Happy Green Year

How Green is Your Closet? wishes you a Happy New Year and a greener 2010. I'm taking a break to re-charge and clean out the closet, donate the old and make room for the new ;) I'll be back on the 5th. Have a safe and happy holiday.

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

Ambitiously Green

Now I know you all recycle your magazines and catalogs, but on my trip to Hong Kong I ran into an artist doing it in a really unique way - she's knitting paper! That's right. Movana Chen's first project used fashion magazines and her current project uses books.

I have a long history of knitting many materials - wire, fishing line, trash bags, ribbon, etc. Since I had most recently tried to knit pre-consumer chip wrappers while working on a project with TerraCycle, I was enthralled by Movana's work. Interestingly, I used a similar process to Movana, but I never perfected it like she did.

My Process: 1) I fed the wrappers from their pre-use rolls through a shredder. This didn't work really well since the wrapper is rather thin and the shredder was powerful. I didn't get uniform shred. 2)I tried to melt the ends together with an iron - no go. I tried to find a proper adhesive - no go. I settled on a tried and true method of tying the ends together - worked but created knots and fringes. 3) Even loose tension made the wrapper tear.

Movana's Process: 1)Tape pages into long sheets. 2)Feed multiple sheets through the shredder. 3) Connect the ends with double stick tape. 4) Knit several layers of paper as one thread.

I have lots of magazines to try so I am going to see if I can give it a go. It is the perfect project for our next really Big Snow!

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

All I want for Christmas...

is my 2 front teeth... Well not exactly, I want a bunny without 2 front teeth.

Okay so I have told everyone I am tired of the re-usable bag mania. They come in all shapes, materials, colors and sizes and I am just plain tote bagged out - suffering from sheer tote bag exhaustion.

Then along comes the Picnica Bunny Tote Bag - Now maybe it is because I have just been in Hong Kong and talking a lot of Kawaii & cosplay, but this is oh so cute in a Japanese kinda way. See that bunny there? Well that tote folds down into that cute little bunny and doubles as a stuffed animal. I bet "ammas" (nannies) just love this.

Designed by EDING-POST, this super light nylon tote is available online. Priced at $27.00 this tote is available from japanesemoderndesign.com. Just imagine all the plastic bags you won't use and how many conversations you'll start with this cutie- now if it was produced green as well...

Give the gift of Green!

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

Have a Hand Made Green Holiday

So Black Friday and Cyber Monday have come and gone. You're shopped out. You still don't have all the gifts you need and the funds are getting tight. Not to mention you need a festive wardrobe update for the holiday social rounds.

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Make It!!!!

Here is a new to me blog that has a wide range of items with easy DIY instructions - P.S. - I made this... Self-proclaimed a movement, P.S. - I made this... describes itself as "a call to action to re-imagine, re-use, and re-invent. I see it. I like it. I make it."

Recent posts feature a variety of fashion(Chunky necklaces, Art deco earrings, etc.) and home accessories (textured pottery) that are on trend and oh so easy to make, many from things you may already have kicking around. Remember what MacGyver could do with a little string, duct tape and chewing gum? Now you won't necessarily escape from the bad guys, but you can have a festive runway inspired hair bow with a trash bag, lace ribbon, gorilla tape and scissors - a quick fix to your personal fashion emergency;)

Now there really are no excuses. See it. Like it? Make it! Give it. Wear it. Use it.

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

Shop Local Shop Green

This week I wanted to focus on shopping local and green by featuring a rockin' Philly shoe store, Bus Stop and one of their green offerings, Terra Plana.

London-born owner Elena Brennan opened Bus Stop to feature fun and funky shoes for the Philly shoe addict. Featuring a variety of hard-to-find designers and selections from such far away places at Lima and Rio, Bus Stop is always a delight. The merchandise mix offers a varied selection of product in a broad (many brands) and shallow (few styles and sizes) plan so you won't be wearing the same shoes as your friends shopping at the mall.

Just in for Winter, Bus Stop features new boots from Terra Plana with accents from repurposed Pakistani quilts and low-impact materials. In the About section of their website, Terra Plana describes their company as "Inspired by ecological survival, TERRA PLANA believes in a variety of non-generic products supporting ideas of sustainability: lightness, anatomic design, disassembly and durability." They offer a wide selection of footwear and accessories for men, women and kids. Terra Plana has one US store in NYC: Terra Plana , 254 Elizabeth Street, New York NY 10012, 1 212 274 9000, 254elizabethst@terraplana.com. It is a great little shop with a wonderful selection. I strongly suggest a visit when you are in the area.

Stay local. Stay green. Buy green, Be green. Bus Stop is located at 750 South 4th Street in Fabric Row. Holiday Hours are: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday 11AM-6PM, Friday till 7PM and Sunday 12PM-5PM.

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