I’m going to get straight to the point because most people skip this part anyway. (Don’t worry, I don’t take offense. I do the same thing)

I’m about to launch my youngest baby bird out of the nest and into the wild world of college dorm life. I want her dorm room to be a cozy, healthy haven that screams “responsible eco-warrior” instead of “science experiment of cheap plastics and weird smells.” Let’s be real, moving into a dorm can be expensive, but you don’t have to sell a kidney to make it greener. I’ve spent years obsessively researching non-toxic, eco-friendly alternatives (some might call it a hobby, my kids call it a personality trait).

And because I love saving the planet and a good deal, here are three money-saving tips to keep in mind:

1. Shop from within your house:

You’ll be amazed by what you already have lying around, no need to buy new when home shopping saves you time and money.

2. Embrace pre-loved items:

Check Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, or local Buy Nothing groups. Many dorm essentials are barely used and begging for a second life.

3. Hunt for student discounts:

Stores love students. Think Target, Apple, North Face, Nike, Levi’s and don’t forget to stalk Amazon for price drops.

In my efforts to make mindful purchases:

• I look for products Made in the USA if possible
• I chose products with thousands of really great reviews
• I try to find products that are plastic-less (or plastic-free)
• At times, I choose a more expensive item because it’s likely to be better constructed, ensuring its longevity. ***Bonus – I can easily sell or donate it when I no longer need it.

Below is my hand-picked list of eco-friendly dorm items to help your college kid (and mine) stay healthy, save money, and maybe even make Mother Earth just a little less cranky. Let’s do this!

Bedding & Towels

When it comes to bedding, options like Oeko-Tex certified, organic, or bamboo materials can be excellent choices. I really try to make sure my kids’ bedding is free of toxins since they spend so much time sleeping and hanging out in their beds.

• These sheets at Target or these sheets at Amazon because they were super soft and fit perfectly over the mattress topper. Definitely get 2 sets (just in case they spill something and can’t do laundry right away).
• Pillowcases – 2 sets
• Blanket/Comforter/Duvet Cover: This is all preference. My daughter wanted a blanket but some love a duvet cover so you can easily wash it. This one has really lasted.
• Mattress Topper: I did a three-day deep dive on this one. Super important to me since college kids spend so much time in their beds. I chose this one because my younger child would also would use it, and it has great resale value. My kid had some back issues and this was perfect. Plus, her friends loved hanging out in her bed because it was so comfortable. ***Because I got this topper, I didn’t bother buying a separate mattress cover since it already had one. This was the only thing my college kid used before putting on the sheet which saved me money only buying one thing.
• Cheaper Mattress Topper: BUT if that topper is too pricey, I did a ton of research, and everyone loved this option too, it was my second choice.
• Coop Pillows: These are a bit pricey, but I keep pillows for YEARS, so I’d rather invest in good ones. I have these all over my house, I love them so much. You can adjust the fill to make them as big or as flat as you like.
• Towels: I like this set because you get 2 washcloths, 2 hand towels (my daughter uses those at the gym) and 2 towels. She has 2 sets which is more than enough.

Dorm Room

• Woozoo Fan: This is a MUST for those of you whose kids have absolutely no air conditioning and it’s 95 degrees.
• Surge Protector and Extra Surge Protector: You probably only need one, but my husband insisted she take 2. ***A flat plug is great for behind a desk or bed and definitely want to have some USB ports.
• French Press Coffee Maker: My kid is a bit of a coffee snob and wanted the French Press. It’s the best French Press that’s not glass. I loved it so much I bought a large one for myself
• Stainless Steel refillable K-Cups: If you kid absolutely insists on a single serve coffee maker, at least use these stainless steel refillable K-cups.
• Electric Tea Kettle
• Jewelry Organizer
• Apple Air Tags for Backpack and Keys
• Desk Lamp with Bonuses: When a lamp that is just a light isn’t “cool” enough
• Boot Tray (best thing we ever got). We got a large one so everyone in the room could share it and they only needed one by the door. Keeps them from dragging rain, snow and mud into the room.
• Tool Kit (the whole floor loved my daughter – she was the only one with tools). Again, you can create your own tool bag if you have extras.
• ** (Option 2) Thor’s Hammer Tool Kit if you need to make a statement while literally saving the planet. This is not just for boys, my husband carries this around in his truck and my daughters are both “borrowing” it.
• We bought the Zero Water 10-cup and it’s been working great, also here’s a great guide for choosing a water pitcher.
• Air Purifier
• Veno Moving Bags: These are a double win. We used them to move her into her room and then she used them for storage under her bed
• Lightweight Vacuum (another item that was popular with the kids on my daughter’s floor)
• Easy to use, but still cool Alarm Clock
• Reusable Cloths to clean spills/wipe surfaces (these are the ones I use at home too)
• Ice Maker

