“Do you ever get embarrassed?” A journalist, following my plastic-free life, put that question to me as I handed the butcher my stainless steel pot. I was buying ground meat for my homemade cat food. In my own container. Waste-free. “No,” I answered flippantly. “I haven’t been embarrassed about anything since I turned 40.” But […]
It’s a new week, and I’m ready to talk trash. One of the most common questions I get about plastic-free living is what I do for garbage bags. And the second most common question is what to line our waste cans with if plastic grocery bags are banned. Here’s my short answer: We don’t line […]
How to buy and store bread without any plastic bag. Plastic bag clips are dangerous. Bake your own bread or buy it fresh and store in cloth bag in metal tin.
Yesterday, I hinted at how I carried home my ice cream from Tara’s in an insulated nearly plastic-free bag. Now, perhaps you have already figured out a plastic-free way to carry hot or cold foods without losing/letting in heat. But more often than not, the choice is a nylon or neoprene bag insulated with plastic foam, […]
Did you know that Saturday was International Eat Ice Cream for Breakfast Day? Well, it was. Unfortunately, since I’m trying to avoid ice cream packaging waste (All ice cream containers are lined with plastic), I didn’t have any in the house. And I could tell my freezer was feeling a little sad. So, remembering Steve […]
A few weeks ago, my husband Michael forwarded me the NY Times article, “Therapists Report Increase in Green Disputes“: As awareness of environmental concerns has grown, therapists say they are seeing a rise in bickering between couples and family members over the extent to which they should change their lives to save the planet. In […]
When it’s coated with plastic. Like the kind I have to hide from Arya because things like this happen… Two years ago, in my post about plastic-free kitting, I mentioned I was knitting slippers out of Superwash wool from Lorna’s Laces. I assumed that Superwash meant the yarn had already been washed and wouldn’t shrink […]
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC, commonly known as vinyl), Polyurethane foam (foam rubber), Polyster. All these poly’s. All non-biodegradable plastics. Not so good for our health or that of the planet, right? And yet so many health products are made from these materials. Take electric heating pads and gel ice packs, for example. My cold packs are […]
Last night after work, I went to see the movie Avatar in 3D and, in an effort to save plastic, brought with me the 3D glasses I’d received at another movie. Yes, I thought ahead. I had the idea yesterday morning that I might want to go see that movie and dug through a drawer […]
The following is a transcript of my talk at Green Sangha’s Rethinking Plastics Conference on Saturday. I wish all of you could have been there. We had speakers on ocean plastic pollution, the chemistry of plastics, the truth about bio-plastics, sustainable activism, extended producer responsibility, cradle to cradle design, and finally my segment on personal […]