Bea Green Blogorama--One step at a time

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Being "green" is a very noble, necessary goal. But when you make a decision to be greener with your purchases and practices, sometimes the sheer amount of information and ways to be green can be overwhelming. So I'd like to suggest that if you are new to this whole movement, you start slowly and take it one step at a time.
1. Start small
Focus on one thing at a time. Research it, figure out if it's worth caring about and how you can be a force for positive change in that topic.

2. Set some goals.
Change one thing at a time. Decide what to focus on, or focus on first, and make a plan. Whether you decide to change one thing a month, or one thing a week, or 4 things a year, spend a few minutes planning out what you will research and how you will implement the change.

3. Go easy at first
Sure, it would be great to switch to biofuel and start fresh on your pantry, but while high and lofty goals are good vision-casting, start small. Instead of throwing out all your old cleaners and shampoo, simply buy the green version when you run out. Simplify.

If you aren't sure where to get started, here are a few small changes you can begin with:

~ Switch to natural cleaners (like baking soda, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, etc.) or find ecologically sound alternatives. Pick one to start, such as your glass cleaner (use vinegar instead) or your laundry detergent (when you run out, start buying something better like bio-kleen).

~ Replace your incandescent light bulbs with a greener, more energy-efficient light bulb. You don't need to toss all your light bulbs in one day, just replace them as they burn out.

~ Unplug. Practice unplugging appliances when they are not in use, or find a power strip that does not idly drain energy.

~ Pick a food group and start replacing your current staples with healthier, more natural/organic ones. For instance, perhaps you can't afford to get (or are overwhelmed by finding) farm-fresh local organic produce. Read up on which produce is the most contaminated and start in your local grocery store with that. Maybe someday you can buy a cropshare from a local organic grower, but if you find that overwhelming, start small now.

~ Pick an area of beauty or health aids and start buying safe, eco-friendly options as you run out of the old ones. You might not be able to go from using 10 different products for 10 different things to Dr. Bronner's instead overnight, but perhaps find a paraben and SLS-free shampoo and start there. Skin Deep is a good place to research your best options.

~ Ride a bike! Exercise is good for you, and riding somewhere rather than driving impacts the environment in a good way. Be sure to be safe about it (wear your helmet! follow the rules of the road!), and find one thing you can bike to as opposed to drive to. Maybe you're not going to be able to jump on your bike tomorrow and begin commuting to work that way, but when you run out of milk and need to hit the store, consider biking to the nearest place instead.

How about you? What steps are you taking?

Use It Up, Make Do

In the past, people would find very creative ways to use every scrap of every thing they owned. Clothes were patched, or remade into something else, or when they were just too ratty to even be used as rags, shredded into stuffing. Parts of animals we wouldn't dream of eating were made into sausages and regional dishes.

Maybe we don't need to make headcheese anymore, but I think a principle has been lost over the decades as we've moved into a consumerist, disposable society. I can't think of many people I know that would patch the holey knees in their jeans--it's hardly fashionable these days (and unfortunately, cut-offs and holey jeans are also not fashionable), but rather would run out to buy new ones, and throw the old ones away.

On the flip side of the coin, there are those that save every last little thing, but never do anything with it. They hang on to those holey jeans in case they need them for something, someday (full disclosure: this would be my bad habit). Every gadget they've ever received is stored for future use--whether they will ever, in fact use it or even KNOW how to use it or not.

As I've begun this journey toward a more green, frugal, simple life, I am learning there are things to keep and things to give away. Being more of a "pack-rat" I have lovely intentions for everything I have, but frankly, I don't need the clutter and stuff. And frankly, it does NO ONE good for piles of stuff to sit gathering dust. So I have begun trying to practice "use it up, make do, reinvent, go without". Out of all the kitchen gadgets I have ever owned, the best three have been a wooden spoon, a large sharp knife and my can opener. Everything else is nice, but peripheral. "Make do" for me is slowly weeding out my kitchen for things I don't need and don't use.

The difference between being a hopeless pack-rat and becoming simple, green and frugal is simply actually USING it. And allowing yourself to go without (at least, possibly in the future). And acknowledging that other people may find a more immediate use for something than you can. I might *like* to use these sheets to make a shabby chic rag quilt, but maybe someone else needs them for something right now. If I can't fit that project in to my life in the next 6 months, I need to give it up.

