Hi Green Thinkers!  Remember our friends at Rapanui? Check out the press release below on their recently  received RSPCA Good Business Award.  For the American readers out there the RSPCA is comparable to our ASPCA to help prevent cruelty to animals, they are just located over the pond in England & Wales.

Rapanui Win Highly Commended Award at the RSPCA Good Business Awards

Rapanui has won a highly commended prize at the annual RSPCA good business awards for their contribution to sustainability, animal welfare policy and for fulfilling their ethos of ‘doing business the right way’.

 The brand, founded by brothers Mart and Rob Drake-Knight in early 2008 aims to make eco fashion cool and to inspire people to make changes to their wider lifestyle by being open and honest about their supply chain. In response to the current state of the clothing industry they say that “It’s not that people don’t care, it’s just that they don’t know” and have designed an innovative Traceability tool and Eco-labelling initiative, aiming to inform and inspire people to go green by making it easy to find out where their clothing comes from and how it is made, “helping people shop quickly, with a conscience.”

The RSPCA chooses expert judges for their awards ceremony, including Wayne Hemmingway, co-founder of Red or Dead.

“…there is a real commitment within the industry to improve animal welfare, and it’s reassuring to see big brands at the forefront of this change.”  Mr. Hemmingway said.

The brothers have already won the 2010 Sustainable Business Awards, a finals place at Enterprise UK’s Enterprising Young Brits and a nomination for next year’s ISPO Brand New Award. They hope their recognition at the RSPCA Good Business Awards will inspire other young people to consider entrepreneurship. Now 25 and 23 respectively, Rob and Martin Drake-Knight founded their company with £200 of savings and are now listed on the Future 100 list of top young entrepreneurs.

“We hope our business can inspire other young people, even if they have no job and no money, that they can be a success too – whether you wear a suit or flip flops”

Find out more about traceability and Rapanui at: http://www.rapanuiclothing.com/eco

About Rapanui:

Rapanui is about making cool eco-fashion for young people; that means clothing that is eco-friendly, ethical and sustainable: Made from natural organic fabrics in a Fairwear Foundation audited, wind powered factory. Through surfing the brothers saw and experienced the changing environment and climate at their local beach and as inspired, unemployed graduates in a recession, they took a different path; if you can’t find a job, make one.

Rapanui has held Seminars and Lectures at UK and EU universities and multinational companies such as Centrica PLC on Sustainable Business and sit on the Panel at Plymouth University’s All our Future Conference.

Rapanui has made bespoke versions of its clothing for multinationals and charities including Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream and the Marine Conservation Society.

Rapanui was set up by brothers Mart and Rob Drake-Knight in early 2008 with £200 of savings and was listed in the Top 100 Startups of 2008. Rob and Martin are listed on the Future 100 List of Top young Entrepreneurs and were recently finalists in Enterprise UK’s Young Brits awards. Rapanui was the youngest company to win the Sustainable Business Awards in May 2010 and has recently been nominated for the internationally-recognised ISPO Brand New Award.

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Hey there Green Thinkers!  Thanks for your patience in our brief interuption.  I took a few days off to spend some time with my mom face to face vs. virtual and during her visit we took the opportunity to spend some quality times in a very handy-fashion.

Remember when I posted previously about giving some of our older furniture some new life in order to give our new place a breath of fresh life?  Well, Mom, the man, & I undertook the  task of giving a face lift to our tea cart.  Check out the steps below:

1.  Find an old characteristic piece to give a great make-over.

The original version.

2.  Empty contents & sand it down to remove all the old shiny stuff, aka finish.

3.  Add primer.  The primer will allow your paint to show its true cover & hide any blemishes your old piece may have had and sanding couldn’t take care of.

Primed to make it prime!

4.  Wait until it dries.  Add paint, your color is your choice!  Consider using a low voc environmental version.

The makeover, a little lipstick goes a long way!

5.   Add a clear coat for the shine!

6. Pick out some cool vintage looking hardware (depending on your piece).

The jewelry

7.  Reload & enjoy!

from Ug...to AHHH

We are so pleased with our ‘new’ furniture! I had some other projects at hand, but I think we are going to enjoy our new things for a little longer before undertaking anything more for awhile.

Some other things to make your DIY projects even more eco-friendly:

• Remember to get your environmental, water based paints & clear coats. 
• Don’t forget that your tools.  We used a roller with a reusable brush. Since we used all water-based coverings, we were able to rinse it out before each coat & not have to create a lot of waste.
• Consider looking at old antique shops or thrift stores to look for your furnitures bling aka hardware.  Maybe you even have something lying around that you could convert.  If you are re-doing a dining buffet, consider using old silverware as handles, looking for some cupboard knobs – take a tip from my Aunt & collect unique stones from your garden to glue to a screw & install.

DIY projects are so fun, inexpensive & a great way to avoid excessive purchasing & waste. 

