9 Low waste Easter ideas

In a just under a week, the Easter bunny will be hopping his way around households dropping off chocolate eggs & an abundance of goodies. If your looking to downsize your waste, here are a few easy tips I shall be implementing.

1. Reuse the same bunny ears, masks, plush toys & baskets every year. I have a box marked "Easter" that I store in my laundry cupboard to bring out every Easter to reuse the same props year after year. We also opt out of easter gift bags & any trimmings.

2. Bake your own hot cross buns or bring a cloth bag to the bakery. That one plastic bag out of landfill makes a massive difference.

3. Bulkfood shops (like Wasteless Pantry in Mundaring or Source bulk foods in Victoria Park) have an abundance of loose chocolate & even Easter eggs for sale if you want to forgo the wrapper. Coles also have a section where you can buy some snack foods & nuts package free. You just need to ask a staff member to tare your container so your not paying for the weight of it. Or bring a paper bag.

4. Op shops are a good source to find bunny ears, costumes, soft easter plush at a fraction of the cost. All it takes is some washing first. I have some Golden egg books that are bunny themed I bought Kobe 5 years ago still going strong & now loved by Dylan.

5. Keep all your foil wrapper, then bunch them up & once they are tennisball size you can recycle as normal in your recycle bin.

6. For family gatherings. Each family brings a dish or 2 to share, split leftovers & compost scraps.

7. For toddlers, you could take them to an animal farm instead, make some homemade play dough or download the "egg surprise app" on your iPad.

8. For 4-10 year olds, you could gift money, books, a movie ticket, bake bunny shaped cookies or do some dyeing of eggs.

9. Spread out the easter joy. I really don't want my boys overindulging this easter so they were brought gelato by my sister last week as an early easter gift, my dad is gifting them money, my mum has taken them to a garden maze with mini golf & Lukes parents will do the Easter egg hunt whilst Luke & I have bought Kobe a search it bunny book & Dylan a Easter sticker book (pictured above).

I hope you all got a tip or 2 out of this post & feel feel to share any more tips in the comment below.

Happy Tuesday friends!
Grace

What I bought in February

After attending ”The minimalists” show a few weeks back, I thought I would document what I bought every month & hopefully only keep things that had a purpose & add value to my life.

After auditing what I bought in February, I definitely bought too many preloved activity books for the kids. This is definitely a weakness of mine. It keeps them from asking for tv when we are home. A therapeutic colouring book for Kobe. A preloved wetsuit for Dylan. A preloved striped shirt ($3) for me (I really want to downsize my wardrobe & have a capsule wardrobe of timeless pieces I like as opposed to hanging on to outdated clothes until they are threadbare out of guilt. Saying that I'm only letting myself buy 10 fashion items this year). Fabric to sew curtains for my bedroom, this has been a long time project of mine after waiting almost 5 years to find the perfect colour fabric secondhand to complete this project. I also invested in an Onya bread bag which you can also freeze bread in (I still use my cloth bag too to buy bread).

Kobe helped to choose a birthday gift for a friend so naturally he chose a skylander & books.

And from his pocket money he brought a preloved book from an op shop for 50 cents. Kobe earns $1 a week for doing chores around the house like loading the washing machine, tidying toys up & sweeping the front of leaves.


Going forward I definitely need to limit preloved activity books. But I did well not buying toys for the boys. And I'm happy Kobe chose to buy a book with his pocket money.

Happy Saturday friends!
Grace

16 minimal waste Valentine ideas

Luke & I shall be skipping the boxed chocolate, oversized stuffed bear, diamonds & flowers this Valentine’s Day & embracing one of these ideas. (Please note most of these ideas are catered to Perth, WA but there may be similar places in your area).

For the romantics
*Gin gin observatory- for something different view the night sky with state of the art telescopes. Located over an hour out of Perth. Open Friday & Saturday nights, bookings are essential.
*Or you could name a star for your beloved.
*Ballet at the Quarry (you will score extra brownie points). (Photo above)
*Dinner out somewhere special; Nobu & Neho are tops for Asian food!!
*Write a poem.
*Laze on a beach whispering sweet nothings to each other at Penguin Island. Or you could join a yoga session (bookings essential).