First Aid Kit

Here is a great complete kit, but if you want to make your own kit, here’s some ideas

• Adhesive Bandages
• Antibiotic Ointment (like Neosporin)
• Ice Pack
• Acetaminophen/Ibuprofen
• Cold Medicine
• Bandages and Scissor
• Essential Oils if that’s your thing
• Heating Pad
• Feminine Care Products

Laundry

• Earth Breeze and Clearalif laundry Sheets: Just check with your college first because some don’t allow laundry sheets. But if they do, I highly recommend them. They’re easier to carry and better for the environment and your health. I’ve used both of these and they work great.
• Wool Dryer Balls: Skip dryer sheets and use these instead
• Bag/Basket/Hamper: this depends upon where the laundry room is located. Some like backpacks if they have stairs but we had an elevator so my daughter wanted this one on wheels
• Collapsible Dryer Rack
• Non-slip Hangers: We love these and just ordered more
• Shower Shoes
• Hanging Shower Caddy/Toiletry Bag
• Shower Caddy (if you don’t want a hanging version)
• Blow Dryer: BUY 2 – one for your daughter and one for YOU

Miscellaneous

• Wearable blanket: This one seemed silly, but she uses it like every day
• Emergency car tire inflator: For students with cars
• Bike tire pump: For students with bicycles
• Sewing Kit
• Reusable coffee/tea mug
• Reusable Water Bottle
• Lock Box for Valuables and Medications
• Overnight Travel Bag for Trips HOME
• Backpack
• Noise-Cancelling Headphones: They’re expensive but my daughter swears by them
• Noise Reduction Earplugs: my daughter absolutely loves these

Remember, don’t stress.

I know you’re striving to create a comfortable and inspiring space for your kids, one that also mirrors their individuality, but they may not actually “need” as much as you think. If you’re not sure your kid is going to “need” something, you can always wait and get it to them later. Here’s to an enriching, unforgettable, and eco-conscious college adventure!

Affiliate Disclosure:

I have affiliate marketing relationships which may result in my earning a small commission from purchases resulting from links posted. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying Amazon purchases when using my link. These commissions help cover my expenses including my website www.livingcleananddirty.com which is another helpful resource to living your “greenest” healthiest life.

The post Empty your nest without emptying your wallet appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Well…

Yes, we all love movies, but we almost never agree on which one to watch. One daughter loves rom-com, another daughter likes sci-fi, hubby likes action, and for me, if it wasn’t made in the 80s then I’ll pass. So you would think it would take some sort of romantic, butt-kicking space pirate in a Duran Duran muscle shirt to unite this movie-loving family.

As it turned out we just needed an astrophysicist.

I was so excited to see Neil deGrasse Tyson at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at LIU Post because my hubby and I are HUGE fans. We read his books, watch his documentaries and listen to his podcast so I knew we had to see his show in person. What I didn’t expect was how much my two teenage daughters were going to love it. I had a feeling my sci-fi-loving daughter would like him but wasn’t too sure about the rom-com kid. Luckily his show was an entertaining, fun breakdown of how our favorite movies got the science right and how some got it wrong. The Wizard of Oz, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, The Lion King, and even Love Story (yup rom-coms have science in them) was explained. We watched clips, learned a little science and math and he even chatted up the audience with some fun back and forth.

The show was great but what was even better was seeing it at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at LIU Post. We usually have to trek into Manhattan for an experience like this but being only a short car ride away with plenty of parking made for a fun movie-lover night without the movie (or the traffic). The stadium seating held about 2,000 and guaranteed that there wasn’t a bad seat in the house. The show was interactive, thought-provoking, and really quite funny.

We went a bit early, grabbed a drink at the bar, and listened to a live local band playing before the show. I even got to dance a bit and totally embarrass my kids. Don’t worry if movies or science aren’t your thing, the Tilles Center really does have something for everyone. So if you’re looking for a fun date night or family bonding time (like we did) make sure to check out their awesome upcoming schedule.

Future Events:

• January 7: Space Oddity – The David Bowie Experience
• January 10: Dancing with the Stars
• January 27: America
• January 28: The Tortoise and the Hare
• January 29: Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company
• February 18: Lviv National Philharmonic
• March 7: A Conversation with Trevor Noah
• March 17: Wings Dublin Irish Dance
• March 18: The Sicilian Tenors
• March 19: Patti LuPone – Don’t Monkey with Broadway

About the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at LIU Post:

Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at LIU Post in Brookville, is Long Island’s premier concert hall. For almost 40 years, Tilles Center has been host to more than 70 performances each season by world-renowned artists in music, theater and dance. Tilles Center was the first to bring the New York Philharmonic to Long Island and Bruce Springsteen’s legendary “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” was recorded onsite.

Tilles Center is located at LIU Post, 720 Northern Blvd in Brookville, NY. For more information on how to purchase tickets, call 516-299-3100.

