Clothes – Shop Bought

I have started making my own clothes but some things are beyond me. Tee shirts, underwear and Jeans / trousers are all way too difficult as yet. Socks, tights and leggings also fall into this category. Though I am learning to knit socks!!!

So some stuff I have to buy. I have strict rules ( surprise) applied to buying of clothes. I mostly buy natural fibres Read about how I buy and why I prefer natural fabrics over synthetics here.

Buying Plastic Free

You might be buying woolen trousers but you still get some plastic. The cotton to sew them will be plastic, as will the buttons and other fixings. Even the labels. and those beastly coat hangers. Its a minefield I tell you.
Read more about plastic Involved when buying ready made clothes

Clothes I have sourced

Cycling and UV resistant clothing- work in progress
Swimwear
Knickers
Tee shirts Marks & Spencer’s see below
Jeans and trousers Marks & Spencer’s see below

I only feel comfortable buying sustainable clothes. I mean clothes made from cloth woven from fair-trade, ideally organically-grown, natural fibres, by people paid a proper wage. The articles then need to be sewn up in safe and healthy environments by adults who can live off what they earn. Problem is I can’t afford those kinds of clothes on what I earn.

So I shop at M&S. one of the more sustainable high street stores and pretty good value. They also do reasonably good quality cotton basics. They sell a lot of stuff unhung and they actually reuse their plastic hangers. But….. much as I like M&S I have to admit that they can be a little… erm…. stodgy? And some of the above plastic related issues still apply,

Making Your Own Plasticfree Sustainable Clothes

Seems to me the only way to get completely compostable clothes that are, sustainable, affordable and plastic-free as possible is to make them yourself. So I dragged out my sewing machine and started stitching my own sustainable duds in sustainable amounts.

Fibres to fabrics

definitions Fibres to fabric
Kinds Of fabric – my ongoing experiences with cloth.
Why I prefer natural fabrics over synthetics here.

Clothes

The plastic In ready made clothes
See my shop bought clothes here
sustainable criteria for buying or making clothes in the clothing manifesto
How to sew plastic free
See The clothes I have made here
How Much? The Fair Share Fabric ProjectIntroduction and yearly synopsis

Buy On Line Plastic Free

22 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 00 Featured Post, 3.2 How To...plastic-free, 3.2 Shops & Businesses Tagged 3.2.3 Buy On Line 7 Comments

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.

But sometime you have to buy on line. And then you come up against the prickly problem of packaging

There is nothing that enrages plastic activist in me more than researching a product that claims to be plastic free and environmentally friendly, purchase online, wait eagerly only to find it comes plastic packed.

Plastic free and plastic reduced products are of course a great step forward in the battle against plastic. But when I am buying a product I want to know how the product is packaged. There is little point buying a wooden comb if it comes in a plastic bag.

If it comes via an online, postal service, onward packaging needs to be stated. I want to know how the product will be packed and the more information the better. Down to what kind of tape is used (whether it is plastic or not) and whether the invoice will be in a plastic bag on the front of the box.

Which is why I like he following companies who offer plastic free products but also consider the onward packaging.

N.B. But no matter what I say, check and double check for yourself. One mans plastic free is another’s little bit of sticky tape.

These guys are super keen plastic free suppliers

Loose Foods

This is stuff that that normally comes plastic packaged like beans, dried fruit and pasta.

While there are an increasing number of shops selling loose food they are still few and far between, not everyone has local shops and supermarkets love plastic packaging. Don’t despair if there is nowhere near you selling rubbish free food, you might be interested in this option. It is possible to buy food online loose and plasticfree. You can even use your own cotton produce bags for some things. Read more here

N.B. Prefer the high street? You can see if a shop near you sells food loose via this list of towns

General, Household & Personal

From soap refills to soap dishes, almost everything you need for a plastic free life. posted out to you plastic free.

Some great shops here

Toys & Crafts

Myriadonline for toys and craft supplies. Use cardboard and paper packaging including paper parcel tape.

A really lovely shop full of wooden toys and wool felt balls. Recommend you have a look HERE

Most of the products featured on the blog have an online option to buy. It is always worth contacting businesses and asking if they can post you product plastic free. Offer to cover the costs of a cardboard box if needs be.
Look here for individual products.

