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Mosquito Repellent

by Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.1 Personal Tagged , , , ,

It’s that time of night when sitting on the balcony becomes a feat of endurance rather than a pleasure and it’s down to those vile biting mosquitos. Time to take action… but what kind. I could of course slather myself in DEET…

DEET Was developed by the American Army and remains the most effective form of bug repellent known to man. It is a great weapon in the fight against malaria. But it can irritate my skin and has had other negative press. Plus it comes in plastic.

So what of the alternativee? Needless to say the internet offer everything from wristbands to essential oils. Lots of testing has been done which conclude that these range from considerably less effective to completely useless. “Two devices in particular came under harsh criticism from the scientists: bracelets containing herbal extracts and sonic mosquito repellers, which claim to use high-frequency sound to drive away mosquitoes.” And dont bother with citronella candles. You can read the rest here.
That said there is some evidence that certain essential oils (including citronella) might  work.SO let’s discuss the options.

Why DEET
Just to reiterate N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (deet) DEET is the most effective insect repellent ever.
Then (2-(2-hydroxyethyl)-piperidinecarboxylic acid 1-methyl ester (icaridin), p-methane 3, 8-diol (PMD), and ethyl butylacetylaminopropionate (IR3535)-based repellents also provide protection against biting arthropods,
Malaria & Other Nasty Deseases
Malaria is extremely dangerous and kills masses of people each year. DEET Will protect you from mosquitoes and many other disease bearing blood suckers. If you are in a malarial prone area then it is an essential means of protection and I advise you consider it. Medical plastic is exempt from the boycott. To quote DEET must be the “first choice for those visiting areas where malaria or other arthropod-borne diseases are endemic remains formulations with higher concentrations (20–50%) of deet.
Higher concentration icaridin and PMD preparations are the most useful alternatives to deet where they are available”
Read more here

How Strong?
What do these concentrations mean? A higher concentration of DEET means it will last longer. 20% DEET offers up to 6 hours of protection. 50% DEET which offers 12 hours of protection. If you sweat heavily you’ll need to re-apply it more often, obvs.
According to the British Medical Journal anything with over a concentration of 50% DEET will not be any more effective. Read this very good write up that discusses all the issues and gives clear advice on how DEET should be used. Access it here.

Bad DEET
But if you are not at risk from malaria you might want to limit your exposure to DEET. While DEET is generally thought to be safe there are reports of possible reactions. On a personal level I find it irritates my skin but then again so do most perfumes and some soaps. However it is not just me. Reactions to DEET have been documented. And they can include Hives or mild skin redness and irritation. The more you use the worse it gets. People using products containing a large amount of DEET over a long period of time may have more severe skin reactions that include blistering, burning, and permanent scars of the skin.
Wikipedia are even more worrying and report that
In the DEET Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) in 1998, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported 14 to 46 cases of potential DEET-associated seizures, including 4 deaths. The EPA states: “… it does appear that some cases are likely related to DEET toxicity,” which may underreport the risk as physicians may fail to check for history of DEET use or fail to report cases of seizure subsequent to DEET use.[21]
The Pesticide Information Project of Cooperative Extension Offices of Cornell University states that “Everglades National Park employees having extensive DEET exposure were more likely to have insomnia, mood disturbances and impaired cognitive function than were lesser exposed co-workers”.[22].
Read it here

Which Alternatives Work
So for those munchy twilight hours when the biting, but non-malarial carrying beasts are out DEET seems rather a chemical sledge hammer. In these cases I have been using Cintronella essential oil mixed with Rice Bran oil as a mosquito repellent. Based on nothing more than a quick skim of alternative bug sprays on the internet and the fact I have some Citronella oil. The internets claims all kinds of wonderful qualities for Citronella but I tend not to believe them. So consequently I didnt know if my homemade repellent really worked i.e.if it actually repels Mosquitos. But I felt it did and it certainly seems to soothe bites and reduce irritation. So I decided it was time to do some research.

Citronella
Citronella is  obtained from the leaves and stems of different species of Cymbopogon grasses. And it might just work. This is a quote from some research that seems reputable.  “From the available literature and information, we can conclude that the complete protection time for citronella-based repellents is less than 2 hours”
Read more here

But 2 hours is all I need. I can live with the occasional bite at other times it’s the twilight feeding frenzy I object to.

Using Essential OIls
Essential oils are concentrated and so should be used with some care.
Do not apply neat to the skin.
It is good practice to do an allergy test
Do some further research into the oil you plan to use

Disclaimer
Be aware of the risks of listening to someone who
a) doesn’t have any training in this field,
b) most of what they know comes from Google,
That’s me I mean.

Making Mosquito Repellent
You should never use essential oils neat so the Citronella has to be blended with a base oil. And there is very little data avaialable on what kind of percentages to use for the oil to be effective against biting beasts.

