Wally's MuMu

This Monster dude from a previous post got a new skirt yesterday. I got inspired to cut up a mumu I found thrift store shopping and made a skirt both for him and me. At first I wasn't sure it was his color, but then determined that green should be everyone's color! So he's stickin' with it. Ultimately it might be for my niece to decide cuz I think he'll be headed to Michigan soon to keep her company.

Compost!

I had some friends over for brunch yesterday. We of course used lots of fresh veggies and fruit, which created a decent amount of composting scrap. I saved a big bag of apple and potato peels, tied it up and put it in my freezer and thought nothing of it. But one friend just looked questioningly at me - my friends know I don't throw anything away, but apple peels?

I found out recently that the Union Square Green Market will take compost every day they're open which is 4 x a week. It's a way better solution than experimenting with compost in my mini patio at my small Brooklyn pad.

They offered a great tip - to freeze the compost on the off days you're not stopping by the market; thus my freezer bag of compost. Not only does this create great new soil, rather than landfilling it - it also keeps the little garbage I do generate from getting smelly.

Some people have 7 year old blackberries in their freezer and others... compost.

If I had a million dollars...

friend: "I passed by the best garbage on the way home tonight. Even if I were rich I think I'd still go dumpster diving."

me: "Me, too."

Spring!

Happy Spring!

I stopped by the Farmer's Market yesterday at Union Square and things are slowly starting to come back to life. Like that pretty daffodil that I picked up there.

Greenopia in Brooklyn

I've spent the last few months helping the guide Greenopia find green businesses near my live/work studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I already knew there were a lot of great green restaurants and stores in my 'hood, but now I have even more on my list of places I want to go to.

Greenopia is this really awesome green guide that has already been published in LA and San Francisco. Think a green version of the Zagat's guide. It finds all of the eco-friendly businesses in a city, compiles it and puts it all in one place. After working on the guide and seeing the huge amount of information that is gathered for each business I can definitely recommend this book. Word is that the NYC guide will be published in time for Earth Day (April 22). I'll let you know once it hits stores.

A few of my fave Williamsburg restaurants that I uncovered during my research include Urban Rustic (grocery store, coffee shop, and deli all-in-one. the food is awesome!), Fette Sau(for when you need your organic meat fix. Fette Sau literally means fat pig), and Brooklyn Label. They all use local produce and organic meat when possible and are all just plain tasty. Yum!

And for when you need to shop for household goods and clothes, be sure to check out Sodafine and Om Sweet Home. I can't wait for the guide to come out so I can see all the other green places in NYC that I've been missing.

Make and thrift weekend

The lovely Make Workshop hosted a Craft Magazine release party this past weekend. Every party should have a craft table! True to the cover of their latest issue, they let everyone make these easy monsters. That's mine up there. He's nameless right now, so any good ideas, let me know.


I also went thrifting with my nice friend Lesley. Look at those rockin' pink moon boots! It's so great what other people give away. I found a really cool bright green flowered mumu that's gonna be a skirt someday soon. I'll keep you posted.

Nothing to Wear?

Well, then, check out this new blog from our eco-friend Kyeann - Wearing the Future.It gives eco-tips on the fashion industry.
Here's the gist of what it's about, straight from their website: "It's how you look, darling, but it's also how you feel... About your clothes. Can't possibly sport a jacket stitched by a six-year-old? Don't feel sexy knowing your tee left a trail of pesticide tears on its way to your drawer? Craving up to ten stories a day about all aspects of eco- and ethical fashion?
Then c'mon, Sexy. Sounds like you're ready to Wear the Future!"

repurpose

I stopped by GreenBelt yesterday for a talk on repurposing - my favorite subject! Jasmin from Treehugger - my favorite blog - offered up some great reuse ideas. Like turning old socks into microwavable mitten warmers or wrist rests for a computer mouse. Or turning an empty wine bottle into a new liquid soap dispenser.

Happy repurposing!


images from Instructables and DIY Network.