Natural and Sustainable

Shopping more green for your household may be a bit confusing. Here are some simple suggestions to help reduce your impact when you shop.

• Always Choose Recycled: This should be no matter what. Remanufactured fibers require as little as 30% of the energy needed to produce first time fibers.

• Always Buy Local: Shipping any product requires petroleum of some kind. And at times it requires quite a lot of petroleum. So buying local is definitely reducing your carbon load and the plus side is, it keeps the money in your own community.

• Don’t Buy Things in Packages: It is hard to avoid this sometimes, but other times it’s not. All the cardboard and even the plastic ends up in the trash when you get home.

• Always Buy in Bulk: Food, fuel and other essentials are often much cheaper in bulk then they are in the regular packaging. And the benefit of bulk is there is less packaging which reduced landfill waste and even reduces your carbon footprint.

• Maintain Your Gear: The main reason is, your gear will last much, much longer that way. If you can keep your gear from falling apart, it will hold out for more and more years and seasons ahead.

• Reduce the Shipping Cost: Make sure when you order something it comes from a company that helps reduce and has efficient distribution centers and that have a smaller carbon footprint than regular shipping methods.

• Never Use Disposable Bags: Use your own tote or even make your own tote bag made of bamboo or even canvas is a great choice. You will end up saving trees and a lot of petroleum.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Shut down everything you your house when you go to leave on a weeklong or longer trip. Turn off all appliances except your refrigerator and if it’s an Energy-Star approved refrigerator you will acquire much less of a carbon footprint while you are gone from your house.

• Convince a friend or even a neighbor family to reduce their water usage.

• Ask your church or synagogue to convert to green power. Get your church to switch to renewable energy and improve their energy efficiency.

• Pick an initiative and lobby in your community. Recruiting just 500 people to recycle their newspapers every day would reduce the impact significantly.

• Support the bike lanes in every town, especially your own. As well as car pooling, mass transit, and green space, then get 50 people to commute by bike or even by bus.

• Volunteer on your community council or for an advocacy group to fight global warming. Conduct a campaign to convert 3,000 homes in your own town to changing to CFL light bulbs.

• Write letters to the editor and express your own opinion in community group meetings in support for action on climate change.

• Give away your old clothes, your household goods, and other items you don’t use to friends in need, neighbors in need and even charities. Post your unwanted goods on Free Cycle or even Craigslist.

• Organize a clothing swap with at least 10 other friends and save yourself and everyone involved some money in the long run.

• Ask your county dump to open a reuse center where you can bring items that another family could use that are in need.

• Plants trees in your community that are in need of a mother earth-touch. Start with your own yard and then venture out from there.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Turn your computer off when you are not using it. Even when in “energy saver” mode computers continue to use a lot of energy.

Make a recycled and repurposed tote bag on your own. With a little sewing skills and your left over wrappers you can sew up a tote in about an hour.

Materials needed:

1. Assorted snack wrapper such as peanut packages, small chip and cookie bags.
2. 1 roll of silver adhesive-backed contact paper
3. Ruler or quilters square
4. Scissors
5. Rotary cutter and self healing mat (optional)
6. Sewing machine
7. Coordinating thread
8. Heavy-duty needle
9. 1 yd. white webbing, cut in half

What to do:

Determine first the most visually interesting portion of each snack wrapper, cut out into rectangles and squares. Cut out a few extras in case ripping occurs on the sides. Set aside.

From the contact paper, cut out e following pieces: (2) 9″ x 11″; (2) 4″ x 9″; and (1) 6″ x 10″.

Starting with one of the 9″ x 11″ pieces, lay the contact paper out on a table with the adhesive side up and carefully pull-off the backing. Since the paper tends to curl in onto itself, it’s helpful to place paperweights on all four edges of each pieces.

Leaving a little less than a 1/2″ border around the edges of the contact paper pieces, lay out different snack wrappers next to each other as if you were putting together a puzzle. Use your fingers to smooth down any air bubbles. If you choose to overlap any wrappers, you will need to glue down those areas, otherwise, the contact adhesive will be enough to hold down the whole pieces.

Use scissors to snip off 1/2″ squares from all four corners of the contact paper. Then, fold over each side 1/2″ onto the side with wrappers. This will create a clean, finished edge.

