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  • Home
  • Book
  • Categories
    • Healthy Living
    • Mommy Greenest Approved
    • Eco Beauty & Fashion
    • Natural Parenting
    • Latest Buzz
    • Green News & Events
  • Mommy Greenest Guides
    • Guide to Going Green
    • Guide to Eco-Friendly Fashion
    • Guide to Healthy Eating
    • Guide to Natural Parenting & Pregnancy
    • Guide to Green Beauty
    • Guide to Healthy Cleaning
  • About
    • Standards & Disclosure
    • Privacy Policy
  • shop drop challenge mommy greenest thank you
    Eco Beauty & Fashion

    Shop Drop Challenge Wrap

    February 2, 2015 /

    Editor’s Note: Check out the 2016 Shop Drop Challenge! Thank You. Seriously. The Mommy Greenest community rallied behind the Shop Drop Challenge and it was amazing! I started out just asking people to commit to a 30-day shopping pause—thrifting or swapping a preloved fashion fix instead—and this year the Challenge took on a whole new dimension! 

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    Rachel Sarnoff 16 Comments

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    Mommy Greenest Shop Drop Countdown!

    January 12, 2015
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    Why I Heart My Menstrual Cup

    June 25, 2013
  • interior women's clothing boutique
    Eco Beauty & Fashion

    Where Do I Swap My Style? Give + Take!

    October 6, 2014 /

    Remember the 2014 Shop Drop Challenge? That was when I encouraged Mommy Greenest readers to give up shopping for 30 days. The logic went like this: 160 million American women spend about $60 a month on clothes and dump an average of six pounds of textiles into the landfill; if we all stopped buying new clothes for one month we could save nearly one billion pounds of textile waste and $10 billion. So we didn’t quite reach six figures, but this January, 500 women saved more than $30,000 and 3,000 pounds of landfill waste, just by taking a 30-day retail shopping pause—and thrifting and swapping instead. We celebrated the culmination of that event with an event…

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    Rachel Sarnoff 0 Comments

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    Style Spring Fling: Flowered Dresses

    May 8, 2014
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    DIY Natural Bug Repellant Perfume

    July 28, 2014
    Not only is Alysia Reiner an awesome actress; she's a super greenie with excellent taste. Which is why she's the perfect partner for a clothes swap to shop!

    Aysia Reiner Swaps to Shop with MG

    May 31, 2013
  • three glass water bottles with blue lids against white background
    Mommy Greenest Approved

    Mommy Greenest Approved: Retap Water Bottles

    July 17, 2014 /

    Ready to rethink your water bottle? In previous posts, I’ve talked about the impact of bottled water on your health. But as cities like San Francisco move to ban plastic water bottle sales in public places, more and more consumers are considering the cost—both to their wallets, and to the environment: Plastic bottles require more than 17 million barrels of oil annually to make, enough to fuel 100,000 cars for a year. Enter Retap reusable water bottles, which are designed to make drinking water from the tap safe, easy and convenient. I’ve got FIVE to give away!

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    Rachel Sarnoff 3 Comments

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    Mommy Greenest Approved: Nixing the Five Second Rule with Zerorez SoCal

    March 6, 2014
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    Mommy Greenest Approved: Weleda White Mallow Baby Skin Care

    March 2, 2015
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    Mommy Greenest Approved: Eden Raw Juice

    April 22, 2015
  • teenaged boy wearing jeans with bare feet up on couch
    Natural Parenting

    Mommy Greenest Eco Rules

    May 29, 2014 /

    Remember that house, back in high school? It wasn’t your house, but you felt comfortable enough to put your feet up on the furniture. It wasn’t your mom, but you talked to her sometimes about what was going on in your life. Sometimes an afternoon turned into dinner turned into movie night with the family. You knew where they kept the cereal, and got your own bowl. That’s my house. It could be because my kids are well-liked and well-adjusted—or it could be that we’re a three-block walk from the mall. But most afternoons, the doorbell rings and a gaggle of teenagers troops in. By evening, there are boys playing…

