Sarah Tohler, Author at CultureFeast

It’s Possible to BE Green Without Looking Green

By Sarah Tohler on August 30, 2009

I get totally depressed when I go shopping and I’ve come to realize lately that I don’t think that’s the desired effect. Shopping is supposed to make me feel good, right?

Every time I find something I totally adore and just HAVE to have, I check the label and it’s either made from some animal product, something toxic or in a sweatshop in China. So, I’ve continually fallen on my fallback wardrobe of tees, jeans and canvas sneakers.

But one can only tolerate so many years of dressing like a boy and I just can’t do the hippie/hemp/tie-dye thing, so lately I’ve taken more time to get to know fashion, what I really like about it and where I can find the looks I like that are made in a way I can support. Here’s a list of four of my most recent favorite finds:

Deborah Lindquist is a celebrity favorite and has been referred to as a “trailblazer in green fashion.” I love sustainable fabrics just as much as the next greenie, but what gets me really excited about eco fashion is reused objects, and Deborah Lindquist has this art down to a science.

She recycles a variety of posh vintage materials like kimonos, saris and silk scarves and throws in a dash of organic hemp and cotton here and there. Her look is a little Urban Outfitters meets Delia’s meets Anthropologie, which makes it totally wearable. She also designs a green wedding line (a totally underserved market) that would get me excited if weddings did it for me.

ecoSkin is a California-based label with a name that doesn’t do it justice. The name ecoSkin brings to mind Whole Foods hemp dresses, but that’s definitely not the case. Wrap dresses and tops, cocktail dresses and hooded wraps are all very “Stevie Nicks,” but in updated, streamlined fabrics. ecoSkin’s designs are made from environmentally sustainable luxury fabrics that are all woven and sewn in America.

Sandy Skinner, the founder of ecoSkin, aims to make sustainable living mainstream, and with these chic designs, mainstream is definitely possible, though with prices in the triple digits, maybe not entirely affordable.

Chlorine might just be my favorite eco brand right now, because although I totally hate to admit it, I secretly LOVE handbags. I’ve tried to suppress my love for handbags in the past because I don’t buy leather (vegetarian principle number two) unless I buy it vintage.

This little principle makes it hard to really go as die-hard for handbags as I would like to, but Chlorine’s totally adorable refurbished vintage handbags bring my bag fetish to the surface big time. Too bad I would NEVER be able to afford one of these clutches or totes (prices run from about $400 to $800), but if you can afford it, hats off to your good taste and thanks for not buying that ghastly Gucci bag all your girlfriends have.

Sophie Young and her g=9.8 label totally stole my heart when I discovered her through some silly Valentine’s Day ad. The French designer created a line of lingerie that’s American Apparel meets Mary Greene (which just so happen to be my two favorite undergarment lines) made from Lenpur, a fabric made from pine tree clippings that is completely biodegradable. I haven’t had a chance to feel the fabric (once again, out of my budget), but reviews say it’s as soft as silk, much like bamboo.

For more sustainable eco fashion, including designers, labels and a great blog, check out Eco Fashion World.

Throw Your Dog a Healthier Bone

By Sarah Tohler on March 5, 2009

Dogs are the new kids… at least in my circle. Dogs love you unconditionally, never cry or get colic, can be left home alone and don’t need a new pair of shoes five times a year. Sounds like a pretty good arrangement to me. So good, in fact, that I have three dogs of my own. And I do love my dogs like they’re my kids. Yep, I’m one of those people. I spend more money on my dogs than I do on myself.

Most people would say my dogs have it pretty good, but the truth is, they just live by the standards I do, which makes sense to me. If I wouldn’t eat something, I don’t feed it to my dogs, either. The exception to that rule is meat products, because I understand their protein needs are a bit different to mine.

I feel the same way when it comes to their toys, too. I wouldn’t sit around and chew on toxic plastic, so I don’t want them to either. Luckily, more and more organic options are becoming available. And these options aren’t just good for my dogs, they’re good for the environment, too. Pet toys made of organic fabrics and natural dyes are usually unbleached, untreated and unprocessed, which means less yucky chemicals end up in toxic wasteland.

My three cats get the good stuff, too. Especially when it comes to cat litter, one of the nastiest things I can think of that people have around their homes. Traditional cat litter is clay-based and full of all kinds of unhealthy, toxic ingredients like silica dust. Plus, the process of cultivating clay is stressful to the environment. A variety of plant-based litters can be found on your pet store shelves, and while they’re a bit pricier, a couple of extra dollars isn’t much to pay when you and your cat’s health (not to mention our planet’s sustainability) are involved. Ingredients like wheat, alfalfa, corn, oats, peanut shells and recycled newspaper make excellent replacements for clay-based litter.

