Looking Back on 2008

As I look back over the past year, I am absolutely amazed by how far Ben and I have come on our quest toward sustainable living. Our lifestyle is much different than it was just a few months ago. This is inspiring to me as I look forward to a new year. Many steps toward sustainability seemed far out of my comfort zone when I started them. With practice, however, they've become normal.

In that vein, I think our three largest lifestyle changes this past year have been as follow:

1. Organics: We took the Mission Organic 2010 challenge and just kept going. Now we buy about 90% of our groceries organic. We've also made commitments to organic clothing, which greatly reduces our impulse purchases.

2. Plastics: We use cloth shopping bags almost exclusively now, and we've eliminated the vast majority of plastics in our kitchen, including plates, bowls, cups, spatulas, tupperware, etc. We're starting to eradicate the plastics in the rest of our house (BPA-laden toothbrush bristles will be the next to go!).

3. Driving: Our progress in this category is far from complete, but we are much better than last December. Ben carpools to work, I bike to my volunteer job, and we both really think before just getting in the car and going. We've cut down on our driving around town, and we've taken most of the excess weight out of our cars (car mats, CD cases, ice scrapers -- in FL). When we do drive, we've been learning to incorporate some of the basic tenets of hypermiling.

We still have plenty of room to grow in each of these categories and will actively work toward becoming better in these ways.

I issue you a challenge. If you are can only commit to a few new sustainable behaviors this coming year, I encourage you to consider one or more of those listed above. These are excellent beginning steps toward making your lifestyle more sustainable, happy, and healthy.

Eco Fashion Sale

Considering it's so soon after the holidays, most of us probably don't need anything right now. However, if you've been needing a new work outfit or if your jeans are getting kinda holey, now is a great time to look at what Green Loop has to offer. Through Jan. 11, they have a wide range of organic and otherwise eco-friendly clothing and accessories (including shoes) on sale 50-60% off.

If you need new clothing and consignment is not an option, the next most eco-conscious option is sustainably grown and manufactured items. Check them out.

Luggage

Traveling for the holidays? Remember to keep your vehicle as light as possible. The less weight your car/plane has to tow, the less gas it must burn. Take only as much luggage as you really need, down to the outfit. No one riding in your back seat? Leave your floor mats at home. In fact, your own weight greatly impacts your mileage. Just another reason to loose some weight!

So, empty out your car, and think before you pack!

Biking as Political Statement

Biking is a fun, healthy, and sustainable hobby that anybody in suburban, urban, or rural areas can enjoy. Perhaps more importantly, though, biking is a political act. Biking to go to a friend's house speaks to people in your neighborhood; biking to go to work speaks to people at your work site; biking to go to the grocery store sends a message to your community at large.

Biking is a political act in the US, and especially in suburbia, because of America's historical love-affair with the single-user, gas-based vehicle. Treating your bike as a means of transportation, not just a child's toy, provides lookers-on with an alternative to the system that brought us a system of sprawl, pollution, and loss of community. To many riders, bikes carry symbolism of the economic and lifestyle system we must create in the face of "peak everything."

You're right: riding your bike is not as fast or easy as driving your car on errands or to work. But try biking to the grocery store just once a month and see how it goes. Then bike to work with a friend once a week. You'll steadily get more in shape and gain confidence in your lifestyle choices. Biking will STILL not be as fast or as easy as driving, but it will be more satisfying than driving ever was. I promise you that.

Once you are more comfortable biking, you may wonder how you can make the transition to biking as transportation easier and more fun for those around you. Simple: ride more often, and ride with friends! Doing these simple things raises community awareness of alternatives to a system that doesn't really make anyone happy. If you live in or near a larger metropolitan area, consider joining a "Critical Mass" ride. These once a month group rides on major roads work to assert bikers' rights to the roadway. Remember, you have all the same rights to use the road as a car driver does. (Of course, all the same traffic laws apply to you, too.)

In fact, riding more often and with more people also helps in a very concrete and measurable manner. The more bicyclists on the road, the fewer injuries bikers incur. It's all a matter of raising awareness and teaching your community to watch for bicycles on the road, not just other cars. [Just for fun, check out these videos put out by Transport for London that illustrate this point about not noticing what you're not looking for.]

Remember, your personal lifestyle decisions effect much more than just your life. In transportation, as in so many arenas, "The personal is political."

Image from http://opensource.boxwith.com/archives/old%20bike.jpg

The Chemistry of Gift-Giving

Scientists doing MRI work on the human brain have found out some interesting things about the release of dopamine and oxytocin. What they've found, in short, is that adults get more pleasure from giving gifts than from receiving them. Children, on the other hand, get more pleasure from receiving gifts than giving them. Read more about the science and experiments here.

What does this have to do with sustainability? Knowing how to maximize pleasure from your holiday (or birthday) gift lists produces a more efficient use of material resources, thus making your gift-giving more sustainable. Why require the consumption of vast amounts of physical resources and energy production if your recipient isn't going to get a large amount of joy from your gift?

In that spirit, this Tree Hugger article lays down four suggestions for the most joyous use of gift resources.

1. "Children should never give gifts to adults - [K]ids get little joy from giving gifts, and adult receive little joy in receiving them. Why waste the planetary resources on creating the physical object? Forget these gifts." Instead, to incorporate a habit of giving rather than just greed and consumption in your children, consider asking them to volunteer with a charitable, educational, environmental, or non-profit organization for a few hours as their gift to you. In this way, children are learning to give back to the community and giving a gift that doesn't require any physical resources at all.

2. "Adults should always give gifts to children - Clearly, this is dopamine all around; adults enjoy giving, and kids enjoy receiving." This does not, of course, mean that you must give children store-bought or environmentally-damaging gifts. Hand-made, second-hand, or even temporary gifts work just as well to light up everyone's dopamine centers without harming the planet.

3. "Adults should give other adults gifts, that are in themselves gifts. This is a tricky one because adults like to give gifts but not receive them. Oftentimes, this one plays itself out as an agreement between parents and adult siblings that no gifts will be exchanged, then everyone goes ahead and buys something for everyone anyways because they want to make themselves feel good! In this case, the best course of action is to give nothing, which is ok and terrific for the environment, if you can deprive yourself of the joy. Another good idea is a donation to the charity of their choice." You don't have to deprive yourself of the joy that giving gives you. Instead of the usual physical gifts, however, choose charitable, service, or consumable (food) gifts. Or give the recipient something s/he really needs, like new underwear or next semester's textbooks. Don't worry if you don't think your recipient will be overwhelmed with child-like joy; according to the science, adult gift recipients rarely are. If you give them something they really need, you are making their lives easier, which is an enormous gift in and of itself.

4. "Children should share in gifts with other children, that have no giver. - This one is even more tricky - how does one enjoy a gift that isn't even given? Aha, this is the miracle of the season, the true Christmas spirit. Frankly, how to generate this type of atmosphere is unclear but when it happens it feels great and is pretty low-impact on the planet - happy thoughts cost the Earth nothing. For starters, I suggest getting the kids high on sugar and let them run around hogwild..." This humorous description is a way of saying 'let the kids enjoy being kids.' Let them give each other the gift of their companionship and fun.

For here or to go?

Let's face it. Sometimes we're all just too lazy or too tired to cook a legitimate meal for ourselves. Take-out, of course, is an excellent option. However, the waste that comes along with carrying out food is NOT such an excellent option. No Impact Man gives his advice on the take-out question. [Find the original article here.]

"Take out tubs, individual action, and changing minds"

Yesterday I posted about the trash I'd generated through eating takeout when I got too busy to cook for myself. Someone commented that eating takeout--in itself--is no problem. Cooking at scale may save energy. The problem is the plastic or cardboard containers that get generated.

