eco-friendly — Page 21

LunchSkins – Sponsor Highlight

August 18, 2011 By Anne

I love reusable bags! I loath the thought of using plastic bags only once and then throw them in the trash. It’s a terrible thing to fill up our landfills with. Did you know that more than 20 million sandwich bags from school lunches go into U.S. landfills everyday? That’s just from school lunches, not to mention home and work use.

I’ve almost stopped using them all together. My lunch bag is bulkier from all the containers, but I love it! I just found out about LunchSkins. LunchSkins sells reusable bags. They have 3 different sizes – Snack, Sandwich and Sub size. These are all dishwasher safe, so you just place them in the dishwasher or the laundry and even the dryer too! I usually throw mine in with my towels and lay flat to dry.

Lunch Skins will work with you if your school would like to do a fundraiser. LunchSkins also donates 1% of online sales to the C&O Canal Trust, an organization formed to protect and restore the the historic C&O Canal near the nation’s capital, a trash-free National Park.

LunchSkins is offering a set of one sandwich and one snack to one reader during my Back to School the Eco-Way Blog Hop Giveaway!

Check out their different designs.

Check them out on Facebook and Twitter too!

Stay tuned the giveaway starts August 22 – 31.

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Do you use reusable sandwich bags?

Anne

I'm a mother of 2 who likes to get involved in too much! Besides writing here I started a non-profit, I'm on the PTO board, very active in my community and volunteer in the school. I enjoy music, reading, cooking, traveling and spending time with my family. We just adopted our 3rd cat and love them all!

The Ultimate Green Store – Sponsor Highlight

August 18, 2011 By Anne

School is almost here for us. Did you know that there is a wealth of green back to school supplies? There is! While searching the interent I came across The Ultimate Green Store. The Ultimate Green Store is just that! They have everything and lots of it! They carry products from leading manufacturers and designers of sustainable, natural, organic, recycled, eco-friendly goods- products that are made with your health and the health of our planet in mind. There is so much to shop for , I’m loving it!

I asked The Ultimate Green Store if they would like to be a part of my Back to School the Eco-Way Giveaway Blog Hop and they were excited to share their products with you! I will be getting a cool package of that includes a beautiful O’bon binder, sugarcane notebook, and newspaper
pencils. I was checking out the products online and can’t wait to see them! You can check some of the pictures below!

For the giveaway – The Ultimate Green Store is offering a $25 gift certicate that can used to shop their huge selection of eco-friendly products for the home, babies and kids. Not just for school!

You will need to sign up for their newsletter, so if interested, do it now – the giveaway starts on the 22nd!

They’re on Facebook too!

I will recieve the above mentions products

Anne

How to Go Green with Remanufactured Ink and Toner

August 8, 2011 By Anne

How to Go Green With Remanufactured Ink and Toner

The “Going Green” concept has really taken off, and all types of individuals and businesses are playing their part. Nearly everyone is aware of the benefits of recycling plastic and glass bottles, paper products, and aluminum cans. An additional useful method to help decrease waste, conserve resources, and essentially “Go Green” is using recycled printer ink and toner.

Original vs. Remanufactured Supplies

When individuals purchase ink and toner directly from manufacturers, the products are original items that can be very expensive, and in no time the cost of ink adds up to more than the cost of the printer! Remanufactured supplies save consumers a great deal of money while protecting the environment from harmful toxins at the same time. Various types of ink cartridges can be remanufactured.

How Ink and Toner are Remanufactured

The remanufacturing process is an uncomplicated process that yields a great green influence. The steps to the remanufacturing practice:

Step 1:An empty ink or toner cartridge is sent to a factory to be taken apart and examined.
Step 2:The cartridge is thoroughly cleaned and any faulty components are replaced.
Step 3:The cartridge is filled with new printer ink or toner.
Step 4:The cartridge is tested to ensure efficient function and compatibility with brand name printers.

Reasons to Select Remanufactured Products

Remanufactured ink and toner offer a variety of advantages to eco-friendly consumers and businesses.

Most likely, the most influential aspect is saving money. Buying remanufactured ink and toner can save consumers a considerable amount of money on a yearly basis. Remanufactured products can cost up to 60% less than new original supplies.

Helping the Environment

With remanufactured products, printing can be transformed from environmentally unsafe to eco-friendly. Every year, millions of individuals throw away their empty ink and toner cartridges, which eventually ends up in a landfill and increases pollution to the planet. In just the year 2001, more than 650 million ink and toner cartridges from home or office use landed in a landfill. Additionally, every year, with the constant increase of computer and printer usage, the number significantly grows. Imagine the effect if every individual and business recycled their printer cartridges, future landfills could be used for other more enjoyable purposes such as recreational areas, schools, or nature preserves.

Conserving Resources

Remanufactured ink and toner cartridges are developed using recycled resources including plastic, rubber, steel, and aluminum. Remanufactured supplies help conserve natural resources and use a lot less energy than the needed for original products.

Research Suppliers

Even though, saving money and adopting eco-friendly practices are clearly main priorities, it is essential that consumers be careful when selecting an ink supplier. There are a variety of online suppliers who offer high quality ink and toner at low prices, but consumers should conduct research before making a final decision. The company should be reputable and guarantee that all remanufactured cartridge undergo the necessary testing and compatibility examinations. Also, consumers should inquire about discounts and look at other products offered by the company. Many companies offer products with recycled ink such as environmentally friendly travel shoes.

Anne

Sponsor Highlight – EasyLunchboxes – Giveaway Coming Soon – Waste Free Lunch Boxes

August 5, 2011 By Anne

Go back to school the cool way! No need to waste plastic baggies in all those lunches. Try waste free lunch boxes! Try Easylunchboxes.com. They have cool bags with containers to place a sandwich, fruit and snack all in one!

EasyLunchBoxes.com is another sponsor for the Back to School Giveaway Hop starting Sunday August 7th!

We reviewed a set last year and Hunter used it the entire school year! It was great! We are still using it for camp!

What you will get? A container set and one lunch bag (you choose the color). Retail value is $21.90.

Giveaway is set to begin soon – make to sure to enter!

Like them on Facebook and following on Twitter for early entries!
This giveaway is offered to US residents only. Please do not enter this giveaway if you have won or received free product from EasyLunchboxes within the past 3 months..

Anne

101 Offline Activities – Book Review

July 28, 2011 By Anne

These days it seems everyone has an iPhone, droid or iPod, something to connect us to the Internet. I personally love it and will admit it – I’m addicted! I love how much info there is to find. And of course I bought each of my kids and iPod touch and they are only 3 and 10!

But, seriously, we all need to monitor what we do and how much time we spend connected with and electronic devices and focus on each other. I love reading and playing with my children. I love to act silly and play games. 101 Offline Activities You Can Do With Your Child is a great little book that gives you a ton of fun games to play with your children. The book is filled with activities you can do at home, on the go, at restaurants and more!

One that we’ve played since, forever, is I Spy. The book calls it Bistro Spy. While waiting for your table at a restuarant or waiting for your food, you can spy objects all around the restaurant. Other favorites, that we always do – Traveling Board Games – I used to make my own, and Travel Tally, where you count certain objects while traveling on the road.

Many of the games get creative by upcycling and recycling products around the house, I love that.

If you’re looking for more ideas and some good clean fun to be had with your kids or grand kids, check it out!

These games are fun, easy and eco-friendly!

You can buy the book from Barnes & Noble or Amazon here.

This is a FRN review. I received a copy of the book to facilitate this review. opinions are my own.