There’s a lot of green stuff I don’t do.  At the risk of inciting outrage, I’ll make a few confessions: I don’t recycle, I don’t compost, and I absolutely adore Viva paper towels.  If Viva ever needs a spokesblogger, I’m their woman.

However, I’ll also toot my own horn on a few points of greenery: I drive a hybrid, I’m replacing burned out incandescent bulbs with CFLs, and I absolutely adore my Flip & Tumble reusable bags.

The lovely people at Stubby Pencil Studio sent me a set of four Flip & Tumble Loopt bags last Christmas - not for review, just as a gift - and I’m never without them.

That’s the first thing that I love about these bags; they roll up and secure with elastic, and they fit perfectly at the bottom of my handbag.  Unlike my big canvas totes, I don’t even have to think about bringing them to the grocery store with me.  They are simply always there.  When I unpack the groceries, I roll up the bags and pop them back in my handbag.

Yes, I suppose I could take my big canvas totes back out to the car after I’ve unpacked them, but that’s not always convenient.  Plus, for apartment-dwellers, it’s definitely not convenient to take the bags directly back out to the car.  Flip & Tumble eliminates that problem entirely.

I also love these bags because they’re so roomy and strong and lightweight.  They’re made from polyester, and I’m amazed by how much they’ll hold.  They’re also easily laundered in the event that one of your grocery items springs a leak or gets squashed.

Finally, I have to admit that I love the colors of these bags.  Sure, a store-brand reusable bag is functional and cheap, but it’s nowhere near as cute.  Think I’m being frivolous?  Fine.  But I’ll bet my bags are cuter than yours.

And since Stubby Pencil Studio is all about eco-friendly products, I suppose I can add my love for their store to the list of ways in which I’m actually pretty green after all.

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I may love my paper towels, but it helps that I prefer to use them with cleaners like Nature’s Source.  Want more ideas for living naturally?  Check out the posts at this week’s PBN Blog Blast!

Hi.  My name is Julie, and I’m addicted to cleaning.

Is that bad?  Do I need an intervention?

My ten year old self would be astounded at my thirty-seven year old self.  Not only do I have three kids and a husband, but I can’t stand messes.  My ten year old self was a champion messmaker with absolutely no attention to detail when forced to clean up those messes.

Who cares about crumbs?  There are books to read and bikes to ride!

I’m also getting to be quite picky about the cleaners I use, which is something that would astound even my thirty year old self.  No more Comet powder or Windex with ammonia or Clorox bleach.  I don’t care what the commercials say; that stuff is bad for you.  Bad to breathe, bad for your home, and bad for your nails.  Also, extremely bad if your kids get a hold of it.

So while I may be addicted to cleaning, I’m moving away from the hard stuff to a kinder, gentler clean that’s still just as clean.

The laundry liquid and pure oxygen whitener from Ecostore USA are great examples of that kinder, gentler clean.  The laundry liquid is made from plant-based ingredients like palm and coconut surfactants (the ingredients in detergent that allow water to clean away oil and dirt), plus eucalyptus oil which smells absolutely heavenly.  The oxygen whitener includes mineral salts, sodium percarbonate, and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).

I like that both of these products include ingredients that I understand, even without a degree in Chemical Engineering.  I love the eucalyptus scent that wafts out of my laundry room too.  There’s some debate online regarding the advantages of oleochemicals (the surfactants used in this laundry liquid) versus petrochemicals (the surfactants used in most laundry detergents), but as with most debates, there’s evidence on both sides.  Is my laundry cleaner?  Honestly, I don’t know.  I can’t say that I’ve noticed a difference either way, and since none of us have sensitive skin, I can’t make a judgment on that basis.

As with any household cleaning products, these should obviously be kept out of kids’ reach.  But on the flip side, I can be reassured that if my kids get a hold of Ecostore USA products, there really aren’t any nasty chemicals in there.

In fact, No Nasty Chemicals is their tagline.  While I can’t pronounce all the ingredients in each of their products, I have to commend them for listing the ingredients in full - something rarely seen on other household cleaning products.

Finally, their products are definitely pricey - $11 for one liter of laundry liquid - but they’re also concentrated so that a little goes a long way.  Personally, I’m impressed by how many loads of laundry I’ve been able to do in the last month, and both the laundry liquid and whitener are only about half gone.

Buy Ecostore USA products on their site!