Reducing, Reusing & Recycling on the Central Coast, NSW

Homegrown Luffa Sponges

Homegrown Luffa Sponges

A few years ago, a thrifty green-thumbed friend gave me a gift of a homegrown luffa. Isaac since discovered that it is amazing for scrubbing potatoes. With that knowledge, I guessed it was probably good for a few other scrubbing sponge uses. Inspired by my friend, I...

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How to revive a wilted carrot

How to revive a wilted carrot

It happens. We can't all be so organised and container-stocked as to always keep our carrots ultra fresh. And the 'crisper' of the fridge doesn't keep vegetables as crisp as the name suggests. So, how do you revive a wilted carrot? This simple vegetable reviver how-to...

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Free Household Chemical CleanOut

Free Household Chemical CleanOut

How do you correctly dispose of household chemicals? The best way for households is through the CleanOut program. Get to your FREE Household Chemical CleanOut hosted by your local council. Whether unwanted, out-of-date or leftover, you can dispose of your household...

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Package-free Crackers

Package-free Crackers

Healthy crackers without packaging: Get ready to save that juice pulp and make your own crackers! Recently inspired by the "Superfood Crackers" recipe made from juice pulp in "Deliciously Ella" (same name, but a different Ella with different chronic health condition...

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Thrifty Homegrown Fenugreek

Thrifty Homegrown Fenugreek

Recently Isaac has been researching tea blends, and one particular blend we wanted to try contained fenugreek leaves. With only a pinch left in my spice collection, we drank through those really quickly. So it was time to start growing it ourselves. And here's how we...

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Ways to Reuse Passata Bottles

Ways to Reuse Passata Bottles

Passata Bottles Rule! Anyone else in love with passata bottles? Once you've used the passata in cooking, you're left with a fabulous vessel with so many uses before it needs to end up in the recycling bin (if ever). Here are some of my favourite ways to reuse passata...

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Central Coast Council Events for Green Living & More

Central Coast Council Events for Green Living & More

If you haven't checked out the council's events, get on it! It's the place to go for green living workshops on the Central Coast, as well as all sorts of other workshops and events. There are several free workshops, as well as some special not free ones. Plus, there...

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Tidy Tea makes No Waste of Re-purposed Candle Canisters

Tidy Tea makes No Waste of Re-purposed Candle Canisters

How to re-purpose candle canisters for tidy tea storage. Materials: Emptied canisters from used candles, blackboard paint and chalk, tea. Ah, tea! Sipping a hot homegrown herbal tea on a cold day is my bliss. I find it especially calming. Add a candle... even better....

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Build a Garden Trellis Like an Earth Mother!

Build a Garden Trellis Like an Earth Mother!

Supplies to build a garden trellis from collected and reused materials: fallen sticks and branches from the neighbourhood & cut lengths of old t-shirts/clothes. Sometimes impatience is a good friend when it comes to solutions for the garden. There's a dull length...

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Diary of a Dish Washer: Reusable dish cloths

Diary of a Dish Washer: Reusable dish cloths

The switch to reusable dish cloths began a few years ago, when we first moved into our current home. As with all house moves, there is much cleaning involved; enough to make you instantly realise you need some dish cloths. A trip to the local supermarket. Amazingly...

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2-Minute Squeezable Homemade Toothpaste

2-Minute Squeezable Homemade Toothpaste

Twice a day we brush our teeth, so toothpaste is pretty quick to get through. Apart from all the worries you might have about what's in your toothpaste, it's also a shame that store-bought toothpaste comes in a tube that you can't recycle or reuse (I have tried...

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Kale Covers from Recovered Rubbish

Kale Covers from Recovered Rubbish

Have you ever tried to grow kale in your garden? It's really easy to grow but I've found that where we are, there's no escaping the cabbage moth. Its caterpillars have devoured whole kale plants overnight. I do agree with garden gurus that pests go for weak plants,...

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