Rocker Bono and his wife Ali Hewson, founder of eco/ethical fashion label Edun, are starring in the latest advertising campaign from Louis Vuitton. Hoping to use the fame of their parent company LVMH to showcase the Edun label and hopefully catapult it into an internationally recognized brand. The ads are absolutely stunning and the product of a talented photographer (Annie Liebowitz), a powerful landscape (Africa), 2 beautiful souls (Bono & Ali) and cool, effortless styling (check out the Edun/Louis Vuitton co-designed bag…. )with the tagline ‘Every journey begins in Africa.’ Bono and Ali donated their fees for the ad to the Chernobyl Children’s Project International, Conservation Cotton Initiative and TechnoServe, which fosters enterprise in the developing world.

Also making headlines for in the world of eco-fashion is rocker, Pretenders front woman and proud PETA activist, Chrissie Hynde. She is collaborating with fellow musician JP Jones (and has also consulted with Todd Oldham and John Bartlett) to launch a collection of vegan clothing with rock-n-roll in mind, think skinny jeans, cowboy boots, handbags and faux leather jackets. Hynde was turned onto eco-fashion thanks to friend and vegetarian Emmylou Harris. The collection is coined Fairground Luck. No date yet set for the launch.

Nothing like a trip to the local farmer’s market to start your week off right. Stocking up on fresh fruits, vegetables, and antibiotic-free, free-range meats does a body, and a mind, good. This week I swung by the Central Square Farmer’s Market in Cambridge and filled my basket with golden beets, red onions, just-picked peaches, sweet corn, purple peppers, carrots, swiss chard, cucumbers, boston bibb lettuce, blueberries, fresh pita bread, homemade pasta…. so good. I swear, everything tastes so much sweeter straight from the farm! And I always feel really good about myself for supporting local farmers.

Looking for a farmer’s market or farmer’s coop near you?
Here are some links to help you locate your nearest farmer’s market:

• Local Harvest – lists farmer’s markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown foods in your area (produce, grass-fed meats, and many other goodies).
• Eat Well Guide – helps you ‘find good food’ which means locating farms, farmers markets, restaurants and more in the US and Canada.
• Rodale Institute – links consumers to farms who sell direct to the public. And if you are in the food industry (restaurants, retail stores, institutional buyers, etc) the Rodale Institute also works to link business with local farmers who can supply the fresh ingredients that you need.

I recently completed a furniture project and had a hard time finding affordable legs that were simple and modern. I did find a lot of potential options, but nothing quite right for the project. I eventually ended up designing them myself and having a local welder make them for me. If you are looking to update an old piece of furniture or are into designing something of your own, here are some great places to look for interesting furniture legs:

• Mockett – for modern designs from castors to basic metal legs to highly stylized designs
• Bing Ltd. – for basic finished wood legs, they’ve got some nice modern styles
• Van Dyke’s Restorers – for all sorts of basic and ornate unfinished wooden legs
• The Architectural Depot – for more ornate wooden legs
• Table Legs Online – for a wide range of legs, wood, metal, you name it

Chevron is all the rage right now from fashion designers Micheal Kors to the interior design icons like Kelly Wearstler to home decor marketplaces like West Elm who carries one of current must-haves chevron inspired pieces, the Zig Zag Rug ($39-$649), which price-wise is quite reasonable, but we wanted to see if we could achieve the same look, with a bit of a twist, for less. The result, a 6’7″ x 7’9″ rug for under $100.

Here’s what you’ll need:
* 3 Hessum Rugs for IKEA by Ellinor Portinson (6 ‘ 7 ” x 2 ‘ 7 “), $24.99/each
* Heavy Thread/Twine (in color of your choice – we went with an eco-friendly red hemp twine for some contrast, but you can color match your thread for a more seamless finish), tufting twine would be a good durable option.
* 1 Large Curved Upholstery Needle – $1.95, if you want a larger stitch opt for a larger needle, a smaller ‘x’ stitch opt for a smaller needle.

Make sure to mark on the back of the rug your stitch points to keep the ‘x’s uniform.

See more on our Chevron obsession…..

The latest cartoon short from Annie Leonard, the Story of Cosmetics, tackles the nasty world of cosmetics. Have you ever stopped to read the back of your shampoo bottle? You’ll find ingredients you’ve likely never heard of and perhaps a few carcinogens despite claims of being “organic” and “natural.” These words are meaningless in an industry that has never been properly regulated and where the manufacturers make up their own rules. Shocking that profit margins and sales outrank safety and health.

Frightening to think of what is actually our beauty products that are really a “mindfield of toxins” made of petro-chemicals, lead, carcinogens, neurotoxins, not to mention a whole host of unassessed, untested and often unlisted chemicals that are grossly untested. These products don’t even need to be FDA-approved, nor does the FDA even require that all ingredients be listed on the back of the bottle! For anyone who uses health and beauty products, you should definitely take a look at this short (7 minute) video to get a better understanding of what goes into your beauty care products and to find out what you can do to make sure that our government makes better policies about regulating this industry.