Commenters left two suggestions behind for ways to get take-out without making trash. One is to take your own reusable containers to the take-out place yourself. I've done this before and the server liked it so much, he gave me extra food.

Another option is to ask the manager of your favorite food place if they would mind keeping a reusuable container belonging to you on hand. That way, they can deliver to you and you don't have to pick it up. When the delivery man drops off your food, you give him back a second, clean container to take back and store until next time.

Here's what's neat about this kind of idea. When you do it, it generates buzz, because other people are forced to get involved. It's like the glass jar I carry for coffee. Everyone wants to talk about it. Same with the reusable takeout tubs. Everyone will want to talk and it's chance to change a few more minds.

Image from reuseablebags.com

Holiday cards

Holiday cards have been sent and received for this season. They hang beautifully from our doors or refrigerators or bulletin boards. We enjoy them for a month or so, until the holiday spirit fades.

What do you do with old holiday cards? Keep them, of course! Almost every card you receive can make at least one really good gift tag. Some can make three or four! It's a great way to get more enjoyment from your beautiful cards. Once you've cut out some lovely gift tags, recycle with rest of the card. It's easy, cost-effective, and, best of all, green!

Maybe you'll want to send out more cards to your friends and family next year. Be careful, of course, when you're picking out next year's greetings that you don't buy cards that are made of first-use paper and unhealthy inks. Instead, look for cards made of recycled paper and soy- or vegetable-based inks.

Red Stamp, for example, offers over 100 different eco-friendly cards. They even offer photo cards, if that's your tradition, made from recycled paper and printed with soy-based inks. You can find a whole slew of cute holiday cards at Seltzer Goods. Their cards and envelops are made from 100% recycled paper and made in America. They're also printed with veggie-based inks.

Another great option is Etsy, which is an online resource for handmade items from across the nation. Some artists on Etsy use eco-friendly materials in their cards. (I love these, pictured above.) The holiday cards you'll find on Etsy don't cost any more than store-bought options, AND you'll be supporting individual artists, not corporations and sweatshops. It's quite easy to search the entire database on Etsy, so you don't have to look through each artist to find fun holiday cards.

Of course, more creative green card options exist, too. Zanisa, for instance, sells cards with Christmas tree ornaments made from handmade recycled paper embedded with seeds. These cool cards serve three purposes: you send them as holiday greetings, the ornaments decorate the receipients' trees, and, if the receipients throw the ornaments in some dirt after the holidays, the world is beautified -- and carbon sequestered -- by some pretty flowers. (Don't have any spare dirt? Consider guerilla gardening.)

Another option with auxiliary benefits: getting your holiday cards from a non-profit organization. The Sierra Club, for example, offers lovely card choices made from recycled paper and soy-based inks that feature nature photographs.

Remember, holiday cards typically go on deeply discounted sale right after Christmas. If you're the type to plan for next Christmas on Dec. 26, be sure to look for cards made from recycled paper and soy-based inks. And enjoy!

Holiday lights and trees

The holidays are close upon us now. If you're still thinking about getting some lights or a tree for this year, learn how to make your holiday more eco-friendly. Even if you're done decorating for the season, take note of these tips for next year. (Plus, the days after Christmas can be a great time to stock up on more sustainable holiday supplies for future years.)

Holiday lights: Look for LED light strings. All the arguments for LED lights over incandescent bulbs in your house still apply. They are cheaper to run, they use less energy, and they last practically forever. And year by year they are easier and easier to find in stores. Home Depot, for example, has a TON of options. So do Sears and Kmart.

Trees: This is a tough one. A really tough one. In fact, there are very few good options here. You could forgo the tree although, the best option, or you could decorate a tall potted plant instead. But if you must have an honest-to-goodness Christmas tree, there's a lot to consider.

First, consider an outdoor potted tree that you can bring in for the week before Christmas. Or planting your own Christmas trees. In six or so years, you'll be able to harvest your first one, and, so long as you plant one a year, you'll be set from then on out. Both of those options are realistic for the suburban or rural homeowner.

If you live in an urban area, an apartment, a rental property, or a condo, you have a different set of options. Some cities have Christmas tree rental programs where you can have a live potted tree in your home for the holidays, then send it back out to pasture, so to speak, for the rest of the year. This is a great program. Your next-best option after that is an organically-grown tree. These are getting easier to find.

If none of the above options work for you, you are now in a toss-up situation: conventionally-grown chopped down tree vs. artificial tree. Conventional tree farms use a ton of chemical pesticides and herbicides. Most conventional trees to reach your neighborhood also had to be shipped a long way, leaving a large carbon footprint behind. If you choose to go with this option, buy the most local tree you can, and research how to environmentally dispose of it (using a wood chipper to produce mulch is good, as are programs that use them for fish habitats in lakes -- see what's available in your area).

Artificial trees offer much more convenience and can be used year after year. However, most are made of unsustainable plastic, contain lead, and are produced in China. Again, the carbon footprint of that transportation is large. If you choose to go with this option, make sure you take good care of your tree so that you may use it for decades. Also, do not buy a new one. Look for one at thrift stores or through the classifieds (Craigslist counts too!). In this way, you are not adding to the ecological impact of your tree. In fcct, you are taking it out of the waste system, which is always a good thing.

For more of Christmas trees, check out this article from Green Promise.

For ideas on green tree-trimming and home decoration, see Crunchy Chicken's article Greening Your Holiday Decorations.

Image from http://www.thelasvegasadventurer.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/tree_recycle.jpg

Mission statement

I've recently gained a few new readers, so I'd like to extend another welcome to the site. I hope you find information on this blog that is relevant to your life. If there's a topic you'd like to know more about, please mention it in a comment to any one of my posts. A number of my past posts have been "by request," and I'm more than happy to oblige.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to reiterate to readers -- new and old -- the idea behind this blog. I want to make it easier for you to live a healthier, happier, more sustainable life. Sometimes I tell you about my personal experiences "going green." Other times I share the most interesting articles from the myriad of environmental blogs I read. Finally, some of my posts are meant to be reference sources for you. Don't worry about remembering all the details. Just head on back here when you're actually in need of the information, and the post will be right here, waiting for you.

Welcome everyone! Let me know what I can do to make your going green easier!

Cute kids!

I joke that Ben and I are gonna have the coolest kid on the block. I mean, just look at all the cute sustainable kids-wear that's already out today. Imagine what the selection will be in a few years!

UglyFish Organics has adorable music-themed tops made from organic cotton. Shirts say: "Listen," "Strum Something" (my favorite), "Old Soul," and "Find Your Bass Line." Perfect for your own little grunge star!

Under the Nile offers organic Egyptian cotton clothing, cloth diapers, toys, blankets, etc. Nothing too funky on this site. Just lots of healthy, organic choices in pastels.

Chapter One Organics has really fun, colorful clothes for infants and toddlers. It also offers blankets, bibs, and even a children's book about factory farming vs. organic farming. This brand is a member of Co-Op America, whose "mission is to harness economic power—the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace—to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society."

Swell Foop also has organic, co-op cotton. They make clothes for infants, toddlers, and adults that feature adorable animals on 'em. Plus, they donate 10% of their proceeds to environmental organizations that can help you help them save the world.

Bebop Baby Shop features cute clothes in organic cotton, including the innovative kimono style onesie. Footwear, hats, leg warmers, too. Organic slings and baby carriers. Bamboo products and natural toys. Really, quite a selection to meet many of your baby needs.

Little Chickie Wear sells 100% organic cotton onesies, tops, and hats with cute, simple designs.

Shoes are no problem either! Check out Satch & Sol for some adorable, eco-friendly, fair trade shoes. Much, much better for humanity than the normal sweatshop-made varieties.

