Do you want to be a Waste Warrior?

I was at the opening of an exhibition in our local village history archive, and someone said to me:

"How does it feel now that the rest of the world is catching up with you?"

He had interviewed me for a Food and Drink programme on local television. That's how he knew about my "one bin a year" waste habit and like many people, he always takes the opportunity to tell me what he's managed to change to reduce his waste.

It does really feel like we are nearing the tipping point, thanks probably to the brilliant effect of the BBC's Blue Planet 2, but perhaps also the growing number of Waste Warriors like me who are talking, blogging and chatting to people about how they've reduced their waste. I really do feel that soon my one bin a year lifestyle could become  the "new Normal"!

While I was busy making some films about how to reduce food waste over Christmas, and writing a new Zero Waste campaign guide for schools, my partner in grime Rachelle Strauss was downloading her own zero waste expertise into a fantastic new Waste Warriors course - a series of podcasts that help you take action to gradually get from where you are to where we are in a month (well, that's if you do the 5 minutes a day, every day). Of course, the FOMO kicked in and I had to do the course myself to experience it and to check that I was doing everything I could to be the best waste warrior I can be.

Did I learn anything? Have I made any changes as a result? Given that the course is based on the many discussions that Rachelle and I have had over the 5 years we've worked together, I knew that I'd be doing most of the things she would be suggesting. And of course I was. You can't live on one bin a year without doing most of them.

But yes, I did make some changes.

Firstly, the course raised the issue of plastic in tea bags.  In 2015, when my family did our year without single use plastic packaging, we swapped the tea bags for loose leaf tea that we bought straight into our own containers. The shop I bought from at the time has sadly closed down, but I can now buy loose-leaf tea in Whittards. Back then my reason for changing to loose-leaf tea was because so many tea brands wrapped their cardboard boxes in film plastic - or even more annoying to me, put their tea bags inside a non recyclable silver bag (made of mixed materials - hence too hard to recycle). But I had no idea back then that tea bags themselves were sealed using plastic.  In fact it was only last year that Garden Organics changed their advice from saying that you can compost tea bags, to suggesting that you don't compost them at home, because of this plastic content.

Anyway, thanks to the waste warriors course I've gone back to drinking loose leaf tea - and, do you know what? It is soooo much nicer!

Another thing that the course pushed me to do is to tackle my growing mountain of things that could be given away and therefore put back into use instead of lurking in "Harry Potter's Bedroom" (everyone has one of those, right?).  My Dad had two discarded fleeces that he gave me to dispose of as I saw fit. I washed them, but they still came out covered in those sticky things from the garden and the silky strands that cobwebs turn into when you wash them.

I got out the ironing board and clothes brush and while I was listening to an audio book, I painstakingly went over every inch of the fleece to remove these sticky bits and now it is ready for the charity shop. I still have the other one to do, but I'm starting tonight.

Change number 3, is the decision to pick up more litter. I go running. Never as often I would like, but I do manage to get out there occasionally. My new habit is to run past my house for a certain distance and then walk back picking up the litter I see on the way.

This is today's haul. I'll wash and recycle all of this in the various schemes I use. Better than it staying in the hedge and finding its way to the ocean one day.


So, if you feel like you're ready to be a waste warrior, or you're already one like me but just want to take it to the next level, I do recommend the course. Here's the link.

Making your money work harder for good causes

I've just received an email from a local charity I support called Helen and Douglas House.  They told me that they made £39.03 from the items I donated, and that they will be claiming another £9.76 in Gift Aid.  What a great start to my week to know the things that I didn't need have now found a home with someone new.

What's even better is that it reminded me of when I took my bag of stuff into the shop.  I was looking for fascinators or hats for my cousin's wedding.  They have eye-catching window displays in Helen and Douglas House shops, as do all the charity shops along our high street actually.  I had a vague recollection that I'd seen some fancy hats and fascinators in the shop window recently so I decided to do a tour of all the charity shops along the High Street to see what they had on offer for myself and for JD and SD.

I took a few photos on my phone so I could discuss that evening with the daughters.  But I left Helen and Douglas House, though, with more than just a photo.  A lovely summer dress caught my attention and it was my size.  I knew it was something I would get loads of wear out of so I payed £9.50 (this was a clearly nearly new designer dress, you know!).

The next day I was honoured to be a guest at a lunch and play celebrating the centenary of school I have visited to talk about my book.  I proudly wore my new designer dress.

By the time I returned just a week later to buy the fascinators and hats I'd seen, I had worn my new dress 3 times.  Because I was returning to the charity shop, I tasked myself with filling a bag of things we no longer want.  It can't remember exactly what was in them, but I can vaguely remember a couple of dresses given up by the daughters and a pair of jeans that were passed on to me but were a bit big.  Maybe a few other bits and bobs.

