The Self-Sufficiency Shoppe

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The Shoppe Newsletter No. 62 – An Easy Way to Save Money in the Home; Recipe: Soap Jelly Mix; Life’s Too Short to be Throwing Money Down the Drain; Become a Green Cleaning Presenter; Eco-friendly Workshop Downloads; Researchers Discover that ‘Connecting with the Earth’ is Important; The Shoppe Products – Rose Skin Cream; Uses for Stale Bread – Recipe: Italian Peasant Bread Soup; Bread Cake.

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 61 -  30,000 Products and Rising;  If the Earth Could Speak at Christmas;  10 Quick & Easy Chemical-free Things to Do with Plants from the Garden;  It’s the Season for Preserving;  Abundant Zucchinis; Recipes: Zucchini & ginger jam & zucchini face mask;  The Shoppe Catalogue now available for down-load

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 60:  Welcome to our Chemicalised World! What does the future hold?;  It’s Official – Bicarb & Vinegar are better than most commercial cleaners! Choice’s testing proves their credibility; Top 5 Uses for Bicarb & Vinegar; Money-saver: Ideas for Turning Old Clothes into New (payer flags, herbal bath bag, decorating jars for gift-giving);  Product of the Month: The Amazing Uses for Eggs (hair shampoo & conditioner, soothing an obstinate cough, morning pick-me-up).

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 59: Green Cleaning is Clever Cleaning; The Problem with Detergents; Recipes: Soap Jelly, Extra Strong Oven Cleaner;  Time to Talk Body Odour; Recipes: Lavender Deodorant Spray and Deodorant Powder; – Product of the Month: Tea-bags & Coffee Grounds!; Recipes: Snail & Slug Deterrent and Heavy Duty Deodorising Soap (using coffee grounds!)

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 58: Non-chemical Insect Repelling; Never Fail Garden Spray; Beware: Chemicals in Skin Care Products; Making beeswax lip salve with just 2 ingredients; Product of the Month: Talcum Powder; Recipe: Talc alternative in a jar; Apricot Jam from Dried Apricots

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 57: The Earth is ‘Out-of-Balance; What can we do about it – Sustainable Alternatives Chart;  How to Buy Less Consumer Products; What are the Alternatives?;  Workshop Downloads: Applying alternatives to your day-to-day activities;  Making Use of Excess Garden Produce; Making Dyes and Colours from Natural Sources – Recipe: Blue dye from red cabbage

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 56 Laundry Detergent Pact Exposed!; The Solution: Soap-jelly – an economical environmentally friendly alternative;- Ten Interesting Things to Do with Recycled Newspaper; - My Top Newspaper Uses;  Product of the Month: Lemons; Lemon Recipes: Lemonade, Sugar free Lemonade. Lemon Hair Bleach, Preserved Lemons, Extracting lemon essential oil

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 55: New Trend: Fresh Fruit in Skin Care!; Suggestions & recipes for fruit-based: masks, scrubs, astringents and moisturiser; Product for the month: Eucalyptus Oil;  My Favorite Uses for Eucalyptus Oil – Interesting ideas and recipes, Recipe: Eucalyptus-infused Water;  Avoid the Father’s Day Madness!;  Gift Ideas - Shoe Polish, Avocado Pot Plant, Herbal Foot Powder

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 54: The Amazing Attributes of Vinegar – Cleaning, Skin-care, Disinfecting, Deodorising, Hair-care, Foot-care, Personal deodorant,  Insect repellent, Culinary, Laundry, Pesticide removal, Garden; My Favourite Uses for Vinegar – interesting ideas and recipes, Just Change One Small Thing; The Many Uses for Rosemary; Rosemary recipes: rosemary oil, rosemary infusion, deodorant spray, room freshener and rosemary with potatoes!;       Homemade Paint Alternative – White-wash; Sourcing Ingredients – True Sustainability

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 53: Throw-a-whey Culture” – …. And what of our Future?;  The Sustainable Alternatives Chart – environmentally friendly alternatives for 34 commercial products;  Growing sprouts in the recycled jar – cheap and practical; Making paper at home from recycled materials;   Making Jams, Chutneys & Pickles – recipes for Tomato Chutney, Pear Jam and Plum Jam.

