San Francisco GreenFest

I was in San Francisco this week, and caught a few hours of GreenFest. I was happy to see some familiar faces and finally meet some fancy people who work for companies whose fancy green products we've reviewed on our main site, like Josh from Indigenous Designs. We love their fair trade sustainable fabric apparel and accessories (we just reviewed their fingerless urban gloves).

Here are some of the cool products I saw (and hope to review on our site this winter): elf boots made out of wool scraps, cute skirts and scarves made out of fabric leftovers, adorable organic apparel for children and toddlers, reusable lunch box kits, and an educational (but fun) eco video game for kids.

Please visit our site soon for more reviews of eco products........

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BYOC

We just received the coolest items to test from To-Go Ware. Two stacking stainless steel food bins, plus several smaller sized bins. You can read reviews on these items in our November issue, but for now, I'm thinking they're ideal for restaurant leftovers. The smaller bins are just the right size. I'm going to try to remember to throw them in my pockets or purse next time I go out to eat. (IE, Bring Your Own Container.)

I also plan on using them for potluck parties. The large tins for my dal, the small tins for my special sauces. More info after I've had time to test these fancy reusable containers.


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Scrapcycling

Read about some cool eco artists today in the Seattle Times. They turn junk into art, they repurpose all sorts of materials into furniture or other useful items.

How about a couch made out of 6400 nickels?

A table made out of scrap wood?


A fancy metal headboard?

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Day Planning

I like to keep it simple. And elegant. I'd rather use my fun gadgets for fun, and keep my days planned on paper. There's something about penning in a tea date with friend that's just more intimate than keeping track of my appointments with a little electronic device. I like the option of ticking off each meeting, doctor's appointment, and errand. I like writing down important deadlines with my red pen. I like not wasting resources by using a day planner with refillable pages. I love crossing out events I decided not to attend because I chose to take care of me and spend an evening relaxing. I like that if I drop my Filofax it doesn't break and I'm not out $300.

If you haven't heard of Filofax, it's because you're just not very fancy. That's ok. There's time to learn. Filofax is a British company that makes cool leather day planners of all styles and sizes. I'm a big fan of the classic Slimline collection, having used my first one (black, of course) for nearly 15 years before replacing it (I still use it as a notebook). I also have an orange mini - for travel. Men use them. Women use them. They come in black, red, pink, purple, and even flower print.

You can organize your planner however you choose. I'm a "week to a page" gal; keeps my Filofax slim enough to toss into whatever bag or pack I'm carrying. In the back, I have alphabet divider pages, in between which I keep a short-list address book. One of my favorite Filofax products - the computer printable pages. I don't have to hand write long lists (such as my contact info for the colleagues, friends, doctors, massage therapists, and other important people in my life) just to keep in touch. I can print them out on special Filofax paper that even has the holes punched in it. Makes updating a snap.


Naturally, I also keep a supply of Filofax note paper, which also comes in a variety of colors, for "notes to self," driving directions, and "to do" lists.

So maybe I'm stretching to label Filofax products as eco items, but there are these facts: I don't have to charge my Filofax (energy saving), I can recycle the pages at the end of each year, and I burn a few calories writing by hand.

Be Fancy, Get a Filofax.

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B.Y.O.B.

Of course you already know this -- fancy people bring their own bags to the grocery store.

Reuse the bag from your last visit, keep a canvas tote in your car, wear a backpack, whatever it takes. In Seattle, starting in January, stores will charge 20 cents a bag. Hopefully, they'll eventually ban all bags.

My friend Shannon has a great idea -- donate your extra canvas totes to your local grocery store so that everyone can have a reusable bag.

Check Fancy-Green.com in August for reviews of Envirosax totes.

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Tag, You're It

So, if a clothing company wants to be green, it should go all the way, right? Consider its packaging, distribution, labeling. Maybe stop using those skinny plastic “I” hooks that attach the labels to the clothes. Are those things even recyclable? Even if they are, they’re impossible to get off without a pair of scissors, and then when you clip them, half of the plastic thingy ends up falling under the couch for you to find next time you Swiffer.

A few green clothing companies, such as Nau, Of the Earth, Fuze, and Certaintees are making their tags more earth friendly, using string and safety pins to label their organic and sustainable goods. Safety pins are totally reusable -- I store mine in a kitchen drawer (and keep a few in my bag) for times I need a quick fix for a hem or tear. And who doesn’t need little pieces of string -- you can tie them all together to make a big piece of string. Or save the little strings and use them to label things at your next garage sale!

Certaintees makes great use of their tags; they’re bookmarks that also contain washing instructions and a list of non-profit organizations Certaintees supports. And their strings are 100% hemp. Fuze has similar info on their tags, plus hidden wildflower seeds in the paper. Plant it, and watch your eco flowers grow. How fancy!