Perfect for our summer wedding

I bought the amazing hat for £10 and the fascinator for £15 (I bought a third in another charity shop) and having paid for those and handed in my bag I was on my way out when another dress whispered "Buy Me" right in my ear.  As I had worn the same dress three times that week, I thought "Oh go on then."  I looked at the make and size and knew it would be a bit loose fitting but I felt the style would cope with that.  So I went back to the till and paid the grand sum of £3.50.

The next day I put on my new new dress - or tried to, and it seemed a little challenging,  I was puzzled because it is a make that is usually generous in its sizing.  I  took it off - I had to as I hadn't managed to get it on and checked the label again.  then I spotted the careful sewing where it had been very beautifully taken in. But wait... that's when I realised there was a hidden zip.  Rewind ...

I put on my new new dress, did up the zip and found it fitted to absolutely perfection,  It could have been taken in specially for me.  Thank you to that wonderful person who donated the dress that fits me so well, I wear it as often as I can.  Your hard work and skill are greatly appreciated.

Now that really is retail therapy.

Zero Waste Week 2014 - Day 5

With today's Zero Waste Week email being all about food waste I just had to zone in on the kitchen today.

A topic that could fill a book - it sure can.  After writing a section on food waste in my book 101 Ways to Live Cleaner and Greener for Free, I felt I wanted to concentrate  my next book on just the subject of food waste as there are so many things we can do to make more of our food.  I'm hard at work on it and I hope it will be finished before the end of the year.   If you have a top tip for reducing food waste that you'd like to share in my book, please do message me in the comments and I'll be in touch.

Needless to say, with researching and writing about reducing food waste I've become pretty nifty at using up every scrap.  I started my book, coincidentally, on the first day of Zero Waste Week 2013 which, as you may know was all about how to reduce our food waste.  I learnt lots from the tips that the Zero Wasters shared that week and I've been gathering tips and trying out recipes ever since.

So, today I had a CORN lunch, having first picked out what is going to go into tonight's bean casserole dinner. There was some tomato and onion pasta sauce and I picked out the cucumber and apple pieces from a bit of last night's salad - the rest is peppers, spring onion, carrot and celery all of which can go into the casserole.  What was left looked like the makings of a couscous lunch - it had been pork filet in a tomato sauce, and it turned into a tasty couscous sauce.

After lunch, before returning to the delights of explaining anaerobic digestion in a fun and exciting way for teenagers, I decided to blitz the kitchen clear out. One thing that has been driving me mad lately is that my collection of plastic pots (two drawers full when none are in use) was a mess of pots and lids but never the right pot with the right lid.  So I emptied out both drawers and sorted the pots and lids putting together the ones that matched.  I put a few margarine and ice cream tubs into the recycling as they didn't have the right lids and a few pot-less lids went in too.  The rest are now neatly stacked in their wicker drawers and harmony is restored at least to that quarter the Pitt kitchen.

The other area of the kitchen that bothered me was the kitchen dumping ground - a wooden trolley.  I had no idea what was there, but the general rule was that if it didn't have a place, that's where it ended up.  But my kitchen, in theory, has a place for everything.  Which could only mean one thing, if it was on the bottom of the trolley, it wasn't needed.

Before :(

Most of what was on the trolley went into either the recycling boxes, or one of two pots in the garage for odd bits of scrap metal and odd bits of hard plastic, neither of which we can put in our recycling boxes.  The scrap metal pot gets emptied occasionally at the local recycling and reuse centre when we are passing or have something else to take there.  The bits of hard plastic just accumulate as nowhere takes hard plastic in this area.  But the pot is an ice cream tub and it isn't yet full, so I'm happy for it to sit there in the garage for now.  I will say though, there has been more than one occasion that the 'hard plastics pot' has been raided for a gizmo - or at least a piece of plastic that can be used to make or fix a gizmo.

A couple of glass jars went into the dish washer and will be added to the slowly building jar collection which we'll use for making jam and chutney in the coming months.

Sadly, my lovely cast iron cook pan that has been broken for many years is awaiting a trip to the WEEE recycling so it can be taken apart to begin a new life.

And here's the result of my whirl wind sort out session…

After :)

How long will it last?  I estimate somewhere between 10 minutes and 10 days, but for now, I'm feeling good about myself and a few resources are on their way to find a new purpose.

There was nothing added to the charity shop bag, so I picked out these from various shelves and cupboards… I've never used them, but maybe someone else will?

Off to the charity shop

Oh yes, here's my attempt at mending my jeans - I'm not quite sure why I decide on pink embroidery thread, but oh well, the main objective of no more bum on show is achieved!

Zero Waste Week 2014 - Day 3

Day Three of the big clear out…

So far, so good. It's onto the landing - another dumping ground.  First stop is an old games chest.  Well, to be honest, until this morning when I lifted the lid for the first time in ages, I'd forgotten it was an old games chest.