Generally Most essential oil/ aromatherapy sites say that mixes of essential oil to base oil should not exceed 5%.
A good rule of thumb when seeking to make a 2% dilution is to add 12 drops of essential oil to each fl. ounce (30 ml) of cold pressed carrier oil, lotion, vegetable butter or other natural lipid/moisturizer.
There is a useful dilutions chart here

And then there is this:
For adults:
Sensitive skin: .5 to 1 percent dilution = 3 to 6 drops per ounce
Normal, healthy skin: 1 to 2.5 percent dilution = 6 to 15 drops per ounce
There is lots of useful information here

My Mosquito Oil
So I added Citronella to a base oil at a 5% ration. I have used coconut oil, rice bran oil and rapeseed oil as bases. All work well.
I spread this on all exposed flesh when the sun begins to set. I only apply it once.

Obviously we are not talking about huge percentage of active ingredient here. Certainly not the 30% of DEET creams. How effective this oil is I have no way of knowing. I can only say it seems to work for a limited period of time.
AND PLEASE NOTE
These blends have not been tested for skin reactions or allergies. It is worth remembering that DEET lotions have been used for years and have been well tested.
I am telling you of my own experiences for your information only. You should do a lot more research before proceeding. And proceed with caution.
None of the above have been tested on anyone other than me. All I can say Is that I have used essential oils for a long time with no ill effects…..
Also
Essential oils are resource hungry, have a large environmental footprint and should only be used on special occasions. You can read more about essentials oils, what they are and how they are obtained here.

Buy

Plastic Alert
Vegetatable oil will nearly always have a plastic element unless you are lucky enough to find a refill service. Even if you buy in glass the lid will be plastic lined. But even so this represents a huge reduction in you plastic consumption. Read more and links on where to buy, here.

Same goes for essential oils.

More

There is an interesting breakdown of mosquito myths here. Plus some useful advice on how to avoid them.
And this is an interesting article on using plants to deter insects
And I am looking into this.
“PMD: Lemon Eucalyptus (Corymbia citriodora) Extract
The principal repellent component of lemon eucalyptus extract is PMD, which is the main by-product of lemon eucalyptus hydrodistillation.
The active component is prepared through acid modified extraction of leaves or a synthetic version of PMD is used in the majority of commercially available preparations.”
Read about it here.

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Bokashi Bins

by Posted in 3.1 Composting Tagged 4 Comments

Because I love all things compost, I invested in a Bokashi kit – two bins with taps and bokashi bran.

Lots of articles you read will say that you can use a bokashi bin to make compost. NO YOU CAN NOT. At least not in the sense that word is usually used. You can use it to make pickled, partially-dehydrated, fermented waste. However the resulting material still needs to be aged in soil or  a compost bin before it can be used on the garden.

This is a  two stage process.

BUT you can use the bokashi process to store a lot of food waste for weeks in a small bucket before further composting it. So what’s is the point of that?

  • It makes a green waste collection service viable.
  • Bokashi juice it is claimed makes a great house plant feed though some dispute that.
  • Reduces trips to the compost bin if your bin is on your allottment say.
  • It is a good way to start the decomposition process

How it works

The bokashi bin is a Japanese system that pickles your waste.

  • You put the waste in a bin ( can be anything including meat)
  •  press it down hard  and sprinkle with bacteria (bokashi) laced bran.
  • The bacteria begin to pickle your waste.
  • As it does so the waste begins to ooze juice. This you drain off. This juice can be used as a liquid feed.
  • Once the bucket is full you leave it to stand.
  • You can fit two weeks waste of two people (who cook fresh everyday) into one bucket.

What to do with your pickled waste?

  • You can feed it to the worms in your worm bin. Bokashi is claimed to help in  a limited space worm composting system. Compressing food waste means you can fit so much more in your worm bin and because it is part broken down, they deal with it more quickly.
  • You can put it on the compost heap again benefitting from reduced space requirements and increased composting times
  • You can dig it into the soil but you need to bury it deep to avoid attracting hungry animals who will dig it back up again. Personally I cannot see the point in that!
  • Not tried this  you can also bury your fermented food waste in an enclosed bin or box. Best to use a bin that has at least a 20 gal capacity. Start by adding 1″ of soil to bottom of bin. Next, add your fermented food waste. Add some more soil on top of that and mix it in with the food waste. Pour 3″-4″ inches of soil on top of food waste, soil mixture and pack it down. Cover the bin. Food waste should be completely broken down and ready to plant in 4-5 weeks. You can continue to stack additional fermented waste on top until your bin is full. Plant  your favorite veggies directly in bin when food waste has been completely broken down.
  • here are links to people who do this in the U.K.  “You add the pickled veg to the bottom of a pot or mix it in with the compost. You then need to let it settle for a couple of weeks, but then you can grow in it. The pickled veg rots down very quickly once in the soil. Basically, bokashi vastly accelerates the decomposition process – so although you don’t get ready made compost out of it, it is well on its way. Personally I prefer to use worm compost, but bokashi is a useful alternative.”

