onto us as children and I am sure people still do this lots now.

My good friend Ang has been a real model for being organised in finding new homes for unwanted items as she begins her retirement and has moved to Norfolk- she's passed on SO many things and sold things at a very reasonable price, just so they can be reused.

Eco-actions really can be as simple as the slight inconvenience of carrying your own cutlery,cup or carriers around in your handbag/pocket/bag so you never get caught out without one. 

I don't drive and I manage this one really well- it really is just organisation.

And again, if you are going to take a tin of beans to work for your lunch rather than sandwiches, it surely makes sense to wash up and carry your own tin home to recycle rather than just chucking them in the bin (which I have colleagues who do EVERY DAY....I fish them out of the bin and wash them and then take them home in my pannier on the train....as well as the ones which people have washed up and put in the recycle bin). 

If you have tea bags at work, could you collect the used ones, like I do and then take them home and rip them open to put into the earth/garden, even if you don't have a compost bin?  It's all organic matter and it's really not an inconvenience to do once a week for me. 

Do you have any simple solutions to getting waste to the best place it could end up?

xx

 

Eco things- Trying to be eco-friendly during Covid stay at home

            A lot has had to go by the wayside in terms of making eco-friendly, waste-avoiding decisions and actions during lockdown.  This has been quite hard to deal with but of course, sometimes, you can't do your usual ways of living in a crisis. However, it's trying to do little things which are important.

I thought I'd have a look back on what I've been able to do or things that have not worked out so well.

1.  Avoiding of fresh food waste.  Being at home all the time is very good in terms of avoiding food waste. We are able to monitor things that are going off and use them better, except the odd radish that has gone amiss.

2. Using up older items in the cupboard.  Some of the discoveries include: Self-raising flour with a BB2014 date on it- it didn't have weevils so it made a nice Leek and cheese pie.   A jelly with BB2015 and various flours and nuts and seeds have been utilized.

3.  Still getting our milk and juice from the Milkman and the milk and juice bottles are returned and reused.

4. Vegetables and fruit at school:  When we first went into lockdown and we were at school on that first Monday, there was a trolley full of apples which were/are the ones delivered for KS1 children for free. But we only had 10 children and there was no way of getting the apples to our kids at home. Leaving them in a box outside the school might be viewed with suspicion. I encouraged all the teachers to take bags home after all possible ways of getting them to the children was discussed.  I ended up taking home 3 bags of 10 apples which lasted me a month at home.  I also went to the allotment bed and picked 2 massive bags of Kale which was going to seed- this lasted us until April.  I also brought home all the items of food and drink I had at school to use.

5.  Thanks to a local Facebook group that CBC follows, we discovered a wholesaler not so far from us where we could go and buy vegetables and eggs from.  A tray of 30 eggs - so saving having lids for 5 boxes of eggs worth, a cardboard tray of potatoes, loose tomatoes, avocados, beans, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, lemons, courgettes, peppers, sweet potatoes, beetroots, satsumas, apples, pretty much everything.  So no plastic for our vegetables which are the majority of our food.  So happy to be able to get plastic-free vegetables. Even better, when we've been there, there's been no one else there so no queues or panicky trying to get out of everyone's way.

Also, managed to get asparagus from a local grower on our cycle ride and rhubarb. No packaging except for rubber bands.

6.  Did you just read number 5?  Well, we've managed maximise use of the eggs. Every egg that has been eaten in Lockdown has been shoved in a baking tray in the oven and left. Then, when the oven is used, the egg shells are baked and then I have crushed them and shoved them in an old M&S cake box- I have them strewn them around seedlings and plants that slugs and snails might be interested in to use as natural slug repellent.  In addition, I attended on online webinar on using 10 frames with children to support place value understanding and they recommended using egg boxes- so I've cut up my 30 box into 3 ten frames ready for school!

7.  Before lockdown, I ordered a box of 10 packets of 150g crisps from Two Farmers who make compostable crisp packets- it came in cardboard which I am saving for projects and to share with a friend who posts craft products.  In addition, I ordered my usual bulk order of Eco-Leaf toilet roll in compostable packaging, made of recycled paper.

8.  Any card packaging which has food on it that can't be recycled has been torn up and put into the compost, like chip papers from the few times we've had chips. This is something I do anyway.

9.  Religiously putting the coffee grounds and tea leaves onto the garden after every pot full.

10.  For lovely decoration, have been picking a few common wildflowers to put in my jugs in the kitchen- cow parsley and stitchwort. Free and providing interest and variation and bringing nature into the house.

