Zak Expands Eco Line Of Kitchen Products Infused With Rattan Wood

Zak Designs' Eco line is extremely unique! The texture of the products come from the patented process used to infuse Rattan wood – a rapidly growing plant similar to bamboo – with melamine and create a product unlike any other on the market. The process also gives the products their organic color tone that is so popular with today’s earth-conscientious consumers.

For 2010, Zak will introduce into the offering a large 3 qt and a small 24oz colander, a large scoop as well as measuring cups and measuring spoons. The additions will round out the existing line that includes nested serving and mixing bowls, mini prep bowls, a serve tray, batter bowl and an ice cream scoop. With the new additions to the line, consumers can carry the Eco theme throughout their kitchen, and prove that texture has as much a place in the culinary tools as function and fashion.

Zak stays at the forefront of emerging fashion, color and design trends from around the world with their offices around the world. They have incorporated those styles into modern and innovative tabletop and kitchen prep collections. More information is available at www.zak.com.

Top 10 Sustainable Wedding Trends for 2010 From Recycled Bride

When it comes to weddings, most couples are reluctant to sacrifice anything short of the best for their special day. Shifts have since occurred in the wedding industry with couples becoming more interested in sustainable, practical and budget-friendly suggestions and ideas for their big day.  The world's first eco-chic wedding resale website, Recycled Bride has defined a "sustainable wedding" as an event that includes elements which encourage positive social, financial and environmental growth.

"We're seeing the emergence of so many exciting wedding trends that reflect the big cultural, political and economic shifts happening in the world today." says Tracy DiNunzio, Founder and CEO of Recycled Bride. "Couples are using their weddings as an opportunity to promote their personal and financial well-being, help the environment, and support their communities. Recycled Bride is proud to offer these insights and trend forecasts based on our unique position on the cutting edge of the sustainability movement in weddings.

Recycled Bride has put together a list of the Top 10 Sustainable Wedding Trends for 2010:

 

1. There's No Place Like Home - Local is the hot word for sustainable weddings in 2010. From venues to menus, couples are making efforts to reduce their carbon footprint and cut their budgets by keeping celebrations "all in the neighborhood". Backyard weddings are helping guests cut back on travel, and caterers are responding to clients' demands for more locally produced food. Even wedding favors and decorations will be sought out from local artisans and shops.

2. Alterna-florals  - The hippest weddings are in full bloom with flower alternatives like sustainable succulents and DIY paper flowers. Conventional cut flowers are expensive, plus they're grown with pesticides and have a huge carbon footprint, so couples are seeking alternative ways to decorate. Many will eschew the floral look altogether by using soy candles, fruit, and found objects for table centerpieces and bouquets.

3. The Hourglass Bride - String beans in sheath dresses are so yesterday. Inspired by voluptuous newlyweds like Christina Hendricks of Mad Men, Salma Hayek, and Beyonce, brides are embracing their curves in wedding dresses that emphasize a well-rounded figure. Many are even flaunting -- or creating -- an hourglass silhouette with gowns that sport belted waists, peplums, and plunging necklines. This is the year that women will ditch their grueling "Buff Bride" workouts in favor of kinder, gentler activities like yoga, and celebrate their naturally feminine shapes.

4. Wedding Planning Goes Digital - From blogger brides to Facebook-ing florists, wedding planning has become an online community affair. "More and more, brides are turning to wedding forums to look for fresh wedding ideas and the latest wedding trends. Together, brides and vendors make these forums an incredible wedding planning resource to connect with others who are passionate about weddings." says Christine Dyer, Founder of BridalTweet.com. Brides increasingly connect with each other for advice, support, and even labor trades on community-based social networks like Give Get Nation and BrideShare.

5. Not-So-Mellow Yellow - The hottest color of 2010 is also the warmest. Sunshine-y yellow pairs beautifully with cobalt blue and violet for an electrifying palette that's bright and bold. Or combine pale yellows with white, ivory, and fresh green tones for a sunny and natural color theme. Many succulents bear yellow blossoms, making this cheerful color an easy choice for sustainable bouquets and centerpieces.

6. The Times Are A-Changing - Saturday night weddings aren't the only game in town. Brides and grooms are scheduling their nuptials on weeknights, Sundays, and even early mornings in 2010. It's less expensive to book  a venue or caterer on "off days", and as telecommuting becomes more popular, guests are gaining flexibility in their schedules. Weddings we'll see this year will include sunrise affairs followed by romantic brunches, and chic mid-week dinner parties.

7. Bright Bridal Shoes - Forget the white and ivory satin slippers and "dyeable" sandals of wedding days gone by. Bridal shoes in bright and bold hues like fuschia, emerald green and electric blue are hot hot hot in 2010. Colored shoes are a chic and stylish surprise under a white wedding gown, plus they're more versatile than white satin and can be worn again with a little black dress.

8. Flexible Registries  - The registry has been reinvented by sites like www.AlternativeGiftRegistry.org, and this year we'll see many brides and grooms skipping the Stepford registries in favor of more flexible options. More couples will opt for "open" online registries where they can request everything from charitable donations to eco-friendly housewares to cash for a down payment on a home.

