Have a Green Halloween

Ghosts and ghouls. Witches and zombies. And don't forget the Vampires! Halloween is my favorite holiday. For one night, each of us can recognize and unleash our dark side and our creativity. We get to publicly celebrate our fantasies and fetishes and alter egos without fear of judgment. Instead of buying that disposable costume made overseas, out of nasty raw materials, why not open up your creativity, your closet and basement? Whatever you want to be, I bet through your old clothes and items that you have tucked away you can make a rocking good outfit. Need to supplement - try the neighbors garage and when all else fails, the thrift store.

Don't forget the decorations! Treat them like your Christmas decorations, cherish and recycle the old and selectively replace or purchase new. Consider natural decorations - pumpkins, gourds, shrunken heads from apples like this one from "theapplecarver"...the list goes on.


Not creative you say? Organize a costume swap. Like a clothing swap, you and your friends or your kids can pile organize a costume trade, or better yet, throw all the costumes and accessories into a big pile and put together new costumes from them. Suddenly you are a zombie pirate or a vampire nurse.

Don't forget the make up. Most women will have a dark eyeliner and mascara in their arsenal. Use foundation or moisturizer as a base for baby powder to whiten your face. Fake blood is a breeze with food coloring and corn syrup.

No need to add to the landfill to get your inner-freak on. You've got it all happening at home;) Have a spooky, safe, fun and GREEN Halloween.

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew

Sephora & San Fran - Of Course It's Green!

Image: courtesy of Sephora, San Francisco, via vmsd Pulse
According to a recent article in vmsd Pulse, Sephora's Stonestown Galleria store is seeking gold or platinum LEED certification. This is the first time Sephora is seeking certification and plans are in the works for more LEED certified stores. Who knew Sephora has been making green choices for years - FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified wood flooring, LED lighting...? Good to know.


"According to Wendy Hawkins, Sephora’s store planning and design manager, this store uses 15 percent less energy; houses Energy Star-compliant equipment and appliances; and has high-efficiency plumbing fixtures that reduced the retailer’s water usage by more than 40 percent. The retailer also recycled all materials from the fixture install, including the protective packaging used during shipping." And they are doing it all, while keeping their signature black and white brand image.

Now if they can make sure that all their product offerings are equally sustainable they will really be doing something special;)

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew

Sustainable accessories of Note

One of my favorite sustainable living stores is Sustainable-NYC. Located at 139 Avenue A at 9th Street, it is one of the boutiques I was introduce to last year on a Green Shop Tour. This shop offers up a variety of sustainable home and fashion products, as well as, offering workshops and seminars. Here's a look at some new product the shop is featuring for Fall from their newsletter:


"The Mighty Wallet™ made from Tyvek®(think express mail envelopes) is tear-resistant, water-resistant, expandable and, most importantly, recyclable.

-Printed with SGS Certified environmentally friendly Ink. 100% recyclable packaging made from recycled PET plastic.

-2 interior pockets, 2 credit card pockets (holds approx 16 cards) and 2 quick access business card pockets.

The Blow Out Wallet is re-purposed from recycled bike inner tubes from mountain bikes and bike shops around the country.

-Unique, waterproof, non-marking inner tube exterior.

-Interior is made from 100% Recycled P.E.T. equipped with 6 sleeve pockets for cards and ID's 2 full-length bill pockets for cash & receipts.

The OWL Taxi Wallet is made with 100% recycled post- industrial leather, renewable natural rubber, natural tanning oils, and lead-free dyes.

- A clear pocket on the back keeps your ID or transit card handy. An interior security pocket holds credit cards.

- The easily accessible outside pocket is perfect for business cards and receipts. A snap pouch keeps a pocketful of change from jangling in your jeans.

A new line of beauty products has arrived at Sustainable NYC! IntroducingSustainable Fair Trade Skin Care " Alaffia".

Alaffia was founded as a way to empower communities in West Africa through the Fair trade of Shea Butter. Fair Trade is the fundamental foundation of this organization, which is made up of the Alaffia/Agbanga Shea Butter Cooperative in Togo, West Africa and Alaffia Sustianable Skin Care in Olympia, WA USA. Visit us at Sustainable NYC to check out our sustainable skin care."

Good on ya Sustainable-NYC.
--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew

Walking the Walk

As reported by Steve Kaufman in VMSD, North Face recently opened a LEED Gold certified store in an old department store in downtown Boise, ID. “We’re not one of those retailers that opens 50 stores a year,” Rice says. “We now have just 26 stores, built over 40 years. We choose our locations carefully and each one has to represent the values of the brand. And we feel this Boise store – with its reuse of an old building and our first attempt at LEED certification – tells exactly The North Face story that we try to tell every time out.”

Boise is one of the fastest growing markets for outdoor activities - hiking, skiing, climbing and has a large youth market on campus at Boise State. The building was home to the flagship Mode Department Store from 1909 to the 1980's and so has high recognition and sentimental value in the market.

The building lended itself nicely to environmentally friendly renovation, providing interesting architectural elements and reusable materials. A series of windows allowed for daylight and passive solar.

Other Leed items include: "Elsewhere, JGA and The North Face crossed all of LEED’s t’s. The building exterior is painted (with low-VOC and low-odor paint) a rustic version of The North Face red to blend in with the surrounding buildings. Powdercoated fixtures (as well as backroom shelving) are made of the renewable bamboo plywood called Plyboo. Feature walls use wood manufactured under sustainable forestry guidelines. The cashwrap and backwrap are built from SkyBlend, a wood particleboard made of 100 percent recycled wood fiber without added formaldehyde. Hardwood flooring is produced from sustainable forestry without insecticides or laminated adhesives. Vinyl flooring is made with recycled content and installed with low-VOC adhesive. And the carpeting is a hybrid yarn that uses renewable fiber from corn starch, installed using a glue-free installation system."

North Face puts the money where there mouth is;)

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh, Renew

Columbia Sportwear Saves some Trees

More on packaging. Columbia Sportswear decided to offer their customers shipping in used boxes through their e-commerce site. More than 2/3rds of the customers are participating. In true Social Media tradition, Columbia has added to eco-friendly fun. Customers can now follow their box as it is used by others, adding pictures and stories about the journey. What a great way to raise awareness about environmental issues surrounding packaging. Another example of going green and saving $$$.

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh, Renew