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

Green laundry products

One thing we all do, and do LOTS, over the course of our lives, is laundry. That's a lot of water, and a lot of chemicals, we use and re-use. It stands to reason, that this is one easy way to reclaim respect for the world around us, and a way to conserve our precious natural resources.

Most people think nothing about it. We've always bought Tide, Gain, whatever is on sale, and as long as it SMELLED good and cleaned those ketchup or grass stains reasonably well, it could be trusted, right? Think again. Most major brands don't list ingredients. Sure, it's a "trade secret", perhaps. That, and they don't want you to know what nasty chemicals are soaking into your skin every day. Nor what dangerous pollutants are being sent into our water supplies. Toxic, carcinogenic, you name it, it's often there. For more information on the actual ingredients in most laundry detergents, check this:

Laundry detergent ingredients info

If you're like me, it's enough to make you consider some healthier, more natural alternatives. There are already a steadily-growing number of brands marketing more "eco-conscious" products. I see Seventh Generation and Method products in mainstream stores, but they do seem quite pricey to my single-homeowner micro-budget. I also see Purex and Arm & Hammer nestling in on the "natural" bandwagon, and they are more affordable. The Purex (green bottle) is fine, and supposedly free of many of the petrochemicals of the bigger brands, but doesn't seem to do as well with the cleaning. I like Arm & Hammer's Essentials (also in the green bottle), which is touted as using "100% natural surfactants", no petroleum-derived ingredients, etc. The "mountain rain" scent is appealing to me, it uses real baking soda (one of the natural miracle household cleaners) and I feel like I'm helping, in whatever small way, to prevent nonrenewable petroleum products and harmful chemicals from leaching into our environment.

Anybody have anything pro or con to say about Arm & Hammer Essentials or any other "natural"-oriented brands?

Natural products at...Big Lots?

Sometimes, it seems that eating/drinking/living "green" in the United States is only for the well-to-do. After all, buying organic produce is often substantially more expensive than purchasing conventional fruits and vegetables. That sucks. And a lot of other "natural" products are also pricier than their normal, chemically-toxic relatives. And, if you are like me and don't live in a very environmentally-friendly (read: big coal area) state, you may have no access to stuff like Whole Foods.
But there is an option, sometimes overlooked. Big Lots.

Yes, that remainder/discount store chain can be a nice source for organic products and natural-living items, sometimes at deeply-discounted prices. I've found all kinds of superb teas there -- Honest Teas for 70 cents (rather than the $1.49-$1.99 range), bottled yerba mate, Annie's organic macaroni & cheese, Blue Diamond crackers, Arm & Hammer Natural deodorant, Seapoint Farms edamame, Tom's Of Maine toothpaste/mouthwash, and more.

It takes an ardent hunter of values these days, and this can be a way to get by "going green" while "saving green". Bad pun.