Black is the New Green

We all know that green is the new black. Everyone from eco-friendly celebs to green leaders have told us so. Even tshirts are telling us so! But has black also become the new green?

After browsing in Whole Body the other day, I came across Giovanni's D-tox system. I was initially skeptic of the organic coal-colored products but had a change of heart after reading the ingredients (activated charcoal, volcanic ash and super-antioxidants acai and gojo berry). The system is terrific and leaves my skin looking and feeling fantastic!


Get it here.

De-stressing the Eco Way

Let's face it, stress happens. It happens to all of us, no matter how calm we are or how we try to avoid it. My favorite way to de-stress is to have a healthy dinner with a glass of wine, take a nice bubble bath, and fall into a super comfortable bed for a solid 8-hour slumber. Since the green movement has steadily spread to all corners, just about anything you could possibly want is now available in "green".

After a particularly stressful day, I love to prepare a quick dinner (or cheat and pick something up) from the organic section of my local grocer or the farmer's market. A glass of organic wine finishes the meal. If you can't find organic wine locally, order yourself a bottle or two from The Organic Wine Company. Check to make sure that your state allows alcohol shipments before you order, though.

The Green Glass Company has a wonderful array of eco-friendly glassware. From tumblers to goblets, they've got it all! I'm a big fan of the clear goblets!!!


Like so many of my fellow greenies, I have eco-sins that go against my passion for living a green life. Among them is my love of the bath. The area around my bathtub looks like an apothecary with all of the products I use, but I try to negate a bit of my impact on the earth by using organic products. Check out The Daily Green's article on green bath scrubs.

Anna Sova makes an incredibly comfortable and still affordable set of organic cotton sheets.

The Bella Pura sheets are available in 4 colors and come in queen and king sizes.

Nothing combats stress like a good night's sleep! So next time you're stressed, feed your body well, take some time for yourself and sleep it off!

A Classic Goes Organic

I am back from all that has been crazy in life! I think I've recovered from working during CMA Fest. I spent most of my time running here and there with the artists I was working with and found myself with limited time to check email and no time to sit and blog. But now, I am back to a more routine schedule and will be posting more frequently.

It's offically hot enough to officially be summer weather and a long-time summer favorite has gone organic. The classic boat tote comes in a new eco-friendly organic cotton but still has the same timeless style we all know and love! The tote is a steal at $15.00


Get it here.

Welcoming the Heat

After seemingly endless days of rain in Nashville, the weather is finally turning brighter and the past couple of days have been absolutely beautiful. I don't know about you, but weather like this makes me giddy for outdoor gatherings. Whip up some lemonade, throw some goodies on the grill and chill the ice cream for dessert...it's time to break out the shorts and flipflops! If you're going to have an outdoor shindig, you might as well use cute tableware. Amy Butler's eco-friendly table goods are just the ticket!


You can view the pieces here.

Amy's collection also includes some great 100% organic bedding. EcoSalon's article on the adorable pieces is here.


Now go enjoy the weather!!!

Loomstate Comes to Target

Perennial eco-favorite Loomstate has just made its products more affordable and more accessible. The Loomstate for Target collection is available here and at Target stores nationwide.

Thanks to LB for such a fabulous discovery!!!

A Most Fabulous Blog

Haskell Harris, Associate Editor of Garden and Gun magazine, publishes a fabulous blog called Belle Decor. Recently, Ms. Harris posted about a friend of hers in New Orleans who has his own carpentry business. Matthew Thompson does a wonderful job of taking ordinary run of the mill pieces and turning them into decor statements. Take for example this reclaimed set of stadium seats:

Aren't those just fantastic???

EcoManor

When most people think eco-house, they think boxy and minimal. If you're like most people, prepare to have all of your eco-house expectations shattered. Meet the EcoManor.

The home of Laura and Rutherford Seydel is a beautiful showplace that's green from top to bottom. The EcoManor website even gives great links to the household and decor products that they used that are eco-friendly. Among the fabulously appointed rooms is a pink and green girl's bedroom. Talk about putting the green in pink and green!

Where Does the Other Sock Go?

The construction of the Pyramids, the Bermuda Triangle, the disappearance of Amelia Earhart. These are indeed some of the world's greatest mysteries. But the mystery that trumps all of these is the missing sock. You know the one. You put pairs of socks into the dryer and when they're done, mysteriously, you're left with a single sock from one or more pairs that you put in. Instead of trashing the spare sock (if it's cute), consider making a plant cozy out of it. Just cut it down to size, put the sock around and over the edge of a cup, and voila!

If You're Crafty and You Know It, Clap Your Hands!

For those of you residing in the NYC area, check out Purl Patchwork's book signing and workshop with green crafting author Betz White.

From Purl's blog:

Purl Patchwork is pleased and honored to host a workshop and book signing with artist and designer Betz White, author of Sewing Green, one of our favorite new craft books out this spring! Join us at Purl Patchwork (you can find a map to the shop here) on Saturday, April 18, from 10:00 am until 12:00 pm for a special workshop taught by Betz.

Special thanks to Heather for the heads up on this fantastic book and event! Check out her blog here and her Etsy shoppe here.

When Tourism Goes Eco

Sometimes, when work is bogging me down and I have to look like I am doing something productive, I go on a mental vacation. I love to look at tourism websites and I was so excited when I checked Islamorada's site today and found that they're making strides towards being greener. Check this out:

"Five Sixes Taxi recently debuted 10 environmentally friendly hybrid vehicles as the first step in converting its entire fleet. Five Sixes is the first taxi company in Florida to roll out hybrids. The cab company's officials project that the new fuel-efficient vehicles will get about 38 miles per gallon in the city, compared to their previous vehicles' 12 to 13 miles per gallon, reducing their emissions factor by 80 percent. Future plans include replacing its other 13 sedans with hybrids, and replace its 23 seven-passenger Maxi Taxis when a suitable hybrid van becomes available."

