The EcoChic

It’s hard to believe that tomorrow will be one year since I offically began my EcoChic journey.  I have to admit I’m overwhelmed with how well the response has been and how much I’ve learned about blogging in the past year.  I want to thank each of you for continuing to read the EcoChic and I’m excited to see where the next year takes me.

So my one year post will be similar to my first post…Happy Pollution Prevention Week.  I would love to post each day this week with a new tip but I am once again on travel.  By the time I get into the hotel in the evenings I know I will be ready to relax and unwind.  This years P2 tips will focus on the new mom and babies! (Since I will be welcoming one in January.)

1.  Try cloth diapers and save more than just money!  The average baby uses 6,500-7000 disposable diapers in the first few years of life.  Disposable diapers take over 200 years to decompose in a landfill.  Disposable diapers also contain plastic and chemicals which may lead to more diaper rashes.  **If you have any recommendations on cloth diapers I’d love to have them…I’m trying to determine which one’s are the best for my newborn in January.** 

2.  Breastfeed your baby!  Now I’m not going to punish those moms who can’t nurse BUT breastfeeding is 100% natural and creates NO waste (well it can create waste if you have to pump).  At least give it a try.  For those moms who can’t nurse remember to use reusable bottles instead of wasteful bottle liners. 

3.  Make your own baby food.  I was a skeptic but this one was really easy with my first child (now 5).  There are many books on the market that tell you how to do this.  One of my favorites that I used with my first child was Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron.  My sons favorite first food was mashed avocados.  It was as easy as mashing them with a fork and serving.  You can even go one step farther and ensure the fruits and veggies you use are certified as organic.

4.  Choose natural fibers.  When purchasing clothing, diapers, or sheets select items made of natural (like cotton, hemp or bamboo) and organic fibers.  This will reduce the amount of toxins your child comes in contact with over it’s lifetime.  Natural fibers are also easier to recycle than synthetics.

5.  Use natural cleaning products.  Using natural cleaning products (or biobased products) you will reduce the amount of chemicals you and your child comes in contact with.  Natural cleaning products can be eve made from vinegar, water, baking soda, and other common household items that don’t contain chemicals.  Many manufacturers are now marketing their green products at all your local stores.  

If you have other favorite green parenting tips or favorite products I’d love to hear about them.  Just email me at theecochic@gmail.com.

If you are anything like me you have a garage, closet or attic full of stuff that you don’t want anymore.  But what do you do with all that stuff?  My friend was going through her house this week doing some spring cleaning and asked me what she should do with it all.  So here are my environmental ideas on how to get rid of things you don’t want anymore. 

1. If it’s really trash let it go.  This one is hard for me but sometimes it needs to happen.  However, remember that somethings can be recycled. 
2. Have a garage sale.  Don’t forget that one mans trash is another mans treasure. 
3. Buy a booth at your local flea market to sell what you have.
4. Ebay…again another option to make a little money on your stuff.
5. Craigs List.  You can sell or give away on Craigs List.
6. Donate, Donate, Donate.  This is the easiest of all options because you drop it off and let someone else decide what to do with it.  You also get a tax break for donating items. 
7. Hand-Me-Downs.  Don’t forget your friends, neighbors, and family when you are getting rid of things.  This is especially helpful if you have childrens clothes; however as I found out today I am never too old for a few hand-me-downs.  And…as a grown up the hand-me-downs are sometimes brand new!  LOL!
8. Hold a swap shop with friends and family once a year (or more often).
9. Consignment stores.

I didn’t realize until I started making this list how many options there really were to get rid of things you don’t need.  Next time you decide to do a little spring cleaning remember that not everything needs to be trashed; one mans trash really is another mans treasure. 

