Hair Gel and hairspray

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I got these from green ladies blog

I haven’t tried them because I have no use for such things but I am ever thinking of you more glamorous types and your plastic free needs.

Homemade Hair Gel

By: Michigan State University

The Ingredients

* 1/2 to 1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin

* 1 cup warm water

The Instructions

Dissolve gelatin in 1 cup warm water. Keep refrigerated and use as you would a purchased gel.

NB  I have bought gelatin in paper sachets in the past but it is not a product I use often.  Would appreciate any up to date info on this…

Planet Safer Hairspray Recipe

Chop up a lemon or an orange and boil it on the stove in a couple of cups of water. Boil it down about halfway and then strain out any pulp and mix it in a spray bottle with about an eighth of a cup (1/8: that’s half of a 1/4 cup measure, if it makes it easier) of rubbing alcohol.

If you keep it in the fridge it will stay “good” longer – between 2-3 weeks.

Find more  plastic free products with the >>>A-Z<<< plastic free index

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Soap

by Posted in 3.1 Cleaning Up, 3.1 General & Homemade, 3.1 Personal, 4 About The Alternatives Tagged , , , , 1 Comment

 Making Soap 

Basic soap is made from lye, oils or fats (animal or vegetable) and water.

Saponification
When these three are mixed together a chemical process called saponification takes place. The end result is soap

In the olden days soap makers used lye obtained from wood ashes. Find out how, here.

Modern day soap makers use Sodium hydroxide (NaOH), also known as lye and caustic soda. This is made from salt and is very caustic See how that is made here.

History

In the olden days making soap was a labour intensive process. There were plenty of animal fats but making lye took forever. And it wasn’t very reliable. Then in 1791 French chemist Le Blanc discovered how to make Soda Ash from salt. Soap got much easier and cheaper to make and the great unwashed could finally afford a bar in every home.

How does it work

Alkaline & Organic Soils

Soap is alkaline which means it will work well  with organic soils ( dirt). Alkaline emulsify grease.  Fatty acids are normally insoluble which is why they cannot be cleaned using water alone. The alkaline breaks down fat making them dispersable in water. Read more here

Soap & Germs

But folk were not just cleaner but safer too. Soap does actually kills germs but it does a good job of physically removing them. 

Whats in YOUR soap
Here are some of the things you might find in your soap.

Sodium tallowate  is from animal fat usually from cows.

Sodium lauryl sulfate (commonly known as SLS)  and Sodium laureth sulphate and sodium laurel sulphate also attract dirt so work in the same way as soap but they create more lather. This is the main reason they are added – to create lots of lovely lather.  They are a known skin irritant. Internet claims that they cause cancer are unproven.

Synthetic fragrance  – which may contain DEO a phthalate used as a solvent and fixative. Despite the general bad press about phthalates this one is considered safe.

Palm Oil and Palm Kernel Oil (PKO) are used in soap making  because they make the soap more bubbly and result in a harder bar. Palm oil –  comes from Malaysia and Indonesia. They have cut down hundreds of acres of rainforest to make way for huge plantations of palm oil. This has impacted adversely on the habitat of the orangutang  a now endangered species. You can find out more about it and why we minimise our use of palm oil, here .

Other considerations when buying soap might include does the company still do animal testing.

Is it a British company.

Soap Formats

Soap comes in various forms which in my experience are often interchangeable.

Bar Soap – hard. Everything from luxury cosmetic soaps to the increasingly rare dish wash bar.
Soap Flakes – thin slivers of soap that dissolve more easily
Liquid soap such as body wash, shampoo or washing up liquid.
Soap powders mostly for dishwashers and washing machines.

Homemade

You can make your own. Read this from Jen of Make Do And Mend Life

Here are some recipes for making Castille Soap

Why This Post Is ….

A little bit rubbish. You are reading a work in progress. Here’s how the blog is written and why we post half cocked.

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Toothpaste, toothpowder, dentifrice homemade

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Dentifrice – toothpaste or  toothpowder whichever, it  is basically an abrasive to clean and polish the teeth. Most brands come packed in masses of plastic. Plastic which cannot be recycled. Or rather it probably can be as most plastics technically can be recycled, but is far too difficult and costly to do so.
Which is bad BUT worse still the paste itself may contain plastic! Did you know that at least 12  Crest  toothpastes have been identified as containing  microbeads of polyethylene (PE). You can find a full list here  And Crest are by no means the only manufacturer who does this.

