Eco Fashion Friday Feature: Baby Its COLD Outside!

Good morning readers! As I write this in my semi-warm home office (temp set at 64 during the day to conserve) it is only twenty two degrees outside. Of course with a thirteen mile per hour wind speed, what we call the wind chill, brings the temperature into single digits. Holy crow that’s cold!

New England in December tends to usually hover in the 30’s - 40’s during the day but this is extreme temperatures even for late winter like February. Brrr!

Because I write from home and do not want to crank the heat (so I can not only save those precious natural resources but a little bit of cash in my wallet as well), I thought it would be fitting to do a nice feature on some of the Green items that could keep me warm and toasty during extreme situations like this!

Fingerless gloves -- Nothing beats this item for a person who types all the time. They keep the majority of the hand warm while the fingers are still free to bang away on the keyboard. I found this pair from Etsy seller AnnyMay made out of renewable bamboo fiber. Very chic!

Shawl -- Again, something bulky like a blanket with sleeves is not always practical. Sure they are lovely while on the sofa relaxing but during the day when I just have a slight chill and want something warm on my shoulders I’d rather reach for this organic cotton shawl from Enuwbe. The piece can be used all year long -- use it as a belt around a sleeveless sundress in summer & when the temps drop at night it’s a cozy little shawl again.

Hat -- What was that statistic our moms used to tell us? Something about losing 40% of our body heat through our heads? Well I don’t know if the number was that high or not but when I wear a hat, I do feel warmer. This braided wool hat from quarks would certainly help retain the heat through use of natural fabrics, and the vintage flowers just give it a cutsie touch the UPS delivery man can appreciate.

Warm & cozy socks -- You can ask Matt, even when it is in the seventies out my hands, nose and feet are perpetually cold so its no surprise that I am drawn to wool booties. These versatile slipper socks are made by OfftheHooks and are constructed from what once was a sweater. They suggest wearing a pair of socks under them for added warmth. Now we’re talking!

Warm and comfy sweats -- I admit it, most of my indoor wardrobe consists of sweatpants and hoodies. Don’t put me on that TLC show though, it generally isn’t what I wear out. But these eco-fabric pants by branchhandmade in organic cotton/recycled poly/natural rayon are so cute I might be tempted to do so! Or maybe I’ll just wear them in my chair next to the window; since they’re available in black they can soak up all the passive solar rays of the sun.

How are you staying warm this winter?

Eco Fashion Friday Featured Designer Bamboo Couture

Pink ruffles, skin hugging fabric, dresses and undies. These articles rarely conjure up visions of the bamboo plant but the ultra mod company Bamboo Couture, based out of Los Angeles, California and run by Tanya Marie, is making their mark on the fashion industry by changing all of that!

These folks carry dresses, Capri pants, gloves, bloomers, bra tops and tank tops in their line. The current offerings could not be more feminine as the latest collection includes a flirty ruffle on every piece they sell.

In addition to organic bamboo, some of the other materials utilized in creating their funky fashions are organic cotton and low percentages of spandex. Embellishments tend to be sourced from recycled materials and they even claim to use as minimal (or recycled) packaging as possible for shipping. Speaking of, they will ship anywhere in the world!

As far as price is concerned they are surprisingly moderate for an eco-couture collection line but it is still a bit out of range for the everyday gal. Their most expensive item is the Dreamcatcher dress at $198 and prices go down to $32 for the gloves.

The available items are somewhat limited as most collection couture tends to be but each piece does come in a variety of sizes and colors which helps to somewhat expand the options.

With all of this in mind I am granting a Four Leaf Rating to Bamboo Couture!

Thanks for keeping an eye on the planet while still providing some seriously funky fashions Bamboo Couture! ♥love♥

Bamboo Might Just Be the Coolest Substance Ever

Readers of this blog know that I love all things bamboo from tee shirts to flooring but there are so many more amazing things created from this rapidly renewing resource it is almost mind boggling! I started to research just what we could begin using in our day to day lives and the answer is if you use it, there is likely a manufacturer who will construct it out of bamboo.

Since my internet access is still moderately limited until later this week when our network is up and running full steam, I am going to simply link-list a whole bunch of cool stuff here. I hope everyone has a chance to check out these fun, funky, and functional products created from this strong and hearty grass.

Bicycle

Utensils

Bedding (side note -- bamboo is inherently antibacterial & soft, perfect for bedding!)

Furniture

Dishes

Drums

Makeup Applicator Brushes

Garden Gloves (for men!)

