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Category Archives: For The Home

Last Minute Green Gift Ideas

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?

in Blog, Eco-Friends, For The Home, Great Green Finds, Green Holidays, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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Reflecting On The Best Of 2008

Written on December 22, 2008 by Guest Contributor

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As the end of the year draws near, we all get inundated with the “Best of 2008” programs, lists and commentaries.

Well, as I am a junkie for montages that reflect on what happened over the past year, and how it impacted one’s daily life, I thought I would share my own!

The Best Eco Friendly Changes I Made In 2008:

1. Used Miracle Mulch (eco-friendly coconut)
2. Added weather stripping to conserve energy.
3. Used motion sensors for outdoor lights to save energy. Turned off the porch light whenever we could.
4. Installed ceiling fans throughout the house. Never turned on the AC in 2008!

in Activism, Conservation, For The Home, Frugal Living, Got Energy?, Green Holidays, Green Outreach, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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Recycled Note Of The Week: Smock Paper

Written on December 17, 2008 by SusanC

1 Comment

This week’s Recycled Note Of The Week was found in SmockPaper’s Etsy shop.

Meet Ellie, the sustainably letterpressed “petite card”:

This particular listing is for a set of 8 blank letterpress petite note cards with hand-lined envelopes, which the seller notes are perfect as gift tags or place cards.

Each wee note is sustainably letterpressed on bamboo paper is 2-1/2 x 3-7/16 folded.

But, wait, there’s more.

As if adorable elephants on bamboo paper isn’t great enough, SmockPaper is also a wind-powered business that donates 1% of sales to environmental causes via 1% For the Planet.

Each set of cards comes packaged from Syracuse, New York in a clear sleeve that is “petroleum-free, tree-free, and certified biodegradable by the Biodegradable Products Institute.”

in Conservation, Eco-Friends, For The Home, For The Office, Great Green Finds, Green Holidays, Recycled Note Of The Week, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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Don’t Let Handmade Toys Become Extinct

Written on December 15, 2008 by SusanC

5 Comments

There has been buzz all around the handmade corners of the internet about the recently approved Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), passed in August of this year in large part because the United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US.

Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys, and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number.

All of these changes are great for children and will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with.

in Activism, Eco-Friends, For The Home, Green Parenting, The Green Consumer

- 5 Comments

Holiday How-To, Green Edition

Written on December 11, 2008 by SusanC

4 Comments

The Holidays can be a tricky time of year to navigate while staying green and not going over-budget. Here at 5 Minutes for Going Green we’re here to help you think outside the box this gift-giving season. We want to help keep you and your family green this holiday season, while also keeping more green in your pocketbooks, too. Keep reading for our customized How-To Holiday Guide.

(Keep in mind, too, that nearly all of these How-To tips are not holiday-centric and can themselves be recycled for birthdays, anniversaries, group social events, and just day-to-day green living.)

How To…

Wrap Recycled:

My new favorite recycled wrapping trend that I’ve seen suggested and modeled everywhere from Etsy to Martha Stewart Living is wrapping with maps and pages from atlases and other travel-related paperie.

in For The Home, For The Office, Frugal Living, Got Energy?, Green Holidays, Green Outreach, Green Thoughts, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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Recycled Note Of The Week: Subu

Written on December 10, 2008 by SusanC

2 Comments

This week’s Recycled Note Of The Week comes from Subu Rose, who specializes in creating unique and perfectly purse or pocket-sized notebooks from 100% recycled papers.

The covers of each notebook come from 100% cardstock made with 30% post-consumer fibers. The inside pages of the notebooks come from discarded printer paper so some of them have text and/or images on them, which I think adds to the overall charm and uniqueness of each notebook. The binding is hemp, with a button closure.

But who better to tell you about the notebooks than the seller and designer herself?

about the books: i try to use recycled materials when i can.

in Blog, For The Home, For The Office, Recycled Note Of The Week, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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The Home Depot Programmable Thermostat Winner!

Written on December 8, 2008 by SusanC

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Congratulations! to Therese, commenter #41.

Thanks to everyone for participating, and remember, for more product details about The Home Depot’s green line of programmable thermostats, visit the original giveaway post, and don’t forget to check out The Home Depot’s Eco Options available online and in stores now.

Happy! Monday.

in Eco-Friends, For The Home, Great Green Finds, Green Giveaways, The Green Consumer

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Recycled Note Of The Week: Create Happiness

Written on December 3, 2008 by SusanC

1 Comment

This week’s eco-friendly note selection comes from Earmark Invitations, and a visually inspiring card beautifully printed using soy-based inks and 100% recycled paper.

Earmark Invitations is proud to announce the first in our line of eco-friendly products. These cards are printed using non-toxic, soy-based inks, and the cards and envelopes are both made from 100% recycled, 100% post-consumer waste paper.

Create Happiness

Thank you for supporting eco hand made!

Added cost-effective green bonus?

The nicely priced listing is for 4 cards and 4 corresponding envelopes, making them perfect for you, or as a stocking stuffer for your favorite eco-savvy corresponder.

in For The Home, Frugal Living, Great Green Finds, Green Holidays, Recycled Note Of The Week, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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Cold Weather Roadblocks to our Green Schedule

Written on December 1, 2008 by SusanC

1 Comment

I feel like we got into a green groove this spring. The weather got warmer and we started walking everywhere.

By summer the car was getting dusty in the garage and we covered miles and miles on foot every day. Add the fresh fruit from the local market and the long lingering days at the beach for supper, and now I can see why things are changing around this house with the onset of winter.

We use the car way too much. Rather than risk the slippery walk to preschool as the cold rain pours from out of nowhere, we seek the safety, and moreover the comfort, of the car.

in Blog, Eat to Live, For The Home, Frugal Living, Green Holidays, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

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Recycled Note Of The Week: My Good Greetings

Written on November 28, 2008 by SusanC

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This week’s Recycled Note Of The Week comes from My Good Greetings, whose beautifully designed custom photo cards, invitations and stationary are printed on 100% recycled, carbon neutral paper which is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified.

My Good Greetings uses 100% digital short-run presses which significantly reduce paperwaste and emit 90% less Volatile Organic Compounds. What does that mean, exactly?

It means that when you send a unique and creative Good Greetings card, not only will the card be well received, you will know that you’ve made another good choice for the global environment.

In addition to their customizable cards for all occasions, My Good Greetings.com

in Around the Greenosphere, Beauty and Body, For The Home, Great Green Finds, Green Holidays, Recycled Note Of The Week, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

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