Green Options

Los Angeles has proposed a new water management law that would require rainwater harvesting on all new homes, large developments, as well as on some redevelopment projects. The Department of Public Works unanimously approved the new ordinance in January for the increasingly parched region. It requires various methods to capture, reuse or infiltrate all of the rainwater runoff that is generated by a 3/4 inch rainstorm.

These rain barrels have been made from recycled cherry containers.

Last week when I was in Brooklyn I encountered the most excellent recycled lamp shade creation ever. Innovative New York based artist and designer, Sabina Batelman, has constructed colorful translucent lamp shades from old 35mm film slides. It is a lamp shade and a slide show simultaneously—utter genius.

We rounded up a bunch of fabric scrap projects back in April, but somehow that scrap stash just keeps accumulating!

Sure, all of those leftover bits and pieces can be a pain to store, but they’re also an awesome resource for fabric that’s basically free! Here are just a few more ideas for ways to incorporate those sweet scraps into your crafty projects:

The weather is getting colder, and we have a handmade holiday on our minds! Handmade gifts have heart, are better for the environment, and, if you opt to buy, it supports independent artists!

If you want to have a totally handmade holiday, now is the time to get started. Over the next couple of months, we’ll be posting about recycled gifts and giftwrap you can make yourself and great handmade finds for sale!

A personalized collage is a great gift for family or maybe your best pal! Hero Arts has a great video tutorial on making beautiful collages. We’ve got the video and tips for turning this into a green craft project after the cut!

See a battery, pick it up, and all the day you’ll have good luck. Especially if you take the battery that you found and safely recycle it, keeping dangerous toxic poisons out of our seas and drinking water.

I found this used battery near the ocean in Pacifica, right across from our friend Rick’s Salada Beach Cafe. It has since been safely recycled, and kept from polluting our waterways.

Our oceans are already turning into acid. We have to start today to try to make things better. Keeping one more toxic battery or piece of plastic out of our oceans, collectively, will make a difference. Once you start looking, you may be really surprised just how many “disposable” batteries litter our streets and sewers. Next time you see one, pick it up; what you do matters.

If you are going to be anywhere near San Francisco City Hall this afternoon, please consider going to the fourth floor to voice your support for greywater recycling. There will be a meeting at the Building Inspection Commission today to vote on a SF city amendment which is attempting to make it more complicated for city residents to recycle and conserve our own water.

Time: Wed, Oct 21, pm @ 2pm

Where: SF City Hall, Room 416

Rain barrels made from recycled food grade containers for water conservation.

We’ve talked about the awesomeness of crafting with fabric scraps before, but not everyone has a shamefully stuffed scrap bin like the one in my craft room. If you’re not a hoarder of fabric scraps but still want to get your craft on, don’t fret! Etsy seller Scrap Ecochic has you covered!

How sweet are these fresh, vintage fabrics from Rope?

Icebreaker’s Bodyfit line has long been loved by outdoor enthusiasts, and now children can benefit from the company’s eco-friendly New Zealand wool garments. Icebreaker’s kids’ line features no itch fabric that “smells better, feels better, warms better, and breathes better”.  This line is perfect for active sports and everyday use. Beyond great fabric, Icebreaker features two unique features for kids:  “baa code” and “re-imagined packaging”.

Have you ever wanted to meet the sheep that was shorn for your clothes?  Just enter the “baa code” on your label into the Icebreaker website to meet where your sheep lives.

With most of the things you buy, you’re told little or nothing about how they’re made. Icebreaker is different.

We have a deep commitment to animal welfare, the welfare of the people who work with us, and the environment. And we have nothing to hide.

Your unique Baacode will let you see the living conditions of the high country sheep that produced the merino fibre in your Icebreaker garment, meet the farmers who are custodians of this astonishing landscape, and follow every step of the supply chain. We’re sure you’ll find the experience as inspiring as we do. Enjoy your journey back to the source.

Got a closet full of clothes that just need a little love? Or maybe you’re thrifting-obsessed and just need some motivation to turn your finds into something really special! Either way, Wardrobe Refashion might be just the thing you need!

So what is Wardrobe Refashion?

Tin can reuse is a popular topic here at Crafting a Green World. We’ve gone over tin can reuse, general metal reuse, and eight simple to advanced projects having to do with the reuse of tin. Well we’re not done yet!

August is National Inventors Month and in celebration of this imaginative occasion, Altoids has partnered with HowStuffWorks.com to honor creative citizens they call “Tinnovators.” These inventors have found ingenious uses for their Altoids tins once the mints are gone.