2010 February | Green Living

Gloss Find: Eco Star Crayons

CRAZ ECOSTARS Gloss Find: Eco Star Crayons On the Design*Sponge guest blog, Suann Song of SIMPLESONG: fine letterpress goods shared some of her favorite crafting supplies for kids.

I love these adorable star-shaped crayons made from 100% recycled crayons. Each box contains 20 stars that are the perfect size for small hands.

Plus, more than 45,000 pounds of old crayons have found a new life though the National Crayon Recycling Program. The sale of these Eco Stars supports recycling education and employs people with disabilities.

Suann also recommends buying a large toolbox to organize craft supplies. From the looks of my kitchen table–overrun with a messy pile of art supplies–I know it’s time to head to the hardware store right now to pick one out. Then, we’ll order some stars and start a celestial coloring project.

Eco Star Crayons – $8.95 at Stubby Pencil Studio

Gloss Find: H&M Organic Skincare Line

hm organic skincare 300x199 Gloss Find: H&M Organic Skincare Line In addition their “Garden” collection of sustainable, eco-friendly clothing launching this Spring, H&M is also introducing a line of skincare products made from certified organic ingredients. Available in H&M stores next week, the line includes body wash, body scrub, body lotion, hand cream and lip balms packaged in recyclable containers.

All under $8, the skincare products feature ingredients like organic apple juice, sunflower seed oil, almond seed oil and jojoba which all meet the requirements of Ecocert, Europe’s leading organization for the certification of natural and organic cosmetics.

Gloss Find: iGo Green Charge Anywhere

igogreen 300x300 Gloss Find: iGo Green Charge Anywhere I’ve always been a fan of iGo products…when you have as many gadgets as I do, the streamlined chargers with a variety of attachments that’ll power up virtually anything is a life — and space — saver.

And, now they’ve topped themselves. The new line of iGo Green products not only feature the same, space-saving charging units but also feature an internal battery…so you can have a wireless power source with you while on the go.

With two USB ports, the iGo Green charger can be used as a wall charger to power up cell phones, gaming handhelds, navigation devices and more. When you have to leave? Take the the charger with you — its internal battery will re-charge your electronics when you need it.

iGo Green Charge Anywhere – $49.99 at iGo.com

Could Your Furniture Affect Your Fertility?

fertility 300x300 Could Your Furniture Affect Your Fertility? A new study finds that chemicals used in furniture could be linked to reduced fertility. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers, or PBDEs (which is much easier to say), have most often been used in furniture, electronics, fabrics, carpets as a treatment to make household items flame-retardant.

In a study where researchers measured PBDE levels in the blood from 223 pregnant women, those with the highest concentrations of the chemicals experienced a longer delay in getting pregnant. Other studies suggest that 97% of Americans have some levels of PBDE’s in their blood, however many manufacturers are phasing out their use and California has banned some of the chemicals.

One of the strongest associations of PBDEs is with thyroid hormone,” said Kim Harley, lead author of the study and a director at UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health. “Thyroid hormone does seem to play an important role in fertility. Either too low or too high levels can impair fertility. PBDEs also seem to mimic estrogen. It could be through a hormonal mechanism. But we need more research on that.”