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    Rachel Sarnoff 0 Comments

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  • Latest Buzz

    Shop Drop for Spit That Out

    December 23, 2013 /

    “Rachel Sarnoff of Mommy Greenest has created an entire campaign with her Shop Drop Challenge. She is challenging her friends and followers to stop buying any new clothing or accessories for the month of January 2014 – something I can totally get behind considering I almost exclusively shop secondhand anyway!” -Paige Wolf, Spit That Out

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  • Healthy Living

    Recycled Angst

    October 28, 2013 /

    So I was cleaning the bathroom the other day, wondering to myself how three children can make one room smell like a subway station urinal in a matter of hours, when I spied the empty toilet paper roll on the counter. Of course, not one of my children had thought to put out more toilet paper—that would be far too much effort—nor had he or she endeavored to toss the roll into the trash can. But as I picked it up to throw away, I stopped myself—wondering, as I do a hundred times a day, if it can be recycled.

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    Rachel Sarnoff 8 Comments

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    June 11, 2013
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    April 19, 2013
  • Not only is Alysia Reiner an awesome actress; she's a super greenie with excellent taste. Which is why she's the perfect partner for a clothes swap to shop!
    Eco Beauty & Fashion

    Aysia Reiner Swaps to Shop with MG

    May 31, 2013 /

    Not only is Alysia Reiner an awesome actress; she’s a super greenie with excellent taste. Which is why she’s the perfect partner for a clothes swap to shop at Give + Take in Santa Monica, CA. Why swap? On average, each of us dumps 70 POUNDS of textile waste every year because of fast fashion. Swapping–and upcycling, and thrifting–clothes can keep a lot of that in a closet, rather than a landfill. Plus, it’s SO MUCH FUN. Right?

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    Rachel Sarnoff 0 Comments

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    Need A New Year’s Resolution? Shop Drop!

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  • beautiful model wearing loose boyfriend jeans and white shirt
    Eco Beauty & Fashion

    How to Rock Boyfriend Jeans (& Save the Planet)

    April 23, 2013 /

    Can you wear boyfriend jeans after 30? Maybe if I had a boyfriend to borrow them from—my husband’s jeans are a little tight. What are boyfriend jeans, you ask? Denim that’s loose and broken down so you can wrap them around your ankles with a devil-may-care, I-can-rock-anything-with-high-heels kind of attitude. I tried the husband jeans. They were a little snug across the derriere. Maybe devil-may-care comes with slightly longer legs and significantly less ass. Or maybe I just need a fatter husband. But I like the trend of boyfriend jeans. It’s recycled eco friendly fashion in action—if you do it properly.

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    Rachel Sarnoff 7 Comments

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Welcome! I created this blog in 2008 as a resource for healthier living with less judgment. I'm a mother of three, former journalist, and co-founder of the (shuttered, sniff) sustainable beauty and fashion site EcoStiletto. I was Executive Director of the nonprofits The 5 Gyres Institute and Healthy Child Healthy World and appeared as a sustainable lifestyle expert on "The "TODAY Show" and "CNN Headline News," among others. Oh, and have you checked out my TEDx talks: Trash is Ruining Recycling and Can One Straw Change The World? Today, you can find me here. Let's keep in touch! xoRachel

