A few weeks ago, I introduced you to the newest toy in my kitchen, the FoodSaver vacuum sealing system. The challenge was set: I was to use it for three weeks and record how much money I saved by preserving food items in the FoodSaver bags. The problem? The way I shop.

In order for the FoodSaver to be a truly cost-saving device, it requires a shift in shopping methods. For so long, I have been used to buying only what we need and will use before it spoils. That means a single bag of bread, or two containers of strawberries or a one bag of potatoes. It is rare for us to throw these things away because we go through them before them go bad.

In the three weeks since I started the challenge, I never really got the hang of buying more than we needed in order to save money. I typically go to the grocery store with a list and a budget, and I do my best to stick to them. In other words, if buying 3 extra pounds of fish because they were on sale means that I’ll have to blow my budget, chances are I won’t buy them.

I realize, of course, that I’ll save money in the long run, but I’m still working in making that mental shift. So while I started out with all these grandiose ideas about trips to Sam’s Club and the farmer’s market, that just didn’t happen because those things were so far outside my routine. It didn’t help that Thanksgiving was smack dab in the middle of it all, so we were actually doing something counterproductive: we were actually trying to clear out the fridge of all extra stuff so we’d be able to fit the seasoned turkey and all the leftovers in there.

However, there were two situations for which we were able to use the FoodSaver consistently: for preserving steaks and marinating meat. And when I say consistently, I mean “by trial and error.” Need proof? Check out this video of my husband and I trying to figure out how to seal properly:

My husband is the only one in our house who eats steak. Consequently, when he buys a pack, it’s not likely he’ll eat all of it in a hurry. He became well acquainted with the FoodSaver because he wanted to preserve his precious steaks He would buy them on sale for $3-5 apiece, then season and vacuum seal them. The result? We saved money because he could buy larger quantities instead of running to the store whenever he wanted a steak and buying them at full price, and the vacuum sealing resulted in very well-seasoned meat. We also did this with chicken, seasoning it the day before we planned to cook it and sealing it up. I have to say, I loved the result.

So while I probably failed in an overall savings strategy for the FoodSaver, I did find two specific situations in which it is useful for us. And now that I’m more aware of how to use it (buying in bulk, shopping sales, etc) and I’ve learned from the steak example, I’ll try to do a better job of using those strategies on a regular basis. So in my mind, the challenge isn’t over!

Disclosure: I am a member of the Walmart Moms program. Walmart has provided me with compensation for sharing my FoodSaver experience with you. Participation in this program is voluntary. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

I hate grocery shopping. There. I said it.

I am one of those people who will put off going to the store for weeks, forcing my husband to stop in at the nearest store to replace staples like milk, eggs and bread. That said, I am always looking for ways to get out of regular grocery shopping trips. If I can save some money and buy more fresh food in the process, I’m all for it. So when Walmart recently offered me the chance to take the FoodSaver challenge, I was all for it!

A Food Saver is simply a machine that allows you to vacuum seal food — or anything else, really. What this means, in practical terms, is that I can buy more produce, meat, etc., in a single shopping trip, then vacuum seal it and store it for longer than normal.

Need some examples? No problem. A head of lettuce stored in the refrigerator will usually last about 3-6 days before it begins to spoil. We eat a lot of sandwiches, but with 3 people in the house, we almost never get through all of it. With the FoodSaver, the same head of lettuce can last up to 2 weeks.

Sounds good, right? I thought so too. It sounds like I’ll be able to save money in a couple of ways:

• Food will last longer, so there will be less waste (ie. wasted money)
• I’ll be able to buy more items in bulk, because I’ll be able to store the excess longer (saving money AND getting rid of excess packaging)
• I’ll be able to buy more organics from the local farmers markets because I’ll be able to keep produce fresher longer (yay, organics!)
• I’ll be able to stock up when items are on sale, because we’ll be able to store the extras until we need them

Plus, unlike a lot plastic packaging, the storage bags used with the FoodSaver system are BPA-free. So I’ll be able to remove food from potentially toxic plastic packaging and put it in something less toxic that will help it last a lot longer.

So what is the FoodSaver challenge?  Simply put, over the next few weeks, I’ll be tracking how much money I spend and save on groceries while using the system and compare it to what I normally would have spent in the same period. I’ll also be trying to find creative uses for the FoodSaver, like sealing important papers.

Check back in a few weeks to see how I did!

