Ashley Adams English lives in North Carolina and blogs at Small Measures: http://small-measure.blogspot.com. She’s created a book series called Homemade Living, with two new titles: Keeping Chickens (All You Need to Know to Care for a Happy, Healthy Flock) and Canning & Preserving (All You Need to Know to Make Jams, Jellies, Pickles, Chutneys & More). Earlier this week, Canning & Preserving received an honorable mention in the “How-To” category at the 2010 Green Book Festival. Congratulations!

Ashley says she’s “making an attempt to craft a good life in a small mountain community”:

I find pleasure in the light at dusk, atlases, hard cider, cat antics, dog breath, homemade ice cream and snorty laughter.

We’re delighted to have discovered Ashley, and we look forward to a Practically Green relationship with her. Her stories and advice are terrific, and she shares some of our pet peeves. Wasteful packaging, for one:

“From bags to utensils, plates, cups, and to-go containers, more and more products are being made available for objects that would otherwise sit for years (and years, and years; around a thousand, in fact) inside of a landfill.

“Companies such as Biobag , Ecosafe , Indaco , and Green Genius , among others, carry entirely biodegradable waste bags. From small countertop compost liners, to pet waste bags, tall kitchen bags and large trash and yard waste bags, these companies offer items that can be penetrated, and subsequently consumed, by microbes, unlike plastic bags. Meant to be indestructable, and last literally forever, production of plastics by manufacturers, and use by the public, has resulted in a host of environmental concerns (Incidentally, I’m not so naive as to think that all use of plastics could be supplanted overnight; they’re a deeply embedded component of modern life and transition away from their manufacture and use will undoubtedly take time). For a grouping of biodegradable trash bags, Amazon has a handy compilation.”

For the full story, please visit Design*Sponge, where Ashley is a regular. And thank you, Grace Bonney, the creator of Design Sponge — one of our favorite sources on home design: a buzzing bazaar of creative innovation and inspiring ideas.