2010 July | Green Living

Gloss Find: Eco-Panda Swimwear and Cover-Ups

Gloss Find: Eco Panda Swimwear and Cover Ups A good swimsuit cover-up is a summer essential for me. On those days when I’m not in the mood to be waltzing around the beach in next-to-nothing, it helps to have a soft terry little something to throw over your teeny bikini.

I’m a fan of Eco Panda Swimwear — all of their bikinis and swimsuits are made from recycled nylon. The bikinis are fantastic for teens or for those who don’t need too much support up top! Their Terry Zip-Up Cover Ups, which come in a variety of styles and colors are perfect for everyone, super-soft and very reasonably-priced.

Eco-Panda Terry Zip-Up Cover-Up – $45 at eco-panda.com

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Go Back to School Safely

school 300x199 Go Back to School Safely Being safe at school now lies in the hands of parents – making sure that we send our precious ones to school with supplies that won’t harm anyone’s health. Aside from lead, one of the worst offenders is PVC and it’s sadly in so many school supplies including clothes, umbrellas and shoes, that its pretty hard to avoid. Why do we need to eschew it? When PVC or vinyl is manufactured or burned, it releases dreaded dioxins, which can cause immune and reproductive problems and cancer. PVC can also leach or release phthalates, lead, and cadmium, which can lead to a plethora of serious health problems. Luckily, its now become easy and fun to find almost everything you need PVC-free. Get your child involved in making the decision to buy responsibly and have them pick out the colors and designs they like best. Check out my favorites below and send your child packing with a clear conscience.

SHOES

I love this year’s Simple shoe designs for kids. All their sneakers are super comfortable and cute. Nike, Asics, Puma, and Birkenstocks are also safe PVC-free choices.

BACKPACKS

You can find quite a few great PVC-free backpacks at Lands End, Jansport and Patagonia. My top fave pick is the “Love” backpack (pictured right). All the DanteBiatrix designs are fabulous and are made from recycled plastic bottles.

GENERAL SUPPLIES

For pencils, paper, binders and just about everything else you need to get started, I highly recommend the Green Apple Earth-friendly school pack from Red Apple Supply. Just visit their website and click on “Green Apple School Supplies”. You can also find a huge selection of Green supplies at Staples and The Office Depot.

CLOTHES AND SMOCKS

Kid’s clothes can contain PVC a host of other undesirable chemicals. For a great selection of totally safe PVC-free clothes, try to get yourself to an H&M store – easy on the wallet too. Make sure you find a PVC-free art smock. I love the Bumkins designs (pictured).

LUNCH BOXES AND DRINKS

Always make sure you look for a PVC and lead-free lunch box. I love the one pictured left, from Cocoozy. Since many juices contain high fructose corn syrup, and even organic juices pack a serious sugar punch, try to stick to good old plain water and send it to school in a BPA-free or stainless steel bottle. I like Camelbak best, as they’re easy to clean. Always use filtered water and in my opinion, the best water filtration system is from LifeSource Water .

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Gloss Find: If You Care Latex Gloves

ifyoucare 300x209 Gloss Find: If You Care Latex Gloves I’ve been on the look-out for eco-friendly rubber gloves for years — so I am thrilled to find these household gloves from If You Care. They’re made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified latex, and they are fair trade – good for people and good for the planet. Packaged in a 100% recycled, non-bleached box, the latex gloves are naturally biodegradable.

They’re also cute – bright Kelly green (much more Kelly than the photo suggests) – so protect your mitts by snapping up a pair when you’re next in Whole Foods, or find out where else you can get them by visiting their site.

If You Care Latex Gloves – find retailers at IfYouCare.com

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Gloss How-To: Go Green In The Bedroom

familybedroom 240x300 Gloss How To: Go Green In The Bedroom It makes perfect sense to make your bedroom, the place where you spend at least half your life, as sweet-smelling and non-toxic as possible. I can never get over the fact that the air quality inside of most homes in America is 7-10 times worse that outside air quality, and this is especially scary when it comes to the one room, which should be a cozy sanctuary. So how can you do it Gorgeously in your bedroom? There’s a couple of items that I strongly suggest you invest in. It’s all about prioritizing and dealing with the worst culprits first.

So let’s get started:

Mattress & Pillows:If you can’t afford to now – put them on your wedding/baby registry or start saving up. The first and most important is a good non-toxic mattress. Mattresses, unless otherwise stated, can contain a host of toxic chemicals including PCB’s (fire retardants), plastics, vinyls, toxic adhesives, and pesticides. Ugh – to think that you could be breathing in these chemicals for 7 plus hours, every night! Older mattresses are even worse, because as the materials degrade, the mattress can off-gas these chemicals, which bind to household dust around your bed.

