Environment Shopping

Tesco Offering Extra Points for Being Green

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Supermarket chain Tesco is one of a number of large firms taking the environment more seriously these days. It recently introduced ‘green’ clubcard points. Instead of just getting points for spending money (points equate to money off vouchers, although there are better ways to use them, look here) you also get ‘green’ points for reusing carrier bags.

Well from Monday until Easter they now offer double ‘green’ points for buying any organic, Fairtrade or Eco-friendly products. They include Fairtrade fruit and coffee, organic bread, energy saving lightbulbs and degradable refuse sacks.

This is a great idea and a good incentive for people to think and buy more ethically and environmentally, but why only till Easter? Is it just to grab attention for a short while? I’d prefer it if it was an ongoing scheme that helped change people’s shopping behaviour.

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Product Reviews Product Reviews - Home

Coco Mats Eco Product Review

Coco Mats are handwoven 100% natural eco friendly door mats. I was sent one of them to review and to be honest I didn’t expect to be impressed by a door mat, but I am!
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The mat I received was the the Monogram single letter with a black border coir coco door mat. First of all these mats are thick, and I mean THICK, mine was a little over the 1.5″ described, it’s like a small step up and feels great. It’s available in five different sizes, and colors so price varies (22″ x 36″,
24″ x 57″, 30″ x 48″, 38″ x 60″, 36″ x 72″).

They’re made from 100% natural coco fibers, which are biodegradable and compostable. They’re created by cottage industry suppliers in India, and I asked Coco Mats more about how they are produced, so this is from them:

“Coconuts are harvested every two months throughout the year. Green coconuts contain pliable, white fibers and are gathered after growing for approximately 12 months on the palm tree. Coco Mats make use of the more practical brown fiber, which is extracted from fully mature coconuts when the nutritious layer enveloping the seed is ready for processing.

The brown fibrous layer is separated from the hard shell by splitting (also known as de-husking) the coconut. The coconuts are beaten, to further separate the long coco fibers.

Our handwoven Coco Mats are created by hand as they have been centuries. The Coco fibers are first harvested from surrounding trees and then the outer husk of the coconuts are separated and “tufted”. Coco fibers have a large amount of lignin, which is a complex wood compound, with a low amount of cellulose less so than flax or cotton. This gives coco fibers strength and durability. The unique makeup of coco fibers also allow for coco mats to be water resistant and thus they dry relatively quickly.”

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Depending on what size and type you order, they are pretty expensive, but the quality is fantastic and will last a long time with proper care. I’ve been through three cheap mats out the back of my house in 5 years, but I can see this one lasting at least as long as those combined, it’s heavy duty.

Lead time is 2 to 3 weeks to get a personalized one or less for one of the standard designs. Like most similar doormats, this one does shed. It’s pretty easy to clean by shaking off or vacuuming.

They have a huge variety of mats, thick, thin, pet mats, funny mats, even mats that light up when motion is detected! They do custom mats and mats for cars, you can get the coco fibers on a roll to use as flooring, mats to use to play cricket on and even ones for horse ramps and stables. It’s pretty much endless with non-coco mats too.

They start at around $15 for the small thin ones, and go up from there. I really like the one I received, it’s had many compliments in the few days I’ve had it and am sure it’ll last as long time due to the thick woven quality and that my entrance is covered so it should easily handle what little rain it will get (the mats are apparently stain, rot and mildew resistant).

If you’re interested in a natural woven door mat, take a look at Coco Mats.

Product Reviews Product Reviews - Personal Care

Brush With Bamboo – Eco Toothbrush Review

Brush with Bamboo is an idea that instead of using plastic handled toothbrushes we should be using ones made from bamboo.

photoWhile it’s been years since I’ve used a full plastic toothbrush (I use a rechargeable electric one and recycle the small heads) I was sent one for review and gave it a go.

It’s a pretty great toothbrush, it’s comfortable and the bristles were softer (but not too soft) that I was used to. I thought the wood would feel odd when wet and in my mouth, but I didn’t notice anything. Toothpaste foamed up great and I’ve been using it for a few days with no problem.