Repeat steps 3 through 5 for remaining 9″ x 11″ (back) and 4″ x 9″ (sides) contact paper pieces. You now have what you need to finish the bag.

Remove the backing on 6″ x 10″ pieces and fold it in half lengthwise, creating a double layer for the bottom of the bag.

Using a sewing machine, heavy-duty needle and 1/2 ” seam allowance, top-stitch the top edges of the front, back and side pieces.

With wrapper sides out and 1/4″ seam allowance, sew the front, sides, back and bottom together. Take it slow at first because the contact paper may slip. Next is the handles. With the front side facing you, measure 1 1/2″ in from each top corner. Using one piece of webbing, place the ends on the inside of the bag at the measured spots. Top stitch on the “right” side. Repeat on the back side with the second piece of webbing.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Looking for a way to save gas and the planet, give Sound Speed Scooters a try. They carry all-electric scooters such as the EVT 168 electric scooter that goes 30 MPH, 35 miles per charged battery, zero emissions and comes in some cool colors.

Not only is having a garden a great asset to your already earth-friendly behavior, picking the right kind of seedlings, seed starts and even some plants is just as important as well.

During my time of searching our seedling packages and seed starts I have come across two great companies that are in the eco-friendly business of bringing you quality plant starts in eco-friendly packaging and the starts are organically grown as well.

Gro’we is a company based in Bellingham, Washington and carries corn starts, zucchini, yellow and green squash and even tomato starts in eco-friendly containers made from rice hulls that can be composted with your compost pile or even through your local municipal composting facility. The company is USDA certified organic and they are also certified organic by Washington State Department of Agriculture as well. I found these potted seed starts at my local Bi-Mart but they can also be found at many nurseries as well as some grocery stores that carry seed starts.

Eco Starts is a company based in Hillsboro, Oregon and is certified organic through the USDA as well as through Oregon Tilth. They carry many of the same variety of plants for your garden needs but their container the plant seedlings comes in can be planted right into the ground,. the plastic sleeve and all. The plastic sleeve is made from a compost able corn product even though it looks and feel like plastic. Eco-Start save your time and your money as well as their companies own resources.

These two companies are in the business of offering you great quality, earth-friendly products that require less work on the environment overall. This growing season or even the next growing season, give these two companies a try and make the change to better eco-friendly garden practices a every day thought.

*Natural and Sustainable Living tip: Make your own compost for your garden instead of buying pre-made compost. You will help save plastic, labor cost as well as give something back to the ground that should be there naturally anyway.

It maybe hard to find a yarn to match your values if you are a knitter. You may want to try working with sustainable fibers., There is no need to limit yourself to organic cotton and wool, as you will also find many yarns made from bamboo, corn, hemp, soy and even seaweed in some areas. Eco-friendly bamboo knitting needles are also available in many place like local knitting shops to name one.

In order to live a more earth-friendly lifestyle and incorporate your beliefs with your hobbies or practices, you first have to change the way you think. A polyester blended fabric is not all that environmentally friendly as would company that sells 100 percent hemp and hemp blended thread or materials needs to knit with. There are many hemp blends that come in an assorted colors and styles. There is also companies that carry unique and recycled silk yarn from saris, made by otherwise impoverished women and children in Nepal. There is also companies that have sustainable yarns, organic cotton yarns, milk fiber yarn and soy and bamboo yarns. These same companies also carry yarns made from corn and hemp.

Try these sources for your next knitting task:

• Blue Sky Alpacas.

• Earth-Friendly Yarns

• Vermont Organic Fiber Company

• Paivatar

Here is also some reading to further your knowledge on a sustainable knitting practice.

1. The Knitting Sutra: Craft as a Spiritual Practice by: Susan Gordon Lydon

2. No Sheep for You: Knit Happy with Cotton, Silk, Linen, Hemp, Bamboo and other Delights by: Amy R. Singer

There are also many knitting groups that have the same beliefs as you and are more than happy to add another membner that believes in a sustainable world to their ever-growing practice and membership meetings. Try Knitting Meetup.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: To cut down on water waste in your own home during shower time, use a shower timer. Ones from companies like Ripple Products come in fun shapes and designs so they don’t look so much like a timer.