If you aren’t finding green options at your local pet store, talk to the manager. Chances are they’ll place an order if they know there’s interest in the products. My favorite place to find green goodies for my dogs and cats is Oaklawn’s City Pet Supply. They always have the healthy/green treats I’m looking for and on several occasions they’ve ordered me specialty items I couldn’t find anywhere else.

Shopping online is always a great option if you aren’t sure exactly what you’re looking for. Check out these sites for green pet products. Happy shopping!

Samsung Paves the Way for Green Cellphones

By Sarah Tohler on March 3, 2009

It’s official – blue is the new ‘green’. Recently Samsung have been proudly touting their ‘eco-credible’ cellphone, the Samsung Blue Earth. The phone itself has not yet been released, but already it has people talking, and for good reason.

It’s not just the fact that this new touch phone is made from recycled plastic bottles that makes it stand out from the crowd. I would hazard a guess that the reverse of the touch phone screen is what is really getting people talking. You see, the Samsung Blue Earth comes fitted with a solar charging panel. The panel reduces (but not eradicates) the need to plug the phone in to recharge the battery, thereby reducing the phone’s energy consumption.

After just ten minutes of charging, the integrated solar panels can supply enough energy for a 3-minute call. Ok, so overall on an individual basis this might save a fairly trivial amount of energy. But what if all cellphone users switched to cellphones with integrated solar panels?

Consider if all handsets were gradually replaced with predominantly solar-charged cell phones, and those phones were not continually being plugged into the mains to be recharged. I think it’s a fantastically important step towards a more sustainable way of living.

I mean, it’s not as if thousands upon millions of people are going to give up using their cellphones. They’re just far too integrated into modern society. Sure, there are people who happily live life without their phones. And equally, I’m sure there are a many people who would happily throw away their phones, Blackberries and PDAs in search of a quieter, less interrupted life.

But the fact is that cellphones are here to stay. Whether we’re socialising, doing business, recording an event or a moment in time, or just making ourselves available, the cellphone has become a ‘must-have’. In fact, for many a cellphone is more like a ‘must never be without’.

I remember a time when cell phones were virtually non-existent in mainstream society. But I imagine for my generation of 20somethings, life without a cell phone would somehow feel more rigid and less interactive. I’m no technophile by any stretch of the imagination, but I like the security and the readiness that a cellphone brings. And if I don’t feel like being available, I just switch it off. Nice and easy.

If I buy a phone, I intend to keep it for a few years – essentially as long as I can take and receive calls, send text messages, store pictures, films and sound, I’m OK. The iPhoneor Blackberry and all their gadgetry haven’t succeeded in seducing me – but admittedly, this has been mainly for budgetary reasons more than anything else.

But in a typical eco-geeklet kind of way, the Samsung phone has got me genuinely excited. By the time I’m ready to upgrade to my next cellphone, who knows how far this kind of ‘green technology’ could have developed?

I might be able to make longer calls harnessed on solar energy alone, or send and receive purely solar-powered text messages. And, unlike me, if you’re into your phone applications and features, Samsung have added a few extras that will have you ‘squeeing’ with delight, such as an eco-walk calculator feature.

The interface can also be darkened or lightened, according to ambient light or the need to save energy.

And to top it all off, the actual cellphone looks good. It genuinely looks like a nice bit of kit. What do you think?

Dry Cleaning Doesn’t Have to Be Toxic

By Sarah Tohler on February 26, 2009

It’s been years since I’ve taken anything to the dry cleaners. When I realized how toxic dry cleaning chemicals are, I promptly began checking any and every tag of each item of clothing I bought. It was machine or hand wash for me or nothing.

But recently, I began working my first business casual job and shopping for clothes has become a pain. All of the clothes I try on that happen to fit are “dry clean only.” Ugh. So, surely, I thought, by now there MUST be some green / healthier dry cleaning options.

A simple Google search led me to Green Earth, not a particular dry cleaning establishment, but a type of dry cleaning that “uses environmentally friendly, odor-free liquid silicone as a dry cleaning solvent. From the recyclable plastic covers to the cardboard hangers made from recycled materials, just about everything at Sparks Cleaners is Earth-conscious.”

Hey, I could get on board with that. And if I don’t have to wash, dry, fold, put away, etc. my weekly Mount St. Helen of clothing, I’m happy to pay a few extra bucks for the service.

But as it turns out, and not surprisingly, not every dry cleaner in Dallas is going to offer Green Earth. Startup costs for the equipment and supplies are expensive – 25 to 30 percent higher than that of regular equipment and supplies. And with our current state of recession, customers are cutting back on extra, unnecessary services like dry cleaning, so establishments are trying harder now than ever to keep prices down.