There there’s all the other stuff. “Every toothpaste contains the following ingredients: binders, abrasives, sudsers, humectants, flavors (unique additives), sweeteners, fluorides, tooth whiteners, a preservative, and water. Binders thicken toothpastes. Some binders are karaya gum, bentonite, sodium alginate, methylcellulose, carrageenan, and magnesium aluminum silicate.
Read more about toothpaste and how it is made here.

VERY IMPORTANT

What with the sudsing agents and binders you might be tempted to make your own toothpaste. It’s very easy but there are some important issues you need to be aware of.
The abrasivity of your home made paste
That it will not contain flouride.

Please Note

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. These are your teeth!

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.

Research well and discuss everything with your dentist.

Abrasivity

The key to making tooth powder is to find something abrasive and ugh to remove the plaque but not so harsh it removes the enamel from your teeth. Which is why you need to research carefully and take internet claims with a huge pinch of salt.
Relative dentin abrasivity (RDA) is a a way of measuring the effect that the abrasive components of the toothpaste have on a tooth.[7]
The RDA scale was developed by the American Dental Association The higher the abrasive value the greater the wear on the enamal. Toothpaste makers regularly measure their product’s abrasivity. It’s necessary for FDA approval,
BY US law, a dentifrice is required to have a level lower than 250 to be considered safe .
RDA Score
Level
0-70 Low abrasive: safe for cementum, dentin and enamel
70-100 Medium abrasive: safe for enamel, dangerous for cementum and dentin
100-150 High abrasive: dangerous for cementum, dentin and enamel
150-250 Very high abrasive: harmful limit, damaging for teeth
250 and above Not recommended.

Some findings
4 brushing teeth with water
7 baking soda

Commerical pastes from 8 to 200 Colgate 2-in-1 Tartar Control / White

can find a full list here

Stuff I have used to clean my teeth

Salt
Bicarbonate of soda
Chalk – Calcium carbonate
Kaolin
Bentonite

Salt and Bicarbonate of soda can be used neat. And as you can see bicarbonate has a very low RDA score

The rest have to be mixed because they have different abrasive qualities.

My home-made toothpowder contains chalk kaolin and bentonite clay. Sadly there are no RDA scores that i can find for any of these abrasives. The following is what I have gleaned from the internet. Please do your own research.

Chalk is the hardest and so most abrasive element. Chalk is often in commercial toothpaste but not as often as silica. When comparing the two it seem that depending on particle size…
A comparison between different abrasives with similar particle sizes showed that silica presents higher RDA values than calcium carbonate. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11413496

Aromantics reccomend Use up to 40% in Toothpastes

That kaolin and Bentinite are both very soft,and have a positive score on the cleaning efficiency index.

The Cleaning Efficiency Index’ (CEI)
This is a very interesting article but sadly I can find no links to original research. Google hasn’t come up with anything either.
Researchers studying stains, abrasivity, and cleaning ability found that a relationship exists between the relative abrasivity and the cleaning ability.  They came up with what they call ‘Cleaning Efficiency Index’ (CEI).

The Cleaning Efficiency Index really ranks the combination of abrasivity in relation to cleaning ability.
low abrasive AND low cleaning ability. Not good = low efficiency score
high abrasive AND high cleaning ability. Not good either = low efficiency score
low abrasive AND high cleaning ability. Very good. This combination would give the highest ‘cleaning efficiency’ index score.
Read the full article HERE

And then there is this about Bentonite.
“The real benefit of bentonite clay is that it is abrasive enough to remove the plaque but not so much so that it will do damage to your enamel,” Graves says. Like charcoal, it may also help raise the pH of your mouth, making it more challenging for bacteria to grow.” Read the article HERE

The following is an account of my own experiences which may help you in your own research.