11.  Being at home has been I've been using the herbs in the garden constantly- chives, rosemary, mint, lemon balm, sage, thyme, sorrell, marjoram.

12. We had such a spell of sunny weather in April that the waterbutt was empty so I took to having a shower with a bucket to catch the water which I then used to water the garden. Usually, I'd have no time to do this when going to school.  When it finally rained, I made sure to fill up the watering cans with water from the waterbutt so they could fill up more, I also took the bucket outside and did the same and the indoor watering can plus all the jugs and empty milk bottles- the water was then used to water all the indoor plants.

13.  I've spoken before about how I use cotton handkerchiefs.  When at home, I've been continuing to use these as my germs are in my own home. At school, I made sure to use disposables as to conform to rules.

14.  Bought Tony's Lonely chocolate in Sainsbury's. This comes in paper and foil and is very fair trade and slavery-free plus palm-oil free.

15. Most craft projects have been made out of packaging and things I've had already.

16.  Anything bought online has been second-hand.

17.  Tried to walk or cycle only except when going to the wholesaler to get the vegetables..

18.  CBC shared some bread flour with a work colleague when flour was scarce and we'd ordered a 13kg bag of flour from a local bakery.  We reused a large clean paper bag I'd carefully preserved from another order to put several kilos of flour in for him.

17.  We've reused some plastic yogurt containers for making hummus, planting seeds

18. My tomato seedlings were all planted in toilet rolls and all of them are in two plastic drawers bought home from school to save from being chucked. 

Things that haven't gone so well include buying various bags of crisps, sweets and biscuits, super noodles that have come in non-recyclable plastic wrappers (which I am saving to take to Terracycle at the library when it reopens), choux-buns and cheese and fish (a few times) in plastic packaging, having some things sent through the post, having bought a few things (though I have asked for recycled packaging to be be used if possible) but I've tried my best.  

In addition, making donations to charities that help others is an eco-friendly thing to do in this time, if you have the money to do so which I am lucky enough to be able to do.  Signing petitions to help others, including those who are the worst off is important- if we don't care for humans, how can we say that we care for the Earth?

It's important to remember that being eco-friendly is about being conscious and making the best choices that are available to YOU! Not everyone has a wholesaler with packaging-free vegetables or a milkman, or a garden or a bike or space to store a stack of crisp packets or even a council who are still picking up your recycling. I do the best I can and that's the important thing.  Circumstances are individual.  How much or how little you can do depends on doing what you can physically do in the circumstances you have available to you. It's making the conscious decision to do SOMETHING that is important.

Hope you are all well and sending you love.

xx

Eco things

Hi there,

Just a few little things I have done or have noticed in the last month or so with an eco or waste reduction theme.

Milk and More are now doing plastic-free bread and bakery products from the Artisan Bakery.  You can have bread and pastries delivered to your door plastic free!  I've taken advantage of an offer for two Pain Au Chocolat for £1.35 for a few Saturday treats in February and March! Useful to know we can get plastic-free bread delivered with the milk in case we have not been able to get to the supermarket.

Speaking of Pain-au-chocolat and bakery items. I've had one of those weeks where I really needed to have something for breakfast but was running late or missed a train so I have had my pain au chocolat  and an egg roll put into my little fabric sandwich bag so I don't have to have any packaging. These are really useful!

Been taking my own containers to the Chinese and Indian on my way to orchestra on a Tuesday night.

Bought CBC 's brother a bamboo cutlery and straw set so he can avoid plastic cutlery when out. He seemed really pleased.

Been removing things from the bin again... cans, bottles, card, paper. At school, at home, at Mother-in-Law's.... they WILL be recycled!

I'm very happy to send clothing items to a charity shop if I am not wearing them anymore but I sometimes worry that the right person might not find them and they will end up in the rag bag.  Therefore, I was happy to pass on a dress to a colleague (who I knew would like it), a shirt to a friend in Yorkshire, a cardigan to a friend in London and my work colleague passed on some bits and pieces that she'd bought that didn't want. I managed to find homes for them with a couple of other friends who were delighted with the bits and pieces.  It's nice to be able to find good homes for items.

We've been asked to make Silver stars covered in foil by the Music service for our concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 3 weeks and I was pleased to be able to use (well, thank you to lovely TA who has done this for me!) from some large cardboard boxes that were delivered to school rather than to use new card.

