Greeny Fashion Blog

Friday, November 20, 2009

Making a Green Change in Your Life

Modern living has some pitfalls in terms of environmental friendliness. User-friendly modern gadgets have at times pushed farther our propinquity to attaining the green s

plendor of living. Here are some suggestions to making a green change in your life and for our environment:

EAT VEGETABLES. All you have to do is stop eating beef. Worldwide, beef production contributes more to climate change than the entire transportation sector. The carbon footprint of the average meat eater is about 1.5 tons of CO2 larger than that of a vegetarian. Cutting beef out of your diet will reduce your CO2 emissions by 2,400 pounds annually.
TAP DRINK . You can save money and your environment by giving up bottled water. The production of plastic water bottles together with the privatization of our drinking water is an environmental and social catastrophe. Bottled water costs more per gallon than gasoline. The average American consumes 30 gallons of bottled water annually. Giving up one bottle of imported water means using up one less liter of fossil fuel and emitting 1.2 pounds less of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
ECO-SABBATH. For one day or afternoon or even one hour a week, don’t buy anything, don’t use any machines, don’t switch on anything electric, don’t cook, don’t answer your phone, and, in general, don’t use any resources. In other words, for this regular period, give yourself and the planet a break. Every hour per week that you live no impact cuts your carbon emissions by 0.6 percent annually. Commit to four hours per week, that’s 2.4 percent; do it for a whole day each week to cut your impact by 14.4 percent a year.
TITHE YOUR INCOME. Tithe a fixed percentage of your income to non-profits of your choice. If an average U.S. family contributes 1 percent ($502.33) of its annual income ($50,233) to an environmental non-profit, they could offset 40.7 tons of carbon dioxide per year. Many of our public health and welfare services are tied to consumer spending which, in turn, depends upon planetary resources. If you want to help, don’t go shopping. Just help.
BUILD A COMMUNITY. Have dinners with friends. Play charades. Sing together. Enjoying each other costs the planet much less than enjoying its resources.
GET THERE UNDER YOUR OWN STEAM. Get around by bike or by foot a certain number of days a month. Not only does this mean using less fossil fuel and creating less greenhouse gases, it means you’ll get exercise and we’ll all breathe fewer fumes. If you can stay off the road just two days a week, you’ll reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 1,590 pounds per year.
COMMIT TO NOT WASTING. Wasting resources costs the planet and your wallet. Let your clothes hang-dry instead of using the dryer. Take half the trips but stay twice as long. Repair instead of rebuy. The list goes on. In the summer, for every degree above 72°F you set your thermostat, you save 120 pounds of CO2 emissions per year, and if you wash your clothes with cold water you can cut your laundry energy use by up to 90 percent.
TAKE YOUR PRINCIPLES TO WORK. We must act as though we care about the world at work as much as we do at home. Company CEOs or product designers have the power to make a gigantic difference through their business, and so do the rest of us. In commercial buildings, lighting accounts for more than 40 percent of electrical energy use, a huge cause of greenhouse gas production. Using motion and occupancy sensors can cut this use by 10 percent.
DONATE A DAY'S TV TIME TO ECO-SERVICE. Take one day off from TV—the average American watches four and a half hours of TV a day—and try voluntary eco-service instead. Those four and a half hours a day watching TV add up to 825 pounds of carbon dioxide each year.
BELIEVE WITH ALL YOUR HEART THAT HOW YOU LIVE YOUR LIFE MAKES A DIFFERENCE. We are all interconnected. Every step toward living a conscious life provides support to everyone else who is trying to do the same thing—whether you’re aware of it or not. We are the masters of our destinies.

10 Simple Ways to Go Green Without Losing Green (Money)

Today’s emergent responsiveness for “going green” or more environmentally aware often brings the cynics out. It’s not easy to recycle. The organic products cost too much. Any lifestyle change towards green living seems impractical.

Just as you don’t stick to your diet perfectly each day, it’s OK to slip a little and make small changes as you go. Finding the steps that fit your lifestyle can make a significant difference over time, and it certainly is better than not doing a thing at all. You can go greener without spending significantly more money out of pocket. By making undemanding lifestyle changes, you can spell a difference.

