living lightly in ireland

Creating an Ornamental Garden: Selecting Plants

I’m no garden designer but having being an interior architect for 15 years, I am well-practiced at balancing colour and form. I’ve also been gardening since I was 8 so and I have lots and lots of direct experience. Here are my tips on how to create a plant plan from scratch that will have huge impact with less effort.

3-ingredient Recipe for Homemade Tortillas (Wraps)

In an effort to cut down on packaging and avoid palm oil and chemicals in our food I’ve located some find quick, easy recipes for everyday foods, such as these flour tortillas, which our family love. I’ve made these tortillas a few times now and they’re a synch to make – the longest part of the process is dry frying the pancakes but if you’ve two pans you can do it in half the time!

8 Easy Low-waste Summer Activities for Kids

I hate kids’ activities that generate a load of waste, stuff that I have to clean up and deal with when all the excitement has subsided, so I’m always on the look out for activities that either generate very little waste or keep the kids entertained long enough to justify the clean-up.

Here are my top 8 easy low-waste activities to do with kids this summer

8 Easy Low-waste Summer Crafts for Kids

It’s that time of the summer when we start hearing the word ‘bored’ a lot. In keeping with my fondness for low-waste diversions for kids here are my top 10 low-waste, easy crafts to keep your kids occupied.

What to recycle / donate where in 2025

I am passionate about rehoming items I no longer need and although a lot of items can be dropped into them, local recycling centre and charity shops are not always the best fist stop for donating or recycling. I prefer to get items into the hands of places that specialise in a particular item, that way there’s a better chance of them being reused or recycled properly.

Before you read on and get ready to declutter, remember if possible it’s always better to repair and reuse your own goods than recycle them.