In the last month or so I've really noticed a great amount of local businesses pitching in, in more ways than just providing a recycle bin. So I wanted to point them out and provide a huge THANK YOU to them and hopefully in the near future more businesses will be inspired by their actions .
Ballard Bros.- 15th Ave, Ballard, WA. http://www.ballardbrothers.com/
Not only is their food delicious, but almost every bit of "waste" that comes out of there is compostable. They use compostable corn plastics in their cups, straws, utensils, etc, so instead of a garbage bin in the restaurant, they have a compost bin. You can put dirty napkins and food wrappers in it as well. THANK YOU BALLARD BROS.!
Cupcake Royale- Ballard, West Seattle, Capitol Hill. http://www.cupcakeroyale.com/
They also provide compost bins that you can put your cupcake wrappers, napkins and latte cups in. Ceramic plates and bowls are provided if you are eating "in", so that cuts down on waste as well. THANK YOU CUPCAKE ROYALE!
Old School Frozen Yogurt- Capitol Hill. http://www.oldschoolfrozencustard.com/
I was recently there for my birthday "cake", and the cup they give you not only states that it is compostable, as well as bins provided in the store after you're done with it, but on it is a wonderful paragraph about the Eco-Products they use:
"In one year Eco-Products customers make a difference by saving: 150,000 gallons of gas- enough to five around the earth 181 times; 7,380 pounds of greenhouse gases; 504,326 kW hours of energy- enough to power the average American household for 10 years.
And the surprise eco-warrior of them all....
Mrs. Cooks- U Village. http://www.mrscooks.com/
I made a Christmas purchase there recently, and to my delight, on the bag in big letters it states that the "plastic" bag that my item was in is 100% BIODEGRADABLE. Holy crud! Way to go, Mrs. Cooks!
I'm so proud of many of these businesses taking a stand (Whole Foods also provides a compost bin inside). I believe that recycling and composting are one of the easiest and most effective steps we can take to help clean up the earth. Next time you go to throw away something, stop and wonder, is this recyclable? If not, is it compostable? Your latte cups, dirty napkins, paper take out containers, food scraps, and in many areas (Seattle!) even meat! If you have a yard waste bin then you can put all this in it (keep it in a compostable bag- like paper). You might be surprised at how much it will decrease your garbage!
Showing posts with label composting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label composting. Show all posts
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Vermicomposting
It’s my first video blog! Hope I don’t stumble too much. As I say in the video, I’ve been composting with the use of worms (vermicomposting) for the past couple of years and I completely love it. People ask me every now and then exactly what is vermicomposting, and recently a friend requested that I do a blog entry on it and set one up for her. A few things I forgot to mention in the video, (hey it’s hard remembering everything when it’s impromptu!):
· Worm bins can be kept inside and outside. When I had a garage I kept them in there, but when I moved I kept them in the kitchen closet. The general rule is if you are cold, so are they. I put them out on the deck early spring when it was getting warmer (don’t leave them in the direct sun), and will bring them back inside when it starts getting cold. It doesn’t smell, and you only get fruit flies during f.f. season if you aren’t careful.
· If it does start to smell, lay off on the food for a while and add “brown” (paper, leaves). That will help balance the bin's contents. Just remember that it needs balance- give them a variety of food, and keep it moist but not mushy and drippy (that’s what I call worm diarrhea!). If you overfeed them, it will bottleneck the process.
· If you want to use the castings for your garden or house plants, stop feeding them for a while so that they can go through the food that’s already in there thoroughly. It can take about 3 months sometimes to go through everything.
· Some items they love are fruit, veggies, stale rice/pasta/bread, coffee grounds, tea (take staples out of the bags!), used napkins, paper towels, and my favorite, used coffee cups! They will eat all of the paper and leave the wax lining, so you will have to pull that out when they are done. (I find it fascinating, but maybe I’m just weird!). Don’t give them fats, dairy, meat, or anything cooked. Throw all of that stuff in your yard waste bin.
· One more thing I forgot to add, it’s not the worms that actually eat the food. The food breaks down with the help of microbes, and it’s the microbes that the worms eat. Nice little cycle!
· Worm bins can be kept inside and outside. When I had a garage I kept them in there, but when I moved I kept them in the kitchen closet. The general rule is if you are cold, so are they. I put them out on the deck early spring when it was getting warmer (don’t leave them in the direct sun), and will bring them back inside when it starts getting cold. It doesn’t smell, and you only get fruit flies during f.f. season if you aren’t careful.
· If it does start to smell, lay off on the food for a while and add “brown” (paper, leaves). That will help balance the bin's contents. Just remember that it needs balance- give them a variety of food, and keep it moist but not mushy and drippy (that’s what I call worm diarrhea!). If you overfeed them, it will bottleneck the process.