Here are 10 simple things you can do to go greener without losing your green (bucks):

Invest in local producers. You’ll find many deals at your local farmer’s market, and the quality will be better than what you’ll find at your grocer. Buy in season and freeze (or can, if you’re adventurous) the rest for the winter.
Shop smart. As with any “regular” thing you buy, watch coupons and sales to get the best deal. You can get great deals on organic products.
Consider natural cleaning. And I don’t mean buying Clorox Naturals or any other branded product. Many household items, including baking soda, vinegar, even toothpaste, can do double-duty as a cleaning product.
Watch your energy output. Unplug the cell phone charger when you’re done. Unplug appliances you don’t use often. By just being plugged into your outlet, they are utilizing energy. If you don’t believe me, feel how warm your charger or other plugged-in item is.
Be mindful of your CFLs. You pay more upfront for these energy-efficient bulbs, but to maximize their lives you need to leave them on for at least 15 minutes at a time.
Turn the car off. Idling is a complete waste of gasoline. Avoid the drive-through; turn off the car and go inside on your errands.
Find a good home for things you no longer use. Many non-profit organizations will gladly accept clothing and furniture in good condition, craft materials, leftover homebuilding supplies and more. Even electronics such as your abandoned cell phone and computer can be recycled or repurposed for a person in need. mygreenelectronics.org
Watch your water usage. Shorten your shower; fix the drip in your faucet. The savings will quickly add up.
Let your grass grow. Grass ideally should be cut no shorter than 3 inches tall. Shorter, and the root system is not as developed and you end up using more water. And, you may have the benefit of mowing less.
BYOB. Bring your own bag when shopping. You can buy inexpensive reusable bags at many area stores, or simply tote your own tote bag.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Greening Your Home

Click on a room of the house to link to information on greening that room. You can also click on the attic and on the outdoor areas.

Whether you are a homeowner or a renter, in the market for a new home, or making home improvements, this site identifies the key environmental and energy issues at hand, and suggests solutions that will add value to your home, reduce energy use and energy costs, fight climate change, and help protect your health. Use the house graphic above or green home solutions links below to navigate to topics of interest.

Green Home Solutions

Rooms of the House

Tools

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Greener Pasture - a false promise or a fading comfort?

We get demystified by the daily grind in our lives. We experience new things, get a little bit excited by what we haven’t got yet, roll over a bit on some routines, and then sink to exhaustion on some corner. Life’s got to be a cycle and when that cyclic redundancy begins to sedate that tired spirit, the horizon gets gray – almost everything becomes featureless. Do you get the same futility sometimes?

What on earth are you doing? Go, get up, let loose, explore and be different! There’s too much in life that you forego by staying within your dull comfort zone. And when that going gets tougher and alienating, you come back because you didn’t recognize the green out there. You reached the blue part and thought it’s the same boring end. Or maybe, others were holding on to your sleeves, saying you can’t be too different and the risk is getting quite deep.

Others! Why do you have to mull over their expressions and worries? Why should you care that much? Ah, you love them – just worthy of your sacrifice. Now, when your life and even your finances get stuck in oblivion, don’t they suffer also? You drag each other down and your relationship becomes stale – it doesn’t grow I suppose.

So you have to set your vision and energy beyond the blue horizon. You can’t see it clearly first but others have gone ahead. There’s that greener pasture. It’s for you and for them. You can’t stay hesitant all your life. That comfort zone could become scratchy soon. So go ahead, make the sudden turn and God knows what’s in store for you. Or maybe sing like the group No Doubt with their piece “Greener Pasture”. The lyrics are shown below:

Greener Pastures (by No Doubt)

Go ahead, get out and see the world
But then I think, why should I

I'd rather stay home and cry
I never thought that I could be the other
The other way like the other ones
Let me open wide, let you see inside
And then you might agree

Would you say they find me unstable
'Cause they see me act a little bit different
But I know my way to greener pastures and
Think about it, won't you think it over
Please

Without you I can move
I can stretch my arms out, I can feel it
And when I'm in my room alone I feel good
Because I don't have to deal with you or the outside world

Would you say they find me unstable
'Cause they see me act a little bit different
But I know my way to greener pastures and
Think about it, won't you think it over
Please

I guess I'll get over it
Ooh - I guess I'll get over it
I guess I'll get over it
I guess I'll get over it

Would you say they find me unstable
'Cause they see me act a little bit different
But I know my way through greener pastures
Would you say they find me unstable
'Cause they see me act a little bit different
But I know my way through greener pastures
Would you say they find me unstable
'Cause they see me act a little bit different
But I know my way through greener pastures
Greener pastures
See me act a little bit different
But I know my way through greener pastures

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Green Wishes

With many different kinds of illnesses besetting the world today, people could only wish for non-toxic items in their lives. We now yearn for that day when we could have organic bed and sheets, organic pieces of furniture, organic apparels, and even organic gadgets.