We a try to link directly with a business we know and have used but we cannot always do this. And sometimes cost considerations mean we want to offer a range of options in different price brackets. In these cases we try to find other more affordable on Amazon.

Amazon is a very dirty word at the moment and I thought long and hard before suggesting them. No we are not happy with Amazons recent history. However, we have always found their service to be good and their packaging usually cardboard and so compostable. Though of course this cannot be guaranteed. You can read more of our reasons in the post.

Amazon catelogue 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

Office & Electronics

21 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 House, Office & Garden Tagged 3.1.6 Office, 3.2.3 Buy On Line 6 Comments

Posts with links to suppliers

Envelopes

One years worth of junk mail for one person in the US equals about 2 feet. Most of these letters ...
Read More

Highlighter pencils – wooden

Replace nasty, plastic, highlighter pens with fantastic fluero pencils from Stabilo. According to their website the STABILO GREENlighter proves that ...
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Rubber – PVC free

I didn't know that PVC was found in rubbers but here you go .... from the blurb.... PVC-free thermoplastic rubber ...
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Pencils & pencil sharpeners

The ultimate in plastic free writing but they will fade with time Pencils A really great plastic-free,note taker.... Can be bought ...
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Pen Ink refillable

Here is a one of the worlds finest inventions as radical in its time as the computer has been in ...
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On Line Stores

Check out my Pinterest board with some links to suppliers. I sourced some similar looking stuff on Amazon below

Recycled Paper Cylinder Style USB Flash Drive (DC-M80): 758958 The cylinder style body of this USB drive is constructed from recycled paper making it an eco-friendly, green product.

Recycled Paper Cylinder Style USB Flash Drive (DC-M80) allwrappedupgiftshowcase.comEdit

Fujitsu Wooden Laptop – The Ultimate Plastic free office item!

Wooden calculator any one?

Amazon Catalogue

While we would urge you to shop local, I have put together an Amazon shop.


Artis Handmade Bamboo Wooden PC Wireless Ke… £19.99	Handcrafted Wireless Bamboo Keyboard – Eco-… £21.99	16GB Wooden Leaf USB Flash Drive (Brown) £3.65

16GB Personalised Samsung Flashitall Eco Wo… £20.00	16 GB USB FLASH DRIVE BRACELET Wristband (L… £14.99	8GB Samsung Flashitall USB 3.0 Super Speed … £15.00

iPad Stand Holder, Desk Tidy Organiser Disp…	Adjustable iPAD Holder / Stand Desktop Orga…	Pro-Tec Pure Bamboo Universal Desktop Table… £9.99


Rexel Odyssey Personal Heavy Duty Stapler S… £21.07	Zenith 130001 Plier Stapler Grey Metal Alum… £27.18	Silverline Steel Rule £1.67 – £14.39

2pc Steel Rule Set, P5170 £1.99	LYRA DOUBLE HOLE WOODEN PENCIL SHARPENER £3.99	5 Star Pencil Sharpener Pocket-sized Metal … £1.36

STAEDTLER SINGLE HOLE METAL PENCIL SHARPENE… £1.55	Stabilo Greenlighter Highlighter Pencil FSC… £14.26	KOH-I-NOOR Highlighter Pencils – Assorted C… £5.00


Stabilo 6007/3 – GREENlighter Bright Colour… £4.57	Exclusive Desktop Tape Dispenser The ProfiL… £34.90 wood & metal tape dispenser – be sure to use paper tape.	Rexel Bamboo Letter Tray Natural (100% Recy… £16.03

Desk Letter Rack, Paper Tray, Magazines Hol… £14.69	Umbra Aquala Bathtub Caddy Natural £43.47	Artis Large Chunky Handmade Crafted Bamboo … £14.99

Rexel Bamboo Magazine Rack Natural (100% Re… £14.99	Herlitz max.file Nature A4 8cm Lever Arch F… £13.99	Fancy wooden Mini Stapler £13.90


Thinksound ts02 8mm High Definition Passive… £39.99 Making smarter choices thinksound headphones are designed with features to reduce its overall environmental impact: Wood…	EiioX Latest Design Fashion Bamboo Cube Min… £13.59	Red LED Wood Wooden Digital Alarm Clock DC … £15.00

Wrapping paper

16 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.1 Special days & Parties 7 Comments

I had to wrap a present the other day. I was away from home and my huge stock of unbleached tissue paper. Cue flurry of worry. I assumed that all gift wrap came plastic wrapped these days. I was wrong! You can still buy gift wrap in single, unpackaged sheets from card and book shops. But it is either incredably expensive or very ugly. They got very ugly!

