Author: Sandra Maki

Making Luscious Lip Balm

November 5, 2018 Off

As fall is upon us and bringing drier weather, my need for lip balm has increased.  Unfortunately, much like deodorants, the packaging for lip balms is pretty discouraging: It consists of a lot of plastic and very little lip balm.  In reviewing the commercial formulations, I learn that lip balm is typically made of petroleum…

By Sandra Maki

Reduce our Waste Halloween

October 28, 2018 Off

Zero waste halloween: quite the oxymoron.  Bea Johnson,the priestess of zero waste, tells you to simply refuse the holiday.  But since my goal is to reduce my waste while still having fun, I decided that I would look for ways to partake with minimal impact on the environment.  My decorations have always been rather simple:…

By Sandra Maki

Fashion Minimalism: 10 by 10 Fall 2018 Challenge

October 24, 2018 Off

Fashion is one area of my life where adopting a minimalist approach has been difficult.  Even though I was mostly unsuccessful in my first attempt to reduce my wardrobe earlier this year, I want to give it another go.  Lately, I have been reading a lot about capsule wardrobes.  Did you know that the average…

By Sandra Maki

Making da sauce… Canning homemade marinara sauce

October 12, 2018 Off

Another “experiment” I wanted to try as part of my reduce our waste 52 week challenge was canning tomatoes.  As someone of Italian descent, “making da sauce” was something that was part of my heritage.  My mother used to make tomato sauce using tomatoes from our garden.   Since I had not canned tomatoes before (and…

By Sandra Maki

Plogging in Pointe-Claire

October 2, 2018 Off

Have you ever heard of plogging?  It consists of running or jogging and picking up trash as you go.  This trend started in Sweden in 2016 and the term ‘Plogging” actually comes from Swedish, “Plocka Upp”, which means “Pick Up”.  This new exercise craze allows you to exercise and do something great for the environment. …

By Sandra Maki