Organic Beauty/Cosmetic Products

It is very important that not only we know what type of foods we are eating but also what types of chemicals we are putting onto our skin! One way to avoid the nasty and dangerous chemicals (that we have no idea how to pronounce) is to buy organic products! Also making your own beauty and cosmetics will help your wallet and your skin. It is about knowing exactly every step and ingredient of anything that you put on your body. Take initiative to research more about every lotion, makeup, cleanser, soap, etc that you are using and little by little make changes to those. It is almost like a diet too! AGAIN, little by little make changes!!
GET MORE INFORMATION HERE!!

USDA Organic Certified Body Care products. 

Organic Skin care on a budget

Also research about homemade recipes for lotions, soaps, makeup, etc. Have fun with it!
Good luck and I am here to help!!

Grow your food

 Local Food Exhibit

This photograph explains very well one of the most important way to be green. Growing you own food!! However, I do not have green space in which I can grow food. Then what to do? Some towns and cities are now having great organizations that are providing neighborhoods with community gardens in which you can grow your own food. Others, in the city, are creating rooftop gardens! I encourage you to research more information about growing your own food in your area. If there is no organization and you are very passionate about it, then why not take the initiative and start it up!

There are also many ways you can (somewhat) grow your own food. Join a CSA, here you pay a farm for a piece of land and the food that is grown is yours to keep! It is an amazing way to get fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, flowers, etc. Also now that summer is around the corner, Farmer's Market's are another amazing way to get fresh produce, eggs, meat, flowers and much more! You get to meet the farmer and feel amazing! Farmer's Market's vary per location. Many of them have entertainment, free samples and amazing people around! Check out here for the Farmer's Market near you!!

I encourage you to start by visiting a Farmer's Market, get to know the different farms around your area, ask a farm of your interest if they have CSA or any program in which you can grow food!

Reusing Part. 2

Here are more pictures with links of different and cool ideas to do at your house or office!

Magazine Waste Basket

 

 

 

Paper Flower Key Holder

Drawer Hangers

Recycled Raindrops

Zipper Bracelets

Vintage-Tin Organizer

Wood Pallet Headboard

Wine Bottle reused as a Tiki Torch

More to come soon! Enjoy =)

Reusing

 A big part of being green is reusing. Having your creativity go to the max and think of how and what a book, can, bottle or anything else can be reused? Well here are some great pictures and links of different ways you can reuse something.

Gift Bags from Newspaper

Click me to get more information of the pictures above

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bookshelve made of Books

I Love Shopping!

I am currently buying things for when I move to an apartment and I wanted to share with you what I have gotten so far. The reason why is because what I bought was from The Goodwill Store in Boston. As I mentioned on my post about Trashion, buying second hand items also helps out. Less waste being around plus the items you can find in store such as Goodwill are just amazingly beautiful and unique!  Also very affortable! Here are some pictures of what I got with the prices.

Flower Vase $2.99

Cups $0.85 each

Pitcher $2.99

Wine Glasses $0.85 each

BPA Free Reusable Cup $0.85

Bowls $0.85 each

I hope that you consider store such as Goodwill to get amazing things. I also found nice cardigan that I did not purchase but I am planning to do so soon. I tried it on and I did not like how it looked on me but I want to purchase it because the pattern and color of it is beautiful and my favorite, therefore I am thinking of making a pillow out of it! Ideas like the one I want to do is a great way to be green in your own creative way! That is the whole point of this website, for you to get your creative ideas running on your brain and making them real!

Companies fighting to stop global warming.

Sometimes when we are shopping around, we have no idea what the store does to help the environment. Climate Counts.org helps you see what companies are helping out to fight global warming. From food products to consumer shipping, Climate Counts.org breaks down and puts on the spot the companies who are doing good at fighting global warming and companies that are doing not so good.

This is very eye opening and it may even make you consider to shop differently. I encourage all to research more here: Climate Counts.org for more information.

What does "Being Green" means to you?

"Being Green" may mean something way different from many people. That is why I will love to know what is your opinion on this topic? Is it impossible, hard, amazing, realistic, difficult, peaceful, etc? Here is a link to a 4 question, anonymous, survey where you can express yourself about this topic!

I will post some of the answers as a new blog post to share with others. I will love if you can help and I will greatly appreciate it!

