U.K. All over Weigh and Save Shops

by Posted in 3.2 Shops & Businesses Tagged , , 34 Comments

Long time ago when I was young we used to visit the Weigh & Save shop in the precinct down the road. In it were a number of  big bins containing everything from beans to corn flakes. You  scooped what you needed into the bags provided, in the quantities you wanted then weighed and paid at the till. I loved it. But  then I grew up and moved away and never thought of it until I tried to go plastic free. I realized that this  was  exactly the kind of shop I needed right now. Of course I would have to provide my own plastic free bags  but….enough said. I eagerly returned to the precinct of my youth, Stretford it was, only to find the shop had shut up and gone.

So began the research quest….  and in conclusion, yes such shops still exist but they are bloody hard to track down. They go under a variety of names including Weigh & Save Scoop & Save Weigh House Weigh Inn. The  company  that supplies the products does not have a list of outlets they deliver to (!) but can help you set up a shop if you are interested. As far as I can tell, these shops operate as individuals. They are extremely idiosyncratic and vary greatly in presentation and  range.  Some go the whole hog with corperate green and yellow displays and a whole lot of stuff to choose from, others a are little more than a few dusty bins at the back of the shop.

Just a passing thought; I feel that this for want of a better word franchise are marketing themselves all wrong. They are presenting themselves as a way to save money and the whole shop screams budget from the ugly cardboard bins to the scrappy signage.  I think they should look at attracting the eco customer by installing better dispensers, promoting waste free shopping and using funkier imagary (see Wholefoods Market for inspiration).

Shops Reviews

Barmouth Good

Bridlington – good.

Brixam (grim but does pet food)

Croydon – great write up by Kake who gives this shop a very good press

Exeter – Devon Weigh CLOSED

Horsham – great write up by Kake

Invernes CLOSED

Kingsmouth Devon Free local delivery – spend £7.50 and we will deliver free – within a 7-mile radius of Kingsbridge. Great for bulk buys. Nice!

Penzance

Whitby NOW CLOSED

Wick – CLOSED

Worthing – closed

Emsworth in Hampshire  – Pantry Weigh. Thanks to Emma for this info “There’s a small shop called Pantry Weigh in Emsworth in Hampshire  https://www.yell.com/biz/pantry-weigh-emsworth-763392/

More

Loose Food Fill lists all the shops (not just the above) that sell  loose, food of the kind that normally comes plastic packaged ie rice, pasta and salt.

REMEMBER

Take your own plastic free bags and refillable pots.

Find more plastic free stuff  with  the  A-Z plastic free index

PLA plastic bottles

by Posted in 3.1 Food & Drink Tagged 2 Comments

We are always on the look out for new and greener plastics and these PLA bottles caught our eye. Personally I think bottled water is a scam. Why pay good money for that you can get for free? But if you should choose to go down that route, it seems a  shame that such a decision should also result in a landfill site  of non-biodegradable, plastic bottles.

There are of course compostable, biodegradable plastics – one such is PLA. But for  years PLA  was not considered up to the job of beverage bottle. You can read more about PLA plastic here.

The following would seem to disprove that theory….

From the website… Eco for life bottles are made from Polylactic acid, PLA for short.
During the production process, we produce 60% less greenhouse gases and use 50% less fossil fuels.

Will bio-degrade ✘ No, takes up to 1000 years Yes, in an industrial composter
Made from ✘ Oil Annually renewable plants
Leaches harmful chemicals into water ✘ Yes No
Can be recycled ✘ Yes, but down-cycled and always ends up in landfill Yes, and can be re-cycled into a whole new bottle, never ending in landfill
Releases harmful toxins when incinerated ✘ Yes No
Greenhouse gases savings during production ✘– Approx. 60%
Oil saved ✘– Approx. 1 litre for every 24 bottles

N.B. I still don’t know if the screw top lids are PLA plastic.

Composting PLA Plastic

Back to me…. While most agree that PLA plastic is indeed compostable, many say that it can only composted in large scale municipal schemes. As we don’t have many large scale municipal schemes this they say is a pointless advantage.

I say the days of large scale municipal schemes is fast approaching as governments aim to divert biodegradable rubbish from landfill sites.

