sustainable style foundation*

I am so excited about my find this week! Finally I don’t have to feel guilty about all those wasted plastic lids and paper cups from my daily latte stop at my favorite socially and sustainably responsible coffee shop Gimme! Coffee. It’s a reuseable to-go “I’m Not A Paper Cup” cup that is so stylish, I’ve been showing it off to everyone. It’s porcelain with a silicone lid that can be washed and re-used. Keeps stuff hot or cold. I’ve already saved 4 cups and lids this week and am improving my eco-foot print daily. Find yours at the MoMa store on-line.

Boost Mobile recently created their Boosted campaign, essentially a lifestyle brand infused with art, music, and pop culture. What makes things different is they partnered with designers to produce a line of accessories and other devices that captures the essence of the today's mobile and youth lifestyles while highlighting people and planet issues. A great example is one of their first partnerships with Livity Outernational. The accessories pictured to the left are just such an example...100% organic cotton and great design. You can find these and other Boost x Livity merch at our alter-ego site www.sustainable-style.org. More 'Boosted' Partnerships to come soon so stay tuned...

We get some cool products to review here at SSF, but I have to say...this one takes first prize. Its the Solio H1000, a hybrid device charger that takes power from multiple sources (including the sun!), holds power, and then powers multiple small devices like cell phones, iPods, etc. I'm testing it out on an extended holiday road trip to Utah and Arizona. I received a sporty orange version of the charger you see to the left...very sassy. I charged it a bit via my laptop last night but during the days I'm going full on solar with the charger up on my dashboard. Its fantastic! Its hip, its cool, its small so packs away easily in a bag (or purse) and doesn't get in the way, and it provides power any time, anywhere. All the various adapter cables are great too, this thing will charge any small device! A couple folks have seen it along the way on the dashboard (Oregon still requires attendants to pump gas for you) and they think it's way cool too. Best of all, I found a sporty little orange bag (I think it may have been a pencil or cosmetic bag) for it at a secondhand store in Sierra Vista, AZ that holds the Solio and all its accessories. Now that's sustainable style!

I just bought what I think may be a fall back shoe, especially in the Seattle rain, The Melissa boot…cute and retro, it is a “galosh” that fits…very fun and very cute and it even has a bit of a heel I like…but, the best part is that it has a sustainable story…

The designers include Edson Matsuo, Alexandre Herchcovitch, Campana Brothers, Triton,
Isabella Capeto. The shoes are made in Brazil, and employees have high wages and extended benefits. All of the shoes are made from MELFLEX plastic, a patented, hypo-allergenic, recyclable, and
extremely flexible PVC. The shoes are also cruelty free, so they are made with no animal products. Melissa shoes also recycle 99.9% of factory water and waste, and overstock styles are recycled into new styles (only the darker color shoes have
recycled material).

I purchased them at La Rousse la-rousse.com
whose owner Amanda has a wonderful eye for things that are super stylish as well as sustainable. Check her out and get on her mailing list for her weekly happy hour events.

More and more people want to eat sustainably, but it isn't always easy to navigate grocery stores or restaurant menus. Happily, Jay Weinstein's The Ethical Gourmet: How to Enjoy Great Food That is Humanely Raised, Sustainable, Nonendangered, and That Replenishes the Earth takes all the guesswork out of it. Providing not only an excellent primer on the politics and business that drive agricultural systems and food production from start to finish, Weinstein tells where and how to get the most sustainable option for many foods. Love salmon? Go for wild-caught from Alaska. Foie gras? A big no-no. Bison can be an excellent replacement for beef, and always, always look for "Certified Human Raised & Handled" or the American Humane Association's "Free Farmed Certified" labels when buying any meat. He cautions against too much meat; the most ethical proteins of all, though, are grains, beans and legumes, so don't be afraid of them. When it comes to produce, go local organic, then local, then organic, then conventional.

As a chef and food-lover himself, Weinstein includes 100 recipes promoting not just his ethical dining ingredients, but his practices: eat less meat (or none at all), and when you do, make the portions smaller by pairing and prepairing it well. A smaller morsel of perfectly-cooked, well-flavored meat paired with other delicious ethical foods will be a much more complete, sustainable and enjoyable meal that a huge hunk of meat from a factory farm.