1. Buy things in bulk to avoid excess packaging that it takes to make the smaller, one time use containers.

2. Spend most of your time outdoors. And enjoy what the earth provides.

3. Seek out reclaimed solid wood furniture. For one it will last longer than others and for two it is a great way to bring more natural furniture in your home.

4. Try to exercise outdoors when the weather is nice.

5. Always think in the big picture.

6. When you travel, try to stay at a greener resort, hotel, motel or bed and breakfast.

7. Start a compost pile.

8. Go for reusable instead of disposable items such as, diapers, razors, cups and plates.

9. Most dishwashers are powerful enough to remove food, only pre-wash if you have to.

10. Install dimmers and motion lights on your lights inside your home and the ones outside.

11. Use all-natural and organic beauty products. Especially lipstick.

12. Always buy Fair Trade products such as coffee.

13. Never idle in your car, it’s bad for the environment and your car.

14. Carpool whenever you can.

15. Buy organic food when it comes to milk, meat (if you eat meat), fruits, and vegetables.

16. Bring your own coffee mug or thermos to the coffee shop.

17. Collect rainwater. It is great for your landscape and your potted plants.

18. Use all natural fragrances in your own home. Try essential oils on an oil burner.

19. Swap your goods, don’t throw them out. Try Free Cycle or even Craigslist.

20. Use concentrated cleaners. Less packaging means less waste.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Spread the word about saving the earth and your health.

1. Don’t charge your cell phone overnight. Read your owners manual on how long it takes to charge the battery and set a timer.

2. Find out it your city or town has pledged to meet the Kyoto Protocol emissions targets; if they aren’t contact your city mayor and vote for change.

3. Reuse the plastic baggies that sandwiches are packed in.

4. Keep your shades and blinds down in the summer and pull them up in the winter time.

5. Use a push mower to cut your lawn. If you keep it up, you will never need to use a gas-powered mower again.

6. Purify your indoor air quality with plants instead of with artificial room fresheners.

7. Use clean energy in your own home and office.

8. If you buy products that have been made from recycled goods, you have help support the recycling habit and keep the process going continuously.

9. Decorate your home responsibly by purchasing eco-sensitive goods.

10. If you are moving, use recycle moving boxes.

11. Plant a garden or herb garden. And use what you grow.

12. Use rechargeable batteries instead of one-time-use ones.

13. Bring a lunch to work in reusable containers. You will end up having a no-garbage lunch.

14. Upgrade your toiler to a low-flush-water model.

15. Always fix leaky faucets inside and outside your home.

16. Buy low VOC paint and donate the leftover paint to a local charity or local church.

17. Donate your old cell phone and help save the African Gorilla. Click here to read more.

18. Don’t use paper towels during dinner, use reusable cloth napkins.

19. Fill up your freezer with food. The fuller it is the less energy it will use to keep the food frozen. If you need to fill it up now and can’t place food in it, fill up plastic soda bottles and place them in the freezer to use up the space.

20. Dress sustainable. Wear clothing made from products that are reusable and sustainable.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Recycle your print cartridges for your home printer and your own office printer.

1. Find some new uses for the old things you are wanting to throw out.

2. Compact your non recyclable within you trashcan, you will end up using fewer trash bags in the long run.

3. Always give your car a tune up so it runs more efficiently.

4. Always spend your money on things that will last instead of things that are a one time use.

5. Invest your money in environmentally conscious mutual funds and money packs. Find one that fits your needs here.

6. Always buy shade-grown coffee no matter what.

7. Take the stuff that is dragging your car down out of the truck. The lighter the car load the less gas your car will want to consume.

8. Seal your house up in the winter and in the summer. Air loss will eat into your wallet and the energy used to produce it.

9. Change your cleaning habits at your own home, by going toxin free in your own house.

10. Use reusable coffee filters or recycled coffee filters in your coffee maker.

11. Always eat what is in season.

12. Start up an eco-conversation wherever you go and spread the word on how important it is.

13. See if your bank offers online banking so that the paper statements stop coming through the mail.

14. Cancel your phone book delivery. Or even if you receive the phone book still, recycle your old one.

15. Install ceiling fans to help improve the air circulation within you home.

16. Get an Energy-Star approved lap top. Desk tops seem to take more energy to function.

17. Replace all your light bulbs in your home with compact fluorescent ones.

18. Join a CSA within your own community (Community Supported Agriculture) Program. Start here.
19. Volunteer your time at local conservation agencies within your own town and neighborhood.