I can testify that bokashi bins work really well for storing waste but because my compost bin is so great,(it can compost anything and is rat proof), and is close by ( just at the end of our very small garden) I don’t really have much use for my Bokashi bin.

I do use it very cold winters when the daily trip to the bin is just too horrid.

I thought I was getting a good deal with the liquid feed but this article suggest otherwise.  “The majority of nutrients in food scraps is contained in large molecules like protein, DNA, carbohydrates, fats, oils etc. Since bokashi does not break down the food scraps these nutrients are still bound up in large molecules at the end of the bokashi process. That is why an apple still looks like an apple at the end of the process. The nutrients will not get released until the future composting process is completed.”

Interesting stuff as is this.  Bokashi in way more detail

Buy

You can buy bokashi bins from Even Greener who claim that

  • 4. CREDENTIALS Most of our products are made in the UK in our own factory. Including these bins.
  • 5. GREEN MANUFACTURE Most of our compost bins and water butts are made from recycled plastic using renewable energy.
  • 6. PRICE GUARANTEE Find it cheaper elsewhere and we will refund the difference.*
  • 7. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED Not 100% delighted? Return your goods within 30 days for a full refund.**

Make

If you are handy you can apparently make everything yourself including bokashi bran. I have never tried but seen online links.

Something Brilliant….

by Posted in 4.4 As Seen In

Are you doing something fantastic? Want to shout about it? Encourage others to join in? This is the site for you.

We’re on a mission to inspire the people of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to do more of the little brilliant things that make a big difference.This site is full of suggestions of quick and easy things for you to do.
Take and look and let us know if you’re doing #somethingbrilliant

Find #somethingbrilliant to do! Share #somethingbrilliant to do!

I shared my brilliant plastic free project.

So if you fancy joining me in a bit of plastic-free, Valentines love – I mean loving the planet – I am up on page 1 for a while. The one the misplaced logo and strangely paraphrased write up. But you get the idea!

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Candles

by Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade Tagged , , , , , 2 Comments

Nothing sets the mood quite as well as candles but it is hard to find plastic free candles. Most come in a protective plastic wrap or  bag. However we tracked down a few.

Which Candle?

Parrafin, soy or beeswax.

In the olden days candles were made from a by-product of beef-fat rendering(tallow) which stank and smoked or beeswax which didn’t smell or smoke but was very expensive.Then in the 1820s, French chemist Michel Eugene Chevreul discovered how to extract stearic acid from animal fatty acids. This could be used to make a wax that was harder and burnt far more cleanly.

However the most luxurious and brightest of all candles were made from crystallized spermaceti an oil obtained from the sperm whale. Like beeswax, spermaceti wax had a pleasing odour but also produced a far brighter light. Again it was a harder was so didn’t soften when the atmosphere got hot. Lucky for the sperm whale  who was being hunted into extinction for his light shedding wax, rock oil and its many by-products burst onto the scene. One such by-product was paraffin which could be used to make super-hard, super-bright and, best of all, cheap candles.

Recently, a huge surge in the popularity of candles has led to  new waxes being developed including soy bean wax.

Soy candles are made from a processed form of soybean oil called soy wax. It is very soft so most candles are made in tins or containers. However additives including beeswax, paraffin, or palm wax can be used to make it harder. Additives include: stearic acid, Vybar (a trademarked polymer), mineral oil, petrolatum, paraffin wax, ultraviolet absorbers, and bht crystals.

Most candles today are made from one of the following

  • paraffin (a product of petroleum refining);
  • stearin (now produced almost exclusively from palm waxes though initially manufactured from animal fats);
    beeswax
  • Gel Candles produced from gelled mineral oils or synthetic hydrocarbons. They are made in containers.though some are rigid enough to keep their own shape.
  • some plant waxes (generally palm, carnauba, bayberry, or soybean wax);

The size of the flame rate at which the candle burns is determined mostly by the size of the candle wick.

You can find out more about candles here and here.

Candle Types

Taper, Dinner or household candles. The traditional round candles that have to be set in candlesticks or empty wine bottles. Used for dinner parties and power cuts.

Pillar Candles are the modern version. Big and chunky, they are solid and self standing in a variety of sizes.

Floating Candles are designed to float on water.

Tealights are low round candles in a metal container. Much loved by the Ikea crowd. They are used in food warmers or  tealight holders

Container or Filled Candles are non-flammable, heat resistant containers which are filled with wax and  wick. They come in heat-resistant glass jars, tins and less often, pottery.

Votive Candles are come heat-resistant containers often with religious imagery.