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 52: Why Use Alternatives? – The ’4 C’s’ – Consumerism, Commercialism, Capitalism & Chemicals;  What are the Alternatives: Vinegar, Bicarb Soda, Soap, Oatmeal, Herbs, Eucalyptus Oil, Rice-flour, Lemons – Basic Uses and Tips;  Recipes for: disinfectant, carpet & room deodoriser, economical soap jelly, oatmeal-honey facial scrub, herbal infusion, all-purpose grime/stain remover and surface spray, foot deodorising & healing powder, lemon cleaner and deodoriser;  Tomato Talk: tomato recipes including pasta/pizza sauce, tomato chutney, tomato soup and other tomato ideas

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 51: Last Minute (environmentally friendly) Xmas Gifts from Kitchen & Garden: Gifts for Dad, Mum, Children, Baby, Grandpa, Grandma, Whole Family, Overseas Visitor and, of course, the Family Pet; Uses for Left-over Xmas cake - including recipe for Honey Dessert Cake; Merry Xmas!

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 50:  Life is all about Change;  Acknowledging Earth – 3 Things to Do to Connect with Our Source – Mother Nature;  New Testimonials (What people are saying about The Shoppe;  10 Quick and Easy Things to Do with Herbs & Flowers from the Garden;  Making Non Toxic Incense; Abundant Zucchinis – things to do with zucchinis; Recipe: Zucchini & Orange Jam. 

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 49: There’s No Place for Chemicals in Skin Care; Natural Skin Care Regime;  Natural Skin Care Recipes;  Where’s My Apple Tree?;  Emotional Causes in Pets for Over-eating;  Recipe: Chemical Free Dry Pet Shampoo;  It’s Tomato Growing Time;  Tomato Tips;  Extracting essential oils from your garden plants;  Recipe: Making Perfumed Oil

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 48: Understanding the Power of Advertising; Getting Off the Consumerism Cycle; What’s Best for the Planet? Soap or Detergent?; Practising Anti-Consumerism; Ways to replace detergents with Soap; Recipe: Making Soap Jelly; Soap jelly questions & answers; Do you have calendula flowers growing in your garden?; Natural Baby Body-Care

The Shoppe Newsletter No 47: Natural Hair care Alternatives; Personal Perspectives on using hair care alternatives; Recipe: Soap-based Herbal Shampoo; Conditioners, dandruff problems; Grandma’s Hair-care Philosophy (not so crazy!);  Recycling Food – Ways to use stale bread and cake; Appreciating Special Things from the Earth.

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 46: Consumerism is Killing the Planet – consumerism is ‘unsustainable’ – what you can do; 5 Top Uses for Bicarb Soda; Recipes: Lavender Deodorising Powder, Bicarb Bath Soother, Date & Walnut Cake;  The Amazing Attributes of Vinegar!;  Safe & Organic Sprays in the Garden; Recipe: Coffee Snail and Slug Deterrent; Recipe: Homemade Pear Jam.

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 45 - Household Chemicals Poison Us Every Day – There’s something a miss when a society sells it’s citizens toxic products in the interests of profit and wealth accumulation; Getting Started: Buying less toxic products; Recipes for: Non-toxic Talc Alternative, Non-toxic Detergent Alternative; Simple Homemade White-wash, Homemade Glue; Your Change and the Planet.

The Shoppe Newsletter No. 44  - Are You Concerned About the Planet? - Earth is undertaking a shift in it’s evolution;  Your Change and the Planet – Humanity is awakening in line with the planet’s change;  How Best to Cope with Earth Activity;  The Most Useful Formula: Environmentally friendly Surface Spray/Stain Remover; Consumer Madness – The more products they make the more YOU buy!;  Become a Sustainability Workshop Presenter; Flower Pressing; Readers Recipe: Garlic Infused Oil

No. 43 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Why Use Alternatives? – Four beneficial reasons; The 2 Most Commonly Asked Household Questions (environmentally safe ways to remove mildew and unblock drains – before calling the plumber!); Making compost tea (natural alternative to chemical plant fertilisers); Budget-wise International Meals (vegetarian) includes popular recipe: Mexican Warm Red Kidney Bean and Cheese Dip; Your Recipes: Homemade Moisturisers, Honey Hair Conditioner, Woolton Pie, Carrot Fudge (both British war-time survival food).

No. 42 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Environmental Melt-down – It’s now left to the might of  ‘people power’ and individual action to implement environmental change, Making Soap – surprisingly easy to make, caustic soda in soap, difference between detergents and soap, soap-making at home, recipe: Grated Soap Wash-balls, Parsley, parsley, parsley - in abundance this time of the year – things to do with parsley: Recipes for: Tabbouli (Cracked wheat & parsley salad), Parsley & Potato Soup, storing parsley and more.

