Dr. Bronner's Certified Fair Trade Bar Soaps

Having been a fan of the economical and all-natural Dr. Bronner's pure castile soaps for household cleaning and personal care, I finally tried their peppermint bar soap. Verdict? The rich, organic peppermint oils made my skin tingly and clean-feeling. And it didn't dry out my skin at all (easy to do in my chilly house in winter). A superb, organic, and earth-friendly moisturizing soap that smells and feels amazing? Definitely worth the added expense (the soap sells for around $4 a bar).

Dr. Bronner's Peppermint bar soap info

And, while on the subject of Dr. Bronner's soaps...anyone have any other ideas on possible uses for the liquid soap? I use it as a hand/body cleaner (1/4 Bronner's, 3/4 water in one of those foamy liquid soap dispensers), an occasional shampoo (dilute! dilute!), facial scrub (dilute!), and foot soak (dilute! in large bucket). Anyone have any other experiences (good or bad)?

Dr. Bronner's website

The Paper Dilemma

Okay, so we all have to use toilet paper, and most of us are pretty well accustomed to using facial tissue (a.k.a. 'kleenex'), and likewise there's always a paper towel handy when you need to clean up that spilled drink. But do most of us think about the trees we are using, and the forests we are destroying whenever we wipe/blow/scrub? With billions of us humans all over the globe, that's a LOT of paper, and paper comes from trees, right? It's said that we, as Americans, use some 700 pounds of paper per year. That's a lot of trees.

Needless to say, I am all for keeping as many trees, wooded areas, and forests intact. I've seen several eco-conscious brands of paper products around, at natural food stores and such, but they are always uber-ultra-expensive. I am but a humble working-class guy with little income. Can't justify it.

Well, along comes Marcal Small Steps - a line of paper that says it's '100% recycled'. They apparently don't cut down ANY trees to make their paper products, and they haven't for 50 years! Sweet! I found some bath tissue priced at $5.99 for a 12-pack of double-sized rolls at a local farm supply store, and, at that price, I think I like it. Anyone else like this stuff? It's not the fluffiest, softest, etc. around, but does the trick better than some store brands. Here's a link to their website.

Marcal Small Steps

Stores like Meijer and Kroger seem to carry it, as does my local (regional) Rural King. Let me know your thoughts!

Dr. Bronner's Magic Pure Castile Soaps!

I have become an ardent supporter and proponent of Bronner's Magic Soaps. It's organic, fair-trade, and so very economical, I've been using the same $9.00 bottle for well over a year! I use it as shampoo (not daily, but usually every couple of days), hand (and body and face) wash (25% Bronner's mixed with water in one of those foam-soap bottles), and more. You can find Bronner's in your local health food stores (Whole Foods, local places) as well as mainstream retailers like Target these days. It comes in several sizes, as well as different scents like Peppermint (my favorite), Tea Tree Oil, Rose, Lavendar, Eucalyptus, and more (even a Baby Mild formula). All the ingredients are natural, with no weird chemicals, so you know it's safe and biodegradable. Check their site at:

Dr. Bronner's website

And check out this interesting expose on Bronner's soaps (I can't embed this particular clip, so a link to the official site that features this video). It details California punk rock drummer Don Bolles (The Germs, etc.) and his experience with Bronner's, as well as exposing some untruths about some of the other so-called 'organic' soap products.

Video clip