Written on
January 12, 2009 by
SusanC
What better way to start the second full week of the new year than with a great review and giveaway for some helpful green home and beauty products?
This review and giveaway comes courtesy of Ecostore USA, whose eco-friendly, plant-based household cleaning products are as effective as the leading supermarket brands, and their body and baby care products are gentle on your skin, natural, and non-toxic.
From Ecostore’s website:
All of our products are made from plant and mineral-based ingredients, free of toxic chemicals that bring people closer to nature with non-toxic, environmentally safe solutions that also help to reduce our carbon footprint.
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Written on
January 9, 2009 by
SusanC
Here are some favorite posts from elsewhere that had us thinking this week, to help start your weekend a bit greener.
Monday Doreen at Mom Goes Green posted on ridding our respective mailboxes of copious amounts of junk mail, and her post features multiple organizations who will help you do that easily and affordably.
Tuesday EcoGeek published an article on a new and unusual use for cocunut husks.
Is this really practical on a large scale? For those of us living in parts of the world where coconuts are limited to the grocery store, it’s hard to imagine. But in more equatorially located countries, coconuts are everywhere.
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Written on
January 7, 2009 by
SusanC
5 Minutes for Going Green is growing, and growing, and growing.
We are currently looking for dedicated, passionate, eco-savvy writers to become part of our green writing team.
Excited about going green and how simple it can be? Embarking on a new green journey at home or at work? Raising a green family of your own and wanting to network and share some of your own trials and tribulations? Desiring to dig deeper into the world of conservation, environmental activism, and daily green living? Not a proverbial eco-nut yourself (yet), but just feel like writing outside of your comfort zone?
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Written on
January 2, 2009 by
SusanC
Here are 5 posts from elsewhere that had us thinking this week, to help start your new year off a bit greener. Happy! 2009.
Monday CNN ran an article discussing the business and potential profit (both economically and for the planet) of sustainable farming and green industry. Here’s an excerpt from the article, though the full length version is definitely worth a read:
But a complex mix of push and pull factors are making environmental business practices increasingly attractive to investors and with that, some say, providing fresh hope for a planet in trouble.
Not only are the emerging markets for alternative power booming — and corporate efficiency initiatives looking more attractive — as fossil fuel prices rise, but many companies are also increasingly aware that there are real costs associated with doing nothing.
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Written on
December 31, 2008 by
SusanC
When entertaining for the holidays – or any occasion – consider using your regular dishes or reusable dishes bought to last through years of parties. We host large gatherings of friends a few times throughout the year, and always use our everyday plates and silverware. The aunt who hosts our huge family Christmas Eve meal has a special set of snowman-themed dishes that she breaks out each December 24th. Nary a paper plate is wasted, and it’s a very good (and green) feeling.
For cups, we do use plastic Solo party-ware, but our friends write their names on the cups with a Sharpie, and we wash them after each gathering and put them away to use next time.
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Written on
December 30, 2008 by
SusanC
Just in time for all of the post-holiday thank you cards you’ll no doubt be sending, this week’s Recycled Note O’ The Week will help you say thank you in style while using handmade recycled materials, too.
Thank you notes with flowers of handmade paper, from PulpArt:
The listing is for 5 thank you notes in a pack, and in the set featured above the seller used “calendula flower petals, angle wings (a botanical from Thailand) as well as all different colors of recycled but high-quality junk mail.”
A note from the seller on her process for making the handmade paper:
I make handmade paper the old-fashioned way, by combining recycled paper with water in a blender.
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Written on
December 26, 2008 by
SusanC
Today’s guest post comes to us from VelociBadgerGirl, a great writer with a passion for green issues and overall awesome human being.
If you’re anything like me, every year at the end of the holiday season, you’re left with a pile of greeting cards from family and friends, and no idea what to do with them.
Some people throw them out or toss them in the recycling bin, but I always feel too guilty.
It’s a problem, I know, but in the meantime, I really don’t want to collect boxes upon boxes of used X-mas cards. Luckily, there are a few solutions for those of us too sentimental to throw our cards out, but too practical to store them in the attic.
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Written on
December 25, 2008 by
SusanC
Merry Christmas, to you.
Photo by Chris Jernigan.
Warm holiday wishes to you and yours from the team here at 5 Minutes For Going Green.
May the upcoming days be filled with copious amounts of family, friends, and a toasty beverage of your choosing.
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Written on
December 23, 2008 by
SusanC
It’s the festival of the last minute for all holiday gift-giving, and we here at 5 Minutes For Going Green have definitely been there. This year we want to help you battle those gift giving stresses of Christmases past, and so we’ve put together a last minute Green Gift Guide to help you check each name of your list just in time to relax and enjoy the upcoming festivities.
1. Night Owl Paper Goods has a plethora of unique and 100% recycled gift ideas, from tote bags to cards and calendars comprised of sustainably harvested Birch wood:
2. Still need something for the avid coffee drinker on your list?
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