Specialty or Novelty Candles come in a wide array of shapes either molded or sculpted by hand.

Scented candles – can be used to create a pleasant ambience or  mask other odours such as cooking or cigarette smoke. They can also be used to keep insects at bay though personally I don’t think they are very effective.

BUY

Basic white unscented candles

Parafin Candles

Bolsius Pack of 6 Household CandlesPrices do a practical range of plain white unscented candles both household & tealight. Last time I looked, so did Bolsius. I have bought both of the above packaged in cardboard from a number of local shops. If you can’t buy them locally you can of course get them on line.

BULK PACK of 14 - Ivory Church Candles (60mm x 152mm)

 

I found some pillar candles on Amazon which look to be plastic free – please check

 

BULK PACK of 14 – Ivory Church Candles (60m…

Vegetable Wax

If you don’t fancy paraffin candles,these organic, vegetable wax candles look plastic free. they are available from Nigels Ecostore  www.nigelsecostore.com and Amazon. Heaven Scent 24 Organic Unscented Tea Lights

Grehom Organic Dinner Candles (Set of 4) – … from Amazon also look to be plastic free!

NB be aware they contain palm oil but sustainably sourced Scented Candles

Paraffin Based

Price Candle PXT011028 Winter Jasmine Scented Tealights, WhitePrices do a wide range scented tealights and candles in a tins and glass jars with fragrances to suit all moods and occasions.  They also do some odour eaters great for eliminating or rather masking odours which work pretty well. These come as tealights, in tins or glass jars and include

  • HOUSEKEEPER~ Contains extracts of Beeswax, Mandarin & Lemon
  • CHEF’S CANDLE~ Contains extracts of Basil, Patchouli & Geranium
  • OPEN WINDOW~ Contains Lily, Violet & Orange Flower
  • Scented Candle In Tin - (Housekeeper) Prices Patent Candles Open Window Jar

I have bought all the above packaged in cardboard. Please be aware that tins ike this are almost always epoxy resin lined which is (yes you guessed), a plastic.

They can be bought pretty much everywhere.

Soy Candles

You could try Foundry Candles   from Oldham Manchester

“The scents of these delightful hand poured soy candles have been captured perfectly in a tin. Aprox 40 hours burning time. All natural ingredients. Check out all the amazing scents!”

Please be aware that tins  are almost always epoxy resin lined which is  a plastic.

There are plenty more up on Etsy but they are eye wateringly pricey. You might be better off making your own. How hard can it be?

soy wax

You can get soy flakes in a reusable cotton bag

  • Only supplied in the re-usable cotton storage sack if purchased from Amazon or Aura
  • Container blend – NO soot or smoke.
  • Achieves a longer burn than paraffin Wax.
  • Easy to clean up any spills with soap and water.
  • Finest quality American SOY WAX flakes.

Aura’s Eco Soy Wax Flakes. A greener way to make quality candles…. These flakes are the finest quality Eco Soy flakes imported from the United States. Superior to paraffin Wax, candles made with Eco Soy will burn longer and be free of soot & smoke……. BASIC DIRECTIONS: Melt like chocolate. Gradually add your chosen fragrance. Add your colour a little at a time. Secure your wick into the desired container. Pour the melted Eco Soy into your container & leave to harden…..Once set – Enjoy your candle!!

Beeswax

Try these from Etsy, they are made in London and  you should be able to discuss packaging with them.

Buy

One of the real joys of buying #plasticfree is sourcing the stuff in local shops. The excitement when you see milk in glass bottle in the newsagents is beyond words.

However sometime you have to buy on line. If so please see if there are links to sellers direct in the post above.

 If you can’t do that then I have put together and Amazon catalogue. Yes I know.

Amazon is a very dirty word at the moment and I thought long and hard before suggesting them.  Heres why I went ahead….. No we are not entirely happy with Amazons recent history. However, we have always found their service to be good and their packaging usually compostable.

If you buy a product via this link we do get an affiliation fee for this. This is not why we do it.

 