Tilles Center provided my family with complimentary tickets for the purpose of this review. We absolutely loved going and all opinions expressed are my own.  

The post Family Movie Night with my favorite Astrophysicist appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

There are basically three situations that in which I will get asked that question. Roughly once a month my husband will ask me that when he tries something new in the kitchen, his wood shop or the bedroom.  The second situation where I get asked that is when one of my girls “makes” me a present. These can range from Picasso-esque artwork, a decorated rock, a peanut (still in the shells) sandwich, or in one case a fresh paint job for my bearded collie. Who knew how hard it was to get paint out of dog hair?

The third situation is what we are here to talk about today.

Back when I was a hybrid girl

For six years I leased hybrid vehicles because I was too scared to go all electric. Yes, while not a perfect solution I believe that an electric vehicle is a giant eco-friendly step in the right direction, but I was terrified about all the what ifs.

• What if I ran out of juice?
• What if there’s no place to charge?
• What if my electric bill goes through my solar panel-covered roof?

Last year when the lease on my Hybrid was up, I asked the universe for a sign. Was it time to Pass the Gas and do the Electric Slide?  I decided to go for a test drive and see how I felt. Aside from a golf cart I had never driven an electric vehicle (EV) so figured I need to check it out before pulling the trigger.

this is the actual penny at the dealership. this is not a re-enactment

Here’s what I can tell you, the ride was super smooth, the acceleration was positively absurd (the fastest vehicle I had ever been in) and the sleek interior were all positives. I wasn’t convinced, but I was starting to feel pretty good about it. After my test drive I decided to sit in the back seat. I have no idea what compelled me as I’m always the driver or, worst-case scenario, I’m the passenger when hubby takes over (I like falling asleep in the car – not while driving of course) so why did I care about the backseat? The last time I was in a back seat was “date night” years ago with my husband in the driveway while my kids were up late watching a movie. Back seats are usually pretty standard, how different could this one be?

As I slid into the faux leather backseat (this time with panties) something on the floor caught my eye. There sat a shiny penny looking up at me. That was my sign. It was my dad telling me to get the car I’ve always wanted (just for reference he passed away years ago, but I believe in “messages from beyond” so  stay tuned for my article about meeting with a psychic). The car made me feel like I was part of a community who was trying to do the right thing and it felt good going even greener than I already was.  It was the right time, the right car and the right sign. The something funny happened…somehow I became the unofficial (unpaid of course) spokesperson for electric vehicles, specifically Tesla. I really should get a marketing job with them because I get stopped everywhere. Parking lots, waiting in the car line at school and my favorite was the old guy at the red light honking at me to put my window down to ask the same question, “Do you like it?”.

Read on for my answer as well as the other four questions (not the Passover kind) I always get asked.

1. Is it WAY more expensive than a gas car?

It depends. Are you driving a Maserati or a Mazda? My Tesla definitely is the most luxurious car I ever owned and feels it. So no – if I bought a similar type gas-powered car it would have been roughly the same amount. Now they’re coming out with more EV models so you have more choice and different prices.

2. How low do you let your battery go?

It depends. I charge at home (usually I plug in 2-3 times per week at night so I get a rebate back from my electric company and cheaper rates – thanks T.O.U.) so if I’m driving local I really don’t like going below 30%. My dad used to always ask if I had enough gas in my car and I was taught under ½ tank to fill up. If I go below 30% I can almost hear my dad yelling at me.

3. What does it do to your electric bill?

Honestly…it goes up. But you do have some control over how much. I charge it after 11pm so I get a rebate and cheaper rates. Another super important factor in the overall cost is I no longer pay for oil changes, tune ups or new brake pads (read the next question and you’ll understand why) so although you’re electric bill will go up, you’re still saving money.

4. What’s one thing no one told you about owning an EV?

Two words…regenerative braking. That’s ok, I had no idea what it was either. This is how Tesla describes it, “In a battery-powered electric vehicle, regenerative braking (also called regen) is the conversion of the vehicle’s kinetic energy into chemical energy stored in the battery, where it can be used later to drive the vehicle. It is braking because it also serves to slow the vehicle. It is regenerative because the energy is recaptured in the battery where it can be used again.” In plain English, it’s like a golf cart. When you take your foot off the gas pedal it stops the car. This would have been fabulous to know before getting on the highway at rush hour. Who knew so many people would honk their horns at an abruptly stopped Tesla in the middle lane?

BONUS QUESTION:

1. Any regrets?

HELL no, I only wish I had done it sooner, but timing is truly everything. I needed those hybrid years to prepare me for the EV plunge. It’s definitely different than driving a gas-powered car, but like anything else you get used to it.

And speaking of my taller half, when he’s ready for a new truck it’s gonna be electric (boogie, woogie, woogie).

