recycle your credit

Hey there fellow design junkies! Any thoughts on what to do with used credit cards and gift cards?

We've made them into jewelry and even packaged them on old cards. But there are only so many earrings we can make. What else can these ubiquitous plastic pieces be turned into? Guitar picks. Mini notepad covers. Back scratchers. Art mosaics. So many possibilities. Which is good because there are so many old credit and gift cards out there just waiting to be turned into something new.

slower

We all live in this fast-paced, get-things-done-faster society. But I just read that if we all drove 65mph, instead of 75 we could reduce fuel consumption by 27% !!! I read it here via Treehugger.

Now, I don't own a car, but a whole lot of people out there do and drive everyday. What a huge savings with a simple change in habit!

With all that extra in-the-car time you can listen to some of my fave podcasts like More Hip Than Hippie, and NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.

Turn unused nooks into storage

We can all use more storage space, right?

I just posted an Instructable on how to convert an old ironing board nook into a spice rack. And how to turn an unused window into a bookshelf. Instructables is a wonderful place where people post step-by-step instructions on how to make stuff - like this project.

If you live in a pre-war building like I do, chances are you have an extra nook going unused. The only time I fire up my iron is for craft projects like fusing together plastic bags or making iron-on t-shirts. Better put that empty space to use with things I really need like spices and liquor and books.

Eat your front yard

I was reading my ReadyMade magazine on the train and saw a review of the book Edible Estates: Attack on the Front Lawn. The idea is to convert your front yard into a garden full of veggies. Brilliant! Yards are a huge drain of water and resources. And you don't have to mow a garden. AND you get to eat your own homegrown vegetables. You could make dinner without even leaving your house!

A few years ago, when I was living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, I was planting some veggies near the side of my house. A friend stopped by.
friend: "Wow! You know how to plant food?!? That you can eat?!?"
me: "Yes. It's easy. Dig a hole, stick a plant in it, cover the roots with dirt. Water it once in a while. Pull weeds once in a while. In a month or two, pick and eat. Tasty."
friend: "That seems really easy."

Gone are the days of people planting food and sewing simples fixes to their clothes. It's often not as daunting as it seems. I have high hopes that do-it-yourselfing is making a comeback in a big way. I wouldn't be blogging about all this if I didn't.

DIY pop art at the Brooklyn Indie Mart

We'll be craftin' it up at the Brooklyn Indie Mart on Sunday. Stop by to create your own candy dish or soap dish out of soda bottles. The only way to make it more craftacular would be if you joined us!

I'm in love with my friend's CSA

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is all the eco-rage lately. You basically pay for subscription fee to a farm and come pick up your share of the veggies once a week. A friend was out of town and had me stand in to pick up her veggies at the Brooklyn Red Shed Garden. CSAs always sounded good in theory to me, but this was my first first-hand experience. So fun! It's early in the season but they had multi-color radishes. And kale. And green garlic. And garlic rings. And lots of other green stuff. My friend said it's a culinary opportunity to use veggies you wouldn't normally get. Yum. I'm sold. I just have to wait another season until they're taking new subscriptions again. I'll just have to keep hangin' at my local farmer's market.

eco-smackdown tomorrow on Planet Green

If you're one of the lucky cable subscribers to Planet Green, be sure to catch me on the show "G Word" tomorrow (Monday, June 8th) at 7pm. At least I'm pretty sure that's when I'll be on. The episode is called "Nano Wires". In a short segment, I visit a car junkyard with our friend and eco-designer Evette Rios. We dig through car parts to scavenge and create furniture from the castoffs. What kind of car-part furniture do we make? Well, you'll just have to tune in to see.