Bolsius Pack of 6 Household Candles PRICE'S HOUSEHOLD CANDLES 5PK - 5 CANDLES Sentinel Nightlights X6
Bolsius Pack of 6 Household Candles
£3.98		 PRICE’S HOUSEHOLD CANDLES 5PK – 5 CANDLES
£2.44
4		 Sentinel Nightlights X6
£3.40
BULK PACK of 14 - Ivory Church Candles (60mm x 152mm) Grehom Organic Dinner Candles (Set of 4) - Ivory Heaven Scent 24 Organic Unscented Tea Lights
BULK PACK of 14 – Ivory Church Candles (60m…
£29.99
These look like they might be unwrapped. Please double check before you buy – then tell me!		 Grehom Organic Dinner Candles (Set of 4) – …look to be plastic free! Heaven Scent 24 Organic Unscented Tea Lights
£5.81
Candles Naturally Plant Wax Unfragranced Tealights, Pack of 24, Natural Heaven Scent Natural Organic Jumbo Tea Light Candles - 24 (Long Life 7 hours) Prices Pack of 10 Tealights
Candles Naturally Plant Wax Unfragranced Te… Heaven Scent Natural Organic Jumbo Tea Ligh… Prices Pack of 10 Tealights
£5.24
Price Candle PXT011028 Winter Jasmine Scented Tealights, White Prices Patent Candles Open Window Jar Scented Candle In Tin - (Housekeeper)
Price Candle PXT011028 Winter Jasmine Scent…
£3.13		 Prices Patent Candles Open Window Jar
£5.49		 Scented Candle In Tin – (Housekeeper)
£6.95
Housekeeper Tealights - (FR441016) Prices Housekeeper Scented Candle in Tin Eliminates Household Odours - TRIPLE PACK Prices open window candle - FR510316x1
Housekeeper Tealights – (FR441016)
£4.95		 Prices Housekeeper Scented Candle in Tin El…
£10.99		 Prices open window candle – FR510316x1
£13.44
Prices Household Scented Candle in Tin - FR210616 Prices Candles FR541016 Open Window Tealights, Pack of 6, Green Prices Candles FR341016 6-Piece Chef's Tealights
Prices Household Scented Candle in Tin – FR…
£15.33		 Prices Candles FR541016 Open Window Tealigh…
£2.48		 Prices Candles FR341016 6-Piece Chef’s Teal…
£2.83

 

WASIWAX Handcrafted Wedding Carved Candles (Eternity) Magical Floating Candles - 50 Reusable Floats & 50 Long Burning Wicks fuelled by vegetable oil Clever & Unique Magical Floating Water Candles, 50 Reusable Silver Floats & 50 Long Burning Wicks fuelled by vegetable oil. Wedding Table Centrepiece
WASIWAX Handcrafted Wedding Carved Candles …
£34.90
As these are made in Britain you might be able to ask about plastic-free packaging		 Magical Floating Candles – 50 Reusable Floa…
£20.50		 Clever & Unique Magical Floating Water …
£20.50
2.5 KILO Eco Soya / Eco Soy Container Candle WAX Flakes - Lovely Alternative to Parrafin Wax 5metre Wedo LX8 (50mm) Candle Making Wick + 50 Sustainers 5 Metres Wedo ECO Candle Making Wick. High Quality - ECO 1
2.5 KILO Eco Soya / Eco Soy Container Candl…
£19.99		 5metre Wedo LX8 (50mm) Candle Making Wick +…
£3.09		 5 Metres Wedo ECO Candle Making Wick. High …
£2.50
ECO 8 Pre-tabbed Candle Wick - pack of 20 20 Pre Waxed Wicks For Candle Making Teacup / Medium Candles (LX18). 100mm Long.Quantity Jute Ribbon Brown 7/8 Inch by 10 Yard Roll Sold By The Yard
ECO 8 Pre-tabbed Candle Wick – pack of 20
£3.99		 20 Pre Waxed Wicks For Candle Making Teacup…
£2.60		 Jute Ribbon Brown 7/8 Inch by 10 Yard Roll …
£3.59
Prices Candles Tealights Winter Walk 6 Pack Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Garden Lavender Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Tea Rose
Prices Candles Tealights Winter Walk 6 Pack Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Garden Laven…
£3.12		 Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Tea Rose
£3.01
Price Candle PXT011005 Pomegranate and Walnut Scented Tealights, Pink Price Candle PXT011012 Fresh Fig Scented Tealights, Purple Price Candle PXT011010 Cinnamon Sticks Scented Tealights, Beige
Price Candle PXT011005 Pomegranate and Waln…
£3.12		 Price Candle PXT011012 Fresh Fig Scented Te…
£3.13		 Price Candle PXT011010 Cinnamon Sticks Scen…
£3.13
Price Candle PXT011020 Apple Spice Scented Tealights, Red Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Peach Blossom Soft Geranium Scented Tealights 6 Pack
Price Candle PXT011020 Apple Spice Scented …
£2.69		 Prices Fragrance Tealights x 6 Peach Blossom
£2.99		 Soft Geranium Scented Tealights 6 Pack
£3.13

 

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Online Magazines

by Posted in 4.4 As Seen In 2 Comments

Happy to have a post about going plasticless featured in Henpicked.

Henpicked is an online magazine “about sharing the wisdom of women”. Any cheek from you lot and you are going home! It started with a group of friends meeting up and talking who “realised there must be a huge number of wise women out there” so created an online forum for “the sort of things that women over 40 would be interested in.”

They don’t exclude younger women or even men “if they have something fascinating to tell us.” Well I am not young, or a man, but I think we can agree I am fascinating so here are my   wise words.

