Spotlight - Simply Sustainable for The Lockdown Interviews
With extra time at home I noticed a huge spike in people requesting homemade remedies and potions. With the focus on our planet it’s been a great time to review what we are using in our homes and on our skin. With this is mind I wanted to bring someone to the blog that can help with that!
I met Emilie on a shoot for Mooncup (a huge thanks to them for permitted me to use these photos I created with them) and tried some of her simple but effective concoctions and it inspired me to make more stuff at home from things from the cupboards. The dry shampoo is a fave for sure!
Hey Emilie, we met on a shoot for Mooncup and I was so impressed by what you were upto! Can you tell us about your blog - what it aims to do, how it came about and what the future holds for it?
Ah thank you so much! I had such a great day at the Mooncup shoot!
On my blog and IG account I share the things I do to live more sustainably on a day to day basis, as well as natural beauty DIYs, zero waste cleaning recipes and anything else we can do in our lives to reduce our impact on the planet. If I can inspire just one person to make a positive change then it’s done it’s job!
I started my blog when I was in a pretty low place. I was feeling really unsatisfied with my day job and felt like I was doing nothing in my life to make a difference. After some fantastic coaching I decided to start sharing what I love to do at home to live more sustainably. This included making my own beauty and cleaning products, using reusable period products and reducing my single use-plastic as much as possible. I can’t believe how far I’ve come since then and I have loved every second.
I hope to continue to inspire people to make positive changes in whatever way they can.
I’m starting to write a book all about DIY sustainable beauty which will be published next year!
How has Covid19 impacted your everyday life?
My everyday life has slowed right down and I am really loving it. I am still working fulltime at home (I work in the waste industry and as we all know, waste never stops!) but really enjoying being able to work outside in my garden, exercising and spending more time with my husband and lovely dog Honey.
Have you seen an increase in people getting resourceful with what they have at home since the lockdown came into place? And have trends changed in your world?
Absolutely! This is one thing that I have loved to see unfold. What the lock down’s given us in spades, is time. People now have the time and the headspace to think about trying something new, like making their own beauty products or experimenting with reusable period products. I have definitely seen a shift in people’s attitude towards preserving the environment and making a “new world” out of all of this. I really, really hope that sticks.
With people on lower incomes this is a perfect time for people to start experimenting with homemade - do you have any tips as where best to start?
You’re so right! Making your own is such a great way to save some cash and it’s so satisfying when you make something yourself that works.
I would say to start replacing things as and when they run out, making them changes you will stick. It’s much better to do this than buying in everything at once, making it, thinking what a long time it all took and not enjoying it at all!
Maybe start with a DIY surface cleaner. I have a recipe up on my blog and I guarantee you it’s a DIY you will never turn your back on. You can even reuse your old spray bottle.
What would you like to see people doing more of during lockdown?
I would love to see people spending more time in their kitchens and cooking from scratch. This is such a great way to reduce your food waste, single-use plastic intake and environmental impact. We all usually just don’t have time to cook from scratch so I hope that people are learning new kitchen skills they can take out of lockdown and out into our new world!
What does lockdown look like for you? What have you been up to?
I have been spending most of my time writing my new book and having great fun testing out recipes! I also took on an allotment just before lockdown so have been loving escaping there and spending time with my hands in the dirt, watching it flourish.
Have you had any clarity moments on either a personal or professional level?
I actually haven’t really… work is busier than ever, turns out people will still complain about not having their recycling bins put back correctly whether there is a pandemic going on or not. On a personal level I’ve always been a bit of a home bird and have loved this quieter pace of life, I just miss seeing my family and friends really.
Finally, if you could see one change come out of this what would it be?
I would love for everyone to come out with this with more of an appreciation for what they already own and have a reduced desire to always go somewhere different or buy something new.
Lockdown has helped us learn to use and love what we already have. Whether that’s the clothes we already own, the tins at the back of the cupboard we forgot were there, or enjoying our own outdoor spaces, no matter how small. I really hope that people generally consume less and live more.