Zero Waste Gardening

Or “Journey To A Garden That Works (for us)”:Our house is perched on a steep hill, and our lot is small in surface, but we very much enjoy its height: our balcony extends into the mid branches of our front oak trees… Squirrels (red or grey), birds (hummingbirds, blue birds) and butterflies (well, they’re more like moths, but that doesn’t sound as poetic) respectively hop, chirp, and flutter right outside our windows. We’ve been in this house for 3 years and I never get tired of it. They stare at us, we stare at them. And in all that staring, they become part of our lives, and we become part of...

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Not all green products are created equal: What was I thinking?

When you start greening your life, one of the first items on your shopping list of reusables is, a travel cup. So, a few years ago, I decided that I needed to have one to carry around my green tea.But, I was not going to let just ANY cup showcase itself on my bare shelf though.So I shopped around. Back then, it seemed that options were mainly restricted to stainless (which makes sense if it is completely constructed of stainless, for its lightweight and insulating capabilities). But all those I found had too much going on: A large obstructive handle, or an (advertising) logo, or a plastic interior...

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Zero Waste Home’s Last Resort: Recycling

At a party, when people first find out that I run a zero waste household, they like to share with me that they “too” recycle everything…I need to clarify something:Running a Zero Waste Household is NOT ABOUT RECYCLING.It’s about REFUSING first and foremost.Home waste management starts outside the home - and then the disposal of what you refuse does not even need to be addressed. For those items that we do allow in our home, we practice the '3R' mantra (Reduce-Reuse-Recycle) religiously and IN ORDER. Recycling is the last resort. A Zero Waste Home is not just about kicking the trash can, but is...

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Zero Waste Recipes

These are recipes of items that I have not been able to find in bulk or as a refill, items that our household “can’t live without”. We have tried and tested many recipes but these are the ones that have made the cut because they tasted good and worked best for us (which is why I won’t give the instructions on how to wash your hair with baking soda, or make cheese from kefir). Most importantly my recipes only require very few ingredients (all available in bulk, except for the yogurt starter) and are easy/quick to make. Every home is different: you might not find the toothpowder to your liking,...

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