No. 41 – The Shoppe Newsletter – The Importance of Self-Reliance – For yourself, your family and the planet, Green Cleaning is Clever Cleaning – Advantages of green cleaning, Useful recipes: Economical Soap Jelly (one bar of soap makes 20 litres liquid soap for all your household cleaning), All-purpose spray cleaner, homemade disinfectant (vinegar-based), Lemons, lemons, lemons - recipes for homemade lemonade and sugarless lemonade, More than just kerbside recycling – reusing resources in place of buying new before relegating it to the recycle bin, Garden Plants are Hidden Gems – quick and easy (and environmentally friendly) ways to use herbs and plants from the garden in the home

No. 40 – The Shoppe Newsletter – High-jacking Sustainability – exploiting sustainability for ‘profit and gain’, Alternatives for Glues, Pastes and Putties – including recipes for quick and easy ‘glue stick’ and water-proof glue, Natural Baby Body-Care - and the wonders of oatmeal – used by mothers in the past for nappy rash and minor skin ailments, Never-fail Garden Spray – recipe for dealing with tomato mites, Why use safe, natural alternatives in the home? - four practical reasons (Safer/chemical free, cheaper, reassuring and environmentally responsible), Your favourite recipes: Homemade moisturiser for dry skin, Old fashioned sago pudding, falafels, humous, Your positive letters and comments, Workshop@Home – download your favourite workshop to do at home

No. 39 – The Shoppe Newsletter - A New Era is Coming – environmental concerns, animal welfare, compassion for our fellow humans are all signs of humanity moving upward to the next level of planetary evolution; ‘Surviving the Hard Times’ e-book; Where to Start? -  becoming environmentally friendly in the home – 6 basic common household items that will replace a multitude of commercial products, Changes to The Shoppe publications – after months of sleepless nights finally all publications are now available as e-book downloads.

No. 38 – The Shoppe Newsletter – The Magic of Mother Nature – tending the earth (garden) connects us with our deeper self.  Start simple by growing in containers and progressing to larger garden area as confidence and experience develops.  Turning Old Clothes to New – utlitising unwanted and discarded clothing to create new items.  Pet Care Alternatives - Ways to care for pets without paying a high cost.  Your Favourite Recipes: No Fuss Patty Cakes (using cream instead of butter/margarine), Simplicity Chocolate Cake, Quick Date & Walnut Cake, Muesli Bars.  Your Questions and Comments – Natural ways to combat itchy scalp, Natural ways to clean marble.  

No. 37 – The Shoppe Newsletter – The Planet is Changing – and we must adjust. Recycling Computer Paper – into envelopes, DVD packets, homemade paper, beads for jewellery making - Good Skin Care Comes Naturally – the magic of chemicals is a myth – Your Questions & Answers (includes recipe for chemical-free fly/insect repellent for animals and soap jelly that is too thick) - How to Download The Shoppe Publications

No. 36 – Shoppe Newsletter - The Earth is Precious – appreciating what the Earth provides, Gift Giving with a Difference – environmentally friendly gifts, Natural Perfume Making – including technique for extracting fragrant plant oils using a jar, cotton-wool balls and oil, Uses for Stale Bread – including recipe for Italian peasant bread soup and as an alternative to pastry, Mango Chutney – recipe for real Indian mango chutney.

No. 35 – The Shoppe Newsletter - It’s that Time of Year Again – the hidden agendas of the Christmas season, Preserving Garden Produce – recipes for salted/preserved lemons, apricot jam, tomato chutney and pickled zucchini (if you are a veggie gardener like me – this is a great recipe for using excess zucchini!) and a Quick Reference GREEN CLEANING Chart

No. 34 – The Shoppe Newsletter – ‘Mother Nature Knows Best’ - Over-exposure to chemicals versus the simplicity of earth; 10 Quick & Easy Chemical-free Things to do with Plants from the Garden; New Booklet Titles Now Available (No.’s 76,77,78,79); Uses for stale bread (includes quick bread biscuits, bread crumb pasta; homemade bread crumbs, stale bread bake, bread dumplings & more); Your Questions: Cloudy Ammonia & Borax, Making lip salve (mixing water-based ingredients with hot oil/wax).

No. 33 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Happiness Comes from the Smallest Things – Money can only buy you a little happiness; Includes suggestions for: Children’s activities, Enjoying the Earth by growing plants, Appreciating good home cooked food (including a never fail recipe for a quick mix Date & Walnut Cake) and suggestion for an old fashioned picnic for two!