Moreover I have been composting my PLA plastic for years.

We have used and composted the following PLA plastic products ( including Biobags , Deli pots  and disposable Cutlery  )

Useful stuff to know

Remember, not all bio- plastics can be composted and some are not as green as they sound

See all PLA related posts here

Refillable Bottles

But why create any waste at all if you can avoid it? Get yourself a refillable bottle, use the tap, save money all round. Find bottles, refill places and other water related information here….

 

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plastic kills plankton

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

Microplastics may be killing teeny, tiny beasties. Particles of plastic of 20 microns in diameter (a width thinner than a human hair) called micro plastics and are being found in the oceans in ever-increasing quantities.

College of the Atlantic senior Marina Garland has been studying the problem.

“According to Garland, lab studies have been conducted indicating that aquatic microorganisms such as plankton can also mistake micro plastic particles for food and subsequently be killed by the adverse effects of the particle on the organism’s digestive tract. Additionally, said Garland, various toxins are known to cling to plastic particles through a process known as adsorption. As a result, plastic flotsam collected from oceans is often a concentrated source for such toxic chemicals as the pesticide DDT. Microorganisms that ingest the toxic plastic particles are often consumed by larger organisms, which then become toxic themselves. The concentration of toxicity in marine organisms continues to increase at the higher levels of the food chain through a process known as biomagnification.”

You can see her presentation here

Find out more about micro plastics here

Image of plankton from Pinterest

 

 

Waterproof fabric

by Posted in 3.6 Good to know, 4 About The Alternatives

Make your own oilskin using white spirit also known and mineral spirits in the U.S and linseed oil.

White Spirit is “also known as mineral turpentine, turpentine substitute, petroleum spirits, solvent naphtha (petroleum), varsol, Stoddard solvent,[4][5] or, generically, “paint thinner“, is a petroleum-derived clear liquid used as a common organic solvent in painting and decorating.”

“Owing to the volatility and low bioavailability of its constituents, white spirit, although it is moderately toxic to aquatic organisms, is unlikely to present significant hazards to the environment. It should not however, be purposely poured down the sink or freshwater drain.”

Thanks Wikipedia

2.2 Environmental levels and human exposure There are few data on white spirit in air, water or soil. Monitoring at a site contaminated with spilt white spirit (Stoddard solvent) revealed soil levels of up to 3600 mg/kg and deep soil water levels of up to 500 mg/litre. Biodegradation led to a 90% reduction in soil concentration over a 4-month period following remediation.

inchem.org

Next you need to mix some simple chemicals. You will need one quart of mineral spirits (You are not wanting mineral oil. Mineral oil will not work), which is available as paint thinner at Lowes, Home Depot or any paint store. You will also need a quart of boiled linseed oil. It is available at the same place. If you go to Sherin Williams or Porter paints you can get tarp and chemicals at the same stop.

Mix the mineral spirits and linseed oil 50/50. Shake it up good. You need the combination of chemicals. The linseed oil waterproofs the fabric and the mineral spirits allow the oil to dry. If you use straight linseed oil the fabric will never dry and will remain oily and sticky forever. (At this point you can also add pigmint if you want color in the tarp.)

Hang your prepared tarp from a clothesline or the back yard fince and paint it with the solution. Make sure it is saturated well. Leave the tarp hanging untill it dries. With the 50/50 mixture it will take about 48 hours. It will take the smell about a week to disperse.

Thanks Wilderness Safari

Water cooler

by Posted in 3.1 House, Office & Garden Tagged , 2 Comments

Want to catch up on the gossip round the water cooler but don’t want to drink BPA laced water from a plastic bottle? Then get your boss to buy one of these bottle free models from Quench. Basically it takes your tap water, cleans it and cools it. Keen to seen as green, they list some impressive statistics for resources saved by using one of these and also contribute to a tree planting scheme for each filter sold.

Here’s some highlights their press release…………………

Bottleless water coolers  bottleless drinking water systems also save money, energy and oil. Gone are the days when a bottled water delivery service is the only option for providing drinking water to businesses and corporations.

Did you know that only roughly ten percent of plastic water bottles ever make it to the recycling bin? Not only does going bottleless save oil and energy, but it also cuts down on the massive waste that all those 5-gallon water jugs creates.

