Image by asenat29 / Creative Commons

Now that Christmas is over and many people have completed their inventory of the gifts and presents they received, it is time to discuss returns. If you are like most people you have probably already returned some of those gifts you either have no use for or don’t really want. However, there are other ways to “return” your gifts too.

Well, I guess technically I shouldn’t say return. Let me go over a smart green way to exchange those presents you don’t really want or need: trade them. Trade them with someone who has something you want, or trade them with someone who wants something you have.

It is kind of like the gift exchanges done in many businesses and companies these days, where each person gets to pick a wrapped gift, then once you open it you can either choose to keep the gift or take someone else’s unwrapped gift and give them yours.

Image by waferboard / Creative Commons

Whether you trade with friends, family, neighbors or via a trading website like Craigslist or any of these barter sites, doesn’t matter. What matters is that you find a way to breathe new life into an item that would otherwise be discarded or left unused.

Having a garage sale or taking your items to a consignment store could work as well, but in many cases it takes a lot more effort than you may want to invest. Of course anything is better than simply throwing the gift away.

Image by Bob n’ Renee / Creative Commons

If you are determined you don’t want the gift, and that you don’t know of anyone else who does, why not donate it? It is one less thing that goes into the local landfill and one more thing that is available for someone else to use and enjoy.

After the holidays, and throughout the entire year, anytime you want to acquire something ‘new’, take a few minutes and find out if there is anything you can trade. It is a green and relatively simple way to get the things you want and get rid of the things you don’t, without anything making its way to the landfill. Sounds like a win-win to me!

Image by chatirygirl

With the holidays approaching and Black Friday (and Cyber Monday) not too far off, I figured I’d dish out a little green holiday shopping advice. Just a few tips that might help you safely navigate through the holiday shopping rush. You can take them or leave them, but if you are looking to save money and time I suggest taking a few moments to check out our list:

1 – Make a gift list: When it comes to buying gifts, making a list is essential. List out all the people you need/want to get gifts for, then note some ideas down next to each one along with the total amount you want to spend for that person.

Image by Nenyaki

2 – Department stores aren’t always your friend: There are many department stores that offer HUGE sales during the holidays. That doesn’t always mean they are offering the best though. Go online and shop around, do some homework. You’ll get more bang for your buck that way.

3 – Opt for classic rather than new: Many consignment stores and/or vintage stores can offer great deals for gifts. Besides, why buy something new when you can find something that has been lightly used and will mean much more to the person you are buying it for.

So many great products go to waste everyday, its better to re-use and recycle than to throw away. This goes for items you already have too…go through your house and find items you don’t use anymore but that someone else could use. Take them to a consignment store or donate them.

Image by miltedflower

4 – Yes, I’m going to say it….re-gift: Now this is a tricky one sometimes as you have to be sure you aren’t re-gifting straight back to the person who gave you the gift. But, in all honesty, if you aren’t using the gift, then give it to someone who will use it. Why let it go to waste? It wasn’t that you didn’t appreciate the gift, it’s just that you never found a use for it. So…find a use for it – give it to someone else.

5 – Plan your shopping day ahead of time: Knowing where you need to go and planning your route can help you save time, gas and money. You’ll also find you will get a lot more accomplished if you plan ahead. Some pieces of information key to doing your planning are: the time the stores open, which stores have special deals and what time of day those deals are valid. Try and avoid lunch/meal times.

6 – Shop online when sending gifts: If you have family and friends that you aren’t going to visit this year, but you want to send them gifts. Do your shopping online. It cuts down on drive time, traffic and the crowds you’d have to deal with by going to the stores and then trying to get to the post office on time.

Find sites that offer green packaging and can wrap then ship your gift directly to your intended recipient. It saves you time and money and the person gets their gift on time.

7 – Watch out for excess packaging: So many items are packaged using excess plastic and other packaging materials. Try to avoid items like that as they are simply wasteful. When the person opens the package all of that is usually thrown away. Look for items that don’t require a lot of packaging.

8 – Please keep in mind that not everyone “requires” a new gift. Sometimes making dinner, spending some one-on-one time, making a photo album or other personalized gift (a nature wreath, a bouquet of flowers, candle holders, etc) can mean much more than a store-bought gift.

