Eco Wet Wipes

Now we are getting a selection of wipes on site, I thought it a good idea to give you a quick overview so you can compare them side by side to help you choose the right wipes for the job...

Antibacterial Wipes: All Purpose, Biodegradable, Flushable, Natural Ingredients. Use on hard and soft surfaces. Safe on broken or irritated skin. Safe to use around the eyes (not in the eyes). Antibacterial and Antiviral. Suitable for premateur and newborn babies through to the elderly. Suitable as feminine wipes - no sting!

Eco Baby Wipes: Natual Ingredients, certified organic ingredients, 100% biodegradable, hypoallergenic. Safe on sensitive skin.

Earth Friendly Kids Wipes: Smaller, flushable wipes for training toddlers. Also ideal for wiping sticky hands. Natural ingredients. Safe on sensitive skin.


All wet wipes shown on Green East are the most natural and gentle wipes you could use on yours or your babies skin. Allergy sufferers should always check the ingredients carefully. We display ingredients of all products on site to help you make the right choice.

Made with all natural ingredients and manufactured in the UK, the wipes help you keep your carbon footprint neatly on British soil.

What is a Luffa?

I was not surprised at the number of amazed reactions I received at a recent exhibition on explaining that an amazing little Washing Up Luffa is made from a plant such as Okra.

Many people still believe that because of the appearance of the luffa, it comes from some exotic sea creature.

The Luffa is really a vine which grows in tropical and subtropical areas. When the luffa's are picked, they are small, tender and edible in stir-fries and other dishes.

Some of the plants are allowed to go to seed. They grow considerably larger and tougher. When they are ripened, the ends of the luffa are removed, the plant is de-seeded (you can see the chambers where the seeds come from). What is left of the plant is cleaned and hung up to dry and what is left is divided for a variety of uses including bath luffas - which we are more familiar with - and washing up luffas.

In the Phillipines, people have traditionally used luffas for washing up, for hundreds of years. Michael's Luffa Farms have keps this tradition going and are helping to spread the word by providing Fair Trade luffas for sale around the world.

Unlike modern plastic scourers, luffa's are classed as eco products because they doesn't require complicated manufacturing processes, doesn't use toxic chemicals or components and is compostable. The luffa can be thrown into your bin, preferably your compost bin at the end of it's life.

Because the luffa is tough and sinewy, it lasts up to twelve months depending on how heavily it is used. It can also be washed in the washing machine or dishwasher to keep it hygienic and fresh. The colour of the luffa is surprisingly durable too, even after curry, bolognese and other dishes that would normally stain a plastic sponge scourer or dish cloth.

Next time you put a used and tattered scourer in the bin - just remember it will stay there for hundreds of years.

We talk a great deal about reducing our carbon footprints, but we need to start reducing our carbon fingerprints too.

100% Recycled Aluminium Foil

How many times do we use certain products that shortly get thrown away, seeming pointless and adding to landfill because we needed something convenient?

Aluminium foil cannot change in it's purpose, nor the fact that it ends up in landfill, but what we can think about is it's 'life' rather than it's death - so to speak.

Aluminium foil has for many years been created from ore which requires extraction, shipping to the manufacturer, great heat to smelt it, manufacturing processes to create the foil, packaging, further shipping to wholesalers, distributors and supermarkets and finally, we use it once and throw it away.

The best option would be to use containers that can be washed and re-used over and over. But occasionally, we find the need to enjoy a Sunday roast, pack a picnic or store food in the fridge that we don't have the right shape container for.

Using 100% recycled aluminium foil helps in several ways...

• No extraction of raw materials is needed.
• Less shipping is required to get used materials to the plant.
• 70% less energy is needed to smelt the used aluminium.
• Packaging is also 100% recycled and compostable.

So as it's Sunday - enjoy your roast today and simply bookmark Green East for when you next need some 100% recycled aluminium foil.

September Success

This month we have been busy increasing our Eco Laundry range and attending shows. We exhibited at The Green Build - Felbrigg Hall on 12th & 13th and sold-out on many items over two exhausting and enjoyable days.