Signing up online is free, you can comment on articles, contribute to the forum even write articles for them. They are fun so why not give em a whirl. And do feel free to leave very enthusiastic comments. On my post that is!

Green Parenting

Got a nice write up in Green Parenting this month.

Inspiring people who have gone plastic free

Polythene Pam and Village Boy, a pair of bloggers from Yorkshire have documented their boycott of (almost) all things plastic on their blog Plastic Is Rubbish. They also have great resources on their website for finding out about plastic alternatives, what plastic they cannot live without and why you should consider cutting down your plastic consumption too.

Thank you and we like you too. Not only are there lots of interesting articles but they also attract some interesting advertisers. I was particuarly taken with Honour Your Flow selling woollen reusable sanitary towels.

I have asked them for more info which I hope they send.

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Easter

by Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.1 Special days & Parties Tagged , , 2 Comments

Easter Sunday falls on April 9, 2023 so time to start planning.

Absolutely disappointed that one of my favourites the M&S Cheese Eggs, with Barber’s Farmhouse Cheddar as whites and a vintage 18-month matured Red Leicester yolk hand-dipped in a duck egg blue wax ‘shell’, does not appear to be the stores. please correct me if I am wrong.

They are doing other plastic free eggs though.

You can find plastic free easter finds over here on Facebook tagged #plasticfreeeaster2023 Please do add and tag your own finds.

Eggs

Easter egg makers are far more environmentally aware than they used to be and it is now easily possible to buy plastic free eggs if you look for them.

If you cant find anything on your local shops these people supply plastic free food on line. Bet they have something…

Online Plasticfree food
This is an interesting option that allows you to buy basic foods on line plastic free. You can even use your own produce bags. Read more HERE

Refillable Eggs

An even greener option is to have a reusable, refillable egg. For example…

You can buy papier-mâché  eggs like these… online from here

If your decorating skills leave something to be desired you could try these Beatrix Potter tins can be bought here

There are lots more on eBay and Amazon 

Obviously the packaging might be plasticky but contact the supplier and see what they can do. If nothing then console yourself with the thought of all the future plastic you will be saving by going for a reusable.

Then you fill them with sweets and chocolates….

Sweets & Chocolate

You can still buy sweets loose in shops and even some supermarkets. I have seen those pastel chocolate eggs available which are of course ideal.
you can find loose sweets and ethical chocolate here

Or if you are feeling ambitious you try your hand at #plasticfree truffles – egg shaped of course. Find the recipe here.

Don’t Like Sweets?

But one of my favourites has to be the M&S Cheese Eggs! yes. M&S has launched a pack of six wax-covered Mini Cheesy Eggs, with Barber’s Farmhouse Cheddar as whites and a vintage 18-month matured Red Leicester yolk hand-dipped in a duck egg blue wax ‘shell’ and sold in what looks like a cardboard box. For obvious reasons I can’t get out to check.

Don’t like Cheese? Gasp! Flowers are always nice….

Flowers are always a lovely way to celebrate Easter for older or less chocolate orientated people. But  gettting them plastic  free can be tricky…..

Read More 

More Special Days, Gifting & Parties

More Special Days, Gifting & Parties

How to special celebrations like Halloween and  Christmas. Also those general chocolates/ flowers kind of days.

Plus gifting plastic free. Tips on cards, wrapping, sticky tape and others.

And of course how to party plastic free. The booze, the cocktail shaker the disposable cutlery. Then, when everyone goes home – finally, how to wash up.

See all our posts HERE

  • N.B.
    lines changes, products get removed. For more information why not ask the Plastic Is Rubbish FB group for updates. They are a great source of tidbits, personal experience and the latest news. Why not join them and share the plastic free love x
Join our Facebook group here
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Charity Shop Issues

by Posted in 2.1 reports, stats and studies Tagged 10 Comments

A reason not to buy in charity shops can be found on the Woven website about the second hand clothing trade in AFRICA

The following has been taken from the website

Africa is the fastest growing population center in the world. It currently has 1.1 billion people. That numbers nearly quadruples to 4.1billion by 2100.
The continent has the highest unemployment rates in the world in spite of having six of the worlds fastest growing economies.

“Probably 90% of the clothing people are buying in the whole country are second-hand clothes.” Sylvia Owori, Ugandan fashion designer.

SECOND-HAND CLOTHES IN AFRICA
Everyday before sunrise vendors line up to get first dibs on the huge pallets of compressed clothes as they come off trucks. They have absolutely no idea what’s inside.

