A good many of us are in the midst of school summer holidays… so is there still time for some smoltalk? OF COURSE! Put down that child/laptop/pina colada (please delete as appropriate) and find a quiet spot. We’ve got lots to share; hacks, myth-busting, supply chain managers and compost… but first, our most wonderful annual smol away day!
In June of this year we came together for our third annual smol fest!
More than 120 people make up the smol team, with over half of us working remotely in the UK and Europe, so it's really important to find time to get together, celebrate our hard work… and see how tall our colleagues are!
The super planning team organised a day focussed on fun, connection and wellbeing. Starting with a group jog (for the keen beans) to log some team Strava miles, we then headed to Birling Estate for some great activities (think yoga, axe throwing and bushcraft!) all overlooking the beautiful Kent Downs AONB.
All festivals carry a risk of wet weather, but the sun shone on us (nothing short of a miracle in the wettest summer on record), which made the ice cream van serving desserts with a side of nostalgia all the more popular! Drinks, oven-baked pizzas and live music in the sunshine topped it all off.
If we say so ourselves, it was a pretty perfect day, and just one smol way that we can say a big thank you to everyone for all that they do.
Check out some sustainable smol fest stats:
🔋 our tents and toilets used 100% renewable energy, saving c. 330 kg of carbon emissions.
💚 we raised £1000 for the Mental Health Foundation by completing a team challenge of walking the distance from Edinburgh to Malaga before the event.
🌿 there was no single-use plastic used on site.
🤝 we offered products from like-minded brands we love: Karma Drinks, Candy Kittens, UpCircle.
📍we locally-sourced drinks for our smol bar from independent companies: Chapel Down Estate, Tonbridge Brewery, Anno Distillers, Lakedown Brewing Co. and Owlet Juices.
🌻 we used flowers from our People Advisor, Dani’s garden.
🪧 we made, or reused signs and decorations from previous events.
🚗 we encouraged carpooling and minibuses to the venue to minimise our emissions.
🫂 100 colleagues met each other, had fun and made new connections!
Ever been caught short by a blocked toilet and didn’t have a plunger?
Luckily, there’s something in your kitchen that can save the day… smol washing up liquid to the rescue! Here’s what to do:
- Add around half a bottle of smol washing up liquid directly into the toilet. It should sink to the bottom of the bowl.
- Leave the washing up liquid to sit in the bowl for a minimum of half an hour.
- Pour a full bucket of warm water into the toilet bowl from roughly waist height. The force of the falling water should flush the washing up liquid down the u-bend.
- Leave the toilet for 10 minutes, then flush it.
The blockage should be gone! This method has been proven especially effective against blockages caused by toilet paper. If you find the water level is starting to drop but not completely clear, you can repeat steps 1- 4.
As a final optional refresh you can pour 1 mug of bicarbonate of soda and 2 mugs of clear white vinegar into the toilet bowl and leave it to bubble for 30 minutes before flushing. Job done!
The marvellous Alice is our superhero supply chain director! What does one of those do? you ask. Well, we’re popping her under the smol spotlight to find out …
can you give a brief description of your job?
I head up our total operations – inclusive of our production and fulfilment on site, through to management of suppliers – keeping our products in stock and our customers happy!
what’s your favourite smol product and why?
I think it has to be our recently launched anti-perspirant. It's super effective and in cardboard packaging, which means it's 100% recyclable through paper waste streams – so satisfying when throwing away at the end of use.
what’s the best bit about your job and working for smol?
I love solving problems, and supply chain is an ideal function to work in for this, always plenty of problems to solve! Mostly it’s the team though. We have an awesome team at our warehouse, and it makes coming to the office each day that much more enjoyable.
what’s a handy eco-friendly tip you can share for household cleaning?
For me, I’m a bit addicted to our stain gel. It not only gets out stubborn stains in clothes, but in sofas and carpets etc. too. Scrubbing it gently with one of our bamboo toothbrushes always does the trick…
it’s the weekend... where will we find you and what are you doing?
You’ll find me with friends and family, most definitely in a pub enjoying a beer of some sort.
UK homes throw out almost 2kg of food every day, on average* (enough for 8 meals a week). Of course, there’s lots you can do to try and cut down on waste:
- Freeze excess food
- Batch cook then use extra for lunches
- Shop little and often
BUT, most of us will still generate some food waste (like vegetable peelings) and that’s when a compost heap comes in handy! Home composting helps us cut down on landfill (reducing methane emissions), improve soil health and conserve water (composted soil holds on to moisture for longer).
Not got a compost heap? Let’s create one!
- Buy a compost bin if you need something compact; Or why not just have an open heap!
- Pick the perfect spot. It should be somewhere level and well-drained.
- Add your scraps. Veg and fruit waste, teabags, plant prunings and grass cuttings will break down fast, giving nitrogen and moisture. Shredded cardboard (smol cardboard boxes), old newspaper and fallen leaves break down more slowly but provide fibre, carbon and air pockets.
- Wait for the worms or alternatively, buy some online! A popular choice is the tiger worm, super efficient as waste disposal units go!
- Waste that shouldn’t go in your compost: meat or dairy, diseased plants, animal faeces or nappies, perennial weeds, plastic, glass or metal.
When there’s a dark brown, almost black soil-like layer at the bottom of your bin, that’s compost that’s ready for your garden. Time to get spreading!
Bleach cleans everything right? Well, yes and no.
It certainly kills bacteria with ease BUT bleach isn’t the miracle cure-all, clean-all!
Bleach won’t lift grease and grime, it can damage porous worktops, floorings or fabrics, and can harm our health if used in high amounts or incorrectly.
But, if you do need to bleach a surface, here’s a smol guide to doing so safely:
- Spray the surface with your usual cleaner. smol’s powerful degreasing multi purpose spray is perfect for greasy kitchen spills and oily food splatters!
- Ensure the area is well-ventilated.
- Wipe the area clean and apply a solution of 10 ml bleach per litre of room temperature water.
- Let the solution sit on the surface for at least one minute to kill germs before rinsing off.
- The solution won’t be as effective after 24 hours, so make a new one if needed.
N.B. Because of the toxic gases bleach creates, NEVER combine it with other cleaning products, especially those that contain ammonia.
Don’t want to use bleach? NO PROBLEM! smol multi purpose spray or hot soapy water should be enough to keep things clean. Best of all, smol spray cuts through grease and grime and won’t discolour your surfaces. Lovely.
If you’re already a bathroom spray user you’ll be no stranger to its foaming eucalyptus power. And if you’ve yet to start a bathroom spray plan… now’s the time!
Here’s what we think you’ll love:
- It powers through soap scum and limescale to a streak-free shine
- The foaming spray clings to surfaces & gets to work at once
- A cool crisp scent of eucalyptus gives a clean calm vibe
- Its bottle-for-life means refill revolution
- Using tiny refill tablets will cut your carbon footprint
- It’s vegan & cruelty-free just like all smol products
Grab your bathroom starter kit today (or reactivate if you’ve taken a break) and you too can join the spray refill revolution.
GET STARTED
...with your smol bathroom spray.
Remember to check out our smol socials on Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and TikTok PLUS there’s our ever growing and lovely private community group on Facebook. Each one of them gives easy ways to keep up with all things smol and we LOVE hearing from you there. You can also drop us a line with any questions at any time on help@smolproducts.com and if you’ve got some good ideas for our next smoltalk topics then we’re all ears…
* ecoexperts 2024