9. Unexpected Seating - At both receptions and ceremonies, seating arrangements are being switched up. Think scattered chairs and benches for ceremonies, and long communal tables, clustered couches, and bar tables with stools for receptions. No more will the family and friends of the bride and groom be kept apart by rigid seating assignments at separate tables. This year's seating arrangements will encourage guests to mix, mingle, dine and dance.  

10. Something Old, Something New - The hottest sustainable trend for 2010 (and our personal favorite, of course!) is incorporating recycled elements like gently used wedding dresses and bridesmaids dresses, pre-owned wedding decorations, and vintage bridal jewelry into weddings. Sites like RecycledBride.com connect buyers and sellers for free, so they can reduce their wedding budgets and their carbon footprints. More and more brides are joining the wedding resale revolution, discovering how easy it is to save money and be a little greener by buying and selling their gently used wedding items.

Photo: Davids Bridal from Recycled Bride

Eco Flora offers Fair trade, organic and wildcrafted flower arrangements in the Toronto area

If you are in the GTA area and are looking for an eco-friendly florist, take a peak at Eco Flora.

Eco Flora is based offers in store as well as online services to clients in the Toronto area. They sell wildcrafted, certified organic as well as fair trade flowers grown without additional chemicals.

If you choose to have your flowers delivered, they are wrapped in reusable paper and compostable cellophane. Eco Flora also offers their florist services for weddings, parties or special events.

There are many chemicals that are used in flower production. These include many pesticides, herbicides, fungicides that are banned in Canada. There can be 10 to 100 times the pesticide residues on cut flowers than on the food that is imported from these same countries because of the fact that flowers are not eaten. Some of the chemicals used include methyl bromide to ensure no there are no insects on the flowers when they reach North America. These are examples of the dozens of the chemicals used in cut flower production outside of North America.

There are negative effects to the local environment, the flower farm workers, florists and ultimately the flower buyer. Farm workers and florists have experienced illness from exposure to toxic chemicals used on flowers.

Another great thing about this company is that they only use cool, eclectic, secondhand containers. If you are a holding a larger event and are looking for a uniform look throughout the event they will make an exception and use new containers.

I think this is a marvelous idea and hope to see more eco-friendly florists pop up in the near future!

Check out Eco Flora for more information.

Novothink has created "Surge" the first solar powered charger for iPhone/iPod Touch

Brilliant! I love this product!

Novo Think has created a Apple certified Hybrid solar charger for your iPhone 3G and 3Gs as well as for the iPod Touch.

Using state of the art solar panel technology, this charger will power up your phone or iPod with the Sun!

It's lightweight, slim and comfortable design allows you to charge up your device at anytime.

Specs for the charger:

* Custom designed and engineered solar panels outputs 5.5V at 100 mAh in full sun
* 2 hours of direct solar exposure provides about 30 minutes of talk time on a
3G network or 60 minutes of talk time on a 2G network
* Advanced lithium-ion polymer battery cell technology prevents overcharging
and provides protection from extreme temperature
* Custom engineered USB 2.0 cable provides high capacity charging and data exchange
* Powerup and sync with iTunes without removing iPhone 3G or 3G S from case
with the provided USB cable
* Compatible with standard USB charging ports
* Durable, lightweight hard-shell construction with soft-touch grip side sections
* Integrated 4 LED battery status indicator
* Built-in Apple certified 30 pin connector
* Compatibility: iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S
* Case dimensions (approx): 4 7/8" X 2 5/8" X 7/8"
* Package dimensions (approx): 7 1/4" X 5 1/8" X 1 1/2"
* Shipping weight (approx): 7oz

The retail price for the Surge is $69.95. Pre-orders for the iPod Touch version will be taken starting 9/9/09 and the charger for the iPhone should be available in October 2009.

Check out Novothink for more information If you are a wholesaler and are interested in selling this product, use the "contact us" page. Test out their handy "Solar Planner" which estimates your solar needs based upon the weather, and iPhone/iPod usage.

Stylish Ovetto Recycling Bin

What a cute recycling bin!

Italian architect, Gianluca Soldi is the designer of the Ovetto recycling bin. Named after the Italian word for ‘egg’ this item is made from recycled plastic and consists of three compartments and a bottle crusher to compress waste with ease.

Perfect for use in the green office or around the home, the bin rotates round its central axis.

Nominated for the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum, National Design Awards and 'Peoples Choice Award', this unit is made up of recycled plastic is available in three different glossy colors:

Off-white (made from a min of 40% and a max. of 70% recycled plastic.

Off-white with red, blue and green lids and doors

Off-white with brown, blue and yellow lids and doors

Each compartment has a door for bag removal and a small upper opening with a cover for waste deposit. The covers close tightly so that bad odours cannot escape.

Standard supermarket shopping bags can be inserted into each of the compartments for ease of use.

The units measure 84 cm height x 45 cm diameter and the capacity of compartments are between 15/17 litres each.

