Though some people may not realise it, recycled materials are used all over the place, from home ware and furniture, to things we associate with recycling themselves, such as paper.

To illuminate that subject, here are a couple of good quality, practical and sturdy products, made form recycled materials, and available through Eco Products UK.

First, the Doy Apron’s:

“A durable, wipe-clean apron with a handy pocket on the chest. The clever adjustable strap means that it will fit all ages and sizes. A kitchen essential and great for kids who enjoy painting and ‘messy play’! Doy Aprons are made from recycled juice packs, by a women’s cooperative in the Philippines. The juice packs are made from non-biodegradable foil and plastic packaging that would otherwise go into landfill sites and incinerators. The cooperative has won a number of awards in the Philippines for its concern for the environment and its outstanding contribution to both waste recycling and employment generation. Doy Aprons are produced and traded according to Fair Trade principles“.

Eco Products UK also stocks the Doy Shopping Bag, which has a colourful ‘mixed fruit’ pictorial design, and is made from discarded foil and packaging.

One of the more interesting examples of recycling to create wholly new products is the QuickSit. Made From polypropylene, the seat is portable too, making it quite innovative in both use as well as composition.

Eco Products UK states that the QuickSit is a,

“Portable seat is lightweight, folds flat and is easy to carry. Ideal for use on numerous occasions such as picnics, festivals, on the beach,  watching your children play rugby or hockey, camping or as a spare seat in the home or garden. This fold up seat works on all indoor floor surfaces and outdoor surfaces such as grass, paving, mud, gravel, sand and snow. The seat is quick and easy to assemble, and features a convenient carry handle.

The Quicksit portable seat is made from 100% recycled polypropylene. All waste plastic generated during production is sent back to the recyclers and reused in the next batch thus creating a closed-loop production system“.

Two particularly novel uses of recycled materials certainly and two products that add some weight to the idea that thing being recycled can be their USP; indeed, recycled products are developing their own eco chic in and of themselves.

For more information on these products, plus over innovative recycled products from Eco Products UK, please feel free to visit their website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

It may be creeping slowly, but the quiet emergence of supermarket festive aisles dictates one thing: Christmas is approaching, whether its approach is much wanted this early, or not.

To heighten the excitement, or ease the pain and perhaps more pertinently the panic, The Green Store have handily compiled a selection of gifts, all under £5, that are perfect for Christmas stockings, and are made with eco friendly care.

The first is clinically practical, but perfect for the businessmen and still a little more tantalising than socks and briefs.  The Wrap-N-Mat, which makes eating sound fun, is an eco friendly and sustainable alternative to wasteful plastic bags, and is good for taking to work, where so many things get sucked into the vacuum that is daily working life.  The Green Store says,

“Perfect for work, school lunches, picnics or anytime you’re on the move! Replaces the need for wasteful plastic sandwich bags, clingfilm or foil. The Wrap-N-Mat can be used again & again...Simply fold around sandwiches, veggie sticks, cookies and other goodies, fold the cotton wrapper closed, secure with the Velcro closure, and they’re ready to go. Unfold the wrap and it serves as a placemat. Convenient & easy to use“.

Another for the businessmen perhaps, though for stress-heads in general; herbal, natural bath bags, with the insomniacs favourite, Valerian.  A steal at under a fiver, and a good Christmas present for the tricky mother-in-law purchases, as Green Store outlines:

“Zzzz! Can’t sleep?…take your mind off the world and your worries. These herbal bath bags from Hedgerow Herbals contain organic hops and valerian, both used extensively in the treatment of insomnia, calming lemon balm and oats with demulcents which are good for skin care. Scented with pure lavender essential oil“.

From the relaxing back to the practical. The Green Store also stocks a very handy timer that makes sure you don’t waste too much time, water and energy in the shower.  Seeing as it’s so easy to linger in their shower on work days, this nifty device is a practical present that some might well appreciate. A word or two, once again, from the Green Store:

“This Water Drop Shower Timer offers a simple countdown and audible alarm to keep showers to a sensible time, saving water, energy and ultimately money. A great way to educate adults and children alike. Simply locate the shower timer in the shower using the suction cup provided, set the time you want to shower for and press start – it’s that simple“.

A nice sample of affordable and eco friendly gifts, just in time for Christmas, with plenty more to offer. For more options, and a place to buy, check out the Green Store website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

Footwear is notorious as a nightmare area for a lot of vegetarians and particularly vegans; its often incredibly difficult to find a pair of shoes that are without some sort of leather included.

The Pachira Walking Boot fits that bill, giving walkers who have the same problem a decent alternative. Sturdy and durable, they don’t look half bad, either, and are free of animal products.