We definately enjoyed meeting customers face to face at the event and look forward to being there again next year with even more to offer.

Kay then exhibited on the 18th at Gressenhall's Over 55's Days to Remember" event. Again a busy day with lots of enquiries and a great big thank you to Kevin of 'Ethical IFA' for helping at the stall on the day.

We hope to be back on track with newsletters and special offers for November and start planning towards the coming celebration season, so look out for gift packs and ideas arriving on site between now and the end of November.

Your Hair Looks Great!

We all just love to hear the words "Your hair looks great!". Men and women alike, whether it's from a partner, friend or even a chat up line, it always makes your day to receive a complement.
Organic hair care is the new WOW factor for hair and are some points to consider when you next buy shampoo...

The Marketing Angle
Hair care is a massive market with big brands and thousands of products to choose from, but with today's media and seductive advertising, it's easy to get drawn into believing that Shampoo's with Herbal Extracts, Pro what ever's and "real" essential oils are all the best thing since sliced bread and will make us look irresistable. Lavender Shampoo may contain natural lavender extracts and lavender essential oils, but what else does it still contain?

I Knew That!
What many people know is that you should change your shampoo regularly to prevent "build up" from leaving your hair dull. If you wash your hair and it is clean - what is there to build up?
Having used almost every "suitable" shampoo on the market over the years, my personal experience was that the more the advertising claimed it was GOOD for my hair, the more it made my hair dull or wiry and my scalp itchy, irritated and flaky. Dandruff shampoo's being the worst, leaving me feeling like I wanted to wash my hair again to get rid of the wiry feel and the pungent smell they left behind. Great for their sales, but not for my hair.

Which Shampoo Next?
I eventually started looking into ingredients that shampoo's contain and was horrified to find that Sodium Laureth Sulphate (a detergent) found in Shampoos, soaps, bubble baths, toothpastes including children's products, was originally listed as a garage floor cleaner and because of it's manufacturing process, can become contaminated with carcinogens. These following articles explain in more detail, the possible health effects of Sodium Lauryl Sulphate and Sodum Laureth Sulphate.

Smells Nice!
OK, so that explains how some shampoo's clean your hair, but what about smelling great too? Most commercial shampoo's contain fragrances simply described as "perfumes". They might smell like your favourite flowers, fruit or herbs but where to they really come from? This alarming article from the Natural Ingredient Resource Centre highlights some potential hazards not only to the user, but the potential harm to an unborn feotus too. TigerFlag Natural Perfumery provides list of harmful chemical perfume ingredients and their side effects.

That Foamy Feeling
Further more, foaming agents are added to give a further false feel of cleanliness. Many products including washing up liquid and toothpaste are marketed on the base that the Bubbles do the cleaning. The detergent does the cleaning but there are much kinder alternatives available. The foam is not a necessary part of cleaning your hair and actually makes it harder to rinse from some hair types, making skin irritation more likely with residue chemicals.

All these chemicals added together in a product are bound to cause irritation in many people, but even if they don't - what about the waterway when you wash them down the drain?

Don't panic!
I'm not about "Scare Times" just plain and simple information that can help you choose a way forward. There are plenty of healthy, organic and hand blended shampoo's on the market that AVOID all harmful ingredients and in doing so create a double benefit to you as the user and to the environment.
By using only Natural healthy ingredients, your scalp and hair can benefit from the therapy of real plant ingredients such as Nettle, essential oils like Tea Tree and organic ingredients like Chocolate for a real feel good factor.

Green East have selected a range of organic shampoo and hand blended shampoo for a variety of hair types with a range of fragrances that leave you feeling hungry just thinking about them.

Sorrell's Naturally
Fresh Lemon and Kiwi Organic Shampoo
Nettle Shampoo with Kelp & Chamomile

Faith In Nature's
Tea Tree Shampoo with 2% Essential Oil
Lavender Shampoo with Geranium (top seller)
Aloe Vera Organic Shampoo
Chocolate Organic Shampoo

Oh, by the way - Your hair looks GREAT!

