Eliminating Plastics

I would love to go plastic free in our house. Is that realistic? Maybe not. But at least I will start by eliminating the worst of the worst, avoiding bringing more into the house, and will practice good behaviour with what I own.

I visited a great toy store a while back and asked them about their philosophy with plastic. They said that wherever possible they avoid plastic. However, if it is a toy that functions best made with plastic (like larger truck toys), then plastic it is. But they try to get hardy, recycled plastic.

So here goes...

1) Get rid of the worst of the worst:

• 1 is okay, and generally recyclable (shampoo, peanut butter etc)
• 2 is okay, and generally recyclable (milk jugs, plastic bags, cleaning products)
• 4 and 5 are okay but not easily recycled (plastic wrap, bags, food containers)
• 7 is biodegradable and okay
• GET RID OF 3, 6, 7 (especially 3 and 6)

2) Avoid bringing home

• laundry and dishwasher detergent in cardboard
• make own dish soap and cleaning products with castile, baking soda etc
• keep beauty products simple and buy in bulk (shampoo, conditioner, soap, moisturizer)
• make some beauty products
• buy MAC makeup and use recycle system
• make own yoghurt
• make own bread
• make soy/ almond milk (avoid tetras)

3) Practice good behaviour

• never heat food or put hot food in plastic
• reuse when possible but only for freezing (ie berries)
• get rid of scratched, damaged plastic
• try to hand wash, avoid dishwasher
• buy silicone for baking supplies
• go for glass containers where possible
• avoid cling wrap and plastic bags where possible
• use refillable water bottle
• buy in bulk to minimize packaging and for reuseable bags
• make note of excessive packaging (ie from tea bag to loose tea)
• reuse any plastic bag from bulk purchases, to pasta bags (garbage etc)
• don't double bag garbage
• use paper or biodegradable garbage bags
• if you choose something plastic make sure it is tough plastic (ie cleaning buckets etc)
• ask bakeries for food safe plastic buckets to store pantry items in

Sprouts

I love to travel out to Westham Island with my family. It is an easy 15-20 minute drive from our home. We travel over a beautiful little bridge past u-pick farms to Reifel Bird Sanctuary near the ocean. It is a great area for buying local produce, seafood, eggs and so on.

The added bonus for me is I get to visit West Coast Seeds- one of my meccas. This time I picked up a packet of sprout seeds for just under $7. And a mesh cover for a mason jar. I may buy more in bulk in the future. But already I can make a large jar of sprouts for less than a dollar (that would cost $4-5 at Whole Foods or the farmer's market). It is quite fun to make too.

1) Scoop a few tablespoons into the jar and screw on mesh.
2) Fill with 1/2 cup of water and rinse.
3) Refill with about 1/2 cup of water and let sit 4-8 hours.
4) Drain and lie on side.
5) Twice (to 4 times) a day rinse with water and drain.
6) Put in sun for a day to increase chorophyl, otherwise grew in a cupboard (3-4 days).
7) When desired size put on proper jar lid and refrigerate.

Update June 2012: Sprouts are going very well. We use them in smoothies and on sandwiches. And go through a fairly large Mason jar a week. However, the next purchase of bulk will be from Whole Foods. Looks like their unsprouted seeds are half the price of what I originally purchased and in the bulk section too (less packaging and reuseable).

Bathroom Scrubs and Other Cleaning Recipes

I have taken easy green living by Renee Loux out of the library. I plan to post many of her simple cleaning recipes over the coming days. Today is bathroom scrubs. I don't know about you but I have been disappointed by natural tub scrubs in the past. But I am determined to eliminate toxic cleaners and have a clean bathroom at the same time.

I was lucky to find an old sugar shaker in my mom's basement. It is in great shape and I will simply put baking soda in it and use as a scouring powder.