For a one off this might work but if you have a lot of presents to wrap, at Christmas for example, this is not an option. Unless you are filthy rich!

A cheaper, greener alternative much touted on the internet is to recycle newspaper as a wrap. The examples up on Pinterest look lovely and I have no problem with the idea. It’s the content that worries me. I cannot give a present wrapped in the turgid prose of the Stodgeville Gazette.

Which is why (in the days before the bulk tissue purchase), I used to use foreign news papers. Especially Chinese which I thought looked great. For sure they might be lamenting some dreadful triple murder and suicide but who’s to know! Unless you are Chinese obvs!

But how green is it to recycle a chinese newspaper that you cannot read? And I gave up the Stodgeville Gazette years ago.Which is why I ended up buying tissue paper in bulk.

Here are three alternative wrapping paper options:

Wrapping Tissue: This rather grainy, super-cheap tissue paper is used for wrapping breakables.of the cheaper packaging papers on the bulk buy market. I bought it wholesale in a polythene bag and that one purchase seems to be lasting a life time.

Brown Paper:Then there is the kraft paper used for the old school brown paper parcels. You can get huge rolls of this paper which again last forever. This option is very chic in the green, present-wrapping circles!

Newspaper Offcuts. This unmarked white paper is, as it sounds, a waste product of the newspaper industry.

Purchase

You can usually find all the above in shops selling packaging. If you go to a real shop you may be able to get some plastic free. Buy on line and in bulk and it will almost certainly come pre plastic-packed. You have to content yourself with the plastic offset and the knowledge that this plastic is already in your waste stream however you buy.

Read about our thoughts on bulk-buy, plastic-wrapped wholesale here.

Paper available on Amazon


White Tissue Paper – 450x700mm. Pack of 500… £16.00	PPD 500 Sheets Of White Packing Paper – New… £14.99	500mm x 10m Kraft Paper Roll 88gsm £3.55

750mm x 20M Heavy Duty Brown Kraft Wrapping… £5.24

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. of independent sellers operating through Amazon.

Amazon is a very dirty word at the moment and I thought long and hard before suggesting them. Heres why I went ahead…..

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.

BUT

But even though these papers are cheap and often recycled, this is still not a zero waste option. It still contributes to the wrapping paper trash mountain. According to Veolia UK ‏@VeoliaUK , every Christmas we use enough wrapping paper on our presents to go around the equator 9 times!

“Eden’s Paper is 100% plantable wrapping paper. It’s a gift within a gift! So, instead of throwing your wrapping paper in the bin, you can now plant it to grow things like veg, herbs or flowers!

Once the paper has been planted in the soil, the paper immediately begins to biodegrade leaving the seeds to grow into champion veg or flowers.

3 pack includes: 1 x Broccoli, 1 x Carrot, 1 x Tomato
5 pack includes: 1 x Broccoli, 1 x Carrot, 1 x Tomato, 1 x Beetroot, 1 x Bell Pepper
They also do flowers – great for mothers day!

Our paper is made from 100% recycled paper. The seeds are embedded on the back of the wrapping paper in seven layers of biodegradable tissue paper. The wrapping paper and tissue paper layers use no glues to hold them together, as glues are harmful to the soil.

MADE IN BRITAIN

Hmmm. Perhaps we need to be considering reusable wrapping.

Sticky Tape

You will also need to get some biodegradable sticky tape like this to wrap your paper parcels.

see all our wrapping posts here

Valentines Day

15 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.1 Special days & Parties Tagged 5 Content Veiw 3 Comments

Wethers it’s Valentines Day, a very special date, an anniversary or just because, here’s a round up of plastic free posts to woo your plastic free sweetie.

Argh last minute Valentine day fixes….

