Navigation

On the 6th Day of Etsy…. Organic Clothing Giveaway

December 14, 2009 107

♫ my true love gave to me, a beautiful organic double v shirt, a fab alphabet pillow made from recycled suits, ♫ a handful of sweet upcycled heart felts, ♫ three lovely reclaimed wooden handcrafts, ♫ two calling handmade upcycled bird ornaments, ♫ and a fantastic stocking made from men’s recycled suits. ♫
Giveaway number 6 is an absolutely fabulous giveaway from My Dear Thing. This is an Organic Double V Shirt and it is lovely. How lucky will the winner of this fabulous shirt be? This would also make the loveliest gift.
Lauren designed this shirt to gracefully take the place of tee shirts in her wardrobe. Lauren says, “it is cut to accentuate and flatter curves, while scrunching up in other places.” The Double V Shirt has 2 V’s, one in front neck line and a shorter one in back. When she make these she uses two opposite sides of the fabric which makes the edges curl slightly and enhance the organic quality of the fabric. These lovely shirts are made using a blend of organic cotton, bamboo and spandex. This is a super soft shirt that you will want to wear every day. {This I totally believe, don’t they look so soft?}
Lauren is an independent fashion designer living in Greenpoint, Brooklyn with my husband and 3 cats. Lauren studied fashion design at The Fashion Institute of Technology and is constantly experimenting with new ideas, techniques and materials. She designs, drafts, cuts, sews, dyes, and knits everything herself while listening to her fave radio programs. {What a great life, no?} She recently quit her day job designing knit wear for Urban Outfitters and Anthropology to do her own thing and she loves, loves, loves it.
Some other items that I adore are::


A huge, huge thank you to My Dear Thing for hosting this lovely giveaway.

How to Win

* You have until December 21st at 12 am EST to enter this giveaway.

* Visit My Dear Thing and leave a comment telling me what item you would love to receive this holiday season.
One comment per person please.
Additional Entries
**** Please help me spread the word about Sweet Greens’ 12 Days of Etsy by sharing it twitter, facebook, kirtsy, your blog or any other social website that you use. I would greatly appreciate it! Please leave a separate comment for each thing that you do.
Are you wondering what the 12 Days of Etsy are, read about it here.

*UPDATE: WINNER:: #10 Willo. Thank you for much to everyone who entered.

Equal Exchange:: Fair Trade Mixer Basket {Giveaway!}CLOSED

December 14, 2009 108

There are a few goodies that I really enjoy in life. Two of them happen to be coffee and chocolate. Each morning when I wake up, the first thing that I look forward to is a pipping hot cup of coffee. Once in a while, I love to indulge on a square or two of lovely dark or milk chocolate. So, when a package came in the mail from Equal Exchange, I knew I was in for a treat. I was immediately delighted when I opened the package to find the Fair Trade Mixer Basket. This basket includes a variety of Equal Exchange products in a fairly traded kaisa grass basket imported by Ten Thousand Villages from Dhaka Handicrafts, a non-profit that works to improve the lives of children and rural families in Bangladesh. The grass basket was a lovely surprise, I own a large round grass basket that Mr. Sweet Greens surprised me with from our local Ten Thousand Villages store here in the foothills. The basket also included a French Roast Coffee, Organic Hot Cocoa Mix, Organic Very Dark Chocolate Bar, Organic Dark Chocolate with Almonds Bar, Organic Milk Chocolate with a Hint of Hazelnut Bar, Organic Tamari Roasted Almonds and Roasted Salted Pecans.

I saved the gift basket for when Mr. Sweet Greens and Eben returned home for the day. This was a challenge for me, all day long I wanted to break into a chocolate bar and go to town. I was good and waited to share the goodies with them.

First things first, we tried the organic chocolate bars and cocoa. Eben usually has a yummy cup of cocoa when he gets home from school, but to have actual chocolate pieces to go with it was a big surprise. Eben loved the Organic Hot Cocoa, he has been drinking organic cocoa for a long time and thought this one had a great chocolate flavor. Eben also enjoy the Organic Milk Chocolate with a Hint of Hazelnut Bar but was disinterested in any of the dark chocolate. Mr. Sweet Greens doesn’t enjoy chocolate so lucky for me, the Organic Dark Chocolate with Almonds Bar and Organic Very Dark Chocolate Bar were all mine and they are divine. All of the chocolate bars were shiny and smooth and had a lovely nutty smell. When I slowly chewed and let it melt in my mouth I was in heaven, leaving me wanting more. Plus, I love the large size and the wrapping is fab.

Mr. Sweet Greens and I really enjoyed the French Roast Coffee together and thought that is was very smooth and nutty. We both thoroughly enjoyed this coffee and loved that it had a rich body and wasn’t bitter. It was a lovely addition to our morning routine and since the coffee is fairly traded and organic, who could ask for more? I also enjoyed some chocolate with my coffee and just to let you know, chocolate makes coffee better.


All three of us taste tested the Organic Tamari Roasted Almonds and the Roasted Salted Pecans because we are huge nut eaters and enjoy them immensely. We thought that the Organic Almonds were divine and the use of tamari instead of salt really enhances the flavor because they are nice and toasted without being overly salty. Eben really enjoyed these because he has a deep love of Soy Sauce. Perfect. We thought the Pecans were crunchy and then creamy in when chewed. They are perfectly salty and delicious.

