Easy Green Living Tips

This is a great way to reuse one of those plastic water bottles you still have from back before you switched to an eco-friendly reusable water bottle. You can reuse the bottle and keep it out of the landfill, while saving water every time you flush the toilet.

Simply weigh down the plastic bottle with sand or pebbles and place it in your toilet tank – away from all the important looking mechanical stuff that makes the toilet flush and such.

This is a great way to reduce your water usage if you don’t have a low flow toilet. The plastic water bottle in your toilet tank will displace the water in the tank (so your toilet tank won’t fill up as much) and will help you save between one half gallon and one gallon of water every time you flush. Plus, if you pay for water where you live, saving water means saving money, which is always a good thing. 

Carpet is not the most eco-friendly floor covering option, but if you are renting or own a home that came with carpet, you can still take steps to make your carpet care as green and environmentally friendly as possible.

For example, if you live with carpet you are probably all too familiar with the fact that carpet can trap dirt and odors deep within the fibers that no amount of vacuuming seems to remove. This can really be an issue if there are animals or smokers in the house.

There are plenty of commercial carpet deodorizers available that you sprinkle onto your carpet, allow them to absorb and/or mask the odors, then vacuum up. However, these carpet deodorizers tend to be full of chemicals and artificial fragrances that can be irritating to your skin, lungs and eyes and that introduce toxins to your home.

You can deodorize your carpet the eco-friendly, all natural way with plain old baking soda, which also happens to be one of the main ingredients in most commercial carpet deodorizers, so why pay more for added chemicals and fancy packaging? Simply sprinkle all natural baking soda on your carpet and allow it to absorb carpet odors the eco-friendly and inexpensive way.

For easy application, put your baking soda in a jar with a shaker lid – like an old fashioned sugar jar – and sprinkle it on your carpet. Leave it on your carpet for at least 20 minutes, the vacuum.

Commercial glass and window cleaners contain harsh chemicals that are bad for you, your family and the environment. One of the most popular glass cleaner ingredients is ammonia, which is an eye and skin irritant, causes coughing and choking, and is of particular concern for children with asthma.

Ammonia is found naturally in the environment, but in such miniscule amounts that the minimal exposure we receive naturally does not seem to cause long-term health issues. However, the concentrated, larger amounts used in industrial and household cleaners – like glass and window cleaner – can be hazardous to your health.

Glass and window cleaners contain other chemicals as well, come in wasteful packaging and require energy, water and additional resources for production and transportation.

Fortunately, we can limit our impact on the environment and still have sparkling clean glass and windows with all natural, DIY glass and window cleaner that is eco-friendly and cheap!

To make your eco-friendly, all-natural glass and window cleaner, you simple need distilled white vinegar, water and a reusable spray bottle. Mix one part distilled white vinegar with two parts water in the reusable spray bottle and your green glass cleaner is ready to go.

One more thing – if you have been using commercial, chemical glass and window cleaners, there will be a waxy residue on your glass and windows. If you leave the waxy residue on there, you will end up with streaks after cleaning with a natural glass cleaner. So, the first time you use your all-natural window cleaner, add a couple of drops of dish soap to the mix. This will remove the waxy residue that commercial glass cleaners leave behind.

I was nominated for the Lemonade Award by Jewels over at Creative Corner. The Lemonade Award is a fun, community-building project, so keep on sharing the love.

You can see the other blogs she nominated by visiting her blog,

Here are the rules for folks who have been nominated:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post. (you can copy and paste it)

2. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude!

3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post

4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.

Here’s the list of the Today blogs that I have nominated…

http://greennotmean.today.com/

http://restyle.today.com

http://grannygreen.today.com/

http://thevegetarianblog.today.com

http://frugalliving.today.com/

http://beingthrifty.today.com/

http://naturohealth.today.com/

http://seekingdiscounts.today.com/

http://pethealth.today.com/

http://rainthecat.today.com/

Commercial bath salts may smell and look appealing, but if you read the ingredient lists and consider all of that unnecessary packaging, they begin to lose their appeal. I love a relaxing, soothing soak and I really love making my own DIY bath salts starting from a very simple bath salt recipe.

What you need:

1 cup Epsom salts

1 cup sea salt

½ cup baking soda

A few drops of the essential oil of your choice

What you do:

Simply mix the Epsom salt, sea salt and baking soda and add a few (I use about five) drops of your favorite essential oil. I generally use lavender for its calming, relaxing properties, but peppermint essential oil works nicely for invigorating soak or you could try rose for a lovely scented bath.

Store in a canning jar or other container with a lid and enjoy!

I use a bamboo whisk to mix my all natural bath salts and store them in canning jars. You can always buy jars, but the eco-friendly way to store them is to reuse a canning jar, jelly jar or other food jar after is has been thoroughly cleaned and dried. 

All natural, eco-friendly bath salts also make a great gift! 

Clogged drains in sinks, showers and bathtubs are a huge pain. Annoying as they may be, it’s actually pretty easy to unclog your drains naturally without the assistance - or expense - of a plumber, or chemical-laden commercial drain cleaners.

