Preserve recycled products

www.recycline.com

These guys use recycled plastic in their products. They have toothbrushes, razors, plasticware in the form of utensils, cups, and plates, and some kitchenware too. They even have a deal with Stonyfield Farm (an organic dairy-product company I love, and it was THEIR idea!) to recycle their production leftovers!

I can't stress the awesomeness of recycled plastic enough. We all know plastic is a very useful ingredient in many products, but recycling it can be a pain in the butt. THAT JUST GOT EASIER. http://www.recycline.com/gimme5.html -- You can now ship #5 plastic directly to them! They want the shipment to be at least five pounds, and shipped by ground. You don't even have to buy their stuff to do this. (A 5-lb package shipped UPS ground would cost roughly $9.30.)

If you do happen to use their products, you can print out a prepaid shipping label to return the products when they're no longer usable. They recycle THAT plastic and use it to make park benches and other things.

But are they any good?

Their utensils are of pretty good quality. There are eight sets of forks, spoons, and knives; they're very sturdy, dishwasher safe, and work well. They come in a cylinder you can use as storage. A cylinder of utensils costs around $6. The folks we had over today thought they were very nice, and really liked the cylinder as well.

My husband says the cut of the razors is about the same as the 'mainstream' brand he was using before. He is impressed with how well each razor is holding up and lasting through him shaving every day. The razor handles come in quite a few colors, which is handy if you have several people using them. The triple-blade razor and 4-pack refills both cost around $7.50 -- that's cheaper than paying for the razors my husband was using before!

I'm really impressed with this company, in how their products look and feel. They're definitely worth buying -- and you can find printable coupons for them as well :)

Dove Deodorant and AZT

(All external links will pop a new window. If you use a modern browser -- which if you're not, you should! -- I'd suggest opening it in a new tab.)

Dove Deodorant (dove.us)

I ordered a sample of Dove deodorant one time, and I really liked it. My pits stayed dry, I didn't smell hideous at the end of the day. I don't like a lot of overpowering scent due to allergies (plus who wants to sniff my armpits?) but a subtle scent isn't too bad and that's what this stuff is. I've been using it for months and months and months now. I don't get the huge pill-clumps in my pits I got with some other deodorants and the kind I use is an invisible solid so I don't usually end up with gobs of the stuff showing on my shirts. (this is the specific kind I'm using now -- Invisible Solid Powder (dove.us).)

I recently started looking into the presence of aluminum zirconium tetrachlorohydrex (wikipedia) in deodorant. The way it works is by forming a gel to literally clog the pores in your pits so you don't sweat. It also absorbs some of the sweat that gets out anyway. I find this idea slightly disturbing -- okay, I find it really disgusting. Supposedly the AZT used in deodorant is not as toxic (wtf) as other forms of aluminum, but the jury's still out. Plus, when your pores get clogged you get acne, and who wants zits in their armpits? I hate it when that happens, so very much.

Next up: Butylated hydroxytoluene -- BHT (wikipedia). It's used in varoius cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Not too bad, right? Weeeeell, it's also used in petroleum, jet fuel, and embalming fluid. I'm not going to go on a scare-tactic bender and say that if you use something with BHT you're putting jet fuel on your pits, but still. If I have trouble pronouncing it, it makes me a little nervous.

Unfortunately, the active ingredient in Dove deodorant is AZT, and BHT is listed as well. I'm very disappointed by this. I like the stuff. It works, my pits don't feel gross at the end of the day (unless I haven't taken a shower in a couple days, but then my pits feel much like the rest of my body), and I don't smell either macho or totally froofy. But ... AZT. Ew. The more I read about it, the less I like it. I'm not going to throw away what I still have, because I'm not swimming in cash, but I'm definitely going to be looking for an alternative.

Post Ideas

List of things I want to post about -- they're in no order at all. I'm quite willing to take ideas and suggestions into consideration, but if I haven't tried something yet I'm less inclined to write about it. It seems hypocritical to blog about something I haven't tried (although I will touch on that a bit).

-Ecos laundry detergent
-Seventh Generation products
-Sunrise TP
-Store-brand organics
-Swheat scoop cat litter
-Preserve razors, tableware, etc
-Kashi crackers and cereal
-Recycling -- #s, where to, awareness
-Clorox green (I have beef with this)
-CFL bulbs -- pros, cons
-Homegrown organics

Introduction

This may seem slightly rambling. I just came up with this idea, so I don't know how well it'll go over and I really don't have a clue yet what I'm going to do with it. I don't know how often it will be updated or what most of the content will be, but I will try my best to give my honest opinion of things.

I want to tell people about natural and organic products that I use. I don't work for an organic products company -- heck, I just don't work -- I'm just a girl who likes organic stuff. The best way to get people informed is to make sure there are resources out there for folks to learn what's out there, what works (for me) and what doesn't (for me). What everyone chooses to do with that information is entirely up to them -- I can bring the horse to the water, but for all I know he'll just poop in it. I'd prefer that not happen, but oh well.

If you happen across the blog and you like it, let folks know. I have no idea how it works -- though I've been doing online journals for years, I don't really participate much in the great wide world of blogging and have no idea how such things work. Suggestions and ideas on what to add/do to make this better are always welcome, though I can't guarantee I'll follow through with all of them.

When I buy something in a store, I want to make sure I'm not getting ripped off. Organic products are all fine and great, but I'm not working on an unlimited budget. Part of the entries I make will be devoted to the price, and how feasible they are based on a limited budget. I want to show that ordinary people who don't have lots of money can still buy some organic products without breaking the bank -- and I'm not afraid to say when I think it's not reasonable to spend ten bucks on Organic Product X when Regular Product X is three times cheaper.

Some of this will simply be my personal opinion. From long standing experience, I know I will piss off someone with what I have to say. After twenty-nine years, I am very used to this. I will try to keep things as civil as possible, but I don't like sugar-coating things (unless what's on my mind is really socially inappropriate, in which case I'll swallow my pride and ease off a bit).

Above all, I hope you come out of this learning something good.