BUYING THEMSELVES POOR
How much do you think someone living in Africa (the poorest continent on Earth) pays for a pair of second-hand jeans?
Places where over 80% of people make less than $2 a day (the UN global poverty benchmark). $1? $2? $3, more than a days wage? Guess again:
$5 to $7. Over two or three times what they earn in a day. But wait, there’s more.
All but a fraction of that money leaves the continent. Why? Because vendors purchase these bundles from international “clothing recyclers” that buy 97% the clothes you and I donate to charities like Goodwill, The Salvation Army and The Cancer Society. Vendors in the developing world pay up to a 1,000% markup for bundled clothes, lining these international companies pockets with huge profits–$3 billion a year huge–and none of that money supports the causes we thought we were.

This isn’t to blame the charities we donated to. In all honesty they do their best and if they could sell more donated clothes locally they would–they’d make more money that way. The truth is people don’t want to buy second-hand clothes in the developed world and charities that accept clothes have no other choice but to sell clothes they can’t sell locally to clothing recyclers.]

THE POOR GET POORER

The impact is devastating:  50% loss in jobs and a 40% decline in industry over two decades.
Textile and clothing employment along with other support work offer valuable entry level jobs in fledgling economies. Ghana and Nigeria are among the hardest hit losing 80% and over 95% of their textile employment respectively.

TEXTILES: END OF LIFE IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS MANUFACTURING

Most people understand what’s happening on the production side of the textile industry (i.e. sweatshops, etc) but few realize what’s happens to their clothes at the end of life when they donate them and they think they are doing some good.
Before I started looking into this I thought that clothes I donated were helping people in my local community by providing affordable clothes to less fortunate families. I was shocked to learn that only 3% of the clothes donated are ever resold locally. That’s three items for every 100 donated.
I was even more shocked to hear that the nonprofit I donate my clothes to only earns between $0.10 and $0.25 per pound. That’s about $0.20 to $0.50 for a pair of jeans.

More posts on this subject here 

 

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Condoms & Lubricants

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged , , , 1 Comment

If all goes well on Valentines day you may well be planning some intimate moments. Time to check out condoms.

Condoms come in the following materials….

Latex: made of latex rubber from rubber trees a natural and therefore biodegradable. Which has led to claims that that latex condoms are biodegradable. Which is hotly debated! Latex condoms contain addatives to make them (amongst other things) stronger. Many people say that even if they do eventually decompose, (not proven),  it takes such a long time as to make any claims of biodegradability  misleading. Certainly the anti-balloon camp do not consider latex balloons to be biodegradable despite what the balloon industry say. So, for the time being, lets leave latex on the shelf for further study.

Synthetic materials: polyisoprene, polyurethane and silicone. All of these are non- biodegradable materials.

Lambskin: sheeps intestines – no good for you vegans out there but definitely biodegradable.

Lets find out more

Here is some blurb from the British Condom shop about Trojan NaturaLambs, the make of lambskin condoms they sell

“These condoms are made from a natural membrane and while that may sound strange at first, they are one of the most comfortable, intimate, and largest condoms on the market. Most notable is their ability to transfer heat.

NaturaLamb condoms also have the exclusive Kling-Tite draw string at the base for added safety.

NOTE: These condoms do NOT protect against STDs, only unwanted pregnancy!”

Some more….

I am sure the packaging will contain plastic elements but then so will all the others. This appears to be the best option for condoms you can compost. The next question is would you want to?

Lube

Lambskin condoms can be used with both water-based and oil-based lubricants. However most commercially produced lubricants come in plastic bottles and many contain paragons, a preservative that causes some people concern. If you want something completely natural, go for for coconut oil. If you like this blog you know we love coconut oil – but don’t take our word for it, read this is a great write up about coconut oil in the bedroom.

NB If you find the smell overwhelming you might like to buy an odourless coconut oil. In Yorkshire? – you can buy coconut oil here

If you want to go for a traditional product here’s a good write up on what is available in the world of lubricants.

Buy From Amazon

Trojan Naturalamb Luxury Non Latex Condoms (10 Pack) Biona Org Odourless Coconut Oil 610 ML x 1
Trojan Naturalamb Luxury Non Latex Condoms …
£28.99
Made from sheeps intestines		 Biona Org Odourless Coconut Oil 610 ML x 1
£10.00

 

Amazon Products

Being committed to local shopping, I prefer to buy that way whenever possible. I would encourage you to do the same. One of the joys of living plastic free is mooching round the local shops seeing what you can source. But sometimes you can’t buy local so I have put together an Amazon catalogue.

Yes we do get an affiliation fee for this, and no we are not entirely happy with Amazons recent history. However, we have always found their service to be good and their packaging usually compostable.

 

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Crisps

by Posted in 3.1 Food & Drink Tagged 2 Comments

Wahey…after years of no crisps…. THIS….

Two farmers produce the hand hand-cooked crisps using potatoes that they grow, harvest, store, cook and pack using renewable energy that they generate on their farm in Herefordshire.
Flavours ‘lightly salted’, ‘Hereford Bullshot’, ‘Hereford Hop Cheese & Onion’ and ‘Salt & Cider Vinegar’.

