There's a lot of great information in this post and I encourage you to read through it ... however, if you'd rather jump straight to the current challenge, you can do so by clicking here: This Week's Challenge
Last week the challenge asked us to give up paper towels. Argentum Vulgaris upped the ante by asking us to give up paper napkins, as well. Liz & Gaby challenged us further by asking that we make our own cloth towels/napkins using old T-shirts, sheets, etc. Ecolicious Mama raised the ante again by suggesting that we carry a cloth napkin with us rather than use paper versions when we're away from home. And then ... Mrs. Green topped all the challenges by suggesting that we use "wee" cloths rather than toilet paper. Wow!
Our #CTWW Gang was busy spreading the word this week on twitter. Do you want to be a member of the now famous "gang"? It's easy ... just share our challenge on twitter using the hashtag #CTWW. This week a record number of people joined the gang. Let's meet them:
@clothmamajess
@mhatched
@greenlegume
@twinvisionameri
@lizzieault
@whopaysthepiper
@lynn_stone
@gogreenbeans
@simpleisworking
@aapremlall
@tiffanystoybox
@givetreegifts
@groovygreenlivi
@skipbang
@peopletowels
@flatlinered
@envirofusion
@ambianceeco
@waxelene
@cheffelisha
@martinimom
@greenlegume
@yan_tougas
@tmuffindotcom
@mycraftcorner
@be_sirius
@homeopath2stars
@littlegreenblog
@noteasy2begreen
@gwened02
@becomingcrunchy
@greenereveryday
@coffeetablepoet
@ReneeANDSharon
@ecobears
@eco_footprint_1
@rework_create
@jnjgogreen
@greenbabydiaper
@RobinEaston
@lorialper
@jeneddinger
@alwayswellwithn
@wokaili
Our Honor Society (people who wrote articles and/or left comments) had wonderful information to share. Check it out:
EcoGrrl gave up paper towels several years ago and uses cloth napkins, dishtowels and sponges instead. She occasionally 'misses' them for buttering a dish. So EcoGrrl ... what do you now use to butter a dish?
Our friend, Argentum Vulgaris wrote a wonderful post. However ... that post along with all of his blogs have been removed from the Internet. Why? No one seems to know. While he resolves the issue, he has started a new blog called "Life is a Labyrinth". So, head on over, follow his new blog, bookmark it, add it to your blog roll, etc. Hopefully his other blogs, and a LOT of work will be restored.
Lynn, one of our favorite "Funtastically" Green Girls, gave up paper towels nearly three years ago. WhooHoo! So ... what clever item does she use instead? Here's a hint ... those "darn" holes make mismatches out of matches. Did you guess it? If not, find out HERE.
Nicole B. uses cloth rags, made from worn-out towels and socks, instead of paper towels. She's recently discovered that cloth diapers make great "rags". Brilliant idea, Nicole!
Rachel does keep a roll of paper towels in her kitchen ... made from recycled paper products and which, after use, are put into her compost pile. She uses them for one thing only ... cleaning up after her cat has been sick. It's a clean-up job that she just can't face with cloth towels. I can relate, Rachel ... it's the "ICK" factor.
Alicia uses cloth napkins, dish towels and sponges. She had a great tip for us ... when she washes these items, she hangs them out to dry saving electricity as well as trees. Thanks, Alicia!
From our previous challenge to take short showers, Chef Felisha says that it may be tough because she has an ultra low flow shower head and an "on-demand" water heater. So, to meet the challenge she planned to turn off the water while lathering. How did it go, Chef?
Liz & Gaby are also affected by the "ick" factor associated with cat
Ecolicious Mama not only uses cloth napkins at home, she carries them with her for those times when she and her family eat out. She also packs them in lunches and uses them for quick hand drying in the bathroom. By the way ... have you visited her blog, My Sustainable Stories? It's a great site full of wonderful information. Check out the "Quick Green Tips" tab where you'll learn about the 4th "R" (something in addition to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle).
Have you ever wondered how your Eco-commitment compares to other people's? While each and every effort is important, I often wonder if I'm doing enough. That's why I love Mrs. Green's blog ... she and her family have "raised the bar" on green living. For example, since they don't use paper towels Mrs. Green decided to reduce paper use in another, creative way. She's using "wee" towels. Wow! Curious? Find out about them HERE. How did it go, Mrs. Green? Are wee towels a workable alternative to toilet paper?