So “Do I like it?” You bet your “gas” I do. I love it so much that I entered and WON a “I Love My EV” contest a few months ago. Check out the video below. (It’s only 4 minutes long and the woman singing is a hoot!)

So if you’re ready to dump the pump and hug the plug, know that not only do you have more options than ever before but also a growing community of eco-warriors like me who are leading the charge and leaving the gas stations in their rear view mirror.

And all it took was one penny in the right place.

The post A Penny for your thoughts…about Electric Vehicles appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Let me introduce you to AirThreds, while you say goodbye to those cardboard disposable filters wrapped in plastic which end up folded up in your garbage can after a few months.

The video really explains it all but here’s the deal…imagine a washable mesh pillowcase wrapped around a solid frame that replaces your existing air filter. BOOM! Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

If you’re like me and have pets, a husband who likes running the air conditioning year round, or just want to save some money and breathe cleaner air then I can’t recommend this enough.  They come in all shapes and sizes, their customer service is outstanding and they can be cleaned with either a vacuum or dropped into the laundry. When properly maintained one AirThreds filter will last as long as 36 of the cardboard kind.

Yes, these are obviously cool (pun intended). It’s been a few weeks but I’m already a fan (pun intended). Saving money and the environment is HOT! (ok, that was a reach).

Follow me for updates on this and many other Earth-saving products and projects. And as a BONUS, use the coupon code ECO20 and get 20% off your purchase from AirThreds. Be one of the cool kids (ugh, you already used that one) and check out AirThreds. Do it for your family, your planet, and your wallet.

AirThreds provided me with their product to facilitate this review; however, all opinions expressed are my own. 

The post Don’t be an airhead…check out AirThreds appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

2020. What a mess!

But like the filthy Genie that I am (without the Barbara Eden outfit), I have 3 pieces of good news for you.

First, as you can see, we’ve been hard at work (well, he’s been hard at work) putting a fresh coat of paint on the Living Clean and Dirty website.  Still living green, still staying filthy, but with a cleaner, simpler look. Drop me a line and let me know what you think, and if you haven’t subscribed yet then you know what to do.

Second, you all remember meeting our new pup Leia at one of our Saturday Night Lives.  Well our Leia has found her Han (literally we named him Han Solo), the picture below is our scruffy-looking Nerfherder (ask a Star Wars fan) playing leap frog with our princess.

The third bit of news I think may even be more exciting.  When I made the pureWash pro video last year I never would have guessed that JUST YESTERDAY i would still be getting comments…in Italian. Thanks google translator for letting me spread the clean and dirty to an international audience.

I thought it would be helpful to answer the most popular question I get (yes, they’re real and they’re spectacular), and the second most popular question…does the pureWash Pro really work?

So here’s the honest truth…10 months later. It TOTALLY still works, I haven’t used a drop of laundry detergent, clothes (and laundry machine) smell great, but about a week ago my clothes started to smell like I peeled them off of a dead body (don’t ask me how I know).  At first I thought maybe my homemade deodorant was failing me until one of my girls pulled a sweatshirt out of the laundry, threw it on and then winced.  “Ugh, did one of the dogs shit in the laundry machine?”  Obviously Han and Leia both took great offense to this and will probably shit in her bed out of spite (and so the cycle of laundry continues). I was hopeful that the advised yearly cartridge change would be our one-way ticket out of stinktown.

Do I have your attention now…of course I do.

You’ll have to watch the video to find out what happened.

The post pureWash Pro X2 10 Months Later…so many loads appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Come on!!!  We’re Americans!!

We know what we need to do in times of adversity, we sit on the couch and watch TV.  As a proud cord-cutter watching TV equates to Laptop/IPhone/Roku watching but you get the idea.  I’m not going to tell you to watch Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad or the Walking Dead. We’ve all seen those or actively chose to be lame and skipped them.  I like my TV like my sex…a little unusual, you can be on the treadmill when it’s happening, and sometimes it’s better when you’re alone.  Here are my Top Oh Crap! Now What? Binge-watch TV show picks to get you possibly drinking a Corona instead of thinking about one.  We’re going to be here for a while so send me your picks and I promise if I watch it and it doesn’t suck you’ll get a true couch potato shout out from yours truly.

Hang in there everybody.

1 Stranger things – Netflix

It’s been called a love letter to the 80s, I call it an Easter egg hunt for anyone who grew up in the ’70s or ’80s. Somehow there are still people who haven’t watched it. Fix that.

2 Orphan Black – Amazon Prime

Five seasons. A ridiculous number of clones. Incredible acting. One unforgettable pencil scene. One of my hubby’s all-time favorites.

3 Archer – Hulu

Yes, it’s a cartoon, but possibly one of the most inappropriate ones I have ever seen.  Super vulgar, everybody is screwing, and absolutely laugh out loud funny.