I'm saving some single use plastic items to send to Lorelai LQ who used to make acrylic jewellery.  She realised last year that she couldn't keep making plastic jewellery when she was trying to rid single use plastics from her life so she has decided to make jewellery out of single use plastics that would otherwise be thrown away.  (See the blog article about it here at   https://lorelai-lq.co.uk/blogs/news/my-big-decision  )  been experimenting over January and February and has been making some incredible pieces of jewellery and art work with them.   They are really impressive.
She has a Patreon account where you can see what she has been doing or look at @lorelai_lq on instagram.

Have been continuing to print as many music sheets and worksheets at school onto old paper which I retrieve from other people's recycling bins. I reckon, since September, I've saved about 1500 sheets of paper at least!  The children are now entirely used to it!

I've mentioned that I always send a message to the sellers on eBay asking them to reuse old packaging or only use paper if possible, saying that I am trying to avoid being the reason that new virgin packaging is being used and reducing my waste, especially plastic.  Quite often, they say, "Yes," or don't respond but this message I received this week from a seller made me happy:

I hate plastic too!! If I had my way I wouldn’t use any but then if the clothing gets wet it isn’t so great. But never fear - I have used some bags that I keep in my ‘shopping bag’ of bags bag! :) so they’ve been used a LOT! I hope that’s ok (I know it’s not he best but it’s the best I have) and amazingly - I was going to message and ask that you try to re-use them :) we are on the same page.One day, we will have a waterproof paper that’s a bit stronger than greaseproof! :)A girl can dream...

Have you had any success with waste reduction or waste avoidance at all? Do share!
erere

Ecothings- Looking at the A Swap a Day May challenge- 5-6 Reusable cup/bottle and Clingfilm

Here's my next installment of A Swap A Day- trying to swap waste and packaging heavy items for more eco-friendly, less wasteful alternatives. As always, these are here to inspire you, give you ideas and just allow me to waffle. If you budget means things are prohibitive, things are harder to swap and you may not be able to  It was lovely to receive your responses on the previous post of this regarding Swaps 1&2.

The next Eco-swap is a great one though one that has not been without pitfalls:

View this post on Instagram

I'm already behind but I will be joining this #swapaday insta thing. Although we did a swap a month to really get habits changed we have now done nearly all of these so can share! Now to catch up... #sustainableliving #sustainablelivingonabudget #zerowastejourney #goingzerowaste #plasticfree #plasticfreejourney

A post shared by Sustainable living (@sustainablelivingonabudget) on May 2, 2019 at 11:29am PDT

6.  Reusable cups/Bottled water:
The reusable cup and water bottle change is one of the easiest swaps that one can do.  I have reused a water bottle for many, many years now but I made a conscious decision not to buy bottled water at all a few years ago (which is why I found it maddening in Italy where a bottle was brought to your table and opened and put onto the table in a restaurant or where they told you they COULDN'T/DON'T/WOULDN'T serve tap water even when you were ordering a 3 course meal for 8 and were ordering other drinks anyway). 
I've had my glass water bottle for at least 4-5 years (bought in TK Maxx) and various other water bottles before that. My pretty metal bottle has been with me at least 3 years, if not more (Also TK Maxx) and I brought back WOMOTM's reusable water bottles from his flat when we cleared out his flat so we had spares to use for a long trip or to offer other people.  Buying bottled water in a country with clean, fresh water on tap is, to me, capitalist consumerism gone bad.  Why pay for something you have anyway at such a mark up? 
Every morning, I fill up my stainless steel bottle and put it in my bag and drink it on the train.  I posted about the refill station at Shenfield station so even if you are waiting at this main train station, you can refill your bottle- you just need to get into the habit of carrying it.  It is completely habit now, I am used to carrying it so there is no issue.

Reusable cups:   I've been using reusable cups for at least 4-5 years now and used Thermoses (Thermi???) for the car journeys to Northumberland before that.  Consciously, I made a decision back in around December 2017 that I would NOT get a throw-away cup for drink EVEN if I was desperate and I would have to make sure I ALWAYS carried a cup with me.  This has worked out pretty well- even with a train journey to Italy this Summer.  An insulated cup lives in my handbag now. I carry a fairly large bag (well, rucksack) but you can get fold-up ones so it is possible to have one in a smaller bag. I really like those Infographics that show you 365 paper cups compared to one Reusable cup to show a year's usage if you need to drink on the go.  Or wait until you get to house/building with a real ceramic mug?
I've had slightly cunning conversations with builders in the queue at Greggs about reusable cups- I've noticed those in the building trade carrying several paper cups with plastic lids and I always make sure I have a conversation about being glad I remembered my reusable mug. It may not plant a seed but I hope it might....at some point!