Tiffany says that she ran out of paper towels a couple of weeks ago and has had to use cloth rags. So, she's going to keep it up in support of our challenge. WhooHoo ... don't you just love how the cosmos comes together to nudge us in the right direction? By the way ... check out what Tristin and Tyler (my two favorite green guys) are talking about this week HERE ... and grab your kids ... their show is "PG" and green!
Jessica doesn't use paper towels and prepared a video to show us how she uses cloth. The video is great and gets my award for "Cutest Baby Actor". See if you don't agree HERE.
Inspector Clouseau dropped in ... nice to see you, Inspector. If you enjoy intelligent, thought-provoking posts, you'll love the Inspector's blog "The View From Outside My Tiny Window".
Shana found us in Blog Frog (welcome, Shana!). She has a terrific blog entitled "Prowling Books in the Lair".
The ReWorked Creations Chronicle picked up our challenge ... specifically they picked up one of your articles. Was it yours?
Rewinn is living "The Repurpose-Driven Life". So what, exactly does that mean? You'll have to run over and read his post!
Jennifer is also affected by the "ick" factor of cleaning up cat vomit and that's her only use of paper towels. As I was browsing her blog recently, I noted a post about how she's switched over to a reusable version of a common disposable item (well, common for most women). You can read about that HERE. While that post isn't in support of our challenge, I bring it up because it taught me something about the "ick" factor. I, too, was thinking that reusable cloth for kitty vomit is rather disgusting but ... Jennifer's post made me realize that "ick" is all in the eyes of the beholder. Thanks, Jennifer!
Many of you know her as @groovygreenlivi - one of our most dedicated "greenie" supporters. Now Lori Popkewitz Alper has joined the Honor Society by writing this brilliant ARTICLE. She includes a lot of information in this post, including Trash Facts (you will be shocked) and Tips on how to switch from paper towels to reusable towels. Thanks so much, Lori!
Kristina joined the fun! She shares that she first made the switch from paper napkins to the cloth version. It was so easy that she moved on to using cloth rags instead of paper towels. Her favorite repurposing project is a set of lovely napkins made out of tie-died shirts which she made for her children. The kids have outgrown them so now they dress up Kristina's table. What a great idea!!
From a challenge we did in April, Kelly Crawford says that she uses a water filter for drinking water. In her area filtered water is safer than tap water. Thanks for your comments, Kelly.
Great job, everyone! I hope you're feeling proud of the work you do. As I traveled around and enjoyed your posts, especially reading the comments to your posts, I realized that your efforts are teaching and encouraging others. You are making a difference!!
As always, if you wrote a post I have Stumbled, Tweeted and Facebooked them. I would be so grateful if you'd use the share buttons at the end of this post to help pass the word ... and check out the new "Google +1" button. Just click it to recommend this post to all your friends. Thanks!
One small programming note ... I so appreciate everyone's comments and posts and want to include everything in the Wednesday "wrap-up". To ensure that I have time to get everything in, please submit your posts & comments before 6:00 pm EST on Tuesdays. I'll try my best to include anything that comes in after that time but can't guarantee it. I will guarantee, however, that if it doesn't make it into the current week's post, it'll be in the next week's update.
This Week's Challenge:
Okay ... let's do something different. Have you ever purchased food, perhaps some specialty item or something on sale, that got put away and then ... forgotten? Months (or even years) later you find it in the recesses of the freezer or in a far corner of the cupboard but ... it's so old that it's no longer safe to eat. My friend Amy (twitter personality @Waylandcook and author of Creative Country Cooking) recently challenged herself and her readers to use up everything in the pantry, refrigerator, freezer, etc. before buying more food. It's a brilliant idea because it will reduce food waste and will reduce packaging since we aren't buying new items. So ... that's the inspiration of this week's challenge. Here you go:
This week, use what is in your cupboards, pantry, freezers, etc. before buying new food items.
(A few people have asked for a little clarification on this challenge so here's my view of it - ideally one wouldn't need to shop at all and would make do with what's in the cupboard. However, if that doesn't work for you, then using what you have and buying a little something to go with it would be fine. If you do buy something, be sure that it isn't stashed away and forgotten but rather used up this week. I hope that helps!)