So, next time you go to a baby shower, or a little one's birthday comes around, think sustainable!

Emergency Ride Home

Check out the following article from No Impact Man on a growing solution to newly-converted greens who are hesitant to leave their car in the dust. Certainly not a complete solution, but one of many that are growing into viable realities. [Find the original article here.]

"If you'd like to ditch the car but worry about emergencies"

Suppose you'd like to commit to leaving your car in the driveway or getting rid of it altogether and instead making your commute by foot, bike, carpool or public transit.

You want to save the money, skip the traffic jams, get the exercise, cause fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and have less stress. It's just that you're worried about emergencies.

What if you're stuck at work without your car and your child has an emergency? Or your older parent? Or you got last minutes tickets to the game or even a voicemail from that hot wannabe date who finally said yes?

Well, suppose somebody promised they'd pay to get you home by taxi if that happened?

According to "Penny Nickel" at Money and Values, that's just what more than 50 cities and counties will do if you agree to leave your car it home:

"Guaranteed Ride Home (or Emergency Ride Home) programs are designed to get commuters off the road and onto public transit or another method of transportation, by helping assuage fears about how to get home in emergency circumstances. They are often sponsored by counties, cities, or transit agencies, but may also be sponsored by individual employers. If you enroll in such a program, then the sponsor will cover the costs of you getting home if unexpected circumstances interfere with your regular plans. Each program has its own rules, but typically "emergencies" are defined as unpredictable events like illness/injury of yourself or a family member, unscheduled overtime (verified by your employer), an emergency at your home (like a flood/break-in/fire/etc), or the early departure of your carpool driver. Covered events for bikers and walkers may also include severe weather.

"If you register for the program, you'll qualify for a set number of trips home per year (often two to six.) If an emergency arises, typically you call the Guaranteed Ride Home coordinator and they'll call you a cab, although in some programs you can skip that step and just call the cab yourself (either filing for reimbursement later or using some sort of voucher.) Some programs cover the tip, some don't. They may also cover the costs of a stop at your child's school or daycare on the way home."

Go here for Money and Values' excellent list of municipalities offering the scheme. And don't forget, if your local government isn't on board, to check and see if your employer offers the program.

GoodGuide

If you're looking for a quick and easy reference to the sustainability and eco-friendliness of your household products, consider GoodGuide.

The website says, "GoodGuide provides the world's largest and most reliable source of information on the health, environmental, and social impacts of the products in your home."

It also lists the following utilities:

• Find Safe, Healthy & Green Products that protect you and your family.
• Search or Browse over 60,000 Personal Care & Household Chemical Products, and see what’s really beneath the label.
• Get Expert Advice & Recommendations on products and quickly learn the impacts of what you buy.
• Find better products, and make purchasing decisions based on what’s important to you.
• Create a personalized Shopping List with the products that are right for you & your family.

Checking it out, I was pleasantly surprised by the details of analysis on each product. Because GoodGuide is only in its beta, not every product you may want info on will be on the site yet. But it's sure to get better and more comprehensive over time. Check it out!

"Eco-Pregnancy Makes for Healthy Babies"

Check out this article from Low Impact Living:

Many women discover the green lifestyle when they are expecting, or become moms. Wanting to do the best you can for your child includes considerations that you make before your baby is even born – after all, that’s why you’ve given up wine, right? Everyone knows that eating right and getting enough rest will help both mother and baby be healthy, but the green movement has opened our eyes to the effects that the world around us can have as well.

Back in 2005, a frightening study by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found chemicals in the blood of the umbilical cords from 10 newborn babies. These chemicals were linked to cancer, birth defects, and hormone disruptions, and included lead, mercury and PCBs. Since then, moms-to-be have demanded more information about reducing the impact of the chemical soup that we all live in.

We Are What We Eat

According to most studies, it’s not clear whether organic food has higher nutritional value than its non-organic counterparts. Regardless, one thing is for sure: organic food contains fewer chemicals. Organic food is grown without artificial fertilizers, conventional pesticides, or sewage sludge, and processed without ionizing radiation and food additives. That stuff is gross, whether you’re pregnant or not. To label a food product organic, it must be certified by the National Organic Program, which is run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). A USDA Organic seal indicates that the product contains at least 95% organic ingredients, so look for this label.

Eating the fresh fruits and vegetables recommended for everyone, but particularly pregnant women, may also help you to avoid Bisphenol-A (BPA), a toxic chemical found in the linings of food cans. Most recently linked to plastic baby bottles, it can also be found in canned infant formula, as well as canned adult foods like soup, fruit and soda. BPA has been linked to breast cancer and infertility, and there is concern that exposure can affect fetal and infant brain development. Scary stuff, so try to avoid processed foods and stick to real, whole food whenever possible.

Once you have that food home, it’s important to prepare it carefully. Use cast iron or stainless steel cookware – Teflon and other non-stick surfaces have been shown to emit toxic chemicals when preheated to high temperatures, which can occur in just a few minutes. In fact, these chemicals are a known hazard to pet birds, causing lung hemorrhaging and death, so it can’t be good for us either. Particles of non-stick surfaces are also found in food itself.

Most pregnant women know to eat only low mercury fish, avoiding species like tuna and swordfish. For a complete list of sustainable and healthy seafood, download a Seafood Watch card from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. You should also filter your tap water, as pollutants may lurk there. Check out the EWG’s Tap Water Quality Database to see what your city’s water may include, then take a look at our recent post on water filters to help you decide on the one that’s right for you.

Personal Care and Cleaning Products

Without knowing it, we slather chemicals on ourselves in alarming quantities. Women, on average, use 12 personal care products per day. Look for better choices products in the EWG’s searchable Skin Deep Database. The database includes a rating for each product on its developmental/reproductive toxicity, which includes birth defects and developmental delays for children. Phthalates are particularly harmful for boys, while the EWG recommends that everyone avoid perfume, cologne, or products with added fragrance. The database also has a section for products just for kids.

Cleaning products are another key source of toxic chemicals in the home. Whatever you spray on your counters or floors makes its way into your system and thus into your baby. Check out our selection of eco-friendly cleaning supplies, use plants to clean the air, and open windows whenever possible.

Make Your Nursery a Safe Space

It’s just as important to provide a healthy nursery for your little one! Visit our post on green kids, including green furniture, bedding, low-VOC paints, plus the age-old debate over diapers: cloth or disposable? Be careful when painting or renovating while pregnant, as the chemicals can pass through to your baby.

Let’s Have a Baby Shower

OK, enough of the scary stuff, it’s time to celebrate! Turn your baby shower green by asking for pre-worn clothes and other used goods, or natural products. Check out environmentally-friendly invitations and favors, like those at ecoparti. Request non-plastic items and reusable packaging to inspire guests’ creativity. They can wrap used books in an organic cotton baby blanket, or give a bundle of healthy, eco-friendly baby skin-care products.

Now all that’s left is to actually have the baby!

Un-clog Your Drains

Don't you hate it when your sinks get clogged up? Drain cleaner is one of the worst substances environmentally that you could ask for. What are your other options?

For starters, you could do it manually. With a plunger. Preferably a different one than you use in the toilet. See here.

Or mix a couple of kitchen supplies: 1/4 cup baking soda and 1 cup vinegar. Leave it down there for 15 minutes, then rinse with boiling water. See here.

Finally, there are eco-friendly ready-made products available. Look for "enzymatic biological drain cleaners on the market today, such as Earth Friendly Products' Enzyme Drain Cleaner... These make use of a natural bacterial and enzyme mixture to open and keep drains clear. And unlike sodium hydroxide they are non-caustic and will not facilitate combustion." See this article for more info.

What works best for you?