· If you want to use the castings for your garden or house plants, stop feeding them for a while so that they can go through the food that’s already in there thoroughly. It can take about 3 months sometimes to go through everything.
· Some items they love are fruit, veggies, stale rice/pasta/bread, coffee grounds, tea (take staples out of the bags!), used napkins, paper towels, and my favorite, used coffee cups! They will eat all of the paper and leave the wax lining, so you will have to pull that out when they are done. (I find it fascinating, but maybe I’m just weird!). Don’t give them fats, dairy, meat, or anything cooked. Throw all of that stuff in your yard waste bin.
· One more thing I forgot to add, it’s not the worms that actually eat the food. The food breaks down with the help of microbes, and it’s the microbes that the worms eat. Nice little cycle!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
I was a cleaner for a high end cleaning service here in Seattle for 6 years through out my mid-20's. I have cleaned for several top Microsoft execs, a certain online bookstore CEO, a famous rockstar, a leading coffee CEO, a real estate mogul, and on and on......I have learned several tricks of the trade and continue to be surprised at how little people really know about cleaning!
One day I was helping my friend Aimee do a deep clean on her house and as we were going through her stuff somehow it came up that she had too much shit in her life. In response to that universal illness I told her that we need to "un-shit her life". After I left I got to thinking about how I have a weird collection of "how to's" and remedies floating around in my head. Why not get it out and down on paper? Why not write a book, direct it at young people like myself and my friends, and call it that oh so clever catch phrase, "un-shit your life"? I did some brainstorming, brought the idea to my friends and they all loved it. The book would include everything practical that a young independant wo/man would need and want to know, such as a "how to clean" by using commercial and natural cleaning products, natural remedies, recipes, organizing ideas, decor ideas, and budget coaching.
I jotted down some ideas and made an outline but it soon went the way of the buffalo as I was hot in the midst of finishing my BA in Finance at the UW.
On top of my cleaning experience, I am an avid recycler and have a great interest in environmentalism. I remember introducing my family to creating a recycle bin next to the garbage bin for misc. papers, plastics, etc., at a very young age and soon came the vegetarianism. About 2 years ago came my next venture, vermi-composting. I just couldn't handle throwing away so much wasted food when it could be put to other uses! I did some research with my mom and we both created a worm bin each. I recently gave a bunch of worms to my friend Alissa who had me over last night to help tend to them for they were sickly. After a little chatter she suggested I do a worm blog since I love those slimey little guys so much. After I went home I thought, why not? But instead of just worms, why not resurrect my "un-shit" idea?
Thus the creation of this blog. Hopefully it will be interesting, and if you have made it this far you just might continue on! My aim is a little Martha Stewart, mixed with some Sara Snow, sprinkled with Suze Orman and then baked to a golden Kathleen Hanna.
Wish me luck, and less rambling. If you have any ideas to contribute, please do!
One day I was helping my friend Aimee do a deep clean on her house and as we were going through her stuff somehow it came up that she had too much shit in her life. In response to that universal illness I told her that we need to "un-shit her life". After I left I got to thinking about how I have a weird collection of "how to's" and remedies floating around in my head. Why not get it out and down on paper? Why not write a book, direct it at young people like myself and my friends, and call it that oh so clever catch phrase, "un-shit your life"? I did some brainstorming, brought the idea to my friends and they all loved it. The book would include everything practical that a young independant wo/man would need and want to know, such as a "how to clean" by using commercial and natural cleaning products, natural remedies, recipes, organizing ideas, decor ideas, and budget coaching.
I jotted down some ideas and made an outline but it soon went the way of the buffalo as I was hot in the midst of finishing my BA in Finance at the UW.
On top of my cleaning experience, I am an avid recycler and have a great interest in environmentalism. I remember introducing my family to creating a recycle bin next to the garbage bin for misc. papers, plastics, etc., at a very young age and soon came the vegetarianism. About 2 years ago came my next venture, vermi-composting. I just couldn't handle throwing away so much wasted food when it could be put to other uses! I did some research with my mom and we both created a worm bin each. I recently gave a bunch of worms to my friend Alissa who had me over last night to help tend to them for they were sickly. After a little chatter she suggested I do a worm blog since I love those slimey little guys so much. After I went home I thought, why not? But instead of just worms, why not resurrect my "un-shit" idea?
Thus the creation of this blog. Hopefully it will be interesting, and if you have made it this far you just might continue on! My aim is a little Martha Stewart, mixed with some Sara Snow, sprinkled with Suze Orman and then baked to a golden Kathleen Hanna.
Wish me luck, and less rambling. If you have any ideas to contribute, please do!
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