We have accounted for the planting of just over four million trees, saved over 200 million gallons of water and prevented over three thousand tons of waste.

By making use of a structure’s built-in water supply, bottleless drinking water systems maximize preexisting resources. The closed-filtration system and ultraviolet sanitization option assures that only the cleanest most hygienic water flows. And our dispensers produce hot, room temperature and cold water with the option of making ice, too.
You can find out more at their website

You can find more plastic free office supplies here

You can make your own safe water with this cool, portable gadget.

 

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Margerine

by Posted in 3.1 Food & Drink Tagged 1 Comment

So I gave up margerine in plastic tubs and scoured the shelves for an alternative. Back in my more innocent days I used to think that marge wrapped in foil was plastic free. But that foil is lined with plastic.You can find out more about plastic lined foil here

You can get cheap Marge wrapped in what looks like greaseproof paper. Even that may not be what it seems. It could be plastic lined or  chemically treated rather than natural greaseproof paper. You can read about that here.
But taking all of the above into account, paper wrapped margarine is the best we can do.

Buying Paper Wrapped Margerine

I have found myself falling out with margarine – it is slithery, weird and synthetic so I only use it very occasionally. This information may well be out of date. Last time I looked Sainsburys & Tescos do paper wrapped.

Alternatives

You can often use vegetable oil in place of margarine or butter when baking cakes. Cheaper than butter healthier than margarine.  It  isn’t  entirely plastic-free either but I do what I can.

and then of course there is butter. Before the boycott I ate margerine because I thought it was healthier option but you cannot get decent margarine plastic free. It all comes in plastic tubs.

So I went back to butter. But what about the risks?  Isn’t that an instant heart attack?  seems butter is not so bad for you after all and some margarines are poison!
” there never was any good evidence that using margarine instead of butter cut the chances of having a heart attack or developing heart disease. Making the switch was a well-intentioned guess, given that margarine had less saturated fat than butter, but it overlooked the dangers of trans fats.”
“butter is on the list of foods to use sparingly mostly because it is high in saturated fat, which aggressively increases levels of LDL. Margarines, though, aren’t so easy to classify. The older stick margarines that are still widely sold are high in trans fats, and are worse for you than butter. Some of the newer margarines that are low in saturated fat, high in unsaturated fat, and free of trans fats are fine as long as you don’t use too much (they are still rich in calories).”
From Harvard Health 

ANd some more research revealed that margerine is Hydrogenated Oil and these are not so nice.
Hydrogenated oil is made by forcing reactive hydrogen gas gas into oil at high pressure in the presence of a palladium catalyst.
Hydrogenated oil is more stable, does not go rancid as quickly
It has a higher melting point, so can be used for frying.
It is used to make liquid oils more solid. Margarine is oil solidified.

Concerns
Hydrogenating oil modifies the chemistry significantly.
The fatty acids in oils are unsaturated fats. They are unstable.
Hydrogenating oil turns these unstable fatty acids into new more stable fats known as trans fats acids.
There are concerns that trans fatty acids may increase LDL, or bad cholesterol, and decrease HDL cholesterol, the good cholesterol.
Because they are not natural the digestive system does not know what to do with them. They may actually bioaccumulate in the body.
Read more here

More

Go back to the oil index to read about the other fatty acids we eat.
What are  oils, waxes and butters and which do we use.?

Lots more plastic-free food here.

Find more sneaky plastics here….

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How The Blog Is Written

by Posted in 5 Blog Social Media & Map

Changing face Of Blogging

I started in 2006 when there were far fewer plastic free options and finding alternatives was time consuming. Facebook and Twitter started later that year. Amazon had been going for 8 years and online shopping was still a fairly new phenomenon. Even Google was still young. The blog seemed the best and only viable way to record and promote the products that I had found.

Since then of course the range of products available has skyrocketed and online shopping is well established. Facebook and Twitter can convey information far more quickly and attention spans are so diminished that reading a blog post is far too exhausting. As for writing one ….. well I don’t any more.

Found My Favourites

I now have a few favourite sources that pretty much cater to all my plastic-free needs. Most of them are on line.