Annie Bond, the author of a number of books on green living, most recently Home Enlightenment, has her top 10 greeny wishlist for a health and green living. Try to see if they’re similar with yours. She wrote:

Interestingly, my wish list hasn’t changed much, and some of my desires have been achieved, such as an organic bed, and I have one hand-dyed, organic wool Tibetan carpet. The designs are of the medicinal plants of Tibet. What perfect imagery/energy to have in my living room. Here are my top 10 wishes for greenness; I am very curious to hear about

yours.

Organic wool bedding, including mattress, pillow, and comforter. Organic bamboo sheets.
Hand-dyed, organic wool Tibetan carpets.
Organic fruits, veggies, and dairy delivered every week, 12 months a year.
Geothermal heating system.
A water filter that alkalinizes the water.
Organic wool cushions for all of my couches and stuffed chairs.
Zero-VOC paint colored with natural minerals for beautiful, mellow hues.
A local manicurist who does 100 percent natural manicures.
A vacation in an eco-hut on St. John, in the Caribbean
A hip franchise with non-toxic/green cosmetics and hair care products for teenagers.

You see, she didn’t even get to the clothes and shoes. What about you? What is on your green wish list?

Thursday, November 5, 2009

DIY Design - Recycling and Restyling Resources

While sewing a garment from scratch can be extremely rewarding, there are faster ways to be creative with needle and thread, especially by using vintage garments. Playing with a hemline, adding some trim or embellishments, like beading or embroidery, can easily give new life to an old has-been. You can easily restyle an item, giving it an of-the-moment look, and still get the thrill of saying, "I made it myself." Plus, recycling well-loved pieces is good for the planet, too!

For an all-around great resource on restyling, check out the vintage "Mary Johnson's Guide to Altering and Restyling Ready-Made Clothes." CraftStylish Restyle is a great resource too; it's an entire magazine full of ideas on what you can do to transform your wa

rdrobe. The online second-hand clothing market has exploded, especially at Etsy.com, the online destination for all things handmade, which makes the site a great resource for vintage garments which you can alter to your liking!

Here are a few of my favorite vintage boutiques in the Etsy marketplace:

For old-fashioned good taste combined with a clear sensibility of the trends, Catwalk Creative Vintage is one of the best stops you can make.

Try changing up the buttons on one of their retro '70s blouses for a simple restyle. The carefully culled selection has a quick turnaround so if you see something you like, buy it!

The pickings are more eclectic at Joules but just as delectable. Choose from the likes of vintage cherry napkins, which can make for perfect new throw pillow covers to '60s day dresses just begging for ribbon trim.

For screen siren elegance head to Catbooks1940s to scoop up swing coats and evening gowns. A little bit of beading goes a long way.

Mock Turtle Vintage has an eye for sweet details like 1940s prints and pleasingly placed pleats, while FauxBrit13 has an adorable selection of kitschy handkerchiefs you can applique on garments and pillows alike, as well as scarves that you can repurpose as clever belts.

For volume and choice, without sacrificing quality, check out Beulaveda and Viva Vintage Clothing.

That's just a taste of what the Web has to offer for vintage shopping. It's delightful to wander around and discover your own favorite places; it's a lot easier on your wallet than new clothing. And by spending an hour or so you can give the piece your own unique twist.

Next week, find out about all the cool indie sewing patterns that are available online or if you can't wait that long, learn how to sew your own way with the Web's fastest and coolest sewing projects.

Amber Eden is the former editor-in-chief of Threads magazine and founding editor of SewStylish magazine and CraftStylish.com. She has studied draping and haute couture techniques at The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), and according to her, will probably be a student there for life.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Natural homemade beauty recipes

Nature is the newest trend in skin and hair care. For years, we’ve been putting toxic chemicals into our bodies that build up and make us feel tired and sick, regardless of whether we eat them or if they seep though our pores. And people are finally catching on that natural is better. Most stores now have a line of “natural” beauty products. Unfortunately, they often come with a big price tag attached too. Often times many of these products are not actually “natural” so it does pay to do your homework to ensure you are getting what you pay for.

Fortunately, actually making beauty products yourself isn’t too difficult. So if you want beauty products that you know are natural and are also inexpensive, just make them yourself. Here are 5 quick and easy recipes you can make at yourself.

