 With all these, recent and not, talks on plastic pollution and reducing plastic, some of you dear readers may be convinced to start your zero waste journey. While i want to assure you that it is a personal journey filled with daily discoveries, and not an overnight switch, I want to share with you part of my journey and a few key ‘ingredients’ of my daily attempts as a zero waster. For some inspiration you can also find my Pinterest board, albeit not recently updated... Step 1 - make your own Whenever you can, make your own. Of what you ask? Of everything! From bringing a pack lunch, to making your own shampoo/deodorant/toothpaste.. basically everything that you would normally buy in a package - you can probably make a diy version Step 2 - bring your own... ...mug/cup, cutlery, lunchbox, water bottle.. you get the gist! Step 3 - use it till the end  Let’s say you slipped on point one and two, or maybe are just at the first arm with this zero waste thing, and you have packaged things in your house. Or maybe food that comes in containers. Whatever it is - use it until there is absolutely nothing left. This means opening up containers and rasping up the insides. You will be surprised! Do that with toothpaste for example and you will be surprised but you may get one or even two more days out of it. I do it often for yogurt which I get in big tetrapak containers, and I get a whole extra portion out of it! All left over on the sides and at the bottom..
Step 4 - find it another purpose Jars can be reused to keep food over and over again, but can also be used for a nice candle or other decoration. Use your fantasy, and if you need inspiration head over to Pinterest or other similar sites and you will get plenty of ideas! Step 5 - think twice about your scraps Scrap parts, whether it is bones from your Sunday roast, the head of a fish or maybe that hard part of the cauliflower or the zest of the orange.. you can definitely use it in some alternative recipe! Make some broths, enhance flavour of jam..get creative in the kitchen! Step 6 - ditch the use by date mentality Lastly (at least for this post) use your sight and your smell instead of the sell by or use by date of your food. They tend to be way too conservative and more often than not the food will still be good! If you have been buying away from supermarkets and avoided buying in packages chances are your food doesn’t even have one of those dates printed so you will have to use those senses, but if you happen to have a carton of milk - just smell before throwing it away. Still good? Great! Seems a little off? Why not make some yogurt or cottage cheese?
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Spoilers alert: if you have not seen the latest episode of blue planet and you are waiting for it then you may want to skip this. If, on the other hand, you have been touched by the ending then this is for you!  Plastic, it's everywhere. Anything we buy in stores has plastic one way or another, whether the product itself contains it (hey it's found in anything from your toothpaste to your clothes!) or is at least packaged with it. Moreover, it has multiple ways of ending into the environment: from the classic 'thrown on the ground', to more hidden 'windswept'. From transport (apparently 4 containers are lost every day at sea) to its end, plastic creates a problem. Yes, we can do beach cleans, and yes we can pick up rubbish everytime we are out walking the dog but the problem is a lot bigger than that.
First of all, plastic and ocean plastic in particular is not just what we see washed out on beaches (which can already be a lot depending on where you are!) but it also is a great presence in the higher seas, being trapped in the conveyor belt of currents, and, as we have seen with the bath-ducks in yesterday's episode, can be transported in many directions as well as just remaining trapped in ocean gyres... more than that, we have the visible plastic, but also invisible (unless you have a good microscope) one known as microplastic which can be as detrimental. And lastly all plastic degrades and leaves pollutants behind. These are persistent organic pollutants, which can act alone or in combination with other pollutants already present in the environment, with disastrous consequences..  From the latest episode of Blue Planet 2 - pilot whale carrying dead fetus, likely died out of toxicity passed down from mother! These are in fact known to be endocrine disruptors, affecting reproduction and they are also fat soluble, which means they get passed up the food chain and can end up in mammalian milk thus affecting future generations of the ocean giants as we have seen in blue planet. And can you think of another fish-eating mammalian? One that inhabits land? Yes you are right: us! Our plastic will end up back to us... This has the potential to affect our reproduction, not just causing infertility (in men as well as women!) but also affecting fetal development, and impacting their hormones which will have negative consequences for generations to come... Surely, we shouldn't stop our good small everyday actions , including trying to go as zero waste as possible and reduce packaging. But we should ask for more from our governments and higher institutions, we should make demands, if not only to keep our planet healthy for the future generations, but to keep them healthy too!
Coffee.. as many worldwide I am part of the 'coffee-addicts': without my first morning cup I can barely make sense. But how can we coffee addict ensure that our addiction is as sustainable as possible??
First: choose fair trade 
Those beans that give us so much pleasures comes from countries far away where workers can be exploited, so make sure not to contribute to their exploitation by choosing fair trade, look out for the symbol and remember that cheaper isn't always better!
Second: coffee machine
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New fancy machines have recently taken over the coffee market - these often use pods which are disposable... if you have one of those don't worry there are solutions: recyclable pods, recycling through the company, or buy a refillable pod!
Third: Give coffee a second life |
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Coffee grains can be reused! How? Not to make another cup but they make for an amazing scrub which doubles up as anti cellulite (are you listening girls?)
Plants also benefit from coffee properties so revitalise your greens by giving them some of the leftovers or adding grain to the terrain !!!
