Monthly Archives: August 2009

This repurposed bag from Artecnia show how out of the box thinking can turn one useless item into something very useful.  These bags are made from old billboards that are cleverly die cut in a symmetrical pattern to give the bag it’s shape and strength.  It can carry up to 33 lbs!  It’s made without any glues or stitching of any kind and comes in an array of colours depending on which billboards were used to make them.  Sometimes the simplest ideas and products are also the most ingenious.  This bag surely demonstrates those ideas in a variety of ways!

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I always thought that only people without kids grew to love them as family members until I got my first dog a few months ago from a couple who didn’t want him anymore.  Look at that face, how could someone not fall head over heels for the little boy?  Bonsai has most definitely become a member of our family as loved by me (maybe more because I have pick up the poop!) as by my kids.  I worry about him when I’m at work or when he’s feeling under the weather.  His groomers are choosen with thought and care to his emotional as well as physical well being.  Now, I’m wishing that we lived in Toronto because they really seem to have cornered the market on pet grooming in Toronto.

Check out the site called vipSITTERS.  They offer a huge range of services for pet owners in the greater Toronto area while assuring the well being of both the pet and owners.  They have groomers who will come to your home, walking services, pet sitting, doggy daycare, house sitting, cremation and burial services and even a pet ambulance service!  Heck, they even have shipping and relocation services specifically designed with your pet’s emotional and physical needs in mind.  I definitely wish they had a service like this closer to home.  We are looking hard for a groomer that offers personal service for our pup without the noise and anxiety that going to the groomers salon for the day entails.

This is a sponsored post with 100% real opinions.

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Gursan Ergil shows how eco-friendly and super sexy, modern design go together hand in hand with his reclaimed wood furniture pieces.  He works the natural shape and grain of the wood into the pieces for a truly organic feel.  He uses traditional woodworking techniques and joinery to create furniture pieces that would look at peace in even the most contemporary interior.

Working from Istanbul, Gursan strives to “create well-crafted, harmonious environments both indoors and outdoors, thereby improving our clients quality of life”.  This quote may seem kind of cheesy at first glance until you see his work.  The peacefulness of the reclaimed wood pieces shines through and would definitely help to create interior spaces that would help people reconnect with nature and cherish it at the same time.

His work is definitely worth taking a look at as there are many other pieces not shown here that are beautiful beyond words.  The wood is carefully treated and varnished with the environment in mind.  He uses reclaimed wood for his furniture pieces to show off the “maturity of the wood” as well as to help reduce the need for deforestation for furniture purposes.  By working with the wood instead of simply altering the wood, his pieces truly do highlight the previous existence of the furniture as wood.  Simply astounding at what can be created with skill and creativity with the cast-offs of our modern society.  I would love to be able to invision the world through the eyes of such a skilled artisan!

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It may seem weird to say this but winter is right around the corner.  That means winter driving conditions and sometimes, car accidents!  Of course, poor road conditions aren’t the only thing that leads to automobile accidents — sometimes the car or the driver is to blame.  In most situations where driver negligence is to blame, it’s important to hire a good attorney.  Whether the driver was negligent, reckless or perhaps impaired, an attorney with experience in car accident representation is vital.  Make sure that you’ve got yourself covered no matter where you are — from Texas to Tacoma car accident lawyer representation can make a huge difference as to how the damage is resolved.

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Check out these gorgeous sandals by Ecosandals.  They’re a not for profit importer and reseller of these sandals made by the Akala Designs Limited co-operative which runs out of Nairobi, Kenya.  Absolutely no one at eco-sandals earns a salary — everything is funded and run by volunteers!  All the profits go to support the Korogocho, Kenya development project that is helping members of the community learn new skills.

These sandals are made in shanty towns by people, mostly women, who are forced to live on approximately $1 for their entire families.  Ecosandals are providing much needed employment and skill sets to many while taking tires out of garbage and reselling them.  Only creativity and meticulous artistry could make tires into something so beautiful for so many feet.  The artists are also learning to become internet savy in the process.

Want a pair of your own??  Go to Ecosandals online to buy them or Organic Girl’s blog for a chance to win a pair!  You can also donate funds to the cause at ecosandals.  It’s definitely a worthy cause where you don’t need to worry about your monies being squandered on administrative salaries.

