More Books

Children’s Book Reviews from EcoChildsPlay
Worm’s book: The Giving Tree
My brand new book: ROBOT+BIKE=KITTEN

Catch up on the rest of the Hank D and the Bee series at JoeMohrToons.com. For cartoon updates and other green goings-on, follow Joe on Twitter @GreenCartoons and like him on Facebook.

Before you even begin to talk about shoes, you’ve got to talk about socks. That’s where U.S. based Swiftwick comes in. And with their new Sustain socks, performance footwear is more eco-friendly than ever!

Swiftwick socks are made in the USA, use the best fibers available, refuse to use chemicals to wick moisture away from the body, and strive to conserve and recycle while creating the best products you’ll ever wear.

Enter to win your own pair of Swiftwick Sustain socks. We’re giving 5 pair away to 5 separate winners! You can enter from now (Monday, April 15th) through 11:59pm on Earth Day, Monday, April 22nd.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Well, as it turns out, that vinyl translates into pretty epic products to get stoked about.

Enter Epicstoke.

After a successful Kickstarter campaign, Epicstoke has launched an Indiegogo campaign to fund a website where anyone who wants an awesome product upcycled from highway billboard vinyl can purchase them at will.

The Epic in Epicstoke

The minds behind the project say,

“Our hand crafted wallets as well as the bags and backpacks are made from upcycled US highway billboard vinyl- an extremely durable, waterproof, and downright awesome material that lets every piece we make be as unique and one-of-a-kind as you.“

When placing your order you can also choose which color palette of vinyl your wallet will come from. So even though each wallet is unique, you can rest assured that the general color scheme is what you’re looking for.

Besides the design, both the Ole and the Gentleman wallets are equipped with RFID blocking to product your cards from being scanned and your identity stolen.

Why help fund the Epicstoke campaign?

As of right now, the Epicstoke Indiegogo campaign has $672 of it’s $1200 pledged, with 26 days left to go.

Funding this project and securing your own Epicstoke wallet (or bag or backpack as well) is for you if:

• You like extra space in your pockets
• Have a fun and unique style and want your wallet to reflect it
• Care about having a wallet upcycled from the one of the thinnest, most durable, and waterproof materials available
• Are looking for a great gift for a funky or eco-fashionista you dig
• You want to shake your caboose with style

What do you think about the Epicstoke wallets and their creative reuse of highway billboard vinyl? If you want to know more, check out their video:

Better yet, you don’t even need lots of space!

Even if you only have a single windowsill or a square foot of spare countertop, as long as there’s some light source (doesn’t even have to be the sun!), you can cultivate your own indoor garden with minimal cost and even less effort.

Herbs are a great choice for beginners due to the multi-use, double duty nature: not only do they add natural seasoning and organic flavor to our favorite dishes, but many of them have uses wholly outside the kitchen.

Here are two perfect examples of indoor herb garden staples that are easy to cultivate even if you’re cursed with a brown thumb:

Lavender

Perhaps one of the most multi-functional members of the herb family is the beautiful lavender plant. An excellent option for cooks and bakers alike, lavender is also wonderful in its dried form.

It can be gathered into a bunch, tied with a ribbon, and placed into a dresser drawer to freshen up your clothing; crumbled up and mixed into a custom Herbs de Provence blend; and it can also be sprinkled around your dog or cat’s bed to act as a natural flea and tick repellent!

French lavender is the variety that grows best indoors and prefers a roomy pot, so don’t crowd it in with others. It also prefers a good drink followed by a period of drying out before you water it again, and it thrives in full sunlight.

Parsley

Another stand-out selection for your indoor garden is people-pleasing parsley.

Since it is arguably the most commonly used herb, you’ll never run out if you grow it yourself. Parsley is also one of the easiest to grow indoors, albeit slow to germinate, but once you get it growing, it does not require much maintenance or light.

Before you plant

No matter what you choose to plant, one universal truth to keep in mind is that although these herbs love light, they do not survive for long when planted next to a heat source — keep them away from your stovetop and oven for best results.

If you are still intimidated by the idea of taking responsibility for the success or failure of your indoor growing efforts, you may want to strengthen your green thumb first through the more basic process of seed sprouting.

For those of you who are ready to get growing, what are you planning to include in your countertop herb garden?

[Image credit: AgaKacz/MorgueFile]

About this guest author: Jay Harris is a Chicago-area Home Depot sales associate. He contributes regularly to Home Depot’s blog, where he provides advice ranging from the standard hedge trimmer to riding lawn mowers.

Toss the gardening books this year and get the growing done with these horticultural apps.

Turfgrass Management

$19.99 a year for iPhone & Android

Developed by University of Georgia, Turfgrass Management is the ultimate database of weeds, insects and lawn diseases. The app includes information on turfgrass science pulled from myriad books.

Groundskeepers, homeowners and landscapers will find this diagnostic app invaluable for identifying and remediating any turfgrass issues — similar to what Sevenson Environmental Services do.

Users can effortlessly search through the immense pesticide database for product rates and pest control. Pre- and post-emergent herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and plant growth regulators. All proceeds support turfgrass research at the University of Georgia.

Botany Buddy

$9.99 for iPhone

A botanist’s dream come true Botany Buddy is bursting with information from thousands of trees, shrubs and anything pertaining to plants. It includes more than 2,000 native and ornamental plant species and more than 9,500 full-color photographs of every anatomical plant parts.

Scroll the entire library from A to Z by common or botanical name. Even if, you’re unsure of the plant’s name, you can search for it by its flower color, height and width, leaves, seeds, forms and hardiness zones. Application and plant library updates are always free.

