Introduction

If you've showered with warm water your whole life without any problems, you aren't likely to consider the alternative. The same goes for washing your hair, cleaning your face, clearing your sinuses, getting rid of a headache, or (for the ladies) dealing with menstruation. You grew up using products and methods that seem to work for your household and everyone else. Grocery stores are stocked with a huge variety of personal care products, each with a very specific use. Sure, you might switch to a different brand of decongestant, a different scent of shampoo, a different kind of face wash, but have you considered eliminating these products from your routine completely?

I didn't start thinking about making these kinds of changes until I stumbled into some unfamiliar internet territory. The year: 2006. I was a senior in high school and, in a series of aimless clicks, found an online community of women cautiously considering, familiarizing themselves with, or enthusiastically endorsing menstrual cups. The concept was alien to me: a reusable silicone cup that eliminates the need for chemical-laden feminine hygiene products that will definitely end up in a land-fill and, over the course of a woman's life, cost a significant sum of money. From the posts, it was clear that getting used to using the cup took some patience, but women who persevered insisted that they were glad they did.

Saving money is probably the driving force in this entire effort. I'm frugal and practical, so if there's a cheaper alternative that works as well as the accepted standard, I'll try it. But, like the menstrual cup, many of these alternatives work better than the status quo and have the added benefits of reducing waste and keeping the chemicals that are present in many personal care products out of the atmosphere, our water systems, and our bodies.

In my research since, I've noticed that almost every discussion leads me to another economically and environmentally preferable alternative to our normal purchases and routines. For example, researching how to go "no 'poo"—which has nothing to do with constipation and everything to do with eliminating shampoo from your life—led me to various uses for baking soda and apple cider vinegar, as well as new approaches to bathing, all of which I plan to try.

Clearly, the internet is a great resource and network, but a lot of the sites with useful information about these kinds of lifestyle changes rely heavily on user-provided content, leaving huge amounts of information disorganized and hard to navigate. Since I've already learned a lot about the changes I've made and plan to learn more as I rethink daily routines, I've created this blog as a place to share my lessons and experiences in what will hopefully become an organized and helpful reference for a variety of alternative methods of grooming, preening, feeling, and living.

DISCLAIMER: I have very little knowledge of chemistry and biology and have absolutely no medical background. Use new methods and products at your own risk. I am the guinea pig of this experiment, and my results will not be the same as yours in many instances. This blog is meant to act as an introduction to the methods and ingredients of a cheaper, greener life. If you do decide to try anything mentioned herein, I would highly recommend doing your own research to get a greater spectrum of opinions and information. And if you learn something that's worth sharing, bring it on back!