And yes, they're pink! It would be great if more vacation destinations would make strides towards being eco-friendly. You can read the whole article here.

Addendum to Eco-Exercise

I am, admittedly, behind the curve in the online world. In the last few hours, FitSugar has become one of my favorite websites. I was surprised to find that their article about the 7 Things you should have in your gym bag contained a number of eco-friendly suggestions. From a reusable BPA-free water bottle to an organic laundry bag to natural facial towelettes, FitSugar hits the mark with their suggestions. To add a cherry on top, there's even a preppy nod by way of a Vera Bradley mention. Hey, if you're going to store your gym ID somewhere, you might as well store it somewhere cute!

Check out the whole slideshow here.

Eco-Exercise

Spring is here and it's time to get back outside and get some exercise. Running or walking outdoors is a great eco-friendly way to get your workout mojo going. If outdoor exercise isn't your thing or if there simply aren't enough hours in the day for you to fit in an outdoor workout, consider an eco-friendly indoor workout.

One of my favorite indoor workout tools was originally intended to be a winter substitute, but I've liked it so much that it's taken up permanent residence in the Eco-Prep house. If you're a cyclist, consider an indoor trainer that requires no additional energy other than what is produced by pedaling.

Because I come from a place where temperatures below 40 are highly unusual, I have a difficult time adjusting to winter up here in the north. Cycling or running outdoors during the chilly winters is pretty much out of the question. My indoor trainer has been a saving grace and has kept me on track with my cycling program.

Other great options include rowing machines or self-powered treadmills and elliptical machines.
For more eco-exercise tips, check out these links for GreenYour.com and Dummies.com.

Cole Haan Goes Eco

Since I started writing this blog, my friends have been like birddogs searching for green products. Rarely a day goes by without two or three emails or calls from friends who have found green goodies. Today, my super stylish friend ML found this fabulous Cole Haan tote made of sustainable materials.

The eco-friendly tote is made from natural recycled fabric with vegetable tanned leather and chrome-free leather trim. The tote is created from bionic yarn containing 30-60% fibers made from recycled plastic beverage bottles. Each tote reuses ten bottles worth of recycled plastic bottles. Get it here. Thanks, ML!!!

Organic Madras

I get really excited when I find old favorites created in eco-friendly fabrics. I just discovered these madras pieces and wanted to pass them along.
The Raquel Skirt:

The Puerto Shorts:

Both pieces are made from 100% organic cotton. The most comfortable fabric just got even more comfy!

Making a Case for Greener Luggage

Heys Travel Goods has just come out with a new hard side suitcase. Ordinarily, I don't jump for joy over a new piece of luggage entering the market, but this one's a bit different. This hard side suitcase is made of 100% eco-friendly materials!


Heys has this to say about their product:
Why is the Eco Case a good choice?
* The shell is made of 100% recycled material and is 100% recyclable!
* A new blend of ABS gives the ECO CASE an elasticity effect similar to a rubber-band, the
shell won’t crack… ever!
* Heys ‘Better Life’ Warranty - 7 Year Worldwide Warranty
* It is the world’s first Eco-friendly Hard Side Case!

The case comes in 3 sizes and enough colors (including pink!) to make everyone happy. Find out where to get them here.

Tender Loving Care(n)

Have you ever thought that it would be so great to be able to get all of your organic products in one spot? Now you can. In searching for evanhealy moisturizer, I recently discovered Caren. Caren is a great source for all sorts of natural and organic products (skin, hair, etc.) for both guys and gals. In addition to all of the evanhealy products I use, I also picked up some products from the Skin line which is fantastic. It's light and easy on the skin. Even the most sensitive of skin (mine included) will love the products you can get from Caren. They're also really nice too! And, as you know, good customer service goes quite far with me.

Sale on Sailcloth

VivaTerra just put their sailcloth bags (in messenger and tote styles) on sale! And let's be real, who doesn't love a sale????

Branch-ing Out

Though the organic cotton bar towels I love are no longer available from Branch Handmade, there are some other great things in the fun little Etsy store.

The nautical prints are available on an assortment of clothing and textile items, like this tshirt:

Branch Handmade also has great hand-printed pillowcases in nautical and equestrian designs:


What a great way to add some handmade character to your home or your closet!

Bamboo Luxury...on Paper

It seems as though everyone I know is in the process of planning a wedding or getting ready to have a baby. I am elated at the fact that several of my friends have expressed interest in adding eco-friendly touches to their weddings/baby arrivals. Last night as I was searching for eco-friendly wedding and baby announcements, I came across Smock's fabulous bamboo collection.

From their website:

We're proud to be the first print shop in the U.S. to offer printing on a luxury bamboo paper.

What is our bamboo paper like? It's extremely soft, luxuriously thick, and elegantly textured. It's also perfect for letterpress. Essentially, imagine the highest quality cotton paper. Now imagine something even prettier and without the pesticides used in cotton production.

They also have a social stationery collection which is equally as fantastic. If you are in the market for new stationery, Smock is definitely worth a look!

Meanwhile, Back in Nashville...

RPD and I met up in Nashville this past weekend and we did the usual rotation...Musician's Hall of Fame, The Country Music Hall of Fame, Pancake Pantry, The Charlie Daniels Museum, The Pie Wagon, Loveless Cafe, Printers Alley, and the all-too-famous "Buy one, get two free" sale at one of the boot shops on Broadway.

But the highlight of our trip was our visit to The Green Wagon, the precious little store I mentioned in a blog post a while back.


We got to browse the store and chat a bit with Jen, the owner. I can't wait to get back and do some more shopping at The Green Wagon!!!