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Author Archive | Jennie Lyon

Kombucha: A Health Tonic You Can Make at Home

March 18, 2020 0

At this point, most Americans have probably heard of kombucha. The beverage has been getting a lot of press in recent years thanks to its numerous health benefits. For some folks who want to enjoy the drink, however, the cost may not be justifiable. While most bottles go for around $3, some of the fancier varieties can get up to around $5 or even $6.

Fortunately, kombucha is something virtually anyone can make at home. But before we get to kombucha homebrewing, let’s cover some of the basics.

What is kombucha?

Kombucha is a fermented tea. It is typically prepared with black or green tea leaves, or with a blend of the two, and a large amount of sugar. Don’t worry, the end product isn’t sugary — the sugar is added to feed a SCOBY, or a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast. By the time the batch is finished fermenting, an eight-ounce serving of kombucha will typically have only a few grams of sugar. This is great news for those who are trying to replace sugar-laden energy and sports drinks, which can cause a 1.5% to 3.1% loss of your tooth enamel. By making the switch to kombucha, you can preserve your tooth enamel and keep your oral health in tip-top shape.

Kombucha was reportedly first brewed over 2,000 years ago in China. In the past few years, it has exploded in popularity in the United States, with Nielsen pricing the industry today at roughly half a billion dollars. The effervescent probiotic beverage has enjoyed such broad appeal due to both its taste and health benefits.

What are the health benefits of kombucha?

Drinking kombucha is believed to have a positive effect on digestive health. While there needs to be further study, it is thought that the bacteria present in kombucha serve as probiotics, which can contribute to a healthy microbiome. Of course, kombucha is just one component of a healthy lifestyle. Diet and exercise are key — unfortunately, only one in three children get physical activity every day.

Since it’s a tea, kombucha also contains all the beneficial compounds we associate with unfermented tea. The most notable of these are polyphenols, antioxidants that help combat free radicals in the body.

Does kombucha contain alcohol?

Kombucha contains trace amounts of alcohol. Unless it is specifically labeled as 21+, kombucha has less than 0.5% alcohol by volume. Thanks to tight regulation, any kombucha with an ABV that exceeds 0.5% requires valid identification with purchase. Given that 11% of all alcohol in the United States is consumed by people aged 12 to 20, it is good news that this industry is carefully monitored and regulated.

How do you make kombucha at home?

To make kombucha at home, first brew seven cups of tea. Then mix in half a cup of sugar and let the mixture cool to room temperature. Put in a SCOBY and some starter tea from a past kombucha batch, and wait one to two weeks. Once the batch has fermented, you can either drink it or bottle it in airtight containers for a second fermentation which will add effervescence. This is also the time to add any fruit, juice, or other flavors you want. Give another week for a second fermentation to occur, then enjoy.

Have fun exploring the tasty world of kombucha, and happy brewing!

Be More Self-Sustainable by Creating a Vegetable Garden

March 11, 2020 0
Be More Self-Sustainable by Creating a Vegetable Garden

Imagine being able to harvest over half a ton of beautiful vegetables from a garden that is only 20-foot-long. Yields like this are far easier than you think to achieve and the secret lies within the strategy you use. If you want to make sure that you get the best result out of your garden, then take a look below.

Plant in Raised Beds

Expert gardeners all agree that it’s super important to build up the soil.  If you are able to have a deep and organically rich soil then this will encourage the growth of extensive roots. These roots then have a higher chance of being able to reach a lot more water and nutrients. The vegetables that you can then harvest will be extra tasty and way more productive. If you want to be able to take advantage of this then you need to make sure that you have some raised beds. Raised beds are able to yield up to four times more produce when compared to plants that are in spaced rows, not to mention that you have way more room to grow them as well.  When you do have a raised bed, you will also find that they can save you a lot of time. Your plants will grow much closer together and this will crowd out any competing weeds. That means more produce for less time! If you are wondering what you are going to do with all of your extra vegetables then why not grow tomatoes and make this sugar free tomato sauce recipe? You can also plan out a home-grown thanksgiving dinner if you start early enough too.