Have you used the FoodSaver or a similar vacuum-sealing system?  If you’d like to take the challenge with me, you can get a coupon for $10 off a FoodSaver system at  SmartSource! Just look for “FoodSaver” from the brand drop-down menu to find it. You can use the coupon to pick up your FoodSaver and supplies at Walmart or Walmart.com.

Disclosure: I am a member of the Walmart Moms program. Walmart has provided me with compensation for sharing my FoodSaver experience with you. Participation in this program is voluntary. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

It’s been years since my husband and I last owned a toaster. In fact, I believe we’d only owned one: A cheap machine we bought in a set when we first got married. Needless to say, it didn’t last very long before burning out, and we never bothered to replace it. That’s not to say we don’t eat toast, because we do. All the time. It’s just that we’ve been using the oven.

Yes. I said the oven. As in the full-sized, energy hog of an oven, every time we want a piece of toast. In my defense, I usually make toast for the whole family all at once. Still, it is a giant waste of energy to heat this hulking appliance every time we want toast. So my husband finally reminded me that we really need a toaster.

Naturally, my first reaction was to try to find an “eco-friendly toaster,” assuming there was such a thing. Apparently, there is not. Not really, anyway. All the information I found indicates that (obviously), it is more energy efficient to use a toaster than a conventional oven, and even MORE energy efficient to use a microwave. But since microwaves don’t make great toast, I figured we’d be OK simply by using a toaster at all (instead of the oven).

So here’s to our new toaster with slots large enough for bagels. And yes. We will unplug it when its not being used. Just like the coffee maker.

What bonehead things have you been doing that you realize you could easily change? Share your green confessions in the comments below!

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To put it mildly, our last set of pots had seen better days. We bought them more than 5 years ago with very little concern about how they were made, what they were made of, etc. And while they were still usable, we knew we’d have to get a new set sooner or later. So when the opportunity arose to review a set of stainless steel pots by Better Homes and Gardens, I jumped at the chance.

While BHG isn’t exactly known for carrying the greenest of products, this particular product is green by default. Why? Well stainless steel is 100% recyclable, and an average stainless steel object is composed of about 60% recycled material.

Our history with stainless steel

However, my husband and I owned a set of stainless steel pots when we first got married, and let’s just say our experience made us cautious about using it again. Stainless steel heats more quickly and evenly than traditional non-stick cookware, so if you’re not careful, it’s pretty easy to burn your food. The problem with our original pots is that they were cheaply made from thin metal, so they burned easily, and the charred food was extremely difficult to clean. Of the original set of 6 pots, only one has stood the test of time. And it’s not in the best condition.

Our experience with the BHG pots

Understandably, we were cautiously optimistic about this new opportunity to cook with stainless steel again.

The first indication that we’d have a drastically different experience with the Better Homes and Gardens 10-Piece Stainless-Steel Set was the weight of these pots. These things have some heft. You probably can’t tell from the photos, but they are very sturdy and well made. In other words, no cheap, thin metal to burn through.

We’ve been cooking with them for a few weeks now, and I can honestly say I love these pots.

As I mentioned before, stainless steel heats much more evenly than other materials, and that holds true here. Making omelets is like child’s play, and the eggs cook beautifully from edge to edge. There is a little sticking, but nothing that a few dabs of butter or a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil can’t fix.

And in case you’re wondering, we have burned a couple things. Not the fault of the pots though. I’d say it’s more because of operator error. We were so used to cooking on higher heat with our nonstick pots that it took some time to adjust to the fact that stainless steel doesn’t require as much heat to do the same job — particularly when you’re working with quality stainless steel.

I am happy to report, though, that even when we burned dishes — including notoriously tough burns like spaghetti sauce — cleanup was surprisingly easy. A little dish liquid and a couple of strokes from a scouring pad was all it took to make the pots look good as new, with no scratching. I couldn’t believe it. I also love the fact that these pots are dishwasher safe, because I fully admit that I hate washing dishes by hand. They’re also oven safe up to 350°F for warming and baking. Gotta love that feature, though we haven’t used it yet.

Overall, we are exceptionally happy with these. The lids fit very snugly and they perform like pots that are much more expensive.

The set includes a covered Dutch oven, 2 covered sauce pans, a covered deep skillet, and 2 smaller skillets — more than enough to cook a meal of several courses. We’re really looking forward to using them to cook Christmas dinner.

Why It’s Green:

• Stainless steel is 100% recyclable.
• Most stainless steel object contains 60% recycled material — approximately 40% from post-consumer products and 60% from manufacturing.