So I am doing a little more research on letting your car idle (see Drive Thru post) and the effects on the environment.  Well it also has an impact on your car.  Did you know that allowing your vehicle to idle for more than 10 seconds burns gas twice as fast?  Did you know that it also produces twice as much toxic emissions as a car moving at regular speed?  Did you know that even in the cold winter months a regular fuel-injected vehicle only needs a maximum of 30 seconds to warm up?  It even looks like there are anti-idle laws in some countries… www.idlefree.ca has a three minute rule on the books.  If you let your car idle for more than three minutes it could cost you $50.  So definately use the 10 second rule; don’t allow your vehicle to idle for more than 10 seconds.  The only time you shouldn’t turn off your vehicle is when you’re in traffic or at a stop light.  However, if you are in the drive thru lane or in a parking lot be sure to turn the vehicle off instead of allowing it to idle.  It will not only help reduce emissions but it will save you money.  These days with gas prices raising daily we can all use a few more pennies in the bank.   

I usually read several blog and environmental sites on the web looking for ideas on what the ‘hot topic’ is of the day.  Today over at Yahoo! Green and TreeHugger they were talking about drive-thru restaurants (or any drive-thru for that matter) and the effects on the environment.  I must admit that I have never thought about my impact on the environment while sitting at McDonalds picking up a Happy Meal for my son.  You typically wait in the car line for about 5 minutes while your car idles away (and that’s on a good day).  Yahoo! Green stated that ‘idling in your car at the drive-thru window burns between 100-244 grams of C02.’  Nevermind the fact that when you let your car idle you are wasting more gas than if you would have just turned it off and back on again.  I need to do some more research on this one to check the facts but it seems logical that your environmental impact would be lessened by avoiding the drive thru’s.  Think about that next time you pick up your coffee in the morning or your clothes at the cleaners in the evening.   

One of the first places you can begin to make environmentally responsible decisions is when making purchases.  Whether you are purchasing items for home or buisness these tips still apply.  The first thing you want to think about is the packaging of the product; ideally you want to buy the item with the least amount of extra packaging.  The next thing you can look at is its recycled content.  For example; most paper products are available with recycled content.  Post-consumer recycled content means that the materials were recycled from us, the consumer, and not from a manufacturing industry.  So the higher the post-consumer recycled content the better.  The federal government uses a minumum of 30% post-consumer recycled paper office products.  Set a similar standard for yourself.  Paper products are available with up to 100% post-consumer content.  Another good practice it to purchase an item that can be used more than once.  If you are purchasing paper towels for your home consider buying a few hand towels instead.  You may have to wash them often but you are not generating more waste for the landfills.  The same is true with most disposable products that are out there.  The final consideration when making purchases would be recycling or disposal options.  Can the item be composted or recycled instead of throwing it in your household garbage.  Consider your local recycling options; for instance my city doesn’t have curb-side recycling and we have to drop it off at a recycling center down the road.  The nearest recycling center doesn’t take glass but they do take aluminum and plastic.  So when making my purchases I would rather buy things packaged in aluminum or plastic instead of glass since I can recycle them easier.  For more tips on buying green products you can visit the Earth911 shopping page.   

Welcome to The EcoChic blog!  I felt that this would be an appropriate day to introduce my new blog; afterall it is the first day of Pollution Prevention Week.  What is Pollution Prevention Week?  Also known as P2 Week; it is a time each year where citizens, buisness and government agencies to show off their enviornmental initiatives and commit to new ones.  So how does this relate to you?  We all have the responsibility to protect and conserve our natural resources for future generations.  I know, you may be thinking that you are only one person and how can you make a difference?  I’m going to share common sense tips with you on how you can help.  In honor of P2 week 2007; here are some simple things that you can do:

• Recycle your trash instead of just letting it go to the landfill or incinerator.
• Change your regular incandescent light bulbs with energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).
• Walk, ride a bike, or take public transportation for short trips around town.
• Pledge to only use reusable materials such as coffee cups, plates, silverware and towels instead of disposable their disposable alternatives.

Keep visiting The EcoChic each day this week for more information on how to implement some of these small changes into your life.