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there was a veritable bevy of clutches, satchels and totes at bagtrends.com’s green arm candy party last night (pics to come), and my lady friends and i were particularly enamored with these yummy vegan clutches by NOAH (no animals harmed).
now i love animals as much as the next girl (just ask my pet squirrel Pee-chan, god rest his soul), but recently finding out that “vegan leather” most often means “plastic” was a bit offputting. i was surprised and happy when we asked the sales rep at the table about the plastic overlays on NOAH bags and he replied “well, it is recycled.”
that was all i needed to hear! both lillian and i had been on non-shopping binges, but these cruelty-free, recycled gems were too cute and guilt free to pass up (plus they were only $50)!
or so we thought…
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turn your plastic bag into a sewing machine cover
despite the utter yuckiness i feel for apple, i can’t help but be drawn to the disgustingly pretty things they churn out, and this here sky blue bag is no exception.
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does anyone remember this one? i got it when i purchased my ibook way back when, and still remember feeling more in awe about the bag than i did about the computer! it’s been in my closet for years now and instead of trashing it, i wanted to honor it by making it into a cover for my sewing machine!
the steps are fairly simple:
1. cut off the bottom and top inch or so of the bag and turn it inside out.
2. trace the outline of the item you want to make a cover for, leaving about an inch and a half for the hem.
3. sew along the outline you traced and try it on for size. if it fits correctly, trim the edges off so that it looks like this:
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4. turn your completed cover right side out and voila!
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you can also cut a little side slit out for any plugs or wires that need to poke out.
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now your sewing machine, toaster oven, or mao zedong bust can stay dust-free and you have saved another bag from the dump! pat yourself on the back, mister!
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revisiting brita’s filter for good campaign
remember these?
yes, that’s oil spilling out of their mouths.
there was a considerable amount of positive buzz surrounding brita’s filter for good ad campaign last summer, but many people are still purchasing bottled water. why???
it is somewhat understandable if you’re out on the street, feel a bit parched, and pick up a bottle of water at the closest bodega. but it’s a little different when you consciously purchase cases of the stuff to drink at work, especially in an office like mine where delicious, double-purified and free water is available right from the cooler.
many of my officemates were horrified when the cases of water they buy from staples skyrocketed from $3 a case to $10 (due in large part to oil prices). but guess what? they still kept buying them! many still purchased 2 or 3 cases. $20 or $30 bucks a month vs. free? seems like a no brainer to me, but for some reason, we americans can’t seem to shake the idea that something that we have to pay for is inherently better than something that we don’t.
by the way, if you haven’t heard yet, these brita ads are referring to the fact that making the plastic bottles to meet our country’s demand for bottled water requires more than 17 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel more than 1 million U.S. cars for a year.
so, why are you still drinking bottled water?
the little bit of controversy behind the ad campaign was that brita never mentioned the fact that their filters are also made out of plastic and end up in landfills just like plastic bottles do. but kudos to them for being able to counteract that dirty little secret with a new collabo with recycline, a company that makes toothbrushes, plates and other cool stuff out of plastics like stonyfield farms yogurt cups that aren’t usually recycled.
brava, brita, brava.
pics courtesy of why me design
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break the chains of your plastic bag oppression!
i used to come home from the supermarket, unload my groceries, and disgustedly try to stuff all of my newly acquired grocery bags into my overflowing ikea bag holder
. something about the whole process drained a little bit of my soul out every single time. ugh.
nowadays, i carry around a super-lightweight tote bag that i just pull out whenever i need to transport stuff that i buy. (i know that this is not a newsflash to anyone, but i am surprised at how many people still do not do this!) not only do i get glances of respect at the market, when i get home, i don’t have to roll up my yucky plastic bags. and it feels sooooooo good. oh yeah, and i’m saving the planet in my own little way too. that’s always a perk.
every now and then, when i’m cooking for more than one, i’ll end up needing extra bags. when that happens, i try to use as few plastic bags as possible, and save the ones that i do take. for every month that i don’t fill up my ikea container, i make myself a cornish hen and eat it guiltlessly. so far, so delicious.
in true swyyne fashion, i need to do a product plug, so here it is: cole haan’s logo market bag is sturdy, classic and smells nice too.
i’d also like to mention that last time i was at whole foods and a guy pulled out his own tote bag, the females around him noticed and reacted with delight!
it’s a win/win situation people.
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why is this a site?
swyyne has always been an experiment for me. with all of the other super eco sites out there, i've been feeling like i want to contribute something just a bit different. so for now, here are my random musings.
look for stuff
feed yourself