Zero Waste Fairbanks

12/10/2023

Salt dough ornaments! A new zero waste craft for me. Literally salt, flour, water, and twine or reused string, rubber bands, or fabric are all you need for some cute and affordable ornaments. You can easily find recipes and instructions online. I stamped some cute paws from my kitties and my friends pup on a few of them for a personal touch! Use or borrow cookie cutters, or simply stamp out circles with a lid of some kind. Easy to paint, or keep them white and classic. You can even add spices or essential oils for a nice smell.

As the days get chillier and darker, silly zw crafts like these are just what you need to warm you up inside 💕

11/29/2023

Zero waste ornaments! I made and posted these ornaments a few years ago, but I thought it was time for a refresh. This year, I added more orange to the collection along with lemon and lime. Simply cut them in thin slices, stick them in the oven at a low temp (200-250) and flip them every so often for 1-3 hours (depends on how big and thick your slices are).

These ornaments are cute, cheap, and made with fully compostable materials! I mostly used twine to hang them, but some of my ornaments use random fabric or thread that I collected for reuse.

You can make a garland with them, put them on your Christmas tree, or adorn gifts with a little slice of nature. 🍋🎄🍊

08/31/2023

It’s mushroom season in Fairbanks, and we’ve been taking full advantage. Foraging around town has been so fun and rewarding, and the best part (besides frolicking around in nature) - waste free!

I turned some butter boletes, king boletes, and shaggy manes into a hardy mushroom barley soup (with Alaskan barley!).

What are you guys making with wild mushrooms?

06/09/2023

We are here at the borough assembly meeting rallying for climate justice!

You can still make it to the assembly meeting to hear public testimony on why the borough should pass the Climate Action Plan that has been seriously and sadly gutted. We need a real climate plan to support our community that’s being affected by climate change at an alarming rate.

We love Fairbanks, and want to see real positive climate action here!

06/09/2023

Did a double take at the Gold Stream Market Today (thurs 4-7!) because GLASS RECYCLING is here in Fairbanks on a very small scale. Erin started Glass Roots Alaska so that you can recycle all those kombucha bottles that you sadly put in the trash. She turns them into sand using a community-funded glass crusher, and then gets usable glass sand! She also tried to re-home the Too Cute To Crush glass bottles that she collects, as you can see on the table in the photo.

Check out her website glassrootsalaska.com for info about her project, when/where she will be picking up recycling, and how to donate! Yay for community-centered recycling!

06/03/2023

Reuse IT! Check out Green Stars brand new used electronics store that opened today! They’ve got lots of laptops and cables and friendly folks here to answer your questions, along with a warehouse full of back stock and electronics recycling. You can take electronics recycling to the Fairbanks Central Recycling Facility, or pick up some new-to-you electronics from this new store. Loooove this effort in Fairbanks to get affordable electronics out of the landfill and back in use.

06/01/2023

Haven’t been on my sourdough game recently, but this beauty has definitely sparked the motivation again. This loaf is headed off to a friend who traded me a loaf for a lovely pair of earrings she made. Love exchanging handmade goods 💕🥖

For a great loaf, you do need a couple of things… a Dutch oven and a breathable basket of some kind for overnight proofing. You can still make a loaf without these things, it just won’t rise as much. I use parchment paper while baking so I can easily lift the loaf out of the Dutch oven with little mess. Compost, burn, or even reuse if it’s not too crispy.

If you’re looking for a sourdough recipe, comment below! I’ve had lots of luck with the one I use now.

05/27/2023

For here cup please! ☕️✨

Love hitting up all kinds of coffee shops in Alaska, and especially love when they have for-here cups or BYOCup discounts. 💕

05/25/2023

Happy (belated) Clean Up Day! It always looks so much better and so many amazing people to make it happen! But can't help but wish it wasn't needed.

Among loads of things picked up, the ones that bother me the most personally are the bits of light plastic that, with every whisp of wind, blow further and further into the pristine nature we are surrounded by. There they will either never biodegrade, find their way into a water source, or end up in the stomachs of our wildlife. Eventually I stopped even taking pictures, there was way too much. Cheers to all the helpers in our community, and what a great reminder to go Zero Waste & Reusable as much as we can, starting with shopping bags! Also a scenery pic for some Interior AK beauty 💕.

Anyone make any good finds while cleaning up this week?

05/25/2023