Image by Slavilfari

So there’s my two cents when it comes to some green holiday shopping advice. Whatever you decide to do, I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and that you find some great, green deals out there. If you have any other green shopping tips you’d like to share, I’d love to hear them!

As we head towards the end of the year (although you’d never know it was Autumn here in Southern California), here are some key eco-friendly steps you should take for the safety and sanity of you, your family and of course the environment.

Image by NCBrian

None of them are hard to do, but each of them helps in making sure you have a clean, green Autumn/Winter.

1 – Get some indoor plants. Since many of us tend to spend more time indoors during the colder months, you need to take steps to counter-act your indoor air pollution. Indoor air pollution can often be worse that the pollution outside. So work on improving your indoor air quality by getting a few houseplants.

2 – Air out your house regularly. Another way to improve indoor air pollution is to air out your house on a regular basis. Even if you just open your windows/doors for a little bit each day you help to get fresh air circulating through your home. Not only will it help you feel better, but it helps get it of any “stale” odors that often linger.

Image by piermario

3 -Do a little Spring cleaning. Even though it’s already Autumn, it is still a good time to do some cleaning. You are probably planning on having friends or relatives over during the holidays, so a little cleaning is in order. Just be sure to use natural, green cleaning supplies to give your home that really fresh, just cleaned smell. It’s much better than having a chemical smell permeating through your home.

4 – Donate. If you are like most people, you have at least one or two or three….or ten things sitting in a closet somewhere that you never use. Rather than keeping those things, you should donate them. Holidays are a great time to donate clothes, books, kitchen appliances, toys, etc. to charities. You get rid of things you don’t use and give someone else a chance to put them to good use.

5 – Schedule your downtime. In this day and age, we seem to always be connected somehow. Whether we sit all day on our computers, or bring our cell phones with us wherever we go, we seem to be “connected” all day long.

Image by Luna Jubilee

So do this…schedule in some downtime. Every day just walk away from your computer and your cell phone, your iPad, your iPod, etc, etc. Go take a walk. Ride your bike. Even sit outside enjoying the day (or evening). But schedule some time for yourself every day, above and beyond sleep time. You are worth it.

6 – Get your vehicle inspected. If you haven’t had your vehicle inspected recently, now would be a smart time to do so. Get everything checked out. Get your oil changed, tires rotated, tire pressure checked, fluids topped off, brakes checked…give it the full treatment. Doing so will help your vehicle run better and get better gas mileage. Using a proven fuel additive helps lower emissions and improve gas mileage too.

Besides, getting your vehicle fully inspected could save you a lot of time and money. Nobody wants their vehicle to break down, especially during the cold weather months.

7 – Move your garden indoors. Maybe you live someplace where having an outdoor garden during the Autumn/Winter just isn’t feasible. If that is the case, move some of your garden indoors. Growing your own food is not only healthy, but it’s smart too. If your food supply got cut off for some reason, at least you’d have your garden. Besides, no time like the present to start growing.

Image by ccharmon

8 – Winterize your transportation. Telling you to ride your bike on a cold, stormy day isn’t necessarily eco-friendly. But figuring out how you can ride-share, car-pool or mapping out your public transportation route for the Autumn/Winter is a simple eco-friendly step. There is no reason to drive by yourself in bad weather, when your co-worker lives a few blocks away. There is no reason to weather a storm, when you can join a vanpool. Before the bad weather hits is the best time to plan out your eco-friendly transportation.

9 – Make a gift list. One of the ways to save money during the holidays is to ensure you get the best deals on gifts for family and friends. I always start with a gift list. Make your list and include ideas of what you think each person would like. Then remember that not every gift needs to be something new and expensive. Handmade gifts made by children are some of the most cherished. An antique gotten at a yard sale or consignment shop could mean more than a brand new item at a local department store.

10 – Face each day with a smile. This may be one of the simplest steps of all, but it is also one that many people forget to do. No matter what is happening around you, if you walk into each day with a smile, you may find yourself having a better outlook on the rest of your day. Try it…smile. That’s right, SMILE! It’s contagious.