For the adventurous
*Hiking at Serpentine national park (photo above taken at Serpentine falls).
*Climbing jacobs ladder.
*Shooting guns at Lonestar (we have been before & it’s loud & a bit overwhelming for me).
*A date at the WACA (you will score extra brownie points).

For the budget conscious
*Pack a picnic at Araluen botanical park (everyone will surely be at kings park).
*Website minimalist baker has a plenty of healthy sweet recipes for you to make.
*Cake cafe “Greens & Co” in Leederville. Something for every taste bud. The ceiling is covered in lanterns which provide a lovely ambience.
*Break out some board games (ok I do love a board game but not for all).
*Complete a crossword together or better yet design your own crossword with the answers of all your partners favourite things. You can also check out the range online here (header crossword is from this site).
*A sunset walk along the beach.

And most importantly appreciate each other.

Happy Sunday friends!
Grace ox

Slow fashion: Timeless pieces

Its a new year & I have updated a few more pieces to my wardrobe. With styling myself I have chosen slow fashion & timeless pieces which brings me to the purchase of these 3 garments (which I bought towards the end of last year, with my clothing purchases less than 8 in 2017. Yay!!).

Timeless pieces to me are pieces that wont outgrow fashion fads which I can easily mix & match with my current wardrobe to get the most wear out of. Stripes are always a staple in my wardrobe, I know they arent for everyone but they complement my skinny frame (I try to stay away from black as it makes me look even skinnier). This t-shirt is from Salvation Army opshop & purchased for $4.
I usually shy away from buying new but my friend Kaysey saw these pants at Frankii ($79.99). The relaxed fit (I plan on using these pants to sew more pants infuture), the gorgeous mustard colour & the fact it was made of linen (it takes less water & chemicals to cultivate than other fibres) had me sold.

I love the bow detailing at the back of this straw hat visor purchased for $8 at Vinnies op shop. Its a perfect summer hat.
Moving forward this year; I am appreciating the clothes I already have, mending, altering & only adding pieces I need (my bathers' elastic are starting to go so I will need another pair infuture) & documenting anything I buy here to keep me on track to buying only what I truly need.


Happy Saturday friends!
Grace

The sharing economy

*Gratefully receiving bulk handmedowns for both boys (thank you Michelle & Sam! and Belinda for the cloth nappies! ox)

*Passing on outgrown clothes, toys, rockers, highchair.

*Abundance of homegrown passionfruit, mandarins, oranges, mangoes & lemons going back & forth between friends so none is wasted.

*Welcoming empty Moccona jars to be reused (thanks Louie!)

*Being kept in the loop on sustainable events & hacks (thanks Kym & Kaysey!)

*Community gardens welcoming anyone to learn about gardening, to be involved in their community & even peruse their compost bins.

*Checking the mail for neighbours whilst away.

*Letting someone push in line at the checkout because waiting that extra 5 minutes is A-ok (this time lol).

*Wanting the best life for my boys & paying it forward by volunteering time to help at a local op shop/ foodbank to help those struggling to get back on their feet to have the best life they possibly can too.

*Friends & families getting in on it & clearing out their pantry's to stock up the foodbank.

*Gifting a care package for someone doing it tough.

It really is the season to be jolly & grateful that so many people are getting on board with sharing excess stuff with people who can use it without expecting anything in return.

Happy Wednesday friends!!

Grace

Happy Thriftmas!

I love the magic of the festive season & oohing & aahing over anything Christmas related in catalogues or shops but I wont be hitting the shops in a buying frenzy. Instead Im embracing "Thriftmas" where I will be buying my kids secondhand goodies at an op shop instead of new at a shopping centre. I pretty much do this for their birthdays too. Not only is this cheaper (I have found many new items for a fraction of the cost at a shopping centre!), it saves valuable resources being used & by buying at an op shop Im supporting the services that op shop is funding (like councilling & food hampers).
So this Christmas I urge you to embrace Thriftmas too.

Be the change, gift the change.

I have put together some gift guides to suit a variety of people based on things I have bought secondhand for inspiration.