Forgot !?! Quick, go get this free down load and print out the coupon book. Serve with a deep soulful look and "Experiences mean so much more than things, baby". I ...
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Candles

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 ...
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Condoms & Lubricants

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 ...
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How to wrap gifts plastic-free

Which wrap should you choose? Well we prefer reusables over all else so here are some wraps you can use over and over again... Reusable Wraps Wrap your presents in ...
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Sweets, Snacks & Nibbles

I don't care if the lady loves milk tray, she's not getting a box of chocks from me. Not with that plastic wrapping, plastic cover sheet and plastic sweet tray. Before ...
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How To Buy Flowers Plastic Free

You don't even want to know how many plastic wrapped roses we are going to get through on this one Valentine's day.Oh you do? According to the Flowers & Plants Association, ...
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Greetings cards

Cards have been the bane of my life , (I mean greeting cards not gambling - that's all in the past), as many come wrapped in icky plastic. So what are the alternatives? E-cards ...
Read More

More Special Days

Other special days can all be found 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

Plastics That Cut Plastic

13 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 4.0 Us, the boycott & the blog 4 Comments

There are always conflicts in any course of action and a plastic boycott is no different. Some times you need to use plastic to cut your plastic consumption.

Plastic Products

If a product reduces your consumption of plastic disposables or packaging waste then we feel there is a strong justification for using it. The silicone menstrual cup for example. This reusable menstrual protection made from non biodegradable silicon and may come plastic packaged yet will save you mountains of plastic menstrual waste. Another is our juice maker.

Plastic Packed

I make my own personal care and cleaning products, everything from dish wash powder to suntan lotion. This of course massively reduces my plastic consumption but doesn’t cut it completely. Yes, you guessed it, the ingredients I use to make said products come wrapped in plastic. As I cannot avoid this, and the end waste is a few plastic bags as opposed to a big pile of plastic packaging, I accept it as inevitable. Of course I continue to look for plastic free suppliers.

Includes
Glass bottle /plastic lid
Vinegar
Essential oils
Coconut oil used in place of almost everything

Comes In A Plastic Bag
Vegetable butter and other cosmetic making supplies
Borax and other cleaning chemicals
Cotton on a plastic reel for making plastic free clothes.

Check out a list of sneaky plastic here – yes that tin is plastic lined!

Wholesale

While you can often buy single units plastic free if you go further back down the supply chain, products bought wholesale are packed in plastic. The plastic bags are then broken open and individual units sold on unwrapped. This is true of most things from bacon in the butchers to mop heads in the market and loo rolls in the corner shop.

Now you you only want one mop head, searching out an unwrapped one is the way to go. But what if you have a very dirty house and you need 10 mop heads? Is it foolish to cling to principal and buy each mop head separately? Even when you know that those 10 mop heads will arrive at the shop packed in a plastic bag?

In this case I buy bulk because even if I bought ten, individual, unwrapped mop heads, the original plastic packaging (the plastic bag came in), is still in my waste stream if not in my bin.

Believe me, I have been down this path with our wholesalers. I have even had sales staff very kindly rip open the plastic bags to give me the mop heads unpackaged – but what is the point in that? At least if I take the bag I know it will get put in the recycle bin. I console myself with the thought that buying in bulk massively reduces packaging. It is not my preferred option but my preferred option of plastic-free packaging at all levels does not yet exist. Until it does, I will keep on campaigning for sustainable packaging and contacting the people who supply the wholesaler.

Which raises the question – how far back down the waste stream are you prepared to go to be plastic free?

See all our plastic to cut plastic products here
You can read more about the plastics we use here

Fibres & Bristles

13 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.6 Good to know, 4 About The Alternatives Tagged 5 Content Veiw 1 Comment

A guide to natural and biodegradable fibres that are safe to compost and can be used and washed without shedding tiny plastic microfibres that go on to pollute the land and sea.

What Are Fibres & Bristles

Fibres are thin strands that can be spun to form one continuous thread that can be used a rope or thread or if fine enough woven into cloth.
Bristles are short stiff animal hairs or feathers. Or very stiff vegetable fibres used in brushes.
Plant derived fibres/bristles include everything from the finest cotton to the stiffest bassine
Animal derived fibres/bristles range from fine silk to boar bristle hair brushes.
Bristles and fibres can also be replicated in plastic. So acrylic mimics wool and plastic brushes replace natural brooms.

Fibres, Yarns and Fabrics

Fibres (and then yarns and ultimately fabrics) can be can be natural, synthetic or chemically produced hybrid called regenerated fibres.