Price: $149 (aff)

Disclosure: I am a member of the Walmart Moms program. Walmart has provided me with compensation to share my cookware experience with you. Participation is voluntary and as usual, all opinions are my own.

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

I love bamboo cutting boards. They stand up to constant use better than plastic ones, and they’re sustainable and easy to care for with just a little oil. But THESE bamboo cutting boards? They’ve definitely taken my love to a whole new level!

Etsy seller AHeirloom makes these customized state cutting boards from plyboo, and they are absolutely gorgeous. If you know someone who loves where they live, or who just loves to cook, these would make a great holiday gift. Of course, it was only right for me to show the Georgia cutting board above, but they are available for most states. And if you’re fortunate enough to live in New York City, you can even get one in the shape of Manhattan or Brooklyn.

They make me wish I had a cook on my holiday gift list just so I could see how beautiful they are in person!

Why It’s Green:

• Made in the USA of sustainable plyboo (bamboo plywood)

Price: $40

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As much as we have tried to make our entire lifestyle greener, there is one area where we (more specifically: me) have always struggled — our diet. I am a lazy cook, when I feel like cooking at all, so convenience foods have been my crutch for a long time. I know we can do better. One of the things we’re trying to do is eat more fresh, non-packaged, organic foods. In this video, we’ve found a really easy way to support local growers, and I’ll show you how you can do the same.

Because of the diversity of the population in the area where we live, most, if not all, of the farmer’s markets are international, rather than local. While that is great when I want to find seafood or some of the branded foods and drinks I grew up with as a child in the Virgin Islands, our goal for shopping at the farmer’s market is to find food that actually comes from local farms.

If you want to shop online, check out LocallyGrown.net.

ABOUT THIS SERIES

Seventh Generation and Walmart challenged me to take a month and share the things I’m doing to make my home greener. That’s a little tough, since making my home green is all I ever aim to do. Still, we can always do more, right? In this series, I’ve shared with you some of the new, and old, things I’m doing to make sustainability a priority in my home. You can see what other Walmart Moms are doing, too. Sheena from Sophistishe, Monica from MommyBrain Reports, Jenn from Frugal Upstate and Denise of Wholesome Mommy are also participating.

Disclosure: I am a participant in the Walmart Moms program. Seventh Generation has provided me with products. Walmart has provided me with compensation to blog about attempting a more sustainable household for a month. Participation in this program is voluntary. All opinions are my own. (sponsored post)

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

It always surprises new visitors to my home to learn that we never buy paper towels. I guess it’s just habit for most people to ask for them after washing their hands, but it’s literally been years since my husband or I have bought a roll. This didn’t happen overnight. Eliminating paper towels and napkins was definitely a process, but it was a necessary step toward reducing the amount of waste in our kitchen.

Our goal is eventually to have no waste at all leaving the kitchen, which tends to be the room where most of our household trash is produced.

Paper products

Getting rid of paper towels was a logical step, and here are some simple tips to help you do the same.

• Once you’ve made the decision to ditch paper, build up a stockpile of cloth towels, rags and napkins.
• Don’t feel the need to buy special kitchen towels, since you’ll be using them to clean up messes and do all the things you used to do with paper towels.
• Have some full-sized towels that are on their last leg? Use pinking shears to cut them up into kitchen-sized towels. One bath towel can typically make 4-6 kitchen towels. More, if you cut it into smaller rags.
• Any piece of fabric you have laying around could be a cloth napkin. Literally.
• Put the cloth towels and rags where they are accessible so you won’t be tempted to reach for paper. Our favorite kitchen location is inside a small basket on the kitchen counter. In the bathroom, I tie a ribbon around towels and rags in the corner of the counter to make them easy to find.

Getting rid of paper towels and napkins really isn’t as hard as it seems. Once you’ve done it for a few weeks, it’ll become second nature.

Food packaging

We still have a long way to go to eliminate kitchen waste, though. Food packaging is a major source of trash, and it drives me crazy.

When grocery shopping, we consciously try to buy only foods that are packaged in recyclable containers — preferably ones also made of recycled materials as well. We also do our best to avoid plastics — even the ones that are recyclable in our community. At the end of the day, metal and glass can be recycled infinitely, but plastic will eventually reach a stage where it can no longer be recycled. Then what?  A lifetime in the landfill.

Still though, we’d find ourselves buying food packaged in recycled paperboard, only to find a non-recyclable baggie inside. We try to avoid single-serving foods, even when they’d be more convenient.

