News — Plastic Free

Halloween is coming.  I actually love this holiday especially when I was teaching.  It's an opportunity to celebrate the season, indulge in goodies and a chance to dress up and pretend. 

The problem with all holidays is our enjoyment creates mountains of trash- bags of candy, plastic decorations and tiny toys make a lot of trash.

Here are some ideas to help you put the green into trick or treat bags.  

Plastic free candy is a challenge, look for candy wrapped in foil or paper or cardboard boxes.  They will be bulk packed in plastic but it is better than handing out plastic wrapped candy.

It's easier to skip the candy and pass out other sorts of treats.  My favorite idea is a bowl of nature items including shells, sea glass, acorns and stones.  If you live in the city this would be a real novelty for some kids.

Paper straws are a great treat to help raise awareness about the problems of plastic.  Amazon sells boxes of 150-300 and depending on your street a single box could last a few years.  

Sidewalk chalk, tiny cookie cutters, pencils, erasers, bandages, magnets, coloring books or printed coloring sheets, remelted crayons all are lower waste treats and last quite a bit longer than candy.

You can also buy an activity card set and hand out one card per child.  Your local bookstore or toy shop will have a selection.  Expect to pay around $10-12 for a deck of 50 cards.

The website Teachers Pay Teachers has some different printables including Halloween Yoga cards and Halloween PE.   Download to make cute books, printable bookmarks are another option.  The downloads cost between $3-5 making these a fun and cheap treat.

The materials to make a craft are also nice treats.  Friendship bracelets made from embroidery thread are a calming way to end the Halloween frenzy.  You can make a kit for each trick or treater and include directions.  Here is a link-DIY Printable Friendship Bracelet .

I hope this blogs helps you think about ways to celebrate without making lots of extra trash.  Handing out an eco item can help raise awareness about our planet.  Let's all work to make Halloween more green.

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Earth Day was the idea of Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin.  He felt that environmental issues and awareness needed to be more prominent in both the media and in politics so he created the first official Earth Day back in 1970. 

Of course, Earth Day should be everyday.  This year, the official theme is "Environmental and Climate Literacy".  In order to get a bit more literate in this area I'm reading Naomi Klein's "This Changes Everything- Capitalism vs the Climate".  It's not an easy read for me, I tend to like complex mysteries that allow me to escape into a book and this book makes you think.  Another everyday way to celebrate our planet is to get outside and pick up trash.  Noticing all the bits of litter can be very eye opening.  Besides helping to make the earth a tiny bit cleaner you are setting an example for others.  People need to see folks out there not ignoring litter but picking it up. 

It's nice to get out and about and connect with others on this Earth Day Celebration.  Here's a list of events around the state of ME. 

MID-COAST MAINE

JUST EAT IT- A FOOD WASTE STORY

Sunday April 22 at the Strand Theatre in downtown Rockland

This event is hosted by Renew Rockland, The Strand and Good Tern Coop.  Check out their Facebook Page for more info.

EARTH DAY CHORAL CONCERT

Camden’s Quasimodal Chorus will celebrate the Earth with song.  At the Camden Public Library on Sunday starts at 2:00 and a donation of $10 is suggested.  More info- http://www.librarycamden.org/event/spring-concert-april-2/

EARTH DAY WORK DAY at MOFGA

Earth Day Planting Day on Sat April 21 from 9-3 at the Common Ground Education Center in Unity.  More info from MOFGA.

A WALK FOR MOTHER EARTH

Sears Island to Belfast on Sat April 21 from 8-3.  Here's a link to the route.

SOUTHERN MAINE

CELEBRATE SCIENCE & EARTH DAY- WHAT WOULD RACHEL DO?

This event honors Rachel Carson and is from 10-2 on Sat at the Waterhouse Center in downtown Kennebunk.  More info here-https://www.someplaneteers.org/

TERRA MATTERS YOUTH CLIMATE SUMMIT

Sat 9-12 at Hannaford Hall in Portland.  Environmental clubs from Me's high and middle schools will present their projects.  After the event join the march and rally and remember to bring your refillable containers for food and drink.  More info here- http://terramatters.org/

EARTH FRIENDLY ACTIVITIES AT THE PORTLAND CHILDREN'S MUSEUM

Seeds,mud, stories, face painting and more! From 10:30 to 4:30, cost of admission to the museum.  More info- https://www.portlandmaine.com/events/earth-day/ 

WELLS RESERVE AT LAUDHOLM

This place is beautiful and on Earth Day there are family friendly events including bird watching, a concert, beach clean-up and more.  https://www.wellsreserve.org/

A DAY OF MINDFULNESS

If you'd like to experience peace and quiet head to Nurture Thru Nature Retreat

starting at 9:30  for singing, chanting, meditation and more peaceful activities.  Check it out- http://www.ntnretreats.com/

DOWN EAST

EARTH DAY AT COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC

Roadside cleanup, picnic lunch, puppet show, e car and a showing of the film 

"The Story of Stuff".  More info-http://www.coa.edu/calendar/#!event_id/28712/view/event

I know this list is incomplete- feel free to add any events in the comment section.

                              Carly and her Maine Man are getting married!  

Planning any celebratory event means compromises, and weddings are no exception.  It can be especially challenging if you want your event to be zero or low waste.

Our general advice is to do the best you can, don't be too hard on yourself for mistakes and remember every action- no matter how small is better than nothing. 

When thinking about a special occasion outfit it's important to think long term.  Whatever you decide to wear you should feel beautiful and comfortable.  Look for a style that is timeless and has room for body changes.  You know a year or two later- you might have gained or lost a few pounds.  You want that outfit to still look and feel good.