20. Use power strips on almost anything. Electronics (some of them) still use energy even when they are shut off.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: If you see litter on the ground no matter where you are, do the right thing and pick it up and place it where it belongs.

1. Line dry your clothes whenever possible.

2. Find a greener dry cleaners and bring your own garment bags.

3. Don’t use your dishwashers’ drying cycle.

4. Shut your computer down at night and when you leave you office on Fridays.

5. Always vote for change within your own community.

6. Drive a hybrid if you can, if your in the market for a car, try to find a hybrid.

7. Join a local food co-op.

8. Swap your paper back books over the internet. Try Paper Back Swap, and get fee books in return.

9. Take your own water in a reusable water bottle instead of plastic water bottles the stores sell.

10. Remove your name from junk-mail lists by registering here.

11. Purchase a shredder and use the shredding for packing instead of Styrofoam peanuts, or bubble wrap.

12. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

13. Be sure and always check your tires on your car, under inflation will cause low or even poor gas mileage.

14. Buy recycled toilet paper and paper towels.

15. Print and write on both sides of the paper.

16. In the winter months, after you are finished baking, turn the oven off and leave the door open to heat your kitchen.

17. If you eat fish, only eat sustainable harvested fish to help protect the ocean, read more here.

18. Always go carbon-neutral, no matter what.

19. To save on gas, don’t speed. And cut back on driving.

20. Never use pesticides on your lawn. Never use grass killer on your lawn as well. Nothing beats a good physical activity of pulling the weeds by hand. You not only save on chemicals in you lawn but get exercise as well.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Prolong the life of your stuff. Keep your things out of the landfill by taking care of them.

• CFLS: The Philips Soft White CFL comes in a recyclable packaging and according to Philips, they claim that it contains the lowest mercury levels of any CFLs on the market. To find a CFL disposal site near your own home, visit Earth 911

• Local Eating: You can’t get anything better than something that is organic, locally grown and even purchased from your neighborhood farmers’ market. So Support them. Do it for yourself, your family and your local farmer. Find farmers’ markets in your own area by visiting Local Harvest.

• Hybrids: The Toyota Prius (48 mpg city/ 45 mpg hwy) leads for a fifth straight year in a row as the best hybrid purchase anyone can make. The Honda Civic Hybrid (40 mpg city/ 45 mpg hwy) also places high with U.S. News, and CNET.

• Biofuels: Not everyone knows how to make up an alternative fuel in their own garage, but there is help. By going to Biodiesel America you can find someone that can and has. You can start today in converting your own vehicle to take an alternative fuel source.

• Bioplastic: Opt for a durable, reusable carryall like the compact Chicobag or Baggu tote. And some markets now offer their own, like Safeway, Fred Meyer, Whole Foods, and even Wal Mart now.

• Bamboo Clothing: Bamboosa and Certaintees are tow of the most environmentally responsible brands that carry the best clothing line from bamboo materials. Their clothing is soft and durable and will last a lifetime if they are taken care of.

• Mineral Makeup: Companies like Larénium Mineral Makeup and Afterglow Cosmetics, they are both free of nano-particles and bismuth oxychloride. Companies like Avon and Mary Kay also have their own line of mineral makeup that is great for your skin. Just be careful when picking a mineral makeup product and read labels.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Save water all the time. Take shorter showers and if it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down, when it comes to your toilet that is.

Biodegradable Seed-Starter Pots:

You will need:

• Scissors
• Empty Toilet Paper Rolls
• Potting Soil
• Seeds of Your Choice

Cut each roll in half and press them all flat as you can. Use a book or a brick to get them flat. It’s best to use recycled toilet paper rolls for this project, that way you already know they are environmentally friendly and haven’t been chemically altered with man-made ingredients. Next, make four, half-inch to three-quarter-inch slices on one end of each roll to create four equal-sized flaps. Open up the roll and fold in the four flaps on the tub that you just made, like a box-bottom. Fill the pot with the potting soil, and plan your seeds, and be sure to water gently or have another bowl or dish under the pot if you are having them inside. When the seeds have sprouted and are ready to go in the ground, either pull the plant straight out of the soil, or plant the “little pot” you have made directly into the ground. This a great project for kids and even for the entire family. There is no need for tape, glue or even rubber bands, which aren’t all made earth-friendly. These little pots can be used over and over again if you pull the seedling sprouts out of the little pots directly. You can experiment with different plant types to see which ones work best inside you little pots. I like to plant pumpkin seeds and squash seeds inside mine. Mainly because, their roots tend to grab the soil better and it’s easier to pull them out. With strawberry sprouts, I plant them directly into the soil inside the pot. Have fun with your kids and planting seeds and teaching kids how wonderful and great the world really is.