Face Mask
Eating good food helps give you the right nutrients you need to look good. You can get more of these vitamins and minerals by putting the good stuff right on the skin. Combining a mashed carrot, mashed avocado, and a beaten egg with a half cup a few tablespoons of honey creates a great face mask that provides vitamins, and improves the tone and texture of your skin. Just stir well, apply, let sit for about 15 minutes, and then wash off with cool water. After you’re washed and nourished your skin, you can use grated cucumber or diluted lemon juice as a toner to help tighten your skin and close up your pores to close your pores and keep your skin looking great.

Hair Conditioner
Many people pay a lot of money for a conditioner that actually makes your hair look and feel good. Here’s a great natural recipe to save you money and help your hair. Just mix an egg yolk with a tablespoon of castor oil and apply to hair. Let sit for about ten minutes and rinse out. You can use this every so often as a conditioning treatment for healthy shiny hair. If you like being experimental, you can try mixing other kitchen items, herbs, and natural items with eggs for healthy, shiny hair.

Hand and Foot Cream
A quick face mask will help make you look great in not a lot of time, but hands and feet require extra care. Use ½ cup of olive oil mixed with natural sea salt and massage into your hands and feet. Leave a few minutes to soak and then rinse off with warm water. When it comes to natural beauty products, these recipes are just the start. You can find hundreds of different combinations in natural beauty books, magazines, and on the internet. Or you can go to your kitchen cabinet and make your own special creations.

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Design for Adaptation: Living in a Climate-Changing World

Climate scientists have been speaking out for decades about the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to avoid a significantly warmer and less livable future. Now that climate change is finally part of the public discussion, the future is already here—and it’s only getting warmer. Designing energy-efficient buildings is an important step toward preventing more drastic warming. We need to redouble these efforts—the 2030 Challenge goal of carbon-neutral buildings by 2030 will be a difficult yet critical standard to meet. But by stopping there, are we turning a blind eye to the changes that scientists say are coming even if greenhouse

gas emissions were turned off tomorrow? More and more experts acknowledge that while we must continue to do all we can to slow greenhouse gas emissions, we must also begin designing buildings that will work in a changing climate. This article examines the science of global climate change and looks at how we can adapt the built environment to a world that will, by most accounts, be very different by the end of this century from the one we know today.

The living space in this new home built by Global Green in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans is elevated four feet (1.2 m) to keep it above expected flood level. Numerous other “passive survivability” features are included.

Debate may continue in some circles about whether humans are causing climate change, or even whether it is happening at all, but the scientific consensus is overwhelmingly clear. A report issued in June 2009 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGRP)—which coordinates climate change research of 13 federal agencies and operated as the U.S. Climate Change Science Program from 2002 through 2008 under the George W. Bush presidency—estimates that global average temperatures have risen approximately 1.5ºF (0.8ºC) since before the Industrial Revolution and could rise another 2ºF–11ºF (1.1ºC–6.1ºC) by the end of this century, based on modeling of a variety of greenhouse gas emissions levels, mitigation efforts, and economic scenarios. “The reality of climate change is unequivocal—we see it in many aspects of the Earth’s climate system,” said Jonathan Overpeck, Ph.D., co-director of the Institute of the Environment at the University of Arizona and a co-author of the USGCRP report.

Monday, October 5, 2009

When Technology Turns Green...

Technology refers to the application of knowledge for practical purposes. While technology's emerging color changed from black to gray to white to gray...oh the cycle is just obvious, technology becoming green has just surfaced into human consciousness. Technology turning green encompasses a continuously evolving group of methods and materials, from techniques for generating energy to non-toxic cleaning products.

Green Technology is the application of the environmental sciences to conserve the natural environment and resources, and by curbing the negative impacts of human involvement. Sustainable development is the core of environmental technologies. When applying sustainable development as a solution for environmental issues

, the solutions need to be socially equitable, economically viable, and environmentally sound.

Some environmental technologies that retain sustainable development are; recycling, water purification, sewage treatment, remediation, flue gas treatment, solid waste management, renewable energy, and others.

The present expectation is that this field will bring innovation and changes in daily life of similar magnitude to the "information technology" explosion over the last two decades. In these early stages, it is impossible to predict what "green technology" may eventually encompass.

