Giveaways! - Endings and Beginnings

Just a reminder that today is the last day to enter to win one of two Kids Vegetable Gardening Kits from Terracycle. Contest closes at midnight tonight and the winner will be announced tomorrow. And don't forget to head over to your local Walmart to see the Terracycle products available only through the end of this month.
In the vein of "when one window closes, another door opens" I am pleased to announce another awesome giveaway. You may recall my recent post about my new love affair with Laundry Tree Soap Nuts and since then I have continued to use Soap Nuts in every room of the house. The solution I made from water, vinegar, and the Soap Nut Soak is my new all purpose cleaner and I love it.

Yogurt Gives Back

Yogurt is an absolute staple in our house. Being out of yogurt is like being out of milk. It means an immediate trip to the store. We always have at least a quart of vanilla, a quart of plain for the chickens and cooking purposes, and usually a quart of either strawberry of peach. We only buy yogurt in quarts so we are limited to whatever flavors are available in that size. When the kids go to Grammy's they love to raid her individual yogurt cups because they know they will never find them in my fridge. Mainly because it is a billion times cheaper, but also because I think it is a waste of packaging and, sometimes, product. If we get the quart size I can control the portions. In any event, hopefully buying yogurt will someday be a thing of the past when we have our goats giving us milk and I learn how to make my own cultures.

In the interest of transparency I must tell you that I don't often buy organic yogurt. Believe me, I know that Stoneyfield yogurt is better for us, it definitely tastes better than the store brand, and it is a NH based company and, for me, that's local. But it is twice as expensive as the store brand and that kills me. Every week I give it a longing glance, but then the Frugal Fanny in me opts to cheap out.

I am a super fan of the company and all their green initiatives, but it is one of those dilemmas that I wrestle with all the time. When does cost win out?

I may have found a new strategy though as I just joined myStoneyfield Rewards. Maybe everyone on Earth knows about this already, but I didn't. It caught my eye when I went on to enter the Farm Getaway Sweepstakes. With the Rewards program you can enter codes of the products and earn point that can be redeemed for merchandise ranging from free yogurt to cool drinking glasses. It only took me a minute or two to register. So now if I opt to spend more for the better yogurt, at least I'll feel like I am getting something extra.

It would also be worth your while to go enter the Farm Sweepstakes where you can win a trip for two to an organic dairy farm in Vermont where you will get to stay in a B&B, eat an organic breakfast and help out with farm chores. Screw the Caribbean. This is my kind of vacation!

You can find all the info, plus much more, on the Coupons & Offers page of the Stoneyfield website. There is a bunch of stuff to check out and next on my list is the "Going Greener Guidebook" that you can download for free.

I am generally not a name brand kind of a gal, but sometimes your roots call you home and your taste buds want to come along for the ride. That and the factory tour is really fun so maybe it's time for a change.

Spreading the Love - Terracycle Updates

When I was at Walmart to pick up a prescription yesterday, I took a minute to check out the Terracycle display and was both saddened and pleased to see that it was slim pickings. They were out of the Kids Vegetable Gardening kits and I was bummed because I wanted one. I decided I am going to buy each of the kids something from Terracycle for Earth Day so I had them all show me which things they liked best and I will go back another day without them.
The displays actually looked great and each product was either featured beside the the packaging it was made from (Capri Sun Lunch Bags next to Capri Sun drinks, etc.) or next to other "green" items that are being featured for Earth Day. Next to where the gardening kits should have been there were lots of recycled rubber mulches and organic plant foods.
Apparently it's not just my Walmart because I got this message from one of my oldest and dearest BF's:
"Hi Heather! I am happy to report that I went to Wally World today to make my Terracycle purchase, and the racks were nearly empty. Seems they have been popular here! I bought a little Starburst bag that Libby can use as a diaper/snack bag when we go out. Not only that, but I told two different people about the products while I was in the store. Should I be getting paid for this? And finally, did you know that the products have tags on them with a card to send in and get a free gift. So it's two for one! Yay!"
The love has reached Iowa! Go mid west!
There are also lots of other blogs having giveaways this month so be sure to check out the Terracycle Facebook Page where many are being listed. I would tell you to go to the Terracycle Twitter page, but I might get you lost. Twitter has got me on the mental run.
There is an great giveaway going on at a blog I just fell in serious L-O-V-E with, Green Lifestyle Consulting. As I was reading through some of their posts, I was like "Yes. YES. YES!!!!" Just a quick scan through revealed discussions about everything from energy efficiency to greener birthday parties. They are totally speaking my language!
And of course, don't forget to enter the Simple Butta giveaway which ends Monday night. Kick your Earth Day celebrations off right!
Well, I'm off to curse the rain and daydream about planting.

Some Earth Day love. A Terracycle Giveaway!

You may have heard me say it before - I am not artistic and I am not crafty. When I am called upon to whip up a homemade project or party favor, I utilize the one medium that I feel truly comfortable working in - garbage. Whether it's juice lid Christmas ornaments (in the hectic holiday season that post didn't make it up) or milk carton bird feeders, if a craft project can be made out of materials that would have otherwise ended up in the trashcan, I am far more likely to give it a go.

