According to the folks at Green Depot: That’s a big impact! I’m really drawn to the buttery banana color. It has a lineny look, but the Green Depot folks say it doesn’t wrinkle like linen does. The 55%/45% Hemp/PET blend goes for $7.50 per yard. They stock some other cool-looking sustainable fabrics at Green Depot, too! Their hemp terry cloth would be great for making bibs or kitchen towels. They’ve also got a nice selection of organic cotton knits....
Vegala owner Deborah is a stay at home mom and former owner of a natural living store. When she had her son, she decided to move from her Seattle brick and mortar back to selling fabrics online so she could devote more time to him. I just love the natural colors and delicate prints she’s chosen for her shop! So many of the fabrics we feature are bold prints and bright colors, and of course those are amazing....
We’re committed to repurposed, eco-friendly fibers around here, and that means we want our crafts to be sustainable from the inside out! Here are some resources for organic cotton and recycled batting that you can use in your next quilting project! Quilting Warehouse sells organic cotton batting by the yard. Over at Quiltbug, you can find batting made from recycled soda bottles. If you need a specific size, like just enough for a crib sheet, Modern Organic Fabrics has you covered....
Check out this fabulous organic cotton from Harmony Art! Harmony Susalla, (yes, Harmony is her real name) the company’s creative director, started out doing fabric design for a pajama company and then at a design firm for big box customers before striking out on her own to design her own line of fab Earth-friendly fabrics! Harmony Art’s fabric line includes lovely shades of solids and nature-inspired prints. If you’re looking to stock up, there are a couple of options!...
Their fabric collection is populated with bright, airy colors that give off a sturdy and durable vibe. There are several solids in the mix as well as limited strips and one small plaid in the offering. The cotton used in their fabrics has not been genetically modified and it is dyed using traditional methods that are easier on the environment. The company seems to be transparent about their materials, factory and policies; all to the benefit of people and the planet....
Tip one: HANDMADE IS ALWAYS BETTER. What other way is there to say I love you, I like you moderately, or I feel generally pleased with you than to physically make something from the heart? Crafting items from home keeps Big Valentine out of the equation, and shows that you spent some time thinking about this person. Make them bath salts, a knitted scarf or hat in their favorite colors, or a scrapbook page chronicling your relationship?...
Just a year ago, my main focus was covering the fashion beat for the site. Once a week, I’d write about a green fashion brand that was sustainable, stylish and affordable. I also had the pleasure of interviewing some very cool folks, including Jonah Sachs of Free Range Studios (the folks who did The Meatrix), Josh Dorfman (The Lazy Environmentalist), Belinda David-Tooze of Envirosax, and Danny Seo. After just a few months, Green Options editor and my savvy boss Jeff McIntire-Strasburg gave me the opportunity to start doing reviews as well – including yoga mats, jewelry, TV shows and magazines....
Ready Made Magazine has this great refresher course on pumpkin-carving how to; including a clever CFL template to carve into your pumpkin! What a perfect idea to not only make your own costume for Halloween, but carve your green ideals for all the trick-or-treaters to see. You could carve other environmental symbols into pumpkins and have yourself a very Eco-Ween with many different green jack-o-lanterns. You could carve a Prius, the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle symbol, or even a Windmill....
The secret to creating a quick and easy natural garden in any small container is the chia seed. Remember chia pets? They’re not just for 80’s era informercials anymore! They are so easy, that even if you don’t have a green thumb, you can grow a magical fairy garden, or even dinosaur garden. Chia seeds are hardy and quick-growing. So quick, that your fairy garden will have its carpet of lush, sweeping greenery in less than a week....
1. autumn leaf Jack-o-lantern. Enjoy the beautiful autumn leaves while you make this festive Jack-o-lantern. 2. Halloween soap. Use this tutorial to jazz up your favorite natural liquid soap. 3. Jack-o-lantern apple stamp. Turn an apple into a Jack-o-lantern in this easy kid’s craft. 4. painted rocks. The tutorial here shows how to turn rocks into pumpkins and Halloween-themed manipulatives, but my own favorite trick is to make them into monster rocks!...
Make a Recycled Gift Tag and Ornament — Want to include an ornament with each handmade gift you make this year? Make an ornament that can also double as a gift tag! Create an Adorable Scrabble Ornament — Last week I created this scrabble ornament over at Feel Good Style. Not only are they oh-so-cute, but they’re super easy to make as well. Button Wreath Ornament — Do you have some vintage buttons in your craft stash?...
How much waste did you contribute to your local landfill this holiday season? When you’re desperate to get the clean-up done, it’s easy to make bad decisions and just toss the lot, but if you can spare the time to be thoughtful, then there’s a lot of good that you can do with that holiday waste. First, via our sister site Sustainablog, here’s a handy infographic of exactly what holiday waste you can recycle and, more importantly, what you can’t:...
I have to admit, Becky and Julie totally helped me with this recipe. I’m all for green crafts, but I’ve only dipped my toes in the pool of natural cleaners. I’m a germ freak when it comes to my kitchen and I often found myself using bleach because I thought it would kill the most germs. Unfortunately, there are dangers of using bleach. Instead, Becky and Julie encouraged me to try a safe alternative....
This week I finished a fabulous little side table for my craft and furniture booth. I bought the table without knobs and it was hard to find new ones because the doors are so close together. I saw Primp’s tutorial on fabric pulls on Pinterest and decided to make my own single pull version! Here’s what I started with: What You Will Need: A scrap of fabric Scissors How To Do It: Cut out a small strip of fabric....
When I saw this Thanksgiving post from Dana at Make Them Wonder, I completely fell in love with her Thanksgiving tree. In the post, she explains that she created a tree for guests to hang what they are thankful for on cute little leaves that she cut out of paper. Her tree is so simple, yet beautiful– and would be an amazing conversation piece. I decided that I would use Dana’s idea and tweak it a little bit to become a New Year’s Eve resolution tree!...
Transform baby food jars into fun, upcycled decoupaged pumpkins! What You Will Need: A baby food jar Recycled paper. I used book pages. An orange crayon School glue. If you can, use eco-glue. Hot glue/hot glue gun A small paintbrush A branch/twig Scissors How To Do It: Color your recycled paper with an orange crayon. Rip your book page into small pieces. Mix your school glue with a little bit of water....
Some friends and I are doing this pop up dinner thing, where tons of folks are descending on a local park and setting up a huge, fancy dinner party! We’re doing a vegan table, and the theme for our table is Pirate Garden Party. Of course, I wanted to do something crafty for the decor, and these mini pirate ships fit the bill perfectly! Not only were these simple and fun to make, they put a nice dent in my hefty stash of wine corks....
I found the pillowcase that I’m using for this particular project at Goodwill. It comes from a time when people were embroidering charming scenes of swans and reeds onto their pillowcases, so I’m going to go ahead and say that it’s vintage. With some measuring and trimming, a couple of lengths of elastic, and some handmade bias tape, that embroidered pillowcase is now a comfy, cool sleeveless summer top for my kiddo....
As I shared in the Wine Corks to Wall Art post, I was given a large bag of wine corks to craft with. I still had a ton left over after making that wall art, though. These wine are super simple to make, so start collecting your corks, and get crafty! What You Will Need: Wine corks Magnets. You could even recycle your old magnets instead of buying new ones....
A festive bunting can be just the right touch to add a bit of extra sparkle to your holiday. It’s one of the easiest decorations to DIY, as you only have to have a sharp pair of scissors and know just a couple of stitches. And if you’ve got a stash of old blue jeans lying around, then your bunting can now be cute AND eco-friendly, as no matter the holiday, denim makes a great background....