Conventional drain cleaners are terrible for the environment and are hard on your pipes. Plus, they come in wasteful packaging and can harm your health as well. Fortunately, it’s easy to save time, money and the environment with a super simple home drain cleaner that is all natural and probably already in your kitchen.

Start by pouring about ½ cup of baking soda into the drain, followed by one cup of distilled white vinegar. Let it sit and work its unclogging magic for about 15 minutes, then flush with boiling water. You may have to do it more than once to thoroughly unclog your drain, but it’s well worth it when you consider the eco-friendly and money saving aspects of this all natural drain cleaning method.

If your drains clog often, you may want to invest in an inexpensive drain snake that you can use to probe around in the drain and pull out hair and other debris. There are inexpensive options at your local home or hardware store and they can end up saving you lots of money in the long run. Also, if you can pull the ick out of your clogged drain, then you won’t have a plumber driving to your house and using fossil fuels, and you won’t be dumping harmful chemical drain cleaners down your drain.  

I love that I see lots of folks bringing in their own reusable shopping bags whenever I am at the grocery store. Bringing your own bags is an easy, inexpensive, convenient way to get a little greener and the trend is growing. You can buy reusable shopping bags for as little as 99 cents, or you can make your own with any one of the super easy tote bag sewing patterns online, so there really is no reason for folks to not use reusable shopping bags. 

However, while I think it’s grand that everyone is sporting their reusable shopping totes at the grocercy store, I have yet to see folks bringing their own bags while shopping for other things or heading out to non-grocery retailers. I’m not sure why this is, but it definitely needs to change.

With all of the options for reusable shopping bags, no one can use the excuse that they aren’t hip enough for the mall. I love my leopard print reusable shopping bags and get comments on them all the time. They just look like tote bags and have an awesome pattern. Sturdy reusable bags are also stronger than any of the bags you are getting at discount stores, mall stores or wherever else you are shopping. And, if you think grocery store bags are bad for the environment (which, believe me, they are) then just take a moment to think about that bigger, thicker plastic bag you just got at some clothing store.

If you use reusable bags at the grocery store, then you are already accustomed to toting them around with you - and you already know how sturdy and convenient they are - so, take that extra step and bring your own bags wherever you go. Whether it’s the mall, the bookstore, the hardware store or even for your leftovers when dining out, reusable shopping bags are good for more than just groceries!

Weeds are an issue for anyone who has a yard, or even a small patch of dirt next to a driveway or a landing. Weed killers and commercial weed prevention products are full of harmful chemicals that are toxic to you, your family, your animals and the environment.

Fortunately, it’s easy (and cheap!) to prevent weeds naturally with vinegar – yes, vinegar! I swear, I am continually amazed at all of the wonderful ways to use vinegar in just about every aspect of your life.

Simply spray vinegar directly on the weeds that you need to kill, or on the area where you don’t want weeds to grow. Household vinegar should work just fine, but if you find that you need something stronger, home and hardware stores carry a 10% dilution that will be even more effective as a non-toxic, all-natural weed killer.

Making all-natural, eco-friendly toothpaste is so absolutely simple that, once you read this, you may begin to wonder why you aren’t already making your own toothpaste. I know when I realized how simple it was – and how much money I could be saving – I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t already thought of it.

Big name commercial toothpastes are loaded with unnecessary chemicals, fake sweeteners and a long list of ingredients that are simply not required for healthy teeth, a clean mouth and fresh breath.

Plus, even all-natural brands still come in packaging that must be disposed of or recycled and are usually even more expensive than the conventional brands. But, it’s easy to limit the waste you send to landfills and save your self some money with this super simple eco-friendly, all-natural DIY toothpaste recipe.

Simply mix ½ cup baking soda in a bowl with ½ teaspoon sea salt, then add a few drops of an essential oil – like peppermint, anise, cinnamon, wintergreen or clove – and enough water to create a paste. You can also add vegetable glycerin if you prefer a more gel-like texture.

Store your all natural homemade DIY toothpaste in a reusable covered bowl or reusable squeeze tube and you are good to go.

Soft, shiny, healthy hair is easy to achieve without the harsh chemicals, unnecessary fillers and wasteful packaging found in most salon treatments and commercial store-bought products.

You can make your own all-natural, eco-friendly deep conditioning treatment for your hair with items you probably already have in your kitchen. While there are lots of options for all natural deep conditioners, here are two of my favorites.

Avocado and Coconut Milk Deep Conditioner

Mash up half of an avocado and stir in coconut milk until you have achieved a thick texture. This will usually take between ¼ to ½ cup coconut milk. Once you’ve mixed up a goopy greenish mix, slather it on your hair and comb through. Leave this all-natural deep conditioner on for about 15 minutes, then rinse.

Tips: Use a shower cap to avoid a mess. Coconut milk is way less expensive at Asian markets than at big name, mainstream grocers.

Coconut Oil Deep Conditioner

This one is even easier – all you have to do is pick up some coconut oil from your local health food store, comb it through your hair, throw on a shower cap, leave it on for about 20 minutes and rinse.