No. 32 – The Shoppe Newsletter. – ”The Dinosaur Affect’ – the future of humanity on earth; Drying Herbs (paper bag method), Beeswax Lip Salve recipe; How to grow an indoor pot plant from avocado seeds, Reader contributions- More on Vinegar: uses for vinegar, vinegar cake, rose or lavender vinegar, vinegar-based personal deodorant plus easy recipe for making vinegar.

No. 31 – The Shoppe Newsletter – The Amazing Attributes of Vinegar (including recipes for disinfectant and herbal vinegar)), Nasturtiums, Chemicals in Commercial Skin-care Products and ‘Readers Questions’: soap-jelly recipe, shave cream recipes, Christmas wrapping ideas, Making bush soap.

No. 30 – The Shoppe Newsletter – The 3 C’s – Consumerism, Commercialism & Capitalism, Recycling, Ideas for a Resourceful Christmas (wrapping paper alternatives); Your Questions: Making Soap-jelly & Hair Shampoo as alternatives to using detergents (includes recipes); Quick and Easy Christmas Recipes: Nibble Noodles, Rocky Road, Christmas Cake (without eggs, sugar or butter) and Zucchini Slice.

No. 28 – The Shoppe Newsletter – A New Purpose for Humanity, 10 Tips for Change for a New Planetary Purpose, Rekindling our Connection with Food, Growing Sprouts in a recycled jar, Walnut & Date Cake, Old Fashioned Dumplings, Preserving Garlic.

No. 27 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Mother Earth Looks After Her Own, 3 Things to do to Connect with Mother Earth, Natural Alternatives to Chemical Sprays, Super Complexion Booster, Simple Hair Colouring. Caramelised Grapes, Mint Sauce all Year ‘Round, Bottled Tomatoes, Homemade Chocolate, Pet Food Recipes, Homemade Curry Powder.

No. 26 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Homemade Versus Commercially-made – the pro’s and con’s, The Good All-Rounders (Household Alternatives), Carpet Cleaning Alternative (All Purpose Spray Cleaner), Practical Soap-Making, Recyclers Corner

No. 25 – The Shoppe Newsletter . – Loosing the Battle to Save Energy, Energy Efficiency Techniques in the Kitchen, Hay-box Cooking, Energy Saving No-Bake Recipes (Lemon Slice, Fruit Slice), Tin Can Fruit Picker, Extracting Oils from Plants, Cooking with Nuts! (Recipes: Apple Nut Treat, Bean, Rice & Nut Casserole, Cashew Nut Rissoles, Nutty Cheese Balls, Healthy Spiced Nuts, Nutty Hints), Your Questions: Bicarb Soda/Baking Soda, Cloudy Ammonia, Washing soda.

No. 24 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Human Evolution on the Planet, Living in Harmony with the Planet Workshops, Mexican Story: Gone Fishing, Your Questions - Butter Extender (two versions), Using Buttermilk, Recipes Using Jam (Raspberry Slice, Old English Matrimonials), Skin Lotions (beeswax or sorbolene based)

No. 23 – The Shoppe Newsletter – What Goes Up Must Come Down – Managing Money is the Key to World’s Financial Problems, Kitchen Know-How (Food Colouring Substitutes, Homemade Shortcrust Pastry), Grandma’s Simple Air-Freshener, Sensible and Cruelty free Skin-Care, Growing Tomatoes in Containers, Tomato Hints & Tips.

No. 22 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Money – Energy in Action, Air-Freshener Alternatives, The Problem with Soy, Your Favourite Recipes (Apple Muffins, Fetta & Tomato Quiche), Changes to Green Cleaning Booklet (No. 23),Your Questions & Comments (Interstate Workshops).

No. 21 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Our Relationship with Earth, The Power of Advertising, Chemical Free Household, Setting up a Green Cleaning Display, Recipes: Cheese & Spinach Pie, Spinach Dip, Quick Spinach-Pasta Bake, Your Questions and Comments.

No. 20 -The Shoppe Newsletter - Planet Before Profit, Alternative Hair Care, Making a Hair Band, Honey – Nature’s Hidden Gem, Make Your own Bread-crumbs, Zucchini Slice, Fruit Slice, Quick & Easy Pancake Mix, Your Questions & Comments: Soap jelly mix (too thick), danger of caustic soda in soap-making.

No. 19 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Frugal Times are Upon Us - Ways to Save Money (and the environment), Recycling for the Planet, The Wonders of Mars, Microwave Bottling/Preserving, Your Questions & Comments: Making Soap Jelly, Front load washing machines and soap jelly, Natural methods for deterring moths, silverfish & mosquitoes.

