Happy Friday!  I recently wrote a piece about switching to Green Cleaning for The Everygirl.  If you’ve been thinking about making the switch, but don’t quite know where to begin, I hope you find it helpful.  It’s an easy, short read, and it includes 5 of my favorite products to get you started:

1. The Cleaning Essentials Spray Bottle
2. Better Life All Purpose Cleaning Spray
3. Green Shield Free & Clear Laundry Detergent
4. Woolzies Dryer Balls
5. Eco-Me Dish Soap

So, what the heck is Cupping, anyway?  When Michael Phelps showed up to race the 4 x 100 relay last Sunday, people had so many questions about the round purple marks on his back and shoulders.  I immediately proclaimed to my husband (after Phelps helped the US win the gold medal) “see, cupping WORKS!  It’s legit!”  I’ve come home a few times with these bruises from my beloved acupuncturist, (Polly Christy, in case you are wondering; she’s the best in Charleston) and my husband always shakes his head, like, what in the hell are you doing in there with her?  

Essentially, Cupping is an ancient Chinese Medicine technique to stimulate blood flow.  I’ve done it a few times when I’ve had a never-ending flu or cold; my acupuncturist says that when there is stagnant blood present, the body has a hard time pushing through the illness.  It can also be used to relax and rehabilitate muscles and prevent injury in athletes.  How does it work?  Basically, the therapist will heat small glass cups to create suction between the cups and the skin, just enough so that skin is pulled away from the underlying muscle and the capillaries below it rupture, causing a hickey-like bruise.  So, there ya’ have it.   Hope that answers some questions!  And, I hope you give it a try; it really is an amazing treatment, and it doesn’t hurt at all.

Green-Washing: Beware.  Going Green is definitely, finally in vogue, (yay!) but this means that many brands and manufacturers are going to use catchy marketing terms to try to lure you in, and they’re hoping that you aren’t going to read the fine print.  Don’t get me wrong, I understand that some companies legitimately want to try to lessen their impact on the environment, and they are making small, steady steps to do so.  I just become skeptical when they spend major dollars on marketing, advertising and PR; think of how that money could be spent…  finding more sustainable sources, partnering with small, independent artisans, redesigning wasteful packaging, ditching their enormous seasonal catalogues, committing to less toxic run-off during the production process, the list goes on and on.  All I’m saying: do your research, especially if you’re shopping at a big chain store.  If they’re pushing a collection of 10 items that are “sustainable” where does the rest of the merchandise in the store come from?  Hmmmm….

Have you ever thought about green-washing?  What do you think?  Do you fee like you can see through it?  Do you care?

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