Gomi Style - DIY Cardboard Furniture Reuse Design

Learn how to make cool functional furniture with cardboard! Gomi Style is a DIY lifestyle and design show created by San Francisco Bay Area makers, artists and engineers using found objects, recycled materials, and technology.

DIY WaterWall

Michelle shows us how to create a beautiful and practical WaterWall for energy savings at home.

Bee-boys drop dead

One of the most interesting Public Service Announcements (PSA) I have come across in a very long while. And the message is an important one: SAVE THE BEES!

Bee-Boy dance crew drops dead
Uploaded by helpthehoneybees

Then check out the site that goes along with this PSA. It was created by Haagen-Dazs (yeap, the ice cream makers) but the message is an important one. AND you can download a great little pdf file of a booklet explaining what you can do to attract more bees into your neighborhood. Check it out at helpthehoneybees.com!

Shopping green

There are so many things that people can do to help save the environment. Here are some very simple steps that will help when going shopping.

Bring your own bags, preferably cloth or string. Stores tend to be very easy-going about using plastic bags, which are often made of petroleum products and may take hundreds of years to decompose.

Choose paper over plastic, for if you were to ever use a store bag, paper is easier to recycle than plastic.

Think of the packaging. Larger items generally tend to use less packaging than smaller ones - a two liter bottle of Cola costs not only consumes less packaging than a six-pack of individual bottle, but it also costs less.

Visit the local farmers' market. Local produce is fresher, and it does not require large amounts of gas to ship it. You may even find specialty products that don't appear on your local grocery shelf.

Join a co-op, for all the same reasons.

Go shopping with a friend. This can cut down on the use of gas to and from the market.

Look for green "Environmentally Friendly" tags on the items you buy.

Visit thrift shops. There are great bargains, the quality is usually high, and you can get reduced rates by bringing in your own used clothes that you no longer want or need.

Make a shopping list to avoid buying things that seem appealing but you will likely never use. It should be a crime to throw out food that spoiled because you never got to eat it.

Recycle - even at the restaurant. Coffee Cups, cans, tins, Styrofoam plates; everything! There is bound to be a recycling bin, and if there is not, take a small (paper) bag, and drop it off later at a local recycling facility or drop it in your own recycling bin at home.

Compost - making a compost bin for all your food waste cuts down on what goes to the landfill, and it can be used for your garden! Anything from teabags to banana peels to paper kitchen towels can be put in there - as long as it will degrade.

Take it easy. If you feel overwhelmed just make one or two changes to start with. And as those become habits, introduce something new to your shopping routine.

Quick Tips: Stop Junk Mail

Keep a low profile: Every time you share your address - from entering a contest or shopping online - you are giving up valuable information for direct mailing companies. And those who aren't interested in mailing to you, are very interested in sharing you address (for a profit) to someone who is! Try your best to limit who you disclose your contact information to.

And when you're asked for your number or postal/zip code while in the check-out line politely say no. They use this information to track customers; the phone number can be entered into a database for future telemarketing (annoying), and the postal/zip code will determine where in the city to send flyers (terrible for the environment!).

DIY: Make your own bags!

Still not able to break that plastic bag habit? Well, maybe it's time.

"In the marine environment plastic bag litter is lethal, killing many birds, whales, seals and turtles every year. After an animal is killed by plastic bags its body decomposes and the plastic is released back into the environment where it can kill again." and "A Bryde's whale died on a Cairns beach after ingesting 6 square metres of plastic - including plastic bags. Such obstructions in animals can cause severe pain, distress and death." (Planet Ark)

"Every time we use a new plastic bag they go and get more petroleum from the Middle East and bring it over in tankers," said Stephanie Barger, executive director of Earth Resource Foundation in Costa Mesa, Calif. "We are extracting and destroying the Earth to use a plastic bag for 10 minutes." (seattlepi.nwsource.com)

But all is not lost! Most stores are now providing a re-usable, and inexpensive, alternative that you can purchase right there at the register. Or, even better, you can put some of those creative skills to good use and make your own bag (and a couple for your friends!).

One great site is morsbags.com. With step by step instructions, including templates and a flash animated how-to, you'll be up and running in no time.

Or if you have a few old pillow cases around the house, why not re-use them? TipNut.com has a great project waiting for you.

And for all you knitters our there, try your hand at the Turkish Stitch String Bag from tiajudy.com!