Home Made Dentifrice

Salt  Ughhh you buy plastic free salt here.  
Bicarbonate of soda can be used neat. Also ugh!!!
“Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), a product used for many years by itself or in combination with other ingredients has several excellent properties. As a soft crystalline substance that dissolves readily, it has a mild abrasive potential. In solution it will kill on contact all of the motile microorganisms associated with periodontal infections, e.g. spirochetes, motile rods, etc. It will also kill other disease related bacteria. It will also neutralize and detoxify the bacterial acids and toxins that form in plaques (bacterial biofilms). ” for more got to mizar

And of course it has a very low RDA of 7.
You can read more and find out where to buy plastic free bicarb HERE
BUT for all its sterling qualities, I find bicarbonate far too soapy tasting to use un-cut. Knowing how it is made I am not sure I want to put it in my mouth

My Home Made Toothpowder

1 part chalk NB Chalk This is pharmaceutical grade not the rough old stuff they use in fish tanks.
1 part kaolin
1 part bentonite clay. Yes I am literally cleaning my teeth with earth and it doe feel gritty.

I like this one but the bentonite does feel gritty in your mouth. The paste however has no taste which is nice. After the salt and the bicarb.
Put in a jar and shake well – use as tooth powder or mix to a stiff paste with water. You can add flavour with peppermint oil.
It is just like real toothpaste. Even leaves white marks on your clothes!

Paste with Bi-carb
I used to use bicarb in one of my early toothpaste recipes mixed with two dentifrices and Orris Root. Orris root is a natural preservative and helps the flavor along.
1 part chalk
1 part kaolin
1 part Orris Root
1 part bicarb

Put in a jar and shake well – use as tooth powder or mix to a stiff paste with water. Though it worked I wasn’t really happy with the taste and orris root is very expensive.

Buy

Buy plastic free bicarb HERE

Chalk -Buy pharmaceutical grade not the rough old stuff they use in fish tanks.
You can buy the chalk, kaolin and Orris Root from EBay or Aromantics . The products come in a plastic bags – booo… but they are polythene so easily recycled and  I get huge amounts tooth powder out of one small bag of ingredients.  I consider it a worthwhile compromise and far less plastic than any other option.

buy ready made dentifrice

More info

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 toothpaste including recipes you can download as a PDF. They have been in this game for years and are far more qualified then I am.

Do You Even Need Dentifrice 

You might want to consider if you even need to use a dentifrice. According to many a good brushing will do the job just as well…

“You can remove food debris and plaque from your teeth without using toothpaste.
Dental plaque is a sticky, colorless biofilm of bacteria and sugars that is constantly in the process of forming on our teeth. Dental plaque is acidic, and can break down tooth enamel and cause cavities to form. Plaque can also irritate your gums, causing gingivitis (red, swollen, bleeding gums), infections and eventually tooth loss.
Plaque is the primary cause of cavities and gum disease. If you don’t consistently remove plaque from your teeth it can harden into an even sticker substance called tartar, which provides a perfect environment for bacteria colonies to grow under your gums and on your teeth.
One of the best ways to control plaque is brushing your teeth thoroughly at least twice a day. But you don’t need toothpaste to do this, just a soft toothbrush and good brushing techniques will remove plaque.

What, No Flouride?

You must consider this
Of course home made toothpaste or a no toothpaste regime will mean a cut in fluoride.
“Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral which helps to prevent tooth decay.
Which is why it’s added to many brands of toothpaste.
“Brushing your teeth thoroughly with fluoride toothpaste is one of the most effective ways of preventing tooth decay.” Read about fluoride and the NHS here.
And this Article is also USEFUL.

The most effective ways to avoid tooth decay are avoid sugar and good brushing. But flouride also helps.
In the UK fluoride is added to some tap water. Contact your water authority to find out if yours is.
You can also buy fluoride tablets and mouth washes.
It is also present in tea and the NHS reccomended you limit your intake to 3 mugs a day.
This was a study of fluoride levels in 38 teas, mainly bought from UK supermarkets. The authors point out that fluoride is an essential micronutrient, needed to prevent dental decay and promote healthy bone growth. However, consumed in excess it can lead to a condition called fluorosis, which can damage both teeth and bones.
Flouride can be poisonous even kill if consumed in large amounts.
Flouride powder can be bought on Amazon. Where I also saw this
Question: Can I add this to homemade toothpaste?
Answer: Yes, many folks add this to their toothpaste formulas, typically in commercial toothpastes there is a concentration (by weight) of 1 – 1.5%
By Professor Fullwood SELLER on February 7, 2016

No comment your call.