Plants also benefit from coffee properties so revitalise your greens by giving them some of the leftovers or adding grain to the terrain !!!
We have all heard that plastic is damaging our environments, and that for a sustainable way of living we should reduce or even better stop using plastic produces, especially the disposable kind.. During the plastic challenge back in June, however, I have learned some hard truths, one of them being that it is actually very very very hard, if not impossible, to go completely plastic free! Even by having a reusable water bottle, reusable coffee cup, taking lunch into work and mostly shopping at markets or from local vendors instead of supermarket - some plastic items always ends up in my house.
I always do my best to recycle, however: how do you know your recycling actually gets recycled? (trusting the council? maybe we should but we all hear stories that instil some doubts).
The best way to ensure recycling is... DO IT YOURSELF! And doesn't have to be boring or ugly - somethings can be recycled into beautiful ideas..
So I will present you some of my latest Pinterest finds that I'd love to get started on, and invite you to do the same
I always do my best to recycle, however: how do you know your recycling actually gets recycled? (trusting the council? maybe we should but we all hear stories that instil some doubts).
The best way to ensure recycling is... DO IT YOURSELF! And doesn't have to be boring or ugly - somethings can be recycled into beautiful ideas..
So I will present you some of my latest Pinterest finds that I'd love to get started on, and invite you to do the same
Plastic bags baskets
Plastic bottles baskets
Jewellery beads
Instructions on the Frugal Crafter
Self-watering seeding pots
If the drawing isn't self-explanatory enough you can find this simple yet pretty useful idea on here
Now, these are just some of my plans for some diy recycling, especially since shortly I should be moving into a new apartment which will be in need of some decorations...
If you want to find more, pinterest is a great source of inspirations, for example if you have a garden/open space you can find ideas for bird feeders such as this one, or if you are feeling artsy and are good with these kind of DIY projects you can try out these pretty lotus flower candles. As I said, there is plenty out there for everyone, so go on and challenge yourself! And let me know how you get on!!! :D
If you want to find more, pinterest is a great source of inspirations, for example if you have a garden/open space you can find ideas for bird feeders such as this one, or if you are feeling artsy and are good with these kind of DIY projects you can try out these pretty lotus flower candles. As I said, there is plenty out there for everyone, so go on and challenge yourself! And let me know how you get on!!! :D
This is mostly a women-specific post but men, if you are here, please continue to read on!
Yes, you are guessing right - I am going to speak about what happens monthly to most women: periods!
Something so natural and so normal yet so little spoken about.
During this 'plastic challenge June' I would like to particularly put periods within the plastic issue.
Yes, you are guessing right - I am going to speak about what happens monthly to most women: periods!
Something so natural and so normal yet so little spoken about.
During this 'plastic challenge June' I would like to particularly put periods within the plastic issue.
Brushing our teeth - we all do it (or should be) at least twice or three times daily, we are reminded by our parents to do so when we are young and further reminded by our dentists later in life.. and we do it, somewhat innately, a mechanic action.
We are supposed to keep the same toothbrush for a maximum of three months and then change it. This means the average person uses 4 toothbrushes per year, which multiplied by the average western human life spans makes it around 280 toothbrushes (Insert shocked face here). And apparently, since their invention in the 1930s, every single plastic toothbrush produced still exists somewhere on the planet! Not at all surprisingly considering plastic can have lifespan of thousands of years, and moreover we are not even sure whether it does biodegrade at all or just gets broken down into more and more microscopic pieces which can cause enormous damage to living organisms (including us humans!).
'What about recycling?", I hear you ask. For the answer, take a quick look at your toothbrush and notice how many different types of plastics are involved. So - unless you efficiently divide them all before throwing away (and even then I am not sure how many of the pieces would be currently recyclable material) it is impossible.
Faced with these facts, and embracing a low-plastic lifestyle, I have been converted to trying bamboo toothbrushes. The ones I bought are from F.E.T.E (From Earth to Earth) made with bamboo handles (that might be useful to use in arts and crafts at the end of their life due to their nice design) and recyclable nylon bristles (that can be pulled out)!
We are supposed to keep the same toothbrush for a maximum of three months and then change it. This means the average person uses 4 toothbrushes per year, which multiplied by the average western human life spans makes it around 280 toothbrushes (Insert shocked face here). And apparently, since their invention in the 1930s, every single plastic toothbrush produced still exists somewhere on the planet! Not at all surprisingly considering plastic can have lifespan of thousands of years, and moreover we are not even sure whether it does biodegrade at all or just gets broken down into more and more microscopic pieces which can cause enormous damage to living organisms (including us humans!).
'What about recycling?", I hear you ask. For the answer, take a quick look at your toothbrush and notice how many different types of plastics are involved. So - unless you efficiently divide them all before throwing away (and even then I am not sure how many of the pieces would be currently recyclable material) it is impossible.
Faced with these facts, and embracing a low-plastic lifestyle, I have been converted to trying bamboo toothbrushes. The ones I bought are from F.E.T.E (From Earth to Earth) made with bamboo handles (that might be useful to use in arts and crafts at the end of their life due to their nice design) and recyclable nylon bristles (that can be pulled out)!
