Who: bambeco – Baltimore, MD

What: Salt and Pepper Cellars

Where: bambeco.com – $19

Why We Love It: Ahh, to be the hostess who exudes a cool, relaxed casual dining experience, but who still remembers to get fresh salt and pepper to fill his/her adorable salt and pepper cellars. Perhaps if we had these simple and sweet ceramic cellars, we wouldn’t be remiss and have to sheepishly set out our box of kosher salt surrounded by scattered pepper packets… Handwritten lettering and red stitching up the back seal in the cuteness factor.

Each stoneware pot is handmade in China using natural clay (so no two are alike) and finished with milk based paints using low impact dyes with FDA approval, meaning they are food safe and lead free. Bambeco adds that they only work with factories that meet their stringent eco and fair trade requirements.

I was recently asked by a friend to help her find some eco-friendly containers to replace all of the plastic Tupperware containers in her kitchen. This is something I have been thinking a lot about, particularly when more and more concerns have been raised about the chemicals found in plastics. You know, stuff like polyvinyl chloride, phtalates and bisphenol-A, not something you want near your food. I cringe every time I see a steaming hot plastic container in my dishwasher – which must be just as bad as putting plastic in the microwave – leaching harmful chemicals into the atmosphere. Ugh.

How to be safe? 1. avoid microwaving plastic (via Practically Green); 2. cool food or liquids before putting them in a plastic container (via University of Cincinnati study); 3. avoid putting plastic items in the dishwasher; the detergent and heat break down the plastic, which may cause BPA, if it’s present, to leach out (via Good Housekeeping); 4. But the safest option is to avoid plastic altogether.

Here are some great alternatives to plastic food storage containers:
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Who: Canvas – New York, NY

What: Spongeware Ceramics

Where: Canvas – $17-$20

Why We Love It: This brand new collection of handcrafted ceramic-ware sings of the Mediterranean with soft blues, orange accents set against a creamy white glaze. The mix and match patterns add a touch of whimsy while the handcrafted terracotta form brings a warmth to each piece. Makes for a colorful and inspired dining experience.

Each piece is handmade, each design sponged on by hand, so no two are the same. The collection includes a cereal bowl, a salad plate, a dinner plate and a mug. Purchase as a set or as individual pieces.

Who: Hile – Helsinki Finland

What: Kapu Coffee Scoop & Bag Closer

Where: Finnish Design Shop – $26

Why We Love It: Simplify your morning routine with this coffee scoop and bag clip in one. The tong-like clip keeps an airtight closure on your coffee to help maintain freshness, that m-mmm aroma and best of all to put an end to hunting around for your coffee scoop; you’ll now find it securely fastened to your favorite roast. And a most useful and unique hostess gift for coffee lovers (clipped to a bag of beans, of course)!

The clever design was created by Teemu Karhunen for Hile. The entire production process from sourcing, the crafting to packaging, all happens within 60 miles of Helsinki. Each clip is handcrafted out of locally sourced birch plywood using traditional techniques. They are then coated with a special food grade oil to protect the wood. You’ll want periodically treat your scoop with oils to renew the wood finish and ensure longevity.

Who: Re:Tread – Cheshire, U.K.

What: Recycled Tyre Planters

Where: Amazon.com – $14.99-$69.99

Why We Love It: Finally a tire suitable to display on your front lawn… Am always somewhat ‘eh’ about upcycled tire products, but these are actually really cool and just the kind of hardworking rugged container to house garden plants and flowers. A lot less fragile than the terra cotta pots that need to come in from the cold every year. Thinking this filled with our old Charlie Brown Christmas Tree from last year would be quite handsome on our front porch.

Re:Tread salvages old beat up tires and inner tubes for their handcrafted modern home accessories (their picture frames are pretty awesome). The frost proof planter is hand crafted from 100% recycled tires for a super strong container that will not rot. Re:Tread also makes some pretty awesome picture frames entirely out of tires. Tire treads vary from piece to piece as does the size, albeit slightly, so you’ll have a unique garden piece. Also great for indoor use as well, a little something unexpected!

Who: Sea Bags – Portland, ME

What: Star Placements

Where: Sea Bags – $40 for a set of 4

Why We Love It: Elegant but laid back, recyclable, and perfect for summer entertaining, these hand-made placemats are a great gift for your favorite beach house hostess. SeaBags fashions reclaimed sails into placemats, bags, and other homegoods. The Dacron fabric is great for all sorts of uses – easy to wipe clean, and great looking too. Definitely the perfect way to secure a repeat invitation to your care-free summer retreat!

Also available in Red Lobster Claw and Navy Anchor.

Who: Blue Lotus – Soquel, CA

What: Blue Lotus Green Bags

Where: Nubius Organics – $5.95-$14.95 in s, m & l

Why We Love It: Now that we – finally! – remember our reusable grocery bags on 9 out of 10 grocery store visits, we’ve turned our attention to eliminating the pesky (and wasteful) produce bags still plaguing us! Low and behold, we found several options for reusable produce bags online. Some of our favorites? Blue Lotus’s organic cotton canvas bags – plain or with some super cute prints (printed with non-toxic, water-based inks, of course…). Ideal for stops at the farmer’s market.

