Create a Waste Free Christmas

Between Thanksgiving and New Years Day American household waste increases by more than 25%.-when you add food waste, shopping bags, packaging, wrapping paper, bows and ribbons - it all adds up to an additional 1 million tons of waste per week sent to our landfills. (Source: EPA)

Every year in the U.S. alone the annual trash from gift-wrap and shopping bags totals over 4 million tons. (Source: Use Less Stuff)

Are those statistics enough to make you consider a green, waste free Christmas?

Decorate Green

The first thing you'll want to do to create a waste free Christmas is decorate green with recyclable, reusable items. Skip the stuff that's just going to be tossed in the trash and use heirloom ornaments and decorations that can be used year after year. If you do invest in new items make sure you buy quality products that will last for years to come.

There's an ongoing debate about Christmas trees. An artificial tree can keep real trees from being cut down but artificial trees are not usually made of earth-friendly materials, but once you buy one it lasts for years- a good one that is taken care of can last decades. I know, I use my mom's artificial tree that she purchased thirty years ago.

Keep reading here.

Eco-Friendly Photo Greeting Cards

It’s about time someone offered a service that allows you to create your own photo greeting cards that are printed on eco-friendly paper. My Good Greetings does just that.

For the first time, beautiful custom photo greeting cards, announcements and invitations, with matching envelopes and address labels, are completely earth-conscious – from printing to packaging – every step of the way.

Click to Continue Reading

A Sampling of My Green Holiday Shopping Guide

Maggie's Organic Sock Monkeys, Red Rubberwood Products from Time Well Spent Gifts, Recycled Paper Photo Greeting Cards from My Good Greetings, Scout Organic Kid's Clothing, Green Books and DVDs, CGKidz Water Bottles, and Mission Playground Organic Cotton T-shirts

Celebrate Green

There's now a book that can help you green any holiday or celebration, Celebrate Green: Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations and Traditions for the Whole Family by daughter and mother team -Corey Colwel-Lipson (GreenHalloween.org) and Lynn Colwell is now available.

Download a Sample Chapter of Celebrate Green for Free.

Watch Lynn and Corey on YouTube

Corey and Lynn love talking to their fans so feel free to contact them.

And make sure you drop by their blog

You Can Buy the Book on Amazon:

Celebrate Green

My Good Greetings

Green is going to be the new red this holiday season with the launch of mygoodgreetings.com.

For the first time, beautiful custom photo holiday greeting cards, envelopes and matching address labels, are completely earth-conscious – from printing to packaging – every step of the way.

“First and foremost, we offer great designs on a website that makes it easy for customers to create their own custom cards,” said Rene’ Bross, co-founder and lead designer at My Good Greetings. “Finding a cost-effective way to print cards on beautiful papers with the highest recycled fiber content available completed our vision.”

Mygoodgreetings.com fills an important niche that was previously missing from the custom photo cards, invitations and announcements market. Using a Certified Green Business printing company means that everything is printed on digital presses with biodegradable toners, and even a water-based coating. The 100% recycled Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified recycled card stock meets strict environmental and socioeconomic standards, is produced with a high Post Consumer Waste (PCW) content fiber and responsibly harvested forests - never from old growth timber stands or rainforests. Even the electricity used to produce the stock is offset with Green-e® certified renewable power sources.

The paper’s superior archival quality is acid-free for long lasting color that won’t fade.

“Our family has been sending photo greeting cards for years,” said Tom Bross, co-founder of My Good Greetings. “Last year, trying to make green choices where we can, we wanted to print our photo cards on recycled stock but were shocked to discover how difficult it was to find recycled paper options. So we created My Good Greetings because we know that other people are looking for this kind of solution too.”

Mygoodgreetings.com offers holiday greeting cards that range from hip, fresh and contemporary to simple, clean and classic in design. A sophisticated, yet easy-to-use online interface lets customers choose from a wide selection of designer cards.

Ordering is as easy as uploading a favorite photograph, customizing the text and approving the final design. The impeccably designed, reasonably priced custom greetings will be printed and sent within 7-10 days.