Know Your Fibres

Natural Fibres
These are plant or animal derived.
They biodegrade
Coarse Fibres for rope, string, sacking and industrial uses include:
Abaca can be used for rope, coir from coconuts has a wide range of applications, jute is used for sack cloth and sisal for string. As well as these traditional uses there are many new applications.
Read more HERE
Fibres used for finer fabrics and yarn include cotton, flax wool and silk. They are used to male threads and yarns and can ultimately be knitted or woven into fabrics

Synthetic fibres
These are man-made from chemicals many of which are petroleum derived.
They include acrylic , nylon and polyester
They are derived from oil and coal.
Most do not biodegrade.

Regenerated Fibres
The base material is cellulose that can be obtained from a range of sources including wood, paper, cotton fiber, or bamboo. It is then converted through a chemical process into a fiber.
Some it is claimed are biodegradable. Some are not.
Regenerated fibres include Rayon, Bamboo Rayon, Viscose,Modal and tencel (lyocell)

Fabrics
Fibres can be spun into yarn or threads.
In turn this can be can be twisted into string or rope
woven or knitted into fabric.

More
Read more about fabrics and fibres HERE

Know Your Bristles & Brushes

Plant Derived Bristles
Basin,
Natural Coco Fibre (COIR) can also be used as a rough yarn
Black Coco Fibre (DYED COCO),
Bahia Piassava (BASS) Arenga (GUMATI ) Tampico Fibre
Union mixture is a mixture of white fibre and bassine.

Animal Derived Bristles
The most commonly known are
Boars hair is used for hairbrushes.
Feathers for dusters
A variety of animal hair for decorating and artists paint brushes

Synthetic Bristles

Polypropylen (PPN) PPN
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Flagged PVC/PPN

Easy enough to spot when they are used alone but sometimes they are mixed with natural fibres. Do check carefully when buying natural fibres. Ask if any of the above have been used or look carefully at the bristles.

Whats that dot mean?

11 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 1.51 Reusing & Recycling Plastic Tagged 5 Content Veiw

The Green Dot is a symbol used on packaging in many European countries.

It looks like a recycling logo but is not.

It is a trademark.

It is not always green. Sometimes it is black and white!

In the UK but has no specific meaning for UK consumers.

In Europe howeve it indicates that a packaging producer has paid the have a proportion of their packaging collected and recycled.

They have to. The European “Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive – 94/62/EC” This applies to all companies whose products use packaging. It states that manufacturers have to collect any recyclable packaging they use.

Obviously most do not do this. Instead they pay a company to do it for them. They can then display the green dot on their packaging.

Frequently asked questions about the Green Dot® program.

Which companies need to comply with the Packaging Waste Directive?
All companies need to comply with the Directive if their products include nearly any type of packaging.

Can I come up with my own packaging recovery plan and avoid joining Green Dot^®?
Yes, you can present your own plan for packaging recovery. This may make sense if you are very low volume producer with very few customers.

Am I required to join the Green Dot^® scheme?
No. You are not required to join a program such as Green Dot^®. However, the Packaging Directive requires manufacturers to recover their own packaging. Most companies find this impractical and participating in the Green Dot^® Program is one way to meet these requirements.

You can find this very useful Q&A post here

To conclude

A licence fee is paid by manufactorers towards the cost of collection and recycling.
The amount paid depends on the material used in packaging (e.g. paper, plastic, metal, wood, cardboard).
Different countries pay diferent amounts for joining the the scheme.
Fees take into account the cost of collection, sorting and recycling methods.
A reduction in packaging means a reduction in the liscence fee.
Once the fee is paid the company can then display the green dot on their packaging and consumers will know that the manufacturer contributes to the cost of recovery and recycling.

We do not use this system in the UK. The Green Dot is not used as a compliance mark in the UK, but it is still a trademark. Anyone who produces packaging with a Green Dot, which is then sold in the UK, must pay a UK licence fee through Valpak Ltd.

Find more on this and other international packaging signs here.

Better still buy unpackaged and take your own reusable bags

Huddersfield Queensgate Market

9 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 6 archive Tagged 3.1.3 Loose Food, 3.2.2 West Yorkshire 2 Comments

Queensgate Market has now closed. As it is an architectural landmark cannot be demolished but its future is uncertain.

From Kirklees Council website

Opened on April 6th 1970 the Queensgate Market Hall was built with a bespoke roof system of 21 asymmetric curved shells. The design allows for maximum light into the market and is considered to be the best example still standing of a retail market from the 1960s and 1970s.