Brushes

While the RDA score has been shown to have a statistically significant correlation to the presence of abrasion, it is not the only contributing factor to consider.[19][9][22] Other factors such as the amount of pressure used whilst brushing, the type, thickness and dispersion of bristle in the toothbrush and the time spent brushing are other factors that contribute to dental abrasion.

More

See all our posts on plasticfree dental care, HERE.

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Toothpaste

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged , 2 Comments

In A Tube
There are still some tooth pastes come in metal tubes BUT be aware that all metal tubed toothpastes I have come across have a plastic cap and the tubes are lined with a plastic liner. If you are happy to go ahead one such is
Marvis Classic Strong Mint Toothpaste
Apparently ” What makes Marvis unique is the range of exotic flavours – enticing and addictive tastes that produce a whirlwind of sensations. Marvis search the world to bring you irresistible new and original flavours that turn the simple act of teeth brushing into a daily pleasure of discovery and taste.”

In A Jar
Recently started using Georganics toothpaste, and would highly recommend. Comes in a glass jar with metal lid and the seal is biodegradable. It does come with a little plastic spoon, but if you email them, they’ll send yours without one (they’re also hoping to swap to wooden spoons soon).
with thanks to Rebecca.
You can visit the website HERE.

And thanks is to Carriad Wholefoods for letting me know about Truthpaste
natural toothpaste which also comes in a glass jar. They stock it and you can buy on line.

Both the above come in glass jars with metal lids. Chances are the lids are plastic lined but it’s an improvement.

More

Find other plastic free personal care products here…

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

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How To Stay Safe In The Sun

by Posted in 3.1 Personal, 3.2 How To...plastic-free 5 Comments

The following information is for guidance only. Much of the following info was taken from www.skincancer.org – an invaluable source and should be read by everyone. Though you might find yourself spending the rest of Summer cowering in a cellar coming out only after dark after doing so.
But educate yourself and you can enjoy the sun sensibly.

Why Limit Exposure To The Sun
There are two types of ultraviolet radiation, UVA and UVB
UVB is the chief cause of sunburn and linked to sun cancer.
UVA rays, penetrate the skin more deeply, and contribute to photoaging. They do not primarily cause sunburn but are also linked to some types skin cancer.
There may be no indications of damage being done
Anyone over the age of six months should use a sunscreen daily.
Sitting inside might not help. Glass windows filter out UVB but not UVA rays.
Up to 40 percent of the sun’s ultraviolet radiation reaches the earth on a completely cloudy day.

Use Protection

There are several ways to protect yourself
Stay out of the Sun
Use a cream to provide a chemical/physical block
Wear protective clothing

I would suggest you combine all of the above.

Which Cream
Staying out of direct sunlight reduces the need for cream but you still burn in the shade so cream is always advisable.You need a cream that protects from both UVA and UVB. You can read more about all that HERE

Get Plastic Free Sun Block

Buy
Anything But Plastic online sell this – Shade Sunscreen for £9.75 for 100ml

Make
But at that price I will also have to continue making my own. You can find my recipes HERE

Clothes

Hats  
Research has shown that broad-brimmed hats provide protection equivalent to an SPF (sun protection factor) of approximately 5 for the nose, ears and neck.

How Shady Is Your Shirt
UPF, the ultraviolet protection factor, measures protection from UV radiation in fabrics. A shirt with a UPF of 30 indicates that just 1/30th of the sun’s UV radiation can reach the skin.Read more here

Self Tan
Sit in the shade and don’t bother trying to tan. instead  make your self tanning lotion by adding some DHA. Find out more here

Natural Sunblocks
There are claims that certain oils like coconut oil have a natural SPF. I personally don’t believe this and strongly advise you do not rely on this alone.

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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Toilet Roll

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged , ,

For a long time the only plastic free toilet paper I could find was Isal Medicated. It is extremely hard more like greaseproof paper with a shiny almost waterproof finish. Obviously this makes it extremely uncomfortable to use in a number of ways. Still I was prepared to use the beastly stuff till I went to buy in bulk and found the paper wrapped rolls were shrink filmed in plastic. Damned if I am going to suffer scratches if the rolls are not in fact plastic free.

Loose

However if you are prepared to buy loose, try your corner shop.Here in Huddersfield  Khadims sell loose toilets rolls very cheap.

Compostable Packaging

Eco Leaf Toilet Tissue.

