Discussing Clean Electricity and Energy Justice with Olivia Nedd of Vote Solar

/
Discussing Clean Electricity and Energy Justice with Olivia Nedd of Vote Solar

We’re passionate about our environment and care deeply about providing a safe, healthy, and equitable planet for all. One of the ways that we can work towards this goal is by focusing on large-scale advancement of clean energy to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels that pollute our land, poison our communities, and overheat our planet. In this post, I’ll introduce you to a clean electricity advocate, Olivia Nedd, who is the Policy Director of the Access & Equity Program for Vote Solar who will speak to the importance of why we need to bring all races and incomes along in this energy shift. We’ll also talk about the US’s electricity sources and environmental racism, and how you can make a change for the better.

Read More

Researching a Sustainable Kitchen Countertop and Why I Chose Marble

/
Researching a Sustainable Kitchen Countertop and Why I Chose Marble

Countertops are major workhorses and one of the biggest design elements in a kitchen. So, there’s a lot of thought that goes into the material, style, and design of them. But you know me, I have to research even further. In addition to picking a pretty countertop, I factored in the environmental footprint, worker health, land reclamation of the quarry, and the way it fits into a historic home. Ready to get into it? Let’s!

Read More

Choosing The Most Environmentally Friendly Cooktop - Weighing All(!) of the Considerations

/
Choosing The Most Environmentally Friendly Cooktop - Weighing All(!) of the Considerations

With concerns for our planet and the folks that experience climate injustices, we’re all making purchasing decisions with ethics in mind. Appliances are no different. Electric and induction cooktops are becoming a popular environmentally friendly option, but I'm taking a hard look at all of the considerations to make the most conscious choice.

Read More

Home Renovations Don't Have To Be Wasteful - Here’s How To Avoid The Landfill

/
Home Renovations Don't Have To Be Wasteful - Here’s How To Avoid The Landfill

When we think of renovations and demolition, we often imagine a dumpster full of materials and debris from a gutted room. HGTV has taught us that #demoday is the day to take a sledgehammer to the outdated cabinets and a reciprocating saw to an old banister. But it doesn’t have to be like that! We can restore, renovate, and even demolish rooms without sending every little thing to the landfill.

Read More

Talking Old Houses, Energy Efficiency, Sustainability, and Historic Preservation on the True Tales From Old Houses Podcast

/
Talking Old Houses, Energy Efficiency, Sustainability, and Historic Preservation on the True Tales From Old Houses Podcast

I sat down with Stacy of the blog Blake Hill House who runs the podcast True Tales From Old Houses to record an episode! We chatted about old homes, energy efficiency, sustainable improvements, modern upgrades, old window efficiency, and weighing the pros and cons of green updates like solar panels. This was a great conversation because I got to share some things that I’ve never discussed in much length on the blog or on Instagram. You’ll definitely want to listen! And I guess I’m overly chatty because Stacy had to split up my interview into two parts! In part two, I chat more about my experience living in a designated historic district, so stay tuned for that.

Read More

My Takeaways from the Green Homes Tour - Both Good and Bad

/
My Takeaways from the Green Homes Tour - Both Good and Bad

I went on the San Diego Green Homes Tour this weekend, which is a two-day ticketed event that allows folks to explore “green” homes all over the San Diego region. The goal is to spread awareness about environmentally friendly design to homeowners, designers, or just curious humans - it was open to all. The houses range from being showy multi-million dollar new constructions in beach-front communities, to small semi-homesteads with modest DIY improvements.

Read More

Trash Pumpkin: Making Seasonal Decor Out of Literal Garbage

/
Trash Pumpkin: Making Seasonal Decor Out of Literal Garbage

I’ve never been too big on decorating for the holidays. Sometimes I’m into it, but I mostly get tired of the tchotchkes and want my home to be clutter-free again. Partly I don’t like the look, but I also just don’t like buying decor that’s cheap and will ultimately end up in the trash. BUT! Enter trash pumpkin. The decor that literally takes rubbish out of the bin and keeps it out of the waste stream.

Read More

Learned Something New: Sustainable Straw Bale Home Construction

/
Learned Something New: Sustainable Straw Bale Home Construction

Over the weekend I attended an event to learn about straw bale home construction - a sustainable building material that benefits the planet instead of hurting it. The organizers also talked about regenerative agriculture, permaculture, and ethically sourced mezcal. It was really cool, and I want to share just a little bit of what I learned about a unique construction material with you!

Read More

Clean With Me: Windows Edition - A Video and A Guide to My Waste-Free and Streak-Free Clean with A "Helpful" Puppy

/
Clean With Me: Windows Edition - A Video and A Guide to My Waste-Free and Streak-Free Clean with A "Helpful" Puppy

You know I love cleaning, and there’s nothing like squeaky clean windows! Now that summer is truly upon us, I know there’s no more rain in the forecast for several months, so I feels good to shine those windows up.

Window cleaning can be a struggle, they can turn out super full of streaks, and the process can create a lot of wasteful paper towels. But, as someone that ditched single-use towels years ago, I’ve found a technique that uses no waste and is 100% streak free! I also use this technique on my mirror, too.

Read More

The Goals for My Front Yard Garden - For the Love of Water, Food, Bees, and Flowers

/
The Goals for My Front Yard Garden - For the Love of Water, Food, Bees, and Flowers

I have lots of front yard gardening posts to share with you so I’m breaking them up into a few pieces. In this one, I want to share with you the goals for our front yard landscape. A a serial over-thinker, you can bet that I had multiple goals that I thought long and hard about when planning what to plant to replace our pathetic front yard. From trying to save the planet to wanting to enjoy all the pretty things, here are my garden goals.

Read More

Sustainable Travel Tips and Essentials from a Minimal Homebody

/
Sustainable Travel Tips and Essentials from a Minimal Homebody

If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably noticed that I've been traveling quite a bit lately. I'll admit that it feels odd for such a serious homebody to be out and about so much, but, while I do miss home, I've found ways to make traveling easier.

I've collected a few of my favorite travel essentials that I recommend to everyone. Now, this isn't going to be a round-up of travel gimmicks that give you more stuff to carry around. I like to travel as minimally and as ecologically as possible, so here it goes!

Read More