While I’m happy to spare some recession-era change for green options, I understand that not everyone is willing to do the same. However, there may come a time when there’s no longer an option… in the dry cleaning industry anyway.

The chemical usually used by dry cleaners, called perchloroethylene, is classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as a pollution hazard, and the used solutions are even required to be handled as hazardous waste. Our most progressive state, California, was the first state to outlaw the chemical, but the law won’t be enacted until 2023. Fingers crossed we’ll be out of recession land by then.

In the meantime, you can do the green thing because you want to, not because you have to. Check out these DFW locations for safer dry cleaning:

Dallas:
Swiss Cleaners
3030 Mockingbird Lane  214-987-0665

Fort Worth:
Centre Cleaners
4620 Bryant Irvin Rd. #502  817-370-6258

McKinney:
Executive Cleaners
1720 El Dorado Pkwy., #108 972-548-2900

LUSH Makes Bathtime Green

By Sarah Tohler on February 18, 2009

About eight years ago, I was shopping in a crowded train station mall when I was suddenly pushed/shoved into a shop by an inconsiderate passerby. I think that moment is what we refer to as one of life’s “happy accidents.” When I regained my bearings, I couldn’t believe where I was or what I was seeing.

Laid out before me were piles and stacks of seemingly organized chaos of soaps, bubble baths and pretty much every body product imaginable. As a total bath junkie, I was in heaven. Blocks of soap were stacked around the store and sold in deli-like portions (by the quarter pound). Lotions were in solid form and marketed as “massage bars.” Bubble baths were solid, hard chunks of colorful awesomeness.

I soon learned that the shop was called LUSH and I became an immediate fan, or “Lushie,” as we’re called in inner circles. I even befriended the girls at the shop and ended up working there for a couple of years while I finished college. It was while working in the shop that I fell in serious love with both the products and the company. LUSH has since been imitated, but back then, the concept was so new, it was literally like breathing in a breathe of fresh, amazingly fragrant air.

LUSH sells around 70% of its products in naked form, just like a deli. That means less bottles and other icky plastic packaging will end up in landfills. And when a product does need packaging, like a liquid shampoo or shower gel, LUSH uses recyclable, recycled and biodegradable packaging. Not only do all of their solid (naked) products mean less packaging, but they mean less energy goes into production and transportation.

Solid products are highly concentrated, too, which means less trips to the shop to restock your shower. The LUSH site gives a pretty nifty example to demonstrate this point: “Solid products last longer and weigh less than bottled liquids which take more energy to transport. For example, one truckload of LUSH solid shampoo bars is enough for about 800,000 washes. It would take 15 truckloads of liquid shampoo to do the same job.”

But it doesn’t stop with shampoo. Some of my favorite naked LUSH products are facial cleansers, bubble baths, bath bombs, glitter bars (yes, glitter!), body butters (super moisturizing soaps) and even conditioners. I’ve remained a loyal Lushie all these years (to the point that last year I worked in a shop part-time so I could max that employee discount) and it really is the philosophy behind the brand that keeps me going back for more, although all the incredible colors and fragrances sure don’t hurt.

My bathroom is stocked with a slew of naked products and it’s one of the green improvements I’ve made around the house that I feel really good about. If only one out of five people in America started using solid shampoo instead of liquid, 22 million less bottles would end up in the landfill. Plus, six million tons of icky shampoo chemicals would be saved from entering the environment.

LUSH uses natural ingredients like fresh, fruits and vegetables and mixes them up by hand before shipping them to stores. There’s no chemistry lab involved in their process, and that makes me feel good about shopping there, too.

LUSH was originally a UK operation, but in recent years has started expanding across the US. You can find a shop in most major cities. And, if you can’t get to a LUSH shop (which you really should, because the sensory dimension of the shop is really part of the experience), you can order products from the mail order catalog or online at www.lushusa.com.

Esurance Sets the Bar for Eco-Minded Insurance Companies

By Sarah Tohler on February 9, 2009

I remember the first time I saw an Esurance ad on television. The ad didn’t stick out to me because of killer branding or intense concept, though. It stuck out simply because I thought, “Big whoop.” An insurance company branded totally on the fact that you can take care of everything online? I’ve been with Geico since I could drive a car and have never once made a phone call or filled out a piece of paper.

I don’t think Esurance has crossed my mind once since that day I first saw their ad until today. As I was flipping through my new favorite mag, Ready Made, I came across an Esurance print ad. “You care about the planet,” it touted. “So do we.” The message successfully reeled me in and as I continued to read the rest of the full page spread, I began to give Esurance a second thought.