It excels as both a handbook and cookbook, and the extensive resource guide will keep ethical consumers busy learning more about sustainable foods for days. Throughout the book, Weinstein has a keen grasp on one very important idea: that knowing more about your food, where it came from and why that's important makes it taste better, and he applies to everything from coffee to chocolate to clams and crabs. The book is written in the belief that if each of us does his or her part we can make a difference, and the world will be a better place for it; following its advice allows responsible stewards of the Earth to enjoy delicious foods. It's available from Broadway Books, Powell's Books and other booksellers.

September 21: Wash and rinse your clothes on the cold-water cycle.

April 3: Use biodegradable cleaning products.

May 29: Grow your own vegetables.

July 7: Look for the Green Globe 21 certification on your vacation destination.

August 27: Buy refillable products.

We could go on; there are lots of useful tips in 365 Ways to Save the Earth, and each one is paired with a stunning photograph by Philippe Bourseiller. Broken down into categories like home, shopping, leisure, transportation, office, gardening and children, the book is the daily calendar of sustainable reminders, but much prettier to look at (and you don't have to toss a piece of paper every day). With such good aesthetics, the book strives for a place on your coffee table, where it can be easily admired for its artistic merits, practical, easy (and even fun) ideas. As you've not doubt done with other "dated" books, everyone who picks it up has to check out their birthday, major holidays (Christmas advises you to make your own greeting cards) and the like. You won't be able to do all 365, at least not in a row, but if everyone who picks up the book tries a few, we'll all be better off for it, and that's one of the things books are great for. A percentage of book sales will go to the Stop Global Warming Virtual March, which can be added as the 366th way to save the earth. Available from Harry Abrams Books, Powell's Books and other fine booksellers.

Out to help us all look fabulous and do good, Max Green Alchemy's line of hair products (they also do skin and lip care) is formulated with pure botanics, vitamins and special nutrients for a healthy scalp and hair. They don't use parabens and other petrochemicals normally found in personal care products, and think your hair can look just as good (or better!) with their certified vegan, cruelty-free, organic formula. To good to be true? We put it through its paces.

The first thing we noticed is the aroma -- it's much different than any other product we've ever encountered. It isn't perfume-y or overpowering; just a delightful fresh citrus scent. The product isn't waxy or greasy, which is a good thing if you're looking for easy styling without any build-up. The package promises "lustrous semi-gloss finish with medium hold" and delivers; when applied and dried in your hair, it holds without being too stiff; after a long day, it remains manageable and can be reactivated and your hair restyled with a little water. Their formula also works well at keeping frizz and fly-aways to a minimum, effectively balancing out the nasty effects that humidity can have on your 'do. The verdict: if you're looking for medium-hold, medium-gloss hair-styling help, this is for you.

One of the world's favorite indulgences, chocolate has been tempting palates for centuries, but hasn't always been produced with the earth or those who help harvest the raw materials in mind. So, we're very happy to find Green & Black's organic chocolate, whose name reveals it's strengths: green for organic and black for it's rich, intense flavors. With a commitment to use only the finest organic cocoa beans grown under the shade of indigenous forests, the finished product doesn't disappoint.

Their dark chocolate, with 70% cocoa mass, is deliciously bittersweet and pairs beautifully with port for a simple, decadent dessert. The careful combination of cocoa mass and cocoa butter makes for a clean, aromatic melt-in-your-mouth experience. The Maya Gold is the first product to be awarded the Fair Trade Mark, which it received in 1994. Inspired by spiced chocolate of the Maya Indians in southern Belize, Green & Blacks adds a twist of orange and a taste of cinnamon, nutmeg and hint of vanilla to dark chocolate for a subtle, balanced flavor that isn't too sweet or too fruity.

Prefer your chocolate hot? They've got you covered there, as well. Available in both dark chocolate and Maya Gold, they're everything the bars are, in liquid form. If you like to bake with chocolate, we'd also recommend the 72% Baking Chocolate. They've added extra cocoa butter to their bittersweet dark chocolate, to give it a smooter, less viscous consistency when melted.