Filed under: Uncategorized
Cleaning for the Holidays!
In general, vacuuming and dry or damp mopping are the best ways to regularly clean wood floors. Wet mops will dull the finish and Oil soaps will leave a residue, which will damage the floor.
Make your own Wood Floor Cleaner by combining:
1/8 cup Castile Soap
1/2 cup vinegar
2 Gallons warm water
Instead of using a bucket, put the solution above in a Spray bottle. Spray a small area in front of you, then mop!
Beautiful Bamboo Flooring!
Filed under: Environmental Intentions, Holidays | Tags: holiday wrapping, reuse ribbons
If you’ve got some gifts to wrap this holiday season, take the time to revolutionize your wrapping!! Instead of the same old holiday wrap, try something a bit different this year!
- Use old newspapers (and customize your wrap, by picking out images/articles that fit for person
- Use old magazines (customize this one too!)
- Recycle any paper bags you may have as wrap (break out some markers and crayons and give them a gift of art too!)
- Recycle any plastic bags that you have and use as wrap..
- Recycle rubberbands using multiples of them in different colors to hold bags or paper together instead of tape (like the artist Mondrian..see below)
- Reuse ribbons that you have received from other gifts (they can pretty up anything quick!)
- Wrap a gift in a gift (ex. wrap a vintage purse in a vintage scarf)
These are just a few ideas and I would love to hear what you come up with too!!
Revolutionary Wrap
Filed under: Community Intentions, Environmental Intentions | Tags: Susan G. Komen
One of the greatest pieces of information I learned from my Gorgeously Green book was to ask people around you to make “greener” choices too. When my husband and I moved into our apartment in August, I asked the owner to please use no or at least low VOC paint on our apartment before we moved in. I explained my recent health situation as my excuse and told him if it wasn’t possible or if it was “too expensive” that we would pay the difference. And they did it!!! (we didn’t even have to pay the difference!)
Here are a few ideas to get you started..
- when ordering take out, ask them to not include plastic silverware, condiments, and napkins, and tell them why..
- ask your office mates to use eco-friendly cleaning products..and tell them the health benefits for you and them..
- have a “Green” dinner party with your friends, and tell them why they all should do it too..
- ask your favorite restaurant if they buy organic produce and meats..and tell them why they should.
One sister asked for change..
Filed under: Uncategorized
Consumer Reports’ latest tests for dangerous pathogens on hundreds of organic and nonorganic chickens bought at stores nationwide revealed that the majority were contaminated. Two-thirds of the broilers harbored at least one of the two leading bacterial causes of food-borne diseases: campylobacter and salmonella. That’s a modest improvement from our January 2007 tests, when 8 in 10 broilers were found to harbor those pathogens, but worse than our January 2003 tests, when about half the broilers were clean. Some other findings from our new tests:
Among the cleanest broilers overall were organic “air-chilled,” a process in which carcasses are refrigerated and misted, rather than dunked in cold, chlorinated water. In total, about 60 percent of air-chilled birds were free of the two pathogens tested for, campylobacter and salmonella. Eight of the clean birds were Bell & Evans air-chilled broilers, but our sample was too small to determine that all Bell & Evans broilers would be clean.
Store-brand organic chickens had no salmonella at all, showing that it’s possible for chicken to arrive in stores without that bacteria riding along. But only 43 percent of those birds were also free of campylobacter.
Of the conventional chickens tested, Perdue was found to have the cleanest name-brand broilers (56 percent were free of both pathogens), while Tyson and Foster Farms broilers were found to be the most contaminated (less than 20 percent were free of either pathogens).
Read full article: products.cfm?product=chicken&pcat=food&EXTKEY=NG0N00912
Filed under: Community Intentions, Environmental Intentions, Holidays | Tags: housing works, recycle, reduce, reuse, thrift stores
Vintage/Thrift stores are my new R’s!! Because they are rare, remarkable, and resplendent and on top of that they help the environment by reducing waste, reusing what seems to be someone elses trash and becomes your treasure, and recycling something old and giving it a new life!!
These little gems are in every city all over the world..(I love Housing Works here in NYC!!) Take a moment this holiday season to find a few where you live and begin your hunt for something rare, remarkable and resplendent!! (Please share the very best thrift stores in your area with all of us!!)
You want this?? Click here!!
Filed under: Environmental Intentions, For your belly.. | Tags: anti aging, skin, wrinkles
So yesterday was my 38th birthday and although I truly do love birthdays, I have really started to notice (already!!) that my skin..face and body are showing singns of aging..wrinkles are forming and I now have this bizarre crepey skin on the inside of my arms..ugh!!
So what can I do?? I moisturize, exfoliate, tone, conceal, exercise and this is still happening..the anti-aging fairies at Everyday Health must have heard my plea.. because this was in my inbox this morning “The Anti-Aging Diet: Foods That Smooth Skin”..AHHHHHHH…this is right up my alley, and so obvious I can’t believe I didn’t try it..(I already eat cherries to help with joint pain associated with one of my medications, so again..why didn’t I think of this before?)
Eat and Drink your way to more youthful skin…
- Colorful berries. The antioxidant anthocyanin is what gives berries their blue, red, and purple colors. To get a healthy dose of this potent antioxidant, eat plenty of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, pomegranate, cherries, acai berries, and blood oranges, to name a few of the best choices. Each of these foods has a variety of other powerful antioxidants that repair and protect your skin’s cells.