What does "Being Green" means to you?-Survey

Homemade Cleaning Supplies

Now that spring is coming, the most common thing to do is clean your house, apartment, studio or room from left to right, up and down... you know. Many of us, including myself, are or have used many cleaning supplies that are very strong and you always make sure you got the door open because if not, you will intoxicate yourself... that is not safe at all!! Not only for your health but your wallet too!! We do not really think about how much we spend on cleaning products because we think on the result that the product will give, not the consequences.

Here I decided to list homemade solutions and formulas from Earth Easy that will work the same as many cleaning products that we know! Making things is a great step to practice the green way!

Homemade Solutions:

* Baking Soda: cleans, deodorizes

* White Vinegar: cut greases, removes mildew, odors, some stains and wax build-up

* Cornstarch: can be used to clean windows, polish furniture, shampoo carpets and rugs.

* Lemon: effective against most household bacteria.

Homemade Formulas:

*  All-Purpose Cleaner: Mix 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda (or 2 teaspoons borax) into 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water. Store and keep. Use for removal of water deposit stains on shower stall panels, bathroom chrome fixtures, windows, bathroom mirrors, etc. 

*  Air Freshener: Commercial air fresheners mask smells and coat nasal passages to diminish the sense of smell. 

**Baking soda or vinegar with lemon juice in small dishes absorbs odors around the house. **Having houseplants helps reduce odors in the home. 

**Prevent cooking odors by simmering vinegar (1 tbsp in 1 cup water) on the stove while cooking. 

**To get such smells as fish and onion off utensils and cutting boards, wipe them with vinegar and wash in soapy water.
**Keep fresh coffee grounds on the counter
**Grind up a slice of lemon in the garbage disposal.
**Simmer water and cinnamon or other spices on stove. 

**Place bowls of fragrant dried herbs and flowers in room. 

 *Furniture Polish:

1/2 teaspoon oil, such as olive (or jojoba, a liquid wax), 1/4 cup vinegar or fresh lemon juice
Mix the ingredients in a glass jar. Dab a soft rag into the solution and wipe onto wood surfaces. Cover the glass jar and store indefinitely. Furniture Polish

HERE ARE MORE WEBSITES WITH MORE HOMEMADE FORMULAS! 

* Earth Easy-Non Toxic Solutions

* Care 2 Make a Difference- Make your own non toxic cleaning kit

* Stain Removal 101

* Blisstree- 25 Safe, Non-toxic Homemade Cleaning Supplies

 

Trashion= Trash + Fashion... FABULOUS!

So living in New England, with the weather changing every other day, it just cannot wait for the Spring to come to have sunlight and decide whether or not I need to wear layers! After reading this blog by Kim Preloving- Spring/Summer 2011 Fashion, I decided to do the same thing!

Here is what I decided to do, Kim is in the search for second-hand clothes to create her own wardrobe by searching clothes in ebay and other second-hand clothing stores. Personally, I find this to be such a great, unique and creative idea. Also, it's a step towards being green. Here you will be recycling, in other words, clothes that someone else doesn't want! I recommend everyone to look into this trend of second-hand fashion/ recyclable fashion! You can also create handbags and many other cool things! you just need your imagination and drive to create it!

Here are some pictures I found about this topic. I hope they give you some inspiration!

 Maternity Top from Men's Button Shirt

 

 

 Upcycling BDUS

Grow to be Green is Carbon Neutral!

The purpose of Grow to be Green is to take simple steps for a greener lifestyle and being Carbon Neutral is a great step!! I found out about a program called "My Blog is Carbon Neutral" which will plant a tree to offset the carbon emissions of this blog.

According to the website:

“My blog is carbon neutral” is an initiative, originally started in Germany by the “Make it green” program, that has the goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. We plant a tree for your blog and thereby neutralize your blog’s carbon footprint for the next 50 years! Everyone can make a small contribution to the environment. Every tree counts!"

I am very proud of being part of this great initiative and found out about it through another awesome blog! Here is the link for the blog I found out this program and I personally met a person working for this awesome, fashionable, vegan and eco-friendly clothing! Ecolissa.

Wanna watch me?

So there are many resources about sustainability and my favorite ones are documentaries. Being a visual learner, I have to see it to believe it and eventually put it into practice. Therefore, I will like to share you everyone trailers from great documentaries based on sustainability, food safety and much more.

* Food INC- Simply my favorite documentary EVER! First off, I have seen it a couple of times and I tear up all the time! It's an eye opener and I recommend when you watch this documentary and any other one to watch it with an open mind.

