Winter Solstice and gift preparations- a little insight

I love the Winter Solstice with it's traditional songs, decorations. I also like the Christmas traditions. So here on green carpet we enjoy all of them mixed together as usual.
Last year I shared some Advent decorations, everybody knows how a Christmas tree looks like. So this time I decided to share some of Latvian traditional decorations, we call them "Puzuri":

These probably are the most eco-friendly seasonal decorations since only natural materials are used- canes, wool and some bird feathers or dried herbs. I remember when we used to make them with my mom when we were kids. We would do little ones, and she would create a wonderful large piece.. This year we revived this tradition and made them together again.

Our gifts as well were all planned to be handmade by ourselves with few additions of either eco-friendly items or experiences instead of things people wouldn't need.

Gifts we made mostly were:

• selection of specialty jams and jellies- chilly, jalapeno, garlic & lime, red currant spice jam, rhubarb & ginger marmalade etc. 
• selection of home made liquors- blueberry, red currant, raspberry liquors that we did together with my brother already during the summer
• selection of home made sweets and confectionery- various chocolate truffles with walnuts, almonds, dried cherries and ginger, dried pineapples dipped in chocolate, green tea chocolate truffles, caramelized almonds etc. 

• selection of home made cookies and ginger breads, served on a large plate made as Christmas deco plate with decoupage technique by myself. 

The last one actually was a double gain idea. I had a set of soup and dinner plates that were showing wear quite a lot already. And they were not looking that nice in my kitchen anymore. So I decided to use my decoupage skills and turn them into nice Christmas themed decorative plates to give as gifts, full of edible goodies.

Unfortunately I was so busy that I completely forgot to make pictures of all 9 unique plates I made.. Here's just one that I gave to my dad (I have easy access to it now). 

Many of the sweets and other gifts were also packaged into up-cycled boxes with decoupage technique. It is a truly wonderful skill to use in making presents. I even managed to make my liquor bottles all Seasonal and good looking! 

I still continue reusing many boxes, packages, bottles and other everyday pieces into nice presents or interior elements with decoupage! 

What gifts did you make this year? 

Rugs and dusters

I spoke about some good deeds to make my life, home and country a greener place.
Well, one of such things that I've done recently is change from paper towels to rugs for 100% finally.
Often you really couldn't  find a paper towel here on green carpet since I neglect cleaning with such disposables that in addition soak in so little water and can clean only very limited surfaces. At least comparing to my rugs now!
My rugs and dusters are torn or cut from old bed linen or table cloths that my grandma gave me because they were unwashably stained or worn out with holes. Oh, linen cloths are the very best to clean up all liquids . Since we are not using diapers at home and sometimes elimination communication is not really working that well on busy moments, these rugs are gold worth.

And, of course, they are good on every thing else you need to clean- dusty places, bathroom sinks, floors, juice splashes or runny noses. Just take a clean one from the rug-bowl and put it in the bin afterwards. Once the bin is full, I wash them, hang them to dry and they're good to use again. And again. And again. Something you really can't say about paper towels.
Have you already switched to cloth rugs?

Baby cocoons

Although here on green carpet we support baby-wearing in a sling and just simple carrying in arms a lot, there are times when we also want to put our baby to sleep in bed or have a ride in a car.
What comes in very handy is baby cocoon.
My little princess spent a lot of her first autumn and winter day sleeping and car travels in this lovely cocoon. No need to dress her much for travel. No problems with a blanket that falls off when you put the baby in bed after cradling her in your arms. And no kicked off blankets.

Of course, this lovely piece with a hat is knitted by my own loving hands.

I enjoyed using it so much, that I also made this warming present when my cousins baby boy was born.









I have my fingers itching already to make another one for one of my best friends when her little one arrives!
Try knitting one yourself, it's super-simple!

One good deed from me to make Latvia greenest country in the world.

It's been a while ago when I posted some comments on the Yale Uni's Environmental Performance Index, where Latvia scored as high as 2nd in the world and No1 in Trend EPI. After such news environmental NGO's, some policy makers and individuals in society had made their mind to turn Latvia to be the No1 Greenest country in the world. I proudly share that goal and passion.

I've been using organic cosmetics and eco-friendly household cleaning products for quite long time already. I figure- it's a good time to take a step further. Why not withdraw the shipping costs? And I mean not only my wallet, but the Earth as well. Why not support local economy? It is my country in the end that needs its economy boosted.



In Latvia we have several wonderful organic cosmetics producers, some of which have made it out in the world with great success like Madara. Madara is also my favorite Latvian cosmetics producer, quality is wonderful and I love the smell of natural flowers and plants it has.. a little bitter one, just like the flower Madara. Their products are also gender unrelated, deo is good for both me and my husband.  Additional green bonus of Madara is that they would take back the empty packaging and give you a discount for that!
I already bought the first few things I needed- deo and eye cream from them, and trying out some day and night creams and baby oil, which felt amazing.

There are several more Latvian organic cosmetics brands that I still haven't tested. By I aim to. Once I ran out of any of the things in my bathroom- the next one I'm buying is going to be definitely produced right here, in Latvia.
However, if you want to try some before me, here are a couple I'm going to look at when I next need something- Kiwi natural cosmetics and Bio2You biological sea buckthorn cosmetics.

The same plan refers to household cleaning products. No need to buy Ecover, Sonnet, Tri-bio and Frosch that until now have been 'usual suspects' in my kitchen and bathroom. Latvian manufacturers have had good ingredients list for quite a while, but now they have reached next level- Eco-certification. Eco Seal for nature is the next laundry detergent and dish washing liquid I'm trying out!


Buying organic and eco friendly is good. But keep in mind that being conscious consumer means also really thinking through whether you really need the product. Many things can be replaced with even more 'natural' things.