Available for men and women, they are the walking boot of choice for the ethical rambler, are pretty widely stocked, and easily purchased. Green Home have deemed them praiseworthy, stating as follows:

“These rugged, breathable walking boots are made from a creative combination of green materials by a sustainably-run company…While these boots are comfortable for most people as is, the insole is removeable to accommodate other insoles or arch supports”.

Made from a variety of natural and recycled materials, the Pachira walking boot isn’t just of interest for those who are looking for something without animal products; generally speaking, they’re pretty eco friendly. More info from Green Home, giving stats on the materials used in the boots:

• The solid rubber sole includes 40% post-consumer recycled rubber.
• The upper and the laces are 50% cotton and 50% hemp (this blend maximizes the balance between green and durabilty).
• The eyelets are 80% post-consumer recycled metals.
• The tongue and removable insole padding are made of 100% pre-consumer foam from seat cushion manufacturing.
• The artificial leather is derived from water-based processing and includes 20% post-consumer recycled soda bottle plastic.
• The lasting board is made of 100% pre-consumer coffee filters, office file folders, and post-consumer magazines.
• The shoe box is 100% post-consumer corrugated cardboard printed using soy based inks and is reversible for reuse as a gift box.
• Shoes are manufactured in China in a non-sweatshop, sustainably-run factory.

Not a bad endorsement by any means, as it seems that the Pachira Walking Boot has included recycled, recyclable or natural materials wherever it can. A gap in the market that desperately needed filling, the Pachira Walking Boot is a no-brainer for anyone interests in walking and also being environmentally friendly.

Love Those Shoes, who also stock the walking boots, had the following to say:

“A high quality Vegan walking boot or light hiker - men’s and women’s sizes available. Manufactured entirely from environmentally friendly and recycled components, with no animal products!“.

Another ringing endorsement, and only  another one amongst many, for a nice little walking boot that makes sure – unlike many of its rivals – to keep eco friendliness, ethics, and the environment in mind.

For more information and buying options, check out Green Home and Love Those Shoes.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

The eco friendly boom has given a new lease of life to wind-up products. The wind-up radio which was for so long a clever but outdated invention, is once again on a list of handy accessories for campers and festival goers. So too, are wind-up phone chargers.

Adding to that list, the Powerplus Piranha wind-up shaver is another nice wind-up product that allows for a clean and tidy shave in the remotest of places. Like all wind-up products, too, it saves on unnecessary energy, and emissions .

Stocking the product alongside other wind-up goodies, Green and Easy had the following to say:

“The POWERplus® Piranha wind-up shaver allows you to enjoy the freedom of shaving anytime, anywhere without a power supply - making it ideal for camping trips, commuting and holidays abroad. The Piranha has two flexible, powerful, replaceable shaving heads powered by an internal rechargeable Lithium-ion battery and comes complete with cleaning brush and mains adaptor.

No more dead batteries when you need a shave; all you have to do is simply wind the handle for a minute to get approx 2 mins of shaving time. Charge status is displayed via two LED indicators and when fully charged the Piranha will give up to an hour of shaving time“.

Certainly, there will be no more dead batteries indeed, and who knows: the wind-up shaver may even cause a beard epidemic at next summer’s festivals. Portable, easy to use, wireless (of course) and without need for batteries (obviously!), it can be taken anywhere and with anyone, very easily.

Perfect for travelling then, but no lame duck in the bathroom either, if one wants to keep an eye on emissions throughout the house. Green and Easy are not the only admirers of the Powerplus Piranha, with the Ethical Superstore also stocking it, and singing the praises of its portability, as follows:

It is small and sleek and will never need batteries; giving you the freedom of shaving anytime anyplace, making it perfect for travelling, commuting, or on holidays. You simply crank the handle to charge the shaver (1 minute of winding gives you approx. 2 minutes shaving!), or you can power it by the AC charger provided. Experience the next generation of shaving today with Piranha.

The next generation indeed, and one that reuses old methods, in keeping with the best of the eco friendly brigade, and the motto of ‘Recycle, Reuse!’. The Powerplus Piranha Wind-Up Shaver is riding the wave of the new wind-up products that have come just before it; let’s now hope it brings about plenty more gadgets that use such an ingenious method.

For more info on the Powerplus Piranha Wind-Up Shaver, visit Green and Easy or the Ethical Superstore, amongst plenty of others.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

As stereotypes and archetypes go, environmentalists are not those quickly associated with glamour, sex appeal, or even fun.

