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Author Archive | Jennie Lyon

How To Host An Eco-Friendly Wine And Cheese Party

November 3, 2009 4

Since it is the harvest season, I thought it would be fun to host an organic wine and cheese tasting party. Doesn’t it sound lovely to invite a few of your friends over on a chilly fall night to try different types of cheeses and wines from all over the world? I think it would be fun to choose a region of the world and ask each guest to bring either a bottle of wine or a wedge cheese from that region to share. A wine and cheese party is a simple and fun way to spend the evening. Read on to learn how I am preparing for this fun night.

Here’s what you will need:
  • 4-6 bottles of organic wine
  • 4 ounces of organic cheese per person
  • organic plain crackers
  • water

Set up:

Pour 2 ounce tastes for each of the wines and serve the water and crackers as palate cleansers. You could also serve other appetizers. The organic cheeses that I chose for this particular night include; organic Brie, Gouda and Le Gruyere.

When setting up this party, I used items from my own kitchen including dinnerware, silverware, stemware and linens. This party had almost zero landfill waste since the bottles are recyclable and most of the packaging was too.

Would you host an eco-friendly wine and cheese party?
What are your favorite types of organic wine and cheese?

photo courtesy of Palinkas Tamara.

Eco-Me Green Cleaning Giveaway + Coupon Code

November 2, 2009 42
If you read Sweet Greens on a daily basis then you know how strongly I feel about using green cleaning products in your home. I think it is one of the most important things that you can do for the health of yourself, your family and the environment – I have talked about here several times.
I recently received the Eco-me Pre-Mixed line of green cleaning products. This line is a winner! I love everything about Eco-me. I love the simple ingredients, super simple, think along the lines of vinegar, baking soda and essential oils. I love the design of the packaging and that each cleaner has a name. This cracks Eben up, every time I use one, he asks why the cleaners have names.

My favorites are Emily (100% Natural Scrub Cleaner) and Bill (All Purpose Cleaner). These are my favorites because they are the two that I use the most. I am in love with Emily, this is the first natural scrub cleaner that I have used that actually whitens and brightens. I sprinkle it all over the bottle of my walk in shower and then lightly scrub it with my scrub brush and it brightens, cleans and whitens. I am hooked, the mister loves it too because this was his biggest compliant that green cleaners don’t whiten, this one does. I also love Bill because you can use it anywhere; counters, windows, tile and mirrors and it doesn’t streak. Fantastic!

Eco-me has been so lovely to offer TWO of my readers a set of 6 pouches of the pre-mixed cleaning products. With these pouch sets, you can decide for yourself. Sweet Greens readers also get 15% off your order with the coupon code ‘emblreview‘.

How to Enter
1. What would you clean with your Eco-Me pre-mixed cleaning products?

The winner will be announced on Monday, November 16th. 
*UPDATE:: WINNERS: #30 Tanya and #12 Jennifer B. Congratulations and thank you to everyone who entered.

Good Luck.

Eco Planning for a Green Thanksgiving

November 2, 2009 0
Now that Halloween is over, it is time to focus on Thanksgiving. Can you believe that Thanksgiving is 24 days away? Usually, I wouldn’t be in a frenzy over Thanksgiving because it is either just the three of us here at home or we visit family in Utah and celebrate Thanksgiving there. 
This year however, my entire family is coming to Colorado to spend Thanksgiving with us. How fantastic is that? My parents, my little sister, her husband and three beautiful children and my little brother will all be celebrating at my house. I am over the moon!

First on my Thanksgiving list, is taking inventory and luckily we have almost everything that we will need to prepare, serve and enjoy Thanksgiving dinner. I have ordered some extra pieces to go with the china that the mister recently inherited from his Nana. I have been considering ordering some lovely pieces from Eden Home, I love the La Chamba Natural Black Clay Cookware and the Bird Cheese Markers.

Next on the list, the mister is currently preparing the meal plan and it’s sounds like it’s going to be a lovely Thanksgiving.

Have you started to prepare for Thanksgiving?
What type of dinnerware will you be using?

Green DIY:: Organic Halloween Face Paint

October 15, 2009 4

Did you know that just because the Halloween face paint at the store says “non-toxic” doesn’t mean that they don’t contain ingredients that are horrible for you and the environment. Some of the chemicals that can be found in store bought face paints include parabens, BHA, formaldehyde, kohl and phthalates {which can disrupt the endocrine system and some are known carcinogens.} Yikes! I know, right? You can make your own Halloween face paint that is non toxic and organic. It will not harm you, your children or the environment.