Eventually, we want to be able to avoid packaging altogether. We have been doing more shopping at farmer’s markets where we can get fish and other meats wrapped in paper, and we recently found a local co-op farm where we plan to sign up. This will allow us to get produce fresh from the Earth sans cans, wrappers, containers, etc.

Food waste

One of the biggest areas where I admit I have failed is composting. I keep saying that I want to try it, but I never get around to it. Yes, we live in an apartment, but these days, there are composting options for indoor and outdoor use. I’ve read all the details time and time again, but get intimidated by the balance we’d have to achieve to make composting work as it should. But really, there’s no valid excuse for why we haven’t taken the plunge.

Given my daughter’s affinity for half-eaten plates of food, we really would cut back on a lot of what we throw away if we could just toss it in the compost bin.

So here’s me kicking myself in the pants. We WILL buy an outdoor composter for our patio, and we WILL be successful at it by December. Hold me to it.

ABOUT THIS SERIES

Seventh Generation and Walmart challenged me to take a month and share the things I’m doing to make my home greener. That’s a little tough, since making my home green is all I ever aim to do. Still, we can always do more, right? In this series, I’ll share with you some of the new, and old, things I’m doing to make sustainability a priority in my home. You can see what other Walmart Moms are doing, too. Sheena from Sophistishe, Monica from MommyBrain Reports, Jenn from Frugal Upstate and Denise of Wholesome Mommy are also participating. Be sure to come back next week for more!

Disclosure: I am a participant in the Walmart Moms program. Seventh Generation has provided me with products. Walmart has provided me with compensation to blog about attempting a more sustainable household for a month. Participation in this program is voluntary. All opinions are my own. (sponsored post)

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

I enjoy the occasional sci fi movie just as much as the next guy, but you won’t see me at any Star Trek conventions any time soon. Still, I couldn’t help but  be enamored with this flying saucer bowl set by Museum of Robots. It’s geeky, but not in the pocket protector and bi-focal wearing sort of way. More in a really quirky, modern, “where did you get that?!” sort of way.

Maybe it’s because it’s made of beautiful, sustainable acacia wood, or maybe it’s because it’s the only way I’ll ever get to see a “real” spaceship, but I’d love to have this as a centerpiece for a dinner party. You gotta love the fact that it splits into two separate bowls for serving purposes. I definitely have to say I think it’s fab. The price tag, not so much, but the product is fabulous.

What do you guys think? Is it drab or fab? Would you use this for entertaining, or keep it out all the time. Weigh in below!

Why It’s Green:

• Acacia is a fast-growing, sustainable hardwood

Price: $230 (aff)

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I don’t have a whole lot of experience with big remodeling jobs like kitchens or bathrooms, but I know beautiful tilework when I see it. As soon as I saw the recycled glass tile made by Stardust Glass, I knew I’d found something special. Anyone who has been reading this site for any length of time knows that I’m a fan of clean, modern design with a little bit of eclectic personality thrown in, and I love, love, love patterns made from graphic geometric shapes. All of these could be used to describe Stardust tile.

The tile is available in a variety of colors, shapes and patterns, including small round tiles, hexagonal tiles, rectangles with rounded edges, squares, diamonds, and styles that are created from a combination of these shapes. To top it off, the handmade tiles are made up of 87-97% recycled glass.

One of the things I wanted to do in my mother’s home before we left was to add a gorgeous backsplash to really make the kitchen pop. Given that customers have the option to select the specific colors used in their tile, it would be easy to make it coordinate with the rest of her home. It would also help me convince my mother to use red in small areas, like a few of the tiles in the backsplash, instead of covering her entire home in the color from top to bottom — which is what she would do if I let her.

And consider this tile to be a preview of a great eco-friendly before and after to come later today…

Why It’s Green:

• Handmade in Portland, OR
• Made of 87-97% pre-consumer recycled glass, which is collected within 500 miles of the manufacturing plant in Portland
• Produced via an environmentally-friendly manufacturing process

Price: $30-45/sq. ft. Stardust tile can be purchased from a dealer in your area or via the company directly.

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

Anyone who knows me knows that I like eye candy. I love being surrounded by beautiful things. When it comes to the home, many of those beautiful things are purely decorative. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but one of the challenges I have placed on myself is to find decorative objects that are either meaningful to me in some way (think family photos or artwork) or that serve a purpose. This Puzzle Pieces serving board, found via my friends over at Young House Love, is the latter. It is a cutting board and a serving piece in one.

I love the idea of cutting up cheese or assembling hors d’ouvres, then serving them to guests on pieces of the cutting board. Sure, it can only serve 6 people at a time, but it is a beautiful and novel idea. And you can always keep the pieces together to make a beautiful centerpiece or serving tray that will remain in place.