Supplied by the good folks at Suma ( a workers cooperative), it comes in a 100% cornstarch compostable wrap called Bioplast. Just so you know, Bioplast is certified to EN 13432 and confirms to the European OK Compost Standard. Made of potato starch it is similar to biobags I am guessing. The rolls themselves are 100% recycled paper and Suma donate some of their profits to www.treesponsibility.com.

If you live in Huddersfield you can buy these at Half Moon Health FoodsAddress: 6 Half MoonStreet HD1 2JJ.

Or you can buy it on line from the Ethical Superstore.

You might want to check these shops. They sell plastic free products and send them out in plasticless packages. Find them HERE

A big plus with these Suma rolls is that they are made in the UK from recycled paper.

Quick Overview

As with our other Ecoleaf paper products, our toilet tissue is made from 100% recycled fibre sourced exclusively from the UK. It’s produced from a mix of consumer and trade waste using chlorine-free processing. The tissue comes in 100% compostable wrap making our packaging sustainable, renewable, non-polluting and non-toxic.
We work in partnership with Treesponsibility to minimize the environmental impact of our products

Made in the UK by Suma, an ethical worker cooperative.
Read more here

Plastic Spoiler
Plus I have heard reports that if you buy in bulk it comes in a plastic bag!

Greencane

Will deliver toilets rolls in a cardboard box.

Each box contains
Total 48 rolls
12 packs of 4 rolls.
Each roll 300 sheets, 2 ply.
UK £23.80 per carton.

The rolls are wrapped in cellophane, a compostable plastic.

Find out more about Greencaneproducts here.

To order products  visit the website

Give A Crap do something similar.

The downside is the paper products are made in and imported from China.

Composting Plastic At Home
While most agree that some  plastics are indeed compostable, many say that they 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.
AND I have been composting my PLA plastic for years. We have used and composted a number PLA plastic products (including Biobags , Deli pots  and disposable Cutlery)
It does take longer than other products and  sometimes I have found shreds of it in my compost but I dig it into the soil where it quickly disappears.

Biodegradable, Compostable Plastics

What is biodegradable? Biodegradable products break down through a naturally occurring microorganism into simple, stable compounds which can be absorbed into the ecosystem. More about biodegrading here

What is compostable? To be classed compostable, items must biodegrade within a certain time (around the rate at which paper biodegrades), and the resulting biomass must be free of toxins, able to sustain plant life and be used as an organic fertilizer or soil additive. For a man-made product to be sold as compostable, it has to meet certain standards. One such is the European Norm EN13432. You can find out more here.

Read more about compostable plastics here

More Info

You can find other ways to wipe here….

And you might like these other health & hygiene posts

Buy On Line

These shops sell plastic free products and send them out in plasticless packages. Find them 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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Health & Hygiene

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged 4 Comments

Please note that none of these suggestions replace medical advice and if you need to take medicine’s do so. Living plastic free is great but being healthy is better. That said….

For those of you into self medicating, the BBC are showing you how to grow, harvest and prepare your own herbal remedies.

The show is called Grow Your Own Drugs  ( saucy) and features James Wong. He  is an  ethnobotanist and not, and he was very clear about this,  a hippy – despite the bare feet and the beads. Hey far be it from me to stereo type.

Any way the boy mixed up some remedies from flowers and weeds and seemed to know what he was talking about. Moreover he  is an all time sweetie  even though he is a SCIENTIST and not a hippy. Got a very nice kitchen too. There is book full of recipes to accompany the show.. Cover of "Grow Your Own Drugs: Easy Recip...

As you know from my own creamy exploits, making your own cosmetics is a great way to cut down dramatically on your plastic – making your own remedies will obviously do the same. You can find my favourite recipes right here.

Mouthwash & Tooth Whitener

A peroxide mouth wash can help whiten the teeth. But only do this occasionally as there are lots of conflicting ...
Read More

Inhalers Homemade / Recycling

Now I would never suggest you don't take your plastic packed medication. If you need it you take it. But ...
Read More

Eucaplyptus Oil

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

It's that time of night when sitting on the balcony becomes a feat of endurance rather than a pleasure and ...
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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 ...
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Cigarettes

Far be it from me to promote smoking but the purpose of this blog is to find plastic free alternatives ...
Read More

Vinegar

Vinegar is great. You can use it for all kinds of things and is almost plastic free to buy. Vinegar is ...
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Antiseptics & Disinfectants

This post talks about Microbes Antiseptics Disinfectants Alcohol Bicarbonate Of Soda Vinegar Hydrogen  peroxide Soap Essential oils This is an area ...
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Bicarbonate Of Soda

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

This is a post in progress. As I learn so I will add to it. For now this is what ...
Read More

 

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Hair Brushes and Combs

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged 2 Comments

I want plastic-free brushes and combs that can be composted after use.

