Orange County Register

Today’s tip comes from The Road Less Traveled owner Delilah Snell.

People always ask me about what to wash their clothes with. Nowadays, there are a number of great products that are not only eco-sensitive, but which can save you $ and time.

• Ecover: I LOVE this company, use everything they make, but their laundry detergent is super popular.
• Baking soda: Add baking soda — a ½ cup at the most – to your laundry. It softens the water, making your soap more effective. It’s also cheap and non toxic.
• Vinegar: It makes the smell go away. Add a ½ cup at the most.
• Soap Nuts: Great and uber-natural laundry soap, this Chinese berry is perfect for baby diapers, sensitive skin and people who do not like to deal with detergents … just drop the bag in!

Delilah Snell lectures on green living and food preservation throughout Southern California. To learn more about green products, you can visit Delilah at the The Road Less Traveled in Santa Ana or check out her blog, Project Small.

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Got a green tip? Have a green question? E-mail green guru Pat Brennan or William Diepenbrock at the Orange County Register. We’ll review your tip or get an answer to your question, and get the details published in our new Green Tip of the Day feature.

We all have them: leftover jars from spaghetti sauce, mustard, jams. Sure, you can recycle them, but can’t you use them for something?

Here’s a list of ways you can use your leftover jars beyond the recycling bin:

• Tea lights: Place a small tea candle into a jar for a quick mood light
•  Spices: Fill a jar with your favorite seasoning or make your own.
• Arrangements: Pick flowers and have a cute arrangement near your bed.
• Keep herbs fresh: Fill halfway with water, put herbs in like you would a flower arrangement and put in fridge … herbs will keep longer — I promise!
• Make dressing: Place the ingredients into a jar with a lid and shake, ready to go!
• Storage: Do a Martha Stewart and use jars to store buttons, nails, and any small bit. Just make sure you label things!

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In the early 80s, while in graduate school and on a very tight budget, I read a book about living more simply.  One of the things it suggested was to use cloth napkins instead of paper. 

I tried it, I liked it, and I have been using cloth napkins ever since. Over the years, when I’ve had friends for dinner, I’ve often heard, “You don’t have to break out the cloth napkins for me.”  … implying that it’s a bit too fancy, too … elegant for anything other than a four star restaurant. 

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