Why It’s Green:

• Made of sustainably harvested wood

Price: $49

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If you have a bar counter in your kitchen, you know that they are a great place to add extra seating in the form of barstools. We currently have two old black ones that were basically the cheapest we could find at the time. Sure, they’re still in decent condition, if you don’t mind a wobble or two when you’re sitting down and getting back up. My problem is that my daughter thinks they are a ride at an amusement park, and she gets a kick out of spinning the stools, even when they are empty. So when we move into our own place, we’ll probably put our current stools in the yard sale pile and upgrade to something more stylish with no spinning parts.

I love these bamboo bar stools from Viva Terra. They are just 30″ tall, and they have a simple, sleek profile that would be great in my idea of a dream kitchen, which would feature dark wood cabinets with no molding and modern chrome or brushed nickel hardware. There are also no moving parts, which is great, but I’d almost be switching one problem for another. I’m not sure how mini me would handle bar stools with no back rest. I choose to make lemons from this lemonade: They would give me an opportunity to teach her about proper posture.

And why are they the Green Steal of the Week? Because for $149, you get a set of 2 stools. Sounds like a great deal to me.

Why It’s Green:

• Made of bamboo

Price: $149 for a set of 2 30″ stools

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

There are a lot of habits my family has developed that I’m trying to get us to change. Among them is our tendency to eat our meals everywhere but the dining table. This means in the living room, our bedrooms, and more recently, outside on the patio. Add a 3-year-old to the mix, and that means we have a lot of spills and crumbs to clean up after each meal. Since I’m not especially fond of the eat-in kitchen (neither are my daughter and husband), it’s unlikely we’ll start eating there any time soon. So I figured we probably need to acquire some accessories that will make our informal mealtimes a little easier to manage. These Soleil Serving Trays from Bambeco are exactly what I had in mind.

They will provide a beautiful pop of color whether we choose to go with red, yellow or green. They’ll also make it easier for us to get our plates and cups from the kitchen to wherever we’re eating, and make it more likely that we’ll take them all back to the kitchen when we’re done. At least that’s what I’d like to think these trays will do for us. Hopefully, they’ll also encourage my husband to do the “breakfast in bed” thing more often (although, wonderful man that he is, he does bring me breakfast about once a week)

And unlike me, if you’re inclined to entertain guests on a fairly regular basis, this would make a great investment that will make serving them a lot easier. They’re made of recycled materials and available in 3 sizes, so you should easily be able to find one to meet your needs.

Why It’s Green:

• Made of 100% recycled materials (although the Bambeco site doesn’t specify what materials)

Price: $35-78 (aff)

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In general, I am completely averse to any product that can be labeled “disposable.” Part of the reason our planet is in the condition it’s in is that so many people have a disposable mentality. We are socialized to believe that a product’s value is determined by its convenience, no matter how or where it was made or where it will end up once it’s not useful to us anymore.

I am however, also a realist. While I personally have no problem using regular ceramic plates every day and washing them, sometimes by hand, I understand that there are lots of people for whom this isn’t a realistic ideal. There are also situations in which even the eco-conscious among us will want a more convenient alternative.

I recently had a chance to test two completely different types of disposable plates: Verterra dinnerware, made from nothing by fallen palm leaves, heat and pressure, and plates and bowls from the CVS Earth Essentials line, which are made from a derivative of sugarcane. Both are made from renewable resources and are compostable, microwaveable and water-resistant, which, for me, is a bare minimum for any disposable plates. But how well did they perform? My family gladly put both to the test.

Verterra

The first thing I said when I opened the package of Verterra plates is “how cool is that?” Once you know they are made of palm leaves, it seems obvious. Without this knowledge, you might think they were made of bamboo.

Verterra sent us a few plates in a variety of sizes along with one bowl. They were all pretty small, to be honest, and I was a little disappointed by that. I tried to look at the bright side, reasoning that they would help us keep our portion sizes down. However, on a recent shopping trip to our local EarthFare market, my husband and I found 8- and 10-inch Verterra dinner plates, so bigger options are definitely available.

I tend to cook with sauces pretty often. We’re from the Caribbean, so that typically means curries and tomato-based stews. The Verterra plates felt very sturdy, but I was a little worried about what would happen when they came in contact with steaming gravy. The simple answer? Nothing at all. They held up like a champ.