BASED ON THE HEADER PHOTO

FEMALES/SISTERS/TEENAGE GIRLS

*Trendy recipe books, novels, frames, posters/artwork, one of a kind vintage earrings or tops (I get so many comments on that sequin top when I wear it), designer labels- that wooden bag is Oroton & there also always seems to be an abundance of cds & dvds catering to any taste.

 

FOR THE MUMS

*Basic recipe books (can you believe I bought this whopper of a recipe book for $1), magazines for any downtime we mums get to relax, scarves (this is for me as I always have bad hair days, Im yet to master how to knot them stylishly), boardgames (again Im a sucker for vintage boardgames, I chose this & Twin peaks boardgame for the boys to gift me this year at Christmas, totalling $8 for 2 vintage games ; ET is perfect for family games night), & which mum doesn't want to be organized- notepads (Im always on the lookout for Kikki K notebooks) & an assortment of occasion cards work a treat. Tupperware is also a great find too.  

 

 

 



FOR THE CHILDREN

Children are the easiest to buy for with most being grateful for any gift received. Everything purchased in these 2 photos was under $5. Kobe is receiving a magic kit & Dr Suess activity book this year for Christmas. Craft kits, science kits, activity books & superheroes seem to be a favourite with Kobes age group (5-6 year olds). Im putting aside the soap making kit for when Dylan is old enough, it will be a nice activity to do together. If in doubt; books & dvds are usually a safe bet.

 

 



 

FOR TODDLERS

Op shops are a treasure trove of kids favourites like Toystory, Barbie, Dora, Superheroes, Thomas the tank engine, Peppa pig- its hard having to restrain yourself. I have a little collection of Vintage Christmas Golden books (they are the best!) which I bring out every Christmas to read to the boys. That teletubby cost me 50 cents & Im trying to get it to be Dylans comfort toy since he gave up his dummy. I also think boardgames & learning cards & puzzles are great for toddlers motor skills.

 

 

FOR THE MEN/DADS/TEENAGE BOYS

I really struggled figuring out a gift guide with things I had previous bought in an op shop which suits a male as Luke tends to prefer new soccer shirts as his gifts. There are always dvds with crass humour, a great novel, gardening books, journals, games, dvds, cds or clothes to fall back on.

 

Having a look over these giftguides; 90% was under $5 with most costing a couple dollars.

 

I would love to hear what your gifting for Thriftmas?

 

Happy Tuesday!

Grace ox

 

 

Slow fashion

Slow fashion is a term coined to garments & accessories that are made to last & mostly handmade usually in a small batch production. Which is the opposite to fast fashion. In Australia, according to ABC's War on Waste we throw out about 6000 kilograms of textiles waste every 10 minutes. With Slow Fashion October nearing its end. I'm sharing some labels who you will be wanting to keep their clothes forever as most their products are timeless & of high quality.

Hey Jude Kids (Pictured above)
The graphic prints alone have my heart all in a flutter. I'm spewing I missed out on the Bowie collection. Handmade in Dandenong ranges, Melbourne.

Little Noggi
Hats are made in very limited supply (around 50-100 per batch) so you have to be super quick to be able to purchase them. Made in neutral colours & in Australia by the very talented Sheree. Sadly the studio is closed until 2018.

Pons sandals
An ever so stylish summer sandal. You could picture yourself frolicking along the coastline of Menorca where they are made. The soles are made from recycled rubber. Check out this video of sandal production. For authencity, check for the "Avarca de Menorca" label. Predominately available in America, & in Australia it is available in Bondi beach & Camberwell.

Funkis clogs
No wonder the swedish are part of the worlds happiest nation with these comfortable yet stylish clogs. I live in mine the whole year. I seriously push my little one up a hill in a pram in them on the school run & yet to have a blister. Such a bonus they are made with sustainable wood.

Camp Cove swimwear
Bathers made from recycled materials & in Australia. The designs are very 60's inspired.

Limb
I stumbled across this label getting lost in Melbourne. Minimalist fashion at it's best. The lastest collection has just dropped. This label is all about buying less but better quality.

Happy Thursday friends!
Grace