[ECO]: Easy Ways To Go Green in 2016

With 2016  rocking and rolling for everyone already, what's a better time to start being green than now? 

While going green is a process, these are a few easy steps you can take on your journey of being more eco-friendly. 

♥ Switch your light bulbs to energy saving Compact fluorescent lightbulbs - they use about one 1/3 of electricity and last 10 times longer.

♥ Switch off wall sockets when not in use as they draw a lot of "phantom/vampire" energy while not in use.

♥ Stepping away from your computer for more than 20 minutes? Switch it to "sleep mode" and make sure to power off at the end of the day.

♥ Switch off the tap while brushing your teeth and make sure to have leaking taps fixed.

♥ Plant a tree

♥Start your own vegetable garden

♥  Print on both sides of paper and try go as electronic as possible in terms of documents etc

♥ When buying new beauty products, do your research to find out whether they are cruelty-free or not

♥ Buy local foods, this provides jobs for your community and saves on transport costs.

♥ RECYCLE - REUSE - REDUCE

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GGG Tip: Eucalyptus Oil

Using Eucalyptus Oil for Colds & Flu

Hi friends!

So since I was in Zambia last weekend, I've been so sick with flu - it's really kicked my butt! Although I didn't want to, I've eventually ended up on antibiotics to try clear it. One of the symptoms I've been suffering the most with is congestion (deep wheezy breathe in, deep wheezy breathe out) but I'v been using Eucalyptus Oil to try relieve some of my blocked up congestion. 

One of the tips I learnt about using Eucalyptus Oil for colds and flu is to sprinkle a few drops on the shower floor and this then acts as a steam inhalation! I'm not going to lie to you, I pretty much pour about half of the bottle on the floor as I'm so desperate at the moment but after my shower I can breathe a bit easier. Another tip for using Eucalyptus Oil, is to add a few drops to your bath! For more tips check out this post on Autumn Care.

You can get Organic Eucalyptus Oil from SOil from Faithful To Nature for R25 or your local Clicks should stock some too. Faithful To Nature  also has a few more tips on how to use Eucalyptus Oil as a decongestant. 

Hope this tip helps for those of you that are all blocked up!

Love always, The Glam Green Girl xXx

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GGG Tip: Easy Ways To Go Green

A Few Simple Tips

Hi there my green darlings!

It's a new month, a new week and it's National Environmental week here in South Africa! So what better time to start making changes in your lifestyle to become more green!

Here are a few tips on how to play your part in saving the environment:

♡ Switch off all lights before leaving the house

♡ Unplug all unnecessary electrical appliances when not in use ~ After I've done my hair in the morning, I always switch off the plug that I use for my hair styling tools, every little bit helps!

♡ Unplug your cellphone charger when you're not using it

♡ Reuse magazines & newspaper as wrapping paper

♡ Switch off the tap when brushing your teeth

♡ Try cut your shower time by 1 minute, you will save 3300 litres of water a year

♡ Wait until your dishwasher is fully loaded before running it

♡ Need a new light bulb? Replace it with a compact fluorescent bulb

♡ Buy local - food, clothes, beauty products etc

♡ Love to buy a coffee every morning? Take your own cup!

♡ Donate your unwanted clothes to a charity or organise a clothes swap with friends

♡ Choose paper less billing for your accounts

♡ Find out about recycling collections in your area and start a recycling program at home

♡ Change a small area of your garden to a vegetable garden and grow your own food

♡ Support brands that are cruelty free

Not too hard right?

Lets GO GREEN!

Let me know what tips you have for going green?

Love always, The Glam Green Girl xXx

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GGG Tip: Lavender

A Tip For The Use of Lavender Oil

Inspired by Day 6 of the SuperGorgeous May Photo Challenge on something purple I decided to share one of my natural beauty tips about using Lavender. Many people associate lavender with relaxation and tranquility but did you know that lavender oil can help heal minor burns?

As someone who loves beauty and thus loves a curling wand or hair iron, I've had my fair share of accidents when it comes to burning my fingers (or the one time I even burnt my forehead haha), when one of these unfortunate incidents occurs, I immediately apply a few drops of lavender oil to the burn and it works wonders! Lavender has so many healing benefits and is a natural way of treating your burns or scratches! If you don't have any lavender oil on hand but have the actual flowers, you can crush a few up and apply it to the wound and cover it with gauze (do allow your skin to breathe every now and then though).

Pretty amazing right?

Hope this tip helps!

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GGG Tip: 5 Ways To Celebrate Earth Day 2014

Let's Make Everyday Earth Day!

Image Source

On Tuesday the 22nd of April it's Earth Day! What is Earth Day all about you may ask? Back in 2012 I wrote a blog post on the history of Earth Day and some tips - go check it out :)

I don't want to overwhelm you with so many tips on going green that you get tired just reading them so here I'm going to give you 5 tips on how you can celebrate Earth Day by helping our beautiful planet, I have however linked them to other posts if you're looking for more information:

1. My fundamental rule of going green is learning your 3 R's 

RECYCLE
REUSE
REDUCE

Here are the links to some old recycling posts - Recycling 101 & Recycling Facts

2. Try and save water whenever you can! Here are some tips for you.

3. Switch off all unnecessary lights and electrical appliances - buy saving 1 KW of power, you are essentially saving 1.2 liters of water!