I'm not sure how or why we missed this out last year, but it is not going to escape this time!  All the games were complete, but some required a little taping of the box corners.  Then it was swiftly into the charity shop bag.

Next, this lovely puzzle.  It was sitting on top of the toy chest, and has been there for more than a year! The annoying thing was, I didn't know if it was complete or not, and the outside of the box didn't say how many pieces should be there.  The really annoying thing was… I remember 'doing' the puzzle last year to find out if it was complete, but I have no recollection of whether it was all there or not - I'm not making that mistake again!  I've done the puzzle - isn't it lovely :) and I've mended the box and now it is in the charity shop bag, ready to go.  Someone will love it, I'm sure!

Next is this little corner of shame.  Everything from old light bulb to broken (I presume) smoke alarm is hidden behind this curtain.  This might be a challenge.  I don't know of anywhere that recycles old light bulbs, for instance.  The local collection point clearly says 'low energy bulbs only'.  I'll need to do a little research.

I've had a few suggestions for my saddle and bridle…including The Blue Cross, Riding for the Disabled, local riding schools and even up-cycling the saddle into a stool!  I'll need to make a few phone calls at some point today.  I've also listed it on reyooz.com and on freegle, so maybe it will find a new home.

The makings of a cool stool?

One Man's Junk....

.... is another man's treasure.

Well my local community shop certainly proves that to be true. Each year they are able to give away in excess of £10,ooo to local charities and organisations.

When I decorated my children's bedrooms several years ago, one wanted a sea theme and the other wanted a jungle theme. The community shop was just the place to make these themes come alive. I found cushions, soft toys, stick-on insects, a fish mobile, and all sorts.

My children have grown up, and the rooms have been decorated, and now look tastefully teenage. So, today, I'm taking all these things back there to the community shop, in the hope that another child will be able to have their dream jungle theme, or seascape all for the sake of a few pounds which might end up funding their Guide Camp or the next bit of park that needs a revamp.

Charity Shop Chic(k)

I have two children, and children are constantly growing out of clothes, toys, books, games. I take all the grown-out-of goodies to my local community shop. This community shop gives out grants to various organisations. In the two full years that it has been running as a community shop it has given out £14,000 each year to local organisations such as the pre-school, the school, the Brownies, the cricket club, the playground, and many more. It is a fantastic resource for our village.

I have been making environmentally conscious decisions about what I purchase for a while now. Like most people, though, I feel I have been taking it a step at a time. I decided that over the coming year I'm going to change the way I shop for clothes. I felt that I hadn't really, up to now, checked out the ethics and sustainability of the clothes I buy. Time to change all that. From now on, I will make a point of thinking about where clothes have travelled from, what the lives of the people who make those clothes are like, who benefits from my purchase and who and what suffers from it.

I was out for the day with a friend in a nearby town last week and strolling down the quaint high street we spotted a shop called 'Resource'. The name caught my eye and we had a look. The shop was a 'fifty/fifty' style second hand shop where you can take along your quality second hand clothing and if the shop can sell the item they give you fifty percent of the sales price. I parted with twenty pounds for a lovely designer skirt. I'll admit I have no idea who benefitted or who suffered from the original purchase, but I did feel that as I was reusing resources it was a move in the right direction.

A skirt needs something to wear with it and a rummage through my wardrobe came up with nothing, so the next time I was out on an errand I checked out the nearest charity shop. For the grand sum of £3.75 I bought two designer label tops to go with my new skirt.

As my attention had been turned to charity shop clothing I decided it was time I checked something out that had been at the back of my mind for some time. I remember seeing an advert in the window of Oxfam advertising that they'd give you a £5 Marks & Spencer voucher if you brought in a bag of clothing or soft furnishings (towels, sheets, curtains, etc) containing a Marks and Spencer item. Sounds great, doesn't it. So what's the catch, I thought? I had several bags of children's clothes to take to my local community shop. However, there is an Oxfam in my nearest town, so I kept one bag back which contained a Marks and Spencer children's dressing gown amongst other bits and pieces and I took it along to Oxfam today. It was gratefully accepted and I was given my £5 voucher. The voucher can be used on clothing, home and beauty products when you spend £35 pounds or more. Fair enough, I thought. However, it is only valid between 1^st and 30^th of September 2009. Well, a fiver won't even cover the bus fare to my nearest Marks and Spencer and as I don't have a trip planned before the end of the month it is most unlikely I'll get to use my £5 voucher. Ah well! There had to be a catch.

But of course, forewarned, you'll know to hang on to your charity shop bag until you know what you're going to redeem your voucher on and when (or you could just enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that your unwanted items are being given a new lease of life and helping relieve poverty – there's no catch to that bit).