Eco Friendly Musical Instruments Green Drums

For many thousands of years, percussion instruments, known as drums, have been used for various forms of communication, ritual and music and are a prominent piece to the rhythm of many songs. Modern, standard drum kits generally include approximately seven pieces including drums and cymbals of various names. In thousands of colors with varied accessories from many manufacturers, this instrument can be personalized into just about anything a drummer desires.

Most drums on the market today that are sold in kits containing snare, tom-tom (2 pieces), floor tom and a bass drum but additional accessories (ie. sticks, cowbell, cymbal, pedal, high-hat, etc.) are also sold to compliment the sound that the drum produces. Since sound is the number one most important factor in any instrument, a drum is no different and because this instrument makes up a good portion of the rhythm / beat of a song, it is imperative the quality of that sound is in line with the style of music. The shell holds everything together; the most crucial aspect is that at the point where the shell meets the head forms a perfect circle.

Although many kits are created from formed metal or plastics, a large percentage of shells are beautifully crafted wood. Just like the guitar, the most popular woods are standard tonewoods such as maple, birch or mahogany. But there are growing concerns regarding the availability of wood species and one of the top manufacturers of drums, DW Drums, has begun an innovative journey into the sustainable market by utilizing a hybrid of bamboo and birch for their shells.

They are called the ECO-X series for the company’s use of cross lamination with their hybrid material. They are further environmentally friendly because of the water based top coat used on the shells, soy based inks on the hang tags and their donation made to American Forests Association to further sustain our wood resources. There are two options of color, one is shown in the photo above.

In the market to pick up some drums and want to give the planet a break while pounding away? Amazon carries this kit from DW Drums but be warned, unlike a guitar which is less expensive when created from bamboo, creating these shells is a lengthier process and cost can be upwards of three times that of a similar sized kit created from a different wood source (such as birch & basswood) from a different manufacturer such as Pearl.

Do you know of other drum manufacturers who are Earth friendly and proving it through their use of materials? Let us know!

Up next -- Eco-Fashion Friday features awesome accessories for musicians or music lovers!

Eco Friendly Musical Instruments Green Guitars

No matter what you call it -- axe, six string or Lucille -- the guitar is one of the most widely recognized and oldest instruments still played today. With a history of over 4000 years to back it up, this instrument certainly has gone through many incarnations over the centuries to become the modern purveyor of musical melody. But in today’s world with its growing concerns of deforestation, what is the future of such an instrument whose primary construction material is wood; often times exotic woods nearing extinction.

Let’s explore a little history of how wood relates to a guitar.

The main concern for any acoustic guitar player will always be the sound the instrument makes. Different models, manufacturers, woods, etc all resonate with a slightly different tone and musicians become loyal to brands due primarily for their own love of the sound quality. The woods used in the construction of a guitar’s soundboard (the top piece where strings generally stretch over the sound hole) Some of the most popular woods used in acoustic guitar manufacture are spruce, red cedar, Brazilian rosewood, mahogany and Indian rosewood while maple, ash and poplar are some of the more common woods used in construction of electric guitar bodies.

So what would need to occur for a musician to change their figurative tune on the materials used in the manufacture of their favorite instrument? The literal tune would need to be one they can get behind.

Many new materials have flooded the instrument world of late from recycled plastics and hemp, to SmartWood, Flaxwood and bamboo and all of them have a little something different to offer in terms of their impact on the planet.

Recycled plastic can be used to create some seriously flashy products due to the array of color pallets that exist in the plastics industry. Simon Lee offers six different guitar finishes in their funky recycled plastic line. Hemp cellulose has been transformed into the slickest looking material for the Mada guitar line (electric). SmartWood is a label attached to woods deemed as sustainable and socially responsible by the Rainforest Alliance. Flaxwood is not only a new type of wood based product but also a brand; the guitars are created from taking wood grains, breaking them down and then using injection molding to bond them to a binding agent which is friendly to tone. All of these new innovations are just that, innovative but none are as similar to the unique properties of wood as bamboo.

Bamboo is a hearty grass and has taken a major leap forward in areas like the building trades due to its resilience and rapidly renewing properties. This material was given special attention by the music industry back in 2000 when Yamaha introduced an acoustic guitar constructed almost fully out of bamboo (Resource Harmony Central®). Since that date, bamboo has begun to make a name for itself in manufacture of guitars due to the fact that it is sturdy, there is almost no potential for warping and it is less expensive than more limited ‘wood resource’ counterparts.

The picture at the top of this article is of Yamaha’s FGXB1 model which sadly was discontinued for production in the United States but the customer reviews I read about this instrument made me want to play! The material was well received. Following in these footsteps is the company First Act who created the Bambusa electric guitar. It is created from bamboo and even has a water based topcoat.