Round out the Soil

The shape of your beds can make a huge difference. If you want to make more room, then try and gently round off the top of your soil so that it makes an arc. A rounded bed that is just 5 feet wide then becomes 6 feet wide.  This might not seem like a lot but when you do it across all of your beds, you will soon find that it makes a huge difference. You can expect to gain around 20% more space when you do this, and if you want some plants that are good to sow on the edges then simply focus on spinach, lettuce and other greens.

Pay Attention to the Arrangement of your Crops

If you want to get the maximum yield from every bed that you have then you need to pay attention to how your plants are arranged. Try and avoid planting in a square pattern or even in rows. Instead, try and stagger your plants by arranging in triangles instead. If you do this then you may find that you can plant up to 10% more plants in each bed. Be careful though because you don’t want to pack your plants too tightly. If you do, then you will compromise the yield.  If you crowd too tightly then this will also stress your plants out, making them way more susceptible to disease.

Grow Climbing Plants

It doesn’t matter how small your garden is because you can grow way more if you choose to grow vertically. Grow-hungry crops include peas, tomatoes, melons, squash and pole beans. Growing vegetables vertically will save you a lot of time because it makes maintenance way easier too.

Think of the Planet For Your Next Celebration

March 10, 2020 0

When it comes to celebrating, it’s tempting to throw everything you can into it and make it an event to remember. You want your guests to talk about it for years to come, and the only way to make this possible is to go all out. 

However, going big, whatever the event can have a disastrous effect on the environment. From the harmful consequences of regular air travel to the amount of leftover waste you can get from big family dinners once, twice, thrice, or even more every year, these occasions can seriously harm the world we live in. 

Air Travel

Jumping on a plane to celebrate an engagement, honeymoon, or just because you feel like a vacation seems like a great idea at the time, and if everyone’s doing it, then why shouldn’t you? Well, if you are conscious about air pollution, you’d understand why more and more earth-conscious folk are abandoning air travel. 

While it’s true that you should never settle for less when it comes to engagement rings, you don’t need to go all out for a big proposal, and this is doubly so if you’re planning a destination wedding. Bigger is not always better—the more intimate, the more memorable and unique. 

It’s always wonderful to celebrate anything by catching the next flight out there; no one is disputing that, but with a more substantial focus on the environment than ever before, it’s useful to understand that you don’t need to jet-set around the world to prove your love. 

Car and Emissions

The same goes for car travel and the emissions that they will cause. Air pollution caused by exhaust fumes from thousands of cars on the road every year is astronomical, and this is why, rather than renting a car for your next celebration, maybe suck it up and embrace public transport, whether you go abroad or stay at home. 

If you are seeking solutions to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle that is better for the environment, abandoning your car for the bus or even a train (especially if it’s electric-powered), is a fantastic first step to take. You can still see everything you want for your celebration, whether that’s a birthday or treating the family to a Christmas adventure. Nevertheless, you will need to make sure you know the timetables before embarking anywhere. 

Food Waste

Who doesn’t enjoy getting the family together for the big holidays throughout the year? It’s a great chance to bond and reconnect, especially if you haven’t seen certain relatives in a while. 

However, with a lot of guests means there will always be food leftover, and this means this food will go to waste, especially if it is contaminated with sauce and other food. You can, however, take steps to minimize this with smaller portions and a more modest meal. It may take some getting used to, but it will be better for the planet overall. 

Celebrating More Consciously

We’ve been conditioned to believe that if something is not a huge event, then it doesn’t matter at all, and while there is nothing wrong with celebrating, it’s vital to realize just how much is too much. Whether you’re thinking of tying the knot, taking a vacation, or bringing everyone together for the holidays, it’s worth considering how this will impact the planet before setting anything in stone. 

How You Can Make Your Coffee Use More Sustainable

February 25, 2020 0

Coffee is an ancient art. In the 16th century, it was being grown in places like Persia, Egypt, Syria, and Turkey. As far back as the 1600s, iced coffee and cold brew were being made in Japan; by the 1800s, Algeria also produced iced coffee and cold brew. In the 17th century, coffee finally made its way to Europe as well.