Outdated

So many of these posts will be out of date. The plasticfree world is moving quickly and new products are coming on the market all the time. The science changes. Recycling gets better but plastic pollution is far worse than we thought.

And yes I do make mistakes. The science of plastic is complex and I am still not entirely sure how you define a chemical.

So I apologise if some posts are scrappy, poorly researched whiffle, if they are wrong or out of date. Take them as a starting point.

Updating Posts

Hardly seems worth it. Many of the products it took me so long to find can now easily be found in a variety of places online. I’m leaving them up as a record of availability but do your own research.

Still Learning

When I started boycotting plastic back in 2006 I had no idea how pervasive it was. While I was obviously aware that a lot of items were packaged in plastic I didn’t know how many seemingly innocent products contained plastic. Toothpaste for example. Packed in plastic yes I can see that. Contains plastic micro beads. WTF?!!! Glue? Rubbers? Silicone coated greaseproof paper?
Actually learning about plastic was and still is a huge task.

Make Your Own – at your own risk

Back in the day I often had to make alternatives. Yes I can now make face cream but I am self taught and certainly no expert.

Talking of which: The information in this blog is for guidance only. None of the recipes or tips in this blog have not been tested on anyone other than me and my husband. I strongly advise you do your own research and proceed very carefully.

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.

Posts may be incomplete, out of date and possibly wrong! Please read on to find out why…

How The Blog Is Written

I started blogging to record my progress, record my recipes and ultimately help others benefit from my experiences. Because that’s what they are, experiences.

. That I carved some time out of a working day to record my achievement doesn’t make me a writer. My writing is often rushed. Early parts of the blog were written, sweating my face off, in deepest darkest Borneo back in the day when you had to visit an Internet cafe to get on line.

As I boycott, I learn more and when I find time I update the blog. But it is very much a work in progress. Please feel free to learn from my mistakes but be aware that I too am acquiring knowledge as I go. And that I am an amateur with limited time.

Why is that post so rubbish… and the next one so good?

The plastic free sourcing and post writing process goes as follows
Need to clean the bathroom tiles but everything comes in plastic
Internets says I can use bicarbonate of soda.
No idea what bicarb is but I find I can get it plasticfree from Wilcos
Yes I can clean the bathroom tiles with bicarb
Write a post about cleaning bathroom tiles with bicarb
Finally find time to research bicarb.
Quickly update cleaning tiles post which means it’s is now rather badly put together.
Later find some more time to write up my research on bicarb properly in a separate post.
Uneasy because I am now not sure those bicarb mines are so ecofriendly.
Start doing more research into other alternatives to clean tiles.

Honestly it’s endless. But this accounts for why some posts are very basic, others seem rather cobbled together, some sound doubtful and a few that I am really rather proud of.

Danger In Googleland

Much of my research is done online and the internet is a place full of foolishness. While I try to filter out the more ridiculous claims for alternative products some are very convincing. Many claimed that coconut oil had a built in sun protection factor. It doesn’t.

Take A Chance

And sometimes it doesn’t matter how much research I do it seems there is no clear answer. Is bicarb too rough for teeth? Everyone has an opinion and they are quite contrary. In cases like this it may be that I am happy to take the risk with my home made tooth powder to live plastic free but I strongly advise that you do your own research before making that decision.

The Knowledge

Going plastic free means you need to know so much more about the basic stuff that you use, what it is, where is it from and even some science – urk!
So here are links to  information about science, green issues and other related subjects that impact on the plastic debate. Plus a look at the alternative products being touted and thoughts on how better they actually are. Read more here…

N.B.
I have no wish to add to the massive amounts of misinformation out there. Please note I am no chemist, I know nothing of the sciences. Much of the information here has been gleaned from the unreliable Google Mines and filtered through my total ignorance. I think it’s correct. If It’s not please do tell me.

Alternative Products & Ingredients

by Posted in 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.6 Good to know Tagged , 2 Comments

Living plasticfree means going alternative. Trying different things. There are many different kinds ofalternatives talked about out there in Google land,  some credited with the most fantastic attributes. But before you reach for the bicarbonate of soda and depend only on vinegar to sanitize your kitchen, it might be worth investigating a little further.