In 2005 Culture Minister David Lammy listed the building as Grade II, stating, “It is an imaginative structure that combines innovative technology of its time to produce a dramatic space full of natural light with the striking focal point of the roof.”
The exterior of the building incorporates natural stone with exposed concrete and several art relief panels all individually sculpted by the artist Fritz Steller.

The Hall has been haled by local architecture expert Adrian Evans as “A spectacular combination of architecture, engineering and art.”
For further information and images visit Huddersfield Gem

Plastic free Northumberland wildlife trust…

7 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.7 Other Solutions Tagged 3.6 #P-fU.K. Directory 5 Comments

This month 3 employees will try to live without plastic…..

In January 2015 we are attempting to go plastic free to help highlight the problems of plastics in our environment. While this plastic free status is only for the month it should also help us to reduce our use of plastic in the long-term. Here we hope to highlight some of the problems, the solutions and ways that all of us can help reduce plastics in our environment.

It should be emphasised that we are particularly keen to avoid single use plastic items as it is almost impossible to avoid the use of plastic items that occur everywhere (phones, computers, cars etc.). By single use we include bottles that claim to be recyclable as opposed to re reuseable.

Follow their progress here on the blog

Christmas Crackers Reusable

6 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.1 General & Homemade Tagged 3.1.2 reusables, 3.1.5 Christmas, 5 Content Veiw 1 Comment

As they sound – a cracker that can be used over and over again. Probably not completely plastic free, (those ribbons look synthetic), but a great way of reducing your trash.

These are made by a UK company Keep This Cracker. The following was taken from their website.
What makes our Gift Box Crackers so unique?
Slide open the box and it goes Bang! just like a cracker. Fill with your own gifts and personalise them for any occasion. Easy to reuse just feed a new snap into the slots at each end.
Sadly it looks as though the crackers come in plastic packaging. Check with the supplier…

I haven’t actually used these but you read about Westywrites experiences with reusable christmas crackers here.

Fill
You could fill them with plastic free sweets if you can’t find suitable gifts.
There are loads of printable joke sheets up on Pinterest. They are truly corny. But they come with snowmen. Here’s and example.

Make
And if you are crafty you can make your own crackers. I have never done this but there are instructions up on Pinterest. Looks fiddly to me! You can buy cracker snaps from craft shops and on line.

Buy

You can buy crackersnaps and more reusable crackers from Amazon. You can read about our Amazon links here.


Refillable Crackers – Bundle of 6 snaps £2.50	Refillable Crackers 4 Packs (Folk Green) £12.75	Refillable Crackers 4 Packs (Ornate Jade) £12.75

You can find lots more plastic free Christmas tips here…
And you can read up more about special days and general partying here.

2016 Fair Share Fabric & Clothing Rationing

5 January 2015 by Plastic Is Rubbish Posted in 4.3 My Projects Tagged 4.3 Fair Share Fabric 3 Comments

The figures are in … In 2016 I used
Total 3.835 natural fibres
Total 318g synthetic fibres
Total 45g regenerated fibres
My Fair Share Fibre Ration

Why the weighing? I have pledged to use no more than my fair global share of fibres and they have to be sustainably sourced. Whats a global share? 11.74 kg per person of which 3.8 kg is natural fibres. As I don’t like synthetics I try to stick to 3.8 kg of natural fibres. You can check my figures here.

So I am over on natural fibres but way under on synthetics.
However in 2015 I bought 3.15 kg of natural fibre products and 3.2 kg of synthetic fibres. – so I had a 65g surplus of natural fibres to use up

Sustainability

You can read my clothing manifesto here

Circumstances
The clothes you wear are dictated by your lifestyle so here’s what I needed to dress for this year:
Returned home from backpacking the tropics. The days of 2 teeshirts, a mu-mu of modersty and backpackers bloomers were sadly over. I desperately needed some new clothes. The next three weeks saw me busy sewing. The design brief was a little more complex this year. Not only did the clothes have to be sustainable & plastic free, they had to be rather more dressy than I am used to.

Returned home from backpacking the tropics. The days of 2 teeshirts, a mu-mu of modesty and backpackers bloomers were sadly over. I desperately needed some new clothes. The next three weeks saw me busy sewing. The design brief was a little more complex this year. Not only did the clothes have to be sustainable & plastic free, they had to be rather more dressy than I am used to because at Easter we were fulfilling a long held dream – to be in Seville for the Santa Semana and the Feria.

