General

Plant based household items-

Most of us have heard of the term ‘plant-based’ but do we absolutely understand what this means?

Plant-based products do not use animals or by-products at any stage of production. As a result, this means they are made from plants.

Green cleaning is the process of choosing plant-based cleaning products that are better for both people and the planet. These products are good for the health and wellbeing of your people, and it also helps to prevent unnecessary chemicals from being released into the environment.

Eco-friendly products such as cleaners have the ability to boost the air quality of your home. These products are used for cleaning glass, furniture, and floor, etc. These products are eco cleaners, plant-based, eco-friendly, and non-toxic and could be saved from specific health and environmental risks like skin irritations, respiratory infections, itching eyes and chemical poisoning. 

Use of eco cleaners, plant-based, eco-friendly and non-toxic could guarantee a brighter future for our planet and most importantly for our children.

How to make your own cleaning products?

Comparatively, it is less expensive and straightforward to make your own cleaning products. Baking soda and vinegar are the most common items used for cleaning purposes. You can also consider using lemon, citric acid and olive oil for making eco friendly cleaners. The cost of this will be almost half of typical cleaning products.

Eco friendly household items

Many household items are made from plants like wall coverings, plates and bowls. Plant ingredients are also vital for both wallpaper and household paint. Linseed, soya beans, pine resin and wood pulp are all used. Writing and drawing – paper, inks, paints, pencils and erasers are just a few of the items we use to draw and write with that are made from plants and plant extracts.

There are seven major reasons to use natural products , actually.

• It keeps your home healthier. If you go green, your environment will remain green. 
• Products are safe to use.
• It will keep your environment pure. 
• Using natural products helps to maintain the environmental air quality.
• These products are less expensive.
• Fewer antibacterials.
• Helps to improve more knowledge of ingredients.

4 benefits of our plant-based products

• Products are safer around children and pets. 

You will never need to worry about the risks of toxic and harmful ingredients on yourself, your pets or your children. This is because we use natural ingredients in our products, which eliminate all harm.

• Better performance and durability.

Harness the power of nature to get far more superior products. Most of these products are  longer lasting, safe to use and durable.

• A clean home and a clean conscience.

At Clean Living we are proud of using plant-based products. 

At Go Eco Love we sell plant-based plates & bowls which are microwaveable, safe to use & reusable. We are proud to be sourcing these from ethical manufacturers. You can buy these products at Go Eco Love Shop

Several years ago, it was already predicted that sustainable fashion would not be just a seasonal trend but a long-term process. The concept of sustainable fashion seems to be one of the most relevant directions of the coming decade. Environmentalists are raising the alarm – excessive production and consumption are one of the leading factors that directly affect the ecological threat to our planet.

It has happened – humanity has reached the point where certain processes cannot be reversed. Sounds scary? Surely, we should believe that some actions can at least stop the oncoming climate catastrophe.

Still, not many people directly associate the fashion industry with climate destruction – after all, we associate fashion with beauty and blame the heavy industry as well as fast-moving consumer goods for the climate crisis. However, it is worth keeping in mind that the truth is quite the opposite: the fashion industry is one of the most devastating industries for our planet.

“Once upon a time those were the days,” our grandmothers say, and in the case of fashion, they may be correct. With the emergence of consumerism, small professionals were replaced by huge companies, and fashion turned into a lucrative industry, earning unimaginable amounts of money. However, corporations are not the only ones to blame – with the emergence of “fast fashion” and chain stores, the consumer’s approach to clothing has changed.

High-quality materials have been supplanted by cheap polyester, which, like plastic, does not decompose after being thrown away, littering the environment. Demand and supply are mutually reinforcing – because consumers like the widely available fashion offered by chain stores, and new collections are constantly being created, bringing untold profit to the companies and enormous destruction to the planet.

How do we prevent an environmental disaster in the age of “fast fashion”? It is not so simple: studies show that the main factor that influences the purchase of cheap clothes is the favourable price. Organic fashion involves prices several times higher, which not everyone can afford.

Generational differences also play a big role – studies prove that Generation Z and Millenials are the most willing to spend more on sustainable fashion, while Generation X and those born before 1964 are the least. On the other hand, the high awareness of the young population is the reason why ethical fashion is now in the news. Consumers are increasingly favouring ecological lifestyles: they are giving up their cars for public transport or cycling, switching to vegetarian or vegan diets, and trying to live with respect for animals and the environment.

The goal of sustainable fashion is to develop a system that is socially and environmentally responsible. The term “sustainable” itself says a lot: it means being sensible, careful and without extremes. An ethical fashion carries certain values. To a large extent, it is in our (consumers’) hands the direction fashion will take over the next several years. By choosing clothes that are made from ecological or recycled materials, respecting animals, the planet and human labour, we can effectively communicate to corporations that changes in the fashion industry are necessary and needed.

In fact, more companies are moving in this direction – sustainable fashion is starting to become available to every consumer, regardless of their wallet. Producing eco-friendly fashion means reducing chemicals in the production of materials, respect for natural resources, reducing carbon footprint and environmentally friendly materials. These days, it is no longer a surprise to anyone that clothes are created on a 3D printer and shoes are sewn from the “skin” of a cactus or a pineapple.

What can we do right now? First of all, choose high-quality clothes made of natural and fully ecological materials. Do not forget to take care of your products – a longer life cycle of an item is associated not only with its good quality but also with proper use. It is also worth giving clothes a ‘new life’ – currently, there are plenty of companies that deal with renovation and refreshing of clothes and shoes. In addition, there is a growing number of new, environmentally responsible brands that create eco-friendly and fully vegan fashion.