Why buy green? Because Green is Good.™

Located in Spokane, Washington, My Good Greetings was founded on the principle that it is possible to make a lasting impression in print, and be environmentally conscious at the same time. Utilizing Rene’ Bross’ 20 year experience as a graphic designer, the company has created sets of impeccably designed Custom Announcements (new baby, new puppy, new home, wedding, save-the-date, etc.), Custom Invitations (baby and bridal shower, birthday party, etc.), and Custom Stationery (thank you cards, address labels, etc.).

My Good Greetings uses a printer certified as a Bay Area Certified Green Business that utilizes environmentally safe products in every stage of their printing process, including biodegradable toners and digital presses, which emit 90% less Volatile Organic Compounds. The card stock is manufactured by New Leaf Paper with renewable energy. The paper is 100% recycled, contains 50% post-consumer recovered fiber and is processed chlorine free.

For more information, visit http://www.mygoodgreetings.com/

Tips on How to Decorate for the Holidays While Remaining Environmentally-Friendly From Hunter Douglas

"The holiday season is nearing and with it comes a time of joyful celebration with special friends and family. But with rising energy costs and a troubled economy, many consumers are actively seeking options for sprucing up their décor to create a festive and inviting ambiance without breaking the bank. Also important is the trend towards going green and reducing energy use and costs. Hunter Douglas, North America’s leading manufacturer and marketer of custom window fashions, offers the following tips on how to create an environmentally-friendly and festive environment for the holiday season.

• While wrapping presents to go under the tree, save any extra ribbon and use to “gift wrap” throw pillows like packages to give your sofa a festive feel. Adorn your walls with indoor wreaths made from scarves and a little boxwood to create a nice scent that brings you a taste of the outdoors while you stay warm inside.
• Use recyclable, colorful paper when wrapping presents to create an inviting atmosphere with a rich color palette for your living room. After the presents are opened, either save the paper and ribbon to re-use next year or take all used paper to your local recycling center.
• To keep warm air in and cold air out and your energy bills in check, consider replacing your current window coverings with Duette® Architella™ honeycomb shades from Hunter Douglas, which, with their highly energy-efficient honeycomb-within-a-honeycomb design, can reduce heat loss at the window by up to 50 percent. They also keep cool air in during summer months, making this a one-time investment in your home that delivers savings all year round.
• Use fewer lights when decorating the tree and instead use bright colored and reflective ornaments to light up the room. Plug in tree lights and nearby TVs, VCRs and appliances to a power strip that turns them all off with one easy click, therefore reducing energy costs for unused electronics.
• Although it might sound surprising, turn your heat down and your ceiling fan on. Lowering your thermostat by just one degree can reduce costs by about four percent, while a ceiling fan helps distribute the warm air across the room. Hang mistletoe from the ceiling fan to add a romantic and cheerful holiday touch to the room.
• For a soft holiday look, consider using Silhouette® window shadings featuring soft fabric vanes suspended between two sheer facings that gently diffuse incoming light to create a warm glow across the room. These shadings are the perfect backdrop for a tree surrounded by colorful presents on that special holiday morning.

With these tips, decorating for the holidays while going green is easier than you think.

“It is important to make the holiday season as stress-free and pleasant as possible,” said Donna Lobosco, Director of Brand Communications for Hunter Douglas. “By providing tips that are quick and simple, we hope to help consumers create a stylish setting for holiday entertaining while saving on energy costs and doing their part to protect the environment at the same time.”

Hunter Douglas Inc. is a national sponsor of Habitat for Humanity, covering windows in every Habitat home built in the U.S. and Canada. They are the leading manufacturer of custom window coverings in North America.

For more information visit: http://www.hunterdouglas.com/.

Green Christmas: How to Have a Joyous, Eco-Friendly Holiday Season

This is a must have book for anyone planning to go green for the holidays. Full of helpful, useful and informative advice, this book will help you green your own Christmas plus it will also make a great gift for friends and family that haven't hopped on the green bandwagon yet.


Green Christmas: How to Have a Joyous, Eco-Friendly Holiday Season by Jennifer Basye Sander and Peter Sander with Anne Basye is the first eco-holiday book of its kind that I've come across. It will help answer the debate of real versus fake and how to decorate green, along with advice for throwing green holiday parties and so much more.