An Ideal Earth Friendly Day (and way of life hopefully)

Wake up
Reluctantly get out of bed which is covered in organic and fair trade cotton sheets, blankets and pillows and also has an organic mattress.
Mattress - Abaca
Linen - Liv

Brush teeth
Use a natural toothpaste free from SLSs, fluoride and parabens. Brush teeth with Preserve Toothbrush which is made from recycled plastic and yogurt cups and remember to turn off water in between brushing. Do not use mouth wash but use clove oil rinse or warm water, honey and cinnamon mix for fresh breath and healthy gums.
Green People Toothpaste
Weleda Toothpaste
Preserve Toothbrush

Morning Shower

Use products with ingredients that are safe for me and waterways. I ditched the plastic packaging of a shower gel and opted for a bar of sweet smelling soap which is SLS free and contains no palm oil or at least uses sustainable palm oil. I use razors with handles made from recycled plastic and yogurt cups to avoid tossing disposable razors into landfills.

After my shower, I dry off with some lovely white fluffy organic towels and then moisturise with fair trade / organic coconut oil (the scent transports me to Tahiti). Before getting dressed I try and choose between Weleda's Citrus Deodorant or just plain baking soda for an aluminium / propylene glycol free deodorant option. Both work very well but decide to go for baking soda as a deodorant and Weleda for a summery perfume / body spray.

Soaps - Dr Bronner and Raw Gaia
Razors - Preserve Double Razors
Towels - Liv
Coconut Oil - Akamuti
Deodorant - Weleda

Organic skincare
Cleanse and moisturise with natural and organic products to protect my skin and the planet (toxic and synthetic ingredients can be absorbed into the skin and can also have detrimental effects on the environment such as polluting the waterways). Also scan beauty labels for sustainable ingredients and query palm oil now after reading article describing how the high demand for this ingredient is rapidly contributing to the deforestation of the rain forests in countries such as Indonesia.

Cleanser - Pai
Moisturisers - Read my reviews on Raw Gaia, Suki and Weleda
Eye Cream - Dr Alkaitis

Organic makeup
I just counted the number of make up products I use each day and realised the total was 8! At least they are all organic and natural though and I know that whatever my skin is absorbing and my lips are ingesting (from lipsticks and glosses), the ingredients do not contain harmful toxins and synthetic ickiness.

Organic and natural tinted moisturisers - Suki
Natural concealer - Lavera
Natural mascara - Lavera
Natural eyeliner - Borlind
Natural lipgloss - Lavera
Preservative and talc free blush - Suki Color Pure Cream Stain
Vegan lipstick - Perfect Organics
Natural lipgloss - All The Better to Kiss You With

Hair products
Turn to Green People and Aubrey Organics for high hair and high hopes today and also forgo the hair dryer! Thankfully there are some amazing natural and organic hair products available today that will leave your locks and the earth healthy, luscious and bountiful!
Shampoos & Conditioners - Green People and Aubrey Organics
Styling Products - Intelligent Nutrients, John Masters Organics and Aubrey Organics

Get dressed
Put together an outfit derived from organic, fair trade, vintage and re-tailored pieces. Organic Frank & Faith jumper (Annabelle style pictured above), organic Del Forte denim jeans (made in LA), Enamore organic underwear (made in the UK), Charmone vegan heels (sweatshop free from Spain). Accessories include vintage scarf, English Retreads bag (vegan, made in Colorado from recycled tires) and fair trade and recycled jewellery from Made and Kirsten Muenster.

Breakfast
Use Brita filter water to fill jug (with only the amount of water I need) and make organic and fair trade tea. Breakfast of homemade granola and homemade almond milk (organic oats, almonds and dried fruit bought in bulk to reduce packaging and own milk is made to reduce use of milk cartons which can sometimes be hard to recycle).

Pack own lunch / water bottle
This saves money and also ensures I get a healthy organic meal (salad, sandwich or soba noodles) without excess plastic packaging. A reusable glass water bottle also reduces plastic waste and reduces the risk of contamination that may come from aluminium water bottles.