(A few people have asked for a little clarification on this challenge so here's my view of it - ideally one wouldn't need to shop at all and would make do with what's in the cupboard. However, if that doesn't work for you, then using what you have and buying a little something to go with it would be fine. If you do buy something, be sure that it isn't stashed away and forgotten but rather used up this week. I hope that helps!)
Or ...
If you regularly do this, tell us about some of your more creative dishes using just what was "on hand".
UP THE ANTE: Harold Shaw is stepping up this challenge. In his words "I would like to challenge the #CTWW group to take the time (I know that this is a busy time of year - most of us are harvesting some sort of crop or other) to do a written/computer inventory of the food stuffs you have, which will force you to actually look at what you have and then use up the stuff that should be used up this next week or soon, but if you discover food that is bad dispose of it properly before you buy new food. Remember the food you have designated for emergencies, doesn't count in this challenge. To make it a little more interesting - that includes buying food to eat out for the next week". WhooHoo ... who's going to take him up on this challenge?
Raise the Ante: Bekka, who is Amy's (the Wayland Springs Cook) daughter decided to up this challenge again. Her idea is to further reduce food waste by taking left-overs and turning then into a brand new dish the next day. Wowee ... who's gonna take her up on the challenge?
Raise the Ante: Bekka, who is Amy's (the Wayland Springs Cook) daughter decided to up this challenge again. Her idea is to further reduce food waste by taking left-overs and turning then into a brand new dish the next day. Wowee ... who's gonna take her up on the challenge?
Thanks, Amy ... I think this is going to be a fun challenge.
Until next time ...
WE'RE CHANGING THE WORLD ... ONCE CHALLENGE AT A TIME!
hey there - buttering pans now done with old dishcloth or if i'm lazy, my hands :)
ReplyDeletenow, for this week's post, i'm a little confused because taking it literally means i can't shop til everything's gone? or just this week rely on what i already have? i'm going to go for that one :) what i love about this (i try to do it every once in a while) is that not only is it less wasteful but it saves SO much $$. regarding things that go bad (and they say americans throw away at least 30% of the food they buy, yikes!), they need to get composted - even grains can get composted, peeps! all the bad food is the primary reasons we have so much methane in our garbage dumps...something to think about...
This challenge couldn't have come at a better time for me! We're headed north this weekend for a ROAD TRIP! Attempting a GREEN vacation...but what better way to start it off by scavenging inside the cupboards?! That's it...tomorrow night is egg salad night, gotta use up the eggs...I have oatmeal, I can make pancakes...cool!!! This challenge will save $, packaging and gas from not driving to the store. NICE...I hope to see some pics of recipes that people come up with.
ReplyDeleteSo far I have only been buying milk, eggs, and butter each week. I did have to restock the sugar, flour, and cornmeal. After I did that I still have about a month of food in the pantry and freezer. We are also eating out of the garden. Doing this makes it easy to save gas too. I can send my hubby to the store on the way home from work and I do not have to start the car up.
ReplyDeletehttp://ann-mythoughtsandphotos.blogspot.com/2011/08/save-worldsave-your-lifeabc-letter-c.html
ReplyDeleteI got a 2 legged reminder machine that tells me not to buy too much. I confess I waste quite a bit of food, and I throw them to my "pet" sparrows and pigeons and native birds,
I was reading last week's challenge, and I do most of them, except I stop short at the "wee" towels. I reserve my comment. I read her post.
When I was young, my mum , if she was alive, she would be 80, didn't use sanitary pads, she used strips of cloth which she washed and reused. I was glad she didn't make me use them.
But the strips were only for her own use.
I don't know how the "wee" towels would operate in a family.
Do you know what, when I was a kid in Borneo, my grand dad had an out house, and he cut strips of bamboo. We were so scared to use them, because we feared the bamboo sticks would cut us.
This is my 2 cents worth of comment.
What a coincidence, my this week's post is about the bowel. I did the post before I read your post.
Interesting challenge. I have been really focused on food waste lately, but I am also confused about the actual rules for the challenge. If I have a large amount of something that requires other ingredients to best be used, how does that work? Or is the point just to reduce wasting food while buying more?
