The most exciting news is… IT’S BRIGHT GREEN!!! I’m so excited. I need to trim up a little before my impending holiday, so I’m going to try to not use my trusty scooter and use peddle power instead!
I’m exagerating… it’s not exactly new. It’s a hand-me-down. My partner’s mum, Jackie, gave it to me at the weekend. She didn’t really have much of a choice.. her husband Martin was trying to make room in his shed for his flash new bike. So he offered it to me, I was grinning saying “it’s green! it’s green!”. Then he said, “I’d better check with Jackie, she’s had it years and she loves it”…. Being very polite, she didn’t want to disappoint my excited face.. so we crammed it into the car and left before she could change her mind!
PS. Martin has a flash new bike because he is cycling to Paris. Just the 300 miles! He’s clearly mad, but if you feel like encouraging him in his quest and doing a little bit for charity then you can give a little by clicking here

So, in February, we took the big exciting step of moving out of my back room into a proper grown up fancy office. Well, it was more of a medium sized cupboard, but it seemed posh after fighting for space on my kitchen table knee deep in green cleaning paraphernalia. Anyhoo, it soon became home to Ceri and I.
Well, as always with us, it hasn’t gone smoothly! On Tuesday afternoon we were informed that the very nice people that were renting it to us were going bust.. and that we wouldn’t get our deposit back.. and that we had to be out by Friday. Yes, this Friday. Yes, 3 days notice.
Turns out they’ve done it before and make a habit of taking people’s deposits then chucking them out.
We’ve no idea what to do about attempting to get our deposit back, but we’ll try. I don’t think we stand much of a chance. As a word of warning, the lovely people who have taken lots of deposit money from lots of small business and disrupted us all are called MLS Business Centres.
In a panic, we rang round some of our commercial customers to see if they had room for 2 homeless Green Moppers. A couple of kind hearted souls offered us spaces without needing a deposit. Green Mop customers are the BEST! So in the end we took up one of the offers, and we spent all day today moving offices. I’m so greatful to the lovely Fifth Element people who have taken us in!
We’ll be settled in in no time I’m sure!

I don’t mean to go on.. but I’m going to anyway!
Please can we all try to stop the 3 most unnecessary household things that have become a habit for many.
1. Air fresheners.
2. Bleach.
3. Anti-bacterial products.
I’ve already gone on and on (and on and on..) about why not to use these as well as alternatives. So I just thought I’d remind you all to give em up! We don’t need to pollute our homes in order to keep them clean.

So close and yet…
We very nearly got our first franchise off the ground. It didn’t quite work out unfortunately. I was disappointed, but the lovely lady decided to go it alone. I’m sure she’ll do really well, but it’s a huge shame we’re not going to be helping her out.
I completely understand her decision and admit that when I first started Green Mop, I was very determined to go it alone and build my own business from scratch. I can even remember saying out loud “it’s cleaning.. how hard can it be”.
Oh I was SO naive!
I’d never run a business before.. or employed anyone, negotiated contracts, been a sales person or an accountant, done any marketing, been a boss or supplied quotes, provided customer service, chased payments, been responsible for health and safety… the list is HUGE!
I had done a bit of cleaning! But that is only part of what makes Green Mop a business. The learning curve was (and still is) very steep. To have had help with all the other elements at the beginning would have been a big advantage.
Oh well, we wish her the very best of luck in her cleaning business and genuinely hope that it works for her. She’ll work hard and be very successful, I’m sure. (I still think teaming up with Green Mop would have seen her hit the ground running though!)
So, meanwhile, we’ll be seeking out other quality candidates to become our first Green Mop franchisee! We want there to be Green Moppers keeping homes and workplaces clean and green all over the country!

Oh my oh my. We are SO proud to have won the Argus Eco Award for Green Business.

So Ceri, Sharon and I all went to our first ever award do. I had to dig out my old interview suit from my IT days (shiny elbows, ill fitting trousers, and ripped lining in the jacket), Ceri had to wear high heels (she was walking like she’s been riding a horse for 4 days), and Sharon was sporting her best dangly earrings (bling!). We were wined and we wered dined (Barefoot Wines and Due South were 2 of the sponsors!).

Then the awards ceremony started. Our category was 2nd to last, so my nerves were frazzled. I got all psyched up as our category loomed, then the compere said “let’s take a break for the raffle”! Jeeeeeepers..

I’d bought some raffle tickets, and foolishly agreed that Sharon, Ceri and I would share any prizes (although Sharon and I decided that if we won the surfing lesson, Ceri could have that all to herself!). There was huge excitement when we won the £250 shopping spree at Churchill Square… that we’re going to share (sulk)!

Then, back to the awards.. We were up against Nigel’s Eco Store and the Cycling Gardener, both lovely and deserving local Green Businesses. The sponsor of the award was Neilson Active Holidays , and their big cheese read out that we had won.

I can’t tell you how pleased I was! There was a big cheer (even louder than when we won the shopping spree!). Sharon and Ceri had decided to make as much noise as possible (the free wine helped!).

