Author Archives: Amy Y

Captain Compost remembers the days when her Auntie would send over reused cardboard diaper boxes filled with hand~me~downs from her older cousin.   It felt like Christmas as she went through all the new~to~her clothes and picked out her favorite outfit in the batch to wear to school the next day.   She looked up to her older cousin and felt “cooler” knowing that she was wearing her beloved shirts, jeans and dresses.  Eventually that cousin stopped growing while CC did not and Mama Captain Compost had to buy clothes from retail stores, agonizing over when the next big sale would be so she wouldn’t have to pay an arm and a leg to replenish CC’s wardrobe.

These days Captain Compost still has no one to hand down clothes to her but she does purchased recycled clothes at her favorite local thrift store and consignment store.  The higher end consignment stores in her metro area have some great finds that make Captain Compost feel like she’s on a treasure hunt as she searches the racks of formerly expensive threads.   A quick Google search gives lots of options of places to shop near by and CC recommends you check out a Consignment or Thrift store the next time you are in need of some new duds!  If you like certain brands, it’s also easy to find some great options on eBay, too.  Although you have to pay for shipping, the fact that you are adding recycled clothes to your wardrobe should make all Eco~Warriors out there feel a little less guilty about shopping!

Halloween is one of Captain Compost’s favorite holidays.  She starts thinking about costumes as soon as leaves start changing and that telltale crisp smell of fall is in the air.  CC thinks that Eco~Warriors can be green through the holidays and Halloween is one of the easiest!

Though she would like to be, Captain Compost is not the most creative of moms and has never made her kids’ costumes… though that is a great way for Eco~Warriors to celebrate the day!  How better to celebrate your child’s individuality than by making a unique costume just for him/her?  For those that like the idea of a homemade costume but like CC lack the creative juices to come up with such a thing, Captain Compost recommends Etsy.  A quick search for costumes is sure to give you loads of choices for your little ghoul or goblin!

Captain Compost loves shopping at thrift stores ~ the treasure hunt is almost more fun than the treasures she finds.  This holds true for costumes as well!  Last year, Mr. Compost found a wonderful “nerd” costume and CC dressed as Dr. Feelgood.  All parts of the costume were purchased second hand with the exception of the stethoscope which she found on eBay.  Speaking of eBay, if your local thrift store doesn’t have the options you are looking for, have no fear!  You can find tons of recycled and barely used costumes on eBay!  This year, Captain Compost and her hubby are dressing as Jack Skellington and Sally from “Nightmare Before Christmas.”  The costumes they found on eBay were worn only once or twice and the savings from buying gently used rather than new were fantastic!

For other “green” costume idea, click here , here, here or here!

Happy Halloween, Eco~Warriors!

Congratulations to Alison of Party of Three for winning the makeup giveaway from last week!

Thanks to everyone for playing along and giving me new makeup suggestions to try!  And to Alison, we hope you enjoy your goodies!

Captain Compost might be obsessed with finding the perfect makeup.  She always tries new natural and organic products whenever she finds them.  Recently she found a good deal on Almay Pure Blends makeup at her local BigBoxStore and thought she’d share the love with one lucky reader!  The winning commenter will receive six different Almay Pure Blends eye shadows in various colors, as well as one Brown Almay Pure Blends mascara.  All you have to do is feed Captain Compost’s obsession by leaving a comment with your favorite natural/organic makeup product or the one you’d most like to try!  Good luck and happy primping!

The winner will be chosen by random drawing no later than Friday, September 25th.

Captain Compost recently found herself in a predicament.  That old cookware that she’d been using, with the Teflon coating, that she purchased before she was even married (over 10 years ago!!) was starting to crack and peel and little flakes were coming off in the food she was cooking.  The more she heard about how bad Teflon was, the more determined she was to find a better alternative.

She thought about using cast iron, which is a greener alternative and a product that will never need to be replaced… but the thought of lifting heavy pans, keeping them maintained and the higher purchase price led her to do a bit more research so see if there were other options out there.

When she came across Cuisinart Green Gourmet line of cookware, she started checking out the information available to see how this stood up to the Teflon and Cast Iron competition.    The downside to this line is that they are made in China.  But the good outweighed the bad, CC felt, when she learned that they are made with no petroleum and no Teflon but they are still non~stick.  They are said to work best with medium and low heat because they conduct heat so well.  They are made with anodized aluminum and have a ceramic surface for non~sticking.  Like cast iron, if treated gently, this cookware should last for a long time.  To make sure, Captain Compost recommends using wooden or plastic spoons when cooking and handwashing these most of the time.

Captain Compost received several Green Gourmet pans for Christmas and couldn’t wait to start using them.  She was happy overall with the performance of these pans.  They definitely did not flake Teflon into her food like the old ones had.  The drawback she found, however, was that the non~stick surface wasn’t quite as non~stick as she was used to.  When using regular cooking spray, some things seemed to still stick to the pan.  She noticed that when using grapeseed or olive oil, that helped immensely and now uses only those oils when sauteing and frying.  Her eggs have never tasted better!

Captain Compost does recommend this cookware, if EcoWarriors are on the hunt for something to replace old, potentially dangerous Teflon coated pans.