So, be sure to add these 10 eco-friendly steps to your ‘to-do’ list! Also, please share any other green steps you take to have an eco-friendly Autumn/Winter. It’s always good to learn from the experience of others.

Image by Muffet (via Flickr)

Valentine’s Day is coming up in just under two weeks, but if you are anything like me, you haven’t quite had a chance to finalize your plans. Should you give flowers? Candy? Exchange cards? What about green or eco-friendly Valentine’s gifts? Well, there are many different ideas to choose from and many ways you could go, but let me give you a few of my favorite eco-friendly ideas for Valentine’s Day:

1) If you are going to go the traditional route e.g. chocolates or flowers, go for the organic variety. I highly recommend Equal Exchange when it comes to organic chocolate. They have chocolate bars (which are currently on sale until Feb 14th), organic dried berries and nuts, organic hot cocoa, organic chocolate and coffee gift bags, etc. You can even get free-shipping (UPS ground in the contingent U.S. only) if you enter the code: chocolatelove. Go for the chocolate/coffee gift bag….a great eco-tasty choice!

When it comes to flowers, California Organic Flowers is a nice choice as they have a wide variety of organic flowers, with many great options under $50. If you want to make your own living bouquet, take a look at this video from California Organic Flowers as they provide some helpful tips on doing your own arrangements.

2) Get away for the weekend. If you are one of those people who likes to get away for Valentine’s Day weekend, how about a trip to the new Aria™ Resort & Casino at the CityCenter in Las Vegas? The Aria is LEED® Gold Certified and features smoke-free walkways, floor to ceiling airflow (to help remove smoke from their casino), energy-efficient lighting, bicycle valets and much, much more. While you are there, don’t forget to relax and indulge in the Aria’s spa services including a heated-stone massage or unwind and breathe in the air from their infused salt room.

If you are looking for a tropical rainforest type get-away, one of the ones on the top of my to-do list is the Daintree Eco Lodge & Spa in Australia. This eco-lodge is located in a 30-acre rainforest valley in Daintree National Park. Their guest rooms are ecologically-friendly treehouses and since they only have 15 of them, you’ll want to book early.

3) If you can’t take time away or would rather stay closer to home, you can do a day trip to a local eco-friendly or green spa. Spa Index has a list of eco-friendly spas you can choose from. (Hint: many of the spas on their list offer discounts for first-time customers.)

If a spa day at home is more your cup of tea, check out these at home spa tips and recipes. You can easily turn your Valentine’s Day into a spa day, without even leaving the comfort of home!

4) If you decide to stay in, make a meal for you and your significant other. What’s nice about making a meal at home is that you control what goes in your meal. You can include fresh or locally-grown fruits/vegetables, pick out a great organic or vegan wine and design your meal so it’s just right for you.

For example, you could start off with a tomato bisque soup,  make a simple grilled BLT panini or a Butternut Squash Enchilada for your main dish and end off with some chocolate-dipped strawberries. But, if you are hoping for romantic evening, you might want to add one or more of these aphrodisiacs into your meal.

5) For those of you with kids, a creative eco-friendly idea for Valentine’s Day is to get outdoors. It doesn’t cost much, it’s a nice way to get some fresh air and a wonderful way to get the kids (and family) to fall in love with nature again. If weather permits, you could pack a picnic lunch and enjoy a meal outdoors. If not, then maybe just a walk…look at the trees, do some bird-watching, maybe take some pictures or pick up some beautiful fallen leaves. Whatever you choose to do, reconnecting with nature is a wonderful thing to do on Valentine’s Day!

6) Make your own Valentine’s Day cards/gifts. Rather than going out and spending between $1.00-$5.00 on a Valentine’s Day card, just make one. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have something lying around that they can use to make a Valentine’s Day card. You can take that junk mail you got or an old magazine and cut it up to make a heart-shaped valentine. You can even use the fallen leaves you and your kids collected to make some creative leaf rubbings or press your leaves/flowers onto a votive cup to make a beautiful candle holder.

Well, those are some of my favorite eco-friendly ideas. What are your favorite eco-friendly ideas for Valentine’s Day? If you have a favorite gift, idea or site you think other readers should be aware of, please let me know. Enjoy your eco-friendly Valentine’s Day!