Today I am gonna talk to you about ghosts...
But.... just a different kind!
We are talking about ghost fishing nets.
Yes, such things exist hidden in the seas and oceans on this planet. Hundreds of kilometres of nets and lines are lost every year. It is estimated that 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear is lost yearly, that 640 million Kilos (assuming you weight 64 Kg, that's 10 millions of you - every year! just to put into some perspective there...). What's most likely is that this is an underestimation, considering the vaste nature of seas and oceans, where many areas still remain unexplored.
Perhaps scarier than a spirit ghost appearance...
These nets continue to catch fish, dolphins, wales, birds, turtles.. with no commercial use! They also pose threats to navigation and to the seabed...
Yes, such things exist hidden in the seas and oceans on this planet. Hundreds of kilometres of nets and lines are lost every year. It is estimated that 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear is lost yearly, that 640 million Kilos (assuming you weight 64 Kg, that's 10 millions of you - every year! just to put into some perspective there...). What's most likely is that this is an underestimation, considering the vaste nature of seas and oceans, where many areas still remain unexplored.
Perhaps scarier than a spirit ghost appearance...
These nets continue to catch fish, dolphins, wales, birds, turtles.. with no commercial use! They also pose threats to navigation and to the seabed...
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While you personally may feel like there isn't much you can do to stop this, there are some steps you can take.
I am going to talk to you now about an initiative to recycle some of this material....
...into fabric! Yes, pretty clothes!
I am going to talk to you now about an initiative to recycle some of this material....
...into fabric! Yes, pretty clothes!
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Such as my new Fourth Element bikini top (which also arrived in a plastic-free package! YAY!).
The fabric is called EcoNyl and it's made from recycled fishing gear
So when preparing for summer, think about your products and see if you can make a difference by purchasing products made from this fabric rather than classical nylon!
And I can vouch for this particular product (I have to say the company doesn't sponsor me in any way) - It's comfy and doubles up as a running bra as well! :) 2 in 1 is my style...
The fabric is called EcoNyl and it's made from recycled fishing gear
So when preparing for summer, think about your products and see if you can make a difference by purchasing products made from this fabric rather than classical nylon!
And I can vouch for this particular product (I have to say the company doesn't sponsor me in any way) - It's comfy and doubles up as a running bra as well! :) 2 in 1 is my style...
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For more info Some associations and charities dealing with ghost fishing (click to be redirected to their websites) Ghost Fishing Healthy seas The black fish |
Continuing on my 'fashion' series, today I want to talk to you about Recycled fibres clothing (The R in the title..what were you thinking ? ;-))
We all have heard at least once in our life about the three Rs.. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Following this scheme, in my opinion, is the only way to slow down plastic pollution which at this rate is leading to oceans containing more plastic than fish.
Recycling is often met with scepticism, and I often hear people say "it all goes in the same place anyway". I am aware that what can be recycled, particularly in terms of plastics, is often more limited than we think in terms of types of materials, conditions of the materials etc.. Recent debates on recycling of plastic bottles can be found here and here. I should mention that I am a great advocate of reducing and reusing FIRST and only recycling as the latest resource, after you reduced as max as you could and reused something as many times and in as many ways possible.
Most people, including an old me, are unaware of what can be done with recycled material. And one of the answers is : What you wear could be made of recycled material!
We all have heard at least once in our life about the three Rs.. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Following this scheme, in my opinion, is the only way to slow down plastic pollution which at this rate is leading to oceans containing more plastic than fish.
Recycling is often met with scepticism, and I often hear people say "it all goes in the same place anyway". I am aware that what can be recycled, particularly in terms of plastics, is often more limited than we think in terms of types of materials, conditions of the materials etc.. Recent debates on recycling of plastic bottles can be found here and here. I should mention that I am a great advocate of reducing and reusing FIRST and only recycling as the latest resource, after you reduced as max as you could and reused something as many times and in as many ways possible.
Most people, including an old me, are unaware of what can be done with recycled material. And one of the answers is : What you wear could be made of recycled material!
While I prefer natural fibres to plastic, sometimes, as in the case of waterproof clothing/bikini/board shorts, some artificial fibres are needed. But why buying "new" plastic when they can be made out of recycled fibres? I don't feel so bad buying my new Roxy recycled polyester board shorts now.
"Fourth Element" is, for example, using plastic from the oceans to create their OceanPositive line, made from ghost fish nets. I will soon get a bikini top from them, as I find this to be a genial idea to begin cleaning up our oceans!
Similar initiatives include H&M shoreline waste line, and I am sure there are and will be more. So keep an eye out for the recycled material label when shopping (remember to shop only for things you actually NEED), and start making a difference
"Fourth Element" is, for example, using plastic from the oceans to create their OceanPositive line, made from ghost fish nets. I will soon get a bikini top from them, as I find this to be a genial idea to begin cleaning up our oceans!
Similar initiatives include H&M shoreline waste line, and I am sure there are and will be more. So keep an eye out for the recycled material label when shopping (remember to shop only for things you actually NEED), and start making a difference
Disclaimer: some posts may contain affiliate links. At no extra costs to you, buying through the link will help me in this blogging journey!
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