It is nice to see that there are companies attempting innovation in the realm of sustainably resourced musical instruments.

Because I have discovered a world of information regarding many of the popular instruments on the market I will be running a series on music, instruments and their accessories (for Eco-Fashion Friday).

Tomorrow -- Eco Drums!

Eco-Fashion Friday Featured Designer: ecoSkin

Very cool, sexy and yes eco-friendly, this one is only for the ladies as I review ecoSkin. Founded and run by Sandy Skinner this Los Angeles based company has been in business since 2007 when Skinner set out to prove that Treehugger and Hot could indeed fall in the same sentence. She easily pulls it off.


The ecoSkin spring 2009 collection is purported to be inspired by landscapes of the Earth, they make use of coconut & wood for all buttons and the fabrics are restricted to bamboo Tencel knit spandex and woven bamboo. Tencel is a wood pulp (sourced from sustainable tree farms). Bamboo is rapidly becoming a favorite fabric of clothing designers as it has some inherent properties which make it an environmentally friendly selection such as: rapidly renewable, sustainable, pesticide/insecticide/fertilizer free, biodegradable, 3X more absorbent than cotton, antibacterial, antifungal, antistatic.

The company HQ is in Los Angeles, California and clothing is sold in 28 states in a plethora of shops throughout the United States. Items are also sold in Australia (Victoria), Europe (Belgium) and Canada (Alberta, British Columbia).

The only drawback I could find with this company is the price of current collection items as the average price of spring collection 2009 dresses is around $150 (keep in mind however that the more bamboo that is turned to fiber, the less expensive it will become over time). There are however some amazing deals on the fall 2008 collection in the ecoSkin sale section so for those interested in giving bamboo clothing a try this is an excellent place to start.

Due to their strong Earth connection, yet moderately out of reach for the average eco-gal price tag, I am granting ecoSkin a Four Leaf Rating!

I am overly impressed with this innovative and feminine inspired company ♥love♥

Walgreens Is Jumping On the Green Wave

As a simple girl I do not wear much makeup so when I do purchase the few products I use, they are generally less expensive brands. Over the years I have tested a plethora of price ranges and find that none do any better job than the next so the convenience of being able to purchase right at my neighborhood Walgreens Pharmacy is always a nice touch. Tonight I went in to pick up a couple items and took a brief walk through the store as it had been a while since I had shopped there. I was pleasantly surprised to see three instances of Earth friendly attention in my probable ten minute stop.

First, the makeup I purchase is a pressed powder made by Wet n Wild but when attempting to locate it I found it had been replaced with a new version. Upon inspection of the package I discovered the new name was Natural Wear. Intrigued I read on to discover the makeup is made from 100% natural ingredients and the package, now a heavy duty cardboard as opposed to the previous plastic, is made from recycled paper. Upon testing it at home I was pleased that it looked just as nice as what I had used in the past and it felt good on as well.

Walking around I noticed some kitchen towels on an end cap and since I always like to reach out and touch that kind of item I did so. I stopped walking right away as I read the sign indicating they were 100% bamboo fiber. As a rapidly renewing resource it is an excellent choice for creating fiber and tends to be much softer to the touch than cotton. What made me excited was to see that the towels came in a package of two and were only $5.00; just $2.00 more expensive than their much rougher cotton counterparts around the corner.

Deciding to forego purchasing the towels I headed to the cash register where on the counter I read a sign that encouraged customers to either bring their own shopping bags or just simply say “skip the plastic” and take their items without a superfluous plastic bag. I generally do this when I have a small number of items that will fit in my purse anyway but it was wonderful to have the reminder.

With over 5,500 stores nationwide and in Puerto Rico it was encouraging to see this company that was founded about 108 years ago is rolling with the times. Not only do they employ local workers in their establishments but they are keeping an eye on the planet as a whole by encouraging sound shopping practices and offering eco friendly selections to their customers. Keep it up Walgreens!

Home Innovation

With so many resources available today, as well as a struggling economy, it is no wonder that unconventional, sustainable and less expensive housing options are beginning to make a grand appearance. People are shifting their way of thinking from living in oversized, wooden frame boxes with vinyl siding, a picket fence and four car driveway to things such as old industrial loft buildings, trailers and even shipping containers. It is all in the perception of a person’s imagination to redesign these unconventional spaces into sustainable, green homes.


Right here in the Boston area there is a community called Forbes Park that takes sustainable living to the ultimate level of luxury. Built inside an abandoned printing facility from the 1800’s, Forbes Park dubs their homes as Hybrid lofts because they garner over fifty percent of their energy from renewable resources. Most notably is their use of wind power from the turbine located right on the premises and passive solar through the two walls of windows located at the end of each loft space. In addition the structure features a rain water collection system for use in toilets, radiant floor heat, thermal-mass passive heating and cooling, low flow toilets, energy efficient appliances and the use of durable, natural materials to reduce needs for replacement.


