Fabulous Favorites Friday

Margaret Taylor’s business started out as a hobby and time spent helping her dad with house projects. Through this journey of time and experience, the soul and ultimate beauty of the materials she worked with were revealed.  Margaret seems to be inspired by the fundamental beauty of paint and texture along with her ability to imagine and create just about anything. Her business Dryads Dancing is now in its eleventh year.  We’re thrilled to see that there is an entire series of her reclaimed furniture available online from Uncommongoods.

Recycled equals rustic industrial in this awesome table made from reclaimed barn wood and hand-cut steel. This dining table has an easygoing and inviting charm – perfect for gathering friends and family. It’s also great for outdoor use!

Colorful, lightweight and ultra-compact, ChicoBags are a hip and sustainable alternative to throwaway plastic and paper bags. Fold it up into its integrated pouch and put in your pocket, purse or glove box. It’s a cinch to pack and carry.

Stop throwing your money and your bags away - Chico Bags as low as $4.99!

Chico Bag

Vote with your dollars and use your buying power as a step toward positive change. The Better World Shopping Guide is the only comprehensive, up-to-date, user-friendly guide for environmentally and socially responsible consumers. This smart little book ranks every product on the shelf from A to Z so you can quickly tell the companies you want to support from those you definitely do not. Every dollar you spend is a vote for the world you want to live in – this book is dedicated to providing people with a comprehensive, up-to-date, reliable account of the social and environmental responsibility of every company on the planet AND making it available in practical forms that individuals can use in their everyday lives.

Vote for change with The Better World Shopping Guide! Use coupon code ECO10 for 10% off your order.

The Better World Shopping Guide - 2nd Edition: Every Dollar Makes a Difference

EcoUsable water bottles are the new eco-friendly alternative to using plastic water bottles. Each bottle is reusable, lightweight, and taste-neutral.

Reusable, stainless steel, BPA-free water bottles for the kiddos! Use coupon code ECO10 for 10% off!

EcoUsable 10oz Stainless Steel Bottle - Lime Green Flower Power

Did you know that the average woman applies more than 200 chemicals to her skin by using skin care products daily? Did you know that 60% of these chemicals are further absorbed into your bloodstream? These are just two of the reasons that organic skincare is one of the fastest growing areas of the beauty industry today.

With the overload of chemicals we’re all exposed to every day, going organic helps reduce the daily burden on our systems. Organic skin care products are made from natural ingredients such as herbs, fruits and flowers produced in chemical and pesticide-free environments. They don’t include harmful chemicals such as petroleum or mineral oil (a petroleum product), both of which are said to prevent elimination of toxins and cause premature aging.

Korres Party Survival Gift Set

Studies have shown that synthetics and other confusing chemicals in regular cosmetics actually have the reverse effect of what they say they do. The more we learn about the bitter side effects of unhealthy skin care, the more quickly we will seek out other options.

The walk of shame. We’ve all done it, we’ve all seen someone do it, and we’ll all do it again. Pop this Party Survival Gift Set from Korres into your bag and you’ll be fresh as a cucumber in the morning light. The glam packaging also makes it a great gift for the party girl in your life.

You know how difficult it is to take a Yoga mat, Yoga towel, bottle of water, a bag, a phone and keys, etc. into a Yoga studio. We all do it but I have seen many folks struggling just like me to perform the exact same balancing act.

Yogoco has an eco-friendly yoga bag that holds it all. It holds your mat, towel, water bottle, and whatever else you need for your practice and comes in fun, cool designs.

Yogoco’s ecologically responsible fabric is made using a unique manufacturing process that is both sustainable and helps conserve precious natural resources: land, water and energy. Scraps from the T-shirt making process are collected, sorted by color and blended. This significantly reduces incinerator and landfill use. The cotton fibers require no new dying, saving on water while adding no new pollutants. Furthermore, as no new cotton is grown, there is no land use, no water intensive irrigation and no fertilizers or pesticides used.

With this Yogoco bag, everything is safely stored in its neat little compartment, which makes it easier to carry all your stuff and a cinch to find what you need.

Yoga-Clothing carries six awesome colors and styles for both guys and girls. Head on over HERE.

As eco-friendly goods blend with today’s fashion, companies such as GG2G are fast becoming icons for a greener tomorrow. While it seems a great deal of the commonality still hasn’t gotten with the program, it’s only a matter of winning over the hearts and minds of those we cross. Alison Grieveson and Dayan Moore are designers, friends and business partners who certainly “get it.”

GG2G Recycled Messenger Bag

GG2G stands for Green Goods 2 Give & 2 Get. Their handbags, along with belts and pillows, look awesome and keep tons of trash from piling up every year. The vinyl billboards provide a colorful bag base; bicycle inner tunes are the perfect material for detailing work, and recycled Kevlar helps to reinforce the corners. The green designers even recycle the water used to wash the vinyl!

