Wednesday 18 July 2012

Conscious Consumerism - Getting Back to Basics


"The first rule of ecology is that everything is connected to everything else. One simple action effects countless others throughout the environment." ~John Ward-Harris Ecological Author and Artist

It is up to us to take our role as caretakers of this precious planet seriously and our own health and well-being for that matter, in effect the same thing. After all, we only have it 'on-loan' for a comparably short allotted time before 'returning it' to the next generation. There are no super-heroes to swoop in and save us all from the mass destruction of the Earth - we have to step up to the plate and be our own hero or heroine in this story.

I have made it my mission to deliberately seek out companies offering products that are: ethically made, re-cycled, reasonably priced, organic (no added pesticides/chemicals), GMO free, or as close to nature as possible, and gradually (it has taken a while) replaced my not so nature/human-friendly products.   In some cases, we've come full-circle, as my grandparents probably used a lot of the products that I am using now for cleaning, like white vinegar applied from a pump-action spray bottle is an excellent window/glass cleaner and for descaling kettles, and baking soda for the oven.

 My tendancy is to mainly shop online (unfortunately), as these companies seem to be a lot more competitively priced than their bricks-and-mortar counterparts, offer a far wider range of products, plus, there is a lot less legwork involved, so to speak sourcing products that sadly haven't even reached the High Street stores yet. I also subscribe to 'Natural Health' magazine which is another great source for earth-friendly products and a refreshing change from being bombarded with unrealistic body images, shape 'ideals,' fashion-industry led clothes you don't need or want, and chemically-laden make-up and personal products.

 Going...Going... Green

 This gradual, but quite radical change to more universally-friendly products hasn't happened overnight and is still a work-in-progress - replacing things as they wear out, or we finish them.  And, we've started bulk-buying certain everyday products too, so that we can reduce the amount of packaging we have to dispose of: like toilet rolls, washing-up liquid, shower gel (also used as handwash) and multi-surface cleaner, in 5 or 15 litre containers! Surprisingly, washing-up liquid is not naturally blue, yellow or green, ours is clear and it doesn't have a vile artificial smell! We have found other benefits too with our new conscious buying patterns, we are now on very friendly terms with our postman, whom we felt more than obliged to tip at Christmas due to his increased workload over the past year, or so!! 

 When I find products I like, within just a couple of clicks, I can scour the internet for the lowest price, sales, any current voucher codes/offers and ideally free delivery (or at least the lowest delivery charge).  In the Western culture materialism has taken to us to the brink, before buying anything, ask yourself the following 3 questions: Do I love it? Do I need it? Can I live without it? After all, when you transition, 'your hearse won't come with its own luggage rack!'

I've listed below most of the retailers we use, although this is by no means an exhaustive list -  let me know if I've missed any:

Clothing and Shoes

  • www.seasaltcornwall.co.uk
  • www.peopletree.co.uk
  • www.ethicalsuperstore.co.uk
  • www.soulboutique.co.uk
  • http://www.wombatclothing.com/default.aspx
  • http://www.americanapparel.net/
  • www.carolondon.co.uk
  • www.braintreehemp.co.uk
  • www.charlotteswebuk.com
  • www.asos.com - sell fairtrade and People Tree clothing, there is also the added benefit of free delivery.
  • www.johnlewis.com - sell People Tree clothing
  • www.sockshop.co.uk - organic socks
  • http://greenshoes.co.uk/index.php
  • www.thenaturalstore.co.uk
  • www.monkeygenes.com - fab fairtrade jeans without the chemicals and a guilty conscience.

Organic/Fairtrade Bedlinen, Mattresses and Beds


Carpets without Chemicals 
Carpets are the worst culprit. They contain glues, anti-fungal and anti-staining chemicals and absorb other household poisons so they become a toxic reservoir. If you can't do without, then choose a ‘chemical free' rug or carpet like Geysira Wool carpets made from 100% untreated Icelandic Wool.


Kids Stuff


Organic Food 

  • www.abelandcole.co.uk - seasonal, pesticide and GMO-free and all sorts of lovely other goodies delivered-to-your-door. Their natural yoghurt is to die for and nothing like the supermarket and leading brand's equivalent.
  • www.expresschemist.co.uk
  • Food For Thought (Guildford and Kingston)
  • Farmer's markets are great too!


Books & DVDs

  • The library.
  • www.worldofbooks.com

Wholefood Vitamin Supplements

  • www.cytoplan.co.uk - like food a in pill form rather than some other foreign substance not too dissimilar to a rock or chalk that your body won't recognise and be able to turn into anything useful.