A lot of people, companies and products are quite rightly looking to try and change that image, and shed the outdated image of the fusty and pious hippy, or the holier-than-thou sourpuss; two stereotypes that are certainly unfair, and certainly do the idea of the modern, more mainstream environmentally friendly contingent far more harm than good.

One such product, tackles that problem directly. It contributes nicely to an image change. That item, the Horizon Hracer Hydrogen Fuel Cell Toy Car, is a fun and glamorous little gadget that can match other radio controlled cars just as well as its bigger brothers rival real gas guzzlers to the hilt.

Green and Easy, who stock the product, outline as follows:

The sleek and stylish H-racer is a futuristic toy car based on exciting 21st century technology which is widely forecast by many to be the future of clean, green transport. The H-racer will not only appeal to the young as it is a fully working miniature implementation of technology that is being proto-typed in full-sized cars in the development laboratories of leading motor manufacturers including Toyota, GM, Ford, Honda, and Daimler-Chrysler. Like these larger scale implementations, the H-racer operates on 100% clean fuel produced by a miniature solar-powered hydrogen refuelling station that uses the sun’s energy to convert water to hydrogen.

This palm-size hydrogen fuel cell car contains an onboard hydrogen storage tank, a fuel cell system connected to the car’s electric motor and a hydrogen refuelling system linking the car’s storage tank to the external hydrogen refuelling station. Equally importantly as a result of it’s small size, the H-racer requires and generates only tiny quantities of hydrogen so is completely safe.

No combustion occurs inside a fuel cell. The only exhaust resulting from hydrogen fuel cell cars is pure water. Fuel cell cars that use hydrogen as a fuel are also known as “zero emission vehicles.”

Like its bigger brothers too, the H-Racer, as it is fashionably known, iz zero emissions, so budding eco friendly Jeremy Clarkson’s can impress people with a cool toy car and a clean conscience.

A perfect gadget for the image concious eco warrior, then. One of the few eco gadgets on the market that is without practical purpose but isn’t so niche that it has almost no audience, the Horizon Hracer Hydrogen Fuel Cell Toy Car is a steal, and is as good as any radio controlled car already out there.

For anyone who likes their cars and can’t afford a proper hydrogen car – let’s face it, that’s the only reason ever buys a radio controlled car – the H-Racer is perfect.

To buy, visit Green and Easy.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

Green and Easy, a company whose name is an affront to those who won’t make an eco friendly switch for fear of toil and sweat, have  a good range of products. One in particular, the wittily titled PicnEco, is a perfect addition to any armchair eco warrior’s arsenal, with a whole host of eco friendly goodies inside.

On their website, Green and Easy describe the Picneco Picnic Set as follows:

“We are delighted to be able to add the PicnEco set to our summer range of great eco-friendly alternatives. Supplied by a great local company, every part of a PicnEco set comes from sustainable plant sources and is ethically produced. Each eco-friendly picnic set comes in a great Jute bag with Life’s a Picnic Logo and contains plates, glasses and hot drinks cups as well as cutlery and napkins held in place by a removable divider. The divider can be removed so your Life’s a Picnic bag can also be used as a shopping bag or if you leave the divider in it makes a great bottle carrier.

The plates, cups, glasses and cutlery can all be re-used several times, if gently washed and dried after use. Everything can be composted, either at home or in with your council’s collections if you have them. If you are unable to compost, most items can be recycled (see below for details) or, at worst, will biodegrade in landfill much quicker than the rest of the rubbish. If recycling then please make sure you rinse things first“.

There are certainly a good set of items: plates, glasses, jute bags, napkins, and cutlery. Everything anyone would ever need for a decent picnic, and the whole lot is practically completely recyclable. What’s more PicnEco makes sure that its customers are well aware of the origins of everything in the picnic set.

Take, for example the jute bags, of which it is written that,

“The Jute Bags are made and printed for us in India; they are ethically and sustainably produced by a family company who, amongst other projects, use the waste jute to help stop desert erosion”.

Indeed, everything in the set is compostable, and almost all of it is recyclable; only the cutlery, which is made from “corn and potato starch, is suitable for hot and cold food, and will compost in 180 days” is non-recyclable.

Five out of six isn’t too shabby, nonetheless, and the PicnEco, with its clever name and its stylish, practical and eco friendly products, is one of the more interesting environmentally friendly products on the market.

Worth looking at when the summer comes round, and we’re all itching for a British combination of cake and wasps.

For more information on the PicnEco, visit Green and Easy at their website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

Carbon footprints and organic produce go hand in hand: use of sprays, intensive farming techniques and machinery make highly treated food heavy on carbon emissions. Transportation of food on a mass scale, plus its maintenance, also produce high carbon emissions. For exactly that reason, home food growth has increased in popularity.