As it turns out, Esurance is one of the first insurance companies to talk about the environment in their advertising campaigns. Visit the Esurance site and you can even watch videos of their manga-esque spokes model and “Special Agent” Erin as she takes on environmental bullies and teaches consumers how to save trees.

So, is there substance behind the hype? Esurance claims: “We do virtually all of our business online. We make policy documents available to our policyholders online, store documents electronically and communicate with our policyholders via email. We estimate that our paperless customer experience and electronic document storage saved approximately 2,748 trees since 2000. That’s in addition to the 69,725 trees we’ve planted to date!”

But any insurance company offers a paperless option, so that’s really not enough to give Esurance a green award just yet. Luckily for them, they seem to be aware of that. File a claim and your agent will buzz out to the scene in a hybrid vehicle. Equipping their entire fleet with hybrids reduces smog causing emissions by 90% and carbon dioxide emissions by half. Pay your insurance bill (online of course) and some of that money will go toward purchasing renewable energy credits from Carbonfund.org. Esurance buys enough credits to offset 100% of the electricity used in their offices nationwide.

And you should throw ‘em a few extra points if you’re from the South: they buy their renewable energy credits from the Indian Mesa Wind Farm in Uptown, Texas, and offset the carbon emissions from their hybrid fleet through reforestation projects in Louisiana.

There’s definitely a place for environmental responsibility in the insurance industry. Special CultureFeast hat tip to Esurance for getting those wheels in motion.

This Valentines Day, True Love Plants Trees

By Sarah Tohler on February 5, 2009

Every year I hear the same line, from men and women alike (though mostly men):

“Valentine’s Day is just a commercial holiday.”

Huh. It’s not that I disagree entirely; it’s just that I think there is a small bit of merit to celebrating the holiday. Sure, it’s sad that as a society we need to take one day out of the year to let our significant others know how much we love them. But life is busy. We forget to say “I love you.” We forget to make the people, especially the most special person, in our lives feel special. So there’s one day on the calendar reserved for that.

I’ve never been one for stuffed animals and chocolate hearts. I’m not even really that psyched about flowers. I’m not a fan of roses. Send me carnations and that’s a sure sign I will never speak to you ever again. Ever.

I’ve actually been pretty lucky in the Valentine’s Day gift department. One year I got two sets of skull earrings that made my heart flutter. The next year I got an iPod. Score!

Last year, well, I got nothing. My lack of a gift made the paper mache human heart I’d painstakingly spent days crafting for my sweetie feel like all the work was in vain. But to be honest, I would have rather received nothing at all than a Hallmark card and stuffed red bear from Walgreen’s.

Whatever you do, don’t be that Hallmark guy (or girl). You don’t have to spend a lot of money to avoid the cheesy route, either.

This year, you can show your Valentine your sweet side AND your green side, too. Super cool, green company Trees Instead will plant a tree in his or her honor for only $25. You can decide if you want the tree planted nearby (in your state) or even in places like Israel or the Amazon. Your special someone will get a Tree Certificate that boasts his or her name as well as yours and the number of the tree so they can read all about it online.

The trees will be planted by a reforestation organization. Most of these organizations plant trees in fire devastated forests. So in a way, your tree gift is a sign of burning love. Sorry, that one was too good to resist.

If you feel like going big this year – bigger than just planting one tree – you can plant half an acre for $60 or a full acre for $99. Want to go even bigger? Arrange for you and your sweetie to visit the tree in a few months’ time. You won’t be able to tell which one is your tree, but you can visit the National Forest in which the tree was planted and take a romantic walk through all the trees, hand-in-hand. Aw, sweet, sweet love.

Is Bamboo the New Cotton?

By Sarah Tohler on January 26, 2009

The first few times I came across bamboo sheets, the thought of panda snacks rubbing against my skin didn’t seem especially velvety. I was interested, though, and took the bait. Upon first touch I was shocked… bamboo fibers are surprisingly soft.

In fact, the bamboo sheets I felt in Oak Cliff’s Bishop Street Market were silkier than standard cotton sheets. Since my first encounter with bamboo fabric a few months ago, it seems to be popping up everywhere.

Tees from New Balance. Tops from Gap. Even linens from Target.

But people aren’t breaking up with cotton and switching to bamboo based on texture alone. Bamboo fabric has all the qualities of cotton that Americans have grown to love, but the cultivation and harvesting processes of bamboo are much easier on our planet (in most cases, harvesting is the general equivalent of mowing your lawn).