Dentists recommend replacing your toothbrush every three months and I can’t see this bamboo toothbrush having any problems with that.

Over 2 billion toothbrushes are apparently send to landfill every year. While most could be recycled (and even turned into new toothbrushes) most aren’t. Bamboo on the other hand is one of the fastest growing plants on earth (up to 4 feet a day!) and is renewable. It also is naturally antifungal so protects itself against mold.

Brush with Bamboo even give you some instructions on disposing of this toothbrush ecologically:

  • Box can be composted or recycled
  • Wrapper toothbrush is made from plants and compostable
  • The bristles are BPA free nylon and can be recycled if removed from the handle.

There are also instructions on the website about taking care of it. You can also buy it from their shop of course.

It seems a great idea, and the cost is not much more than a plastic toothbrush (less in some cases) so should make a great alternative for those Eco-conscious teeth cleaners out there!

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Alcohol Lifestyle Uncategorized

Whitstable Bay Organic Ale Gets A New Look

Kentish brewer Shepherd Neame has revealed it’s organic ale, Whitstable Bay, has got a new look and becomes part of a range of Whitstable beers.

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The organic ale is joined by a pale ale and blonde lager – both non-organic – and are being released under the brewery’s revived Faversham Steam Brewery identity fro the 18th century.

Available in 500ml bottles at 4.5% abv it’s described as “an elegant, appetising, dark blonde organic ale imbued with delicate, sweet summer fruit and smooth soda bread undertones. Clean, crisp and incredibly quaffable.”.

You can see a video review of it in its original bottle here.

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Tammy the Tiger is against Deforestation

Online actress and comedienne Lauren Francesca, shoot and stars in a lot of comedy videos online. However some have a serious message too, like her recent one Earth Day: Tammy the Tiger is against Deforestation. It’s embedded below, if you can’t see it, click here.

Reviews Shopping

My Favourite Discount Voucher Codes

The following is a paid review for LifeGoggles.com written and reviewed by Joel Williams. It is completely of Joel’s opinion and is not influenced by being paid. If you’re interested in having your service or product reviewed, please contact us.

discount voucherWhen I shop online, I try to find a discount voucher before completing my checkout. There are thousands of vouchers out there and almost every retailer has one in some shape or form.

My Favourite Vouchers is a UK based voucher (coupon) site that collates vouchers for many online and brick and mortar businesses. They offer many ways to be kept up to date with the latest codes apart from visiting the website. An Email newsletter, RSS Feed and even an app (extension) for the Firefox or Chrome web browsers makes accessing the codes easy.

The site is clean and clear of the overload of adverts you typically get on a lot on US based discount voucher sites. The navigation menu is clearly organized into the type of codes you want, such as Free Delivery or Restaurant Deals. There is an A – Z category list and the home page clearly shows the most popular vouchers and the most recent.

I was able to find codes for Topman, Sports Direct and Debenhams easily. I also liked that when clicking to use the voucher code you were taken to the site and provided the voucher in a separate window so you don’t have to click back and forth.

They seem to make their profit by using affiliate links to the websites they link to, so at no cost to you (as it should be). 20% of the profit is given to charity and they have a poll to vote on the charity for that month.

One of the big frustrations I have with voucher sites is the validity of the vouchers and being provided expired codes. While My Favourite Vouchers don’t guarantee that all coupons will work, they strive to only provide valid ones and are easily contactable if for some (unlikely) reason the discount voucher code is not working.

The site is free, provides codes for a lot of great retailers and saves you money easily so seems a great resource. With their blog it looks to be run by real people and not some automated content scrapper providing junk links that don’t work. Next time I need a UK discount voucher code I will definitely look at My Favourite Voucher Codes.

The previous was a paid review for LifeGoggles.com written and reviewed by Joel Williams. It is completely of Joel’s opinion and is not influenced by being paid. If you’re interested in having your service or product reviewed, please contact us.