The challenge is to find a truly non-toxic company. Many are now touting their latest “green” or “natural” mattress, but since there are no regulations in place, it’s hard to trust that you’re getting a really “clean” mattress. I recommend visiting Nirvana Safe Haven, which is owned by a lady with extreme chemical sensitivities – she knows what she’s selling and wouldn’t accept anything less-than perfect into her store, as her health depends on it.

I also love Holy Lamb Organics, who carry mattresses, mattress toppers, pillows and just about everything you need for sweet dreams (babies to adults). They use eco-wool, which is sourced locally from the West Coast. Keep in mind that there’s sustainably sourced, “clean” wool, and then there’s the bad stuff – these guys source the best. I have an organic wool comforter and I love it because wool is a natural flame retardant.

Be especially wary of “Memory Foam”, as it can emit VOC’s (causing respiratory problems), and formaldehyde. Memory Foam mattresses have been found to contain 61 toxic chemicals – not very pleasant!

You can purchase pillows from from both of the above stores, or consider making your own wonderful buckwheat pillow, which you’ll find in Do It Gorgeously – really easy to make!

Linens

It’s hard to get your whites really white when you’re using eco-friendly, phosphate-free detergents. The more commercial kinds like Tide, use optical brighteners (those little blue specks you can see,) which give the illusion of white, however, it doesn’t mean your linens are any cleaner. I recommend phasing out your white linens and for your next go-round, buying cream, beige, sage or any other color – that way it won’t bother you too much if they’re not neon white! The same thing goes with towels. I do suggest adding 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide to your white load to notch up the white as much as possible, without using chlorine bleach.

I recommend investing in a set of bamboo sheets. Bamboo (if the real thing,) is chemical-free, naturally anti-microbial, a sustainable resource and feels just wonderful. It’s also sturdier than a high thread-count cotton, so will last longer. You can find very inexpensive “bamboo” linens, but they are often combined with cheap cotton. Here’s a company that I like.

While we’re on the subject of bamboo, the most beautiful towels I have ever felt are by Nandina. If you have a registry, I’d add a few of these for sure.

I love my linen spray from Do It Gorgeously. This is great way to scent your bedroom and sheets. You may want to spritz your pillows and comforter everyday. Here’s the recipe:

You will need:

- 1 16oz spray bottle
- 2tbsp vodka (cheapest you can find)
- Distilled Water
- Either 1tsp ylang ylang EO & 1tsp of patchouli EO
or
- 1tsp lavender & 1 tsp lemongrass EO

How-To:

Pour the vodka into the spray bottle,

Add the distilled water, leaving 1 1/2 inches at the top of bottle

Add the essential oils, shake gently and you’re set.

Store the bottle in a cool, dark cupboard.

Cleaning Tip: To air/clean your comforters and pillows, leave them out in the hot sun for a few hours when you can. Make sure you vacuum your mattress with a HEPA filter vacuum at least once a month and vacuum around your bed at least once a week.

Carpeting and Rugs

Here’s another area that can be problematic as far as air quality is concerned. You really need to make sure that you have an eco-friendly carpet. Natural fibers like wool are by far the best. I am a fan of the fantastic company Flor, as they carry natural fiber carpet squares, which are really easy to install. Whether you want wall-to-wall carpeting or a rug, Flor is perfect for easy, no-mess installation.

Window Coverings

How you cover you windows is an integral part of an eco-friendly bedroom. For winter and summer you really need to have heavily insulated drapes or shades. Keeping the sun out by drawing insulated drapes, can cut down dramatically on the amount of A/C you’ll need to pump at night, and will naturally keep you toasty in those freezing months.

Sweet-smelling air!

On no account should you use any kind of air freshener, unless you know it has been made with only high-grade essential oils. Most commercial fresheners contain phthalates, which can impact your health. I love to use organic essential oils in either a vaporizer or on an aroma stone (electric) – I use both and I believe you can find them at most health food stores, (Wholefoods for sure,) and Mountain Rose Herbs. I love to combine lavender with either geranium or lemongrass for my bedroom.

Although you can buy soy candles, be very wary of what they might be scented with. I prefer to make my own beeswax candles (recipe in Do It Gorgeously,) as it’s terribly easy, inexpensive and natural beeswax is beneficial for anyone suffering form allergies.

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Gloss Find: Fabulous Flor

flor 300x300 Gloss Find: Fabulous Flor If you’re looking for eco-friendly carpeting or rugs, you must check out Flor. Flor lets you actually create and customize your own design by virtue of their innovative carpet squares. Whether it’s wall-to-wall carpeting or an area rug, you can easily install them yourself.

If you are re-doing a kid’s room or a baby’s nursery – Flor is the way to go. We love the rug kits, which come in a variety of super-cool designs and I’m also a fan of the natural fiber squares. Whichever you choose, you can be creative and know that you’re supporting a company that respects our environment. The Founder and Chairman of Flor’s parent company, Interface, is an incredibly inspiring man named Ray Anderson — he’s a well-known environmentalist with a strong vision and plan-of-action for Industry. We’re thrilled to have found Flor!