The goals that inform developments in this rapidly growing field include:

Sustainability - meeting the needs of society in ways that can continue indefinitely into the future without damaging or depleting natural resources. In short, meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs;

"Cradle to cradle" design - ending the "cradle to grave" cycle of manufactured products, by creating products that can be fully reclaimed or re-used;
- Source reduction - reducing waste and pollution by changing patterns of production and consumption;
- Innovation - developing alternatives to technologies - whether fossil fuel or chemical intensive agriculture - that have been demonstrated to damage health and the environment; and
- Viability - creating a center of economic activity around technologies and products that benefit the environment, speeding their implementation and creating new careers that truly protect the planet.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Philippine Town Goes Green with Bamboo Taxis

Residents of Tabonton, Leyte, Philippines thought up a "green solution" for their transport problems by crafting bamboo cars. The cars or "bamboo taxis" were commissioned to address the municipality's need for an alternative mode of transportation to the often-used but accident-prone motorcycle. The town’s mayor is also considering mass-producing the novel car.

The bamboo taxis, assembled by local out-of-school youth, are equipped with a 2-cylinder engine that runs on coconut biofuel, a gallon of which can make the cars run for about 8 hours. The vehicles are made with 90% bamboo, a strong but flexible grass. The entire vehicle, apart from dashboard components and mechanical parts, are covered with colorfully designed handwoven rattan mats.

Various reports state that there are 2 bamboo vehicles called Eco 1 and Eco 2. They vary only in seating capacity and design as Eco 1 can seat 20 people while Eco 2 can accommodate 8. Neighboring towns have already expressed interest in having bamboo taxis in their own .
The report also said that the car's body is laminated with polyurethane, commonly used in foam, to make it fire-resistant.

The bamboo taxi idea has been received with enthusiasm all over the world. Examiner.com's Exotic Car reviewer Kae Davis called the vehicle "possibly the most exotic car" because of its unique concept and the "exotic" location in which it was assembled. "The main question one might tend to ask about such a vehicle first is not about how the car endures monsoon weather or if the little car can actually produce enough speed to get up and go. It's whether or not, when the car is running, it actually smells like burning fuel or more resembles the fresh and wonderful summer beach day," Davis wrote.

In a blog post at www.inhabitat.com, Jorge Chapa of the Green Building Council of Australia called the cars "stylish" and "incredible." "Bamboo is an incredible material - it is rapidly renewable, environmentally friendly, and does not require a ton of processing for it to be incorporated into designs. But did you know that its tensile strength is just as good as that of steel? This remarkable strength makes bamboo a fitting and exceptionally sustainable material for Tabontabon's new taxis,” he said.

A similar bamboo car called "BamGoo" was made in Kyoto University, Japan last year. The electric car's body is made out of woven bamboo. The Japanese bamboo car can only seat one person and can run some 50 kilometers on fully-charged batteries.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Saving the World, One Website at a Time

In this day and age, everyone is fighting to preserve the earth’s natural resources. We are trying to go green, as they say, by handling things over the internet. This way, we cut down our usage of paper substantially, and it’s gotten to the point where we feel a little guilty if we use paper at all.

Luckily, there is an alternative to nearly every paper product you can think of. Instead of sending letters through the mail, you can use email, which is faster and more reliable anyway. Instead of going to the store and picking out a Mothers Day gift or Mothers Day (http://www.care2.com/send/catmothersday1.html) card, you can go online and find an ecard, thus saving paper, ink, and money.

Instead of scribing ten page reports on paper, you can type them out on the computer and email them to your professor, saving the wood needed to make a pencil, saving paper, and saving your poor fingers from blisters and calluses.

The internet is just full of possibilities, and every web alternative has more benefits than just the fact that you’re saving paper. Most online purchases will cost you less than if you went to a store to get them, and you don’t have to spend any gas to do it. You also don’t have to deal with lines, and you don’t have to stand there staring at the shelf wondering where the product is when it’s right in front of your face.

If you have a million friends whose birthdays are scattered all over the place, you don’t need to make a bunch of trips to the Hallmark store anymore. You can send birthday ecards (http://www.care2.com/send/birthday_cards.html) or funny joke ecards to all of them, and you don’t even need to include money in the card. Now, you can even do grocery shopping online, to have it delivered to your house. This way you save on gas, and you need neither paper nor plastic.

Christmas shopping is a breeze. You still get great deals when you shop online, and you won’t need to engage in fisticuffs over the last Barbie Princess Play set because even if it’s out of stock on one site, there is a multitude of other sites you can check. Not to mention that it takes only seconds to check out, and it will arrive at your doorstep in the perfect sized box, ready for you to wrap up.

