greenaid grenade eco-bag

saw this little gem at spring in dumbo and it really blew me away! was that as bad as it sounded in my head when i thought of it?

well regardless, remember that part in full-time killers when andy lau throws one activated grenade into the crime boss’s jail cell, and then tosses in 20 more dormant grenades so the poor guy has to look for the one grenade that will kill him? well this product really has nothing to do with that, but it’s still pretty sweet.

sure, it looks like a cute and cuddly live one, but it is actually a compartment for your reusable bag that you can clip onto your jeans or purse!

image courtesy of switchedonset.com

while you’re there, ask them if they have the dexter chair:

this would be a pretty snazzy and inexpensive way to jazz up a flea market find.

trendwatch: my hashi benetton chopsticks

i really must give ecoprops to my japanese homies for pioneering eco (pronounced eh-ko ｴｺ) before it was what all the cool kids were doing, and my observations from my recent trip to japan only furthered that belief. to be fair, there were some rather disappointing practices that made me frown as well, but more on that later.

since my closest friends like to beat me when i don’t bring back omiyage for them, i found myself scrambling around the massive shopping complexes of my mom’s hometown whimpering, and at times, blatantly talking to myself. each shop displayed wares which were either too cutesy, too useless or too illegal to bring back to the u.s. until, to my utter delight, i discovered my hashi (by benetton, yes, that benetton). apparently, they don’t just make corduroy pants and cashmere berets in all the colors of the rainbow. they also make chopsticks in all the colors of the rainbow!

my hashi, which means, surprise!, “my chopsticks” in the mother tongue, allow you to tote around your own pair of utensils and obnoxiously whip them out when dining with your pals. it’s a great conversation starter, although you should be warned that many of the reactions will be hostile. one hostess even tried to force her disposable wooden chopsticks on me! seriously, can i live?!!!

overall, i think these my hashi are great, but there are 2 flaws that i would like to point out:

1. they are packaged in a plastic tube wrapped in yet another plastic sleeve! why??! they are supposed to be eco-conscious!

2. the “hashi wipe” tissues that come in the package are a bit silly. i’d rather excuse myself to clean my hashi in the bathroom than rub them vigorously with alcohol-smelling disposable napkins.

all in all, i give my hashi a thumb and a pointer finger up! get it? because you use those fingers to hold your hashi… no? okay, i’ll stop now. let’s just say that they are worth the 1050 yen, but you could certainly find a better, less wasteful alternative.

the “i am not a paper cup” travel mug

wait for it….wait for it…

after the popularity of anya hindemarch’s “i’m not a plastic bag” bag, we all knew that similar product lines of other household items would follow suit. case in point: the “i am not a paper cup” cup. the reusable porcelain travel mug tells the world how it is (in a slightly more formal voice than the famous bag). aside from being curious about why the makers, decor craft inc., opted to keep the name of their mug contractionless, i wondered how people would react to the usability and slightly steep price point (about $19).

the mug receives 4 out of 5 stars on amazon.com, and most reviewers did not gripe about the price. for those who are skeptical or just plain cheap, it does pay to keep in mind that starbucks and other coffee shops will either upgrade you to a larger size coffee or charge you less if you bring in you own container. if that alone is not enough to sway you, several males that i know have also reported the mug’s chick-magnet powers. if you’re gonna spend $60 on drinks trying to pick up girls anyway, isn’t a measly $19 more worth it? i think so.

byob op: bring their own bags or pay

anyone who has shopped recently at euro furniture superstore ikea has noticed that the plastic bags there are not free. has that deterred people from using them? the short answer is heyl yah! 92% or approximately 64 million less ikea bags were used last year. talk about results!

not to be left in the dust yet again by the rest of the world (ahem: metric system), new york city mayor michael bloomberg has proposed a tax on plastic bags across our city. if the proposal passes, that means that you will save 6 cents on every bag you decide not to take at grocery stores and other retailers. it’s just the extra nudge that people who ask for a plastic bag for a stick of gum or a bag of chips (you know who you are) need to think, yes think, for a moment about whether or not they really must have a bag in order to carry their purchases home.

of the 6 cents, 5 cents will go to the city and 1 cent will go to the participating store as an incentive fee. officials estimate that the plan will generate $16 million a year for our city, which is not too shabby. what they may have forgotten in their calculations is that new yorkers are pretty good at taking action when they know their hard earned bucks are at stake. i estimate/hope that we will actually use less plastic bags even if the city makes less money.

here are some reusable bag options that i’m feeling right now:

baggu bags in a rainbow of colors. the muted jewel tones are very en vogue right now.

flip and tumble’s easy to roll up bags

greenworldbags are sturdy and come in fun patterns

skn has cute designs like tomato and blueberry and will plant a tree for every bag you buy!

shagbags come with cute pouches and have cinches to hold all of your belongings safely inside.

shoutout to dave h for hooking me up with the story.

speaking of bras… triumph’s my chopsticks bra

lingerie maker triumph international japan has really outdone themselves this time. their “my chopsticks” bra features cups that resemble a bowl of rice and a bowl of miso soup. the environmentally friendly part is that there are collapsible chopsticks that you can tuck into the bra and bust out (c’mon, that deserves a chuckle) when it is time to eat. that way, you have no need for disposable utensils!

okay, i admit that this may be taking the concept a bit too literally, but the message is great. it is so easy to use your own pair of utensils, if you just put a little bit of effort into it. it is estimated that japan goes through 25 billion disposable chopsticks in just one year. that is 90,000 tons of waste!

chopsticks bra in action

triumph lingerie model yuko ishida carries around a pair of her own chopsticks regularly and added that “the chopsticks on the sides help add a little extra volume to your bust.”

saving the earth is so sexy!

source: www.pinktentacle.com

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.