My Eco Me

I wanted to call this one 'My Eco Bathroom' but don't stick to using certain skin care products only in the bathroom because I take some of them with me. Recycled toilet roll? Ok that stays in the bathroom as does the toothpaste, organic shampoo and hand wash but my deodorant, face cream and face wipes do move around with me.

I got up for a breakfast meeting last week and was going to be doing a one minute talk about my business to a room full of business people. I thought hard about what I was going to say as I washed my hair in Organic Nettle Shampoo, skipped the nettle conditioner as I was in a hurry, brushed my teeth with Organic Fennel Toothpaste, washed myself in Natural, antibacterial Personal Care Foam because it's great for my skin, applied Organic Rosemary Deodorant, cleaned my face with antibacterial wipes, again because it's great for my skin and then applied organic chamomile cream to keep me looking healthy and ignoring the word 'Baby' on the label. If it's safe enough for a baby's skin it's good enough for me. For men it also makes an excellent aftershave cream. Chamomile actually has a mild herbal fragrance, not floral as some people imagine.

At this point - I decided to NOT apply any makeup, except for a little mascara as my eyelashes are fair. I wanted everyone to see me with unblemished skin and looking healthy. I didn't want to look like I'd covered up lots of blemishes with a pound of foundation, because I didn't have any blemishes.

I almost chose to make my speech about 'beauty - starting with healthy skin' but decided it wouldn't go down well talking about vegetarian skincare products while ladies wearing their glamourous, corporate made-up images, glared at me over sausage egg and bacon breakfasts. So decided to hold this one in my thoughts till I could blog it down here.

I know I'm not exactly a glamour model, I was born to freckle in the sun and developed the odd mole which even make-up can't disguise, but I still like to feel that my skin is healthy and glowing.

Face to face - every woman likes to feel they have nothing to hide or be ashamed of.

Applying make-up should be about enhancing your beauty, not creating it. Creating your beauty begins with a healthy you and, healthy skin and hair.

Just think about the number of products you apply to your skin and body in a day and think about what you can do to create a more natural you!

My Eco Kitchen

Although the media is currently saying that organic food is no better than other food, there is still a level of enjoyment and comfort that organic food brings. The comfort that pesticides have not been used to harm the environment nor been in contact with your food at any time.

I like to apply the same thinking to other products I use around the kitchen so here is an idea of how I have changed over to natural kitchen products in my home.

If I clean my kitchen worktops with a surface spray and then prepare food on those worktops, I like to know there are no harmful chemicals involved as well as protecting my worktops from harmful bacteria and viruses. When I wash my plates up, I like to use organic biodegradable washing up liquid to ensure no harmful chemicals have been on my plates or emptied into the water system. I also wash the plates, cups and glasses with a luffa scourer to reduce the amount of plastic used and put in landfill.

Other items I use in the kitchen include laundry liquid and fabric conditioner, recycled kitchen roll which actually comes in a compostable plastic wrapper and a kitchen caddy with compostable plastic caddy liners making it easier to compost scraps of food and vegetable peelings.

I clean the window with a microfibre glass cloth and NewGenn surface spray, I use the disinfectant concentrate to clean the fridge, the floor and other general cleaning or sping cleaning in combination with a general purpose microfibre cloth.

I bake cakes on the 'If You Care' unbleached parchment paper and wrap other food items in their recycled aluminium foil.

All these things I do in my kitchen are things I would do anyway on a regular basis. The only difference is, I have over time replaced all my regular products with eco friendly products without changing my lifestyle or routine.

Going Green does not have to be difficult and every little change makes a big difference in time.

What can you do to make your kitchen more eco freindly this month?

Little Thinks make Big Change.

American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one (1) olive from each salad served in first-class.

This was the message I received in a fun email from a friend which got me thinking...

We need small changes like this to make a big difference to our Earth and Environment. In the long run, many people making small changes will have a bigger impact than a few people making big changes.

Just imagine if one corporate company ensured that all their drivers used correct routes and saved a mile a day. Over the space of just one year - big savings in fuel and CO2. What if they all did the same? Imagine they did this and used fuel treatment too!

