June 12, 2019

“What do you use for __________?” Our go to products outside the kitchen!

I wanted to create a master list of all the things we use in our home so I can direct people to them in DMs! This isn’t a ‘perfect’ list and I’m always changing everything, looking for better ways, using up what we have and checking again that rebuying the same thing is still the best option out there.

This is also something that I know is going to change and we move to the UK. Some things will stay the same and are available there: e.g. Dr Bronners for everything, toilet paper and Holly’s deodorant, and some I’m in love with and will be bringing over: my makeup!

House Cleaning

Laundry Detergent: Biokleen

Delicates like wool and cashmere: Laundress $10 off link HERE

All purpose cleaner/windows/bathrooms: $10 off link: Branch Basics (a great concentrate that you can dilute to be all kinds of different cleaners)

DIY All purpose cleaner: Vinegar + Water + Few Drops Dr Bronners + Essential Oils

Floors and mopping: 1/2 cup Dr Bronners in the mop bucket + a few drops essential oils

Drying: Wool Dryer Balls + Essential Oils

Stain Stick: Package Free Shop, or Dr Bronners concentrated

Dishwasher: Seventh Generation Powder

Trash Bags: We don’t use trash bags in our home. When you compost all your organic waste our trash is pretty dry and you don’t need a bag depending on your curbside removal. But if you do need a bag THESE ones are compostable, and you can also line bins with paper like THIS. There is no great way to trash things (or ultimately recycle) which is why we are trying to cut out trash and recycling as close to zero was possible!

Bathrooms

Hand Soap: – Dr Bronners

Used Healthade Bottles with THESE pumps.

Toilet Paper: Who Gives a Crap (available US/UK/Australia)

Toilet Cleaner: Vinegar, Dr Bronners

Kids + Family Use

Bath soap and Shampoo: Dr Bronners

Tooth Paste:

Nelson Naturals (I love the one linked here, Jared loves the charcoal one!)
Dr Bronners toothpaste Peppermint
I also love the DIY one from Wellness Mama for a homemade option

Moisturizer: Coconut oil to moisturize when needed

Diaper Rash Cream: California Baby

Wipes: Thirsties Butt Spray and rags or Babyganics wipes

Diapers:

Mostly cloth which is another blog post all together but
we also use Honest when we need disposable.
Also I recommend diaper training as early as possible for ease and waste! We did 22 months with the 3 day method and it was fab!

Sunscreen: Countersun by Beautycounter (I recommend the lotion or the stick, the spray you really need to still rub in well – the formulation is the same but people don’t rub in the spray as well and have issues!)

Mosquito Repellent: Stay away

Car Seat: We’re currently using one I would recommend due to flame retardants, I’m looking at switching to the Britax Endeavor one without any chemical flame retardants. Uppa Baby and Nuna also have ones.

Hair

Jared + Kids: Dr Bronners

Every day go to shampoo: Sappo Hill Shampoo Bar

Slightly better but not local so I choose the Sappo Hill: Ethique Shampoo Bar + Conditioner Bar

For guests who don’t want a bar: Plaine Shampoo and Conditioner

Deodorant

Jared: Toms (Aluminium Free, and can be recycled through Terracycle)

Kezia: Holly’s Keeping It Real

Jared’s Things

Shaving Cream: Counterman Shave Cream

Beard Oil: Beard Oil Pirate’s Secret

He doesn’t use anything else!

Kezia Things: non makeup

Face Cleansing/Makeup Removing: Organic Coconut oil on a cotton rag for makeup removal or Diluted Dr Bronners

Face oils:

Whole Maker Co
Beautycounter Facial Oils (#1 and #2 are my favorites but #3 is great if you have oiler skin as a balancing oil.)

Toner: Whole Maker Co Rosewater Toner

Exfoliating Scrub and facemask: Cocokind or Just a bulk activated charcoal and aloe feta DIY mix is great!

Daily Makeup

Matcha Stick and Lip Balm: WholeMaker Co

Concealer: Elate Cosmetics

Foundation: Tint Skin foundation or Dew Skin SPF moisturizer by Beautycounter

Blush, Bronzer, mascara and lipstick: Beautycounter

Beds

Kids: Babyletto Cococore Mattresses and Babyletto Cribs

Basinette: Ninna Nanna Bassinette, a great sustainable non toxic one – I got mine second hand to save money!