And so we are now Green Mop - the Award Winning green cleaning company!

The Green Moppers have worked so very hard in the last 18 months. Ceri and Sharon in particular have helped so much to make us a success. Green Mop struck lucky when those 2 agreed to be the core of the team. All the girls and boys, both past and present, that have pulled on the Green Mop t-shirt and got stuck in making homes and workplaces clean and fresh have all contributed to the great reputation we have earned. Gen, Alice, Sophie, Jo, Joe, Johnny Sparkles, Hettie, Maria, Apphia, a big thanks.

And our lovely customers. Thank you to those that took the time to nominate us in the first place! And thanks for choosing us to be your cleaners and helping our small green and ethical business to thrive in Brighton and Hove.

Thanks also to the Argus and the sponsors for putting on such a great do. We did have fun!

One last thanks and then I’ll shut up! Thanks to my friends and family for putting up with all the Green Mop trials and tribulations. Josie has to put up with most of it! But Josie and Teen are always there with advice and help and ideas. My family are so proud and supportive and encouraging.

Anyway, back to reality… there’s cleaning that needs doing, so better get on..

Ooo it’s all change here at Green Mop Towers.

Many of our regular customers will already know Ceri Jackson who’s been working with me pretty much since Green Mop began last year. Well, as our little company grows, we’ve decided to split the responsibilities of Commerical and Domestic Cleaning Services.

Ceri will now take care of all our Domestic customers. And I’ll be concentrating on the Commercial side of our business.

As we continue to grow, we need to make sure that the service we provide maintains the high standards that us Green Moppers and the customers expect.

We both still get stuck in and do a lot of cleaning ourselves, so you will still see us scootering about with our feather dusters sticking out of our rucksacks!

And we both want to thank all our customers for helping our little business thrive! We’ll both continue to strive to keep your homes and offices clean and green!

I don’t want to show off or anything…. BUT we’re very proud to have been nominated for an Argus Eco-Award in the Green Business category!

There are some great eco businesses in our area, so I’m not sure how we’ll get on! But it is just great to be nominated. You can see a full list of the nominees and more info here www.theargus.co.uk/ecoawards

Fingers crossed!

Now, as a green cleaner, I am invited into homes to clean em up. Just a little thing I’ve noticed about the people of Brighton and Hove is that they clearly love it here. All but one of my customers has some sort of Brighton memorabilia - pictures of deck chairs on the beach, or of the piers or beach huts, random pebble collections, books on our city, calendars etc. I doubt that happens in many other cities in the UK. What do you think?

It is a great place to live, and clearly the majority of residence are proud of our fab city by the sea.

I know, I know.. you don’t like the idea of a reusable ‘feminine hygene’ thingy. But the benefits have to make it worth considering.

Disposable tampons and pads either end up in the waterways or in landfill. All those menstruating women makes up for a lot of waste.

But the main reason for giving this a go is for your ‘vaginal environment’ (that’s what the Mooncup website calls it! How delicate!). The Mooncup is made from silicon, contains no bleach, deodorisers or absorbancy gels, and it’s never been associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome. Using a Mooncup ‘allows the mucus membranes of your vaginal wall to continue their essential cleansing and protective functions. The Mooncup does not absorb your body’s natural defence mechanisms and will not deposit fibres in your vaginal wall.’

Now, I have a confession.. I’ve not used a Mooncup! I had a hystorectomy at 33 as I had cervical cancer, so I’ve no use for a Mooncup unless I wear it as a hat! I was a tampon user for 20 years, and I don’t remember ever worrying about it. The doctor could never be specific about what the cause was, and it could have happened for a number of reasons. But I genuinely feel we should do our best to choose the healthiest, safest option for our bodies.

So try to get over the eeeuuuuwwwww feeling about having a reusable thingy!

You can find out more, and order directly by going to the  Mooncup website

And my last preach for the day… HAVE REGULAR SMEAR TESTS!

Now then. There’s a stigma, isn’t there. You know, being ‘green’ and all that. Being an ‘eco’ ‘warrior’. ‘Saving’ the ‘Planet’. ‘Over’ ‘using’ ‘apostrophes’. It’s all got a bit of an image problem, don’t you think?

Personally, I don’t have a beard, I don’t wear floaty skirts and cheese cloth. I generally don’t like a sandal (crocs don’t count, they’re comfy). I wash my hair regularly, I smell nice (mostly). I don’t like listening to the hits of Bob Dylan played on the pan pipes, or burning incense, and I don’t really know what hemp is. And I have never been a hugger of trees (not sober anyway).

I am a fairly ordinary, mid (to late!) 30’s woman, almost average height, GSOH (does this sound like a lonely hearts ad?). Anyway, the point is..

NORMAL PEOPLE CAN BE GREEN TOO!

You don’t have to put a wind turbine on your patio. Simple things, little changes, they all add up.

There’s really no need to cuddle any plant life, you don’t know where it’s been!