4 Buck Rogers/Six Million Dollar Man/Bionic Woman – NBC App

Bell Bottoms, feathered hair and disco music.  Ahhh the Sci-Fi technology of the 70s and the 80s.  If you haven’t heard of any of these shows ask your parents.  It’s definitely worth a shot to at least see what we thought the future was going to look like.  I guarantee you there is not a single Tik-Tok reference in there.

5 Sense8 – Netflix

8 strangers around the world suddenly find themselves mentally connected and hunted by a shadow organization as they come to grips with their new reality.  Extremely adult, highly sexual with a strong representation of LGBTQ characters and action packed. This is definitely one to watch long after the kids have been put to bed.

6 Schitt’s Creek – Netflix

Full disclosure, I have not watched this but everyone and their mother is telling me it’s amazing.  A riches to rags comedy with Eugene Levy…sign me up!

7 I am not OK with this – Netflix

My 15 year old has fallen in love with this show.  A teenager navigates the complexities of high school, family and her sexuality while dealing with new superpowers; based on Charles Forsman’s graphic novel.

8 The Americans – Amazon Prime Video

Not getting your fill of Russian Spies from the news? Take a nostalgic trip back to the Cold War with a Washington DC family in the Reagan era as they navigate life, kids and relationships. And by the way…they’re undercover KGB spies.

9 8 Simple Rules – ABC App

A comedy with John Ritter – nuff said!  We could all use a little more of this in our lives right now.

10 Briarpatch – NBC App

To be fair, this show is still brand new but I was hooked after 1 episode.  A pulp fiction mystery based on the novel of the same name.  Rosario Dawson returns to her border-town home in Texas to find her sister’s killer. The cast is amazing!

11 Altered Carbon – Netflix

Sci-Fi at its best, my husband couldn’t turn it off.  Beautifully shot, lots of action, mysteries and firepower.  300 years in the future death is not the end.  A man dead for hundreds of years is brought back into a new body to solve a mystery.  Looking forward to the second season which was just released.

12 VEEP – Hulu

If you like a little more comedy in your politics, Julia Louis-Dreyfus is the VP of a train-wreck administration. Think Madame Secretary (which gets honorable mention on my list) meets Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

13 Tiny house nation – Netflix

I do love them small…houses that is.  Don’t judge me, we all secretly like some reality TV shows and this one is my guilty pick.  A simpler lifestyle, a smaller footprint, and downsizing galore. It’s my future dream, the show is 5 seasons in but if it runs for another 10 maybe I’ll get my own episode.

The post The “Corona Dozen” Binge-worthy TV shows appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

It’s the rallying cry behind a lot of crappy decisions.

Let’s take the morally questionable and sexually philanthropic decade that I like to refer to as “My 20s.” There were certainly more than a few challenges during that time of my life, but most of my friends and I seemed to glom onto the worst boyfriend material we could find. If he was nice, considerate and treated you right then he was a dud. Bring on the bad boyfriend.

• Treat you like shit? Check!
• Blow you off to do stupid stuff with his friends? Check!
• In the middle of sex ask you if you have a sister? Check!

MMMM-HMMMMM…he’s perfect.

And when a friend would look at your situation and say, “Um…what the fuck is the matter with you?” like little pre-programmed robots we’d all answer, “I love a challenge.”

Fortunately I moved on from my twenties and I’d like to think my decision-making skills have improved. As a society, though, we still seem drawn to positively absurd challenges. Here are five social media challenges. Four are real. One I made up. Can you spot the fake?

1. The Hot Pepper Challenge
2. The Space Monkey Challenge
3. The Charlie Charlie Challenge
4. The Purple Nutsack Challenge
5. The Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge

OK, while they’re all terrible ideas, The Purple Nutsack isn’t actually a challenge. When I suggested adding it to the list, my husband just winced, crossed his legs and wandered off.

OK, while these are all awful and I can’t recommend enough to NOT try these I will admit that The Purple Nutsack is not a challenge and when I suggested to my husband that I add this to the list he just winced and wandered off.

My whole point is this. There are a literal fuck-ton of awful, dangerous and downright ridiculous challenges out there. So why not use our love of challenges for something that actually makes the world a little better?

Enter the Plastic Free Challenge.

www.plasticfreechallenge.org/what-is-single-use-plastic

We all know plastic isn’t great for the environment, but recycling isn’t the magical solution most of us wish it was. A lot of that plastic still ends up in landfills or the ocean. Have you ever heard of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? If not, look it up and prepare to be horrified.

Now, I’m not saying we should eliminate every piece of plastic from our lives overnight. That’s not realistic. Like blow jobs, I believe everything should be in moderation.

Plastic grocery bags, plastic straws, plastic forks, plastic cups, plastic coffee lids. Single-use plastic is exactly what it sounds like. You use it once, throw it away and then someone else gets to deal with it.

