If you have an older toilet that uses more than 1.6 gallons per flush, try using this MacGyver method to minimize water use.  All of our Shifter Families did it, and they all raved about how easy it was.

Buy a tank displacement bag or fill a half-gallon glass or plastic bottle with water (don’t use a brink) and then place it in the toilet tank away from the moving parts.

The half-gallon of water you displace in the tank will be saved every time you flush, which will save you nearly 8,700 gallons of water and up to $35 on water and sewage costs per year for a family of four-even if no one flushes less than normal.

Bye Bye Standby home products are endorsed by the Energy Saving Trust and
allow you to remotely cut power to electrical devices that are in standby mode.

The Bye Bye Standby kit includes three smart sockets, which can control up to four
electrical devices each, and one remote control. Simply plug Bye Bye Standby into a
wall socket and then plug your appliance or extension lead into that. Each of your
devices can be switched off separately or as a group when you leave the room -
pressing the remote button again instantly switches them back on.

Given that the average woman may inadvertently ingest more than four pounds of lipstick in her lifetime, you’ll want to look for lip color made from plant-derived ingredients instead of from synthetic oils, paraffin waxes, and toxic coal tar dyes (look for FD&C or D&C followed by a color and number).

If one in  five lipstick wearers began demanding plant-based options, total petroleum product consumption would  decrease by more than 825,000 pounds per year.

Check out how they saved $5200!

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According to the Energy Star website < http://energystar.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/energystar.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=2655&p_created=1154636276&p_sid=bY6EcWJj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=2575&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9NjMsNjMmcF9wcm9kcz0zMTUmcF9jYXRzPSZwX3B2PTEuMzE1JnBfY3Y9JnBfcGFnZT0x&p_li=&p_topview=1>, you should take special precautions if you break a CFL bulb.

Because CFLs contain trace amounts of mercury, EPA recommends the following clean-up and disposal guidelines:

1. Before Clean-up: Ventilate the Room

• Have people and pets leave the room, and don’t let anyone walk through the breakage area on their way out.

• Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.

• Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.

2. Clean-Up Steps for Hard Surfaces

• Carefully scoop up glass fragments and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.

• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.

• Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes and place them in the glass jar or plastic bag.

• Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.

3. Clean-up Steps for Carpeting or Rug

• Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.

• Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.

• If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken.

• Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag.

4. Clean-up Steps for Clothing, Bedding, etc.:

• If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from inside the bulb that may stick to the fabric, the clothing or bedding should be discarded.  Do not wash such clothing or bedding because mercury fragments in the clothing may contaminate the machine and/or pollute sewage.

• You can, however, wash clothing or other materials that have been exposed to the mercury vapor from a broken CFL, such as the clothing you happened to be wearing when you cleaned up the broken CFL, as long as that clothing has not come into direct contact with the materials from the broken bulb.

• If shoes come into direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder from the bulb, wipe them off with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes.  Place the towels or wipes in a glass jar or plastic bag for disposal.

5. Disposal of Clean-up Materials

• Immediately place all cleanup materials outdoors in a trash container or protected area for the next normal trash pickup.

• Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing clean-up materials.

• Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area.  Some states prohibit such trash disposal and require that broken and unbroken mercury-containing bulbs be taken to a local recycling center.

6. Future Cleaning of Carpeting or Rug: Ventilate the Room During and After Vacuuming

• The next several times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window prior to vacuuming.

• Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.

For more information visit: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=home.index

The home for all of your favorite Organic Beauty Products, The Nature of Beauty was created out of a desire to educate you, the consumer, about the realities of the beauty and personal care products industry, and to provide you with healthy, beautiful, high-performing alternatives.

We have searched the globe to bring you the cleanest, most effective products on that market, created by companies that have figured out how to give you what you want – shiny locks, voluptuous lips, a smooth complexion, a clean shave – without using the ingredients you don’t need. We’ve read every label, researched every ingredient, and maintained regular contact with the manufacturers to ensure their business practices and values are fully aligned with our own.

We’ve done the homework for you, so that when you shop with us, you can have all the fun that comes with buying gorgeous cosmetics, luxurious body lotions and adorable baby products, without having to wonder (and worry about) what all is lurking inside the bottle.

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