Now we can finally leave the grocery store feeling like we’ve really minimized our impact on the Earth. Pick up a few and stash them in your canvas grocery bags, your backpack, or your purse.

And for those messier produce purchases we really like the mesh bags that Flip & Tumble offer. You can wash and dry your veggies right in them – brilliant.

Who: Yala – Ashland, OR

What: Bamboo Dreams Beach Towels

Where: Bamboo Dreams Beach Towels – $39.50 & 25% off through July 31 w/coupon code EcoSalon25

Why We Love It: Time for a new beach towel? These colorful Bamboo Dream towels are durable and soft and perfect for the beach or lounging poolside. They are decorated with koi fish and water lilies.

They are made of a blend 70% vicose from organically grown bamboo and 30% organic cotton. Those bright colors are created using low impact, Azo-free dyes and the water used is cleaned by micro-organisms and reused by the factory.

Yala is a pretty impressive family run business who have made sustainable manufacturing a critical component of their process. From driving an electric truck to utilizing solar energy to committing to carbon neutral shipping in accordance with GreenShipping, they have become a certified Green Business member.

Who: Onyx

What: Onyx Popsicle Mold

Where: Amazon – $39.95

Why We Love It: Finally feels like summer has arrived here and the Northeast, and what better way to stay cool on a warm summer afternoon than with a delicious homemade popsicle? Ohh, takes us back to days in Mexico where this street vendor made the best mango popsicles loaded with fresh fruit, soo good…

Replace your old plastic popsicle molds with a durable, BPA-free, stainless steel mold from Onyx. These guys really know their popsicles and have designed their molds so that you can easily remove, and refill, one popsicle at a time. The silcone rings ensure proper stick placement, so no more worries about tilted, sunken or popped out sticks. All you need is to get creative and find some yummy recipes to test out. (Here’s 50 to get you started from TipNut).

Each set comes with one stand, 6 molds, 6 lids and 12 removable silicone rings.

Also thinking of upgrading to stainless steel ice cube tray to keep the BPA out of my drinks!

Who: Biggs and Featherbelle – Baltimore, MD

What: Coffee Scrub & Lavender Bergamot Body Butter

Where: Biggs and Featherbelle – $14.99 & $9.69

Why We Love It: We were recently introduced to the health conscious body care line Biggs and Featherbelle, and now, waking up with their Sweet Coffee Scrub and Lavendar/Bergamot Body Butter has become part of our daily routine.  Seriously what better way to start the day than with two invigorating, soothing, moisturizing beauty aids made with two of our favorite breakfast components, Coffee and Butter?

Biggs & Featherbelle uses all natural ingredients, free of synthetics, parabens and fragrance oils, to craft their delicious (seriously, we want to eat it) collection of soaps, scrubs and body butters. The aroma of their products are so authentic, so sensual, so natural that they are as much aromatherapy as they are beauty products. Such a richness to their products, you’ll feel spoiled.

The invigorating Coffee Scrub contains Raw Turbinado Sugar, Raw Cane Sugar, Cane Sugar, Coffee Beans, Hazelnut Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Sea Salt, Vitamin E & Essential Oil Blend (Balsam of Peru & Vetiver), and although it may give the appearance of scrubbing oneself in dirt, the results are worth it; enlivened, super soft skin and the perfect wake-up for the senses. The sweet smelling, soothing Lavendar and Bergamot Body Butter is so cool, it’s a solid bar, that warms up with the heat from your skin. So, no more messy lotions, this bar just glides over your skin; use more where you need it and less where you don’t. And for all those mom’s to be out there, word is the belly balm is amazing!

“Biggs & Featherbelle was started several years ago by two sisters who began making soaps as Christmas gifts one holiday season. Urged by family and friends to continue with this endeavor, Biggs and Featherbelle was born out of the girls’ desire to use their love of all-natural, safe ingredients, combined with their background in art and design. What came out of it is a line that is not only fresh and fun (with the cutest packaging), but the perfect answer for many types of skin and beauty needs (each bar of soap is designed with a particular skin type/skin situation in mind).”

	One lucky Urban Sherp (US) reader will win a Bigg Gift Box courtesy of the ladies at Bigg & Featherbelle.  Visit Biggs & Featherbelle & then leave a comment here telling US which Bigg Gift Box you would choose if you won (excluding the Mother-to-Be Box).  Bonus Entries: You can receive up to three extra entries by following US on Twitter, liking US on Facebook or subscribing to our newsletter. Leave an additional comment for each! Hurry! This giveaway ended June 15, 2011 at 11:59PM EST. Thanks to all who entered! Open to US & Canadian Residents, 18+. Official Rules.