This short film is relevant to everyone, but I thought especially to us crafters. Not only do we consume, but we also produce and distribute “stuff”. With the new year commencing in a couple of days, let’s really take these things to heart, spread the news to all of our friends and family, and actually do something about it.

What is The Story of Stuff?

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It’ll teach you something, it’ll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.

[Image courtesy of The Story of Stuff]

Nothing beats a warm pair of slippers on a cold winter morning! Crafters are recycling old sweaters, vintage fabrics, and warm felt into some of the warmest styles for our tired and chilly feet. Why not treat yourself this holiday season and snatch up a pair!

I absolutely adore these “Toebitter Socks” from Etsy seller Zerkahloostrah. Constructed from recycled salmon hued lambswool, the artist describes their design as a “modern take on traditional Japanese tabi socks”. If these don’t match your pajamas be sure to check out their shop for a wide array of colors and sizes.

Creative Babies, another Etsy seller, has created these lovely “Vintage Linen Slippers”. Self-described as a “sustainable-oriented crafter” the artist has constructed them from a vintage floral linen towel, natural gray cotton, and comfy fluffy batting. A modern take on the classic slipper, these are a great addition to your lazy Sunday routine.

And you can’t forget the babies! What’s more timeless than a pair of booties as a gift? Handmade by Remnant Clothing, this luxurious pair is constructed of recycled pink cashmere. Browse the shop for more wool accessories including hats, scarves, and bags.

If you can handle a needle and thread, and know your way around a pair of scissors, then make you own! Just gather some warm sweaters or fabric, a couple simple sewing notions, and follow this easy pattern from Martha Stewart. This pattern makes use of felt fabric, but I can tell you from experience that it can be adapted to knits also.

Plan on making your own slippers? Show us, we’d love to see your results!

Garland is such a classic way to decorate fireplace mantels, doorways, and windows during the holidays. We’ve still got plenty of time to get some decorations up before the season is over, so here are some great ideas for making your own.

If you have holiday cards piling up but no mantle to set them on, you can easily create a nifty garland with them. The folks over at Martha Stewart suggest you drape tinsel across a mirror to hang your cards on. If you don’t want to use tinsel or a mirror, you can just as well span a piece of ribbon, twine, or wire across a doorway to display your cards.

One of the most popular and simple crafts that we learned as kids was making paper chains, and now you can spiff them up a bit as an adult. Artist Shannon Riffe had the great idea to make use of misprinted artwork by cutting it up into strips to make chain garland.

You can use your own discarded artwork, magazine pages, junk mail, or just about any paper scraps you can get your hands on. Grab your glue, cut up your paper strips, and start linking your chain.

If you’re a fabric artist with baskets full of remnants just waiting for the perfect use, then take a hint from Sarah Neuburger of “The Small Object”. Taking strips of fabric, starch, and glue she make a chain garland that can be used year after year. Check out her blog for a detailed tutorial.

Have you got some more DIY Green Holiday Craft Ideas? Please comment, we’d love to hear about them!

This year I got a little creative and green with my gift-wrap ideas. Digging through my recycling pile I found many items that could easily stand in for the traditional store-bought supplies. Using alternative gift-wrap is great for the environment, super thrifty, and clever. Here are a few simple ideas you can try out this holiday season and year round:

- Use cardboard cereal boxes to package t-shirts, scarves, and gloves.
- Smaller cardboard food boxes are great for holding gifts like watches, jewelry, and wallets.
- Plastic grocery bags are a great substitute for tissue paper or foam peanuts.
- There are so many things you can use in place of wrapping paper. I especially love using colorful magazine pages, but you can also use newspaper, butcher paper, and paper grocery bags.

Another great idea is to create gift bags using reusable grocery and shopping totes. Shops like Envirosax and Reusable Bags carry a large selection of bags that are colorful, recycled, and affordable. You can also stop by your local grocery and craft stores to pick up simple canvas totes.

Here’s more great discussion on having a greener holiday!

Etsy is a great shopping resource, especially for crafting supplies. When you’re looking to make your own jewelry and want one-of-a-kind beads or findings, vintage is the way to go. Making use of vintage supplies is also great for the environment because you’re recycling! Browse these great shops for rare vintage beads, metal findings, and other supplies.

If you love super colorful and quirky beads and trinkets then Atomic Veggie is the shop for you. This shop has a huge stockpile of candy-colored vintage plastic beads, retro metal findings, and adorable novelty charms. You can grab some pretty large batches of supplies at really affordable prices here.