On the other side, those who would consume and replace could take some notes from the pack-rats. :) Instead of immediately tossing something, see if you can fix it. If you can't fix it, see if you can remake it into something else. If you can't, see if someone else could use it. Don't just toss it in a landfill. And see if you can "make do" or go without.

The key here is to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Reduce the amount of stuff you have--and especially the amount of stuff you have coming in and going out--, reuse what you can until you can't, or remake it creatively; and recycle things you can't use to those that can or to an appropriate facility. Did you know, for instance, that there are cotton recycling facilities? As long as your item is 100% cotton, you can send that unusable whatever to be remade into something new rather than sitting in a landfill.

GIVEAWAAAAAAAY!
To participate in this giveaway, you have three options:

1. To earn one entry, leave a comment to THIS entry detailing a way you are bea-ing green

2. To earn one entry, write about bea-ing green on your blog (feel free to use the bea-green blogorama button, and do link back to this entry). Then, use Mr. Linky below to input your blog entry. DO NOT link to your blog, you must link DIRECTLY to your entry! I will delete any inappropriate links or general links.

3. To earn TWO entries, do both!!!!!!

This giveaway will close on Saturday, September 6th at 10pm PST. A winner will be chosen by a random number generator on Sunday, September 7th and announced sometime that day. :) Please be sure there is a way I can contact you if you win, whether through your blog or through email!

This time, I decided to go with a gender-neutral option for our giveaway. Winner will receive one Basic Black market tote with shoulder straps!!! Great for a guy, great for your husband, and great for the woman who appreciates the chic simplicity of black. Black is always in style, and more palatable for the "green"-averse guy in your life. My husband won't carry the groceries in foofy bags, and he didn't even want any "guy" prints. So if you or someone you know is that guy, or even that girl, this is the bag for you! On the other hand, if you are someone who appreciates the finer things in life, black is also an excellent choice. Classic, elegant, and classy could definitely describe this bag. :)

Now, I like to take my pictures in natural light, but it's raining :*( So here is a picture of the Basic Black market tote to tide you over until I can take pictures of the actual bag (so please note, while your bag will look like this, it won't be *exactly* like this, as handmade items vary a bit naturally...for instance I used white thread on top of the label instead of the black you see on this bag.):


Remember, you have until Saturday to comment and/or post. Have a bea-utiful day, and have fun bea-ing green!!!

Bea Green Blogorama is BACK!

What?
On the 1st and 16th I will be hosting this "green meme"-the Bea Green Blogorama! I'd love to get our heads together and learn about living a more green and natural way from each other. Most of my friends already post about "green" topics frequently, so I figured, why not put them all together once in awhile so we can all enjoy them?

How?
To participate, all you need to do is dig up a past post or write a new one about bea-ing green...how you are, what you are doing that is 'green', ways to be green, what it means to you--the sky's the limit, as long as it's family-friendly and environmentally conscious. Hang your laundry instead of using the dryer? Tell us about it! Saving money and the air on gas somehow? Please share! Planting a garden--and growing it organically? The topic is broad and yet the focus is narrow.

Bea Green Blogorama!

I was hoping to roll out a new product today and thusly a giveaway, but I've had *two* family issues this week (the more serious one this morning) so this post will just be about bea-ing green. :) Incidentally, just to be clear, not every Bea Green Blogorama will involve a giveaway. This meme is about green topics, not stuff :D But I like giveaways, so chances are you'll see them more often than not :D You may even see them randomly...hee hee :D

My tip and challenge for being green today is to consider how much waste you make, and take a baby step toward reducing your waste.

One thing my family has done for a long time now is to use cloth napkins. The mildly-to-barely "dirty" ones can be reused, and the really soiled ones go in with our towels, but I find they don't add a lot of bulk to our regular wash. We don't use paper napkins at all, and only very rarely do we use paper towels. I generally don't keep them in the house, so I've had to be creative with things like draining meat and bacon grease :)

For those kinds of jobs, I use the thin dishcloth towels that are often referred to as "Flour Sacks" or cheesecloth. Then, I wait til the grease is cooled and scrape what I can into the garbage. What I can't scrape off, I wash the towel in very hot water with a generous amount of soap. The soap ensures that the grease is encapsulated and not going to clog your drains (plus it should be a small amount). Also, if you use cheesecloth, you can also save it in the fridge or freezer and use it to grease pans for things like stir fry. Ok, not the healthiest oil for sure, but I'm just sayin'. ;)

So tell me, how do you reduce waste? What's a baby step you can take? How are you bea-ing green? :D

Giveaway Winners!