Wrapping those holiday gifts

Choosing a method of wrapping gifts can be a challenge when you're learning to be green. Let's look at the options and figure out together, shall we?

Option 1: One certainly does not want to use traditional wrapping paper or gift bags. Full of chemicals, heavy metals, and synthetic inks, it is certainly the least green source. Plus, purchasing it means more trees must be harvested and processed, and more wrapping paper must be shipped out, all with a high carbon price tag.

[Do note that there are more eco-friendly wrapping papers and bags available out there, made of hemp, etc. These solve many of the problems with traditional wrapping papers. However, you are still wasting resources unnecessarily, even if those resources are renewable. Options 3 and 4, below, are better choices.]

Option 2: Last year, I hand-decorated a couple of brown paper grocery bags and used those to wrap my family's gifts. A much better option than traditional wrapping paper. Plus, the gifts I gave had extra value added because of the time and care I put into creating my own wrapping paper. This year, however, we bring reusable grocery bags into stores with us, so we only have one spare paper bag lying around to be used.

Intentionally getting paper bags at the grocery store in order to wrap with them is not appropriate. It requires the production of resources separate from those that would otherwise need to be made. Bring your cloth bags to the store. It doesn't count as "reusing" if you didn't have to use it in the first place. So, paper bags are a no-go.

Option 3: Found paper, on the other hand, is a good idea. If you get the newspaper, use pages of that to wrap gifts. But, again, do not buy a newspaper specifically for wrapping paper!

Try to use the wrapping paper from last year's gifts if you removed it carefully and kept it. And this Christmas try to save the wrapping paper that other people use on your gifts.

But after you open those gifts wrapped in traditional wrapping paper, consider asking the gift-giver to wrap your gifts using a no-waste method next year. My parents have been doing so for years and don't mind. They realize that opening gifts on Christmas morning would be less enjoyable for Ben and me if we were feeling guilty about the paper our gifts had required. Keep this in mind as you wrap gifts for others. You want them to feel happy, not guilt-ridden.

*Note: You can recycle paper with tape on it. Remember that over the holidays!

Option 4: Over the past year, I've been trying to wrap all the presents I give others in cloth. I get odd size measures of cloth from thrift store, thus taking the cloth out of the waste stream since it's too small to be used for large, grand projects. (It is really quite easy to find cloth in any thrift store. You typically have your choice of colors and patterns. It's not a sacrifice when it comes to style.) Cloth is a good choice because it is extremely apt for reuse, so it creates no waste.

For birthdays, etc. it has been possible for me to experiment with sewing the fabric into appropriately-sized sacks or draw-string bags. Again, I think this form of gift wrapping is more meaningful than using traditional wrapping paper because I am putting a large amount of time, thought, and effort into each gift. I hope this makes the recipients feel good about themselves because it is, in part, my way of expressing how special they are to me.

Christmas, however, is overwhelming. Gifts for all our parents and siblings equals a ton of sewing (and a ton of time for me, since I'm not too good with my sewing machine yet). It's possible to use cloth just like wrapping paper, except you use safety pins or just ribbons to hold it together instead of tape.

But there's a prettier way.

Furoshiki, the Japanese art of using cloth swatches to wrap and carry any- and everything, is an excellent idea for gift wrapping. The picture above shows just some of the shapes you can wrap and how your gifts will turn out looking. Check out this link for more information. Lots more info can be found by performing a simple Internet search for "furoshiki."

So, in conclusion:
-Traditional wrapping paper/gift bags = really bad
-Paper grocery bags = better, as long as you recycle it (but you're better off using cloth grocery bags exclusively when you go shopping and, thus, not procuring any of these bags to use)
-Reused paper (like newspaper or last year's gift wrapping) = good, as long as you recycle it (but these materials still have a limited life span)
-Cloth swatches or bags = really good

If you get stuck, just remember your three R's (recycle, reuse, reduce).

No, go enjoy the holidays!

Image found at http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2008/01/02/furoshiki-elegant-ja.html

Organic or not Organic -- That is the Question

Fairly frequently articles come up outlining how important it is to buy certain foods organic while other foods are less dangerous in their "traditional" form. Find a list you trust, memorize a few key foods that you often buy, and get shopping!

Here's the information from one such article:

Should Buy Organic
-Milk
-Meats
FRUITS:
-Peaches
-Apples
-Nectarines
-Strawberries
-Cherries
-Grapes
-Pears
-Raspberries
-Plums
-Oranges
-Tangerine
-Cantaloupe
-Lemon
-Honeydew
-Grapefruit
-Watermelon
-Blueberries
VEGETABLES:
-Sweet Bell Peppers
-Celery
-Lettuce
-Spinach
-Potatoes
-Carrots
-Green Beans
-Hot Peppers
-Cucumbers
-Cauliflower
-Mushrooms
-Winter Squash
-Tomatoes
-Sweet Potatoes

Don't Have to Buy Organic
-Avocado
-Banana
-Pineapple
-Kiwi
-Mango
-Papaya
-Asparagus
-Broccoli
-Cabbage
-Onions

Image from http://tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:RIA2pRwDp4HIpM:http://whatscookingamerica.net/Fruit/AvocadoPhoto.jpg

Square Foot Gardening

Some of you already know about "square foot gardening." Developed primarily by Mel Bartholomew in the 1980s and perhaps even more useful today than ever, square foot gardening is based on the concept of planting and growing only as much as you'll actually eat. It is a well-developed system that seems to have thoroughly covered its bases. I've slowly but surely been introducing its precepts into my own gardening experiments.

Wired gives us a pretty nice overview of the concepts of square foot gardening here. But it's easy to find more information about it online, and I really recommend Bartholomew's book. If you're interested in doing a little bit of gardening yourself, even if you live in an apartment or condo, consider reading up on square foot gardening. It's a really straight-forward and easy method that produces happy gardeners!

Image from http://howto.wired.com/mediawiki/images/thumb/Squarefootgarden1.jpg/300px-Squarefootgarden1.jpg

Oh, Teflon!

Ben's going to kill me. I'm going to have to go through our kitchen and get rid of more pots and pans and utensils...again. Turns out Teflon was even more dangerous that I knew. I thought it was just a problem if it was scratched and the Teflon got into your food. WRONG. At high temperatures (you know, like the ones you cook at) it emits toxic particles and gases.

Read this article, complete with graphs and scary stuff. And ask for some safe and healthy stainless steel and pans for the holidays!

UPDATE: Here's a little further discussion. Thanks, Amy!

Mind the Gap

Great news! Organic clothing is getting easier for the masses to get their hands on. Gap now offers organic denim jeans for both men and women; a few women's organic cotton tops; and men's organic cotton long johns. Even more importantly, the Baby Gap has a whole load of organic pieces. Banana Republic seems to be following suit, too.

If you would like to move to a healthier, more natural wardrobe but aren't comfortable ordering online, you're in luck! My guess is that Old Navy (the most affordable of the stores in the Gap family) will join the trend soon. Happy shopping!

Animal fat on your laundry?

Guess what? Dryer sheets and fabric softeners are almost all made of tallow. Animal fat. All the more reason to line dry your clothes and/or be extra sure that the brand you use is truly animal free.

Check out Vegan, Eco-Friendly Dryer Sheets and Fabric Softeners from Associated Content for more information and *fat-free* washer and dryer products. Method, Mrs. Meyer's, Attitude, Ecover, Seventh Generation, and Natural Choices, for example, are some good options.

Likewise, Vegan/Kosher/Halal Alert: Fabric Softeners are Made from Rendered Animal Fat covers some good details. For example, the TreeHugger article says that the ingredient to be on the lookout for is dihydrogenated tallow dimethyl ammonium chloride, "a derivative of rendered fat from cattle, sheep and horses. Just boil it down and mix with ammonium. After a series of chemical pit stops, it comes out a quaternary ammonium compound... effectively coat your clothing with lipids, (fats) making the fibers soft to the touch." Yummy, eh?