Most importantly the crisps are packaged in 100 percent compostable bags!

You can buy on line or from these stockists.

See the rest of our plastic free sweets snacks and nibbles here

And all other foods here

N.B.

Lines changes, products get removed. For more information why not ask the Plastic Is Rubbish FB group for updates. They are a great source of tidbits, personal experience and the latest news. Why not join them and share the plastic free love x

And before you go…

If you have found the #plasticfree information useful, please consider supporting us. It all goes to financing the project (read more here) or

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

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Twitter & Thunderbolt

by Posted in 5 Blog Social Media & Map 2 Comments

Here are some hashtags you might like to explore!

Twitter Tags

 – new tag on the blogs – for stupidly overpacked items

 i.e not disposables which we would like to

 … YES!!!!

#plasticfree

#plasticshaming – for particularly gross plastic products

#PfreeUK – the tag for the directory of plasticless/free projects, businesesse & other aware bodies based in the UK.

#plastic

#singleuseplastic

#plasticpollution

#unpackaged

#noplastic

#pfjuk – plastic free July U.K. related subjects.

And if you want to mange your Twitter lists quickly and efficiently, try this free app 

#Plasticfree – a proviso for the picky

I describe myself as a plastic- refusnik, a boycotter or plastic free. But I have never been happy with any of those labels. I am not plastic free. I live in a house with plastic cabling, I work on my plastic computer until I put on my plastic coat to go out in the rain. I have a relationship with my Dyson that is almost love.

Nor would I aspire to be plastic free. Plastic is a great product that has changed the world for the better.

It is the misuse of plastic that I am campaigning against not the product itself. So yes I refuse a lot of trashy plastic, I boycott abused plastic, but plastic- free? No certainly not. It was Michelles tag, being PALL ( plastic a lot less) that summed it up for me. That is exactly what we, the plastic avoiders are, plastic-less.

Michelle has been plasticless for a longtime now – and she can help you go plasticless too. Find out more about Michelle, and being PALL here.

But I still use the #plasticfree hashtag because I have used for so long.

 

I am always looking for ways to promote plastic reduction so I thought I would try this new approach from Thunderclap

“Thunderclap is the first-ever crowd speaking platform that helps people be heard by saying something together. It allows a single message to be mass-shared, flash mob-style, so it rises above the noise of your social networks. By boosting the signal at the same time. Thunderclap helps a single person create action and change like never before.
This is my message and I want to get it out there to as many people as possible “Cut plastic trash and limit your contact with endocrine disruptors with these 350+ plastic-free alternatives” with a link to my blog.

To do this I have to get support for my campaign from you the people.

How?

You visit this page and pledge your suport via one the social media channels you belong to – or indeed all of them!Once done you are added to my supporters total.

If I get 100 supportersThunderclap will post my message on all the accounts following me on July 31st. creating one big social media shout out helping people cut plastic pollution for the good of the planet and thier health.

This is a one time message. You will not be spammed or anything nasty and if you change your mind you can opt out at any time.
Many thanks for your support. Together we can make changes! x

 

 

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Cleaning products – refill system

by Posted in 3.1 Cleaning Up, 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.1 House, Office & Garden, 3.6 Businesses & social enterprises Tagged , , 2 Comments

Planet Earth offers a range of household cleaning products with a unique refill and reuse system.

It works and has been scientifically tested to be as good as the leading brand.

It’s an eco winner: To make a bottle of eco2life cleaner, fill a spray bottle about half full of ordinary tap water, simply add one ‘small wonder’ refill to the spray bottle and top up with cold tap water. Replace the trigger, give it a quick shake – you’re all set to go.

There is no lugging of ‘water’ back and forth, requiring less production, less energy, less packaging

Our spray trigger is designed for a long life and our spray bottles are reusable.

Vegetarian Society Approved.

It’s made in the UK and of course it’s made from naturally derived readily biodegradable aquatic safe ingredients with fully recyclable packaging.

Planet Earth eco2life ‘The brilliantly simple refill system’!

Please note

This post was written by the contributor. It is not a Plastic Is Rubbish review, does not represent my personal opinions and I may not have used this product or service. Instead it is a PfU.K. Directory submission.

The Pf U.K. Directory is…?

…a directory of UK-based groups, organisations businesses and individuals who are responding to the problems presented by the misuse of plastic. That does not mean anti-plastic necessarily but certainly plastic-problem aware.

In 2014 I hope to feature 12 UK-based initiatives featuring refuseniks, trash slashers, businesses and the rest.

The DIRECTORY is to promote their work not mine. Read more here…

Got a project?
It is very easy to get a project featured. Each contributor submits a short synopsis of their project, focussing on the plastic aware element and I post it. You can read the submission guidelines here.