Ask Eco Gal: Green Ideas for Mothers' Day
By Mayre Press
Thursday, May 8, 2008 8:30 PM PDT
The
Savvy Spotlight is on mom this week. So, when you shop for Mothers' Day, honor the savvy gal in her by choosing green gifts. A fine example is Organic Bouquet, the market leader in organic flowers. Their products are available online at
organicbouquet.com and sold nationwide in natural food stores, such as Whole Foods Markets.
For blooms with a longer lifespan, try artificial flowers made from recycled paper and telephone books. ThaiCraft's brightly colored flowers are crafted by a group of women living in low-income sections of Bangkok. This fair trade company ensures that the women are paid decent wages. You'll find paper flowers and other fair trade items at
GiftsWithHumanity.org.
For moms who like to be green
and stylish, try Oregon Sewn. It finds leather and upholstery remnants and uses the reclaimed materials to create beautiful and useful products such as handbags and decorative pillows. Its
Rainstone shoulder bags are designed and handcrafted by Oregon women and available at
oregonsewn.com in a variety of exterior leather colors and interior fabric patterns.
Mom can put her best foot forward with quality vegan footwear and handbags sold by
vegetarianshoesandbags.com. A wide range of styles are sold, from pumps and peep-toe heels to sneakers and clogs, and all products are 100% vegan. None of the products contain leather, wool or silk. To find a pair of animal friendly shoes, browse the Web site.
Jewelry designer Stefanie Wolf recently introduced her Recycled Elements line featuring hand-made objects. Her reincarnated glass pieces are from reused soda and beer bottles, window panes and industrial scraps. The reclaimed silver comes from old jewelry, and chemical and industrial processes such as film developing. All of the rings and wire in this collection are 100% recycled silver. The chains and other clasps contain mixed recycled content. Visit
stefaniewolfdesigns.com to see her eco designs.
Savvy shoppers should buy "recycled gift items" at antique stores. Antique, vintage or estate jewelry pieces (often family heirlooms) are the most ecological choice, as no new materials were processed to make them. Diamonds rarely depreciate in value and you can add sparkle to old rings by boiling them. Look in your local phone book under "Jewelers" and call to find out if they carry antique and estate pieces; "Antiques-Dealers" would be another option.
Treat a mother-to-be to a Little Stork Delivery Bag made with recycled cotton canvas here in the United States. The gift bag includes everything a new mother will need for her stay in the hospital ... from labor to delivery to recovery. Little Stork Delivery Bags, which measure 25"_17"_7", are available in four styles and sold at littlestork.com.
New moms will also love a comfortable all-cotton Moby Wrap from Punkin-Butt, an online retailer (punkinbutt.com) that sells cloth diapers and other products for babies. The Moby Wrap is designed to use a mother's entire back and shoulders to carry the weight of the baby. There are no buckles, snaps or other fasteners. It is easy to adjust the fit of a Moby Wrap by varying how tightly it wraps you and your baby.
Mothers of all ages will appreciate an organic beeswax candle from Beeluxe.com. The company's founders believe in the healing power of a beehive. They make luxury skin care, cosmetics and aromatherapy candles that contain natural and organic bee's wax, honey, pollen and propolis. The scented candles have intriguing names, such as Front Porch Swing, Wedding Day, Surfer's Paradise and Shore Thing.
Give your mom something to help her be green year-round ... a gift subscription to National Geographic's Green Guide. The four-color quarterly magazine is printed using only wood fiber from sustainably managed forests and carries the Forest Stewardship Council's mixed-source label. Subscriptions are $15/year for the print edition and $12/year for the digital edition. Get more information at nationalgeographic.com/magazines.
Contact Eco Gal at ecogal247@yahoo.com with any questions or comments