7.  Clingfilm:
I'll be honest with you. I LOATHE clingfilm and always have- I have NEVER grasped how to pull a piece of the stuff and CBC banned me from using it as I kept wrecking them (I'll be honest, I only ever used it if someone asked me to use it for something, not voluntarily.)
Instead, I will use a box with a lid, some of my lovely beeswax wraps made by the lovely Ang and my Bassoon friend Mary, a bowl with a lid, a plate but never cling-film.  It's horrid, awkward stuff!

There are countless other ways to store things such as elasticated lids, even foil I'd prefer but I'd prefer not to use single-use materials.
I've got several glass Pyrex dishes with lids- these seem a good idea and now, I even bought a cute fabric sandwich bag with velcro to store in my rucksack at a recent Eco-fair. I've kept snacks in here too!

What have you managed to do on these swap front?  If you haven't, would you consider swapping?

Kxx

Ecothings- Looking at the A Swap a Day May challenge- Shampoo, Conditioner and Deodorant

Here's my next installment of A Swap A Day- trying to swap waste and packaging heavy items for more eco-friendly, less wasteful alternatives. As always, these are here to inspire you, give you ideas and just allow me to waffle. If you budget means things are prohibitive, things are harder to swap and you may not be able to  It was lovely to receive your responses on the previous post of this regarding Swaps 1&2.

The next Eco-swap is a great one though one that has not been without pitfalls:

View this post on Instagram

I'm already behind but I will be joining this #swapaday insta thing. Although we did a swap a month to really get habits changed we have now done nearly all of these so can share! Now to catch up... #sustainableliving #sustainablelivingonabudget #zerowastejourney #goingzerowaste #plasticfree #plasticfreejourney

A post shared by Sustainable living (@sustainablelivingonabudget) on May 2, 2019 at 11:29am PDT

3.  Shampoo/Conditioner:

Status:  Swapped.
Shampoo comes in plastic bottles- these CAN be recycled but if a waste-free, non-plastic solution was available, I wanted to try it!

For many years, I tried to use Natural Shampoos as I have not been happy about the use of SLS and parabens but my hair has not always got on with it.  I don't wash my hair daily- I probably wash it every 5-7 days. Some people might look aghast at that but generally, your hair gets used to it- I am awful at getting up early and even if I WANTED to wash it on school week days, I generally can't seem to get up in time to do it! This means, it generally takes me a long while to get through a bottle of shampoo which, I suppose is a method of waste reduction in itself.

My first attempt at swapping to a Plastic free solution was to refill my shampoo and conditioner bottles from The Refill Room, my local Zerowaste place. They had a fragrance free natural shampoo which you fill up from a big stainless steel vat and you can add your own essential oils to.

Right from the start, both CBC and I didn't get on with this shampoo.  It didn't seem to make our hair feel clean, it felt tangly and CBC, who is sometimes very disgustingly apt with his descriptive skills, described it as 'Horse sperm' (not sure how/if he genuinely knows what this ACTUALLY looks like!).  Alongside using this, I still had SOME of the Tre Semme shampoo I'd nabbed from WOMOTM's flat when we cleared it (a large bottle lasted us a year!) so this was BACK up between washes.

However, especially since CBC is not so good at using things up if he doesn't like them, I stated that we WOULD use up this shampoo and conditioner before we bought anything else but it was rather a chore as both of us didn't like it!

Here's a picture from where I first tried the shampoo bars

My next attempt, after recommendation by Vix was to try Lush's Shampoo bars which come completely naked.  Making solid products is a MUCH more Eco-friendly solution in terms of space needed for the product as liqud takes more room up and more travel costs as well as the plastic used to house the product so swapping to a solid product is a GREAT easy swap to attempt.