Like many crops, cotton needs oceans of pesticides to be productive and profitable. Most bamboo is organically grown and naturally irrigated. In the right climate, bamboo can literally grow like a weed — up to three feet per day — and the plants can reach 100 feet tall.

There are over 1,000 different kinds of bamboo and some are stronger than steel.In certain parts of the world where bamboo grows on every corner, it’s used as a substitute for steel when building homes, boats and even bridges. So it’s strange then, that fabric made from bamboo can be as soft as cashmere. And unlike cashmere, no goats are harmed in the process.

Bamboo fabrics are more porous than cotton and because of this, they don’t require as much dye in order to become your sheets, towels or tees. The fabric also has a natural moisture wicking property that keeps moisture out. This not only means a more comfy night’s sleep and a quicker dry-off, but it also makes the material antibacterial and odor resistant… qualities cotton simply can’t compete with.

Like all green products, there are still questions to consider before you go refitting your entire home linen collection or wardrobe with bamboo:

Bamboo is greener than cotton, but still less green than soy.
Not all bamboo is green! Question if the bamboo you buy was grown sustainably. (A concern is that bamboo farming might lead to deforestation in China.)
Not all bamboo is organic! It’s usually a perennial crop that can grow naturally without fertilizers, pesticides or irrigation, but unless it’s from a certified farm, it’s not organic.
Like cotton, bamboo fabric will shrink the first time you wash it, just not as much.
Bamboo fabric is sturdy, but is still best washed on the delicate cycle. Fabric softeners and chlorine bleach are no-nos.
The fabric is best air-dried or put in the dryer on the “fluff” cycle. No need to iron since the fabric is wrinkle-free.

It’s Hip to be Green

By Sarah Tohler on January 22, 2009

There’s a lot of buzz around the word “green.” So much so that I’ve gotten a little irritated with the whole “it’s hip to be green” phenomenon.

One day while shopping with a friend, I climbed up on my soapbox and started ranting about the “Hug me, I recycle” shirts at Delia’s. “That shirt is thirty dollars! And it was probably made in China by a five-year-old at a facility that emits toxic waste!” She laughed at me first, then asked me why it mattered so much to me.

I then realized that she was right; it didn’t matter at all. People are moving forward, getting with the program, making the effort. If it takes green being hip for the world to get green, then I guess that’s just something I’m going to have to deal with.

Recycling and toting reusable shopping bags seem to be an epidemic lately, and while this is a good start, there’s so much more to being green. If you’re into it and you’ve got all the time in the world, you can seriously analyze each and every product you buy. It will take some serious calculus and a few downloadable charts, but you can count carbon footprints all day long.

But something tells me that those girls at Delia’s who buy those shirts aren’t going to make a math assignment out of it. And I don’t think they should, anyway. Making being green a way of life shouldn’t be complicated. We just need to open our eyes and ears and start questioning instead of just accepting.

Here are a few questions to get you going next time you purchase a product:

Does the company have a green policy or statement?
What raw materials is the product made of? Where do these products come from? Are they renewable?
Does manufacturing the product make harmful substances? If so, how are these substances disposed of?
Is the product made of any toxic materials?
Does manufacturing the product affect the health of the people involved in making it?
How much energy did it take to make the product?
How is the product packaged?
How is it shipped?
How long will the product last? Can you recycle it when you no longer need it? Is it biodegradable? Can it be reused or made into something else?
How much energy does the product use? Does it require batteries?

See? Simple questions. You can make an impact just by being good old inquisitive you.

Is There Such a Thing as a Green Dallas?

By Sarah Tohler on January 19, 2009

Dallas has a bad reputation of being a bit behind. Behind in what? Well, you can pretty much fill in the blank there, but progressiveness is the major theme. So what about Dallas and environmental or “green” standards? I’m not saying we’re ahead of the game by any means, but the good news is that Dallas City Council recently passed a new construction requirement to reduce environmental impact.

In fact, according to greendallas.net, Dallas is “one of the first major U.S. cities to pass comprehensive building standard for both residential and commercial construction.”

So what does that mean to regular folk like you and me? Not much, unless you’re in the process of building a new home, or you’re an architect or builder. Basically the new green construction ordinance is aimed at reducing energy and water consumption in all new buildings, whether they’re homes or commercial buildings.

The city has even put together a Green Building Task Force, which will chip in green recommendations for any private development in Dallas. The city’s aim is to hold both private and commercial buildings to the same green standard, which it defines broadly as reaching “air equality goals.”

One very concrete statement made by the city, though, is that Dallas will be the greenest city in the U.S. by 2030. Good luck, Dallas. I won’t be holding my breath, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

As of the new year, the ordinance is now rolling. You can get all the details here.