But it isn’t easy. Aiming to make it a little easier for beginners, Gift Republic have produced the ‘Grow It’ line, with kits aimed at helping first-timers grow all kinds of diverse fruits and vegetables.

From chilli plants, olives, tea and coffee, pumpkins, herb gardens and fruit selections, the Grow It kits are perfectly designed for those who want to start their own vegetable patches.

Nor is each kit without its diversity. The Grow It Chilli Plant Kit, for example, contains 4 types of chilli, making even one Grow It kit a perfect place for beginners. And, with a whole host of different plants, these kits add a real colour to the garden.

Of the Grow It Olive Kit, Gift Republic says,

“Bring a little Mediterranean sunshine into your home or garden by growing your own olives. All you need to cultivate your olive plant is in this gift box, including starter growing pots, compost discs, seeds and a booklet of growing tips.
Whatever the weather, your olive tree will be there to remind you of warmer climes“.

Nor does the Grow It line stop with fruit and vegetables. They also produce the Grow It Carnivorous Plant Kit, which helps the buyer grow the student favourite, the Venus Fly Trap. a particularly novel inclusion, its a nice antithesis to the vegetable and fruit kits.

Say goodbye to unwanted insects once and for all and grow two different carnivorous plants which feed on flies.  The weird factor certainly increases the popularity of the product, as Gift Republic testify:

“If you are brave enough then you will love the challenge of growing your very own carnivorous plant collection. Growing your plants is simple – everything you need is inside this gift box including starter growing pots, compost discs, seeds and a booklet containing growing tips. If you think growing the plants is fun then wait until feeding time!“.

Further, Gift Republic offer several flowers, including the Grow It Sunflower Kit, the Grow It Shamrock Kit, and even the Grow It Christmas Tree Kit. With such an interesting mixture of items, the Grow It line is well worth a look, and most will find one or two – or perhaps more – kits that will suit them.

The Grow It Shamrock Kit is one particular favourite, and Gift Republic themselves know why:

“If you need some luck, why not create your own with these genuine shamrock seeds…One of your seeds could even grow into a rare four-leaf clover“.

You heard it first. Reason enough to take a closer look at Gift Republic, for sure.

For more info, visit the Gift Republic website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

Eco Chic, is what the Green Store Online have decided to name it for themselves. Encompassing products that stylize the home in an eco friendly way, and by being eco friendly, these items are perfect for the style concious, and the eco concious.

Green Store Online offer a range of products for the home that fit the bill of Eco Chic.  A particular favourite, coasters made from recycled goods – there are also matching place mats – are a cheap and nice looking addition to the dining room, and represent something small that can beef up the eco friendly quota in the home. Green Store online says of the product that you can,

“Add a bit of Eco Chic to your dinner table with these Recycled Coasters from ashortwalk. Each Coaster is made from 7 coffee cups, has a quick wipe clean surface and felt pads to protect  your table“.

In terms of their ‘eco chic’ range, Green Store Online stocks a lot of weird and wonderful clocks and time keeping devices. A clock and thermometer set, mounted on black with silver hands and clean numbers, is a particular highlight, and can be used inside or outside. Again, Green Store Online is full of praise for its chic factor:

“This beautiful clock and thermometer…is designed to be weather proof, so can be used inside or out. The clean, contrasting design can be easily read from the far end of the garden!. The clock is wall mounted and comes with full instructions and guarantee“.

Another, aimed more at kitsch than chic, but just as intriguing, is a clock made from recycled vinyl, designed in the vein of the music format of the same name. Green Store Online outlines the item as follows:

“The perfect gift for any music lover, these vinyl wall clocks are hand made in the UK from an old vinyl LP and 7” single. The clock hands are made of metal with the minute hand custom made in the shape of a record player stylus. Quality clock movements ensure that each item is not only stylish and unique but functional and reliable too! Each Vinyl Clock comes complete with wall hanger and ready for an AA battery“.

Green Store Online’s eco chic, then, seems centred on accessories. One of its most interesting and clever uses of recycled items is also in that genre, but more interactive; a cheese board made from recycled wine bottles, it has an interesting shape and texture, and certainly beats most of its rivals for individuality. Once again, Green Store Online:

“This unique Cheese Board is made from a real recycled bottle green wine bottle. Hand crafted in the UK, the bottles are emptied, heated and flattened to create an ideal surface for cutting cheese.Four plastic lugs protect your polished table and prevent slippage. Comes complete with serrated cheese knife … just add your favourite cheese selection“.