Bush’s recently approved economic stimulus package is supposed to help boost our economy that is slowly shrinking away, by returning funds back to the Americans who are cash-strapped. Bush assumes that all Americans who are going to receive their checks will turn around and spend it in the shopping malls and for purchases online as well. The federal debt is already at $9 trillion, will this little bit of return help our earth’s future? I have already heard so many people tell me how they already have their money ($600 or $1,200) spent. The earth is trying to heal while Americans are thinking, turn that money into a big screen TV or even something that will be thrown away when it’s time is done and used up.

Why not take that money and turn it around for the good instead of the bad? Here are some ideas to help you in the process.

• SRIs (Socially Responsible Investments): These are a way to invest financially in corporations that are legit as far as the environment is concerned such as:
1. Domini Social Investments
2. Pax World Mutual Funds
3. Calvert
All of these companies offer socially responsible mutual funds with companies that embrace fair labor practices, environmental preservation and human rights, to name a few.

• Green Century Funds, Portfolio 21 and the Sierra Club Stock Fund go the extra green mile with super strict eco-criteria for their mutual funds they offer the public.

• Village Banking, Accion, Grameen Foundation, and Kiva: These companies bolster a small business in the developing world through a micro loan. For a small investment, you can help third-world entrepreneurs escape poverty and improve their standards of living.

Here’s a timeline of when you might receive your money:

DIRECT DEPOSIT

Last two SSN digits: Payments will be transmitted no later than:
00 through 20 May 2
21 through 75 May 9
76 through 99 May 16

PAPER CHECK

Last two SSN digits: Payments will be mailed no later than:
00 through 09 May 16
10 through 18 May 23
19 through 25 May 30
26 through 38 June 6
39 through 51 June 13
52 through 63 June 20
64 through 75 June 27
76 through 87 July 4
88 through 99 July 11

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Cooking and baking with organic and natural products and food choices is a great way to avoid pesticides, and eating locally is a great way to keep the money in your own community and help the small-time farmers.

Try the Neuton.

It’s easy to use with a removable battery and instant handlebar starting, lightweight and easy operation to its innovative design and materials. It has professional grade cutting results that equal gas-powdered mowers. And the best part is the environmental piece of mind. It gives you the opportunity to “do the right thing” and have a beautiful lawn as well.

The polypropylene deck is lightweight and it never rust. And the vibration you get from gas-powdered mowers is eliminated with the Neuton.

Some other great qualities to the Neuton are:

• Easy, instant start every time.

• A smaller environmental footprint that comes when you don’t use oil and gas.

• A quiet mowing experience, so you can mow at any time of the day.

• Less cost by eliminating expensive spark plugs, air filters, tune ups, clogged carburetors and a host of other expensive maintenance.

• No more least minute trips to the gas station to fill up your mower.

• Approximately $5 per year for electricity over the $70 a year for gas, oil and tune-ups on your gas mower.

• Starts instantly with a simple squeeze of the handlebar over a pull string start.

How it works-Plus the Neuton mower battery into any standard household outlet. Charges in about 8-12 hours and costs about 10 cents. One charge gives your Neuton Mower up to 60 minutes of high-powered mowing. Plus, with an optional spare battery, you will have a fully-charged backup battery ready to go. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends battery-powered mowers like the Neuton Mowers. And when you compare the facts, it’s easy to see why it’s a better choice for any eco-conscious minded individual.

1. A gas mower spews 87 lbs. of the greenhouse gas CO2 and 54 lbs. of other pollutants into your air every year.

2. Over 17 million gallons of gas are spilled each year refueling lawn and garden equipment-more petroleum than was spilled by the Exxon Valdez.

3. Gas mowers are so noisy that health experts recommend hearing protection if you’ll be using one for more than 15 minutes.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip:

You can reduce your energy bills and even help cut down on your carbon footprint with these eight ideas.

