“12 Veggies with the most pesticides” Treehugger.com 


Spring & Summer bring fresh food cravings, and with so many fruits & veggies in season this summer, it helps to know which have the most yucky pesticides. And everyone loves a good slide show.

“Get Your Green Makeover” Organic Beauty Magazine


This excerpt covers skin & nails, specifically, with a great checklist of ingredients to avoid, plus a quote by Kim D’Amato, founder of Priti Organic Spa, whose nail polish line was recently added to W3LL PEOPLE!

“Sunscreen Confusion” GorgeouslyGreen.com 


Another great post on Gorgeously Green’s site, and a must read before you head out this season. This one has a useful list of “best practices” when out in the sun, including favorite sunscreen brands. At the top of the list is Keys RX, which can be found at W3LL PEOPLE, along with some great sunless tanning options.

“8 must have products for the Gorgeously Green Girl” 


If you are like me, you haven’t done your spring cleaning yet. Don’t fret, you were just waiting for the right cleaning materials to make your spring cleaning eco-friendly. Check out this list courtesy of GorgeouslyGreen.com, chances are you already have a few of these in your cupboard already!

Eight Must-Have Products for the Gorgeously Green Girl

If you have time, you may want to save lots of money and make your

own cleaning products. It’s actually incredibly easy and fun, and it will

not make your home look or smell like a dingy hippie commune. I use

a mixture of the store-bought eco-cleaners and my own. Most importantly, you can save a lot of money.

Stock your cupboards with the following eight products and you can clean just about anything:

1. White vinegar—see the section on vinegar.

2. Baking soda—eliminates odors and is a good scrubbing powder.

3. Borax—removes dirt; is antifungal and a possible disinfectant.

4. Hydrogen peroxide (3 percent concentration)— nontoxic bleach, antibacterial agent, and stain remover.

5. Lemon juice—grease cutter and stain remover.

6. Liquid castile soap—all-purpose cleaner, grease-cutter, and

disinfectant. Castile means that the soap is vegetable-based

and not animal fat–based.

7. Olive oil—makes great furniture polish.

8. Essential oils of lavender, geranium, and tea tree—antibacterial

and add a great smell to your home.

Tea Tree Oil

I have a passion for this strong-smelling essential oil from Australia. It

is a natural solvent and is brilliant for cutting grease while killing

germs and bacteria. They actually swab down hospitals with it in Aus-tralia. It also has a variety of health benefits: I put it on sores and cuts; in shampoo for dandruff; on bleeding gums; and dilute it with water for a mouthwash.

Be careful that you’re getting the real thing—

it comes from the Melaleuca alternifolia plant. There are at least one hundred fifty species

of the Melaleuca plant, but only the alternifolia one has the healing

properties that you need. So check the label. Also, take a whiff before

buying, as it should have a very strong smell. You want to make sure it

hasn’t been diluted. Buy organic if possible. Most large health food

stores and many drugstores now stock it. You can also buy it from

www.mountainroseherbs.com

Vinegar

Vinegar deserves a paragraph of its own because it is one of the best

cleaners. It can sometimes bring to mind the gloomy eco-house, but it

is so effective that I have gotten over it. I chuck a cup in the main body

of the dishwasher for every other cycle and use it as a drain cleaner

with boiling water. Drain cleaners are the same as oven cleaners—

avoid them. I also clean out my washing machine with vinegar (run it

through a cycle once a month).

Vinegar is the best window cleaner I have ever found. I have tried

every tip and method for my windows. I have a large picture window in

my living room that birds like to use as a bathroom. Everything leaves

a smeared effect except a water/vinegar (half and half ) solution. I use

old rags from torn-up T-shirts. You can also clean your microwave,

kettle, eyeglasses, and lunch boxes with this wonder substance.