Be careful about which brands you choose if you use either of these products!

Indoor Plants

As winter comes, more of us may be staying inside a little more often. A great idea for the indoor months: potted plants!

LiveScience's article The Environmental Impact of Indoor Plants tells us why.

The primary reason is "phytoremediation, or using plants to remove and retain toxins. This is where toxins like carbon monoxide, some volatile organic compounds (VOCs) or even cyanide might be absorbed and converted by the plant, while heavy metals are absorbed and retained in the plant. Indoor plants can be great at absorbing VOCs from paint or cleaning supplies so you aren't inhaling them."

Ben and I like to try to have a potted plant or two in every room where we spend a lot of time. We have six broccoli plants going in the bedroom; an ivy and some cat grass in the den; an aloe vera in Ben's office; and mint (and more cat grass...) in the guest bath. Not that hard. Especially if you grow useful plants like the mint, brocolli, and cat grass, or desert plants like the aloe vera (I can't even tell you the last time we watered that thing, but it's growing strong.)

Give it a try. Comment to let us all know which plants are easy and which are hard. And let us know if you have any problems.

[Thanks, Eric, for sharing the original article with me!]

Cans and BPA

Ok, so I am thoroughly freaked out. I basically live off of soup for lunch...everyday. But that's going to change after this week. Turns out that food cans are almost ALL lined with BPA-laden plastic. I should have known, but I've been in denial. Surely, the organic brands I live on wouldn't use BPA in their cans. Nope...

Skim through this article to see whether or not your favorite canned food/soup company uses BPA-free cans. Campbell's, Swanson, Nestle, and Carnation cans do use BPA, of course. But so do Amy's, Muir Glen, Wolfgang Puck, Whole Foods/365, and Annie's.

So, what do you eat for lunch??

A Healthy Nursery

When you're setting up a nursery for your little one or looking into baby shower gifts, remember to choose items that are good for baby and good for Mother (Earth). Amenity Modern Organic Living has a new nursery line with crib accessories, blankets, pillows, and furniture. Adorable prints are just the icing on the cake, as these products are make of organic and sustainable materials. Choosing organic materials for baby is vital, since conventionally grown cotton is one of the most pesticide-laden crops grown.

Amenity has organic bedding for adult beds, too, as well as table runners, placemats, napkins, wall decor, throws, and more. Treat yourself to some pesticide-free cotton, too!

For more options, Egg has a whole line of organic baby clothes and bedding.

Dish Soap

I know that the people who read my blog come from a lot of different places in their eco journeys. Some are pretty far along, making their own shampoos and cleaners at home and commuting to work on their bikes. Others are, let's face it, skeptical of the changes that they have to make as we face "peak everything." Most of us are, of course, somewhere in the middle.

So, for those of you who are too far along to need anyone to talk you out of your chemical-laden brands that you've become attached to, skip ahead to a different article. For those of you who are at the beginning of your journey still, I bring you scientific proof that these changes are going to be ok. You will survive. You will not be making sacrifices in cleanliness, utility, or happiness. Promise.

The following article is from the TreeHugger blog. It’s about how environmentally-friendly dishwashing soap works just as well as the chemical-laden brands you’re used to!

“Earth Friendly Product's 'New Wave High-Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel' held its own against Cascade in an independent study showing that these phosphate-free cleaners can perform just as well as conventional cleaners. Most cleaners give the impression that they add enough toxic chemicals to make them ultra strong and therefore able to obliterate any germ they come in contact with. Now its becoming more apparent that not only do we not need toxic chemicals near our family and in our homes, but they also don't necessarily provide any additional benefit.

“The test looked at ph-levels, solubility and anti-suds formation. Both solutions performed equally well when it came to removing dirt and grime from dishes. Then dishes were inspected for spotting and filming and both received high scores. Cascade had a higher ph-level: 11 compared with a 7 for New Wave (their site states that the ph level is 4-5). Plates and bowls were covered with egg yolks, buttermilk, tomato juice, butter, powdered milk, and spaghetti sauce and then run through a dishwasher.

“Conventional dishwashing detergents can contain phosphates, 1.4 dioxane, chlorine bleach, formaldehyde and caustics. Several states, including Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Vermont and Washington all have legislation banning phosphates in products by 2010, and Massachusetts and Michigan (along with Canada) are also considering similar legislation.

“The Wave High Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel dish detergent is formaldehyde/caustic/chlorine-free, and is plant-based and 100% biodegradable. Earth Friendly Products Co. has four manufacturing facilities strategically spread throughout the US to reduce the distance traveled from production to the customer. The company also has what it calls their 'Freedom List' which is a list of all of the items that their products do not contain. The line has also won several awards, including Natural Home Magazine's 'Readers Choice Award' for Best Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products and the 2007 PETA Proggy Award for Best Line of Cruelty-Free Household Products.”

Winter Sealing

For those of you out there who live in a place that has a winter, these tips could be very useful in helping you reduce your carbon footprint over the coldest months of the year.

This article on the Low Impact Living blog covers lots of helpful hints in sealing up your place this winter! It covers everything from locating leaks to assembling the right group of supplies to the actual insulation touch-ups themselves.

Disposable Dinnerware

Having a huge party and can't get enough real plates, bowls, and/or platters for the crowd? Consider VerTerra's "organic and compostable dinnerware make of fallen leaves."

The website says of its dinnerware, "Each piece is made from 100% renewable and compostable plant matter and water. No chemicals, waxes or dyes, like those found in disposable paper and plastic options. No harmful toxins that can leach into your food. No worrying. It’s also the most durable and versatile single-use product available—use it to reheat n the microwave, bake in the oven, or cool in the fridge."

Furthermore, you don't have to worry about human rights violations when it come to these products. "VerTerra products are made in South Asia, where our employees receive fair wages in safe working conditions and are provided access to healthcare. Our production process is simple and transparent: after collecting fallen leaves, we apply steam, heat and pressure to transform the leaves into durable products that will naturally biodegrade in 2 months."

Easy to order online. At less than $1 per piece, you can't afford not to be green.

Lofts and Space Savers

In their efforts to live more sustainably, greens around the world are reducing the amount of "stuff" in their homes. Some greens are reducing their carbon footprints even further by downsizing their houses. If you're one of the people who find themselves living in a small abode, consider skimming through TreeHugger's article Less is the New More.

I kinda can't wait to move to a city condo somewhere. And when I do, a super chic loft system like the one pictured here will really help make a small flat go a long way.

Hair Dye

So excited to hear about Act Naturals hair coloring options! I've kinda missed the fun of changing my hair color periodically. But I certainly did not want to get the chemicals of traditional hair dye on my scalp, in my lungs, or even in my home.

Act Naturals/Advanced Cosmetic Technologies is different. It is vegan, 100% plant based, and "cruelty free" (no animal testing). There is no ammonia or PPD in it either.

You can choose permanent or semi-permanent dyes in an exciting array of colors. A number of browns (including "chocolate mahogany" -- oh, how exotic!), blondes, and reds.

If you give it a try (or know of another natural, healthy brand), let me know!

Candles

As the holidays approach, you may be thinking about lighting up...candles, that is. But think twice before you light the traditional paraffin wax kind. According to the American Lung Association, paraffin candles emit 11 documented toxins (see EcoFabulous's article on great candles). Unfortunately, it is very likely that all the candles you have in your cupboard are made of paraffin wax.

