Sustainable Shaving Options

Cleaning Products DIY Health Remedies

Sustainable Shaving Options

Mellow April 28, 2012 25 Comments

When I was first pregnant I had to nix my partner's use of canned shaving creams- the perfumes they contained made me ill, so we bought him a nice bar of unscented shaving soap and a lather brush. The shaving soap has been great. We love that it lasts forever and has no can to throw away. Another natural option would be to make our own shaving soap, which is definitely on the horizon. However, he continued to use disposable razors for several years until recently, when he researched non-disposable options.

A few months ago he switched to using straight razors. I think they take a bit of time to maintain, including being honed on a leather strop before each use, but he only shaves every two or three days, so it's not too big of a deal. They also require occasional sharpening with a whetstone.

I love that  the sustainable solutions for the future are often to be found in how we used to do things. This is definitely the low-tech shaving option! 

I don't think this was too much of a learning curve to get started. There is definitely a skill to any blade sharpening, and a razor has to be much more finely honed than a kitchen knife. Razors can be taken in to a knife sharpening service, where they will be professionally sharpened for a small fee. When we first bought Nik's razors, we did have them professionally sharpened. 

The shaving itself is pretty straightforward. If I shaved my legs, I would certainly give the straight razor a try. I don't think it would work very well for armpits though, so I'm sticking with disposables for now.

Nik's shaving kit includes two razors, a leather strop, and a sharpening stone, as well as the cup with soap & shaving brush, pictured above. The small green dish contains coconut oil, which he used to soften the leather strop when he first bought it. He was able to find both the strop and razors used on ebay. 

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Wild Foraging in April

Foraging Health Paleo Raw Remedies Unschooling Urban Farming

Wild Foraging in April

Mellow April 26, 2012 41 Comments

I just did my third Edible Weeds class with Melany Vorass through Sustainable Burien. There are still lots of greens to be foraged, though as many of them start to flower the leaves become a bit less palatable. While April is too early for berries around here, there were a surprising amount of edible plants that we found on our short walk at this urban park. Some of my photos didn't turn out so great, so please use this information in combination with Google or Wikipedia to find out how to more thoroughly identify these plants. Pfaf.org is another website where you can obtain info on plant edibility. Also, check out my previous post on edible foraging in February.

Melany demonstrates how to remove the "hula skirts" from horsetail stems. This papery layer must be removed from the stalks before they are safe to eat. Younger plants, before they branch out, contain less silica and are safer.

A stalk of horsetail with a few "skirts" removed.

Horsetail (Equisetum) also called "scourbrush", can be used to scrub dishes as well as burnish wood and polish metal. These plants are just a bit too mature to eat. The leaves around it are salmonberry, which can be eaten like spinach.

Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) flowers, leaves, and berries are all delicious.

Dandelions (Taraxacum) are edible in their entirety. The midrib of the leaves is a bit bitter and can be easily removed. Use the leaves in salads or smoothies, toss the flowers in salads or fritters, or make a batch of dandelion wine! The roots can be roasted and brewed like coffee.

Bedstraw (Galium) is a bit bristly, but somehow succulent and tender at the same time. My kids call it "cat tongue" because of its scratchy surface, and they eat it straight out of the garden. I've used it in salads and smoothies. When it matures, you will find horrible bristly seeds stuck to your pants, socks, shoelaces, and to your cat.

This is shotweed (Cardamine hirsuta). This is not a great photo of it, but most people would recognize it as the weed that shoots its seeds everywhere when you barely brush it with your hand. The leaves taste like watercress, but they diminish in size as the plant flowers and diverts its energy to making seeds.

The young leaves of a maple tree (Acer) are such a treat! Just pick and eat, they are so good. Also, I recently read that any type of maple can be tapped for syrup.

Poisonous: Buttercup (Ranunculus)... nothing about this plant is edible. I am in the process of removing it from the shady parts of my yard, where it has been taking over.

Catsear (Hypochaeris radicata) flowers are similar to dandelion, but the stalk is solid, while the dandelion flower has a hollow stem, and of course the leaves are covered in fuzz, while dandelions have smooth leaves. They are also slower to to to seed than a dandelion.

Nipplewort (Lapsana) has edible leaves. The leaves change shape dramatically as the plant forms its flower, going from this rounded heart shape to pointed spear shaped leaves on the flower stalk.

Sow thistle (Sonchus) is a bit rough around the edges, but no real thorns. It has thick succulent, edible leaves.

Full frontal shot of sow thistle. You can see some nearly mature shotweed seeds on the left, and some glossy beach strawberry (Fragaria chiloensis) leaves on the lower right.

April is a bit late for harvesting rosehips (Rosa)... and this is a pretty lousy picture of them ;) Collect anytime after the first frost, and store in freezer for later use. Remove seeds through a strainer before using the fruit. Rosehips are super high in vitamin C.

Pink and white clovers (Trifolium) are edible, both the flowers and leaves, raw or cooked.

Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium) makes a delicious, tender salad green.

Dock (Rumex crispus) leaves, and their seeds later in summer, are edible. The seeds can be used in baking to replace up to 1/4 of whatever grains you're using. The have a husk which is a bit tough and impossible to remove, but it incorporates fine into bread or crackers. New leaves, still tightly curled inside a sheath, can be used like asparagus after removing their sheath. My rabbits devour this nutritious plant.