Adults: We chose to just go very second hand as an interim option. This avoids the original off gassing from mattresses which is the cheapest easiest first move. I was going save for the deal deal but now we’re moving so that’s something I’m doing with English brands instead. In the US Ikea is a great new bed more budget move as they don’t use flame retardants on their beds anymore – or sofas so I recommend those too. They also have recycled plastic bottle duvets which we have and love as a down alternative.

Sheets: Sol Organics on our home beds and airbnb too – the best organic and fair-trade ones that are so soft!

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thewholefooddiary

Well that was a fun try at taking a sabbatical and

Well that was a fun try at taking a sabbatical and then “coming back” to social media. 🤪 I logged back on for a few hot seconds after a 4 month sabbatical and I just wasn’t ready to give up the peace I felt with this app off my phone, you know? (Plus where’d the time to do it go?!)

Alongside that - coming back to Instagram in the run up to the holidays I really struggled with the “buy buy buy” everywhere and how to create content in that. This season is so full of marketing. I deeply believe in the power of commerce for good, and the power of shopping better. We need both. Just in this season to be honest… I'm struggling balancing two ideas I so believe in:

How do we balance using commerce for GOOD and shopping better with the idea of consuming minimally at all costs?

It's hard to promote both side by side. Grey, nuance… they don’t tweet well. But we need to shop less for our impact on the earth. We also need to shop better when we're shopping - for people, and for planet. But coming back to a din of “BUUUUY THIIINGS” I didn’t know what voice I wanted to be. “Let’s all quit gifting this year” or “ let’s all shop better?” One seems impossible, one seems too little. So I pulled back again in this crazy season.

But while logging off isn’t hard for me like it is for some people, in my heart I still want to be here. Not to make money, or for a creative outlet, not for connection, but more because our world needs change - even if I’m not sure what to say. Even being off this app I kept hearing people (you!) say they’d made small changes towards a more eco/ethical lifestyle because they watched our family make them. 😭 And that counts for so much for me.

I’m still figuring out the changing emotional + time demand of parenting kids as their ages and needs change, and managing my emotional capacity! So I kind of gave myself till the end of the year to not fill the space and time social took, but to leave it empty and figure out if and how I can create content, share our imperfect journey, but still keep my peace and be the mum I want to be. .
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Just so you know where I went and what I’m figuring out. 🥰

Let’s make a quick and easy local (to us!) packe $Let’s make a quick and easy local (to us!) packed lunch! 🍎 . Flour for tortillas - Stoates flour mill organic flour \\ Salt - @dorsetseasalt \\ Butter - @calon_wen \\ Cheese @lyecrossfarm \\ Apples - @abelandcole \\ crisps - @twofarmerscrisps \\ . We set ourselves the challenge of eating only from England and the U.K. and I am LOVING it and the producers were discovering and what were learning - Google “you tube the whole food diary” for more videos on why we’re doing it, and what we learned in the first few weeks! 🍎$

Better Advent Calendar roundup on the blog! To hel

Better Advent Calendar roundup on the blog! To help you sort through the ones that are out there and find better options for people and planet more easily!
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According to Stanford University, the amount of waste the average American creates goes up 25% from thanksgiving to Christmas. 😭 It’s similar in the U.K. with household waste typically increasing 30% during the festive period. And it’s more than just the waste; it’s the impact on people and planet in the creation of all these little gifts too. So, let’s do better yeah? Here are some ideas for U.K./U.K./Europe and beyond of fairtrade, low waste, refillable, charity giving calendars for all the family you want them for.
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And remember just not getting one is an option too!

🙋🏻‍♀️ hi friends. Well, after 4 months

🙋🏻‍♀️ hi friends. Well, after 4 months of no social media I’m slowly bringing myself back to the gram.
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It was good, needed, and actually not hard, to step away. And I’ve learned a lot about myself since I hit that little “X”. There’s a chat about the time and what I learned all on the blog for you - so you can know where I’m at but mostly cos I think it will help some of you. There’s a 10 minute podcast-y video from my kitchen or if you prefer reading, it’s all on the blog too to scroll through. And we’ll get to know each other again from here! I’m going to use social media differently from here, but for now I want to say hi and debrief my time away!❤️
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Read: thewholefooddiary.com/blog

Watch: https://youtu.be/Zw03QmDthtY

I’m on social media sabbatical! ✌️ If you’

Well friends, this girl is taking a social media s

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