Sometimes there is a negative stigma attached to certain forms of housing, for example a trailer, but Charmaine Manley has taken this view and buried it so deeply beneath bamboo flooring and Paperstone countertops that her home in Oregon has been photographed as a show home. The double wide trailer started out as many do with chintzy carpet, paneled walls, aluminum windows and no character but through sound design principles Charmaine has created a comfortable and livable home for her husband and herself. In addition to bamboo flooring and paper countertops the home boasts low to no VOC paint, repurposed antique furniture (as a bathroom vanity and closet solution), lighting acquired from second hand stores, green kitchen cabinets, energy efficient window and so many other repurposed or sustainable options a list would be virtually never ending. As a final nod to the planet all materials that were removed were either recycled or donated to various organizations. To view all of the before and after photos of this amazing transformation please visit her blog posting at High Desert Diva.


Many people would not look at a shipping container as a viable option for a housing solution but through a little innovation and conceptualization these small metal boxes can be transformed into some very modern housing on a tighter budget than one might think. With a large surplus of such material simply taking up space at ship yards across the country it is possible to snag one of these containers for as little as $900. In 2006 Peter DeMaria of DeMaria Design Associates took the concept to a second level and constructed a two story home in Redondo Beach, California out of multiple containers with great success. The home is inherently resistant to bugs, mold and fire and in a location such as this where construction to withstand earthquakes is a priority, it is comforting to note that a pre-fabricated metal box is virtually indestructible.

The opportunities are endless for creating functional, comfortable and gorgeous, unconventional housing options, as evidenced in this small sampling of homes. Due to their creative innovation and attention to environmental awareness I am giving each of these designs (including the small woodland house featured in the first photo, click to read more about it) Four Green Leaves!

Keep up the great work bucking the norm and proving to all of us that irregular is just another word for exceptional!

Green and Passion Make Excellent Bedfellows

Warning there is some adult only type content within!

We all try to recycle, drive hybrid vehicles, turn off lights, reduce, reuse and be conscious of the impact on the planet we all have through the products and services we procure but what about our sex lives? Is it really possible to go green in the department of intimacy? With the advent of countless options for ways to become eco-friendly, a slew of companies geared toward this very industry have emerged. Not to mention a plethora of tips to reduce our carbon footprint while enjoying our moments of pleasure.

So what exactly would a green sex life be like? Let us imagine this couple…

Jane jumps on her bicycle to pop down to the farmer’s market to pick up a few locally grown pieces of organic produce. She spies Jack arriving on his own bike and they catch each other’s eye. Sparks fly and so does their conversation. They start dating and spend countless evenings at local poetry readings or taking nature walks. The moment for them to consummate their relationship arrives so Jane pulls out her lingerie made of bamboo and lights a few soy based candles with wicks coated in veggie wax. Jack, with a couple Vegan approved, milk enzyme free condoms and a bottle of organic wine in hand, takes public transportation over to Jane’s home. Jane has of course turned down the thermostat because they will be creating their own heat tonight. A wonderful night of fun and passion ensues and they fall asleep in ultimate comfort on her hemp fiber sheets. In the morning they decide to shower together to conserve water, kiss each other goodbye and make plans to cook a fabulous Vegan meal over at Jack’s house the following evening.

So are all of those options actually available? You bet they are!

Most cities or towns run farmer’s markets and in warmer climates they will sometimes run year round such as The Village Market at the Toronto Waldorf School in Canada. Most town halls will have information regarding the local markets and their dates of operation.

Bamboo lingerie is actually pretty sexy! One of the coolest companies I found that manufactures this product is called Urban Fox. Ah-cha-cha-cha.

Soy candles are all the rage; countless sellers on Etsy carry this item making it easy to find just the right style and scent to fit an individual personality.

Vegan friendly condoms? Seriously? Seriously. Glyde carries a line which contains no milk enzymes (like many latex based options) and they claim to be the only condoms registered with The Vegan Society.

Many brands of organic wine are available on the market today so wine-searcher has collected a list of their six top picks to get us started.

Hemp fiber is gaining in popularity, just like bamboo, due to its sustainability and versatility so it is no wonder that even bed linens are being created from it. There are only a couple companies who carry them so Metaefficient has a nice review of linens made from hemp as well as links to both companies.

Want even more tips or ideas for ways to increase the green passion? Check out How To Go Green: Sex on the planet green website.