You don't want to release major lodes of toxins in your home, but you'd hate to give up candles. You're in luck! There are many options for healthy and eco-friendly candles. Soy-based wax, for example, provides an excellent choice. Check out A Green Candle Company, BsaB, It's a Soy, McSoy Wax, and many others. Just Google it! There are plenty of varieties and fragrances to choose from. Soy wax candles can even be found somewhat easily in stores, too!

Apart from soy wax candles, you can also look into beeswax candles. Again, lots of options online and in nice stores. For an example, see Bluecorn Naturals. Much more natural than petroleum-based ones.

Worried about your birthday cake? Fear not. Little Star Creative Parties offers beeswax birthday candles in a happy rainbow of colors.

Remember to look for soy and beeswax alternatives in candles to keep your family and environment healthy!

Green Office Supplies

Each of us use office supplies on a daily basis, whether its just the occasional pen of the software engineer or the wall-to-wall school supplies of the teacher.

Luckily, green office supplies aren't hard to find online. Check out The Green Office for some great options across the board. Then, BeGreen has a line of pens, mechanical pencils, hi-lighters and markers made from at least recycled materials. Refillable pens are also an option. Check out Woody Pens and Wheely Pens to see some. For your paper needs, New Leaf offers recycled copy paper, and Mead offers notebooks of recycled paper. You'll also find New Leaf copy paper at Kinko's now! It's also a good idea to look into refillable dry erase markers if you use a white board often. See Neuland or AusPen if you're interested in these.

For some further reading, skim Planet Green's back-to-school article, which outlines some green office supplies and offers a thorough discussion of environmentally-friendly paper. Or Earth 911's 8 Ways to Green Your Office Supplies.

Ferm Living

Looking for something to freshen up the look of your house or apartment? Ferm Living offers some cute options.

For the kitchen: 100% organic tea towels. Could. Not. Be. More. Fun.

For the walls: Wall stickers! Large, removable stickers of fun, simple, silhouette designs. Many depict nature (trees, bamboo, flowers, birds, etc.) Really a great invention for apartments, dorms, or rental properties.

Also: Wall paper, pillows, cards, books, ornaments.

MeetWays.com

Tree Hugger ran an interesting story about Meetways.com.

The article reads, "Meeting half way is an old concept for cutting down the distance two people have to travel to get to one another. With everyone warily eyeballing gas prices and taking up bikes or a good pair of shoes as a preferable mode of transportation, shortening the travel distance and meeting half way seems even more appealing.

"But how do you pick where to meet, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the area? There’s a cool website that does the work for you and makes meeting in the middle more of an adventure.

"Meetways.com lets users enter in two addresses plus the type of place where two people would want to converge. So say you’re trying to get together with a client from across town and you’d like to talk over coffee. Enter in your two addresses and “coffee” and Meetways figures out the exact middle point, then gives you coffee shops surrounding that point. Users can find a favorite place that’s equidistant, or discover a place they’ve never tried before to make it an adventurous outing."

It's a small step, to be sure, but every little step helps!

Sustainable Lunches

Bringing your lunch with you to work or school has the potential to greatly reduce the amount of trash you produce. At home you can buy in larger bulk and separate food into single-serving sized reusable containers.

Ben and I have made a few steps in the right direction so far as lunch is concerned. We use reusable lunch boxes instead of paper bags; we bring cloth napkins instead of paper ones; we use glass food containers to transport last night's leftovers; we tote real silverware to and from work; we wash and reuse our plastic baggies. Yet we know we still have a long way to go.

Want a little help getting started with making your lunch more sustainable? Check out "Kids Konserve." You can find cloth napkins, reusable lunch sacks, stainless steel drink bottles, single-serving sized non-plastic food containers, and even "food kozies," which the site describes as "reusable alternative to plastic baggies, plastic wrap and foil...recycled, FDA approved, non-toxic, non-leaching, recyclable PE plastic...does not contain Bisphenol-A (BPA)."
The site even has a waste-free lunch kit that includes everything you need to get started.

So when your box of Ziplocks is running low or your package of paper napkins is empty, move toward a more sustainable lunch routine. And I, for one, would love to get my hands on a couple of food kozies!

UPDATE: To-Go Ware also offers an exciting line of dishes and flatware for the road. Check out their beautiful array of bamboo forks, spoons, chop sticks, and knives in lovely recycled plastic wraps. They also have stainless steel containers with snug tops that are perfect to bring your lunch with you to work or for bringing home left-overs from a restaurant.

Reducing Plastic in Your Life

Life Less Plastic is an inspiring (if irregular) blog about one woman's journey to live completely plastic-free. She recently had an article for the Dallas Morning News, and I'm including the text below.

I think we all can identify with her sentiments, being at times overwhelmed and discouraged by the magnitude of our unsustainable habits. But that's not the whole story. We also get to feel accomplishment every time we make lifestyle changes, even small ones. We get to live healthier, more wholesome, more fulfilling lives because of our efforts.

How I Gave Up Plastic
by Jeanne Haegele

Bad habits are hard to break, but sometimes you just have to try. At least, that's what I've been telling myself for the past year as I've attempted to give up plastic.

Why on earth would anyone give up plastic? There are ample reasons.

Americans send huge amounts of plastic to landfills each year – almost 60 billion pounds in 2006 alone. Some plastic never biodegrades, and most of what does takes hundreds of years. It is difficult to recycle, and evidence of plastic's negative health effects is mounting. Then there's the Great Pacific Garbage Patch – a vast, swirling soup in the Pacific Ocean where wildlife is threatened by plastic refuse trapped in the currents.

Last autumn, thinking over these worrisome facts on a bike ride through the streets of Chicago, I started to wonder whether it would be possible to live without plastic. It seemed unlikely, especially since everything in the supermarket is wrapped, if not double-wrapped, in the stuff. How could I avoid it?

But I decided to go for it. I would conduct an experiment and give up everyone's favorite polymer.

Looking back now at those first few months, I understand why people feel green fatigue. Learning to live without plastic wasn't easy. I had to throw out so many of my old routines and rethink fundamental aspects of my life.

Grocery shopping was my greatest challenge. I remember my initial trip to the the supermarket, when I first learned that so many of my normal standbys were off-limits. Crackers, chips, cookies, pasta and dozens of other favorites were out, and I had no idea what to buy. Only a few items came home with me that day – and even some of those, like the canned tuna and milk, had hidden plastic in their packaging (aluminum cans and paper milk cartons are lined with a thin layer of plastic). I spent those first few weeks a bit hungry.

But with some practice, grocery shopping became surprisingly easy. Fruits and veggies are a much bigger part of my diet now, and I've discovered that several stores in my area have bulk bins with enough products to keep me happy – cereal, oatmeal, granola, nuts, dried fruit, oatmeal, rice and chocolate candy are some of my favorites. And I still buy milk (in a glass container) and meat (wrapped in paper at the deli), and use my own cloth produce and grocery bags. Eating well has been not a problem – and the cost savings are significant.

Groceries haven't been my only dilemma, though. Most of my favorite toiletries are packaged in plastic. Searching for a shampoo replacement has been a constant struggle, and conditioning my hair with a vinegar solution, while effective, makes me worry about smelling like a salad. And do you know how hard it is to find plastic-free makeup? Difficult enough that I've basically given up. Still, even these have been changes for the better; I use very few toiletries now, and I am, once again, saving a lot of cash.

So, like kicking a nail-biting problem, I gave up plastic – a bad habit that was hurting the environment – and I'm stronger for it. I've tested my boundaries, forced myself to think critically about my actions and developed a simpler way of life. I'm happier and healthier than ever.

I know I have more bad habits, still unnoticed or unchecked. But with a little effort, I know I can get rid of them, too. It just takes a true dedication to change, little by little. A commitment to drive less, adjust my thermostat, even eat less meat.