Dipetane Fuel Treatment gives an Average 10% saving on fuel, 25% less emissions and 50% less smoke. Even if millions of private car owners used Fuel Treatment, the chages could be beneficial to the environment. Put it in the heating oil, lawn mowers, motor bikes and more and now the changes become phenomenal!

If every household turned off one extra appliance over night and saved even 2p each night. Those 2p's add up across the country every day as a large reduction in CO2.

If everyone purchased one product more consciously to reduce packaging, imagine the difference to landfill. If only half the people did it but purchased three items each week with less packaging than their normal options?

Apply the same thinking to your household for water, the use of chemical based products, body products and more...

Global Change is about more than just global warming! Even if global warming was not an issue, there is still the landfill, water pollution, pesticides and the survival of bee's, air pollution regarding health degradation and more... Green East helps make these little changes more easy.

You may not feel that making a little change here and there adds up to much, but when you consider the olive - you realise that every action counts because...

A Green World starts with a Green Home!

3 R's of Going Green

Three little words that you can use every day to help the environment...

Re-use - we are familiar with making the most of carrier bags, charity shops and many other items from recalimed timber to .

Recycle - again, ensuring paper, card, metals, glass and other items are turned into new items and turning food waste into compost is everyday thinking. Don't forget traditional crafts such as patchwork and mosaic for recycling torn or broken items.

Refuse? - this is often overlooked as a Green word, more than we realise. We constantly think of what we 'can' do to go green, but often forget what we should 'Refuse' to do. When shopping for example...

• Refuse to buy items in plastic trays or bags, especially fruit and veg.
• Refuse to buy items made from plastic if you can buy an alternative in wood or metal
• Refuse to buy food from abroad if you can buy the same locally
• Refuse to buy electronic or battery operated items for convenience and only buy what you 'really' need.
• Refuse to support slavery and buy fair trade items.
• Refuse to buy airosols and use surface sprays, roll-on deodorant, natural wax polish or any alternative instead.
• Refuse to buy new containers every time - Concentrates and refills are great at cutting down on packaging and save money too.
• Refuse to buy 'everything' from major stores and support local shops too. Especially your butcher, baker and green grocer.
• Refuse to travel miles to buy something you can order online and have delivered on transport networks - this sounds less obvious but helps cut emissions and fuel consumption.

This only touches the surface there are hundreds of way you can Refuse and Go Green.

Spread the word and Refuse.

Eco Gift Vouchers

Choosing eco friendly gifts a nightmare? Choose an Eco Gift Voucher instead.

Giving and Eco Friendly Gift can be more thoughtful than giving money and can be completed in just a couple of minutes online.

No trapesing round the shops, adding to the carbon footprint or travelling on crowded buses. Your friend or loved one will not have to head into the local town or city to spend their vouchers either, they simply choose their gift from our Eco Friendly Shop online and Green East will post it to them.

With the ever increasing risk of money or cheques being lost in the post, or friends and relatives - especially children - getting more choosy, it's difficult to know what to buy people for occasions like birthdays, christenings, weddings, anniversaries, Mothers day and more.

No matter what the occasion - new baby, good luck, or simply get well soon - Green East can help out!

Now you can show them you do care - about the environment too.

By choosing an Eco Gift Voucher, your friends and loved ones can receive the voucher code by email within minutes (last minute gift) or Green East can print a voucher and post to you, that you can place in a card if you have more time to plan ahead.

Once the gift voucher is emailed or given, all your friend or loved one has to do is browse the site, place their choice of gift in the basket, enter the code, and the gift is already paid for by you up to the value you gifted. (postage additional)

They can choose one gift of equal value, they could choose several smaller items or they could purchase on more than one occasion as the remaining gift credit will stay on their account for a whole year. It is their choice how they spend the money, or they could add more money to purchase something more expensive of their choice.

http://www.greeneast.co.uk/products/eco-friendly-gift-vouchers.html

Just imagine how simple it is for you and the gift receiver - and how special a Eco Gift Voucher is compared to money or cheques.