The good news is most of it is avoidable.

Reusable shopping bags. Metal straws. BPA-free water bottles. Small changes really do add up.

Is it doable?  Hell yeah.

Is it a pain in the ass?  Hell yeah.

But we love a challenge, right?

I already do most of those things, but recently I found another easy swap. We cook a lot at home, which means we wash a lot of dishes. I also go through an embarrassing number of kitchen sponges and plastic dish scrapers, so I started looking for a more eco-friendly option.

That’s when I found Scrufah.

It’s basically a loofah for your dishes. No plastic. Biodegradable. Compostable. Non-toxic.

Why do we go through all the trouble of buying organic food but never stop to think about what we’re scrubbing our dishes with?

They’re soft when wet (insert giggling here) but still tough enough to clean without scratching my cookware. They come three to a box, each lasting about two to three months, and they’re compressed flat until you get them wet, when they expand to full size.

Now it almost feels like they’re writing these jokes for my husband.

I’ve been using my Scrufah to clean everything from dishes and pots to reusable water bottles and metal straws, and I’ve been really happy with it.

So now it’s your turn, you challenge-loving freaks.

Join the fight against single-use plastics. Maybe a Scrufah isn’t your thing, but replace one disposable item in your house with something reusable. Every little bit helps.

The amazing company that makes Scrufah, Oliver Flynn Lifestyles, is a small family business started by two sisters who wanted to create a low-tox lifestyle for their kids while reducing plastic waste. They’re also offering Living Clean and Dirty readers 15% off on Amazon with coupon code HBIC3MCK.

Check out their Website, Facebook and Instagram

They’re up to the challenge. Are you?

Oliver Flynn Lifestyles provided me with a Scrufah to facilitate this review; however, all opinions expressed are my own.

The post Scrufah says…Challenge Accepted! appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

In my house whenever I say, “I need to do the laundry” my hubby jumps up and down screaming, “I’m the laundry”.  Unlike most people I know I like doing the laundry, the one where I actually clean our clothes, and even my husband’s version that messes up my sheets.  Ideally I don’t see a reason to do the laundry more than a couple of times a week, but there are times I find myself in the middle of doing it and don’t even remember how I got there.  Sometimes it’s just easier to give in and do it rather than listen to “the laundry isn’t going to do itself”. It’s easy, you throw a load in while you’re doing other stuff, ok the longer I go down this road the weirder the similarities get…

So anyway, I consider myself a pretty eco-friendly gal. I think I do more than most, but I’ve still got a long way to go.  When it comes to “clothes” laundry, I’m always trying to make this domestic ritual more eco-friendly. I never, and I mean never did a laundry that wasn’t a full load using cold water. I’ve tried every eco/green/non-toxic laundry detergent on the market, washed my clothes with soap nuts, attacked stains using only eco-friendly stain removers and line dried almost all my clothes. It should come as no surprise that both my washer and dryer are Energy Star and if I wore a pair of jeans or a top for only an hour or two – I hang them back up to wear again before cleaning them. Stop judging, you know you do that too.

The problem has always been, unless I’m using some sort of actual “detergent”, my laundry is missing two things. My clothes aren’t clean and they don’t smell nice, both of which are factors that seem pretty important in my laundry adventures.  So the hunt has been ongoing for a magical laundry solution and I think I just recently found it.  I’m a research geek and never met a google search that I couldn’t get lost in like Alice down the rabbit hole.  Let me introduce you to my new Bestie, the pureWash pro. Much like the return of Beverly Hills 90210 it sounded too good to be true and I expected crushing disappointment. I finally found a friend who actually had one and she said it was the Holy Grail of eco-laundry.  She swore that everything good I had heard about it was true and so much more. I was still skeptical; but I decided to be brave and hope for the best.  I reached out to the makers of the pureWash Pro, explained who I was and what I was about, and now a few weeks later I’m writing about a product that has literally changed my life.

“Giddy with delight” is the best way to describe how I felt when I found the delivery box on my doorstep from the wonderful people at Greentech Environmental.  At last the wait was over…I had a pureWash Pro X2 in my house, ready to install and review. Let me rephrase that…for my husband to install and me to review.  Hubby knows his way around a pipe wrench but he said that even I would have been able to install it and I’m way more Dora the Explorer than Bob the Builder. He said if you understand how to hang a picture on a wall and attach a garden hose to the nozzle outside your house then you have all the skill required to install this in your laundry room. The fine folks at Greentech Environmental also sent me an awesome magnetic mounting kit, which includes all the hardware and bracketing to mount my purWash unit to the back of our washing machine but because of the way my hubby modeled our laundry room it was better for us to mount it to the wall. I will say that the magnetic mounting bracket was genius and would make it even easier to install, especially if your laundry is in the basement, nobody wants to start drilling holes into concrete walls.