At first, breaking these habits will seem difficult; it did when I gave up plastic. But this experiment has shown me that the hardest thing about making changes is breaking old patterns, patterns that comfort you or help you make mundane decisions but don't truly influence your quality of life. Getting greener seems difficult at first, but it only takes small steps to get you on your way.

As for me, the more steps I take, the less I miss the old bad habits. And the more I learn that it's not the minor hardships that matter in the end.

Eating Local

Eating local is an extremely important part of living sustainably in the modern world. When you choose locally grown/raised/harvested food, you are dramatically reducing the carbon footprint you take on when you by food that has been shipped long distances (gasoline and diesel needed for that), kept cool or frozen (loads of energy required for either of those). Plus, buying local stimulates the local economy. Not to mention that food grown on smaller establishments are more likely to be organic/less pesticide-laden.

Luckily, it's getting easier and easier to do so. People living in the rural US have always been able to grow some of their own food and probably get some from neighbors too. In the suburbs, the amount of people planting fruits and vegetables in their yards or on their porches is growing every week. Many suburbs have monthly or weekly farmers markets. And people with larger tracts of land within the suburbs are calling on friends and colleagues to do some collective farming on their acres. Meanwhile, in the city, community-based farms are spreading like wildfire. There are more and more of those special places where you can rent or volunteer to tend a small patch of land within the city to grow your own food. And new skyscrapers are currently being designed that incorporate growing spaces for each apartment/flat. It truly is an exciting time to move toward eating local.

There are, however, unique challenges of eating local. Certain foods just can't grow in certain places because of the climate/growing zone. In Florida, for example, no apples. Most apples need to grow in zones 8 and below. No luck here in zones 9/10. So we have to look for other options.

On the other hand, okra grows like crazy. It's the only crop we've had huge success in this year, and we didn't even work for it at all. But we haven't the slightest idea what to DO with the okra. Fried okra? Check. Then what? Growing your own food and eating locally grown food in general requires that we get a little creative. We have to look outside our favorite three vegetables, for instance, and learn to enjoy the foods that grow naturally and happily in our areas. This is a good thing! Fed this way from childhood, our kids will be less picky eaters. And we adults will manage to consume a more balanced and nutritious diet if you can focus on what's local. Fresh food right off the vine is the most nutritious; some foods actually lose nutrients when they are frozen.

Try some local fruits and vegetables. Unless you live in the Midwest, those foods may be quite different from what your forefathers (or even your parents!) made the staples of their meals. But branching out into the foods that grow locally to where you currently live is better for the environment, for your health, and for your sense to connection to your sustenance.

Eggs

The New York Times recently ran an article that clarifies many of the myriad of claims you're likely to see when you're picking out eggs at the grocery.

"Sorting Through the Claims of the Boastful Egg" covers terms like:

-Cage Free
-Free Range
-Pasture-Raised
-Animal Welfare Approved
-United Egg Producers Certified
-Certified humane raised and handled
-American humane certified
-Organic
-Vegetarian-Fed
-No Hormones
-No Antibiotics
-Natural/Naturally Raised
-Fertile
-Omega-3
-Pasteurized

Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart's 25 Eco-Chic Ideas for Your Home

You know, actually some good tips here. I especially like how almost all the project focus on re-purposing or reusing things you already have or can buy second-hand at garage sales/thrift stores.

Tips include:
-Reusing glass jars for various purposes
-Giving completely new life to old clothes
-Creating functional dishes and kitchen helpers out of useless ones
-Many, many more

If you're feeling creative, or have things around your house you don't want to get rid of but don't use, consider giving this a read.

Sunscreen and Bug Repellent

Fall weather is on its way, and many of us will be spending more time in the lovely autumn weather soon. Keeping that in mind, you might be in the market for some sunscreen and/or bug repellent.

Sunscreen:
Primarily, you'll want to look for a sunscreen that uses physical barriers from the sun instead of chemical ones. And, as always, the fewer ingredients you can't pronounced/don't have a clue what they are, the better.

Bug Repellent:
We all know this by now, but be sure to stay away from DEET. And the unknown chemical thing again. Essential oils are a great substitute.

For example, catnip oil is reported to be an excellent option -- the order of 10 times more effective than DEET. Look for it in your store-bought repellents (often as "nepetalactone"), or make your own. Try mixing 6 drops of catnip oil in 3 oz of water.

Check out Low Impact Living's article Safe Sunscreen and Bug Repellents for more details about both sunscreen and bug repellent. She does an excellent job linking to suggested products, too. Grist's article Swat Team also has good information about DEET-free bug repellents, including her personal experiences with different brands through experimentation.

More Socks!

For socks, tights, scarves, t-shirts, lounge pants, and even sock monkeys, check out Maggie's Functional Organics. Made using organic cotton, Maggie's clothing is cute and affordable.

They even have a section for baby and children's clothes and socks. When your kid is growing a size a week (or so it seems, at least), you can reduce his or her impact by choosing organic (or consignment).

Now, before you go to Maggie's and get scared off, I'll warn you: they do offer tie-dyed clothes. Try to ignore it, and focus on the functional and/or the cute offerings.

I, for one, want a pair of those leg warmers. But, alas, I can't imagine where I'd need them...

Also, Nimli offers organic socks for women and infants, too. Just more options!

Plastics and Your Daily Toilette

Your daily hygiene routine is probably one of the major sources of plastic waste in your life. You use your shampoo and body wash. You slick back your hair with hair gel. Or perhaps you squeeze some concealer, foundation, and lotion into your hands. Plastic bottles all.

Eco-Chick's article Nix Plastic from your Beauty Routine to the rescue!
-Next time you run out of shower gel/body wash, consider replacing it with bar soap. Minimal packaging. Use a washcloth with it or get two bars if you can't stand to think about sharing one with your significant other.
-If you're feeling adventurous, experiment with solid shampoo bars. You can find them from Burt Bee's, Herbaria, Oyin, Lush, and more. Easy to use, and oh-so-much-easier to take on an airplane!
-Buy items like hand soap in bulk.
-Consider branching out to multi-use products. Again, this reduces packaging. Plus, it'll be great for your subconscious to have fewer "things" in your life. Many make-up products can be multi-use; many solid shampoo bars can also be used as your primary shower soap too; make sure your lotion has sunscreen in it; etc.

Greening your bathroom

A great article today on Planet Green today. "How to Go Green: in the Bathroom" features lots of important tips and topics that you wouldn't want to overlook.

The article talks about:
-Low flow shower heads and faucet aerators
-Dual flush toilets
-Toilet paper (even rolling "over" or rolling "under" matters!)
-Cleaning supplies
-Showering and brushing your teeth
-Using vinegar and lemon as natural cleaning agents
-Shower curtains
-Soaps
-Towels and linens

In the later pages of the article, Planet Green recommends lots of links for further investigation into whatever topic(s) you are interested in.

You've probably heard of most of the tips. But I can almost guarantee that there will be one or two points in this article that will be new and useful to you.

Also, remember that the goal is to phase out your not-so-green habits and products as they need replacing (with a few health exceptions, of course). The article says, for example, that bamboo or organic cotton towels are the way to go. True. But the towels you own right now are infinitely greener because new things take so much energy and so many resources to produce and ship.

Green Search Engines

Doing some research on the web? Check out some of these great green and socially responsible search engines.

Tree Hugger's article The Best Green Search Engines recommends the following:

1) EcoSearch.

• EcoSearch.org donates 100% of profits to charities named on the "About" page on the site.
• Users can request additional environmental charities be added.
• EcoSearch.org is powered by Google.

2) GoodSearch

• GoodSearch donates 50% of revenue to charities chosen by the users of the site
• GoodSearch searches via Yahoo!.