1. Powering down you personal computer: Computers as a whole consume a load of power. Placing these energy suckers on a power strip helps cut cost and energy coast by saving almost $178 a year and a return of 890 percent over all. So when you head to bed or are done for the day with your energy-using equipment, just simply hit the power strip switch and shut it all down.

2. Go throughout your house and replace the bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs: You may spend a bit more for the bulbs in the beginning, but overall savings is way above what you would spend on incandescent bulbs throughout your home. Even replace your porch lights and your garage lights with the same bulbs. If you have a barn or a workshop, consider replacing those bulbs as well with the CFLs. A yearly savings of $117 and a 234 percent return.

3. Insulate your heating ducts and do sealing around them in your home: Your attic and crawl spaces are prime areas where air loss is felt in the heating and cooling bill. By sealing and insulating these areas, which are low cost and inexpensive and overall you will have a yearly savings of $75 and 375 percent return in the long run.

4. Seal your home’s air leaks: Air leaks occur mainly around doors and windows, and especially around plumbing, wiring and light fixtures that lead into your attic and through the roof (sun windows or skylights.) You will see a change in your yearly energy bill of about $156 and a 312 percent return on the cost.

5. Venting your dryer inside your home during the winter months: Never vent gas dryers inside your home and if you still use a gas dryer you might want to consider upgrading to an electric, Energy-Star-approved model. Make sure when you do vent you use panty hose or cheesecloth to catch the lint. You will see an added benefit of savings overall of $63 and a 315 percent return.

6. Use bubble wrap in more ways then one: Using bubble wrap to insulate your windows is nothing new, it’s just a not-so-common-used practice. It won’t allow you to view out the window, but it does allow for the sunlight to come through. This is a fantastic idea for garage windows and attic windows or even windows that are in rooms you don’t use or hardly use. You will have a yearly savings of $75 and a 197 percent return.

7. Avoid phantom electrical loads: Even when you turn that VCR or DVD player off, something has to still run that digital clock on the front, right? Yes, and it adds up. You will see a yearly savings of $57 a year and 81 percent return if you unplug these energy drainers. This goes back to the “personal computer power strip idea #1″ as well. If you don’t want to unplug all those appliances, put them all on a power strip and hit the off when you are done. Getting a power strip with a phone and fax/modem option will save you even more.

8. Using electric mattress pads instead of electric blankets: You are told to turn the heat down at night so that you sleep better, but what about if it gets too cold inside your home to even sleep? That’s when you need the electric mattress. You can get the same effect with a high-end, good down comforter as well. You will have a savings of $186 a year and a 148 percent return in the long run. (Source: MEN 2008)

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Add more attic insulation; add more crawl space insulation; buy a new, efficient clothes washer; buy a new, efficient refrigerator; install storm windows; install a storm door; install thermal shades; and above all, turn everything off at night or when not in use.

Do you love tearing into a beautifully wrapped package but feel guilty about all the trash that is created? Then get into the green gifting phenomenon. Here’s how:

Start with eco-kind wrapping paper because traditional types can be loaded with environmentally unfriendly dyes and chemicals. Companies that carry Earth-friendly options are:

• Paporganics: Has vegetable-based ink prints on a blend of hemp and recycle paper ($5 for two sheets).

• Importica: Offers vibrant tree bark ($6 for two sheets).

• Also use old maps, classified ads and comic ads. Even try using brown grocery sacks as well.

Top off your gift wrapped masterpiece with a bundle of pinecones, holly berries or poinsettias, tied with 100 percent biodegradable, natural cotton ribbon from companies such as KidBean ($4.99 for ten yards.)

Add a gift tag from companies such as Bloomin. The biodegradable paper tags, featuring a dove, tree or a star, are made with wildflower seeds and are meant to be planted ($7.95 for a dozen.)

If the bags are more your style, try a reusable version from Lucky Crow ($4.49 to #13.49), they are cute fabric pouches that come with an attached ribbon on the bag already.

Even if you use wrap from the previous year and not just throw out wrapping paper because you can, you will be helping save trees, waste in the landfills as well as money out of your own pocket the following year or even the following month.

*Natural and Sustainable Living Tip: Use eco-friendly paint whenever you can’t and if you can’t seem to find any colors you like, try water-based paints that are low in VOCs.