The following post is from Katie of Kitchen Stewardship: I totally wrecked a half dozen of my cloth diapers, just by washing them. Mostly the more expensive, nicer ones of the 25 cloth diapers I reviewed. It was tragic. The silver lining, as with all stupid mistakes I make, is that, besides being reminded of…
Manufacturers of sustainable paper use ecologically responsible processes in making their paper goods. This indicates that the paper company uses green techniques in its production process, including using recycled materials, renewable energy sources, and responsible tree harvesting. To avoid contributing to deforestation and other environmental issues, a sustainable paper mill must develop paper products that…
So this crazy warm weather we're having this spring (80 degrees in March?!) has really put me in the mood to get outside and get started on outdoor projects which are usually left until late April, and sometimes don't get started until May! Since we moved into our house almost three years ago, we've been adding…
This post was first published several years ago, but it's worth repeating as we head into summer once again! Balancing the Risks of Sunscreen & Skin Cancer Like most of the girls my age, I spent a lot of time soaking up rays during my teenage years, sometimes with a little baby oil to speed…
The following post is from Katie of Kitchen Stewardship: Does Your Water Have Estrogen In It? Want to meet a transvestite fish? Perhaps I should say “transgendered,” since fish don’t wear clothes or make their own choices on sexual preference. Unfortunately for a group of white sucker fish in Colorado, we humans have made some…
The following post is from Emily of Live Renewed: Organizing Homemade Cleaners and Supplies - Part 2 Last month we talked about ways that you can organize your homemade green cleaners and supplies, and this month I wanted to share what I’ve done around my house to get my supplies and homemade cleaners in order.…
The following post is from Emily of Live Renewed: 6 Ways You Should Be Using Glycerin at Home Glycerin has always been one of those mystery products to me. I've heard about it a lot in natural living circles -- "Oh, glycerin is a great natural health and beauty product!" -- but didn't actually know…
Sustainable. Organic. Eco-friendly. Carbon footprint. Waste. These terms are tossed around these days like the marketing buzzwords of the decade, and we all know that just because a product or company tells us they're green doesn't mean they really are. So what does sustainable really even mean? I'm proud to be a Smarter Life Better…
If you visited my house, you might wonder why I have an old sock hanging on top of my toilet scrub brush in the bathroom. Of course, after reading this, you won't have to ask....I've been collecting all the crazy ways I reuse items that most people would toss or recycle for over two…
The following post is from Katie of Kitchen Stewardship: Storing bulk food the (easy? cheap? green?) way Buying food in bulk and preserving it from your garden and farmer's markets is as an awesome way to save money and capture maximum nutrition. Still, there's even one more reason to love those frugal habits: they reduce…