FLOR Modular Carpet Tiles – more information at flor.com

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

The Big Three: Keep These Out of Your Recycling Bin

recycling1 300x199 The Big Three: Keep These Out of Your Recycling Bin I know that recycling isn’t the most exciting topic, however, boring as it may be, all you recycling girls out there — Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, Charlize Theron, and Alicia Silverstone, among them — should remember that you are successfully passing on an awesome habit to the next generation. In many schools and homes it’s now automatic for kids to search for the recycling bin when they want to throw something away.

My daughter, sassy as she is, wouldn’t dream of chucking a used yogurt cup in the trash, however, now I have to add another step for her, before throwing it in, because of a little fact I’ve just discovered: almost 1/3 of all recyclables that you dutifully put in your curbside recycling bin end up being contaminated by moisture from liquids, food waste, or green waste and cannot be recycled!

I must admit that I am totally guilty of throwing rinsed-out, but still dripping yogurt containers and the like into my recycling bin. So here’s a great little resolution: rinse out and dry everything. Even a small 12-ounce bottle of water could ruin 3-square feet of recyclable materials.

So remember the big three to keep out of your recycling bins:

- food waste

- green waste

- all liquis

And, here’s a quickie reminder of what shouldn’t be tossed in that bin:

- Any paper or cardboard contaminated by food, liquid or oil (pizza boxes, paper towels, etc.)

- Coated cardboard milk and juice cartons

- Wood

- Rubber

- Plastic medical items

- All Cloth, fabric and rags

- Electrical cords and appliances

- Kitchen Utensils

- Mini-blinds

- All construction materials including concrete.

- All hazardous materials such as, aerosols, batteries, chemicals paints etc.

For more information about what your specific area accepts, go to Earth 911. You can type an item into the search bar of their site to find out if it’s considered hazardous or not. If it is, I recommend keeping a box for all of these kinds of materials and when it’s full, visit the website again to find out where your nearest hazardous waste drop-off unit is.

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Gloss How-To: Host A Green Bridal Shower

bridalshowers 300x200 Gloss How To: Host A Green Bridal Shower Gorgeously Green girls love to find fun ways to share their eco-conscious brilliance with their friends and family, so when it’s time to host a bridal shower, your great, green ideas can take center-stage! Especially if the bride lives an eco-kind lifestyle, she’ll love it that you’re honoring her belief system, and that her party creates good in the world.

Top tips for planning a Green Bridal Shower:

• Plan an organic menu. If you’ll hire a caterer for your posh bash, hire a chef who specializes in organic menus. He or she can be a wealth of smarts on which types of seafood to include (Tilapia! Farm-raised salmon!), and how to serve organic chicken – traditionally one of the most budget-friendly menu items – in a luscious sauce, or as a sate using organic peanut butter. Party guests groan when the appetizers are greasy, fried puffs of yuck, so freshen up your lush, green salads with – here’s the crowd-pleasing secret! – food items they don’t get everyday! Slivers of beets can be cut into star shapes. Artichoke hearts can be marinated in organic pear dressing. Carrots can be julienned and tossed with equally-pretty julienned green and yellow squash. Celebrity caterers now offer these organic, fresh, salad and veggie-based dishes at mega-stars’ birthday parties and at Oscar bashes, so they’re perfect for your shower VIP guest of honor and her cherished friends and family. Find an organic caterer at the National Association of Catering Executives. For smaller-scale parties, a personal chef may be your go-to green source.

• Green your drinks menu. Serve organic wines and champagnes, which you can find on Wine Spectator, also discovering some fabulous, award-winning vintages for less than $15 per bottle. Don’t forget that sources like Whole Foods and even your local supermarket are great for finding organic and fun sodas, such as Chill Guava, Chill Limon and Chill Pome from Chill, which are also low glycemic. Steaz offers 100% organic iced teas and sparkling green teas in flavors such as green tea and lemon, and these unique drinks give guests a thrill because they’re so adventurous and new to them. It’s not the same-old lineup of sugar-killed soft drinks. And of course, a 100% fruit juice-based punch with a splash of champagne and a dollop of sorbet on top is always a crowd-thriller.

• Get a green cake. Yes, specialty bakers create gorgeous organic and gluten-free sheet cakes, cupcakes, even pies and chocolate-dipped berries, so green up the dessert and coffee hour with delectable desserts.

• Use recycled papers. Shop for recycled or repurposed papers with which to make your invitations – and the same goes for envelopes. It’s so easy to find recycled papers at the craft store or office supply store that there’s no excuse not to use them for the bridal shower. And of course, there’s always the paper-free option of designing a pretty Evite invitation that helps you keep track of RSVPs and lets guests see who else is coming.