- Broccoli and broccoli sprouts. Quercetin is another powerful antioxidant that is found in broccoli, along with other foods including cranberries, onions, and apples. It is a natural anti-inflammatory agent as well, fighting the No. 2 cause of aging. Broccoli sprouts have 30 times more isothiocyanates (yet another antioxidant) regular broccoli.
- Spinach. Lutein is found in spinach, kale, corn, and other vegetables. It has the ability to give additional antioxidant capacity to your skin and enhances skin hydration.
- Garlic. Allium is an antioxidant that packs a punch. Garlic, onions, and scallions are loaded with this free-radical fighter that is good for your skin and your immune system.
- Beans. “Eat your beans, too,” says Breiner. Anthocyanin is found in very high quantities in black beans and black soybeans. Soybeans are also high in isoflavones, also linked to anti-aging properties.
- Tea. Catechins, found in green tea, dark chocolate, and red wine, are another antioxidant that packs a wallop. “Have four to six cups of tea a day with lemon, which enhances the antioxidants’ activity in your cells,” Breiner advises.
- Wine. In addition to those catechins, resveratrol is found in red wine and has many anti-aging properties. It is another potent antioxidant.
- Yellow and Orange Root Vegetables. Put plenty of beta-carotene on your plate. These super-antioxidants are good for your skin and eyes. Good choices include carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and squash.
- Tomatoes. Lycopene, in red grapefruit, tomatoes, watermelon, and pink grapefruit, is a powerful weapon against free radicals. It has the ability to inhibit sun-induced aging and can neutralize free radicals. Breiner suggests, “Fill your glass with tomato juice or V8 juice daily.”
- Nuts. Eat a handful of nuts and seeds a day. They are loaded with “good” fat that helps “plump” your skin, antioxidants and lots of minerals that are good for your skin, too.
- Salmon. “Eat salmon at least three times a week,” says Breiner. “It has a host of benefits for your skin, from the omega-3s to the high-quality protein. Make it a regular in your diet, and you will see plumper, more youthful skin in about six weeks.”
- Water. Stay hydrated: Drink six to eight glasses of water a day. (And if you are drinking decaffeinated tea, that counts.) Caffeinated beverages can dehydrate you, which can contribute to dry, sallow-looking skin.
How much broccoli do I need to eat to get this skin again?
Here is what you can do to protect you and your family from Salmonella and other bacteria:
• Cook chicken to at least 165° F. Even if it’s no longer pink, it can still harbor bacteria, so use a meat thermometer.
• Buy chicken last before heading to the checkout line.
• Choose chicken that is well wrapped and at the bottom of the case, where the temperature should be coolest.
• Place chicken in a plastic bag like those in the produce department to keep juices from leaking.
• Store chicken at 40° F or below if you’ll cook the chicken within a couple of days. Otherwise, freeze it.
• Thaw frozen chicken in a refrigerator, inside its packaging and on a plate, or on a plate in a microwave oven. Never thaw it on a counter: When the inside is still frozen, the outside can warm up, providing a breeding ground for bacteria. Cook chicken thawed in a microwave oven right away.
• Don’t return cooked meat to the plate that held it raw.
• Refrigerate or freeze leftovers within 2 hours of cooking.
Filed under: Energy & $$ Savers, Environmental Intentions, Holidays | Tags: green gifts, Holidays
A Considerate Cuff..
What is it made from?
How much packaging is used?
What impact will that product have on the environment?
Take a peek at treehugger.com’s Holiday Green Gift guide..they have gift ideas for food, babies, computer, clothes and more!! (Awesome ideas for Holiday Gift Exchanges Wink!Wink!)
Happy Green Shopping..
Filed under: Energy & $$ Savers, Environmental Intentions | Tags: homemade laundry detergent, safe
I am constantly looking for new safe and less expensive ways to do everything..And my recent quest is to make my own laundry detergent. The store bought brands are generally very expensive and I constantly feel like I am being mislead with ingredient ..
But after some serious digging I finally found this recipe for laundry detergent on Planet Green’s website!
Check it out..
Liquid Detergent
1 quart water (boiling)
2 cups bar soap (grated)
2 cups borax
2 cups washing soda
1. Add finely grated bar soap to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted. You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.
2. Pour the soap water into a large, clean pail and add the borax and washing soda. Stir well until all is dissolved.
3. Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.
4. Cover pail and use 1/4 cup for each load of laundry. Once it’s cool, add 5 – 7 drops of your favorite essential oil per gallon. Stir the soap each time you use it (it will gel).
To further your green intentions..make sure you wash all of your clothes in cold water!!
(90% of the energy when doing laundry goes in heating the water!)
Cooler is better..
Do it on your own too..and please share your results!!!
Filed under: Environmental Intentions, For your belly.. | Tags: homemade pumpkin pie
I am so excited for tomorrow because Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday!
There is really no other day in the year where you just eat and rest and eat and rest..the food is so good, the family and friends are so wonderful..and the pumpkin pie!!! YUMMY..
This year I decided to make a pumpkin pie, using fresh pumpkin..so I thought I’d share the recipe with you..I am using recipe#2 (all organic ingredients as usual)..
If you feel inspired to do the same..let me know how it turns out..or if you have a great recipe please share!!
Have a lovely day with your family and friends..
mmm....