Plenty for the eco friendly brigade to get their teeth into then, and more information can be found at the Green Store Online website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

A beer glass is like a trophy; in more juvenile moments, who hasn’t looked to smuggle an iconic glass from a pub and display it proudly alongside other such steals? That magpie instinct has been the bane of many-a-fine drinking establishment, and the rewards of the diligent and shrewd drunken spy.

Let’s face it: beer glasses are just tantalisingly collectable.

One company, Who’s? Glass, have cottoned on to that, and combined the magpie instinct with the trophy pride, to create some innovative and nice looking environmentally friendly products.

Taking famous designs like the Corona, Sol, Newcastle Brown Ale, Smirnoff, Coca Cola and Jack Daniels, bottles, Who’s Glass synthesise, from recycled glasses and bottles, newly collectable  and eco friendly glasses.

The Green Store Online, who stock these collectable delights, praised them as follows:

“Who’s? Glass is a fresh, young, environmentally aware glass-making company, based in Devon, that specialises in unique handcrafted recycled glassware. Their intentions are to transform, what in effect is discarded domestic waste, into contemporary useable glassware products.

All the bottles they use are collected within a 10 mile radius from their ‘Hot Studio’ in Devon from pubs, clubs, restaurants and camp sites.

Enjoy your glasses and take great pleasure in them, as not only are they beautifully crafted but they are helping that little bit to make this planet a little greener and less full and noisy of empty bottles… recycle, re-work and re-use“.

Who’s? Glass are certainly eco friendly through and through; whilst the product makes use of recycled materials and limits discarded waste, they also make sure to reduce unnecessary carbon emissions by collecting everything they use in their products from a small area, close to the production site.

They are also – putting environmental conscience aside for one moment – reliably made. The Who’s? Glass co-owner, Lars Persson, has a notable history in glass making and oversees the production of their products.The Who’s? Glass website outlines his credentials:

“Lars Persson, co-owner of Who’s? Glass, is a Swedish Master Glassmaker with over 40 years skill and experience in the glass making industry. During that time Lars has produced glass for companies such as Tiffany & Co., Cartier & Wedgewood amongst many others. In May 2006 he decided to fulfil a life long dream of running his own glass making studio. Working alongside Lars is his eldest son Anders, who also has many years experience in the glass manufacturing industry and together they’ve established Who’s? Glass, Devon’s first, and at present only, glass studio specialising in recycled glassware“.

The Persson father and son combo is making sure that, in a Britain that is increasingly interested in the origins of what it consumers, and in environmentally friendly products, the Who’s? Glass range is both eco friendly and made with precision and care.

Not a bad mix at all. For more information, please visit the Who’s? Glass website.

Posted under Articles, Product Innovations

In a move sure to please all the greens out there as well as mobile phone users at large, the world’s biggest mobile phone companies- that is, phone manufacturers and network operators- are set to go ahead with a much needed plan to introduce a universal charging device which would be compatible with all handsets, regardless of  model or manufacturer.

As it stands, the huge variety of shapes and sizes means that forgetting one’s own charger when going away for any length of time inevitably means dead batteries and a useless weight in the pocket. Many, whilst staying over at a friend’s, have felt a feeling of terror and nervous expectation as they rifle through drawers and cupboards, searching for the right model amongst a snake pit of black plastic forms. Not only do chargers differ between brands, but also across different models of the same manufacturer- the connector often slimming down as technology progresses and newer models come off the shelves. Whilst some of us keep a range of our old chargers, either for emergencies or in the hope of recycling them, this still results in a huge amount of waste: wasted energy in making the new chargers, and waste in the environment from the defunct chargers thrown away by unconverted non-recyclers. (A tip for those who are unsure of how to recycle chargers- put them up on your local Freecycle, or send them free-post to Help the Aged.)

The extra good news is that the chargers- which will last us longer, as we won’t have to update unless they break- will also consume up to 50% less standby energy than current models.

New handsets should all be able to support the universal charger by 2012, and firms behind the move include Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, LG, T-Mobile, Orange, 3, AT&T and Vodafone. The move will be a global one.

The new charger will use a micro-USB connection between it and the phone. According to the GSMA (an umbrella group representing the interests of the world mobile communications industry) the new charger could save up to 51,000 tonnes of duplicate chargers. In February the EU Industry Commissioner Guenter Verheugen said on German radio that there were currently more than 30 different kinds of charger in use across the 27-nations of the European Union.

Welcome news for the environment and workaholics.

Posted under Environmental News, Lifestyle & Fashion, Product Innovations