Giveaway # 1:
Here are your random numbers:

59

Timestamp: 2008-07-07 01:53:16 UTC

Congrats to Lisa Sharp!

Giveaway # 2:

Here are your random numbers:

7

Timestamp: 2008-07-07 01:49:55 UTC

Congrats to The Wandering Woman!

As soon as I get your addresses, I will send out your prizes!

Thank you again for all the entries--I truly wish I could have given each and everyone of you a prize. You all get an "A" in my book--keep bea-ing green!

Excellent Ideas!

I'm loving all the ways you are "bea-ing" green! Whether a veteran at it or taking one small baby step at a time, I'm inspired by all the good tips and ideas but most especially the effort. Way to go! Keep it up! I will be hosting more blog memes about "bea-ing" green in the near future, but not all of them will involve giveaways. Either way, it's great to gather all that smart information and all those great ideas into one place :)

There will be a few more bags up for sale tomorrow, and then on Monday (usual stocking day). So if you didn't see anything you LOVED, check back! And after that, we will be back to a more relaxed stocking schedule.

I also hope to debut more products this month, so that's another good reason to keep up with the happenings via this blog or directly at the store. :)

And of course, check back on Sunday, when I will be announcing the winners of the giveaways! :D I wish I could give a bag to all of you, and I'm so excited that you are excited about the giveaway too. :)

Giveaway and Bea Green Carnival!

To celebrate the grand opening of my store and to kick off what I hope will be a bi-monthly occurrence, I am offering a giveaway along with this blogorama!



What?
On the 1st and 16th I will be hosting this "green meme"-the Bea Green Blogorama! I'd love to get our heads together and learn about living a more green and natural way from each other. Most of my friends already post about "green" topics frequently, so I figured, why not put them all together once in awhile so we can all enjoy them?

How?
To participate, all you need to do is dig up a past post or write a new one about bea-ing green...how you are, what you are doing that is 'green', ways to be green, what it means to you--the sky's the limit, as long as it's family-friendly and environmentally conscious. Hang your laundry instead of using the dryer? Tell us about it! Saving money and the air on gas somehow? Please share! Planting a garden--and growing it organically? The topic is broad and yet the focus is narrow.

So...about that giveaway...
What we have up for grabs is a *fabulous* market tote and a produce tote! And guess what...you can enter twice for twice the chance to win!



This beautiful mellow-toned market tote features "Kleo" by Alexander Henry fabric on the front and back and a coordinating "Bangle Dot" Alexander Henry print for the bottom and sides. Lined in chocolate twill and sporting tote-length straps, this retro-chic tote will be the talk of the town! Additionally, I am including a pink-ribboned produce tote. Color-coordinating your veggies was never so fun! ;)



This is one of my favorite totes so far, and the print is big enough that the back is actually a little different! It is fun and funky enough to use in multiple ways, sturdy and solid enough to haul your groceries from the farmer's market or the canned goods outlet. The best of both worlds!



Yay! So how can I win it?
As I said, there are two ways to enter. The first way is to leave a comment to this post about being green. That's it. Just tell me about your inner tree-hugger or pass on a tip to reduce waste or whatever--as long as it's "safe for work", family-friendly, and most of all GREEN! As long as you leave a comment telling me about being environmentally conscious and leave me a way to contact you if you win, it counts! You may only enter once this way, and duplicates will be deleted.

The second way is to participate in this carnival/meme! To do so, either find a public (family friendly and eco-appropriate) post or make one about being green and then use the handy-dandy Mr. Linky at the bottom! To use Mr. Linky, leave your name in the name slot and a link to your post about being green. Don't leave a link to your blog or your favorite webcomic, it must be to your specific post! Duplicates will not be counted, and you may only enter for a chance to win once--although if you want to offer multiple posts about being green, that's fine by me! If you make a new post just for this meme, please feel free to use the graphic up above, and certainly spread the word!

Winner will be chosen using a random number generator and announced on Sunday, July 6th in the evening (PST)! Have fun and Bea Green!

Commenting to this entry is now CLOSED!