So for my hair brush I have gone for: Bristle – (they say natural so that almost certainly means it comes from pigs), and wood brushes from Kent hairbrushes. They supply the queen don’t you know? I got mine from Boots but you can buy on line from their site.

Its a “small handbag sized brush made from danta wood and filled with pure black bristle. A half radial design ideal for everyday styling, grooming and brushing. (Short-medium length hair). The bristle cleans the hair, promotes shine and stimulates the scalp.” There is some plastic in the packaging – sigh.

For my comb look at what I got

“Kent’s handmade combs are saw cut, and then hand polished and buffed to create soft rounded teeth that will not damage your hair or scalp. They are made from cellulose acetate, a non-petroleum based plastic derived from plants that has been found to create less static in hair. These smooth teeth stimulate the natural oils inside the hair cuticles as your hair is combed, and it is this oil that encourages the cuticles on each hair to lie flat creating strong, healthy, shiny hair.”

NB Cellulose acetate is biodegradable

Plastic Spoiler

There is some plastic in the packaging – sigh.

More

Lots more on looking good plastic-free  here and hair care here

 

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Fake-bake plastic-free

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Every year they, the fashionistas, say that pale is interesting – well up here in the windswept north of England where the sun don’t shine,  pallid is the norm and we hate it.

So refusing to bow to the indignities of our location we paint our selves with bisto and draw lines on our legs with eyeliner – no sorry that was the war. We stain ourselves brown with self tanning lotion.

But that comes in a plastic bottle and you know what I think about plastic bottles, so I make my own.

Home made self tan 

Add self tanning additive DHA to a base cream.

As taken from the aromantics website – they are the guys I buy my DHA from

A Self-Tanning Agent, DHA is a natural substance derived from the bioconversion of glycerol extracted from Palm or Rapeseed Oil. DHA is also present in the human body. As a consequence, the risk of an allergic response is very low. The result of using DHA is a natural looking brown or golden hue to the skin, without exposure to the sun. The induced tan provides photo-protection against UVA radiation. To use, dissolve in a little cold water and then add while the product is under 40°C. Add 5-8% to Self-Tanning Preparations and 0.5%-3% to Sun Screens. The raw material needs to be kept dry, away from light and in the fridge. NB pH needs to be under 5.5. Test your product with Litmus Paper and either add Lactic acid, Citric acid or Ascorbic acid to reduce the pH, if necessary.

It works – though you might want to play around with the percentages – the first batch I made was rather strong for my  white, white skin.

I have added this to my own home made lotion but I see no reason why you couldn’t add it to a bought lotion. However making your own is really easy – for more details click here.

You can also add it to your home-made suntan lotion to get a golden glow while NOT burning.

NB the DHA comes in a small plastic tub. You can make loads of the stuff from one tub. So while the base ingredients come packaged in plastic this represents a massive reduction in plastic consumption as one small tub replaces a number of bottles.

12 +[mashshare buttons="false"]

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Deodorant – Ready Made

by Posted in 3.1 Personal 1 Comment

Stinky pits can pose a plastic free problem. No one wants to smell but deodorants are highly plastic packaged and may contain unpleasant nasties.

Alum

Thankfully there is an old and natural remedy for this old and natural problem – ammonium alum. This is a naturally occurring mineral salt with antiseptic properties. It inhibits the bacteria growth that causes odour. Alum molecules are far too big to be absorbed by the skin so they just sit there doing the job.
You can buy alum in a spray, as a push up stick or in lump crystal form. The first two involve nasty plastic packaging and lots of it. Better, environmentally speaking, to buy it in lump form. Pit Rok sell a single 80 gram crystal in a small cardboard box. Minimal packaging, completely natural, and fragrance free.For Pit Rok stockists in your town go to www.pitrok.co.uk/stockists.asp. and type in the name of. They do not differentiate between the products. In my experience the health food shops are more likely to sell the crystal form. You can of course buy online too.