Never again will you need to take time out of your day to address Christmas greeting cards to all of your friends and family, because now you can send Christmas ecards (http://www.care2.com/send/catxmas1.html) as well. If you take into account the fact that a physical greeting card is about a dollar in price, and each postage stamp is forty two cents, you’ll realize that it can get rather expensive.

Then you must figure the amount of water you’ll need to drink in order to lick all of the envelopes, and how bad they will taste in the first place. Sometimes doing things the old fashioned way is a real pain. So why bother, when there are more convenient, eco-friendly alternatives right at your fingertips?

About the Author: Allison Ryan is a freelance marketing writer specializing in internet and email technology and loves to celebrate the holidays by sending funny ecards to her friends and family. For a Mothers Day card or for birthday ecards, check out http://www.care2.com/, an awesome non-profit site!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

The Ultimate Women's Shoes Store Online

Everyone knows that women love shoes and they are so fond of their shoes that they keep them all, some say you could find anything you wish to know about a woman by taking a glance at her shoes. So, who would better enjoy women's shoes stores online other than women? A woman's shoes will immediate tell you what she works. If you see classical shoes it's clear she has an office job, if she has sport shoes it obvious she is a runner or that she likes to take walks and the list could continue.

The point is that shoes are an essential element of a woman's life. Shoes tend to be more than a woman's friend and because of this the women shoe industry is flourishing. There are companies that started as a simple small shop and now include even industry production facilities. Such companies usually have retail and women's shoes online stores. What most of women or men don't know is that in the last years internet commerce flourished and this is why you will find much more deals and promotions in women's shoes online stores than in any store that you enter.

The good thing about women's shoes stores online is that you can find very good stuff at a very modest price, what else would you like more? In the following lines I will tell you about several women's shoes stores online that sell very nice shoe models. http://Zappos.com has such a wide collection of shoes that it would take days to see their entire offer. With Zappos women's shoes stores online women are treated with further interest and everyone knows why, many internet buyers say that when starting a shoe buying campaign their first stop is this site.

6pm.com is man and women's shoe store online that provides handbags beside shoes. They have very tempting sales and provide an interesting tool that can choose a handbag for your shoes. They also offer the "free shipping / returns" system. http://Shoes.com is another women's shoes store online that offers an impressive shoe collection; the shipping and returning option is also present and they guarantee the lowest price on the market. Jildor women's shoe stores online also offer a wide range of fashionable dress shoes at a very good price. In conclusion I urge you to look for internet offer when you want to buy shoes because you will be sure that you won't throw money for something that is much cheaper on the internet.

Related Sites:
Naked Pinay Views, Friendly Remarks , Greeny Fashion, Money Talk s , Marc Nand's Blog , Nodding Nanding's Journal, Amusing Disclosur e , PC Operatis , Online Shopster
Sites to visit :

Mizuno, Calvin Klein, Nike, Moschino, Adidas, Puma, Converse, Dickies, Skecher, DKNY, Emerica, Kayland, Miss Sixty, Umi Kid s, Tommy, Wee Box, Onex, Olukai, FlyFlot, Fratelli, Gravati, Daniel Green, Jumping Jack, Yellow Box, Nine West, Tatami, Coclico, , Via Spiga, Naturalizer, Ecco Golf

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Black Swimsuit - Simple, Elegant, Classy and a Must Have For Summer

A black swimsuit is an essential part of women's summer wardrobe. Whether it's a itsy bitsy tiny black biki

ni or a 50's cut one piece swimsuit finding a basic black swimsuit should be high on your list of priorities in getting ready for a fun summer.

The two best places to find the elusive perfect black swimsuit is firstly at a physical store and second is online. The advantages of shopping is store is that you can try on your swimsuit before you buy and shop assistants can be helpful in suggesting cuts and styles that will suit your shape. The disadvantages are that changerooms can be a nightmare for the body conscious with unflattering lighting and sales assistants who barge in unannounced. Also, prices tend to be on the higher side due to the staffing and rental costs of a physical store.

The advantages of shopping online is that it can be easy to compare brands without driving to 30 stores, prices tend to be lower due to the lower costs of online retailing. The disadvantage is the inability to feel the fabric for quality and as sizing can vary greatly from one label to the next, you may be confused over which size to buy. However,

most companies also offer some sort of return policy which allows you to try on your swimwear in the comfort of your own home and exchange it if the style or size is not quite right for you.