I went into the store and asked for advice on which Shampoo bar to use. As my hair has greasy and dry bits, I went with the Montelbano bar which costs £8.00 online for 55g.
(There are cheaper Shampoo bars from other places that are cheaper- I've seen them for around £3-5).
I also bought the American Cream Conditioner bar and bought tins for them to go in which cost £2.95 each.   CBC was skeptical at first but as soon as I showed him how to use the shampoo, he was impressed.  He's subsequently said, most approvingly, that he prefers it to all the shampoos we used in the past- he likes the smell, the way it lathers, how it leaves his fair feeling and looking and when he went away to Scarborough for 5 days, he took the tin happily away with him with our shampoo.  I've been happy with using these products and whilst I still prefer how my hair feels after using my old Tre Semme shampoo, it looks good and shiny with this new shampoo bar and is liveable with. It feels clean, brushes and smells good so that is fine even if it feels a bit different.  For the sake of waste reduction, I can live with this- I'm not UNHAPPY with how my hair feels, it's just slightly less 'squeaky'!.  I think I just need to go swimming every so often to strip my hair of its oils and I'll be fine!
Also, they smell AMAZING, lather up well and seem to last FOR AGES!!

The conditioner is also fine.

4.  Deodorant:
Status: swapped

Deodorant bottles are NOTORIOUS for not being recyclable in MOST areas- many councils refuse them so the wretches live in landfill by and large so they were a BIG item I was keen to swap!

Other the years, I have tried more natural solutions to deodorant as I have not been a fan of using harsh antiperspirants with Aluminium in them as I am not sure of the long term effects of rubbing Aluminium into your pits and whether there is any link between breast cancer and the use of them!   I've been using Plastic-free deodorants for almost a year now and largely, I am very happy with them.  They ARE more expensive, but actually, I have been buying more expensive, natural deodorants for a long time so I am already committed to this.

Click HERE for the reviews.

I wrote a Blog  post on my experience of a few brands- Kutis, Your Nature and Earth Conscious HERE if you want to find out more. I've had issues with ALL deodorants not working for me in the past so I am not worried about using an antiperspirant.  I really like Earth Conscious and will continue to use this though Lush does some solid deodorants which I might try next as they have NO packaging at all, not even cardboard!

What about you?  How do you feel about these swaps? Would you give them a try?

xx

Eco-things this week... or so

Here's a few anecdotes, successes and failures and things I've seen that might interest you.


I have played with an orchestra for 20 years occasionally, but  fairly regularly for the last 2 years.  When I first went back to it 2 years ago, when it came to the break, there were the Polystyrene cups which tea and coffee was served.  This was when I had decided that I would always carry my reusable mug with me and didn't want to use a disposable cup. I took along my cup and made a point of mentioning that my other orchestra has a bag of enamel mugs that we've used for the 16 years I have been playing with them.  Then, I started taking along a pair of enamel cups for me and CBC to use and then an extra one for my friend Izzie or Hazel.  I always made a point of saying, "I'm trying to avoid plastic/polystyrene," when I had my tea poured into it and various people said to me, "Ooh, you are good, what a great idea! I must remember to bring one.".  Over the time, I've seen a few more people with them. I mentioned a couple of times to members of the committee and the tea makers that my other orchestra have mugs but the lovely lady who brings the things and does the teas doesn't drive.  My friend Izzie, who is on the committee, told me, after I'd mentioned it to her at the last rehearsal we were at together, that it had been brought up in a committee meeting.  This week, I went along with four spare enamel mugs (CBC now has his own glass portable lidded mug that I remember to pick up for him if he doesn't) and offered them to various people (including someone I hadn't chatted to. One person said he'd stick to polystyrene and a another said he didn't want to dirty my mug but I said, "I'm happy to take it home and wash it." and so he took it.  Anyway, at the end of the rehearsal, the Chair of the orchestra stood up and said, "We're really trying to do our bit for the environment so we are going to phase out the polystyrene so please bring your own mugs along."  I can't tell you the absolute beam of pure sunshine on my face as he said this.  I felt utterly buoyant! I may have only been a commenter and cog in the wheel of change, but I truly felt that my persistence had had a hand in this decision perhaps.

In 3 assemblies this week, (one Year 3-4 singing assembly and 2 class worship sessions on National Smile Day), I've taken the opportunity to share the story above beginning with the opener, "You all know how I feel about disposable plastic..." (greeted with sage nods by all the children) and I linked it to our song, "Believe" which is about achieving anything you can if you try, you'll find a way. In the class worship, I linked it to the aim for National Smile Day (which was 3/10) being, "Do a random act of kindness to make someone else smile." (I linked this to taking along mugs for other people.).  Always willing to share eco stories

CBC said they had an eco-assembly this week which gave his teens practical ideas to make changes.

