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The Alternative Consumer
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The Alternative Consumer provides product reviews, green news and info to the next wave of smart consumers - fresh thinkers who consciously style their lives with their health and the health of the Earth in the forefront of their mind; chic, savvy shopper
Recent Posts Tagged With 'sustainable'
uranus – soy eco undies
Ah…what’s in a name? In addition to making a pretty eco-friendly panty, the folks at Uranus Apparel obviously have a sense of humor. These cute soyshort (soy meets boy) eco-panties are made with 100% natural vegetable dye and packaged...
BCV’s “new ruralism” approach to design
Baldauf Catton von Eckartsberg Architects, or BCV Architects for short, is a design firm that has taken a “new ruralism” approach to sustainability. The expression “new ruralism” – conceived by Sibella Kraus at the Institute of Urban and ...
upcycled banana leaf bag
An interesting example of a stylish, fully functional product created out of a renewable, recyclable, natural material. This collapsible, accordion shaped bag is made from laminated banana leaves. Folds flat or expands to carry your vital junk. (...
NY Eco Fashion Week wrap-up
Last week’s TheGreenShows 2-day event in NYC was the place to be during fashion week. Amidst the usual fashion runway buzz, a cool vibe permeated the King of Greene Street space. Brooklyn-based designer Bahar Shahpar was edgy and sharp, we l...
fall for eco chic thigh highs
Based in a tiny village in France, eco lingerie maker, g=9.8 manufactures these sexy thigh highs for slipping under our fall skirts. Created from recycled white pine tree pruning (ahh, the white pine, my favorite), you’ll be amazed by how sil...
Dahon’s Biologic FreeCharge - pedal-power your iPhone
The folding bike specialists at Dahon have come up with an energy efficient way to charge your iPod, iPhone, MP3 player or handheld device - bike power. The FreeCharge transfers power from a bike’s generator hub to a high-capacity battery, whic...
Feuerwear - recycled firehose bags
Still recovering from the cliffhanger ending of last night’s “Rescue Me?” (you know they can’t kill Tommy off -they’d have no show.) Well, continuing with the fireman theme we present the German sustainable fashion lin...
RESTORE Clothing - fashion & function
Celeste and Anthony Lilore, founders of NYC-based, RESTORE Clothing are on our eco radar. Having recently met them at a green gathering, they do walk the talk. Their active wear, RESTORE, spells out all that a conscious fashionista could want: Re...
reclaimed wood furniture by Gursan Ergil
Istanbul based, Gursan Ergil Design Studio, practices “environmental modernism” in the making of these great looking, handcrafted pieces of furniture. The furniture is created from reclaimed and recycled wood using traditional handcrafted...
earthwatch institute - Beat the Heat kick off
If you’re looking for a cool way to contribute to a greener world, check out Earthwatch Institute’s third annual Beat the Heat Climate Change Campaign kick off in Boston this Thursday, August 13 (6:30-9:30p). Donate an item to the silent...
Loblolly House - a prefabricated vision
The innovative Philly-based architectural firm, Kieran Timberlake, has created a vision in prefabricated home design, the Loblolly House. Integrated into its environment, readily assembled and disassembled by a wrench - is this the future of prefabr...
Mio Trask Lamp - low on energy, high on style
Mio’s Trask Lamp is designed to be a sustainable, customizable, low energy lighting fixture. The lamp can be adjusted by the user into into table, task, or track lighting. The Trask Lamp, which is made of recycled content, is recyclable and ...
Cacao Pearl - a luxury eco resort that gives back
This week, a surprising eco endeavor was announced in the travel arena: the world’s first non-profit, green resort community, which will be built on a 124-acre private island on the northern tip of the Palawan Biosphere Reserve in the Philippin...
dragonfly solar accent light
If you’re looking to add some nighttime atmosphere to your patio, walkway or deck, you might consider a couple of these striking dragonfly solar accent lights. Each wireless solar luminary comes with two rechargeable batteries and will look a...
etsy earth takes flight
Pal Lee Tracy of Certaintees (also Fiddleheads, GreenGirlsGlobal and KittenintheEngine) fame, hit me with some good news the other day. She and like-minded Etsy designers have teamed up to inspire progress in earth friendly efforts. These independe...
Ford explores using liquid wood in car making
Ford Motor Co. appears to be taking sustainability seriously. Researchers at Ford’s European Research Centre in Aachen, Germany recently announced they are investigating an innovative, new wood-plastic compound (WPC) – or liquid wood. The...
Kinesis K3 portable wind and solar charger
Here’s a new addition to the growing list of portable device chargers, the Kinesis K3 portable wind and solar charger. Kinesis is marketing the charger as a “3-in-1 tribrid,” due to its ability to collect and store power from wind...
a sustainable school lunch kit By Nature
The U.K.’s By Nature is launching a new range of kids’ lunch kits that are reusable and waste-free. Reusable lunch kits can help eliminate the daily disposal of foil, plastic bags, used juice cartons and containers destined for the land...
Bare eco-tableware for summer picnics
Solo has developed its Bare line of ecofriendly cups and tableware for those picnics and events that make it impractical to lug-along your everyday plates and glasses. The line is manufactured by using renewable plant resources wherever possible to r...
Lloyd Russell’s Rimrock Ranch House
Architect Lloyd Russell’s Rimrock Ranch House is a tasty blend of practical functionality and sustainable style. The home sits 4,500 feet above sea level in the California desert outside Palm Springs. Russell, who describes his design aesth...
hemp yoga mat bag
Make your usual grand entrance into your next yoga or fitness class sporting this handsome mat bag made of sustainable, eco-friendly hemp. $21.95 @ rei.com ...
biodegrade thyself - eco burial tips
Looking for a green cemetery? Eco friendly casket? Green burial? Don’t want to spend 25K on a gold plated body bucket like Michael Jackson’s (above)? Like it or not, one day, we’ll all be dead and gone. Not to sound morbid, ...