Styles to look out for this season include the 50's inspired suit which features lower leg lines and thicker straps, embellishments and beading which are set off nicely by the black material and black monokinis which offer the perfect alternative for those that feel a bikini is a little too revealing but don't want to cover up completely with a one piece.

When choosing your swimwear be sure to look on the label for a lycra content of at least 20%, the higher the lycra the better the quality of the fabric and the more wear you will get out of your carefully chosen swimsuit.

Once you have chosen your perfect swimsuit make sure you look after it properly to avoid changes in colour and fading. Wash after use in warm soapy water and hang out to dry, never ever put it in the washing machine or the dryer as this destroys the lycra making it quickly lose it's shape.

About The Author

Summer Fisher is an Australian designer, photographer stylist and former model who has her own swimwear and clothing line "Busy Summer". She enjoys sharing her knowledge about fashion, modeling, health & beauty and designing for the fashion conscious woman who want a black swimsuit at an affordable price. Find out more about her and her label at http://www.blackswimsuit.net

The Green Free Fifteen – 15 Ways to Save Energy and Water in Your Home

If you don’t have any money to invest in green, sustainable, eco-friendly products or strategies you are in luck! Here are 15 ways that you can start to trim your utility bills by using less energy and water. Unless you have been living under a rock you have probably heard some of these before, but they are still worth repeating.

1. Turn Off the Lights: This is a favorite of dads everywhere. I can still hear my dad, and now I’m repeating it to my kids: “When you leave a room, turn off the lights.”

2. Turn Down / Up the Thermostat: By adjusting your thermostat down a few degrees in the winter and up a few more in the summer you can make a significant cut in your heating and cooling bills. There can be added benefits to doing this: more snuggling in the winter and less clothing in the summer.

3. Stingy Showers: By taking shorter showers or even skipping one here and there, you can save thousands of gallons of water a year. As an added bonus, your energy bills will go down as well, since it typically costs more to heat the water for your shower than for the water itself.

4. Wear it Once More: Wear your blue jeans and dress shirt more than once before you wash it and save hundreds of gallons of water and cut your energy bills at the same time.

5. Power Down: Don’t just let your computer sit there and let the screen saver run all day. If you are going to be away from your computer for more than a half an hour, go ahead and turn it off.

6. Line Dry Your Clothes: Hanging your clothes out to dry will not only save you energy, but your clothes will smell better (no dryer sheets required), be less wrinkled (saving you on ironing), and will last longer – effectively saving you money in four ways.

7. Open the Windows: On those wonderful days where it is in the 80’s in the afternoon, but temperatures drop to the 60’s over night, open all your windows when the temperature drops below 78° (recommended thermostat setting in the summer) at night and let that cool air in. Then in the morning close all your windows to keep the heat of the day out. With the help of a couple of window fans you can easily avoid turning on your air conditioner well into May or even June (depending of course on where you live).

8. Open the Drapes: On those wonderful sunny winter days, open the drapes and let the sunshine in. This energy from the sun will help to warm your house and help to lower your heating bills a little too.

9. Close the Drapes: Yet, on warm summer days that very same sunshine can be an unwelcome guest in your house and a considerable burden on your air conditioner. On those days, closing the drapes can keep the temperature in your house several degrees cooler and keep your air conditioner from running quite as much.

10. Wave it: On of the most efficient method of cooking is with a microwave oven. Microwaves concentrate the cooking energy on the food and avoid heating up an entire oven, stovetop or even kitchen.

11. Keep it Raw: Better yet, eat it raw. Avoid cooking all together and enjoy a green salad, but keep in mind that a green salad need not be limited to some lettuce and spinach, with a few baby carrots and cherry tomatoes thrown in. Consider adding several of the following: onions, radishes, any one of a variety of nuts, broccoli, peas, cucumbers, celery, bell peppers, cheese. Along with your salad you could enjoy a deli sandwich and some fruit. Why heat up your food and your kitchen, especially on those how summer days?

12. Wash in Cold: Many laundry detergents these days do a fine job of cleaning clothes in cold water. By washing your clothes in cold water your clothes will still get clean and your hot water heater will get a break.

13. Close it Off: Many houses built over the past ten to twenty years have a room that is called a living room on the floor plans, but it is there primarily for resale value and is seldom used. Many of these same houses have a guest bedroom as well that may be used a few times a year. By closing off these rooms your heating and cooling bills could be significantly reduced.

