If there’s one thing better than recycling, it’s reusing an existing item. While recycling uses less energy than creating something new, it still requires fuel for transport and lots of processing energy to complete. There are many things we use every day that could be re-used; all it takes is a little imagination.

Even if you’re [...]]]>

If there’s one thing better than recycling, it’s reusing an existing item. While recycling uses less energy than creating something new, it still requires fuel for transport and lots of processing energy to complete. There are many things we use every day that could be re-used; all it takes is a little imagination.

Even if you’re not “crafty,” there are simple ways to reinvent things. I’ve come across some interesting ideas lately and thought I’d share them with you.

Oxford Cloth or Flannel Shirt. New Use: Cloth Napkin. I hear these fabrics make great napkins. You cut out the sizes you want and either hem the edges or use fusible web and an iron to seal the seams. Check out this tutorial on How to Make Your Own Cloth Napkins.

Wine Bottle. New Use: Garden Hose Guard. Bury the inverted bottles in the ground at the corners of your garden beds. Idea courtesy of Kris.

Bath Towel with Frayed Edges. New Use: Bath Mat. This idea came from Nicki at Domestic Cents. She folded a towel in half and made a great bath mat by sewing the edges and adding a checkerboard pattern.

Cereal Box. New Use: Magazine Holder. A few cuts is all it takes. Check out some simple instructions here.

Egg Carton. New Use: Earring or Craft Supply Holder. These are great for sorting small items. I’ve also cut them in half and used them as paint trays for my daughters — 6 colors each and they’re easy to hold.

Tissue Box. New Use: Plastic Bag Dispenser. Stuff the box with plastic bags (the ones left over from your days before reusable grocery bags) . It makes them easy to store and retrieve.

Junk Mail. New Use: Craft Paper for Kids. My kids are into scissors lately. They will cut a piece of paper to shreds and move on to the next. At this point, they don’t care what they are cutting. Junk mail is great for this and other little art projects. Once the kids are finished, I recycle the bits.

These are just a few ideas to get you started. What are some things that you’ve found new uses for?

Photo Credit: evelynishere

5 Secrets Most Conventional Cleaning Product Makers Don’t Want You To Know

Chris Gavigan does an excellent job summing up the problems with cleaning products and the lack of regulation over them. It truly is a worthwhile and informative read.

Movie Night (Recession Style):

Start with a $1 movie rental. Many grocery stores now have kiosks where you can rent newly released dvds for $1/night. If this is not an option where you [...]]]> Consider some of these activities for you and your family that are both easy on the wallet and easy on the planet.

Movie Night (Recession Style):

Start with a $1 movie rental. Many grocery stores now have kiosks where you can rent newly released dvds for $1/night. If this is not an option where you live, check out the local library for an even better price — free.

Make your own (much healthier) popcorn. If you’ve read about the dangers of microwave popcorn, you know those are chemicals you don’t want to ingest. All you need is a brown paper lunch sack, 1 cup of organic popcorn kernels, and a little olive oil. Combine the popcorn and olive oil in the bag (yes, the bag will get a little greasy), fold the bag over and clamp shut with one or two staples (the metal will NOT cause a crisis in your microwave) and microwave for approximately 2-3 minutes or until there are 3-5 seconds between pops. Be sure to listen for the popping to slow down. You can play around with flavorings by adding salt, Parmesan, or anything else to the bag you like.

Make fruit flavored water to go with the popcorn. Get creative. Add lemons, limes, oranges, or anything that strikes your fancy.

Load the floor with blankets and pillows and pile on for a fun (and cheap) family movie night.

Have a Field Day in Your Very Own Yard

Set up an obstacle course where you (and the kids) have to dodge trees (or sticks, or rocks, or cones — whatever you have). Jump from one spot to another or in and out of rings, if you have them.

Egg run. Make two lines at opposite ends of the yard and try to run from one to the other while balancing an egg on a spoon.

Set up a 3-legged race.

Have a water balloon toss.

See who can jump rope the longest without tripping.

Get creative – make prizes if you like, or reward everyone with popsicles or ice cream when you’re finished.

Family Art Day

Start with paints and paper. Make it a game by having each family member paint (or draw) something that starts with the letter “b.” Keep going with different letters of the alphabet.

Have each family member draw their version of a broad category. For example, draw a dog, or a tree, or a flower.

Ask little kids to paint or draw something and then describe to you what it is. Write their description, along with the date, on their artwork.

Choose one sample of each person’s work to hang in a place of prominence for the next week.

Create a Book.

Cut an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper in half, horizonally. Stack as many sheets together as you want and fold in half vertically. Either staple in the center, or punch two holes along the center line and run string or yarn through the holes to hold the pages together.

Have each person write and illustrate their stories on the pages. Younger children can draw pictures and dictate their stories for you to write in the books.

Create a Gratitude Journal.

Make a book as above, but have each family member write things they are thankful for on the pages. Each person can keep their books and continue to add to them.

Have an Indoor Picnic & Camp-out.