This item can be purchased at Ecocentric.

Thank you Lisa for providing this information!

Condo units in Winnipeg receive Gold certification from LEED

Four condo units at 193 Horace Street in the St. Boniface neighborhood in Winnipeg, have achieved international certification and a gold rating under LEED.

Leed (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a certification program for green construction.

Cam Dobie, the president of Winnipeg-based Dobie Properties who built the units says that they are the first homes in Manitoba as well as the first low-rise multi-family units in Western Canada to achieve the highest LEED rating.

"Our company's passion for green building has been fuelled by the fact that we believe it contributes to everyone's quality of life. We also know it's beneficial to a homeowner's pocketbook in the long run," Dobie stated in a news release.

The LEED designation was awarded by the Manitoba chapter of the Canada Green Building Council. Among the ECO4 units' green accomplishments, the council cited the development for:

* The site on an existing infill lot in a historical neighborhood.
* Including a radon protection system.
* Low volatile organic compound finishes in paint, carpeting and flooring.
* Durable, super-insulated double walls with an R50 rating.
* A rooftop patio for green and outdoor living.
* A geothermal heating and cooling system and triple-pane windows, reducing energy consumption up to 70 per cent.
* A heat-recovery ventilation system.
* Water-efficient low-flow plumbing fixtures.
* Landscaping with plants that don't spread and require little watering.
* A location in an established neighborhood within walking distance of most amenities.

The ECO4 units are already sold out. Dobie Properties is preparing to build two more of the units in St. Boniface and Osborne Village to meet a growing demand.

Source

Boomerang creates Recycled paint!

Boomerang is a new company that has been able to create a recycled paint. Their products are made from unused portions of recovered domestic paints and stains. Only 1% of new material is added to the paint to provide consistency in luster, viscosity and drying time.

Boomerang's line includes:

Durable and washable Latex Paint for indoor use

Alkyd paint in a pearl finish for outside surfaces

Exterior alkyd stain for wood

Semi-Luster interior varnish which is suitable for all wooden surfaces except for floors

For more information or to visit a list of available retailers please visit Boomerang.

Alicia Silverstone to launch Eco-friendly cosmetic line

Alicia Silverstone has joined forces with Eco Tools and created a line of eco and budget friendly cosmetic brushes and totes. The line is made with natural hemp materials and lined with recycled PET.

The collection will be available later on this year and will include:

A bag and five-piece brush set which includes a finishing brush, angled eye shadow brush, blush brush and lash and brow groomer.
Cosmetics brush bag which also includes a blush brush.
Train case with a zip top and clear removable compartment.
Overnight bag with two removable interior compartments
Cosmetics bag for throwing into a purse.

Source

Bell Canada and Sprint Launch Samsungs Eco-friendly cell phone

Sprint has already launched the Samsung Reclaim M560 but it will be available to Canadians through Bell Mobility around mid September.

The Reclaim is made from bio plastic materials which are corn based and 80% of the unit is recyclable. The charger is Energy Star approved and the phone itself comes in your choice of blue and green.

It comes with a 2.4 inch display (resolution of 320×240), a slide-out 4-row full QWERTY keyboard, MP3 Player, 2 megapixel camera with video capabilities, mold up to 32GB with a microSD card, 3.5mm headset jack, messaging options (IM, text and picture, plus e-mail), built-in GPS, web that displays full HTML pages.

The phone’s price and exact release date through Bell is unknown at the moment (Sprint sells it for only $49.99 with a contract agreement for 2 years).

Source

Planet box: a stainless steel alternative to lunch boxes

With "back to school" just around the corner I felt that I had to share this wonderful product with you. Caroline and Robert Miros have come up with an eco-friendly alternative to plastic lunch boxes using 18/10 stainless steel. I love everything about this product!

Below is an excerpt from their website.

Planet Box is designed to keep foods from "touching each other." When you close your PlanetBox the top and the bottom meet so that foods will not co-mingle, even when carried and stored on its side. The seal on the PlanetBox itself is not designed to hold wet, messy foods like yogurt, dips and applesauce. We created the Big and Little Dippers as an additional option for parents to use for these foods. They have a silicone rubber seal that engages when placed inside the PlanetBox and will create a tight seal.

The Big and Little Dippers are designed to hold wet, messy foods like yogurt, applesauce and dips. They contain a food grade silicone rubber seal in the lid to prevent leaking. When the Dippers are placed inside your PlanetBox the lid of the PlanetBox will seal the Dippers when closed. If you want to use the Dippers separately for snacks, you should either pack dry food in them or place a rubber band around them to engage the seal. The Dippers fit in the outside pocket of the PlanetBox Carry Bag so your child can have easy access to them for snack time. The silicone material used for the seal is a fully cured, synthetic rubber that is inert and stable at high temperatures. The silicone material is tested and certified to be free of lead, cadmium, mercury and a host of other toxic materials – we are happy to share the test results and certifications with you upon request.

For more information on this environmentally friendly lunch box, please visit Planet Box.