I have a dress I bought years ago.  I wore it often to fancy work events.  I could change the look with jewelry.  And I don't think it's necessary to always have a new outfit.  The dress is lovely but the design is quite simple.  I also use it for Halloween as it made a great "Evil Queen" when I was a primary teacher.  Now with a few quick changes I can rock a mermaid at my October markets.  It's comfortable enough to set up and sell and that's important because you want to get milage out of an outfit.

For Carly's wedding because we both like to sew we originally thought of making a dress.  We spent hours looking a fabric and patterns but honestly I was a bit worried about the actual sewing.  I love to sew but my skills are a bit random.  Last June, we were at the Old Port Festival in downtown Portland, ME and around the corner was an Anthropologie.  This brought back some sweet memories.

Many years ago, Carly was a science teacher in Texas and I worked overseas.  I was visiting her and she told me she found the "perfect wedding dress" at Anthropologie.  It was such a beautiful dress and it was on sale.  We actually debated whether  she should buy it.  At the time she was single without a significant other and wondering what to do with her life.  We decided it was a bit premature.

During the market we joked about going in and seeing if this shop had her wedding dress- and they did.  She wanted something simple that was easy to embellish.    Another important factor was the dress needed to be useful after the wedding.  Neither one of us wanted to spend money on a single occasion dress.

Her dress has a bit of Marilyn Monroe flare which is perfect for her figure.  She is busy embroidery a circle that she can attach to the dress.  The only problem is- it's white.  That's the traditional color for wedding dresses but so easy to stain.  I figure she has two choices, she can dye it after the wedding to make it a soft neutral but not white color.  Or every time it gets a stain add a bit of pizzaz with a piece of embroidery.

Some tips for a sustainable special occasion outfit-

Buy something that makes you look and feel beautiful

Look for a style that allows for body changes, gaining or loosing weight.

Shop thrift, resell or vintage either locally or online.

Support an indie business and hire someone to make a one of a kind outfit.

Make your own.

What are your tips for finding the perfect wannabe wasteless outfit?

We want to have a sustainable business. 

A few years ago, we rethought our packaging.  We replaced our cheap plastic jars and tubs with glass.  This was an expensive process for us.  The wholesale price for containers made out of plastic vs. glass or metal is considerable.  The price difference is something that you can't pass on to consumers.  There is also the price of mailing heavier containers.  Plus companies like Amazon who offer free or reasonable shipping.  I don't like to make purchases where the shipping cost more than the product.   We also made a switch to more eco-friendly shipping materials.  It shouldn't be a surprise that mailers made from recycled paper cost more than plastic ones.  My point here is that our cost are greater for eco-friendly products but the price for our products has remained  pretty much the same.

We are so thankful for the folks who support us.  We make products that last a long time.  That's part of our philosophy- purchase products that last.  This is not the traditional "grow your business" path.  Carly and I frequently have conversations about how to grow our business especially wholesale.  One of our goals right now is to get our Seaweed Shampoo Bars into natural food shops and coops.  She points out that because our bars last so long there isn't really a lot of turn over and that is something stores don't like.  Even if it is a store with a Zero Waste philosophy they need customers to support them and the products they stock.  

My point here is- it's complicated.  We got an email the other day from a customer who was upset with us.  She pointed out that we had a Zero Waste philosophy but we had sent them a postcard advertisement.  I believe she was referring to a postcard I sent in Dec.  I'll admit it was probably my most "ad-centered" and not personal postcard.  It was a message to support small, local or indie business during the holiday season.  Of course, we were thrilled if someone decided to support us but the general message was shop small.  I made it a bit more "slick" because I had decided to send a card in Jan with a more personal message.  When I'm addressing or stamping or decorating our "snail mail" I like to capture a bit of author Alice Hoffman's magic.  Her characters infuse ordinary things with magical intentions.  I'm not saying my postcards are magical but they do have good intentions.

I still like "real mail".  It's partly my ties to Gotts Island.  Mail is a big deal there and the little mail house helps build and connect community.  When I lived overseas I had "postcard" buddies.  Postcards where what I'd buy in airports.  I just mailed a card of cheer to the mom of one of my grade school friends- she needs a bit of love.   I also realize how complicated every action we take is and how there are always consequences.

We've tried so many different avenues to introduce people to our company.  I know it's easy for people to say "just use social media".  Social media is incredibly complicated and it's very hard for small businesses to make a dent when they compete against large companies with big budgets.

The social media sites are also businesses.  In general, an average post is shown to about 2% of the people who like your page.  If people "like" or comment on the post the reach does increase.  You can also try to increase your reach by paying the social media company money to promote your post.  FaceBook just changed it's rules again making it even harder for little companies like Dulse & Rugosa.

Another option is to join and participate in groups.  I joined some Zero Waste FaceBook groups.  I felt like I was a good group member.  I "liked" and made relevant comments on posts and whenever someone asked about shampoo bars I would post a link to our website.  One evening I got a message asking me "to not self-promote".  They explained -

We just wanted to reach out to you to let you know that the group's rules around business posts have changed. Unfortunately, none of the Journey groups allows members to do any sort of promotion around their businesses, blogs associated with businesses or that have affiliate links etc etc etc. 

I totally understood where they were coming from but the next day in the site's thread were posts about products from three big companies including posts about the wonders of Burt's Bees.  This company actually started in Maine and is always the example used in entrepreneur classes.  "Do you want to be another Burt's Bees?"  We always answer "NO".  I was so frustrated by this- Burt's Bees is a giant company owned by the multinational company Clorax.  My take away from this is it's OK for big business to continue to get their products posted because they themselves are not actually doing the posting.  It's coming from someone else- what's wrong is "self-promoting".  Even thought it's social media- you have no idea who is actually doing the posting or how much money and influence is being spent encouraging and influencing folks.  

I'm frustrated today- how can I grow a business that isn't perfect but also tries?