In anticipation of this laundry revolution I took a page out of my family’s book when it comes to laundry…I left it on the floor.  It piled up for over a week, even our dog started to make a little bed for herself in this miniature mountain of dirty clothes. My kids were forced to wear the clothes in the back of the closet. You know what I’m talking about, the other 90% of their clothes that they just never put on. After a quick hubby installation I was elected the mayor of LaundryTown, population me.

“Holy Shit, it works!”

The first thing my whole family noticed about my pureWash pro X2 experiment was the smell. Our clothes came out with a clean almost electric smell, one of my daughters actually said “mmmmmm, smells like lightning”.  Now don’t ask me how or why she would know what lightning would smell like or if lightning even has a smell, but in a strange way I have to agree with her.

I have been using the X2 for about a month and not once have I added laundry detergent to any of my loads. My clothes come out clean and fresh; although to be fair, for the past few years all my detergents were fragrance free.  The other smell I noticed was the smell that was missing. That dank, moldy smell in my washing machine after using it a few times. If you have a front loader you know exactly what I’m talking about. You have to dry the machine after every single use and each month you have to wash your washing machine. It’s friggin’ crazy, you actually have to run an empty load using white vinegar to clean your washing machine. Clean your washing machine, how stupid and wasteful is that? Next you’re going to tell me that shampoo running down your body doesn’t count as showering.

Because I’m a wild woman who lives on the edge, I even started a load of wash before I went to bed and didn’t take it out until the next night. We’ve all done it and usually when you open it up your clothes have that “ugh I forgot we left that dead body in here” smell and you’re forced to wash them yet again.  Well, I don’t know exactly what sort of sorcery they’re using over at Greentech Environmental but the “death smell” was gone, not “better” but completely gone.  Clean clothes in a lightning storm, that’s what I smelled and I’m not ashamed to say I loved it.  I put them in the dryer and went about my day.

So let’s recap

Clothes smell great…check!

Washing machine doesn’t need to be cleaned or wiped down all the time like a toddler running with a full glass of grape juice…check!

Not spending an embarrassing amount of money on strictly organic laundry detergent…priceless!

I can quote you all of the technical specs from their website and from other reviewers, but that’s stuff you can look up yourself and honestly I’m more concerned about the “does it work”  than the “HOW does it work” so here are three important facts I want you to walk away from this review with.

1.  It works
2.  It works
3.  A 2^nd season of BH90210 should happen

Laundry has never been easier, come out cleaner and fresher or been more eco-friendly. The downside is now I have no excuse to not throw a load of laundry in before bed and leave it until morning.  Now that doing the laundry is even easier to do, Hubby has volunteered to help me with the laundry anytime I want.  We may each be talking about different versions of doing the laundry, but now I feel like I’m winning either way.

Greentech Environmental provided me with a pureWash Pro to facilitate this review; however, all opinions expressed are my own. 

The post Saving Money and the Earth…One Load at a Time appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Growing up, my family went on a vacation every year. My parents hated the beach, Disney World was too immature for them and a “European trip would be wasted on children.” Needless to say, for three kids that left our options somewhere between the National Mustard Museum in Wisconsin (yes, it’s real) and somewhere in Yemen. My father was in the insurance business and every year he went away to a convention and dragged us along with him. I still think Yemen might have been the better choice. When I was 12 years old, the convention of the year was in San Diego. Me, Mom, Dad and my two brothers on a plane for over four hours with no in-flight movie (“that’s a waste of good money”), no smartphones and no iPads. How we survived the ’80s I have no idea.

Entertainment consisted of sitting still, Mad Libs or staring out the window praying it would open. I got a little adventurous and stealthily snuck off to ransack the tiny bathroom in the back of the plane. I know that doesn’t sound like a lot of fun, but after an hour of Mad Libs you’d poke your own eyes out just for a change of scenery. If you’re a woman reading this, you know what I found. That’s right, ladies…the stash of free sanitary napkins. My Walkman was running out of batteries and I could only listen to so much Cyndi Lauper anyway, so naturally I thought it would be fun to spend the next few hours of the flight wearing a big-ass pad. I didn’t even have my period yet, but all my friends did and I was dying to feel “grown up,” because nothing screams “womanhood” quite like riding the front half of a diaper cowgirl style.

That lasted about a half hour.

Yup, that’s all it took for me to run back to the bathroom (my mom must’ve thought I had diarrhea) and rip that thing out of my underwear. I actually considered peeing with it on just to see what happened, but thankfully I chickened out. Otherwise I might’ve ended up years later sitting in a bar on my fourth glass of wine, refusing to get up because I was convinced nobody could tell my pad had expanded to seven times its normal size.

Fast forward thirty-something years and now it’s my daughter telling me she can’t wait to get her period. As I’m about to roll my eyes, I think back to that flight and remember how clueless I was too. “The only periods you should be worrying about right now are the ones at the ends of your sentences. Now go finish your homework.” Parenting…nailed it.

