Dawn Montague

Currently reading this book: https://www.amazon.com/Plastic-Free-How-Kicked-Plastic-Habit/dp/163220665X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1467647000&sr=1-1&keywords=plastic+free
Like Charli wrote, this is a monumental task in today's economy. It's amazing what you can find plastic in!

This book also has some good ideas: https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Waste-Home-Ultimate-Simplifying/dp/1451697686/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1467647184&sr=1-2&keywords=plastic+free

I can't find any books, but there are some blogs and articles. You may know about some of these already. There is a permies thread here: https://permies.com/t/19122/natural-fibers-materials/Holistic-Fiber-Farm. One of the links in that thread is to a blog about a permaculture farm with alpacas. Here is a podcast on the topic (woolful.com): http://woolful.com/episode-13-organic-fiber-realizing-dreams-regeneration-and-permaculture/. It is the last half that may be more interesting for permaculture. Sasha Duerr of permacouture.org seems to specialize in plant dyes that come from the by-products of food. Her blog is really interesting. Nothing necessarily about building a permaculture farm, but somebody has to be the pioneer. Maybe it's you

I would be interested in such a book or series of articles, too. My ideal farm would provide food, fuel, fiber, dye plants and medicine. Hope to have it soon.

We are getting ready to make a big move - for us. We don't have the money saved up for land yet, but to help us get out of debt and save up the money, we are selling our really big Victorian house in an inner city neighborhood (formerly used for extended family and boarders), and will move into a rather small (866 sq. ft.) house that we have actually owned for a while, but were renting out (we have learned some hard lessons in the last few years about human nature, and never want to be landlords again!).

Anyway, the first thing we have to do is go in and fix holes in the walls and tear up nasty carpet (got trashed a bit with the last renters...). The house is on a concrete slab. I really, really want a non-toxic floor. I love the Bioshield paints (clay paints). Does anyone here have any experience with earthen finishes or clay paints on a concrete slab? Or any other kind of non-toxic finish? I think handwoven rugs on an earthen-like floor would be really nice. I have read a bit about an earthen floor on top of a concrete slab somewhere, but it looked like it would require a build-up of 2-3 inches. The ceilings in this house are already only 7 feet 2 inches, so I'd rather not lose any more ceiling height.

I would welcome any creative ideas for things we can actually do ourselves.

Thank you so much for sharing!

David Winston has an effective formula for improving bone density, along with dietary recommendations here (http://www.herbalist-alchemist.com/item/David-Winstons-OsteoHerb-795). I am not posting the link to advertise his formulas, and I try not to buy ready-made formulas anymore. I try to make them myself instead. But this will give you an idea of some things that will help. Horsetail herb is especially good for rebuilding strength in teeth. The black pepper acts like a catalyst to help you absorb other herbs and nutrients more easily.

Hi Meryt. This article here (https://practicalaction.org/docs/technical_information_service/dyeing_textiles.pdf) names mosses and tea as aluminum accumulators that can be used as mordants, but no real details.

Hi Judith! All I have is a Blackfoot spindle - hoping for a wheel eventually, and really looking forward to it. Beautiful pictures - thanks!

Has anyone seen the new announcement by Ibex here (http://shop.ibex.com/)? They are going to start using dog hair fiber in their outdoor clothing. It's supposed to be 80% warmer than wool and have other great properties as well.
So here's another possible stacked function - LGDs that protect your livestock AND pay for their food with the proceeds of their undercoats
I have a beautiful, black Labradoodle-Husky who produces a huge quantity of shed fur. My first spinning lesson is this Saturday - hoping for a really warm black sweater by next winter...

Does anyone here have experience with dog hair fibers in clothing?