https://youtu.be/sOol1MIgois

rachellincolnsarnoff

Why I shop local. #preloved #thrift #thriftstorefi Why I shop local. #preloved #thrift #thriftstorefinds #swapdontshop
It’s official: @greek_theatre takes the crown fr It’s official: @greek_theatre takes the crown from @hollywoodbowl for best summer music venue. #angelolsen #julienbaker #sharonvanetten scorched that stage all the way to nosebleed. Amazing show! (And canned ranch water didn’t suck, either.) #wildheartstour #music #livemusic #showtime #summer
This big box makes me happy every time it appears This big box makes me happy every time it appears on my doorstep. Why? Because I know that I’m helping to prevent the ONE MILLION TREES — many in old growth forests that are climate defenders — that are cut down to DAILY, just to make toilet paper. Yes, really. New story up on Mommy Greenest, linktree in bio! (Not sponsored.)
#Climate #ClimateJustice #ProtectTrees #SaveForests #RecycledPaper #Motivation #MommyGreenest
These skies never disappoint. What do you see? I h These skies never disappoint. What do you see? I have some ideas…
This makes me so mad. Still claiming “#covid res This makes me so mad. Still claiming “#covid restrictions” @urthcaffe @flylaxairport refused to fill my #reusable cup with hot water — I offered to pay — and insisted on giving me a #plastic lined #paper cup, paper cuff, and plastic lid, which are now going straight to landfill after literally 10 seconds of use. (No #recycling bin.) How can people do the right thing when companies — even those claiming #sustainability as the heart of their brand — continue to perpetuate the wrong option? #breakfreefromplastic #reuse #reuserevolution
HUGE NEWS: #OceanConservancy just retracted their HUGE NEWS: #OceanConservancy just retracted their seminal "Stemming the Tide" report and admitted that it led to misinformation -- basically that plastic in the ocean was the "fault" of people in Asia -- because they did not include the context of waste exports from other countries, primarily the United States. There are so many other (racist) layers to this, but the gist for me is what I said in my first TEDx talk: "If you have a cup that's overflowing, do you blame the cup -- or the hand that continues to pour?" This is a picture of the plastic that was picked up in the once-pristine Hanauma Bay in Hawaii. When it comes to single-use plastic, we need to stop pouring.
#Plastic #CircularEconomy #BreakFreeFromPlastic #Motivation #Health #Wellness #MommyGreenest
Time erodes friendships — some strengthen and so Time erodes friendships — some strengthen and some dissolve. This essay is about the weird false intimacy that is perpetuated through social media, the historical context that often shadows it, and the words we can no longer say. I’m so proud to be published in @hippocampusmag and honored to be featured alongside so many incredible writers. Link in bio! (Photo is from Hippocampus of time eroding something, I guess…?)
#AmWriting #Memoir #Essay #Nonfiction #Fiction #WomensFiction #WritersOfInstagram #Writer #Writing #WritingCommunity
Hearing a lot of complaints about how now that eve Hearing a lot of complaints about how now that everyone has discovered #thrifting, there are less golden eggs to discover in stores. (Looking at you, #newyorktimesmagazine.) I think that’s hogwash. Maybe if you #thrift for status — i.e. labels? But that’s never been my jam. I grew up #thrifting and have exclusively shopped #resale (or #swapped with friends) for nearly two decades and the plethora of online and brick-and-mortar stores makes it all so much more fun! Case in point: embellished boots, a 100-year-old #vintage petticoat, and an unbranded eyelet blouse that together are my new favorite just-over-here-floating-in-the-summer-breeze outfit. If you choose #preloved because it’s 1. better for the planet and 2. better for your bank account, then wouldn’t you agree the golden age is upon us?
#Fashion #SlowFashion #FashionRevolution #Style #Motivation #mommygreenest
How to #zerowaste a day at #Disneyland? It’s muc How to #zerowaste a day at #Disneyland? It’s much easier these days, until you take your eye off the ball. But as much as I sweat the small stuff, I know I have to let it go. It was a great day celebrating my daughters 21st, which culminated in a drink on another planet. As living out fantasies goes, that one is hard to beat. #zerowastedisneyland #breakfreefromplastic #noonecandoeverythingbuteveryonecandosomething