These days, coffee is everywhere and comes in many forms. But that is part of the problem. In modern times, we’ve become more aware of the impact of our disposable coffee cups, as well as the impact of certain planting and harvesting techniques for the coffee itself.

For those with an eye for sustainability, here are six tips to help make your morning coffee more environmentally-friendly.

1. Be Picky

Consider shaking up your routine by looking into coffee alternatives. Did you know 35% of people miss discovering a business because they don’t see their sign? It’s sort of the same with coffee. We can miss alternatives or more sustainable options simply because we’re not reading labels carefully.

Next time you are at the grocery store to buy coffee, take an extra minute to read the signs right before you. A lot of producers will include labels that indicate their coffee is produced more sustainably.

Look for indicative phrases like fair trade, rainforest alliance, organic, and bird-friendly. These are all certifications based on different criteria. For example, fair trade coffee tries to ensure growers and producers are treated fairly and helps protect land and waterways near where the coffee is grown. Decide what is important to you and find the labels that match that.

2. Find Local Sources

If you can get your coffee locally, that is always going to be a big step towards sustainability. The more your coffee has to travel to get to you, the more pollution and waste is involved in producing it.

Depending on where you live, you may be able to find local growers, independent farms, and regional roasters who can make you the perfect cup. As a bonus, you’ll be helping out a local small business.

3. Make Your Own At Home

Going out for coffee is always going to produce more waste than brewing at home, even if you’re buying coffee from a small local cafe. Brewing your own coffee at home is one of the best ways to reduce waste and it should save you some money too.

When making your own coffee at home, stay away from disposable, one-time-use cups. Instead, use a fair trade brew that you can scoop out of a bag. Those one-time-use cups are convenient, but incredibly wasteful.

And while you’re making coffee at home, use a mug! Invest in a great coffee mug that you can use every morning. By doing this, you will not only be reducing the waste from the coffee, but also from the disposable cups you tend to get at coffee shops.

4. Compost the Waste

One last tip for brewing at home: Compost. Tea leaves and coffee grounds are excellent compost. Coffee is actually a superb fertilizer because of the nitrogen content.

By composting leaves and grounds, you will keep waste out of landfills. You can even spread used coffee grounds directly on your garden if you don’t have a way to compost.

5. Reuse Your Filter

While you’re making your coffee at home, find ways to minimize your waste. You can not only reuse your mug and avoid single-use cups, but you can also get a reusable filter to cut down on wasteful paper filters.

Those paper filters aren’t just bad because they fill up landfills; they also sometimes contain things like dioxins that can get into watersheds. Reusable filters are much better for the environment.

However, if you do need to use paper filters, search for ones that are “total chlorine-free” or “processed chlorine-free.” This indicates that they won’t be full of dangerous dioxins that can get into water systems.

6. Tell a Friend

You don’t need to do this alone! Get a friend to go with you for your morning coffee run at a local restaurant or cafe. You could even buy mugs, reusable filters, and more sustainable and environmentally-friendly coffee together.

As you continue trying to change your coffee drinking habits, having a friend to commiserate with can be a huge help. Talk about the best brands or cafes you’ve found, what your long-term goals are, and tips you discover along the way. Sharing the experience can make it more like a fun challenge and less like a burden. You could even try some composting tips together.

A Better Routine for Everyone

No matter how you choose to go about having a more sustainable morning routine, even small changes can end up making a big difference. Don’t be afraid to start small before working on larger lifestyle changes to increase your positive impact.

Tips For Going Green With Your Fashion

February 24, 2020 0

Fashion can be bought. Style one must possess.

—Edna Woolman Chase

Fashion trends come and go quicker than ever; by the time you get to the shop after seeing an advert, There will likely be a completely new selection in. Stores like Primarkare perfect for when you need to buy a quick item, and their basics can be great; but they are one of the top contributors to fast fashion. 

