Cheap and Green Recipes for Dishwasher Soap

Make Homemade, Phosphate-free dishwasher soap with a simple recipe.
Mix:

• 1 T. Borax
• 3 T. Baking Soda
• 2 drops of lemon oil

Use this in dishwasher and you will never buy the store versions again.

The Green Garden.

How does your garden grow? Hopefully it grows green! These days we should all be looking for ways to reduce our own personal carbon footprint and with spring upon us why not consider our gardening practices as well. When it comes to gardening there are many ways you can reduce your carbon footprint. For starters try starting your garden from seed this year. Seeds cost only pennies on the dollar as opposed to buying starter plants each year from the nursery. One packet of seeds can be used to start many plants and the unused seeds-if properly stored- will remain viable for up to 4 years! Not only will you have plants for yourself but you will be able to offer many plants to friends, family, and even local gardening clubs. Another great reason for starting from seed is that you can grow your plants in a more controlled environment and on a smaller scale than nursery bought plants. This alone will enable you to avoid using environment damaging pesticides and chemicals on your plants. A smaller scale garden benefits greatly from natural predators such as ladybugs, toads, and predatory wasps. Let these guys do the hard work in the way mother nature intended and your garden will definitely be green!

*Starting plants from seed will guarantee you many plants to share.

Another great way to go green in the garden is to recycle your supplies. Think about it, every time you buy a new nursery bought plant there is yet one more non-biodegradable pot that will ultimately end up in a landfill somewhere. Try and reuse these pots year after year to start your seedlings. Remember! They are not bio-degradable and will remain durable indefinitely. If you find that you have far more than you will need you can contact your local extension program for a list of places to donate these pots. Many schools, garden clubs, and home gardeners are sharing these supplies in an effort to adopt more earth friendly practices.

*Reusing plastic nursery pots goes a long way in reducing your carbon footprint.

Finally, to make your garden green, share with others! It is likely that you will have an abundance of fresh flowers and produce at harvest time. This is a wonderful opportunity to network and share with other green gardeners. By exchanging techniques and ideas you will be able to participate in making your community more aware of the need for more earth friendly garden practices. By doing so you will be doing your part to promote sustainable practices that will benefit the planet for years to come.

Upcycled Chic?

There is a new trend taking the country-possibly even the world-by storm today and it is called "Upcycling." People all over the country are adopting this practice and going from trash to treasure with minimal effort at most. Upcycling is quite similar to recycling in that both practices were created to divert waste material from ending up in landfills and worsening the earth wide threat of climate change. The term was coined by William McDonough and Michael Braungart.

Upcycling is most commonly defined as the taking of disposable waste materials otherwise destined for landfills and making them into usable products of greater use or higher monetary value. Upcycling is an integral component of sustainable living as it allows for the reduction of waste materials while simultaneously creating new and useful products for the consumer. This practice has really taken off in the independent art forum as well. Creative artisans are using such products as non-biodegradable shopping bags and upcycling them into everything from couture fashions to artistic handbags.Because we also care about our world and the world of our consumers.

Planet Gift Baskets has not only adopted a recycling program for it's waste materials but has most recently joined in on the upcycling craze as well. Planet Gift Baskets employs a local artisan who in her spare time takes our disposable packing waste such as the chipboard cores of our packing tape, reusable pieces of cardboard, and chipboard inserts to create one of a kind jewelry pieces. For example, once a tape reel has been finished she uses the chipboard core to design and create beautiful vintage bracelets and brooches. She also uses old plumbing washers and hardware to create one of a kind earrings and necklaces. We are proud to participate in making our world a better place by adopting sustainable practices and by also supporting local artisans who continually seek out ways to creatively turn trash into treasures

Planet Gift Baskets employee and local artisan Cindy Shea turns old packing tape reels and plumbing washers into these one of a kind treasures.

Happy Earth Day!

Enjoy the Earth Today

• Ride your bike on a nature path
• Clean up a section of road that has been forgotten
• Weed a neighbors yard for them (ask first :-)
• Pick up cans and recycle them
• Go to a park
  
• Plant a flower or tree

Remember, the earth is in our hands.

Really Cheap Laundry Soap That WORKS!

We are saving more and more money these days with our new choice for laundry soap. I was skeptical that it would work, but it really does. No more large plastic containers filling up the landfills.
There are many recipes on the net that you could find. Most are liquid, but we prefer powdered.
Not only do you save space in the landfills you save money. The recipe we use is printed here for you to try. One hint: we used a food processor to grate our soap, worked like a charm.


2 cups Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated)
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

• Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.
• Use 2 tablespoons per full load. (we used a coffee scoop we found at Bi-Mart for $1.00 1/8 c.)
  

Chose To Reuse! Planet Gift Basket Green Ideas

Avoid Single use items whenever possible. Choose items that will last longer and can be used and reused multiple times. Get creative with your reuse.
We recently bought a batch of dog treats from Costco in a flip lid container. Our kids suggested we keep it and use it for the cat food. It worked great!

Keeping Baby Items Clean without Toxic Cleaners

Plastics are always hard to clean. If you have a plastic diaper pail, you can rinse it with 1 teaspoon of tea tree oil to 1 cup of white vinegar (distilled). Soak for a few hours and then rinse. You should have a much better smelling pail. Here's a great idea to help deodorize your pail.

Keeping Food Fresh- Here's a Great Resource

What a wonderful resource for finding out if your food is safe. Still Tasty offers consumers the average dates that food stays safe and healthy.

Did you know that the average time to store a banana is only 2-5 days? You can put it into the refrigerator for up to seven days but don't be shocked if the peel turns very brown. It will not affect your fruit but it will not be pretty to look at.

Tip: You can keep your fruits and vegetables fresher by adding a clean kitchen sponge to the drawers in your fridge. It will absorb the excess moisture and keep the air drier. It works wonders...just make sure that your sponge is brand new and never been used.