ReplyDeleteWhat great timing! I am usually pretty disciplined about the food I buy - I make a menu for the week and shop accordingly. When summer hits though, that goes out the window. As a result, we have tons of food but nothing really planned. Can't wait. I'm going to see if I can skip shopping this week altogether!
ReplyDeleteI can't believe I have kept it up, I really have! The hardest part is cleaning glass and mirrors, the rags i use don't seem to work as well. Anyone have suggestions for something better for glass cleaning? Ready for the next #CTWW challenge! WOOT WOOT!
ReplyDeleteHi Everyone - I've clarified the challenge for those who have asked ... scroll up and you'll see my comments right after the first part of the challenge (in green). Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGreat challenge! I'm almost out of fruit and vegetables, but there's some older stuff in my fridge and freezer that I could dig out. My cupboards are usually pretty well (too well?) stocked, and certain items languish in them forever.
ReplyDeleteThis week is going to be great for my grocery budget, I can tell.
This is interesting because just this weekend we went through our freezer and cabinets. The cabinets was because we bought groceries and want to make sure we get only what we need but the freezer is different. We went through that because we are starting to freeze vegetables from the garden for the winter. We do this every year so we need to keep the rotation of food current. Nothing stays in the freezer very long.
ReplyDeleteGreat challenge this week. Our freezer is packed with food and it would be nice to actually use it. I'm headed to BlogHer so I will have to eat out a few times this week.
ReplyDeleteAlready on this one sister! Been doing this since the end of 2008 when the economy went to heck in a hand-basket. We don't use everything but pretty close to it. I think the important thing about this challenge is to just be conscious of what you are consuming. Again, it is going back to the ways of our grandparents, or great grandparents, for some of you youngsters out there. Using only what you need.
ReplyDeleteHi, I'm new to this but so glad I found you! Like a few other commenters, I'm a bit uncertain about the "rules" of this challenge (plus it will be my first one). Can I buy fresh fruit & veggies or ingredients that won't get lost in food storage, things I use up quickly? If so, I think I'm already doing this. My husband, however, likes to experiment with new items that may or may not get cooked anytime soon! My solution: I try not to let him do the shopping.
ReplyDeleteHi Sylvia - Welcome to the group! The beauty of our challenges is that almost every effort counts ... big and small ... and rules are rather loose. The idea, here, is to reduce food waste and in the process reduce food packaging by not buying when we already have usable goods in storage. So hopefully, in addition to buying fresh produce that will be used up this week, you'll also use some things that are in the freezer, pantry, etc. So many time we have things in storage that we forget about and when we finally dig them out, they are way past the "pull" date. We're trying to avoid that and basically use what we have and only buy what we need. I hope that helps! :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to see it. This challenge will be dual purpose for me since I already donated this week's grocery money to Unicef after reading about the famine in Somalia. Double the motivation, can't hurt.
ReplyDeleteMade a pork roast last night in the slow cooker - the little bit of freezer burn wasn't noticable after I cooked the roast with tons of squash from the IL's gardens.
I'm in... mostly. My man is heading out of town and my oldest son will be at his dad's for the weekend, so it'll be just me and the baby for several days. I'll do what I can, but I expect there will be some emergency trips to the deli for quick and easy meals.
ReplyDeleteTo avoid food waste from the fridge, I have a whiteboard in the kitchen where I keep a running list of things I need to use, much like most people keep a grocery list. It lists thing like the dill I bought earlier this week. I only needed a tablespoon, so I have a TON left over. When I think about what to make for dinner on any given night, I start by reviewing the whiteboard to see what ingredients I already have that I need to try to use up. We just used up our remaining mozzarella, basil, and red pepper tonight thanks to the whiteboard. I would've completely forgotten those were in the fridge otherwise!
Hi. I just wrote a blog post on the last two weeks' challenges, and challenges in general. I'm completely out of sync with your weeks, so I wouldn't expect a mention in the main post, but thought you might be interested. I tried an alternative to paper towels for cat sick ;-)
ReplyDeletehttp://growingthingsandmakingthings.blogspot.com/2011/08/challenging-times.html
As for this week's challenge, I did my monthly big shop last Friday, so I'm well set up for this. I thought I'd need to go to the butcher's on Monday (we were in town anyway) but managed to find enough in the freezer to see us through the week. Right now I'm mostly stocking up the freezer, not running it down, because I'm harvesting veg from the garden and storing it for winter.