This series of posts looks beyond the claims and tries to assess if these alternatives are indeed that great or even that greener in the long run,

Wax – cheese

Buying plastic free cheese is not so easy. But waxed cheeses are becoming more available, and cheaper. So is this ...
Read More

Essential Oils

Essential oils have gone from being an obscure aspect of botany to an all round marketing  ‘good thing’.  Almost every ...
Read More

Bristles

Natural fibre brushes come in many sizes - you can get everything from big bristly brushes for sweeping yards to ...
Read More

Natural V Synthetic fabric

In April I am going to be trawling through my wardrobe, ( such as it is). here is some background ...
Read More

Fibres & Bristles

A  guide to natural and biodegradable fibres that are safe to compost and can be used and washed without shedding tiny ...
Read More

Glass

Things to consider when choosing glass packaging as oppose to plastic What is glass  Glass is made from sand, soda ...
Read More

Vinegar

Vinegar is great. You can use it for all kinds of things and is almost plastic free to buy. Vinegar is ...
Read More

Paper versus plastic versus reusables

So if I don't want to use plastic bags then would I suggest using paper as an alternative? Well actually ...
Read More

Silicone

Plastic? Rubber? Just plain weird? Used for everything  from ice-cube trays to adult toys to cake tins it certainly gets ...
Read More

Oils, lotions & creams Index

The following information is for guidance only. None of the following recipes or tips have not been tested on anyone ...
Read More

Raw Materials or ingredients

You might need to make plasticfree alternative products.

Borax

Borax occurs naturally in evaporite deposits produced by the repeated evaporation of seasonal lakes. The most commercially important deposits are ...
Read More

Fatty Acids – Oils, Butters & Waxes

Welcome to the slippery pole Fatty Acids Or Fossil Fuel? Fossil fuel oil is slippery is very versatile. As well ...
Read More

Essential Oils

Essential oils have gone from being an obscure aspect of botany to an all round marketing  ‘good thing’.  Almost every ...
Read More

Eucaplyptus Oil

Replace plastic inhalers with a bottle of eucalyptus oil - but be careful, very careful how you sniff! Using Essential ...
Read More

Shea Butter Leeds

This is a quick introduction to Shea Butter Semi soft buttery oil. Read more about butter oils and waxes here ...
Read More

Vinegar

Vinegar is great. You can use it for all kinds of things and is almost plastic free to buy. Vinegar is ...
Read More

Bicarbonate Of Soda

This one product can replace hundreds of plastic bottles on your shelves. It does biodegrade. However there are issues about ...
Read More

Rapeseed Oil

Rapeseed (Brassica Napus) or rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rappi, rapaseed is the bright yellow flowering plant grown in swathes all over ...
Read More

Coconut Oil

Is a hard oil which has a very low melting point. When the weather gets warm it will get liquid ...
Read More

Palm Oil

While I was in Malaysia I got to see some orangutangs. Most of them were in the rehabilitation center which ...
Read More

Hydrogen Peroxide

Bought a bottle of hydrogen peroxide from Big C Supermarket in Thailand. The bottle is glass the cap is metal. Plastic ...
Read More

Alternative Products & Ingredients

Living plasticfree means going alternative. Trying different things. There are many different kinds ofalternatives talked about out there in Google ...
Read More

Washing Soda

Sodium carbonate (also known as washing soda, soda ash and soda crystals) is the water-soluble sodium salt of carbonic acid. It is alkaline. Pure sodium carbonate is a ...
Read More

Soap

 Making Soap  Basic soap is made from lye, oils or fats (animal or vegetable) and water. Saponification When these three ...
Read More

More

See how to make all kinds of plastic-free food, clothes makeup and other stuff 

Other basic products and more useful information that help you live plastic free and information about them can be found here…. 

– useful to know tag.

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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Oils, lotions & creams Index

by Posted in 3.1 Personal, 4 About The Alternatives Tagged , , 5 Comments

The following information is for guidance only. None of the following recipes or tips have not been tested on anyone other than me. I strongly advise you do your own research and proceed very carefully.

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.

If you want a better informed opinion I suggest you head on over to the Aromantics website. They will sell you everything you need to make sun tan lotion including recipes you can download as a PDF. They have been in this game for years and are far more qualified then I am.
The following is an account of my own experiences which may help you in your own research.

