biodegradable dishwasher detergent

Method keeps impressing me with their clever products and this fall, they continue to improve with their newest addition, Smarty Dish Non-Toxic Dishwasher Detergent.

Boasting zero phosphates and zero bleach, these tablets are sized to fit the average dishwasher dispenser and come in 20-tablet packages in either Pink Grapefruit or fragrance- and dye-free Go Naked.

STYLE AT HOME magazine editor, Gail Johnston Habs, tested one out for me (I don’t have a dishwasher – sigh!) and thought it did a great job – even though it was slightly large for her Miele dishwasher dispenser.

And, if you’re feeling guilty about doing the dishes using a machine, don’t: a study by the University of Bonn in Germany proved that a dishwasher is by far the most environmentally friendly way to do the dishes. Click here to check out the facts.

Available at: stores across Canada

Price: $6.50

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email Laurie at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

karl lohnes puts reuse to good use

With just a few days and a tight, student-friendly budget, STYLE AT HOME style editor Karl Lohnes turned an empty bedroom into a chic and colourful dorm-style retreat using buys from Kijiji Canada’s free local classified ads. The environmental lesson here? Buying new isn’t always necessary!

For more on exactly how Karl stuck to the reduce and reuse mantra and pulled the room together, view the story by www.styleathome.com web producer Lauren McPhillips here.

Check out: www.kijiji.ca

Do you have a product you’d like to recommend for this blog? Email Laurie at naturalchic@styleathome.com!

water-saving showerhead

Ever wonder what those water-saving showerheads feel like? I did, so I decided to put one to the test and tried out the Moen 6306.

It looks just like any other showerhead, but is touted as saving 30% water over regular models, and press materials say that its designed to concentrate water flow to provide a ”satisfying shower experience.”

How was it? Well, to be honest, the water pressure doesn’t feel quite as strong, but the difference was really hardly noticeable enough to make me switch back to my regular model. After all, I am saving 30% more water (and the energy I would have used to heat that water) and come bill day, that would be a HUGE savings in any household.

My showerhead is polished chrome, just like the one in the picture above; other finish options include brushed nickel and oil-rubbed bronze.

Available at: hardware stores via special order; check www.moen.ca for availability

Price: $43.55 (chrome 6306); $67.49 (brushed nickel 6306BN or oil-rubbed bronze 6306ORB)