Remember when it was just the sweet sharp smell of Remember when it was just the sweet sharp smell of green grass giving way to fat dripping on the barbecue and berries carmelizing in the oven? The heavy air draped over your shoulders like an invisible cloak that you shook off pogoing over the banana seat and the wind you made dried the sweat from your hair. Then you dove over a dozen other kids and into the pool so thick with chlorine that after one tap on the bottom your eyes emerged red and raw. You floated on your back and watched the blue bowl of the sky and counted the seconds until the sun went down. Finally, the fireworks bloomed overhead and on the corner and at the bottom of your grandparents’ stoop the synthetic black snakes wiggled and splayed. You felt the burn on your fingertips and darted back just in time as fire shrieked past your ears and shot up up up and exploded into light so bright you still saw it behind your lashes. Someone was always singing. And there was no context or blame.
#FourthOfJuly #IndependenceDay #AmWriting #Fiction #WomensFiction #WritersOfInstagram #Writer #Writing #WritingCommunity
Can anyone tell me how this is achieved? Last time Can anyone tell me how this is achieved? Last time I looked at a #Coke bottle it was “100% recyclable,” a claim that is simply #greenwashing, as the fact that something can be recycled doesn’t necessarily mean it is. This bottle says it’s made from #recycled material, and the QR code drives to a lot of fancy talk — including #BillNye — about the best way the purchaser can recycle it. But the American Beverage Association, which represents the company, still lobbies against #BottleBills that would incentivize the recovery of plastic. So how is #CocaCola getting enough #PCR to make this bottle and distribute it nationally — or is this just intended for the libs in California? #BreakFreeFromPlastic #ReuseRefuseRecycle
Say what you want about Apple, they have packaging Say what you want about Apple, they have packaging down. This #foamfree #recyclable paper origami-quality box with the tiniest amount of plastic transport led my #preloved #refurbished iMac. The best part? The box now has new life as a toy for the toddler across the street. #repair #righttorepair #ewaste #lovedmacslast
Just another sentence to blow your mind. #Inspirat Just another sentence to blow your mind. #Inspiration #1000wordsofsummer #AmWriting #Fiction #WomensFiction #WritersOfInstagram #Writer #Writing #WritingCommunity
This ritual, every week. Sometimes alone but bette This ritual, every week. Sometimes alone but better with friends. You?
#Pandemic #Exercise #Bike #Biking #California
Fun fact: Stanley Gerald Thompson was my grandfath Fun fact: Stanley Gerald Thompson was my grandfather. And that’s not even half the story.
#AmWriting #WritersOfInstagram #Writer #Writing #WritingCommunity #1000wordsofsummer
Last year, I wrote about watching #StrangerThings Last year, I wrote about watching #StrangerThings with my daughter. I described how the series helped us connect during the pandemic. I was conflicted about whether or not to publish the piece, but finally felt that sharing what we went through might be helpful to other parents – and it was. I heard from so many people that they had also shifted habits, gotten more lenient with things like television watching and chores, all in the name of making things a little bit easier for our children, who were going through so much. Things are different now, thankfully — new MG post, link in bio. (And Season 4 is worth the wait.)
#Parenting #Pandemic #Writer #Writing #WritingCommunity
Happy official start of summer, everyone! Now can Happy official start of summer, everyone! Now can we please talk about your sunscreen? Friends don’t let friends use oxybenzone. We’re friends, right? New #Sunscreen story up on Mommy Greenest, link in bio! https://www.mommygreenest.com/why-i-only-wear-reef-safe-sunscreen-and-you-should-too/ #ReefSafeSunscreen #NaturalSunscreen #Sunscreen 
#Health #Wellness #Toxics #Chemicals #HealthyLifestyle #MommyGreenest
Yes, this — always. Keep pushing forward, friend Yes, this — always. Keep pushing forward, friends. #amwriting #amreading #writer #writersofinstagram
Nearly 8,000 children are shot each year in the Un Nearly 8,000 children are shot each year in the United States — that averages to about 22 kids each day. Each. Day. Please call Chuck Schumer at (202) 224-6542 and tell him to bring a gun bill to the Senate floor immediately. Republicans won't support it, but we can make them go on record now as they vote against gun restrictions. It’s easy, just leave a message with your name, city, and zip code — 30 seconds, max. If you call or email, that information is recorded, and the more people take action, the more influence we have. Please do this today. We cannot go on like this. #EndGunViolence
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