Accidentally Green

Making Healthy Decisions That Honor God and Happen to Help the Environment

A Paperless Kitchen {How I’ve Stopped Using Paper in My Kitchen}

I'm taking part in the NBC Green is Useful Eco Eats Challenge! I've swtiched over to using reusable cloth instead of paper towels at home. I used to love using paper in my kitchen – paper towels, paper napkins and, every now and then, paper plates. In fact, the idea of a paperless kitchen never crossed my mind. Several times a day I sprayed down my table and counters with antibacterial cleaners and wiped everything clean with paper towels. Even when I started using safe cleaners – whether ... Read more

What Do You Think Clean Smells Like?

Disclosure: Freshana has sponsored this review. All opinions are completely my own. Before I turned green, I absolutely loved to use artificial air fresheners in my home. I never once stopped to think that a home shouldn’t smell like a spring meadow – because it was a home and not a meadow. Honestly, I liked the fragrance. Scented laundry detergent, scented fabric softeners, scented cleaning products – I never cared if the scents clashed. (And they did!) I simply thought ... Read more

Readers’ Choice: Safe Deodorants

Woo hoo! This is Accidentally Green's 1,000th post! Looking for safe deodorant options? In a recent poll on Accidentally Green’s Facebook page, fans had plenty of suggestions: Carrie chooses Norwex Crystal Deodorant. Valerie uses Wright Family Products’ organic deodorant. Amy prefers NYR Organic’s Lemon and Coriander Deodorant. Staci, Chrissy and Rachel like Funk Fighter by Pure Pursuit. Bronwyn prefers lavanila. Corinne, Kristin, April and Lyndsi love Ava ... Read more

Make Your Own Deodorant

As you know very well, once you reach a certain age, you need deodorant. I’ve spent days without it – simply by forgetting – and once I get a whiff of my body odor, I’m quickly reminded that I need it. The trouble is, it’s hard to find a great product. I’m all for sweating – it’s a natural body process (and a pretty amazing God-created one!) so I skip anti-perspirants. But I like to mask my body odor when it is particularly odorifferous. While I try to use safe products (take my ... Read more

Readers’ Choice: Safe Body Washes

I love trying safe products, but I’m always happier when trying recommendations from healthy friends. In a recent poll on Accidentally Green’s Facebook page, fans had plenty of suggestions when it comes to safe body washes: Jacquie recommends Sotu Organics’ small batch products with essential oils. “I use Sotu's Lavender Geranium organic castile face wash as a body wash.” Jennifer recommends Shea Moisture. “I love all of their products.” Shelli recommends The Honest Co. shampoo – it ... Read more

Creating a Baby-Safe World

Seven summers ago, my life became healthier all because of a tiny baby. I was pregnant with my first child, and as I researched how to take care of a baby, I found that so many of my habits and choices had been unhealthy. They were unhealthy for me, as an adult, and definitely unhealthy for any infant, toddler or child. I did what any good mom would do – I started making changes: I began to green my cleaning. I dumped all my favorite (toxic!) personal care products and switched to ... Read more

Readers’ Choice: Safe Shampoos

Recently, I asked Accidentally Green readers about their favorite safe shampoos. Many of you shared some great products! In case you’re interested in trying a new shampoo: Amber recommends WEN. Shelli recommends The Honest Co. Devon recommends Robyn Shaub Atticks’ Shear Miracle Organics organic and wild crafted products. Tennille recommends Andalou Naturals. “I've got insanely hard water with so much chlorine in it that it bleaches my soil when I water the garden. I just ... Read more

Help! How Do I Green My Wardrobe?

You may be in the middle of back-to-school shopping … or maybe you’re not. Chances are, though, you’ve bought clothing at some point in 2014. When you went shopping, did creating an environmentally friendly wardrobe ever cross your mind? I’ll be honest – I don’t think of it. I’m usually too consumed by the way clothes look, fit, and how much they cost. Yet I need to become more intentional when I green my wardrobe. A lot of clothing sold today is known for being cheap – that means ... Read more

Help! How Can I Go Green This School Year?

Like many annual events – Christmas, Easter, Halloween, the Super Bowl, Black Friday – the consumeristic culture in the United States has blown back-to-school shopping to epic proportions. When did learning become so expensive? Or when did it require so.much.stuff? Your students may try to go along with the “I need a new backpack, lunchbox, school supplies, three pairs of shoes, sports uniform and entire wardrobe” mentality – but they don’t need to. Stay strong, reasonable parent. You ... Read more

Reuse and Repurpose School Supplies

Looking for ways to save money and resources when your children start back to school? Here are some ways to reuse and repurpose school supplies: Now that the start of school is right around the corner, it’s the time of year where schools post their lists for required school supplies in local stores. (At least this happens in my community!) There are a lot of specific supplies to buy depending on your child’s class and teacher. And while you may need to buy a particular folder or type of ... Read more

Reducing, Reusing & Recycling Magazines

I used to LOVE reading magazines. Back when I was a journalism major in college, I would study the layouts, photos, catchy headlines and different sections while I dreamed of working at a magazine someday. (Eventually I did work at a few magazines. It was as cool as I imagined.) Something’s happened, though. Magazines have lost their appeal. Don’t get me wrong – I still love looking at the layouts, photos, headlines and stories. I just have no time to read them. Magazines were ... Read more

Thinning My Book Collection

I love books. I have loved them for as long as I can remember. And to me, home just doesn’t feel like home unless there are shelves and shelves of books around. I know eBooks and all things digital are the rage – I’ve written four eBooks, so I do appreciate the medium – but all of the digital books in the world can’t compare to holding your own book and thumbing through the paper pages. Even though I love having books all around my home, sometimes I need to thin out my collection. ... Read more

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