Toiletries and Make-up

  • www.ethicalsuperstore.co.uk or www.naturalcollection.com (same company)
  • www.waitrose.com - larger stores usually stock a range of organic products from hair products to household cleaners.
  • www.greenpeople.co.uk
  • www.soulboutique.co.uk
  • www.mypure.co.uk
  • www.soorganic.com
  • www.biggreensmile.com
  • www.elementalbeauty.co.uk
  • www.expresschemist.co.uk
  • www.lilylilo.co.uk
  • www.lucyrose.biz
  • www.naturismo.com
  • www.johnlewis.com - free delivery, if you pick it up from your local Waitrose or John Lewis.
  • www.theorganicpharmacy.com
  • www.abelandcole.co.uk - not just food - they have recently introduced Natracare, a range of natural and organic (no bleach) 'products for ladies.'
  • www.opheliaorganics.com - natural nail varnish
  • www.goodnessdirect.co.uk - Suncoat natural nail varnish (free delivery) which you could simply take off by soaking your fingers in water - no nasty nail varnish remover, saying that, Suncoat (and plenty of other companies) offer non toxic nail polish remover too.
  • www.amazon.co.uk - always worth taking a look on here for organic/natural products, although sometimes I find that the suppliers offer cheaper products on their own websites.

Furniture

  • www.ebay.co.uk
  • www.preloved.co.uk
  • www.gumtree.co.uk
  • Antique and secondhand vintage shops (we love East Molesey for these).

Animal Supplies
What we feed the beautiful animals that share our lives is as important as what we feed ourselves.
  • www.holisticpetsupplies.co.uk - I buy Four Seasons (cat and dog) herbal parasite and worm prevention tincture from here
  • www.folkloreproducts.co.uk - natural flea spray
  • www.myitchydog.co.uk - Billy No Mates - herbal flea, tick and mite treatment
  • www.amazon.co.uk - for bulk biodegradeable poop bags
  • Seven Hills garden centre near us in Weybridge and Imberpark in Shepperton are great for buying high quality bird, cat, dog food, treats and toys, although some of the supermarkets stock good quality, high meat content food too.
We're also blessed with finding a lovely vet in Guildford that offers both allopathic and homeopathic remedies and nosodes (homeopathic inoculations) for treating animals. Olly, our 'fur-baby' has had his vaccinations (along with  a homeopathic remedy Thuja to limit any side-effects developing) this year and next year will have a blood test (along with Tallia, our cat), called a 'titer test' to determine their immunity to the viruses vaccinated for. If the levels are fine, than they will not have any more vaccinations that year - this should be routine for the vet. 

 We do not vaccinate humans every year, so why unnecessarily vaccinate the animals we share our lives with, except to inflate the profits of the vets and Pharmaceutical companies? Vaccinating them every year compromises their immune system and causes many other awful side-effects and in some cases death. If you have to put your animal(s) in kennels, it's well worth researching one that will accept nosodes and/or titer tests.

Household Cleaning Supplies 
Is it time to give your home a detox? We spend as much as 90% of our time indoors, yet the ingredients found in almost everything we put in and on our homes mean that they may look clean but may not be healthy. The products we use/or buy to go in our homes, contaminate the air with a toxic mix of carcinogens, hormone disrupters, neurotoxic solvents, mood altering chemicals and reproductive toxins.

 Scientists regard household cleaning products as one of the most important sources of indoor pollution and one of the most insidious threats to human health. As our use of cleaners has grown, there has been a rise of incidences of cancer and asthma. Constant contact in the home with chemical fumes and chemical residues may be a contributory factor.The air inside the typical home is on average 2-5 times more polluted than the air outside and, in extreme cases, 100 times more contaminated largely because of household cleaners and pesticides.

 We predominantly use Bio D, Naturally Clean and Ecoleaf, NOT Ecover which
I found on closer scrutiny of the ingredients list does not entirely live up to its perceived green credentials.

Some Detox Tips

  1. Use one indoor plant per piece of electrical equipment to absorb pollutants - bamboo is particularly good.
  2. Stop using dishwasher rinse-aid: it leaves a chemical film on your plates.
  3. Don't buy synthetic room fragrances. Open a window or use a natural fragrance such as dried lavender. Wood balls soaked in cedar oil are good odour absorbers.
  4. Use clay-based paints such as Earthborn, rather than vinyl ones.

  • www.ethicalsuperstore.co.uk
  • www.johnlewis.com
  • www.soapnuts.co.uk - From just 3p per machine load, soap nuts are the best completely organic laundry option and cleaner on the planet, plus, they grow on trees, so are completely compostable too!
  • Wilko - white vinegar spray and refill with the glass bottled variety available from most supermarkets
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