In cosmetics area my favorite is hemp oil, natural, organic, local and comes in ceramic bottle with a cork on top. It's clean, great both for cooking and as body oil for me and the baby. I've written about it here.
Olive oil and other edible oils offer similar uses. You don't really need to buy a body lotion in plastic bottles with additional ingredients, do you? Add them yourself if really want to- essential oils, flower essences.. your call!
And nothing is better on your skin than things that you would actually eat- masks and scrubs should be only made in your kitchen..

In cleaning area I have found that nothing works better than simple baking soda and vinegar. Baking soda cleans my bathroom and kitchen as no chemical, but it's kind to surfaces and my skin, and does not smell at all. If you put it in the drains, add a bit of vinegar, close them and after 10minutes pour some boiling water in, they're free from potential clogging. Your house is clean. And your family is safe and healthy. So, remember, no need to buy another bathroom cleaner, just have soda on hand!

So- good deeds to make Latvia greenest country in the world- buy local organic cosmetics, local household cleaning products. And where you can, replace manufactured formulas with daily kitchen stuff. Locally produced and organic preferably.

Green travelling for us and a baby- vintage bicycles

Using a sling to go around with my baby has been a common practice on green carpet for quite a while now. We just discovered an upgrade for that.

On my husbands birthday, me, my family and his mom gave him a present- a bicycle by his choice. I suggested we go for retro (vintage) bikes. And we both found great ones that we fell in love with!

We didn't want our little one to miss this fantastic feeling of a warm, sunny day, wind blowing gently as you cycle through the nearby forest to see the seaside..

So we used our lovely organic cotton/hemp sling and off we went!

Try it out and enjoy green travelling with a baby!

Hempseed oil- superfood for your body

Well, everybdy talks about superfoods that can make you super-healthy, super-slim, super-energized and so on. When you eat them. But what about the superfood that you can eat AND cover youself with it to get more benefits?
Well, my personal favorite- hempseed or simply hemp oil.

I buy locally grown and manufactured hemp oil that comes in a beautiful brown ceramic bottle with a cork. But what's inside? Lovely, dark green, cold pressed oil.

Eat it!
Use it instead your regular oil or butter with food and forget about the fish oil supplements-  in addition to tasty replacement of other oils in your kitchen (apart from the one you fry things in, it's not supposed to be heated), it's richer. It contains omega 3,6 and 9 in their best possible proportion, therefore hempseed oil is to be considered the most valuable one. Take into account also that its manufacturing is ecologically clenaer than eg. fish oil. It will strengthen your heart and give some extra energy.
Fats from hemp oil are especially healthy for women. It contains a quite rare gamma-linolenic acid that is taking care of the feminine processes in the body (regulating hormones) and also 'feeding' the skin from inside and improving its elasticity. It also works as a natural anti-aging agent. Gamma-linolenic acid also activates calcium absorption, but vitamin E that is also found in this oil is a natural anti-oxidant that helps fighting free radicals.
It is a wonderful choice for vegetarians and also during prengancy and breastfeeding to enrich our fatty acid levels. that are so important to keep up for healthy mama and bebe.

If you really do not like the taste of it, try out roasted and ground hemp seeds that contain both the oil and proteins, carbs and fibres. You could actually survive from this and water for extended periods of time. Not recommended though! It's just to illustrate how much of a superfood it actually is. And it's really tasty. I like to sprinkle it over my salad. However, my real treat is a slice of bread, little butter or ghee and then really thick coating of grind of hemp seeds.

Apply it! 
Everywhere. It will smooth and moisturise your skin. I like to pour it in my bath with some essential oils. Or apply it on damp skin after morning shower and then let it dry. In winters when skin is getting drier due to cold weather and heating indoors, it's exactly what I need!
I also apply it on my hair as a mask. Comb your hair, apply preferably lightly warm oil throughout hair and skin of the head. For a quick one you can wrap your hair with towel (beware, it will be greasy!) or just tie it back for few hours before washing. I'm too lazy for that. I apply oil before bed and leave it there overnight for extra nutritients for my hair. Wash it in the morning! My hair have become much less frizzy, much less dry and much more healthy!
And, of course, feel free to use it as a part in your scrubs and masks!

I even have replaced my baby's body oil with this and her dry skin is thankful to me for that.


Find out where you can buy this dark green elixir of health and enjoy!

Eco potty- Becopotty

Well, I have to admit that sometimes shopping for something is quite inevitable, especially when it comes to kids.So one of the most recent green consumerism proofs in our homes- Becopotty. 

Since cloth diapering mixed with Eco-nappies started to have another option- elimination communication, we needed a potty. Most of my friends asked me- why don't you just go to the nearest store and buy it for that little money. Most of them were very surprised when I told them that Emily's potty is... biodegradeable! 

Isn't that really cute when after the baby is done with baby potty, you can dig it in your garden and plant some flowers in it? However, I plan to use the potties (we have 2 of them since we still live in 2 homes) for all of my kids, as many my life will have.. It's still great, that I can then put it away and it won't cost the earth another plastic piece.

Besides- it is really stable and comfy. And even in fresh mornings it doesn't seem as cold as regular plastic for that little bottom!

Another green consumerism moment- even before Em started to use potty once in a while, during summer we used 'pee pants'. Just regular pants or leggings that she wore without nappies or diapers, simply on bare bottom. They are easier to pull off if I got the message for potty. And easier to change if we had a miss. She feels so much better in them than in cloth diapers that can be quite large and have the woolen overpants that are not so nice in warmer days.
How can buying many pairs of pants or leggings be green consumerism? It is when you choose organic and / or second hand. I opted for second option for pants and combined for tops. Just returned from the second-hand store with a batch of next size 'pee pants' for my little ones happy bottom :)