Category Archives: go green

patriotic garters

Fourth of July is coming up soon! It’s my favorite holiday for many reasons, one of which it is also my wedding anniversary.

So I was intrigued when I stumbled across these beautiful Patriotic Garters designed by The Garter Girl (Julianne Smith). Her garters are so awesome, we featured her designs on Fox 7 Wedding Planner segment.

She makes the most incredible garters…quality, detailed and beautiful.

You MUST visit her etsy store …. It is full of garter goodness.

happy earth day and give-away…

My eco-lovely, friend, Jen, over at Earth Friendly Weddings is having a give-away to honor Earth Day.

The winner will receive:

• A $215 gift certificate to our online boutique, Earthly Affair, equal to 50 free invitations and 50 reply cards, reply postcards, or enclosure cards. (We also offer thank you cards, announcements, seating cards, and shower invitations. E-mail info@earthlyaffair.com for more information.)

• $50.00 gift card to BeauCoup Wedding Favors – Great green favors!

• Keep this lovely ring for yourself or give it as a gift to a bridesmaid or flower girl – from Beyond The Rockz
  

• A $25 gift certificate to be used toward Victoria Everman – decorate you and your sweetie’s new home or apartment with one of Victoria’s original photographs! (check out her blog!)

• 10% off an order at Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates – It’s hard to say no to chocolate. In addition to favors, they also offer an array of gift boxes and a pretty sweet philosophy to boot!

• The book, Green Weddings, by Mireya Navaro – Planning an eco-friendly affair is easy when you have a beautiful book to help you along the way.

There are two ways to enter, but you are going to need to visit Jen’s blog to find out how.  A winner will be announced at midnight (est) on Wednesday, May 6th.

Good luck everyone!

green (eco friendly) living: part 8

I have a bone to pick with you. Well, not YOU personally, but people in general. Alright, read on….

This summer we have a river camp. It’s a place where we can go to get away from the hot, humid and oppressive Midwestern heat. We BBQ, make drinks, watch my chocolate lab stay wet 23 hours of the day and it’s a wonderful place for kids to play and get into slight mischief.

This weekend the river was UP! This means and any River Rat will tell you, that natural debris (giant trees and logs) fills the mighty Ohio and trash will wash up onto your camp.

Good grief, the sheer volume of trash.In my zest to be more eco-friendly I will tell you I still love jet skiing and boating. I do!! But I get enraged when I see boaters that toss TRASH over the side of their boat into the river.

Empty motor oil containers do not go in the river. Milk cartons, coke bottles, laundry detergent, cans, plastic tampon applicators, diapers, comet bottles, DO NOT GO IN THE RIVER. Now I’ve already asked Mother Nature to please forgive me when sometimes an item catches wind and is hurled into the air out into the river. But it is not because I lazily tossed it in there.

Here the hubby is raking the natural debris up onto the river bank.

Wait. Did I say natural debris?

Somewhere that Native American Indian guy is crying.

This stack of wood I CARRIED over by myself. You should see my guns. We’ll use this for firewood.

My chocolate labbie had to crawl over sticks and tree limbs to get into the water! Dangerous!

We filled a hefty size garbage liner with plastic trash. Neighbors came by and asked why we were cleaning as the river had not yet finished rising. So that means the next day it would be full of debris and trash again. We just figured there is ONE bag of trash that won’t ever be in the river.

green findings at walmart

Green Monday here at and here is our latest find in the green movement. At WalMart no less….embracing their green products with a promotion!

I love the cute shirts they are selling right now to promote eco-friendly living. My son wore a t-shirt on Earth Day that said: Save trees! Eliminate Homework! So far that movement has not caught on at the schools.

For more real tips on saving energy, check out: Super Easy Ways to be more Environmentally Friendly by Anne Ruthmann Photography. LOVED her super, easy ideas. You can also take a moment to be inspired by her gorgeous photography.

today is earth day…

Have you hugged a tree today?

Celebrate Earth Day (today) by: [choose one or all]

1. Pick up trash off the ground and throw it away.
2. Ask for water in a glass instead of in a plastic bottle.
3. Don’t use paper products today (toilet paper allowed).
4. Use your cloth bags at the grocery store.
5. Carpool, stay home or at least; don’t leave your car running for no reason.