• Skip the games. You don’t need to force fun on your guests, especially with those toilet-paper-wasting games in which guests make a bridal gown out of a dozen rolls of Charmin. Allow guests to relax and mingle – they’ll thank you for sparing them the clothespin game! – and enjoy the fabulous food you’re serving.

• Use natural décor that can be replanted. Of course, organic cut flowers are on the market to be used as centerpieces, but a far eco-friendlier plan that does double-duty is to center each table with a collection of small, potted flowers or herbs that guests can then take home to enjoy or plant in their gardens.

• Borrow! Ask your fellow shower hosts and relatives if they can bring over their platters and table linens, even sets of china that can be stylishly mix and matched on the tables, so that you don’t need to purchase any tacky and toxic plastic-lined plates and utensils. When Moms and grandmoms get to see their beloved china sets used at this fabulous party for the bride, they feel wonderful for their contributions and for the sentimental touch it adds.

• Plan a display shower. It’s a hot new trend: send out a message to guests that they are not to wrap any shower gifts. You want to spare everyone that endless, grueling unwrapping session, and you want to avoid all of that terrible paper waste that comes from torn-up wrapping paper that gets no second life. The display shower is then created when guests set out their presents on a long, decorated table [potted flowers are great for this, and allow for extra take-home favors for guests!] with their card attached to the present. Guests can then stroll the gift table at their leisure, ooh and ahh at the pretty presents, and the bride can spend her party mingling with her guests.

• Give green favors. Those potted herbs are always a winner, and guests also love to take home sweet treats in the form of organic edibles. Shop organic candy sites and you’ll even find yummy gluten-free cupcakes and candies if that’s the bride’s preference.

• Choose charitable favors. You too can give a donation to charity in lieu of handing out favors, just like so many brides and grooms do for their weddings. Check out the I Do Foundation for details on how to connect with the bride’s favorite charity and arrange a donation in her name.

• Take up a collection! It’s long been a trend for shower hosts to ask guests to bring along a little something for the bride. In the past, it might have been a recipe printed on an index card, or little household items to place in the wishing well. Now, shower hosts are using this practice to Give Back, by asking guests to bring canned goods and non-perishables that will be donated to a food pantry. Or, the guests might bring items to sent to deployed military troops. Or children’s books for a kids’ library. Or jackets for a coat drive. Guests love the giving element of these requests, and many bring generous collections to add to the pile. When the bride sees how her guests have supported a cause dear to her heart, that’s the best surprise of all.

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com

Pomegranates: All About This Miracle Fruit

pomegranate 300x192 Pomegranates: All About This Miracle Fruit Pomegranates are a wonder food — which we all need to include in our diet as much as possible. The pomegranate originated in eastern Iran — pomegranates are drought tolerant, and can be grown in dry areas with either a Mediterranean winter rainfall climate or in summer rainfall climates, which is why I see so many of them here is Los Angeles.

The health benefits of pomegranates are insane: one pomegranate delivers 40% of an adult’s daily vitamin C requirement. Pomegranates are also a rich source of folic acid and are packed with antioxidants — and they’re high in polyphenols.

The most abundant polyphenols in pomegranate are hydrolysable tannins, particularly punicalagins, which have been shown in many peer-reviewed research articles to be the antioxidant responsible for the free-radical scavenging ability of pomegranate juice. In several human clinical trials, the juice of the pomegranate has been found effective in reducing several heart risk factors, and has been shown to reduce systolic blood pressure, and is effective against certain cancers such as prostate cancer.

Eating a Pomegranate: After opening the pomegranate by scoring it with a knife and breaking it open, the arils (seed casings) are separated from the skin and internal white supporting structures. (Separating the red arils can be simplified by performing this task in a bowl of water, whereby the arils will sink and the white structures will float to the top.) The entire seed is consumed raw, though the fleshy outer portion of the seed is the part that is desired. The taste differs depending on the variety of pomegranate and its state of ripeness. It can be very sweet or it can be very sour or tangy, but most fruits lie somewhere in between, which is the characteristic taste, laced with notes of its tannin.

I love to add pomegranate seeds to everything I can, from homemade yogurt at breakfast, to green leafy salads at lunch. The added bonus is that the jewel-like seeds add a beautiful visual to almost any dish.

As far as juice goes, you need to be really wary of the marketing claims of some Pomegranate juice companies. I like to buy the organic juice with no sugar added — one of my favorites is the juice from Organic Juice USA.

About the Author

Sophie Uliano is a passionate environmentalist who has developed an earth-friendly lifestyle that appeals to women who don’t want to compromise their glamour and style. She is the New York Times Best Selling author of “Gorgeously Green”, “The Gorgeously Green Diet,” and the newly released “Do It Gorgeously.”

Read more amazing tips from Sophie at GorgeouslyGreen.com