I just wanted to say Happy Earth Day to everyone! Now that there’s a big focus on green products this month, I’ve found a lot of new info out just from watching TV! Anyone feel free to post something new they learned about Earth Day or eco-friendly products this year!

(I’ll have to do mine later, I ‘m running late for work!!)

Wow… not very talkative lately. I guess I’ll go first…

I’m addicted to HGTV and other home decor shows, so I like it when they show things that are stylish and fun as well as environmentally friendly. I was suprised to see wheatboard cabinets and kitchen countertops made of recycled paper. I love the look of a glass tile backsplash, and having them be recycled is even better! I don’t need to redo my whole kitchen, but I’ve been looking into getting new floors (I have nasty vinyl *shudders*) and I really like bamboo, and the newer click and lock lineoleums. I love cork floors too, but my two sets of furry claws o’ destruction kinda rule them out! I want to get rid of most of my carpeting since it’s already a magnet for said claws o’death, but for where I plan to keep it, they make carpet tiles made of recycled materials. And when it’s damaged or stained you send them back to the company and they shred them up and reuse them again!

I was also pretty happy to see strings of led holiday lights cropping up this past year. I’m hoping that there are more of them next year, possibly a little cheaper, so I can replace our old ones. We haven’t put most of them up for a couple of years, primarily from retail-induced exhaustion, but also from the electric bills, even with the timers. I miss seeing the little twinklers, so I’m happy that I can get some that won’t break the bank and drain the power grid.

Oooh! and completely off the home decor subject, I found out about biodegradable plastic water bottles made from corn!! I still haven’t seen Biota in stores here, though I haven’t made it to a specialty store yet.

Allright… someone else jump in…

Wow! It’s that time of year again!!

What have we learned/done green since last year? Well, we changed out all the remaining lights in and around the house to compact florescents… save the ugly hollywood lights in the bathroom. Yuk! The cfl bulbs for those are waaay pricey and we’re in the process of removing those fixtures altogether. We have timers on the outdoor lights that still need to run off the grid and switched to solar led lights on everything else. We’re in the process of putting in landscaping with native drought resistant plants, and will be putting in a small veg/herb garden. Still researching the whole composting thing, we’re definately doing it, but I’m trying to figure out what system will work best for our needs and lack of green thumbs and outdoor maintance skills. (PS - any info on the best way to compost FP and cat poop would be greatly appreciated in a separate thread. I KNOW you can’t put cat poo in regular composters or even doggie dooley things, but I’ve seen lot of conflicting info on how if/how to compost it. Can anyone can clarify for us? Captive target audience here!)

I’m STILL addicted to all those home improvement shows and would LOVE to remodel the house with all the new eco friendly goodies out there, but with the economy the way it is right now, we’re holding off on the big stuff. We’ve HAVE been thrifty finding new homes for various cabinets and building materials acquired from friends’ remodels and other sources, so we’re doing our part to Reuse and Recycle and keep waste from going to the landfill. And if it makes the kitchen more fabulous, so much the better! : P

Anyone else have some happy Earth Day news?