No. 18 -The Shoppe Newsletter – The Lost Art of Weather Prediction, Homemade Lipstick, Lamp Lore – caring for lamps from the past, Tomato Sauce Lowers Cholesterol,The Mighty Tomato: Ways to use tomatoes, tomato sauce recipe.

No. 17 – The Shoppe Newsletter – We Are But Ants, Making Butter, Spring – What a Wonderful Time of the Year, Buy Carbon Credits – Its That Easy!, My Favourite Recipes: Budget Mayonnaise, Butter Extender, Hot Weather Tips, Easy Fruit Cake.

No. 16 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Natural Skin Care (Commercial Skin Care v. Commercial Cosmetics), A Personal Perspective on Skin-Care, The Wise Shopper (Shopping techniques), Make Your Own Curry Powder, More on Recycling, Recipes: Basic Biscuit Recipe, Date Biscuit Slice, Uses for Zucchini.

No. 15 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Its Time to Put Words into Action (Practical skills and affordability are important in planetary change), Make Your Own Safe Organic Garden Sprays, Responsible Recycling, Soap-Savers, Recipes: Homemade Shampoo, Soap-Jelly Mix, Spray Deodorant, Homemade Disinfectant, Lemon Slice, General Purpose Spray Cleaner.

No. 14 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Power of Advertising (Releasing yourself from the retail cycle, Tips for getting off the cycle), Candle-making Made Easy!, Chemical Additives in Food, Wonderful World of Herbs, Recipes: Herbal Infusion, Herbal Bath Bag, Herbal Hair-dye.

No. 13 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Earth’s Crimes Against the Universe – the reminders are everywhere, Preserving Garden Produce (Preserving Without a Preserving Outfit), The Hidden Wonders of Rice Flour!, Recipe: Talc alternative in a jar, full list of ‘The Shoppe’ Booklet Sets.

No. 12 – The Shoppe Newsletter- Christmas and the Retail Cycle – What About the Planet?, Ideas to Stretch Xmas Budget, Composting for the Beginner, Lead In Lipstick, Recipe: Beeswax-based Lipstick, About Beeswax,Oh Lemon Tree (the many uses for lemons) – Lemon recipes for Lemonade, Lemon butter & Lemon hair bleach, Reasons for using natural alternatives in the home.

No. 11 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Living in Harmony with the Planet – Rekindling our Relationship with Earth, The Way Forward is Backward, Homemade Pet Food – recipes for healthy cat food and dog biscuits, Make-Your-Own Spice Blends including recipe for Seasoned Salt,  The Essential Household Alternatives - as replacement for an array of commercial products, The Shoppe Publication list.

No. 10 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Buy Second-hand – It’s good for the Planet - the benefits of recycling and second-hand goods; About Shampoo – homemade versus commercial including recipe for Rosemary Shampoo, How The Shoppe Started; Getting Started – How to make and use alternatives.

No. 9 – The Shoppe Newsletter - The Importance of Being Resourceful (basic self-sufficiency and recycling – the way to the future), Natural Air-fresheners and Deodorisers, Booklet Sets and Publication List.

No. 8 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Make Your Own Deodorants – difference between ‘anti-perspirant’ and ‘deodorant’; The Problem with Detergents; Ways to Substitute Pure Soap for detergent; Soap Jelly Recipe, Green Cleaning information.

No. 7 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Sacrificing Flavour for Profit? Recipe: Homemade Lemonade, Zucchini Recipes: Honey-Zucchini Jam, Curried Zucchini Casserole, New Booklet titles, Practical Skills to Save Time and Money, Gift idea: Bottled treats in recycled jars.

No. 6 – The Shoppe Newsletter – Hidden Treasures in the Garden - includes recipes for rosemary infusion and sage tooth-powder using fresh garden herbs, ‘Ways With’ Booklet Set, Homemade (and organic) sprays to use in the home and garden (includes recipe for coffee-based snail and slug deterrent spray, Homemade Christmas Gift Ideas: Handmade Sewing Kit, English Wash Balls (from soap scraps).

No. 5 – The Shoppe Newsletter - Back to Basics – Why Make Your Own Alternatives? – Safer, cheaper, reassuring and better for the environment, Extracting Natural Oils from Plants, Oatmeal – Natural Alternative to Soap (including how to use), More uses for Bicarb Soda (for Booklet No. 9 – Amazing Bicarb!) – cleaning thermoses and coffee machine, battery terminals, garden spray for dealing with fungal diseases.