Unplug electrical devices around home before leaving house to ensure no unnecessary energy is being used.

Pack a few reusable shopping bags into my vegan work bag in case some unforeseen shopping spree occurs during the day!

Empty recycling into recycling bins on the way to work

Take public transport or carpool to work to reduce carbon footprint

Read a library book, Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring' on the way to work for some environmental inspiration. Briefly consider purchasing an e-book reader in-between reading. Downloading books directly to electronic devices such as a Kindle or iLiad saves cutting down trees but where are they manufactured and what are they made of? Here is my first ethical dilemma for the day!

At work
Quickly check the fair trade coffee, tea and sugar supplies at work when I go to make a cup of tea (with my own coffee cup).

Email office manager to say how happy I am that he listened and acted upon my 20 polite but passionate emails about eradicating plastic cups, installing recycling bins, refilling ink cartridges, using natural and toxin-free hand soap and cleaning products, using recycled stationery and printing only when necessary on double sided paper and for making sure everyone turns off and unplugs their computer at the end of each day. Just about to send this email when said manager approaches my desk. Decide to thank him in person and perhaps discuss my ideas of banishing air conditioning and heating in the office / or implementing a green dress code for all employees once a month, but he quickly turns the other way when he spots me. It's like he is avoiding me or something. Can't think why?

Exercise
After work I avoid the gym (yeah!) due to the energy needed to power electrical gym equipment such as running and elliptical machines. Decide to get some fresh air and run outside (okay walk) and consider looking for a good yoga class nearby.

Dinner
Enjoy a dinner of organic / seasonal / vegan ratatouille and couscous with organic wine (for friends) so the planet is not being sprayed with pesticides and I am not eating them. Urge carnivorous friends to consider adopting a 'meat free Monday ritual' since they won't go completely vegetarian. It was difficult but the ratatouille and vegan raw food desserts from Raw Fairies finally convinced them.
Raw Fairies recipes

Wash dishes
Wash dishes in sink using Michael's natural luffa (lasts up to 3 months) and my own dish washing liquid as I don't trust what is in the so called natural ones. My personally branded, 'Miss T's Clean it and Green it' liquid is a mixture of water, baking soda, vinegar, lemon essential oil, salt and Dr Bronner's castille soap. It won't be hitting supermarket shelves just yet because while it does clean dishes easily and leaves them sparkly, there is a slight glitch, in that the grease seems to rise to the top of the water and makes the sink a bit of a hassle to clean afterwards.
Michael's Original Luffa

Laundry
Wash clothes using soap nuts and my favourite essential oil of lemon. Place washing on rack to air dry naturally and to save energy needed to run a dryer (okay, so I don't have a dryer).
Soapods

Time online
Pay bills online to cut back on paper mail and play a little background music from some green musicians (Jack Johnson, Radiohead and KT Tunstall). I then decide to get my ethical fashion fix by perusing the online green glam magazine, Coco Eco. No paper used and just eco friendly eye candy to absorb!

Wash on, wash off
Remove organic makeup with the Organic Pharmacy's Carrot Butter Cleanser with organic muslin cloth. Can't decide to use this or sweet almond oil or coconut oil to remove eye makeup? There are still so many decisions to make in an eco friendly world!
Carrot Butter Cleanser

Watch DVD
Unwind at the end of a long but enjoyable earth friendly day with Al Gore's inspiring DVD, 'An Inconvenient Truth'. All lights are turned off in house and only soy tea lights (palm oil free) twinkle in the dark. And there may or may not be a tub of vegan Hunky Punky Chocolate Booja Booja icecream in the room. After watching an Inconvenient Truth, I decide to go online and see where the new climate change film, The Age of Stupid is playing in London (Shortwave Cinema until 26 April) by using energy saving search engine, blackle.

Giving thanks to the Earth
Write down all the things I'm grateful to the earth for in my Tibetan Recycled Paper Notebook. I also write down some actions I will take to help protect and respect the earth from today onwards.
Recycled Notebook - Ethical Wares