Fats and oils are used to keep the skin supple and prevent moisture evaporation. Many oils and waxes can be used neat such as coconut oil.
Or they can be mixed with water as a cream or lotion.
They can be harvested from plants and animals.
Read more about fatty acids HERE

The oils used in creams/balms are usually vegetable derived though I suppose you could use lard if you wished (!)

Types Of Oil, Wax Or Butter
They come in a variety of forms under the following headings – but it is a rough guide only.
Liquid Oil – never solidifies
Solid Oil – firm when cool but has very low melting point so sometimes it may be counted as an oil i.e. Coconut oil
Butters – a solid oil. Has a high melting point. Rather confusing. Milk butter for example acts more like a solid oil, while Cocoa butter is more like a wax.
Waxes – very hard-of a candle (wax), like consistency. Bees wax for example.

Which One?

There are hundreds of vegetable oils. Different skins like different oils and you will have to experiment to find what is best for you.
You don’t need that many. I can make everything I need with a few oils.

I have listed them in order of hardness. However some liquid oils can be more oily than solid oils. Castor oil (liquid) is the thickest oil i know and can only be used mixed with others where’s coconut oil (semi solid) is very light

Almond oil – a lighter oil. Can be bought in big supermarkets, Asian shops and online
Rapeseed oil – a lighter oil with quite a strong scent but U.K. sourced. Read More
Olive oil – a richer oil can sometimes be bought on tap in the U.K. Used for cooking and cosmetics.read more
Castor oil – a very thick oil – add it to lip balm. Can often be bought in chemists.
Coconut oil– a semi solid light oil which has a very low melting point. Use neat as for everything from hair care to make up removal or add to creams and balms. Can also be used for cooking. Read more 
Shea butter – a rich creamy butter with a surprisingly low melting point. Good for making cream and lotions. There’s an  introduction to shea butter here
Cocoa butter – a hard wax which has a high melting point. Use neat as a lip balm or add to creams and balms.
Bees wax – a very hard oil wax has a very high melting point add to creams and balms to make them firmer.

Cosmetics & Eating 
I love a multi tasking product and you cant do better than a moisturiser you cook chips in.
Rapeseed oil – a lighter oil with quite a strong scent but U.K. sourced. Read More
Olive oil – a richer oil can sometimes be bought on tap in the U.K. Used for cooking and cosmetics.read more
Rice Bran Oil less “oily” than olive oil and rapeseed oil and not as malodorous as the latter. I used it to make suntan lotion and mosquito repellent.

See the oils we eat here

Using Them Neat

  • Many oils and waxes can be used neat.For example I use
  • Coconut oil for moisturising, removing eye makeup, cleansing and massage:
  • Cocoa Butter or bees wax – instant lip balm, deep moisturising treatment for nails:
  • Shea Butter deep moisturising, barrier cream.

Combining Oils & Waxes

CSometimes a wax is just too hard and an oil too liquid. Oils and waxes can be combined to create a more usable product. Examples would be combining a hard wax like cocoa butter with a softer oil like coconut. these are my favourites:
Body Butter
Lip Balm

Cream & Lotions

But still there are times when oils are are just too… oily. In this case you need to dilute them using water. As Water and oil don’t mix you will also need to add an emulsifier. The end result is cream or lotion.
To make cream you will need the following
Fatty acids of your choice- oil, butters & waxes.
Water
Emulsifiers: Water and fat do not naturally mix, you need to use an emulsifier.
Preservatives
Pots to put your cream in.

Recipes

Here are some cream and lotion recipes

Active Ingredients

The cream or oil can be used as a carrier medium for active ingredients such as…
Suntan Lotion– add Microfine Titanium Dioxide OR Zinc Oxide to make a suntan lotion
Self Tan– Add DHA to make a fake bake that really works .
Magic, age defying, cellulite busting potions- scour the internet for all the gubbins, the AHAs, enzymes and crushed pearls that are supposed to grant instant beauty and add them too. I can’t promise results, but it’s fun experimenting.

Containers

Once you have made your creams and balms you will need to store them. You can find a range of pots, bottles and closures here.

More

For the last 5 years now I have been I have been using home-made cream on face and body with no side effects. The plastic pots from the original kit have been reused a number of times. In fact they are still in use. They are great for traveling.