On Wednesday, I went up to the staff room and saw two members of staff get up from the table, One of them said, "I don't want anymore," about her dinner. The other said, "Me neither, but I'm not going to chuck it yet so I can see if Kerenza wants to eat it,".  I then said, "Ooooh, what is it!??" and she turned and saw me and smiled- it was Instant Noodles which I have not allowed myself to buy for months because of their plastic wrapping. However, if it's going in the bin.... Then the other lady said, "Do you want some Cajun chicken and Macaroni cheese?" to which I excitedly agreed and cleared both plates. It meant my carrots, cucumber and tomatoes with dips kept for Thursday's lunch instead.

Speaking of colleagues' rejects....I confess to a bit of bin diving.  On Monday, I was chatting to our equally environmentally conscious IT guy and as I went to the bin, I noticed a virtually complete paper bag loaf of bread in the bin. Somehow, in my head, I thought, "Someone's left this in the fridge all weekend." I said to IT guy, "I know this is disgusting but... I've got to see." I took it out the completely clear bin and indeed, it was a perfectly good condition, even felt soft, loaf of bread.  I then told IT guy I was putting it in the freezer to use when I want bread.  He agreed.

My reputation as the Dustbin grows.  My colleague told me that another colleague had a yoghurt in the fridge which was going out of date today but she didn't want it and they'd all said I would eat it.  I actually forgot to eat it but I know it will be fine on Monday!

I took bags of carrots that were left over from school to orchestra and to my friend's house and managed to give away 6 bags of carrots going to waste.

I confess to a plastic binge. I was feeling really miserable and despondent on Wednesday after school and I really felt like I needed crisps (I've been trying so hard not to buy them because of the plastic) so I gave in and bought two bags of Kettle crisps and a chicken samosa in plastic.  Feeling bad about it but will make sure I take the packets to the Terracycle collection at the library.

Things I've read this week:

Great new blog I discovered: The Zerowaster https://thezerowaster.com/about/

Sign this petition to Protect Ginnie Springs from Nestlé's greed

https://actions.sumofus.org/a/protect-ginnie-springs-from-nestle-s-greed/?akid=61847.10909212.8F8p2_&rd=1&source=fwd&t=11s

Want to know if there is a Zero-waste shop near you?
https://thezerowaster.com/zero-waste-near-you/

What have you been up to

£10 Plastic-free Rainbow

I've been told I talk too much about recycling and plastic by my family- well one  member of it who told me that another thought the same.  Hmmm...

Perhaps I need to think about that a bit.  It does seem to come up in conversation a lot though when one is trying so hard to avoid it.  

Regardless, I hope that you, my blogging audience don't feel the same.   However, I thought I'd like to share a pleasing plastic-free rainbow that I bought on Saturday. Any time I am going to the nearest big town to us, I always go prepared with some bags to go to the greengrocers which is on the way to the train station.  On Saturday, I was going to my mum's house and so needed to come via that train station. Sensibly, I decided to buy the vegetation on the way home.

And here is my lovely rainbow- sorry, I arranged it backwards!

4 pointed red peppers

7 large tomatoes.

16 Satsumas

5 apples

7 small aubergines

3 avocados

17 greengages

6 large onions

27 potatoes

2 bunches of spinach

1 bunch of Coriander.

It cost me £10 exactly.

It was so satisfying to lay it all out. I did wonder if I had purchased it from the supermarket, how much it would have cost? What do you think?  It is amazing what a great free feeling I gain when I can buy such things loose. The two greengrocers in that town that I frequent are run by Asian owners and I am grateful that they have made this available to me and at such a reasonable price.  If only there was a solution for getting cheese loose like this. I did go to Sainsbury's after this with my container to the Deli counter but they had already wrapped their cheese pieces in clingfilm though I did see this article saying that cheese keeps better when wrapped in waxed paper. Is Waxed paper totally plastic-free?  I might write to Sainsbury's and see if they would consider swapping to plastic-free waxed paper on their cheese, particularly for their Deli-counter for a start.

A rainbow is always welcome, especially when it's not wrapped in plastic!

x

3 Plastic free Deodorants- a review

In my continuing journey to try and eliminate as much single-use plastic as I can from my life, I have been addressing the bathroom cabinet and one of the throwaway culprits which is harder to recycle is Deodorant.

Deodorant and I have had a long and difficult relationship.  My body seems to 'get used' to particular deodorants and then fail.  Over the last 15 years, I have investigated a large variety of natural deodorants because of the fears of Aluminium having a link to Breast-cancer but have returned to conventional ones. All of the above come in solid plastic which, until recently, most recycling authorities that I lived under, didn't accept. I find it scary to think about all the deodorant tubes that I am responsible for which are in landfill somewhere.