The best part about Equal Exchange is that it was created from this idea:: “What if food could be traded in a way that is honest and fair, a way that empowers both farmers and consumers? What if trade supported family farms that use organic methods, rather than industrialized agribusinesses that rely on harmful chemicals?” How lovely is that?

I think that Equal Exchange Fairly Traded Gift Baskets would make the perfect holiday gifts this year. I think they would be perfect for grandparents, parents, teachers and as hostess gifts. Each basket has someone for everyone, all the while supporting a fabulous organization with a lovely cause.
A big thank you to Equal Exchange for doing what they do. It is great to find organizations that want to make our world a better place to live.
Equal Exchange has been so lovely to give one of my fabulous readers a Fair Trade Mixer Basket. {$47 Value} You two can enjoy all of the goodies that Equal Exchange has to offer. My readers can also enjoy other fair trade gifts that support small scale farmers, ranging from $25-$75. Order now and get 10% off your order and receive free shipping on orders over $75 with the coupon code:: ‘giftme10′. This coupon is valid through 12/31/09.
*UPDATE: WINNER:: #82 Amanda. Congratulations and thank you to everyone who entered.

{How to Win}

* Visit and leave a comment Equal Exchange and leave me a comment telling me what you think of this fabulous organization.

{One comment per person please.}

{Additional Entries}
Please leave a separate comment for each thing that you do.

*Share Equal Exchange on Twitter. {You can tweet daily, just leave a separate comment each time.}
*Share Equal Exchange on Facebook.
*Digg, Kirtsy or Stumble Equal Exchange.
*Add Sweet Greens to your Technorati Favorites.

Good Luck and Enjoy. Contest ends December 21st @ 12 am EST.
**DISCLAIMER:: All shipments are sent via United Parcel Service (UPS). Orders will be shipped within the contingent United States only. This item will not be shipped to PO/APO/FPO’s, American Samoa, Guam, Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, or Virgin Islands.
XO.

Green Your Holiday Tree.

December 14, 2009 4

What type of holiday tree do you have this year? Where did you purchase it? If you purchased a cut tree, how will you dispose of it in an Eco friendly manner?

This year we decided to purchase a trio of live potted trees that can be planted in our yard once the holiday is over. They are working out really well and we like them a lot more than I thought we would. I would highly recommend this option to anyone who has somewhere to plant the tree.

If you purchased a cut tree, please recycle it when you are finished with it. You can find recycling centers in your area at Earth911.com. In the past when we have hiked and cut down a tree at our local sustainable mountain farm, we have taken our tree to our local gardening center and had it made into mulch that we used in our yard in the springtime.

If you are interested in a fake tree, I have seen quite a few very nice ones at our local thrift, check yours out and see what you can find.
Did you know, you can also rent a live tree? Yes, there is a Portland, Oregon based company called The Original Living Christmas Tree Company that will deliver and pickup your tree for around $80. Fab, fab, fab.

What type of holiday tree do you have?
How will you dispose of it?
XO.

Earth Friendly Etsy: Lulu Bug Sustainable Jewelry Giveaway

December 13, 2009 46

I am a huge fan of beautiful, sustainable jewlery. My favorites pieces of jewelry are made of recycled metal and when I found Lulu Bug Jewelry, I fell in love instantly. Lulu Bug Jewelry is owned and designed by Sue Urquhart. Sue has a day job working in jewelry design and manufacturing and also runs Lulu Bug Jewelry in Sonoma County, California on the side.

Sue takes her own artwork and makes etched brass plates which she uses to print the textures and images onto the metal pieces. Cool. Sue uses precious metal clay to create her beautiful nature inspired pieces of jewelry. Lulu Bug Jewelry’s line (named after her beloved Shar Pei) includes fabulous necklaces and earrings with beautiful flora, animal and nature designs. She does amazing custom work and is able to transform a picture of your beloved pet into a beautiful piece of jewelry. Sue rides her bicycle to her day job, (which I think is fantastic!) she says this gives her more time to dream up her creations since she is able to enjoy the scenery around her.

My favorite pieces from Lulu Bug Jewelry are the concrete flowers necklace in aqua and little bird necklace that is featured. Sue has been so lovely to offer one of her beautiful little bird necklaces to ONE of my fabulous readers.

How to Enter

 

2. Visit Lulu Bug Jewelry and leave me a comment telling me which piece of jewelry you love.
3. Complete this form.

Contest ends May 20th@ 12am EST. Winner will be chosen at random using a random number generator and will be announced the following day.

* Update: Winner:: Aimee. Congratulations.

Green Tips:: Spice it Up.

December 13, 2009 4

Jayson does all of our cooking here at Casa de Sweet Greens {thank goodness}. He is the type of person who can whip up a gourmet meal in a 1/2 an hour and have it look at taste like something from the Food Network. He loves to cook with exotic spices and flavors. Since he does all of the cooking, he also does all of the grocery shopping. {thank goodness again}. Whenever he is in need of spices, he takes our reusable containers to our favorite grocery store and refills the containers in the bulk food section. Loose spices are not only more affordable, but you eliminate the need for any type of disposable packaging that will end up in the landfill. I think large glass jars full of spices look fab in any kitchen. What do you think?

Do you buy your spices in bulk?
What is your favorite spice?

xo.

Older posts Newer posts