Don't eat this plant. Common Groundsel (Senecio vulgaris) is reported to be both toxic and medicinal.

And of course, our favorite this year, stinging nettles (Urtica dioica). We've been living off these lovely leaves for months, in our green smoothies, and in the winter we enjoy them in an infusion. They are delicious and tender, once you get past that pesky sting (click here for my smoothie recipe and here for the nettle tea).

I'm linking an Amazon ad below to Melany's book on eating weeds. If you use my ad link to make a purchase, it benefits our family as well as the author. Thanks in advance!

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A Perfect Frozen Banana

Dairy Free Gluten Free Preservation Raw Recipes Treats

A Perfect Frozen Banana

Mellow April 18, 2012 68 Comments

This might seem like the most mundane post, especially for people who have already been doing this and think it's the most obvious thing in the world. However, I grew up freezing bananas a different way, and when I discovered this method I was very excited. Suddenly, bananas that don't turn brown, no matter how long you leave them in the freezer!

Although we try to eat local as much as we can, we really use a lot of bananas around here. Anytime I have a surplus of ripe ones, I toss some in the freezer to eventually become ice cream, smoothies, or banana zucchini bread. Just a few years ago I learned this trick that preserves the integrity of the banana even while frozen. 

Until then, I had always thought the only way to freeze bananas was to peel them first, and then freeze chunks in plastic bags. Well, the problem with that method is that when I would try to use these bananas, they'd be frozen together. Or, even if they managed to not stick together, their color would always be transformed by their time in the freezer to an unpleasant brown. Using this method, however, will maintain the color of fresh bananas, and it probably maintains more of their nutritional integrity as well.

It might be a small thing, but I also appreciate that this method eliminates the need for any plastic. Bananas stay in their own natural wrappers until they're needed; there is no garbage created and no bags to wash.

I had tried freezing them with the peel on before, but found peeling them to be nearly impossible while frozen, and letting them thaw once they were frozen was gross: they'd become mushy. Finally it occurred to me to use a knife to peel frozen bananas, and it turned out to be quite easy. Here is how I do it:

I hold the banana with a clean cloth to protect my fingers from the cold. Then I simply take a knife and slice both ends off the banana, and make a long slice down both sides, from end to end. If you let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes before slicing into it, it does make the peel come away a bit easier. Just don't wait until it's soggy.

Once these slices are made, you can slide the knife under the peel and it will come away from the banana fairly easily. Not as easy as peeling a fresh banana, but the knife & cloth combo really helps!

What you end up with is a beautiful frozen banana that doesn't look like it's spent any time in the freezer! Use as you would any frozen banana. They make great ice creams, smoothies (click here for my green smoothie recipe) and banana breads.

I'm linking an Amazon ad below to our favorite high speed blender, as well as the other leading brand. They're both perfect for making all your summer frosty drinks and healthy smoothies. If you use my ad link to make a purchase, it benefits our family. Thanks in advance!

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Rethinking Gift Wrapping

Crafts DIY Holiday Parenting

Rethinking Gift Wrapping

Mellow April 15, 2012 38 Comments

This gift is wrapped in a small batik tablecloth and tied with a silk ribbon, probably from a bathrobe tie. 

In order to reduce waste (since we no longer have garbage service!) and never have to buy gift wrapping supplies, I used to save the wrapping paper from all our gifts, carefully folding it and removing the tape, mourning the bits that got torn, and then trying to hide the flaws when I reused the paper... I am pleased to say that I never have to worry about reusing paper wrapping these days. Fabric wraps are so much easier to reuse, and they don't show wear like paper does. They are harder to tape effectively, but proper folding and use of ribbons eliminates the need for tape anyway.

This one is wrapped in a fancy table runner & tied with a disco belt 

I have always loved wrapping gifts, and these days the wrapping is often as much a present as what's inside. I have acquired a collection of used, scavenged, and repurposed scarves, saris, and tapestries, or even pretty cloth napkins or pillowcases, that work great for gift wrapping. Wrapped up in beautiful fabric, tied with a silk ribbon (or, often an old, beautiful belt from a robe, coat, or dress) these gifts can look very elegant. I love that there's no waste; I never cut anything and I never use tape. I just wrap, fold and tie.

A sarong works great for wrapping this large boardgame.

I'll often choose some lovely wrapping that I think the recipient will particularly appreciate, but frequently I just have to use whatever fabric will cover the gift well, especially if it's something large. I don't ask for the wrapping back, but sometimes people offer it if they don't want to use it themselves. However, I like the idea of this method catching on as the recipients of these gifts then wrap their presents for others in the same fabric. I've had some people excitedly ask me "Can I keep the wrapping?!" I always say yes!

Wrapped in a silk scarf and another robe tie 

Of course, if you have kids you probably have an abundance of fingerpaintings, drawings, and random art projects that can make great wrapping paper. I save any large, colorful or sparkly paintings for wrapping gifts. For these, I do break out the roll of tape. A gift for grandparents can be made extra special when it's decorated with kid's art. It also gives these paintings a new life, and your kids will probably enjoy seeing their art gracing some beautiful gifts.

A repurposed painting with a bit of Gris Grimly's art glued on.

Below are Amazon Affiliate Ads. Any purchase made through them helps support our family. Thanks in advance!

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