Go Eco Love offers a variety of environmentally friendly products – made from sustainable materials. Visit our website and choose something that will benefit our planet!

Lipsticks, eye shadows, make-up tools and skincare saviours… There are so many beauty products on the market these days that it can be slightly overwhelming and extremely tempting to buy everything you see. This is especially true when it comes to online shopping and perusing the aisles in shopping centres. But there are ways to limit the amount you buy and to make wiser choices when it comes down to clicking ‘add to cart’, as each purchase can potentially impact our planet in detrimental ways. Here are our top 4 tips for becoming a conscious beauty consumer!

Look out for recyclable packaging

An easy way to make more conscious choices when it comes to buying beauty items is to check the packaging for recyclability. Products that can be recycled will have a symbol on the back stating which parts can be recycled and what category they belong to. This is a simple way to reduce plastic wastage and to ensure that the price of looking good is not harmful to the planet.

Ditch plastic altogether

Better yet, putting away the plastic altogether is an even safer step towards protecting the environment from thousands of years of lingering packaging. Many beauty companies sell product options which contain no plastic at all, as instead they are wrapped in biodegradable packaging or they can arrive at your door in their natural, ‘naked’ state entirely. A simple product to swap would be soap for example – instead of buying a plastic bottle full of soap, switch to a bar instead. Easy!

Make a wish (list)

If you find that you’re constantly tempted to buy the newest product launch or collection, you’re not alone. With so many diverse formulas, fragrances and textures available on the market today, it’s almost impossible to not feel cravings for never-tried-before products. But, if you buy everything you fancy straight away then chances are you’ll end up wasting what you’ve snagged as you won’t be able to finish the product before it expires, or you’ll simply keep buying until you forget about your other purchases. To stop this from happening, consider making wish lists online instead. There are multiple browser extensions you can have which help you save coveted products to certain personalised collections, so you can go back and see what you’ve had your eye on at any given time. This is a great way to keep tabs on potential purchases without buying them all at one time. It’s a win-win!

Follow more responsible brands and pages

Social media has a knack of getting us to want more and to move onto the next big thing before even processing the last trend. This can result in over-spending, under-using and a feeling of never being fulfilled or satisfied by what you’ve bought. To minimise these toxic traits, try following brands and pages that advocate for more sustainable choices and ethics and that don’t bombard you with constant noise and newness as a way to pick your pocket. You can also log out of social media for a little while to refresh your mind and focus on the more important things in life too.

Go Eco Love is proud to be a brand that avoids plastic packaging, uses vegan formulations and materials and seeks to educate individuals on sustainability and caring for communities. Check out our other blog posts on how to start your sustainability journey today – every little helps! 

Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants in the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae.  The origin of the word ‘bamboo’ is uncertain, but it probably comes from the Dutch or Portuguese language, which originally borrowed it from Malay or Kannada. 

Bamboo is an alternative to plastic, as it is renewable and can be replaced at a fast rate. Bamboo is very much like wood, but it’s not! It is similar to tree-like grass that grows extremely quickly, making it among the fastest-growing plants in the world.

Flooring can be as soft as pine and harder than maple depending on the species of bamboo used and when it was harvested.

Bamboo is more abundant and easier to grow than hardwood, making the crop much cheaper.

Bamboo is a very light building material, yet it is three times stronger than timber. When compared with steel, bamboo has a greater strength which can withstand more tension and stretching pressure before breaking.

So as a wood and in construction, bamboo is a really versatile material. Neve the less, there is negativity in the usage of bamboo in fabric due to the high amount of chemicals required in order to process is.

Some facts about the sustainability of bamboo are

• Bamboo plants are grown without pesticides or chemical fertilizers and rarely need replanting.
• It grows rapidly and can be harvested in 3-5 years.
• Bamboo produces 35% more oxygen than an equivalent stand of trees.
• It is a critical element in the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
• It grows in a wide range of environments.

The uses of bamboo

Because of its combined strength and its light weight, bamboo is one of the most used building materials. Historically and today, it is an important resource to build bridges, houses, scaffolding, falls, floors, roofs and other structures.

According to UNESCO, 70 hectares of bamboo produces enough material to build 1000 houses. If timber was used instead, it would require the felling of trees from already diminishing forests. Today, over one billion people in the world live in bamboo houses.

• Roads and bridges: Bamboo is used in road reinforcements.
• Medicines: Black bamboo shoots help treat kidney diseases. Roots and leaves have also been used to treat venereal diseases and cancer. Water from the culm (the side branches) is used to treat diseases of the bone effectively.
• Clothes: Bamboo can be made into a strong and durable fabric similar to canvas, and can be made into all sorts of clothes.
• Accessories: It is also used to make necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and other types of jewellery.
• Food: The antioxidant properties of bamboo skin prevent bacterial growth, and are used as natural food preservatives.
• Fuel: Charcoal made from this amazing plant has been used for centuries as cooking fuel. The bamboo vinegar is extracted when making charcoal and is used for hundreds of treatments in almost all fields. This liquid contains 400 different chemical compounds and can be applied for many purposes such as cosmetics, insecticides, deodorants, food processing, and agriculture.
• Furniture: Beautiful and intricately crafted beds, chairs and tables are made from bamboo.
• Rugs and textiles: Exotic woods like mango wood are often used in Oriental rugs. Buying a bamboo rug will ensure that you save a tree. However, caution on doing so just because of the harmful chemicals used.
• Paper: Pulps are used in printing and writing papers.
• Utensils and tableware: Cups and saucers, spoons and ladles can all be made from this incredibly versatile material.

Other than this, bamboo is also useful in making musical instruments, fishing rods, bicycles, helmets, toys… anything you can think of!