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Caught an episode of Man Shops Globe that follows the journey Anthropologie buyer, Keith Johnson on his global treasure hunts. The guy really doesn’t have the most amazing job, traveling the globe in search of beautiful things. On his trip to India, he discovered this artist who creates incredible works of art from wood. It got me thinking about wood as art. Here are some brilliant artists who are pushing the envelope with an age old material:

Ben Butler: chicago-based artist, creates large scale works in a variety of woods – cedar, mahogany, plywood, poplar;

Jae Hyo Lee: Korean artist, creates functional sculptures/furniture giving curves, grace and softness to the pine that he works with Click to continue »

So yes, I am completely obsessed with vertical gardens – perhaps because my backyard is the size of a postage stamp so I am always looking for ways to maximize space and ‘grow up.’  I recently spotted this very cool architectural ‘green’ wall in the June/July 2010 issue of ReadyMade Magazine in the article Living on a Wall (online pics do not do this garden justice, you’ve got to see them in the magazine!). So cool – totally want to replace our pathetic chain link fence with this modern living sculpture.

Very easy to customize this look for your own space adjusting height and length to fit your location. And could plant with a mix of fruits, vegetables and flowers. For full instructions on how to build your own check out the article in full: Living on a Wall

For more vertical gardens, see: How Does Your Garden Grow & Container Gardening for Small Spaces

I picked up a bag of Sun Chips the other day to get a look at the new ‘eco’ packaging that has been the focal point of their marketing campaign and the centerpiece of the ‘greening’ of the brand. The new bag is ’100 percent compostable’ and is estimated to fully decompose in 14 days. Brilliant, right? To have a biodegradable plant-based packaging particularly considering the enormous amount of packaging waste in this country. Then, I read the side of the bag where it says in tiny print bag must be composted to biodegrade. I am sure there are some numbers out there about the number of households that actually compost, and even those that do may not have read the fine print about throwing your wrapper in the compost instead of in the trash which we are so programmed to do. I admit, I’d thrown some of these very bags into the trash and I compost. I just didn’t realize you were supposed to compost it, I never read the fine print. So what happens to a Sun Chip bag that ends up in the trash? I am afraid it’s far worse than you’d think.

According to an article on the DailyThread by Emily GoldstoneJuly 16, 2010 Written by Emily Goldstone, the downside of the compostable bags is:

Some critics have noted that composting a SunChips bags is an impractical task, as most consumers do not compost. According to EPI, in a landfill these bags will biodegrade anaerobically, producing more powerful greenhouse gases than with a conventional bag. Instead, if they end up end being processed in a recycling facility, they could contaminate other plastics.

For those who do compost, consider this: PLA decomposes at over 125 degrees Fahrenheit; some say most backyard compost piles don’t come anywhere near that temperature.

So, yes it’s a absolutely a step in the right direction, if done correctly. This new packaging would reduce petroleum use and green house gases. But we worry that most consumers will just drop the bag in the trash which will create even more greenhouse gases than traditionally bags. We just hope consumers will eat responsibly……

• Most tents really do open at daybreak – vendors arrive at 4:30 in the morning! So if you want to beat the heat (I did not heed this advice) or want to get in a full day, get there early.
• Don’t park at the first lot you see. Since I was unfamiliar with the various markets within the market, I just drove in a little bit and pulled into the Quaker Acres lot. Which worked out great because you are closer to the tents which makes life easier if you buy stuff. I’ve heard that the parking lots fill up fast, but I got there at 10:30 and had no problem finding parking, and it was only $5. Figured the middle was a good spot to go for carting goods back to the car. Could see where this might be a problem when you are leaving the fair. Make sure to note your location!

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Just experience my first ever trip to the world renowned Brimfield Antique Market – over 1 mile of antiques from collectors around the country. It was overwhelming and exciting to turn the corner onto Main Street and see the spectacle of tents full of treasures as long as the eye can see waiting to be uncovered and streets full of people with high hopes for finding that ultimate find. It’s like a town springing up in a day with vendors opening their tents at daybreak. People travel all over to shop the tents looking for items to add to their collections, to furnish their homes or for the novelty of it. Store owners buy in bulk to fill their shelves, I saw one woman walk away with four bags full of vintage table cloths. Some people arrive with a specific goal, i.e. one man I saw who was asking everyone for foreign coins or others that are looking for reminders of their childhood (I found many from an old erector set to the toy telephone that recently made an appearance in Toy Story III), to those looking for something they need, or have just always wanted. I could have bought hundreds of things from metal egg baskets to mid century modern tables to industrial lighting to grain sacks, but was trying my best to be an observer. I spent four hours there and just barely covered one of the marts. (see pics below, and more below that….) Click to continue »