As with most things, living more sustainably often takes a mindset shift. With the switches below, it’s unlikely that in a year 4 craft competition Heppy won’t have a shiny, glittery, luminous green offering (there’s nothing wrong with this), but she certainly will have something just as cool made from things we can find, probably cost less and is way kinder to the planet.

I thought I’d write a quick blog with some ideas on how it’s possible to reduce waste with art supplies. Before you know it it’s so possible to have a cupboard full of googly eyes, glittery craft paper and plastic glue sticks. I’ve found some really simple solutions that will mostly save you money but more than that, cut down on plastic and toxins too!

I’ve trialed the lot when it comes to washing powder; throwback to the days of Fairy and Ariel giving me crispy whites and super soft towels and then with the realisation of those particular things probably actually causing harm then moving on to soap nuts and an eco egg to no avail. I so wanted these options to work for me, but with a newborn at the time, they just weren’t cutting it and left my clothes coming out of the washing machine no different to what I had put them in. I then moved onto Ecover for a season, and while I think it is a better option than many, it still didn’t sit quite right with me and neither did SMOL a subscription service we received through our door, which coincided with a bad outbreak of eczema on Heppy’s skin and made me look even more closely into what was written on the back of bottles.

I have wanted to get something down in writing for months now because I’ve read too many books and articles and seen too many documentaries to believe that living a toxic-free life and having a home that is chemical free is just a fad; only for the crunchiest of mama’s out there, or for those who have got the money to pay for the ‘fancy’ products. I truly believe for our health, our families and for our environment we don’t have a choice but to live one. So, the next 7 days is a snapshot into our home, a glimpse to the products we use, and the products we make.