Things in the fridge that are causing me problems right now are a green pepper (I don't really like them, but a friend gave me two from her garden) and two packs of old bacon. One is open but the other is sealed, though well past its best-before date. I'll have to see how it smells when I open it. There's also a carrot. We dug the first of the carrots from the garden yesterday - how unappealling is an old, soft carrot in the bottom of the fridge when there are fresh new carrots in the ground?
As for long-storage things, just ignore those dates. I'm currently using up some baking powder that I'm sure my mother bought - and she died more than twenty years ago. I guess the fact it's been sitting in the back of the cupboard that long kind of illustrates your point, but whatever you do, don't chuck that stuff out!
I've just found out about #ctww - not sure how it's been hiding under my radar until now!
ReplyDeleteWe already pretty good with eating from the pantry/stock rotation for most things so I think if I just did the challenge as it stands, we'd just default to our normal store-cupboards meals.
I'm going to do a slight spin on this instead - I'm going to find some of those speciality items that have been forgotten and make something with those.
Hope that's ok and still in the spirit of the challenge!
http://www.clothdiaperingmama.com/2011/08/04/clean-out-your-fridge-and-save-the-earth-ctww/
ReplyDeletepost is up...what a great challenge this week!
Hi Louisa ... Welcome! Absolutely ... that's perfect. I love that you've already made this challenge a part of your life. Let us know what 'creations' you come up with ... and thanks for joining the fun!
ReplyDeleteSee Simple Is Working Blog
ReplyDeleteA double-dog dare :)
Also remember to look in your camping/ backpacking supplies, you remember those things you left packed "for next time", but haven't been camping in how long? Are they still good, even freeze-dried food doesn't last forever, especially if the bag is not air tight for some reason or other (you sat on your backpack and punctured it with...etc.).
I would like to challenge the #CTWW group to take the time (I know that this is a busy time of year - most of us are harvesting some sort of crop or other) to do a written/computer inventory of the food stuffs you have, which will force you to actually look at what you have and then use up the stuff that should be used up this next week or s, but if you discover food that is bad dispose of it properly before you buy new food. Remember the food you have designated for emergencies, doesn't count in this challenge.
To make it a little more interesting - that includes buying food to eat out for the next week :P.
Harold
well this is fab. It's the perfectly timed challenge for me, and Harold can read my mind because an inventory is just what I was planning; although I think I am going to be pretty embarrased when I write up all the food we have here. Thanks for another great challenge my lovely! Part one is up on my site already:
ReplyDeletehttp://littlegreenblog.com/green-technology/waste-and-recycling/use-it-up-and-change-the-world/
Far from 'up and running' CTWW is sort of limping along this week. Caused me no end of problems and not because of the challenge, simply blogger/logistic difficulties.
ReplyDeleteBut this weeks challenge is there on:
http://av1labyrinth.blogspot.com/p/eco-crap.html
More of a doom & gloom message, but with a definite link to the challenge.
AV
PS, if anyone has a copy of my Eco-Crap header or logo or button, I would immensely appreciate contact.
What a great challenge: both thrifty and environmentally aware! I started inventorying the veggie bin and soon discovered what I should have remembered from a challenge earlier this month: If You Love Some Broccoli, Set Them Free (from Plastic)
ReplyDeleteGreat challenge! We check our refrigerator often and pull older items to the front and then we can make a weekly menu before going shopping. This way we are able to incorporate the leftovers in the meal list.By doing this we can save around $11.35 a week which doesn't really sound like a lot but in a years time it adds up to almost $600.00!!!! I think that is well worth using the food we already have!
ReplyDeletePosted my contribution to the cause. ;) Will have to read everyone else's tonight.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.almostallthetruth.com/2011/08/reduce-food-waste-through-thoughtfulness/
This has been fun! I hate leftovers just heated up, so I guess I took on the "Up the Ante" from Amy without knowing it until now!
ReplyDeleteHere is my post:
http://thegreeningofwestford.blogspot.com/2011/08/change-world-wednesday-food-challenge.html