Have you repurposed anything lately? Share it with us!  We would love to share how you’ve turned something drab to fab, ug to ah, a big blurb to something to superb…you get the drift.  Shoot us a little background & pic to greenthinkinggtb@gmail.com, or submit to our blog carnival!

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As you know, we just moved into a new place & we are super gung-ho about kicking our old messy habits to ensure we keep our new house in pristine condition.

That is where these eight tips come into play from Delish.com!

What about using hydrogen peroxide to clean your countertops?  Ever consider using baking soda to mop your floors? – and then make them shine by a dose of white vinegar!  Au naturale & super clean.

Check out the article to find out more tips & even how to clean out the neck of your pesky vase necks.

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Remember when Green Thinking Blog went to Bonnaroo in June?

Well, the stats just came in on how much of an environmental impact attendees made through their recycling efforts & Bonnaroo made overall with their full-on committment. Clean Vibes was on the campus to do the dirty work & tally it up!  The results were so great that Bonnaroo even won an award: The A Greener Festival Award, which rates festivals eco-friendliness all over the world!

Check out what was diverted from the landfills at this year’s Bonnaroo (stats provided by Bonnaroo follow up email to GreenThinkingGTB@gmail.com :

101 tons of commingled recycling
23 tons of cardboard
21 tons of scrap metal
45 tons compostable material
5 tons of cooking oil

All together 60% of all waste by volume was diverted from landfills!

This is so impressive, I wonder how Bonnaroo & Clean Vibes will top it next year?!

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Taking a little break from the Carnival of Green Thinking this week – we will pick it up again next week, so feel free to submit your favorite blog articles by the end of next Friday to share with the world!

I love musicals, I love singing & dancing, I love happy things that could be true, but are a little too quirky to believe fully. 

That being said, I do enjoy watching the fun television show, Glee, and since it is a new-ish television phenemenon, you probably know someone else who enjoys it too.

Since growing in popularity, everyone wants to jump on the Glee bandwagon & they are promoting a lot right now in some cute little snip-its…Britney S. Pierce is my favorite.

Right now they are working with American Express to do a promotion with the Members Project and are giving us an opportunity to do good with the actual characters of Glee!  Check out the quiz here and see if you are Sue or a Shue!

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It is that time again, we are packing up the family and relocating. 

The place we are renting now has tons of character & served its purpose when we needed to downsize, but now we have Rigby (who is growing like crazy!) and we are back on our feet to upgrade a little.

Even though we are upgrading from one bedroom to two, we really don’t need a lot of things – and that is the point of this post.  Our current place has a total bohemian feel to it – intricate prints against eclectic furnishings, a whole mix match that actually coordinates; and I love it!  The new place has a different feel to it though, a more sophisticated, elegant vibe is what I get.  Like I said, we don’t need new things, those things just need a new look!  Maybe even a new purpose!

Follow along in the next coming weeks to see how we are taking some of our old things and giving them a new life, and in turn, feeling like we have some totally new gear without the cost!  I must say, I am very thankful to have 2 dedicate assistants in this process – for one, they will keep me grounded as I tend to get carried away, for second, nothing is more fun than having someone to keep you company while working on projects!

Project #1:  Tea Cart turned Entertainment Center turned Sleek Bar

As you can see, this tea cart has been turned into our entertainment center.  It has a super cool vintage feel to it, but that just won’t cut it in our new digs. 

The Plan: 1) Refinish it to a darker color wood or paint it with a textured color.  2) Change out the drawer pulls with some funky, but classy looking knobs  3) Add a funky wine rack to the inside shelf with some cool glassware. 4) Wheel around from kitchen to livingroom as needed for a unique buffet/bar!

Project #2:  Reuhpholster a Sentimental Seat

This chair has a sentimental feeling to it, it is the first piece of furniture my hunny gave me & he found it at a garage sale.  As you can see, it too has a super vintage feel to it, which I want to keep – just with darker wood & a funky printed fabric.

The Plan: 1) Restain the arms & legs to a dark wood (similar to that of the tea cart). 2) Create a slip cover to give a new look and feel to a super cool seat!  The fabric I am considering has some bright vibrant colors and intricate patterns to bring a lively pop to the solid colors of the room while keeping a vintage feel with a sophisticated look.

Another option would be to repurpose your old comforters or draperies to cover your old chairs!

Like I said, stay tuned to see how these projects actually turn out

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Betcha didn’t know that the 2nd Sunday in October kicks off National School Lunch week!

In its honor, GTB has decided to share with you some great blogs on eating healthy, kids’ nutrition, and all around good foods.   Hungry yet?  Remember, you can always share what great blog posts you have read to be featured in a Carnival of Green Thinking blog carnival, simply contact us!

Not only is food one of my favorite subjects, but where it comes from, how it is grown & how it is prepared has significant impacts on the world around us. 

SCHOOL TASTES GOOD!