Pocket Garden

$0.99 for iPhone (Free with ad supported version)

For novice vegetable gardeners, Pocket Garden is the go-to guide for growing veggies from seeds. From A for artichoke to Z for zucchini, users can scroll through various seed types and learn how to grow them.Monitor your vegetables’ progress with the My Garden app and keep track of the expected harvest dates.

Flower Pedia

$4.99 for iPhone ($0.99 for Lite version)

An app for casual floral aficionados, Flower Pedia contains data on more than 830 genera from 140 flowering plant families. In total, that’s more than 150,000 flower species worldwide.

On any of the nearly 3,000 photos from Anemone to Zinnia, tap the “flower” button to summon information on the plant’s edibility, genus and family name, geographic distribution and related species.

If users stumble upon an unknown flower, Flower Pedia assists in its identification by using their physical idiosyncrasies, petals, stamens and leaf structure.

My Automower

Free for iPhone, $3.81 for Android

My Automower is an app designed to function solely with any of Husqvarna’s autonomous mowers with a GPS unit.

Like the lawn equivalent of a Roomba, the Automower automatically mows your lawn. Though, with this app, users can remotely deploy the mower using only your phone. Users can also send instructions, set timers, send to the charger and check its status.

The Automower’s GPS coordinates can also be displayed on Google Maps. For those without an Automower, this app is also able to measure the slope of your lawn and advise what model if any, is suitable for your unique lawn.

About this guest author: Katherine is a freelance writer who lives in Portland, Oregon.

Luckily, clothes aren’t only good for wearing, they’re so easy to upcycle too.

And by incorporating an eco-friendly ethos to fit your parenting, you’ll find that you save money and help the environment!

Here are a few little tricks to make your hand-me-downs look and feel like new!

Old Jumpers into New Hats!

This sweet and simple tutorial will show you how to effortlessly turn an old jumper into a new hat for your little boy or girl. It even features decorative touches that will ensure your little ones’ heads are kept cozy and cute!

Disguise Stains on White Baby-Grows

With fabric paint! Use a color of your choice to go over any unsightly stains with a polka dot pattern. This way, you can be as erratic as you like with the cover up and no one will notice. If you smear them or a few of the dots look slightly imperfect, no problem!

For Little Feet

Give shoes a new lease of life with a quick clean and some fabric paint, as tried and tested by this creative Mom! Just buff off the dust, and you and your child can even make a project of painting the pair together. It’s amazing what you can do with a little color.

Use Fabric Dyes

Tie-dye will never go out of fashion, and you can revive basic old clothes with a splash of vibrant color. If you prefer a natural approach, there are plenty of recipes online for creating your own dyes using flowers and spices.

Patches

Almost anything can be fixed with a quick patch job, but by getting creative with your shapes and placements you can craft a really eye-catching design on a garment that otherwise would look a bit old and shabby. Stains can be easily concealed this way, and the patching method is perfect for repairing knee-holes in jeans or leggings, or tears in dresses.

DIY Baby Blankets

Creating your own patchwork baby blanket from old garments is a simple and effective way to recycle those pieces that are just slightly too much hassle to save. You can choose choice pieces from each bit of clothing, even using old school badges and Brownie or cubs patches, and combine them to create something that you’ll be able to treasure.

Do you have any tips for upcycling old children’s clothes? Share by commenting below!

[Photo: Hestia/Flickr]

About this guest author: Louise Blake is a new mom who is constantly amazed by how quickly her little one grows out of his clothes! She writes for School Stickers.

Catch up on the rest of the Hank D and the Bee series at JoeMohrToons.com. For cartoon updates and other green goings-on, follow Joe on Twitter @GreenCartoons.

This cartoon is an homage to a great strip and cartoonist.

Catch up on the rest of the Hank D and the Bee series at JoeMohrToons.com. For cartoon updates and other green goings-on, follow Joe on Twitter @GreenCartoons.

How about reclaim the waste from your local pub to turn a personal profit?

Either way, this DIY liquor bottle lamp project is a simple and creative way to do both.

Suzi’s Crafts has some of the best DIY instructions I’ve ever seen for working with glass bottles safely and easily.

The main thing you need for any project that requires drilling a hole in a glass bottle is a diamond tip drill bit. You can buy one for $15 or $20 at your local home improvement store, or you can buy one on Amazon for about $5.

Check out the above link for the full instructions, but I particularly like this tidbit of information:

When your drilling glass you need to take the proper precautions. Eye protection and gloves are a MUST if the bottle should break. Its very rare  but it can happen. I’ve drilled close to 20 bottles now and I haven’t broke a bottle yet, so as long as your careful and let the drill bit do the work it can be done pretty efficient without breaking them.

The key to drilling glass is letting the bit do all the work. You need to have water running over the bit while drilling. The main reason is glass dust isn’t good for your lungs and the water will keep that dust down. The other reason is the water keeps the drill bit and the bottle cool while your drilling so the glass doesn’t stress and break.

Want some other DIY wine and liquor bottle ideas?

• Chic hanging candles made from wine bottles
• Wine bottle tiki torch, twinkle light, and more
• Wine bottle Jack-o-Lantern and other Halloween bottle crafts

More on the Food Safety Inspection Cuts

From WaPo’s WonkBlog: The Sequester: Absolutely everything you could possibly need to know, in one FAQ
From ThinkProgress: Top Republican Blows Off Food Inspection Cuts

Catch up on the rest of the Hank D and the Bee series at JoeMohrToons.com. For cartoon updates and other green goings-on, follow Joe on Twitter @GreenCartoons.