Archive for November, 2009
« Previous EntriesThe Big Pacific Plastic Patch
Monday, November 30th, 2009If you’ve been reading Tiny Choices for a fair amount of time, you may have noticed that Jenn and I have different reasons for doing the same stuff. Reducing plastics in our lives is one of those issues – we have different reasons for wanting to reduce the amount of plastic that moves through our [...]
Easy Peasy Tip: Get some heavy socks! And a scarf!
Saturday, November 28th, 2009It’s chilly around our parts here at Team Tiny Choices, and many of us are in homes where we try to keep the heat low. So in order to compensate, if you’re going to invest start out with some nice warm heavy socks. We’ve suggested that, in the spirit of Jimmy Carter, we all put [...]
Have a Thoughtful Black Friday!
Friday, November 27th, 2009Welcome back to Black Friday, traditionally the biggest shopping day of the year! Chances are if you’re reading this you’re not one of the true shopping die-hards, those people are out at the stores at 3 or 4 AM and this post doesn’t go live until 5 AM EST. For many of us, shopping isn’t [...]
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thursday, November 26th, 2009Greetings and Thanks – Inspired by the Onondaga Nation Greetings and Thanks to each other as people To the Earth mother of all greetings & thanks to all the waters waterfalls & rain, rivers & oceans greetings & thanks to all the fish life greetings & thanks the grains and greens beans & berries as [...]
Combined Sewer Overflows
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009The NY Times has another great piece out in their examination of the State of the Clean Water Act. Previously I’d commented on their article about toxic drinking water, and this new article discusses the slight issue of raw sewage being discharged into the water ways around major metropolises. Oh, did that get your attention? [...]
Bloomers in the Wind: Hanging Laundry to Dry
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009We’ve written before about different ways to green your laundry– skipping both dryer sheets and dry cleaning, saving massive amounts of energy by washing your clothes in cold water and hanging it to dry… but I’ve been shocked to read about folks around the country (and I do hope this ridiculous issue is contained within [...]
Dunkin’ Donuts is Fair Trade?
Monday, November 23rd, 2009I heard from a friend that she’d gone into Dunkin’ Donuts and learned that they sold fair trade coffee – which I thought was kind of amazing because 1. the chain is so ubiquitous in the northeast, and 2. because they don’t really publicize this much. So I did some research and it turns out [...]
Easy Peasy Tip: Wash it out!
Saturday, November 21st, 2009As much as many of us are trying to cut down on plastic in our homes and kitchens, odds are, there’s still a few plastic bags floating around. So instead of recycling them or tossing them, take your time after use and wash them out. You can buy Plastic Bag Dryers, which are handy and [...]
Friday Follow-up: Wonder Wash!
Friday, November 20th, 2009I received an email from reader Ameia asking It’s been 2 years since you bought the Wonder Wash. I need something like this and am wondering if you still love it. Has it held up? Do you still use it? What about the little dryer? So I thought maybe it would be a good time [...]
Tiny Choices Giveaway: Generation T!
Thursday, November 19th, 2009We’re thrilled to be hosting a giveaway for the fabulous new book by our friend Megan Nicolay: Generation T: Beyond Fashion: 120 New Ways to Transform a T-shirt! In this follow-up book to the smashing Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt, Megan showcases (you guessed it) 120 more ways to give t-shirts new [...]
Greening your Reading
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009I’ve mentioned it here and there, but I feel I should state for the record: I am a big reader. Proof: when I was a kid and got into trouble, I was restricted from reading. In contrast, my brother was restricted from watching TV. (The problem was he’d always try to talk me into watching [...]
DIY: Holiday Crafting Ideas?
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009It’s that time of year again– visions of Christmas are beginning to infiltrate our lives, even before Thanksgiving has arrived. And for those of us who tend to make the holiday gifts we give, instead of buy them, the mounting panic of “not enough time!” might be starting to creep into our thoughts. So! Let’s [...]
Back to Shaving Basics
Monday, November 16th, 2009The moment I’ve been dreading has happened – I just ran out of shaving cream, and I have to say, as melodramatic as it sounds, I’ve been anticipating this for some time. See, now I have to decide what other product to bring into my bathroom! Even though I haven’t cut it out entirely, I [...]
Easy Peasy Tip: Budget!
Saturday, November 14th, 2009Keeping yourself on a budget is important in many ways– it can help you stay on track with your income and spending habits, which can keep you on the road you envision for your future. The nice thing is that it can also help you stay focused on your eco-goals at the same time! If [...]
Don’t Miss It!
Friday, November 13th, 2009Here’s a couple of news items for your Friday perusal! The Greenists report that Home Depot has got a great incentive to recycle your traditional incandescent holiday light strands and replace them with LED strands. Apparently (to quote The Greenists) “From now through Sunday, if you take up to five new or used strands of [...]
Handmade Scarf Drive!
Thursday, November 12th, 2009Wanted to give a shout-out to the 8th Annual Holiday Scarf Drive, hosted by Supernaturale! Each year, folks from all over the world send in handmade scarves and hats, which are then distributed as holiday gifts to the women served by Sanctuary for Families: Sanctuary for Families is the largest nonprofit in New York State [...]
Tofurkey Time!
Thursday, November 12th, 2009We here at Team Tiny Choices try to cover all the bases; yesterday Kari wrote a post about heritage turkeys for Thanksgiving, and my contribution today is on turkeyless Thanksgivings for those who avoid meat. There are many reasons folks may choose to forgo having a turkey at their holiday meal– they may be vegetarian [...]
Turkey Time!
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009Here’s a Tiny Choice that won’t appeal to the vegetarians and vegans among our readers – sorry gang! Feel free to skip this post entirely. Thanksgiving is coming up in the US, and while I’m sorry we’ve missed our Canadian friends with this post, it’s still timely to many of us. The traditional Thanksgiving meal [...]
DIY: Lampshade Redux
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009As mentioned in a recent post, I have a great bedside lamp which was in dire need of some crafty help. About a year ago I’d tried to dye the shade using beet juice, and it was a gorgeous pinkish hue… for a very short time. Then the color began to fade, and the thing [...]
Fancy Eco-Wrapping
Monday, November 9th, 2009It’s still pretty early for this discussion, but with all things green, if you want to tread lightly during the holiday season you need to start a little earlier than you would otherwise. So – how about getting started by collecting the materials you’ll need for gorgeous eco-friendly packaging of your gorgeous gifts? After all, [...]
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