Turn your living room floor into a campground.

Begin by spreading out a tablecloth on the floor and eating dinner picnic-style. Focus on sandwiches and foods that can easily be eaten without utensils.

After dinner, clear away the picnic and set up a tent in the middle of the floor. Load it with sleeping bags and flashlights. Tell camp stories until it’s time to go to sleep.

Start an Indoor Garden.

Paint terracotta pots in various sizes with low-VOC paint in pretty colors, or consider using chalkboard paint so kids can update their designs.

Once the pots are dry, fill with organic potting soil and seeds you’ve pre-selected.

Water and put them in a sunny spot to watch them grow over the coming weeks.

Having fun doesn’t have to require a lot of money or a lot of wasted resources. What does your family do for green, cheap fun? I’d love to read about your ideas in the comments.

The things I’m most interested in when it comes to food and drink are buying products that are free of chemicals and pesticides, and buying locally whenever possible. There are some items that cannot be purchased locally, and some of those, I’ve been unwilling to do without. Two of those items are coffee and tea. [...]]]>

The things I’m most interested in when it comes to food and drink are buying products that are free of chemicals and pesticides, and buying locally whenever possible. There are some items that cannot be purchased locally, and some of those, I’ve been unwilling to do without. Two of those items are coffee and tea. When spending money on items from abroad (or even close to home, for that matter) I believe I have a social responsibility to purchase from companies that promote fair wages and fair working conditions for their employees and suppliers. We’ve all heard about the sweat shop labor in China and in other countries and many of us changed our buying habits as a result. An issue that has received less press, but one that is equally appalling, involves the conditions of, and wages paid to, coffee and cocoa farmers. This is where Fair Trade Certification come in.

What is the problem?

According to Global Exchange,

The United States consumes one-fifth of all the world’s coffee, making it the largest consumer in the world. But few Americans realize that agriculture workers in the coffee industry often toil in what can be described as “sweatshops in the fields.” Many small coffee farmers receive prices for their coffee that are less than the costs of production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt.

What can we do?

Look for the Fair Trade label on the coffee and tea products we buy. According to Transfair, a nonprofit, third-party certifier of fair trade products:

The Fair Trade Certified™ label guarantees:

A fair price
The Fair Trade Certified label guarantees that farmers and workers received a fair price for their product. The Fair Trade price means that farmers can feed their families and that their children can go to school instead of working in the fields.

Quality products
By receiving a fair price, Fair Trade producers can avoid cost-cutting practices that sacrifice quality. The Fair Trade producers’ traditional artesanal farming methods result in exceptional products.

Care for the environment
Most Fair Trade Certified coffee, tea and chocolate in the US is certified organic and shade grown. This means that the products you buy maintain biodiversity, provide shelter for migratory birds and help reduce global warming.

Community impact
Empowered by the economic stability provided by Fair Trade, members of the COSURCA coffee cooperative in Colombia successfully prevented the cultivation of more than 1,600 acres of coca and poppy, used for the production of illicit drugs. In Papua New Guinea, the AGOGA cooperative, is investing in a medical team to meet the healthcare needs of its isolated rural community. In the highlands of Guatemala, indigenous Tzutuhil Mayans in the La Voz cooperative are sending local kids to college for the first time. Near Lake Titicaca, in Peru, the CECOVASA cooperative is assisting members from Quechua and Aymara indigenous groups in raising coffee quality and transitioning to certified organic production.

“The fair price is a solution. It has given us the chance to pay a good price to our farmers. Those who are not in Fair Trade want to participate. For us it is a great opportunity. It gives us hope.”
-Benjamin Cholotío

Fair Trade coffees and teas can be purchased through a variety of companies. Two are:

Equal Exchange, offering coffees, teas, cocoa products, and snacks.

Both Ellwood Thompson’s and Ten Thousand Villages carry Equal Exchange products.

Green Mountain Coffee has an extensive line of Fair Trade Coffees including Newman’s Own Organics, as well as Fair Trade Teas and Hot Cocoa.

I’ve been able to find these at Target stores in the Richmond area.

All it takes is a little time to consider where our purchasing dollars go.

Dutch company, SPRANQ, has created ecofont — an eco-friendly font that uses up to 20% less ink. The font, as you can see in the image below, includes round holes in the letters that are visible when enlarged, but virtually undetectable when used in a smaller font.

SPRANQ’s website says the ecofont works best at size [...]]]>

Dutch company, SPRANQ, has created ecofont — an eco-friendly font that uses up to 20% less ink. The font, as you can see in the image below, includes round holes in the letters that are visible when enlarged, but virtually undetectable when used in a smaller font.

SPRANQ’s website says the ecofont works best at size of 9 or 10. They also recommend using it with Open Office, AppleWorks, or Microsoft Office 2007.

Best of all, ecofont is available for free by download and is compatible with Windows Vista and XP, Mac OS X and Linux. There is also support on SPRANQ’s website for installing the font.

Try it out and let me know what you think.