And while I know the plates are meant to be disposable, I couldn’t bear to throw them away. So I handwashed them and set them on the counter on top of a towel to dry. The handwashing softened the plates quite a bit, and warped them very slightly, but after they dried, they were good as new and as firm as ever. The photo above on the left shows a Verterra plate in use. The photo on the right shows it after it was washed and dried. You can see that it’s slightly warped on the right side, but still completely usable. We’ve actually hand-washed them a couple of times since receiving them, and they show no sign of falling apart or weakening. Given that these are intended as disposable plates, I have to say I was pretty impressed.

Price: Sold in bulk directly from Verterra at about 40-75 cents per plate. Also available in select stores across the U.S. in much smaller quantities from about $3-7 per pack.

CVS Earth Essentials

These plates are made of fibers derived from sugar cane after it is processed. They look innocent enough — sort of like a heavy-duty disposable paper plate. The inside of the plate is smooth, presumably coated with some sort of non-toxic food safe substance to make it waterproof, while the back is a lot rougher to the touch.

We put the Earth Essentials plates to the ultimate test: Spaghetti dinner. Our meat sauce typically isn’t very wet, but sauce is sauce. And I know from experience that paper plates will fold under the pressure. These plates were very sturdy and held up even to my husband’s portion. After we ate, there were no soggy spots on the plate — just some staining from the sauce. Impressive.

But then I faced the real test. Would I actually be able to throw them away? I walked into the kitchen tempted to head over to the sink, but since the plates have a consistency that is similar to paper, I didn’t think that would be a good idea. Since (confession time) we have yet to get a true compost bin, we tossed the plates in the trash. I asked before receiving the plates if they would still biodegrade if thrown in the regular trash. I was told that the process would take longer, but they would still break down.

Price: $2.50 for a pack of 15 plates, or about 17 cents per plate. Not available at the CVS website, but you can find a store near you.

the verdict?

Overall, I prefer the Verterra plates. They are sturdy and stylish, and I’d feel great about serving to guests on them. And the fact that I can wash and reuse them several times makes them totally worth the money. That said, they are a bit hard to find, and it’s great to know that I can head to my nearest CVS and find some great, compostable plates. I still plan to stick to reusable ceramic plates for daily meals, but if we ever have a cookout or we plan a party for my daughter’s birthday this year, both Verterra and CVS Earth Essentials are great options.

(review)

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Readers, you probably know by know that I have a distinct taste for home decor that will generate conversation. From crazy floor lamps to three-dimensional wallpaper panels, if it is unique and quirky, I’ll probably love it. So a few months ago when I found the affordable, seemingly gravity-defying wine angle from Terra Furnishings, it was a no-brainer that I had to feature it. Well, if the wine angle set the bar high, this Gravity Wine Holder from Wrapables has set it even higher.

It is made of beautiful strips of mango wood, a sustainable hardwood, that give it the dramatic look of high-end zebrawood. Like the wine angle, it leans precariously and will no doubt make you and your guests wonder how it manages to stay upright. This one costs about $7 more than the wine angle, but I’m all about having options. If you love dark wood like I do and crave the combination of a geometric shape like a circle with an off-kilter design, this is the way to go.

Why It’s Green:

• Made of sustainable mango wood. Old mango trees that can no longer bear fruit and are cleared out and used to make room for new mango trees, maintaining a sustainable cycle.

Price: $26.95 (aff); and get $10 off orders of $75 or more with coupon code “OFF10.”

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I’ve never been a big fan of cooking. I’m actually a pretty good cook, but I’m rarely in the mood to stand in front of the stove for an hour. And I’ve never baked anything that didn’t come in a mix with instructions on the box. Lately, however, I’ve been watching the Food Network a whole lot. I guess you can say I’m looking to expand my palate and find some fun, interesting recipes I can make for my family. I figure since I have to do it, I may as well try to have fun with it. These beautiful Fair Trade pot holders and oven mitts will definitely make my time in the kitchen more stylish, if not necessarily more fun.

They are available in a variety of styles and colors, including Bali Green, Black & White Pine and Ginkgo. I’m not entirely certain what fabric they are made of, but they are trimmed in natural linen.

These pot holders and mitts were made through Zen Zen, a Fair Trade company dedicated to offering great handmade products that don’t compromise the traditional crafts and lifestyles of the people of Bali, Indonesia. Although nearly all fair trade products are imported, I don’t think twice about buying them because I know that my dollars will end up where they rightfully belong — in the hands of the artisans who made them.

Why It’s Green:

• Fair Trade
• Handmade

Price: $7-10

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