4. Try to switching your beauty products over to natural and organic products. Also, try and make a conscious decision to buy cruelty free products.

5. Offset your carbon footprint by donating to projects like Greenpop that plant trees

I'd love to hear what you're doing for Earth Day on Tuesday the 22nd? Even if you switch off your lights for an hour, you'll be helping! Let's try our best to make it a memorable Earth Day!

PS: one last tip, throw away your plastic water bottle (and by that I mean, throw it into your recycling bin) and switch over to glass bottles - they are so much healthier for you and 100 times better for the environment! I'm obsessed with my Consol Grip & Go bottles and use one everyday! 

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GGG Tips: Winter Health & Beauty

Health & Beauty Tips for Winter

Since there are still are a few weeks of winter left here are some of my health and beauty tips to keep you looking and feeling your best!

  Swap your daily body lotion for a body oil – no one enjoys the feeling of dry legs itching beneath your jeans or you skirt sticking to your static legs

       Exfoliate your face and body twice a week – this helps get rid of the dead skin cells, leaving you with a fresh and soft skin, but please do so gently as not to cause skin tearing!

Try applying a mask on your face as well as a hydrating mask on your hair at least once a week – this will help keep your skin hydrated and your hair healthy and shiny.

 Add a few drops of your favourite essential oil to your bath – it will also create a lovely fragrance in your bathroom

A tip that I’m personally loving at the moment, add a dollop of a balm (I use the Balm Balm Baby Balm) to your bath water to help ‘soften’ the water. After my bath I apply some body oil and my skin just drinks it up!

Before you put on your socks at night, put on some foot cream to keep your heels soft - or if you are like me and you're not a fan of wearing socks at night, check out my GGG Tip for Foot Cream 

I know in winter it's harder to keep up your exercise routine as the thought of having to venture out into the cold usually over rules the thought of working out, but KEEP IT UP!

That being said, please make sure you dress warmly enough after leaving the gym, no matter how tempting the cold air might be to cool down after a sweat session (see mom, I do listen to you)

Lastly and it’s one most of us forget during the colder weather, don’t forget to keep drinking lots of water! A hydrated body leads to hydrated skin, so go and grab a glass of water right now! You can also swap the hot chocolate for green tea!

Next week I'll be posting some of my favourite winter products!

What are your tips for winter?

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GGG Tips: Hair Care

The Glam Green Girl's Hair Care Tips

Your hair can be one of your greatest assets, well, that's how I feel! Which is why hair care has always been so important to me. 

Here are a few of my tips for creating vibrant; shiny and luscious locks:

Hair Care

© Use a hair treatment at least once a week. I use an oil treatment twice a week on my hair as I only wash my hair twice a week and I sleep with it in overnight. This helps my hair to be hydrated and keeps it strong.

some great oils to use:

Argan Oil is one of the best (but so expensive)

Coconut Oil

Neem Oil

You can also mix some Olive Oil or even Lavender Oil in your conditioner

© Determining how often you wash your hair is up to you. I've found that I only need to wash mine every 3-4 days but I've always been like that. I've read a lot of hair articles saying that washing your hair too often strips it of its natural oils, causing you to create more oil, so that's why I always stuck to 2 washes a week. 

© While most of us focus on our ends, our scalps need some loving too! You know how your skin drys up in winter? It has the same affect on your scalp. So when applying your hair treatments, massage it into your scalp. Its also great to massage your scalp while shampooing and conditioning. This increases blood flow to the scalp and stimulates hair growth.

© Brush your hair. This action also helps stimulates your scalp and why not rather get the knots out now then letting them get worse?

© Having one of those days that can be classified as a "bad hair day"? Dont worry about having to re-straighten or re-curl, rather do an up-do such as the sock bun or a fish tail braid (see how below). I love rocking those two looks when my hair just isn't cooperating!

© Try using heat only when necessary  As I said I only wash my hair twice a week so I only use heat about twice a week. I have straight hair so after I've blow dried my hair, I'm fortunate enough not to have to straighten it, and especially not everyday. But if you do need to use heat styling tools, make sure you are using a protection spray on your hair.

The sock bun

The fish tail braid

All images: My Pinterest board

Hope these tips helped :)

Let me know what your favourite hair care tips are?

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GGG TIP: Foot Creams

The Glam Green Girl's Foot Cream Tip

I've decided to start a new series called "The Glam Green Girl's Tips" as a way of making your life easier, and for making better and greener choices!

My first tip has to do with foot cream! I drink a lot of water through out the day and during the night so when I go to sleep I'm always getting up to go to the bathroom. I really don't like wearing socks (only if its deathly cold) so I never used to put foot cream on as I would slide all the way to the toilet every night. But, your feet deserve to be pampered seeing as though we sometimes wear shoes that look better than they feel!

Since my foot cream was by my bed and I never used it, I forgot it was there. But then, I thought about putting it on before gym so it gave me an hour to be absorbed by my skin. I now keep my foot balm right next to my gym shoes and put it on before I put on my socks and trainers. This leaves me with soft feet and I'm no longer slipping and sliding around my room and bathroom.

Now that it's getting colder, why not put your foot cream near your boots or socks?

Hope this tip helped! Let me know what you think of this new series?

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