What you will need:

* 1/2 Tsp. Organic diaper rash ointment or Organic Cold Cream
* 1 Tsp. Organic Corn Starch
* 1/2 Tsp. Water
* 1-2 drops of Organic Food Colorant

Preparation::

Mix all the ingredients together and apply to face with fingers or a washable sponge applicator and scare your friends.

What are you going to be for Halloween?
Are you going to use Halloween face paint?

{Picture:: That year both Jayson and Eben’s costumes were from our local thrift}

Jayson was a zombie and Eben was a Lochness Monster. {His interpretation of the costume}

Enjoy.

Earth Friendly Etsy: The Ceremonial Home Candle Giveaway

February 25, 2009 93

With fall right around the corner, I have started to think of the cozy nights we spend in our living rooms together sipping tea, coffee or cocoa. For some reason, I am a huge fan of candles in the fall and winter. I love the feel of a room lite only by candles. I have to admit now that summer is ending and it is starting to get cooler outside, I am craving the nights spent inside with my family. Eben and I love to snuggle up on the sofa under a super soft blanket and read. We also like to grab big pillows and snuggle up on the floor to play board games and read. Since I am craving the snuggle on a cool crisp night feel, I thought this week’s Earth friendly Etsy shop should offer something that would add to the coziness and ambiance.

I recently discovered The Ceremonial Home. The Ceremonial Home is owned by Grayson a designer and artist in the San Francisco Bay area. With a background in the arts, and in architectural, landscape, and furniture design, Grayson is partial to geometric and simple forms in her functional and non-functional work. Her idea to keep the art uncluttered and uncomplicated is very appealing to me. She believes that for the piece to feel ceremonial, the overall essence should be strong, magnetic, but quiet. {fabulous} Grayson is also a painter whose paintings also echo this same visual movement. The materials and methods that she uses in her functional and sculptural work are casting and hand building using metal infused concrete. The metal infused concrete used to make most of the 3 dimensional items in her shop are all from Eco-friendly materials. At every opportunity she uses only recycled or repurposed materials.

One of my favorite items at The Ceremonial Home are the Cowboy Zen Oil Lamps. The Cowboy Zen Oil Lamps are fabulous in their shape and design. The steel plate tops are naturally rusted and the entire piece is finished in all natural, non-toxic Tung Oil. Each lamp is 3″ square x 2 1/2″ high. The lamp has a burn capacity of approximately 6 to 8 hours per filling. The lamp will come beautifully gift wrapped in an all natural papier mache box with gift card and natural hemp cording. This lamp would make a wonderful holiday gift and will fit in with the design of almost any home.
Now can you see why I am craving a little inside by the oil lamp time with my family? Are you looking forward to fall and winter? Wouldn’t you love to snuggle up with this fab lamp lighting the room?

Grayson @ The Ceremonial Home has been so lovely to offer ONE of my readers a Cowboy Zen Oil Lamp. $50 Value

How to Enter

1. Subscribe to Sweet Greens (if you haven’t already) and confirm the subscription in the email from FeedBurner.
2. Visit The Ceremonial Home and leave me a comment telling me one other item that you think would make a fab holiday gift.
Additional Entries
please leave a separate comment for each.
* Share The Ceremonial Home on twitter and follow @SweetGreens.
you can do this everyday, just leave a separate comment each time you do.
* Share The Ceremonial Home on Facebook and join Sweet Greens Facebook Fan Page.
* Digg, Kirtsy or Stumble The Ceremonial Home.
* Email a friend about Sweet Greens Earth Friendly Etsy:: The Ceremonial Home Giveaway!
* Add Sweet Greens to your blogroll.
* Add Sweet Green to your Technorati Favorites.
Rules for Entry

* Please leave a way for me to contact you if you win. You do not need to leave your email address if don’t wish to share it. Just make sure to check back at the bottom of this post after the contest ends to see if you won.

* Contest ends September 16th @ 12am EST. Winner will be chosen at random using a random number generator and will be announced the following day. (I will announce the winner, if I do not hear from you within 72 business hours, I will pick another winner.)
* This contest is open to U.S. residents only.

* You must leave a comment telling me which item you love in order to qualify.


*UPDATE: WINNER:: #26 plb8156. Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who entered.
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