Or this from eBay looks rather GOOD.

Bicarbonate

It is claimed can deodorise smells. YOu can read all about bicarbonate of soda HERE.
There are bicarbonate based deodorants out there.
Earth Consious is one. The following is from the website.
Earth Conscious the natural deodorant that works
made in the UK
Comes in a tin. N.B. Will almost certainly be plastic epoxy lined. Read more here
Example
CITRUS (Lemon & Orange)
Contains fresh lemon and orange organic essential oils
No aluminium, parabens or carcinogens
Allows your skin to breath and perspire naturally
Will not block your sweat glands and will allow your body to remove toxins as nature intended
Totally cruelty free
Supports healthy marine life
Recyclable packaging, no plastic
Suitable for men, women and teens
EU registered and certified
60g
Ingredients:
Certified organic coconut oil, certified organic arrowroot powder, certified organic shea butter, sodium bicarbonate, certified organic beeswax, certified organic lemon essential oil, certified organic orange essential oil.

Visit the website here.

 

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Conditioners

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged , , 4 Comments

I read that Britains get through 15 million plastic bottles a day. How many? I find that utterly shocking. So I decided to stop buying hair products in plastic bottles. Which pretty much means I stopped buying hair products.

Finding a suitable conditioner was hard work

Solid Conditioners

I tried the Pure Lush solid conditioning bar.  It smells lovely and others rave about it (see www.purelush.co.uk for details). Sadly it didn’t work for me.

Olive Oil

The recipe for the olive oil and honey conditioner on www.tipking.co.uk sounded yummy so I tried it Putting olive oil on my naturally lustrous hair – ok greasy hair- was a big mistake. 3 days later and I was still washing it out.

Coconut Oil

Fantastic as a conditioner. I have oily hair so I rub it on my hair before showering, leave for 5 minutes then shampoo off. Afterwards my hair is lovely and silky. Village boy has very dry hair so he applies a little after showering. His hair is also nice and smooth. And you can use it for everything else as well. Read more here….

Vinegar Rinse

For me its the vinegar rinse. Its really easy to make, just dilute half a tablespoon of apple vinegar in a cup of water and use it to rinse your hair after washing. Don’t be put off by the strong smell – once the hair is dry there is no odour of vinegar – honest. It works and here’s why; acidifiers (such as vinegar) close the cuticle of the hair making it shiny and less prone to tangling – and I got that from a real hairdresser so it must be true.

Tescos do an apple vinegar in a glass bottle with a metal screwtop lid. Apart from the little plasticised disc in the lid they are as plastic free as you can get….unless you decide to make your own apple vinegar.

 

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lip balm

by Posted in 3.1 Personal Tagged , , ,

Well looks like winter is finally here – again – and the need for a good lip balm has never been greater. Needless to say I take issue with the plastic tubes and pots that commercial balms are packaged in – especially as they are used only once then thrown away. So I make my own.

1 tablespoon beeswax pellets or olive oil flakes
1 tablespoon roughly chopped shea butter
1 tablespoon grated cocoa butter
1 tablespoon sweet almond oil
1 tablespoon castor oil
Melt the whole lot together in a bowl in a pan of hot water. Mix and pour into little pots (from here or other online stores) to set.

The end result is a really nice, very effective lip balm.

Pots and ingredients can be bought on line from www.aromantic.co and other companies.

However if like me you work out doors, digging mud, applying lip balm from a pot with grimy finger is not ideal. So I refill my old lip balm tubes – you will need to wash them out and rewind them first – obviously. Sometimes you have to push the base plate down a little before they will wind back.

Or you can buy new, empty tubes from here or  www.aromantic.co

Filling the tubes is fiddly and a small funnel helps. small funnelsYou can get these metal ones here.

 

Mouth diameter is 3.2cm Spout diameter is 4mm Inner spout diameter is 3mm Total height 2.8cm

NB

One more advantage to making your own balm is not being poisoned! In addition to the synthetic preservatives and flavours, white petrolatum, the basis of many shop bought balms, is derived from petrol. Yuk. Every time you put it on your lips you ingest a little – make your own and you know what you are eating.

Plastic alert – most of the products will come plastic packed but you will ultimately be cutting your plastic consumption.

Find more homemade makeup and other stuff here