3) GoodTree

• GoodTree gives 12.5% of revenue to charities chosen by the users of the site.
• GoodTree publishes independent audits and shows the disbursements made, by charity.
• GoodTree is a meta-search engine, searching over Yahoo, Google, Ask Jeeves, and MSN.

Or to help you do comparative green searching, try GoodGuide. An EcoGeek article says, "Drawing from over 650 data sources, GoodGuide is building a database that figures out what is physically healthy, socially healthy, and environmentally healthy, so that people can compare products and make their priority decisions." Give 'em a try!

Volunteering on Organic Farms

Treehugger has a fascinating idea about how to spend some of your vacation days. The article "Volunteer on an Organic Farm" features the WWOOF organization, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms.

The article reads, "You can't give up your day job to start that organic farm that you have been dreaming about and you don't have any land for an organic vegetable garden--but you really want to give it all a try. What to do? The answer is easy: volunteer for a week or two on someone else's. Through WWOOF-World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms--you can live the life, work the work and learn all about the organic movement. Plus you meet fascinating, like-minded people. WWOOF is a world-wide organisation [sic], with branches all over Europe, North and South America and Africa. Volunteers are not paid, but are given meals and accommodation and valuable training in new skills.

"Browsing through the listings is fascinating--there are so many people out there living on farms and in the countryside working to grow their own food, sell it, develop markets and make their way. Volunteers can go to Japan, New Zealand, Hawaii, Austria. They can work on one acre or 200 acre farms, Georgian houses, or small cottages, a stud farm in Spain, harvesting wild herbs in the south of France. Volunteering and living with a family is a wonderful way to learn about new cultures without being an intrusive tourist and at the same time you are giving back something to that country. It's really a form of eco-tourism at its best."

What a unique way to spend a vacation. Think about how much you'd learn. Working at a WWOOF farm in the USA could teach us about farming and the importance of the organic food movement. Nearly all of us are completely removed from the sources of the food we eat, so working on a farm could help us to respect the work that goes into our food a bit more. It would be an excellent way to network with other passionate, committed people, which may be just the inspiration many of us need to re-energize.

Working at a WWOOF farm internationally, of course, has all these benefits and more. Depending upon which country you travel to, you may also be able to learn or practice a new language, discover a new culture, and gain a new perspective on work and/or your relationship with your sustenance.

Organic Intimates

It's a good idea to think organic next time you're in the market for a new outfit. (Second-hand or vintage is great too from a sustainability standpoint!) However, it is even more important to choose organic when picking out your next pair of underwear or socks. These are items you wear day and night right next to your skin (and in the case of underwear, it is some very sensitive skin). You'll want these articles as natural as possible.

In the Loop writes the Ultimate Guide to Eco Undies. It gives us links to lots of cute lingerie. Much of it is fancier than daily wear, but it is an excellent place to start.

For other more casual options, check out some of these online retailers:
-Pristine Planet
-Rawganique
-Faeries Dance
-GreenKnickers

Check out White Apricot's Best Eco-Undies list, too. It has some different leads for eco-friendly underwear, as well as lots of sleepwear.

As for socks, Green Loop's article Sock It To Ya: Organic Socks that Rock suggests a handful of options. Check out some of the links next time your socks are getting a little holey! Also consider visiting Sock Dreams.

Seafood

Choosing your foods carefully can greatly influence your environmental impact. One important arena for responsible eating is in the area of seafood. In fact, overfishing and irresponsible fish farming are major problems worldwide.

The Food Luvin article Top Ten Sustainable Fish Choices and Ten Fish You Should Avoid Eating gives a thorough overview of the issues as well as, obviously, an enumeration of some responsible types of fish and some of the worse.

Likewise, Green Is Sexy's Plenty of Fish in the Sea links us to a Canadian seafood guide you can carry with you for shopping and eating out. The famous American equivalent is Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood WATCH. A great, simple list format makes it a quick and easy guide. Just print it out and enjoy dinner responsibly.

Vinegar

A few weeks ago, we did an article about the multiple uses of lemon as a substitute for chemical products. Lemons, of course, aren't the only miracle product. Take vinegar as another example.

You can use it for a million different cleaning, laundry, hygiene, lawn/garden, edible, and pet applications. Examples include:
-Killing weeds
-Cleaning toilet bowl
-Washing mirrors and windows
-Cleaning up cat urine

For details on all that and more, please read "Vinegar, the #1 Cheapest and Most Versatile Product for your Home" on One Green Generation.

Toilets

Although American toilets are using less water per flush now than they did in the past, there's still much room for improvement. Many of the hardcore greens are moving to the admirable "if it's yellow letter it mellow" movement. But I'm sure many of us are a little hesitant to dive right in at that depth.

If you are building a house or remodeling or just have the money to install an improved toilet, consider installing a dual flush model. Popular throughout the rest of the world, dual flush toilets give you two flush options: one for liquid waste (uses a small amount of water) and another for solid waste (uses more water). Here in America, you can try them out in Ikea restrooms. For examples, see Caromausa, Kohler, or ToTo.

There are also a few different kits you can purchase to retrofit your current toilet. Check out Aquanotion's TwoFlush kit. It's highly recommended across the green internet.

Of course, you can also do more low-tech solutions to make your toilet more water saavy. Green Is Sexy's article A New Resolution for an Old Toilet recommends, "To reduce the amount of water your toilet consumes, try filling up a half-gallon plastic bottle with stones or sand and water, seal it shut and place it in your toilet tank. This will make the toilet tank seem more full and will require less water to fill ‘er up (think of your bathtub with you in it). Keep the bottle away from the operating mechanisms and make sure your tank has enough water left to flush properly. By making this teeny change, you can save up to 60% of the water you were using before."

Drain Cleaner

We've talked before about reducing the sheer number of cleaners in your arsenal. A goal to be worked toward slowly but surely. But there's one cleaning product that is much worse than others: drain cleaners.

Green is Sexy gives us some advice in the article "Hard Boiled":

"The active ingredient in most drain-cleaners is sodium hydroxide, otherwise known as caustic soda or lye. It is a man-made chemical used for its corrosive properties, and corrosive it is! Not only is drain-cleaner deadly to ingest and irritating to your nose, throat and lungs if inhaled, it can also corrode your pipes! While non-toxic alternatives are available, try avoiding clogs in the first place. Pour a kettle full of boiling water down your shower drain once a week. The boiling water breaks down any soap or hair conditioner coating the pipes, helping everything flow a lot easier. If a clog should occur, despite your best attempts at prevention, try a non-toxic solution before turning to products made with sodium hydroxide." [emphasis added]

So, try to prevent. But if it's already too late, try making your own (from Clean & Green):

1/2 cup baking soda
1 cup white vinegar
1 gallon boiling water
1/2 a used lemon
Pour baking soda down drain/disposal, followed by vinegar. Allow the mixture to foam for several minutes before flushing the drain with boiling water.

Shoes

Planet Green had a fun article recently about sustainable footwear. A great resource to consult when looking for shoes. The brands you'll find there were chosen for falling into one or more of the following categories: sweatshop-free, sustainable leathers and/or glues, minimal waste in production, vegan and/or recycled materials, eco-friendly fabrics, sustainable packaging.

I especially liked the selections at TOMS Shoes and Terra Plana. (TOMS will be coming out with a boot soon, too!) You'll see lots of tennis shoes, too. Many of the brands listed also support important causes, like donating shoes to children in need, if social-consciousness is important to you, too.

UPDATE: The Autonomie Project also offers Converse-esque casual tennis shoes in white, blue, green, and black. Autonomie Project products are fair trade and made of sustainable, organic, and/or natural materials.

UPDATE: Payless is coming out with a new, affordable green shoe line in early 2009. Check out the Earth 911 article here.