Eco tips for Life, Fashion and Family

So we are always trying to juggle being frugal, eco and up to date with what we need and it can be hard, especially with the current climate and for us personally it has been an expensive month (sob sob) so we are trying hard to save on what we don't need and trying to be ethical and sustainable the rest of the time. Here are a few things we are trying to do at the moment.

Fashion

1. Upcyle and thrift - You don't necessarily need to spend loads on organic material and fair-trade clothing, although it's great if you do and I try to when fund allow, but it's equally important to recycle and give life to previously loved garments. The great thing about shopping in charity shops and vintage stores is not only can it's often be cheaper but you can often find unique items.

I picked up these River Island skinny black jeans for £3 in a charity shop

2. Support local traders - we love going to craft markets and I find they are always a great place to find accessories such as hand-made necklaces and bags and not only are you support hand-made but also your local community, designers, artists and business - usually the people who need the support the most. 

3. Recycle what you no longer wear or use - what I feel won't be worth selling on sights like ebay I send to charity shops but you can also now recycle clothes for money with MusicMagpie, it's more instant than ebay and you know how much you are going to get straight away and it means you can de-clutter and you have peace of mind knowing your clothes are not going to a landfill.

Life

1. Use more public transport, even though train tickets have gone up in price, once your add parking costs into the equation on top of soaring petrol prices it still saves money and produces less greenhouse gases when you use pubic transport. John uses the local trains 5 days a week to get to work and buying a weekly ticket saves him money on standard fairs and it also means one less car on the road in the morning. Other ways are also

2. Walk or cycle - Mr A and I walk as much as we can every day, not only is it free but it's also good for you - so it's win win all round and for longer journeys why not cycle.

3. Be energy conscious - I think we need to change our attitude to our energy use, we should see every time we switch on a light or boil a kettle as putting money in a meter. By turning off lights you don't need or putting hot boiled water into a flash really will save you money, as well as washing clothes on a fast spin cycle of 30.

Family

1. The outdoors is free (well mainly) - your local playground or countryside park is a great way to spend a day and learn more about nature. Also packing a picnic means you don't need to spend money on food and eating el fresco really is one of the simple pleasures in life.

Outdoor fun is free and good for your health

2. Join your local library and visit your nearest National Museum - these are usually also free and a great place for children to have fun and learn at the same time and are also an option on rainy-days. They also can be a place for a wealth of knowledge on eco and green topics and often run craft days for children to get involved in.

3. We made a commitment as a family to only use Animal Friendly products in the home, preferable naturally based as well, which can be quite expensive but both Sainsburys and Superdrugs own range are all BUVA approved and extremely reasonable in price.

Let's keep this world a beautiful place