GG2G estimates, that they have diverted thousands of pounds of material from entering landfills, an accomplishment to certainly be proud of. Urban to sophisticated, funky to chic, GG2G accessories are sure to suit the Zen, modern, eco-conscious fashionista in all of us. Keep up the great green work you guys.

Best American Arts has a great selection of GG2G bags. These are a few of our fav GG2G picks.

Recycled Clutch Purse: Made from recycled billboard, lined with contrasting (organic, vintage or recycled) fabric, one-of-a-kind.

GG2G Recycled Billboard Bag

Reversible Messenger Bag: Nickel plated O-ring, recycled fabric interior and exterior with contrasting pocket, and long adjustable shoulder strap. Reversible. Tie closure. This one-of-a-kind, over the shoulder bag is perfect for the city or strolling around on campus.

GG2G Recycled Messenger Bag

Recycled Portfolio: Portfolio, perfect for the artist in all of us. Protects notebooks, sketchbooks and laptops. Billboard outside, lined with recycled fabric and zipper closure.

GG2G Recycled Portfolio

Recycled Market Bag: Made from recycled billboard, unlined for easy clean-up, and one-of-a-kind. Recycled billboard takes on a distressed look over time – like your favorite pair of jeans, This bag is perfect for the beach, airline travel or your favorite farmers market. Stands on it’s own for easy filling.

GG2G Recycled Market Bag

Even the world of designer jewelry is changing for the better–or should I say for the greener. Anna Korte has created an amazing line of eco-friendly jewelry with a vintage twist. And for the record you should know she was totally self-taught.

Anna hunts through antique stores and estate sales for special pieces, although the majority of her finds come from old costume jewelry warehouses where she can uncover small runs of vintage dead-stock chains and baubles to incorporate into her work. She also uses leather in her designs that’s recycled from antique leather gloves, an old and luxuriously tactile accessory, transformed into designs that are current and wearable.

The names of Anna’s designs are each inspired by the work of a chosen poet, bringing a quality of depth to each piece. Her first collection’s names were borrowed bits and pieces from the works of E.E. Cummings and have been followed by writers such as Spanish poet, Federico Garcia Lorca and John Burroughs.

Though each collection is distinctive, all of her pieces are reminiscent of eras past. I’m really into the metals and chains she uses. They’re strange shapes, interesting textures and awesome patinas. I have a couple of her necklaces and LOVE them. Here are my pieces.

This Anna Korte Their Fringe Unfold chic necklace will hip up your  jeans.  It features a black leather tassel pendant made from vintage kid leather gloves on a fine vintage brass chain.

Anna Korte Their Fringe Unfold

This Anna Korte Adorn The Parlors of Heaven limited edition jewelry is made of 99% authentic vintage materials. One of my favorites.

Anna Korte Adorn The Parlors Of Heaven

UrthBags are hip purses & handbags made with a purpose. This is a company that creates something from nothing (or most peoples trash).  They actually have an entire line made out of recycled juice boxes and old magazines!  Additionally they use biodegradable materials for some styles.

Skye

Urth also works with Fair Trade organizations to manufacture their bags. Their mission is to promote a hip, earth-friendly lifestyle and provide opportunities to those who are less fortunate.  Their goal is to inspire more people to recycle, reuse & become more eco-minded in our overly  ‘disposable’ world.

I’ve always been intrigued by the many creative materials used for recycled content, especially things like juice boxes. In the high fashion world of glitz and glamour it’s the little things that take the mundane to the cutting edge of style. This Clutch purse, Wristlet is perfect for any occasion and for that hip little girl in your life.

Alexander “Sandro” Girard was one of the most innovative modern designers of the 20th century. Widely considered the greatest colorist and textile designer of modern time, Girard used traditional folk art to infuse color, whimsy, and humor into vibrant modern design. PLYprints presents the artwork of Alexander Girard at a collectable scale, sized perfectly for the home.

PLYprints by Alexander Girard

The panels are printed using water-based inks on Columbia Forest Products US made, formaldehyde-free plywood panels. The purity of Girard’s iconic graphics printed on the often overlooked, and humble material, plywood perfectly captures Girard’s history of mixing modern materials and folk art forms to create accessible art.

And it’s never too early to introduce your bambino’s to the oeuvre of one of mid-century design’s grandmasters. The prints are perfect for baby rooms since the bold and vibrant colors are what babies find naturally appealing.

As all-natural products for dogs, from foods, treats, clothes and even toys, flood the marketplace; it has become easier than ever to go the extra mile for your pet and the environment.

Environmentally friendly pet products are a great way for us pet owners to reduce our ecological footprints and pawprints. Conscious of it or not, we are constantly purchasing and replacing supplies for our beloved four legged-friends.

These EarthDog adjustable collars feature triple-layer, 100% hemp canvas with contoured, quick-release hardware and distinctive, EarthDog-style trims.

Hemp is a sustainable, biodegradable crop and grows well without the aid of herbicides, fungicides or pesticides. Hemp also yields twice as much fiber as cotton per acre!

Say goodbye to nylon leash burns and collar irritation and hello to soft, earth-friendly hemp!