Time went on and before we knew it, Aunt Flo came knocking on my little girl’s door. She was so excited she was practically beaming. We immediately went to the pharmacy, made our purchase and came straight home. I think you know where this is going…nine minutes. She lasted nine minutes. “Nope. I’m not wearing this.” I explained that my house wasn’t going to look like a crime scene and she had to wear something. She was way too young for tampons (organic only…do you know how much chemical shit they spray on those before you’re supposed to shove one up your hoo-ha? That’s a whole other post), she couldn’t use a menstrual cup like me, and as far as I knew there weren’t any other options.

Turns out I was wrong.

Rather than continue a losing battle with my hormone-raging vampire snack, I asked my friend Google to help me keep the peace and keep the laundry to a minimum. After a couple of very unfortunate internet searches (I can’t wait to see what starts showing up in my newsfeed), I found a potential answer…period underwear. Yup, don’t beat yourself up if you’ve never heard of it either. At the time, only two of my friends had, and neither one knew if they actually worked. I figured I had nothing to lose and everything to gain by giving them a try. In the age of cell phones, Wi-Fi and the Swiffer, surely my daughter didn’t have to suffer through the equivalent of a small travel pillow stuffed into her underwear once a month.

When I hear “period underwear,” I picture giant tan granny panties with stretched-out elastic and a couple of unfortunate Rorschach stains. They’re not sexy, nobody wants to talk about them and they’re definitely not fun. They’re the Nicolas Cage of underwear.

Who knew period underwear had become a huge industry? There are a bunch of different brands out there, but after a lot of research I decided to try Thinx. I heard the founder, Miki Agrawal, on a podcast and thought she was a fucking badass. I love supporting companies that give back, promote ethical and sustainable manufacturing and make it easy to find exactly what you need. I’m not going to lie, I was skeptical, but much like watching Nicolas Cage in a dramatic role…I felt nothing.

Yup. Nothing.

They’re comfortable, super cute and incredibly easy to wash. I rinse them in the sink, throw them in the washing machine and let them air dry after a few minutes in the dryer. They come out perfect every time. Thankfully those giant pads are a thing of the past in our house, and my daughter will never have to experience what felt like half a roll of damp toilet paper stuffed into her underwear like I did. Isn’t that every mom’s dream? For her daughter to have it just a little easier than she did.

Mission accomplished.

As a side note, you know how eco-friendly I am, so I’m hanging on to that last box of giant pads for the next time my friend Allison comes over with a bottle…or three…of wine. I think it’s incredibly rude to excuse yourself in the middle of a great story just to run to the bathroom.

The post Finding comfort at the end of a sentence appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Hi, my name is Emma and I’m a 14-year-old 8th grader at Oceanside Middle School. My mom loves to tell the story that while she was pregnant with me she saw Wicked on Broadway with her parents and my dad. Legend has it that this was the moment when my love of all things Broadway began.

On what started as a completely normal school day, a friend of mine walked up to me and started telling me about a show called Hadestown. I was intrigued and after doing some background research, I knew this was a show I wanted to see. I asked my mom about getting tickets and a few short weeks later I was on my way (with my dad) to see the marvel that was Hadestown. The musical was fantastic and I highly recommend it for any Broadway fan.

The songs were well written, but what made them spectacular was the actors singing them for all the audience to hear. They were all so talented and there wasn’t a single song I didn’t enjoy. The choreography mixed with the music so well and gave life to each number. If I had to pick a favorite character that I connected to it was Our Lady of the Underground, Persephone.

Persephone was an interesting and charming addition to the cast and wowed the crowd with her humor and love for humanity. As the goddess of Spring, I thought she would be sweet and innocent, but her time with Hades made Persephone into a wonderful woman full of fire and contradiction. Her character was brought to life by Amber Gray, who did a wonderful job of approaching the character with the mindset of someone who is beautiful and kind, but with a bit of a dark side. I loved her interactions with the other characters. I won’t spoil anything for you but her scenes with Hades (played by the wonderful Patrick Page) and her scenes with Orpheus and Eurydice’s situation (played by Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada respectively) show such an incredible range.

She is an absolute wonder and I left the theatre singing her songs excited to tell my friends what an amazing experience I had at Hadestown. But NOW you don’t have to take just MY word that this is an amazing show. Hadestown received 14 Tony Award nominations which made it the most nominated show of 2019 including Best Musical.

To purchase tickets click HERE.

Hadestown provided my family with two complimentary tickets for the purpose of this review. My daughter LOVED this show and said, “This is my favorite show of ALL time.” This is saying A LOT and all opinions expressed in this review are her own. Hubby had a great time and loved the daddy-daughter bonding experience. 

The post Hadestown…A Hell of a Good Time appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.