Love, Gemma is one of two Etsy shops from artist Brooke Medlin. Brooke is well known for her beautiful, handmade jewelry using vintage beads and hand fabricating metal, and she is now sharing some of her jewelry-making stash with us. Check out her shop for a great selection of vintage lucite beads, and metal findings.

Zivile is another great shop that carries large quanities of really colorful beads, the most popular being floral inspired. Besides beads, you will also find vintage home goods, figurines, and even handmade jewelry.

Night-Lab is a great indie shop that caters exclusively to guys. Whether you’re looking for vintage finds, quirky home goods, or artsy t-shirts… you’ll find an eclectic assortment of items. Like their sister-shop Day-Lab, Night-Lab’s prize items are their rare vintage treats. Where else can you snag a pocketsize 70’s vintage Personal Digital Diary? Be sure to stop by before December 17th to get in on their 10% Holiday Discount!

Are you dying to replace all those leather wallets in the world with more earth friendly ones? DB Clay makes vegan, earth friendly, and durable wallets with their exclusively engineered Tope textile. Choose from colorful and graphic wallets printed with limited edition artwork, photographs, and patterns.

And finally, Solidio is a great new shop producing handmade belt buckles that make use of salvaged wood and hand fabricated steel hardware. If you want to splurge on yourself or someone special this holiday season, you should have a peek at these.

When you’re running an indie business advertising is key to getting the word out. Having stacks of business and postcards on hand is invaluable when you’re trying to wrangle in new customers and business contacts. But if you’re running a business with the goal of being environmentally responsible in mind, then all of that paper and printing can seem wasteful. Well, fear no more because there are plenty of earth conscious printers working to help you promote your projects in a responsible way.

Greener Printer is a great source for all of your typical promotional needs: business cards, postcards, brochures, newsletters, and much more. They make use of recycled paper, vegetable and soy inks, and 100% wind power to produce their entire line of paper goods. They’re a Certified Green Business, ship your goods Carbon Free, and even offer a nifty “Eco Audit” that calculates the environmental impact of each individual order you place.

Pinball Publishing is a great resource if you’re looking to produce more diverse items like booklets, album covers, calendars, concert posters, and cd sleeves. Based in Portland, Pinball is a “Mom & Pop” commited to running their business with the environment in mind. They also make use of recycled paper, vegetable and soy inks, and renewable power sources to create their goods.

Recycled Business Cards offers just that, business cards produced with recycled papers and soy based ink at economical prices.

And if you’re wanting to stay true to the DIY ethic and print your own promo items from home, Neenah Paper is a great resource. Also a Certified Green and Carbon Neutral business, they create an impressive assortment of papers for all of your printing needs.

Greener Printer is a great source for all of your typical promotional needs: business cards, postcards, brochures, newsletters, and much more. They make use of recycled paper, vegetable and soy inks, and 100% wind power to produce their entire line of paper goods. They’re a Certified Green business, can ship your goods Carbon Free, and even offer a nifty “Eco Audit” that calculates the environmental impact of each individual order you place.

Pinball Publishing is a great resource if you’re looking to produce more diverse items like booklets, album covers, calendars, concert posters, and CD sleeves. Based in Portland, Oregon, Pinball is a “Mom & Pop” committed to running their business with the environment in mind. They also make use of recycled paper, vegetable and soy inks, and renewable power sources to create their goods.

Recycled Business Cards offers just that, business cards produced with recycled papers and soy based ink at economical prices.

And if you’re wanting to stay true to the DIY ethic and print your own promo items from home, Neenah Paper is a great resource. Also a Certified Green and Carbon Neutral business, they create an impressive assortment of papers for all of your printing needs.

Invest in some trusty glass food storage dishes: Make your way to the local thrift store, or even Ebay and snag yourself some super cute vintage Pyrex glass refirgerator dishes. These suckers last a lifetime and they won’t end up at the bottom of a landfill. Glass containers may seem a little heavy to lug in and out of the fridge, but it’s so worth it. I’ve also found that food stored in these containers last longer and stays fresher, because it’s not airtight… food actually needs to breathe folks. If you’re like me and your wallet can’t compete with those Ebay bidders, no worries, Anchor Hocking makes a modern version that are near identical. They’re priced great, readily available online, and worth the investment.

Don’t toss that vegan cream cheese tub!: If you’re looking to carry your lunch to work or school, obviously glass storage is out of the question. But there are many resourceful ways to store food in a more mobile manner.

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