Slow Rituals: Charlotte's Natural & Sustainable Home
In the salon, our directors Charlotte Archer and Amanda Berry are often asked for tips and advice on natural and sustainable products for the home; from the kitchen, to the laundry, and everything in between. Here, Charlotte Archer shares her favourite sustainable and natural products and home rituals.
Composting
I have started composting at home, thanks to my Bokashi bin from compostrevolution.com.
This is a website that works with councils to minimise waste and helps us do our bit! They will also subsidise up to 80% off, which means it's super cheap to start. They have loads of online tutorials to get you started and Mila (my little one) is right into it. All my left over veggies and fruit get turned into delicious goodness for my ever expanding garden.
Chemical free at home
We try to maintain a chemical free household, which means I only use natural cleaning products. I started using eWater Systems at home and at the salon and am absolutely loving it. Basically it’s an all-purpose cleaner and sanitiser that is made of tap water and salt that gets electrolysed. This produces a 100% natural and safe cleaner with zero impact on the environment. If I don't manage to pick up organic produce, I can even spray them with the sanitiser and wash and it kills all pesticides.
Green bags
I always have a few green bags in the car, at work and at home, in case I go to the shops to get groceries. This means I never turn up to the shop without bags and don't end up getting a cheeky plastic one.
Waste not, want not
I love cooking and I hate wastage (stay tuned for my winter immunity broth recipe coming to the journal next week). I love to use every last bit out of my veggie bin, so I make veggie stock from everything that’s left. This goes into my soups and any dish that needs an extra boost of flavour.
My favourite anti-crap products
My two favourite products at the moment are Dirt detergents and Erica Brooke deodorant.
Completely natural, beautiful to smell, and super sustainable, Dirt delivers to my doorstep every few months, so there’s no excuse to lazily buy a crap product when in need at the super market. I hate the idea of washing my family’s clothes with commercial detergents, because our clothes are on our bodies and as we sweat, all those lovely chemicals go onto our skin.
The other; Erica Brooke, is something Amanda (my work wife) and I go on about all the time. It is hands down the best 100% natural deodorant we have tried, and trust me; we’ve done the leg work Interestingly, this is the most sold product at the salon, which is kind of random, given we are a hair salon.