*Fresh The Movie

* DIRT! The Movie

* Botany of Desire

These are great documentaries that I recommend you to look into them. I want to let you know that when I first saw Food Inc. I felt overwhelm with all the information I saw. I am not trying to scare you, but I just want to let you know that these are real issues happening right now and many people feel like they have to join and change the world. I believe the same but you also have to be REALISTIC of what you can do, how you can do it and when. Everyone is unique and they bring to this world their own ideas, persona and great outcomes. I want to encourage you if you get this feeling after watching these and/or learning more about this topic to embrace it with all you got! Remember to bring your own flavor to great changes!!

Taking out the trash!

So after walking down the streets of Boston and seeing a good amount of trash on the floor, I said to myself, why is there so much trash? It almost the same amount as the snow/ice on the floor! Not only that, but I saw a lot of materials that can be recycled! But what can you do? you may ask. Make sure that what you throw away are materials that cannot be recycled. Here is a list of things that are recyclable.

THINGS YOU CAN PUT IN A RECYCLE BIN:

• Newspaper
• White paper
• Green, brown and clear glass
• Corrugated cardboard
• Paperboard such as cereal boxes, shoeboxes
• Plastic bottles
• Aseptic juice boxes
• Gable-top paper cartons such as milk cartons
• Metal food cans
• Aluminum beverage cans
• Aluminum foil (no food residue)
• Six-pack rings
• Magazines
• Junk mail and catalogs 

THINGS YOU CAN’T PUT IN A RECYCLE BIN:

• Yogurt cups
• Margarine containers
• Frozen food trays
• Plastic wrap
• Plastic bags
• Styrofoam
• Phone books
• Stamps and stickers in junk mail
• Pizza boxes
• Plastic bottles that contain oil or hazardous substances 

"What Items Can and Can't Be Recycled?"

The hardest thing about recycling is finding out a facility or a company that can pick up or accept deliveries from people. My first recommendation is to save all the bottles and cans and try to sell them! Get some extra money in your pocket. I know chain supermarkets have machines that you can recycle the bottles and cans. They also provide a bin for recycling plastic bags.
Look into your neighboring supermarket and/or recycling facilities. If these is too much for you, let me know and I can help you find a location!

Electronic Recycling AKA Ecycling

 

Electronic Waste Facility in China

A picture is worth a 1,000 words...waste, unhealthy, trash, say what??, etc.  All of these electronics present in the picture are mostly from countries far from China, like the US, that take their trash and let China deal with it! I say why not recycle it! helps the community of China to have less electronics just sitting there and cause more problems to them! I know that some cellphone companies also have a box in their stores for people to drop off old cellphones and recycle them, so I encourage you to look into recycling the electronics that you have and do not want anymore!!

Here are some links of Recycling centers for electronics.

* Ecycling Central- Learn about Ecycling!

* Electronic Recyclers Inc.- Serves 7 states including MA

* Desktop Disposal- Serves Different States

* Gold Circuit Ecycling- Ludlow,MA

I hope this was helpful!

Fashionable Reusable Bags

Most or every store such as supermarkets, pharmacies, retail stores are selling their own reusable bags. These are now the hot deal for becoming green. Of course the main benefit for these are to eventually stop using plastic bags, but I personally find reusable bags just great. They are very spacious and now there are very fashionable!! Here are great pictures and links of fashionable reusable bags:

Baggu Bag

She's a Betty Reusable Bags

Lily Pad Baby Reusable Totes

3 Simple Tips Pt. 1

When you want to make any changes in your life, you have to start step by step and most of all be realistic with yourself.  Being green is a big step and many people do it differently because of their believes, cultures, religions, etc. These tips are what I am currently doing and what I am researching as well. Making a change takes time and when it becomes a habit, then you can add more!

3 Simple Tips =D
1. Do not leave plug in your cellphone charger when you are not charging your cellphone. This is wasting energy and therefore wasting your electricity.

2. turn off the lights when you leave a room. electricity wasted=higher bill. I recommend to have a LED nightlight or any nightlight in a room if you want to have it with a light for safety; to not pump into something when you come in.

These are the first tips that I will encourage all to start trying. I will be posting more. Remember step by step!

Please feel free to write any tips that you know/have heard off.

3. Have www.blackle.com as you internet home page. Here is an explanation of blackle.com:
"Blackle saves energy because the screen is predominantly black. "Image displayed is primarily a function of the user's color settings and desktop graphics, as well as the color and size of open application windows; a given monitor requires more power to display a white (or light) screen than a black (or dark) screen." Roberson et al, 2002