Santa Semana is a week of processions elaborately decorated floats are hauled through the streets, by teams of ‘costaleros’ (bearers) followed by hundreds of ‘nazarenos’ (penitents), many in pointy hoods looking very sinister. This is followed a couple of weeks later with a big party The Real de la Feria where people drink, dance and dress up. The “women wear the traditional “traje de gitano”, literally “gypsy outfits” or flamenco dresses, often in bright colors, and accessorized with matching/coordinating flower in hair, comb, jewelry, tasseled scarf/shawl and fan. Apparently the “dresses are pricey, but worth investing in if you’ll be coming back again – nothing makes you feel part of an event like being dressed appropriately”

Bugger! After nearly a year backpacking, preceded by a year living in a van I can truthfully claim that while all my outfits may well be representative of the modern-day gypsy none of them are fit for a party. This nomad wears khaki shorts, sludgy colored T-shirts (murky from repeated mixed washes) and the emergency muumuu for visiting Iran. Absolutely no bright colors or fringed shawls and definitely no frills.

All I have in my hair is twigs and bits of straw. I haven’t accessorized since my Jackie reading days.

But I am not investing in a dress. I can’t afford it and I would feel ridiculous. More importantly I am living within my fair share of fabric allowance so any clothes I get are going to have to last me the year. They have to theatrical enough for Seville yet practical enough for the U.K.
So I needed something dressy, theatrical yet practical, sustainable yet frivolous
Seville Wardrobe

Chiffon Shirt For the Feria the week-long party in Seville, I made a chiffon top. I know – get me…. in chiffon which I wore with the
The Ebay Fabric Jacket
Downton (Yorkshire Wool) Waistcoat
The Bombazine Skirt
I looked flamboyant at least.

Then back to rather less showy Huddersfield for what I thought was going to be a hot summer. There were a couple of hot and steamy weeks I sewed sleeveless frocks and cool skirts. Then the weather turned obvs! so I had to quickly put together some rather warmer shirts. And buy some T shirts to wear under them.
Had hoped to be back on the road by winter but it was not to be so I had to make a thick skirt that I can wear with wooly tights and leggings.

Natural Fibres

Socks, Vests & Tees
2 pairs of socks from Debenhams 45g each

1 wool homemade 73g
Black vest gifted 144g
Bought In Mostly Natural Fibres (label etc might not be)
White vest gifted 105g
New spotty top – Marks & Sparks 160g
2 no 3/4 sleeve T 156g each
grey vest 105g Marks & Sparks

Trousers
Denim Long Shorts 316g
Linen Pants 414g

Skirts
Wrap Skirt 249g
stripy cotton skirt gifted 231g
The Bombazine Skirt 541g
Corduroy Skirt 300g

Tunics & Tops
Wrap Shirt Lawn Chiffon
Wrap shirt 108g
Offset Tunic 157g
Tabbard Frock 149g
Choir Boy 132g
Liberty Lawn Shirt 96g
Vogue lawn top 110g
Woolen Tunic 288g
Jackets & Other stuff
Yorkshire Wool Waistcoat 178g
Ebay Woolen jacket 180g

Total 3.835

Regenerated Fibres

Bamboo is a regenerated fibre and falls somewhere between natural and synthetcic. Some biodegradae some do not. Bamboo is a form of regenerated fibre. Personally I dont like it but the socks were a gift. Read more here

1 ankle socks bamboo skull & crossbones 45g

Synthetic Fibres
Huge circular skirt 243g
New Swim Top 75g

Total 318g

Terms
By gifted I mean something that people have passed on to me because they no longer want it. Second hand but not purchased.
When I say cotton/ natural fibres that doesn’t include buttons and other such stuff which will almost certainly be synthetic. As might be the thread used to sew the fabric.
Unless you are talking about my own homemade clothes where I can tell you exactly what plastic has been used.

Sewing
I can’t afford to buy eco clothing but I can afford to make it. I have been stiching like a demon and this year most of my new clothes have been handmade. Sadly my sewing skills are not so great. There are ome rather strange outfits in there. You can read my plastic free sewing tips here…

You can read more about my home made clothes here

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Sustainability

Natural Fibres

Total 3.835

Regenerated Fibres

Total 318g

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