PLASTIC SPOILER
Some of the above will come plastic packaged. As I get huge amounts  out of one small bag of ingredients so I consider it a worthwhile compromise. It still represents a huge decrease in plastic consumption.

Making Other Personal Care Products 

Its quicker then  trying to choose between a hundred different shampoos and it’s really simple, fun to do, so much cheaper  and  I get to control what goes on my  body, where it comes from and what environmental impact it has.

Lots more info here on making your own personal care products

The following information is for guidance only. None of the following recipes or tips have not been tested on anyone other than me. I strongly advise you do your own research and proceed very carefully.

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.

If you want a better informed opinion I suggest you head on over to the Aromantics website. They will sell you everything you need to make sun tan lotion including recipes you can download as a PDF. They have been in this game for years and are far more qualified then I am.
The following is an account of my own experiences which may help you in your own research.

  • 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

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

Price of a cup of tea  – micro fund me  here 
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How to drink plastic free

by Posted in 3.2 How To...plastic-free Tagged 5 Comments

Paper Cup?

Nooooo plastic lined! Consider bringing your own. Here are some funky options.

Plastic Pints

Grim! Try a steel tumbler.

Straws Arghhh….

If you are out and about please, please refuse the plastic straw. Watch a turtle having a straw removed from his nose here if you want to know why.

If you must drink through a straw consider bringing your own reusable. Here are some options…

Reusables reusable stainless steel , glass or bamboo straws

Disposable Compostables If you need a disposable straw at least make it   cornstarch compostable disposable  straw.

Plastic free booze

Plastic free booze is hard to find….glup!!!!. But we have managed to source some for you here… 

Cocktail Shaker

You don’t need one – just more rubbish in the kitchen cupboard. Mix them in a jug! Stirred James, stirred!

Ice and Cocktail Sticks

You can read about reusable and compostable straws here.

For the rest,this  Amazon  shopping list may inspire you.

Andrew James Double Walled Insulated Stainless Steel 2 Litre Ice Bucket With Set of Tongs Premier Housewares Sphere Ice Bucket - Stainless Steel Stainless Steel Ice Cube Tray - BPA Free
Andrew James Double Walled Insulated Stainl… Premier Housewares Sphere Ice Bucket – Stai… Stainless Steel Ice Cube Tray – BPA Free
£40.00
FIREFLY® Eco Straws - Stainless Steel Drinking Straw Premium Grip with Cleaner 4 Pack Stainless Steel Martini Picks - Pack of 6 | Novelty Cocktail Sticks, Stainless Steel Cocktail Picks Sustainable Bamboo Drinking Straws - 12 Pack
FIREFLY® Eco Straws – Stainless Steel D…
£9.99		 Stainless Steel Martini Picks – Pack of 6 |…
£9.99		 Sustainable Bamboo Drinking Straws – 12 Pack
£14.95

 

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Lunch box or tiffin tin

by Posted in 3.1 Disposables & Reusables, 3.2 Travel Tagged ,

Street food in Asia is good and cheap but sadly now involves a lot of plastic. These days it is mostly served in polystyrene (Styrofoam), clam shells. We don’t want to give up street food but don’t want to add to the rubbish.

Our solution is tiffin boxes. They come in all sizes are just great for taking you rice and numerous curries to work with you or, in our case eating out  at street stalls.

We got ours in China and they are an essential part of our plastic free travel kit.

We have tried several types of tiffin tin including  a two tier sandwich box handy for  bits and bobs, a big bucket of a thing with a tightly fitting but not waterproof lid and a small round tin.

We use them for

  • fried rice and snacks
  •  juice in plastic obsessed Thailand.
  • heat water in when we need to make our own emergency tea.
  • as a cooking pot out in the jungle.

Other plastic free aids we carry include tin cups and folding cutlery and reusable folding chop sticks. Yes we clank but we don’t leave behind rubbish with a lifespan of centuries. And if that sounds smug….don’t care.

If you want to buy in the U.K. they can be found in all good Asian Shops, numerous green shops on line and of course Amazon.

Here’s the rest of our plastic free travel kit and our new travel page showing where we’ve been what we found and how we did it plastic free.