14. Up with the Sun: "Early to bed early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." This may be an old idiom by Franklin, but is also good advice if you want to save some money on your lighting bills. If you don’t stay up so late you can turn off all those lights and save a little money.

15. Be a Water Miser: Only turn the water on when you need it when you are brushing your teeth and shaving and you can save hundreds of gallons of water a year.

Take a few free steps to save some energy and water, along the way you will find a little extra money in your wallet as well.

About The Author

Dan Bossenbroek is a registered architect and has been incorporating energy conservation design strategies into his projects for over seventeen years. He has extensive experience in residential design, is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional (LEED™ AP) and his area of expertise is high performance buildings and sustainable design. Furthermore, he is an avid do-it-yourselfer having renovated several older homes. For indoor air quality products and home improvement advice he recommends www.justgreenhomes.com

Green Brands :
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Sunday, August 9, 2009

How Green Design Transforms Homes and Businesses

Green design generally focuses on developing practical pollution prevention technologies and lowering costs, by recycling scarce resources, using fewer raw materials and creating better products and processes that both cost less and pose fewer threats to workers, consumers and the environment. Green design objects are created to endure - structurally and artistically - to last for generations, without harming either the environment or the people that make or use them. In furniture design, this work is done using domestically grown solid wood, logged following sustainable forestry guidelines and whenever possible, the manufacturing waste products are recycled or repurposed.

In interior design, Green Design is a home design strategy that could transform homes and businesses through appropriate utilization of green and eco-conscious interior decorating solutions, while incorporating modern and vintage colors and fabrics, and using new and reused furniture. Usually, furniture, along with many other interior pieces and decorative objects are too often thrown away, destroyed, and never reused or recycled. Using these recycled and refurbished items is one of Green Design’s favorite economic, and earth-friendly ways to refurnish, and redecorate homes or businesses. Green Design passionately introduces green design philosophies into every affected home while enabling homeowners to define their personal style. Green design is a cost-effective decorative means for a safer and healthier living environment. The target is to educate homeowners, men and women, and bring in uncomplicated ways that each individual household can effect to make a difference not only by improving their quality of life but also in the environment they live in. Green Design's unique requirements offer a fresh and innovative approach to interior design. So whether you have ideas about color and design already, or are at a loss to even know where to start, the three principles for the attainment of Fine Green Design shall guide you, namely:

Refresh: If you want to "spruce up" a particular room or maybe would just like to do a "walk through" of your entire home for specific suggestions and ideas, then a refresh will suffice. And whether you need to decide on a new color for the walls, how to better arrange your furniture, how to place pieces of art in just the "right spot", what to do with windows or lighting, or just need some new interpretation of your own idea, do the refresh and define your particular style and get inspired to begin your project.
Reinvent: If you want to make the most of your existing furnishings, and maybe incorporate a few new things, but need to pull the look all together. Or, maybe you just want translating or disclosing your ideas into a room that is polished and accommodates your lifestyle, then reinventing will do. For concrete practical styling using your existing furniture and introducing new pieces and accessories, a reinvention that is designed to fit within your needs and your budget is just what you need. Your space will be transformed by repositioning and repurposing what you have, and blending in new pieces to create a coordinated look, all designed to reflect your individual style.
Redecorate: If you are waiting for that complete makeover of your room, then redecorating might just be timely and appropriate. Whether you are starting with a new home, or injecting new life into an old space, it is best suited for you if you are looking to buy all new furnishings and accessories. If you have been thinking about an entirely new look, this is the way to go. By redecorating, you are going beyond reinventing and starting from scratch on your room. It is similar to the reinventing, but goes a step further by including more detail in the finished plan.

This is the interior styling for an eco-friendly world.

Green Brands :
Mizuno, Calvin Klein, Nike, Moschino, Adidas, Puma, Converse, Dickies, Skecher, DKNY, Emerica, Kayland, Miss Sixty, Umi Kid s, Tommy, Wee Box, Onex, Olukai, FlyFlot, Fratelli, Gravati, Daniel Green, Jumping Jack, Yellow Box, Nine West, Tatami, Coclico, , Via Spiga, Naturalizer, Ecco Golf

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Friday, November 20, 2009

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

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Sunday, November 15, 2009

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Monday, October 5, 2009

Friday, September 18, 2009

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Sunday, August 9, 2009

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