Antibacterial Soft Scrub "Frosting"
-1/2 cup baking soda
-2 to 3 tbsp Castile soap
-12-20 drops essential oil (lavender, lemon, orange, rosemary, thyme or tea tree)
-mix to consistency like frosting (adjust proportions) - add essential oil at end

Porcelain Stain Scrub
-2 tbsp cream of tartar
-1-2 tsp of 3% hydrogen peroxide
- mix into frothy paste
-if stubborn stain let sit for 15 min
-note: 1 time use only (will become inactive w/in 2 hours)

Disinfectant Spray (can be used for cleaning cutting boards)

-1/4 cup vodka

-1/2 cup 3% hydrogen peroxide

-1 cup water

-5-10 drops essential oil with disinfectant qualities

-combine in sprayer and shake, will keep indefinitely

Citrus Spray Cleaner (Kitchen and Bathroom)

-1/2 cup white distilled vinegar

-1 tbsp Citra-Solv Cleaner

-1/2 tsp Castile soap

-1 1/2 cup warm water

-1/2 tsp essential oil

Just the tip of the ice berg from this lovely book. I highly recommend you check it out too.

Simple Upgrades

I enjoyed a Natural Health article on simple upgrades from Easy Green Living by Renee Loux (July/August 2010). Can't seem to find an easy link though. So here are my favorites:

Food: buy organic for the dirty dozen - peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, kale, lettuce, imported grapes, carrots and pests (seems different than my other list!)... Don't worry about these ones - onions, avocados, corn, pineapples, mangoes, asparagus, peas, kiwis, cabbage, eggplants, papayas, watermelon, broccoli, tomatoes, sweet potatoes
-another food tip - eat whole grains and delete wheat or cut down a lot!

Kitchen: use stainless steel - if you have aluminum for baking use a silpat liner, avoid teflon, avoid plastic especially with 3 and 7 recycle codes, if you use plastic keep it and contents cool.

Shower: before getting in warms tablespoon of sesame oil in your hands and give yourself a massage- circular on joints and up and down on trunk and arms, add a few drops of esential oils to facecloth and drop on floor to diffuse (cardamom calms and eases muscles, eucalyptus stimulates and clears sinuses, grapefruit to rid body of toxins), use cleansers with NO parabens and phthalates.

Air quality: houseplants including aloe Vera, spider plants, peace lilies, dwarf date palms... Green your cleaners.... Go low VOC

When to Buy Organic

In an ideal world I would probably buy only organic. But sometimes organic is obscenely expensive and sometimes I would much prefer to buy local (usually this is the case). So this means I need to try to memorize the dirty dozen list.

These are the dirty dozen fruits (must buy organic):

• apples
• cherries
• grapes
• nectarines
• peaches
• pears
• raspberries
• strawberries

These are the dirty dozen vegetables:

• bell peppers
• celery
• potatoes
• spinach

Also try to get only organic meats and dairy. Plus ocean wise fish.

These are okay in nonorganic form:

• avocado
• banana
• kiwi
• mango
• papaya
• pineapple
• asparagus
• broccoli
• cauliflower
• corn
• onions
• peas

Venturing into the Land of Thrift

Okay, I am doing what I never ever do and I am going to attempt to buy from thrift stores more often. I am not the type to browse. So I likely will stick to the big bang for your buck places like Value Village. But I do have some things I want to buy such as clothes for Caia and canning jars.

Since I have no clue where to go I have grabbed some tips from an old article on Tyee.

After the experience...

My first attempt at Value Village was a massive failure. I walked out with an okay tshirt for Caia at $4 and a french style jar for $2. Not a good deal at all. What's up with that. Plus it is close, but not that close.

My second attempt at the local thrift store on our walk to the library was much more successful. I got a number of mason jars for $4 total. And I didn't have to purchase any of the rusty lids. The clothing for Caia was minimal and so so. I am guessing people around here are more focused on clothes.

Thoughts on the experience?

I will pop into thrift stores when passing by and stick to a list of needs (canning supplies and clothing for Caia). But for now I will not go out of my way.

I think I will prioritize efficiency over total thrift until I find a good thrift store that is more reliable. But commend people that have the patience and time to dedicate.

I will continue to use Craigslist and Freecycle to find things I need. I recently scored a new looking double bike trailer for 50% of the purchase price. And it has been a blast to include in our day to day living. Next on the list, a deep freeze!!