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Check out these super sexy headlights for your car.  They’re stylish, unique and down right awesome!  It may be a stretch to say that they’re eco-friendly but the line of LED’s under the projector headlights do make the lights brighter without wasting much power.  They’re also a great way to make an older vehicle a little cooler and stylish which may even prolong the vehicle’s use.  If you could make some easy modifications to your vehicle and fall in love with it all over again, it would save you the money and the planet’s resources required to make another vehicle.  There are easy ways to make your car sexier if that’s the only reason you’re thinking of replacing it.  This type of headlight can be ordered for your particular make and model of car.  It can be directly replaced for the standard headlight in most cases.  Extra luminance and extra sex appeal…

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More and more people are turning to natural remedies to solve a variety of health concerns.  People are finally beginning to realize that it isn’t good for your body or the planet to consume lots of unneccessary prescriptions.  In fact, the only people that seem to be benefitting from the overmedication of people is the drug companies making the various compounds.

Natural remedies can be sometimes be more effective and powerful than prescription medications.  Extreme caution needs to be taken when using them for this very reason.  Holistic practioners can recommend a variety of natural remedies but you need to make sure that they do not interact with any other medications or supplements that you may be taking.  Your physician and pharmacist are also great resources when it comes to seeking more natural cures for ailments.

For example, acne is particularly troublesome condition that can be helped with natural remedies.  Today is the first day back to school for many kids.  Teens, in particular, are sometimes afflicted with acne which can seriously damage their self esteem.  Natural remedies, including Acneticin, can be used to help clear up their skin.  Acneticin has been shown to be more effective than prescription acne remedies in some people and contains a variety of mother natures strongest acne cures.  Talk to your doctor before beginning this treatment regiment or any other.

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These reusable snack bags are truly my favorite back to school item this year.  These ones are made by the Craft Twins on Etsy and are only $16 USD for the matching set of three.  The Craft Twins are actually a set of twin sisters who have been sewing professionally for over 30 years so you can be assured that the quality of their products is very good.  These bags come in a variety of styles in case you are not a huge shoe lover, like myself!

They’ve got everything from Dora for the little ones to skulls for the bigger ones.  They’ve even got some neutral reusable bags for the boring grown-ups in your life.  They come in sets of three sized just right for lunch — one sandwich sized bag and two snack sized bags.  These kinds of reusable bags can really help to keep plastic out of our landfills by making plastic baggies obsolete.

They are waterproof as they are lined with nylon and close with velcro to keep everything in.  The one thing that I really like about this seller’s bags, in particular, is that there are no exposed seams inside of the bag to catch crumbs and food bits.  That makes the bags easier to keep clean!  All you have to do at the end of the day is turn them inside out and wash it with a cloth.  Then, they’re ready for use again tomorrow.  Much better for the planet and your wallet than continually buying and throwing away masses of plastic bags.  They take up much less space than tupperware containers too!

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In the constant, hectic rush of modern life, people’s houses can quickly become filled with clutter.  This excess clutter can actually increase people’s levels of stress and anxiety which is the absolute last feelings that you want to have when you enter your home.  Home is supposed to be a person’s refuge from the world not a place where they have a million other things to do all of the time.

There are several ways to keep your space decluttered.  First, have a place for things to go.  The mail, recycling, books, and paperwork can pile up quickly if there are no real places for it to be put away.

Secondly, get things up off of the floor.  This leads to a cleaner, more streamlined look.  A good way to declutter your living room is to us television mounts instead of having a large entertainment stand that just gathers dust and assorted items.  With the advent of flatscreen and plasma tv’s, mounting televisions on the wall in the living room is becoming more and more popular.  This treats the tv more like a piece of art than an audio component.

Lastly, remember to put things away after you’re done with them.  This will lead to a clean and organized look and prevent you from becoming overwhelmed with a lot of things to put away all at once.  Even if you just have a junk drawer where you can put misceallenous things, it will give your living room a decluttered look.  This will lead to a more serene and peaceful feeling in your home for you, your family and your guests.

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It seems like there are a million tiny details when you’re throwing a big party.  There’s the food — what should you serve, who has food allergies, how much, etc.  Location, date, guest list and seating plans are also major details that need to be worked out.  Thankfully, party invitations are one thing that you can take care of quickly and easily.  Visit Cards Shoppe online for a great selection of invitations and cards of every kind.  They’ll ensure that your invitations are beautiful, correctly printed and arrive to you safely so that you can send them off to your guests with plenty of time left before your big event.  All of their cards are done in house by talented and skilled artists that will ensure that your invitations are not only correct but unique.  The site is worth checking out for whatever the occassion may be.

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