As a consequence, I had seen various cardboard-wrapped deodorants on Instagram #Plasticfree posts and wanted to give them a go.

It was therefore, a glad moment back in December last year, when I discovered our most local Zero-waste room, The Refill Room, stocked different cardboard deodorants.  I bought CBC one to go with his Christmas presents (along with a bamboo pot scraper and an olive wood soap dish- romance is alive in our house!) and purchased myself one.

As you can see from the picture below, I am showing you what the products look like used!  It's all glamour here.

I've reviewed the two I have used and CBC will review his one (his is the smallest one).

For the record- the cost of these IS more than your average deodorant. If you are on a budget, it is a lot.. However, since I have used natural deodorants over the years, the price is comparable to ones I have purchased and since I don't use makeup really or vast amounts of products, for me, it is worth spending that bit more.

Kutus Lemongrass and Tea tree- 50g.  (I think the price was either £5.50 or £6.50)

CBC's words:

The product itself was a good deodorant. It was effect, had a nice smell and an organic flavour to it.  Being a 'dry' product meant that sometimes, it was less comfortable to use than a liquid roll on; you had to warm it up or soften it in your armpit before it came off effectively and then when you took it away, it resulted in hairs being left behind. The cardboard container is robust enough for a short use but if you are taking it places or using it lots, it doesn't compare to your traditional deodorant.  All-in-all, these are small inconveniences to pay for an effective deodorant product which uses no plastic and can be composted or recycled.

The details:

• 100% Natural ingredients
• Plastic free – packaging is biodegradable and recyclable
• Cruelty free
• Ethically and sustainably sourced ingredients
• NO Palm Oil, Aluminium or Parabens 
• Handmade in Wales

Ingredients:

Butyrospermum Parkii** (Shea Butter)
Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil**
Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa Butter)
Cera Alba (Beeswax)
Arrowroot
Bicarbonate of Soda**
Grapefruit Oil
Lemon Oil
Peppermint Oil
Sweet Orange Oil

Linalool*, Limonene*, Citral*

**Organic Ingredient
*Naturally occurring components in essential oils.

Your Nature Sandalwood and Bergamot deodorant - 70g (I paid £7.95 for this)

I was worried about my problem that often natural deodorant wasn't always effective on me as it isn't an Anti-perspirant- you will still sweat but wanted to give this a go.  It is lovely to use.  It ACTUALLY works on me and I don't smell. It feels really good and smells really natural.  Unlike CBC, with less hairy arm, it goes on smoothly and feels nice- no irritation. One thing is I worry I use too much of it in one go.  Sometimes it ends up around the rim of the tube so I try to wipe it onto my armpits with the edge.  Pushing up the deodorant to get more is as simple as shoving a finger up the bottom but occasionally, I pushed on the bottom too much -it's kind of hard to get it back in and I've taken to carefully puttting the lid on, but not pushing it right down- not so easy if travelling.  It seemed to last for quite a while- I can't remember how long it lasted but seemed to go on for a while. However, as I got towards the end, because this tube is longer than CBC's, I couldn't reach up the tube anymore to push it up.  I used my bamboo toothbrush end to do this which was fine but make sure you push it in the middle- it went wonky when I didn't.  At the end, it is hard to know how to use it as the last bit of deodorant is sort of balanced on a cardboard disk- I took the disk attached to the bit of deodorant out of the tube and rubbed it on my armpits which worked fine and just put it back on top with the lid balanced on top.  The packaging did get a bit 'shea-buttery' as you can probably see from the pictures and did get a bit knackered with travelling but it stood the test and was not a problem. Don't leave it standing in the sun though!! I'd definitely use this again if they hadn't stopped stocking it in the refill room.

I've added some close-up shots of the product close towards its end to see
how it holds up in terms of appearance etc.