SeriousEats.com shared a venture of Alice Waters and her Edible Schoolyard Program, as well as the results of a recent study from the U.C. Berkeley student’s  School Lunch Initiative. …combines nutritional education with garden training, cooking, and other hands-on skills in the hopes of turning our nation’s youth into trim, vegetable-craving eaters. Her initiatives have been the subject of much debate, by foodies and educators alike, leading to vehement supporters as well as detractors….The study followed about 240 students who were in Waters’ program from 2006 to 2009. The goal of the study was to examine how participation in integrated garden-to-school curriculums affected students’ attitudes about food, their eating habits, and their general knowledge of nutrition….You really should check out the journal for ESP as well, they have some great tales of bringing their home grown goodness to the table in some delish eats!

THERE’S A BLOG IN MY LUNCH BOX!

What I loved about this post from LunchBox.org  is the focus on teaching kids what is good for them!  I remember having a conversation with my aunt, who is an elementary school Principal about the struggles her school district is facing in regards to lunches – most kids couldn’t even recognize a potato because it had only been given to them in the form of a french fry & called a veggie.  This post shows the struggle one school took to improve the knowledge of their kids, and their lunches. …For four years I was the Nutrition Services Director for Berkeley Unified School District.  The four years were a roller coaster ride of changing the food from a menu of highly processed chicken nuggets, corn dogs, Extremo burritos, pizza pockets and grilled cheese sandwiches, all of which came to us frozen and prepackaged, to fresh food made from scratch.  When I first started in Berkeley these pre-packaged items, which were served in the packaging, with sides of canned vegetables and canned fruit, with nary a serving of fresh produce in sight, were the mainstay of the menus….Please visit to read the very impressive statistics.  It is amazing how far a little education can take the world!

SUSTAINABLE FOOD.

This blog post on on Change.org may singularly introduce the concept of healthy school lunches and all the initiatives out there.  It includes those mentioned above from Ann Cooper (aka Renegade Lunch Lady) to Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign, and even Alice Waters’ Edible Schoolyard project – but it also shares the insight into other great movements taking place.  If you want to get inspired about your lunch hour, look no further! …It’s been more than 30 years since Congress raised the federal reimbursement rate for lunches served in America’s public schools. Given the lack of funding, it’s easy to understand why the country’s cafeterias dish out gross, unhealthy meals like processed chicken nuggets, rubbery hot dogs, and tasteless pizza slices every day…

Read the outcome of the vote for the Child Nutrition Bill here.

PACK A BAG LUNCH!

Visit the SPARK blog for a few quick, but very tasty, natural school lunch options.  In my opinion – forget the school part, these are great for kids of all ages and are focused on the new food pyramid  of health!

Meal idea…

• Chicken Salad with Dried Cranberries and Walnuts in Whole Grain Pita
• Banana
• Yogurt
• Natural Fruit Snacks
• Flavored Water

Be sure to remember you most handy dandy reusable lunch bag for your nutritious & delish midday eats!

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In keeping with the theme of harvesting this week in honor of autumn, we have a very special treat from some new friends!

Real Time Farms helps you and me determine where your food comes from, that is if you want your food to come from local farms and farmer markets, plus it helps us figure what markets have what foods fresh and where! Make sense? 

These Michiganders have been hitting the press a lot lately – probably because of the great things they do!  It is so easy!  Just go to Real Time Farms and enter your zip code or city and state, then sit back & wait for the magic to begin.

After I entered the zip code for GTB, I found a new farmers market to go to and several new local vendors that I can’t wait to check out!  Plus it shares images from these events, a daily schedule of events of other locally grown events, and restaurants that feature locally grown produce.

Real Time Farms’ blog also rocks and has made our blogroll for easily accessible link to all you GTB readers.

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During my morning coffee I ran across this helpful little video on MSN.com.

Take a couple of minutes to learn some useful tips!

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You may remember this spring as I hoped to educate readers about Crohn’s & Colitis with the walk we did to help raise money to find a cure.  Well, Denise is at it again, with a much greater goal this time.  In addition to raising funds to help find a cure for Crohn’s & Colitis she is doing it by challenging herself to complete a half marathon.  For someone with her medical history, this is a major feat.  But, you have to hand it to her, she is fully involved in her cause – and I am so proud to call her my friend & get to root for her.  

I am hoping that by reading her message (below), you will feel inspired to support her through this exciting challenge.  Denise is also Team Orlando’s honoree for the challenge this year. 

One way you can support Denise is by purchasing a “Shop For a Cure” pass at Macy’s.  This pass is $5 and is valid on Oct 16^th ONLY (Shop For a Cure Day).  The pass includes an all day 10% and 20% coupon and coupon for 25% off one item. The passes can be used at any Macy’s as well as online (I will be happy to mail it to you).  I have passes available for purchase for anyone interested, please send me an email at greenthinkinggtb@gmail.com.

Otherwise, you can always visit Denise’s site directly to donate.

Here is her story for your dose of inspiration, thank you Denise for sharing & being brave enough to take on this combat!  Remember, one of our mantra’s at GTB is to pay it forward, it will come back to you & our Earth!

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