Everywhere you look, you are being advertised the current trends and styles from Instagram shop links to cool videos on Twitter. It has never been easier to change your entire wardrobe in minutes if that’s what you want to do. 

But being a hyper consumer causes a range of issues not just to our own wallets but the living conditions of people around the world. Not only that, but fast fashion has a huge impact on the globe.

It is not always easy to be eco-friendly when it comes to your wardrobe. Even more so if you have a family to take care of two. It is estimated that more than half of the products that are used to create your clothes are destroying the environment. This doesn’t mean that every clothing manufacturer is doing the same many are taking huge steps to make sure that they are producing ethical clothing.

But it’s worth bearing in mind that many of the workers are underpaid and overworked, in dangerous factories.

But you can make a conscious choice with your next fashion purchase, without compromising on style and quality.

Here are some suggestions on how you can do it.

Eco-friendly

So the first thing you can do is actually when you go clothes shopping, use a recyclable shopping bag. Or a high-quality tote bag. This is a simple and easy thing to do; all you have to do is remember your reusable bags. A small change that makes a huge difference when it comes to how much plastic is floating around in our oceans.

Most stores now have their own eco-friendly shopping bags; they are commonly known as bags for life.

Washing Your Clothes

So we have all had that moment where our favorite new T-shirt has shrunk in the wash. Bluejeans suddenly don’t fit you anymore. And that is because washing your clothes will make some shrink. Even if you are only washing them at a low temperature. So it’s really recommended that you wear something more than once, and in fact maybe even a lot. 

This won’t reply to your gym gear, and not anything that you want to do walking or exercise or inspired and slightly too much. Think about how often you are there in your close in the wash after you’ve only worn them for just a couple of hours. You can buy an eco-friendly washing detergent and hang your clothes out to dry as an extra added step.

Go Vintage

There are so many huge vintage kilo sales now. As well as hordes of amazing vintage clothing, bags, accessories, and shoes are a bunch of thrift shops. It is better to plan what you want to buy before you go to thrift shop shopping, though. Or are you going to end up with a lot of clothes that you won’t wear? And this can be just as detrimental unless you are donating them. 

Have a goal in mind do you need a new shirt, are you looking for a new tote bag, what about a crossbody bag, when you buy from charity shops you are not only donating to a worthy cause you are giving close a second life. Try not to buy vintage items that will only last one or two washes; these are things with excessive beading or very light silk. Although most of these can be dry cleaned if you have time to do that.

Research

There are so many amazing brands that are now there that are fully dedicated to sourcing and supplying ethical clothing made with a brilliant range of new and cool materials. Your tip is it looking for Tencel, which is being seen more often in High Street stores. Coconut leather is also an option too. 

These can be slightly more expensive, but they tend to last longer, and you know that you have done the right thing for yourself and the environment. You can read a fashion brand ‘about’ page to try and find more information about what steps they are taking in sustainability.

Repair

Because we are so used to the fact, we can buy jeans for under $10, or a T-shirt for $2 and they are brand-new we don’t have to think about the fact that we can just repair clothes when they tear. It used to be more common practice to do things like darn socks and put patches on the knees of jeans. 

But now it seems more common to throw the item out and replace it with a new version. You can find so many instructional videos on YouTube and even tips on Pinterest and other blogs about how you can repair any tears in clothing. 

This can include silk shirts, patching jeans, or turning jeans into shorts. This will make your clothing last longer, save you money because you don’t have to buy anything new, and one of the main goals is great for the environment.

All of these are relatively simple steps that can help you be more aware of what you purchase and where you purchased it. You don’t have to spend a lot of money changing into a more eco-minded wardrobe. It can be small things like buying eco-friendly washing detergent. Washing on and a colder setting and washing and less often. 

There is a balance to be found, of course. We all need basic things, socks, pants, bras, and T-shirts, and when you have a growing family, you don’t need to do what’s best for your budget. 

But where possible, try to make small changes, and all of those small changes will add up to a big impact.

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