The details:

ECO CREDENTIALS

• Plastic free. Your Nature reduce the amount of waste going to landfill with completely zero waste packaging.
• 100% Natural - contains no aluminium, parabens or carcinogens
• 100% Vegan and Cruelty Free
• Palm Oil Free
• Recyclable and/or compostable packaging
• Handcrafted in the UK

INGREDIENTS

Coconut Oil (Cocos nucifera) *
Arrowroot Powder (Maranta arundinacea) *
Sodium Bicarbonate,
Mango Butter (Mangifera indica)
Shea Butter (Butyrospermum Parkii) *
Candelilla Wax (Candelilla cera)
Vitamin E (Tocopherols)
Lavender Essential Oil (Lavandula angustifolia)
Bergamot Essential Oil (Citrus Bergamia)

Citral ** Geraniol ** Linalool ** Citronellol ** Limonene **

* Organic
** Naturally occurring potential allergens

Earth Conscious Rose and Jasmine Deodorant stick  £6.95

I  bought this one as a substitute since the previous one was not being stocked again. This tube size is more sensible and seems quite robust. It survived being away for 3 weeks in a wash bag.

It rolls on really easily and feels really pleasant on the armpits.  The smell is attractive. It worked on most days that I used it although on a hot day in Siena, I felt like ONE of my armpits was smelly and the other wasn't! What is that about? It's easy to push the end of the tube up and I felt like I had more control over the amount I pushed up compared to my other one or maybe I was less gung-ho with this one.  It seems to last well though again, some of it ends up around the side of the rim so again, I am wiping off the edge onto my armpit so as not to waste it. I've not got to the end yet so I will let you know if there are any issues with that but all in all, I am very pleased with this product. I like the Shea butter- it is a lovely deodorant base and I feel it works for me and feels healthy for my skin. I will be buying this again (in fact, I have a second tube lined up!)

The details:

No aluminium, parabens or carcinogens

Allows your skin to breath and perspire naturally

Will not block your sweat glands and will allow your body to remove toxins as nature intended

Totally cruelty free

Supports healthy marine life

Biodegradable, Recyclable packaging, no plastic

Suitable for men, women and teens

Vegan Friendly

Made in the Isle of Wight.

Ingredients:

Certified organic coconut oil, arrowroot powder, certified organic shea butter, sodium bicarbonate, sunflower wax, Jasmine Absolute, Rose Absolute, Ylang Ylang Oil

*Ingredients naturally occurring in Essential Oils

All in all, this is a swap I definitely want to stick with. I like the products hugely and think the extra expense is worth it for a deodorant that works, that isn't full of harmful chemicals and that I know can be disposed of super easily.

What do you think?  Would you try them?

xx

The 8 R's for the Environment

I saw something wonderful on Instagram that I wanted to share on here.  An Artist called @Tozersigns (Her website is here.) made a mural for @ZeroGreenBristol's refit. Their website is here. 
We've always been told the 3 R's-  Reuse, Reduce, Recycle but even-better- there are 8 R's!!!!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tozer Signwriter (@tozersigns) on Mar 9, 2019 at 3:50am PST

That's beautiful, isn't it!

Recycle- Close the Loop and remake:

Yep- done.  I recycle everything I can, even to the extent of carrying round rubbish with me from other people.
Refuse- Don't consume what you don't need to.

Yep- done.  I refuse boxes and straws and cups and bags.

Reduce- reduce consumption of energy and materials

Done partly.  Although the majority of my wardrobe etc is second-hand, I still own a lot of new things I don't need and jewellery etc.
That said, I do try to walk where possible, turn off lights for me and other people (I am the light and Smartboard Police at work) and try not to take new things.

Reuse- Share with others and find new uses for old objects.

Yep- done.
I have tried to send items of clothing to friends, sell them.  I've tried to reuse items such as the plastic fruit boxes and takeaway boxes etc, paper bags, cereal bag.

Repair- Fix or upgrade your objects rather than throwing them away.

Done only partly.
I got my sunglasses fixed by a friend.  I have repaired a holdall with a rip in it with an old umbrella cover (which I now need to do with another bag).

Re-gift-  Share and be a part of the gift economy.

Definitely done this on various occasions where a gift hasn't quite worked for me.

Recover - Energy and materials recovery and upcycle.

Hmmm, not so sure about this though I frequently save items from binning at school (e.g. scrap paper, gift bags etc).

And finally
Re-think- Be mindful of your consumption, your relationship with things and with the Earth.

Definitely trying to do this.  We 'rethought' a trip to Italy by travelling by train.  I rethink how I pack and how I consume.

Two others you could include:

Research:  Not happy with something to do with waste?  Research a way to solve it!

Reach out/React:  Tell companies when you are not happy about the way they are doing something.

Respect:  Assess what you are doing.  Are you showing respect for the Earth and your local, national, global environment.


What do you think? Can you think of any R's to add to this dialogue?

xx