So you can see why seeing a single episode of "Big Ideas For a Small Planet" that featured Terracycle was a transformative experience for me. Although it was several years back, I distinctly remember the thrill I got when I saw their worm poop fertilizer which was packaged in reused plastic bottles. Not recycled, reused. Better. No process needed. Feed the worms some organic waste, put the resulting liquid in old bottles. In fact, this was the world's first product "to be made from and packaged entirely in waste!". David and I were all "Why didn't we think of that?" and knew that Terracycle was on to something.
Since then, Terracycle has expanded their line to include everything from backpacks to Skunk Odor Remover and they are one of the world's fastest growing environmentally friendly companies. Masters of upcycling, they sponsor brigades where you can collect specific types of trash and earn money for your school or organization in the process. I love how they are involving the masses to transform the way we think about how products are made and where our grabage goes.

Soaking in Soap Nuts - A Review

When I originally wrote about discovering Soap Nuts, it was purely because my curiosity was peaked. So much so that based upon Easy Eco To Go's write up, I ordered some from Laundry Tree and waited patiently for their arrival. At the same time, Easy Eco was having her Soap Nuts giveaway and since I already did a bunch of stuff needed to enter (like writing on your blog) I figured I should give that a whirl as well. Little did I know the success that would follow. Not only do I lovey, love, lover, loveness my Soap Nuts, but I won the Easy Eco giveaway. Double my pleasure!
So armed with a decent stash of Soap Nuts, I have set about transforming my cleaning of everything from underwear to windows. Here are some of my findings.
Washing:
In my opinion, the Soap Nuts did an equal, if not slightly better job of getting things clean compared to regular HE detergent. The first load I tried was on wet dishtowels and the cloth napkins and washcloths we use at the table. This is usually the stinkiest stuff in the laundry as it has been very wet and has usually wiped up food, spilled milk, etc. The Soap Nuts got these perfectly clean and funky odor free.
Stains:
I am a psycho about stain removal because there is nothing I hate more than a perfectly good piece of clothing ruined because somebody slopped chocolate down the front. I tried running a few things without applying any stain pre-treatment, but the stains remained. I pulled those items out, did my usual stain spray ritual and ran them again. The stains were gone. So I had to use a pre-treament, but I also have to use it with regular detergent. I am continuing to look for a reliable "green" alternative for stain removal. Sometimes, stains get better when the clothes are hung out in the sun to dry, but not always.
Cost:
If bought in bulk and using the number of loads that Laundry Tree estimates you can do, the cost per load is about 17 cents. This is virtually the same as my regular detergent when purchase in the 150 fl oz size. If you want to use the Soap Nuts in the traditional method by throwing them right in with the wash, you will need some of the little bags and those are two for a $1.00. This is a one time investment. Purchasing the essential oils to add a nice scent to your laundry can add an additional $5, but it will last forever and is completely optional. Obviously if you buy in smaller quantities the cost goes up. If you don't need enough for 175 loads, you might consider splitting an order with someone.

In order to wash on cold, which is the most energy efficient choice, you need to make the "Soap Nut Soak". This could not be easier. Boil water, throw in your nuts. Let it sit overnight. Fish our your nuts. Done. I think this is the way to get the maximum amount of loads out of the Soap Nuts. Even the Laundry Tree website says "If you use hot water washes, your soapnuts will quickly release all of their saponin, and they won’t be good for as many re-uses". I found that I got two to three washes when I did them on warm, but they are never as foamy as the first load. With the Soak, you know that each load is getting the same amount of soap and it eliminates the guesswork.
Ease of use:
Overall, it could not have been simpler. Throw a few nuts in the little bag and toss it in. Much less messy than my regular liquid detergent which is constantly dripping all over the place and I always feel like so much is wasted in the measuring cup and left in the bottle. The only thing that was a challenge was finding the bag in the mass of wet laundry before I threw it in the dryer. A couple of times I ended up drying it because it was caught up in something. So now I am just more careful when transferring things.
Final Laundry Results:
I have to admit I was cautiously optimistic, but I can honestly say that the laundry has smelled better (with or without the addition of the essential oil) and is MUCH softer. Even the line dried stuff is softer and doesn't have that "chemicaled to death" feel. I have also seen a difference in my darling Josie's skin. She has super sensitive areas like (she is going to kill me) her butt cheeks. They are always red. Since I have been washing with the Soap Nuts they look way better because her underwear isn't irritating them anymore. Either that or she is getting around naked more and I just haven't noticed.
Other Cleaning:
One of the things that most intrigued me was the amount of other household cleaning that the Soak can be used for. I made the window cleaner by combining a bit of the soak with water and vinegar and it worked awesome! I did my sliding glass doors and they came out great. I also took the opportunity to try something I have always been skeptical about. I used newspaper instead of paper towels and  it worked just as well. Phasing out paper towels has been a struggle for me, but I may have stumbled upon a solution. Stay tuned for some love in that department!
I also used the soak to do a full kitchen cleanup and the counters got super clean. Plus, I always feel oogey about using chemicals (even the cleaners that claim to be "green") on food surfaces. Even if there was any residue from the soak it's natural so go ahead and eat right off the table kids. No need for plates anymore.
There are a bunch of other uses for the Soak and the one I still want to try is as a shampoo. I have previously mentioned my infrequent hair washing and I have been looking into the "No-Poo" method. I am thinking I will do a big experiment and try out some different things, but that will take a bit since I need to go a while between "poos" to get a true result.

So I honestly think I am sold on Soap Nuts and Laundry Tree should probably start harvesting double time because I may actually stay on top of my laundry with the added "feel good" appeal that washing now holds. Combine this with the ability to get stuff on the line on a regular basis now that's it's Spring and I may just become the Basket Master that I always wanted to be. Now if I could just teach the chickens to fold towels, I'd be in heaven.