If you’ve ever wanted to stay abreast of your family, friends, work, health, social media accounts, and messages on the go without being glued to your cell phone, then look no further than the stunning and stylish smart jewelry we’ve researched and compiled just for you.

According to an article from Digital Trends, the average American is dependent upon their smartphone and social media networks more than we might have imagined. Individuals in the U.S. check Facebook, Twitter, and other accounts approximately 17 times a day, which is said to translate roughly to at least once for every hour we’re awake. Over time, based on general data usage statistics, these minutes and seconds add up to the tune of 4.7 hours per day on average spent on a smartphone – wow!

And if you agree with the idea that we’re awake for around 15 hours per day, then that means almost one third of our waking lives are spent on a cell phone. Combine this with computer usage, obesity rates due to sedentary lifestyles, and feelings of disconnection from our loved ones, then it may be time for an intervention. Fortunately, though, if you can stand the inclusion of a little more technology in your life, it may be able to actually help you reach your goals, rather than hurt them.

Take a peek at our suggestions below and find out whether or not any of our smart jewelry picks can help simplify and enrich your lives.

1. ALTRUIS

Best for the woman who wishes to receive fewer notifications and spend more time face-to-face with individuals, rather than on the phone. ($385)

ALTRUIS wants you to “stay connected, not distracted” thanks to the modern and attractive smart jewelry collection. It features rings, pendant necklaces, and bracelets that are designed to send you a subtle vibration when receiving specific filtered messages and notifications. Currently designed to operate only with the IPhone 4s or newer at this time, the jewelry’s programming allows users to customize which people, calls, messages, and alerts deserve your attention by filtering notifications based on tailored “profiles” and “secret words” via the company’s iOS app.

2. LEAF

Best for the woman who has her phone usage under control, but wishes to become healthier through the addition of more physical activity, better sleeping habits, and lower stress levels. (From $119)

LEAF from bellabeat is a foliage shaped product that’s designed to be a “unique and versatile health coach, fitness tracker, and the world’s smartest piece of jewelry.” Worn as a necklace, bracelet, or pendant, this tracker will record your fitness stats, sleep cycles, menstrual cycles, and help to relieve stress with targeted breathing exercises that are built into the product’s application. No charging is required, it has a 14 day memory, pill reminder, smart alarm, and inactivity alert.

3. RINGLY

Best for the woman who wants a stylish, no-frills no-fuss way of being alerted to the most important phone calls, messages, and reminders without constantly checking her phone. ($195)

RINGLY has produced a series of, you guessed it, rings clad with semi-precious gemstones nestled in a gunmetal plated setting. Labradorite, pink chalcedony (pictured), black onyx, and tourmalated quartz is a sampling of the stones they offer. Cocktail-like and definitely on-trend, these stylish baubles actually contain more than what first meets the eye. Designed to be used with iOS or Android, this works similarly to the ALTRUIS by allowing you to choose the apps from which you want notifications, but also has 4 different vibration settings and 5 light colors for further personalization.

4. CUFF

Best for the woman concerned about safety and health, as well as receiving fewer notifications from her phone. (From $49 to $199)

CUFF offers several pieces of jewelry to choose from that are designed to house the company’s module which keeps you connected from afar. Bracelets, necklaces, key chains, and wristwatch-like pieces are as beautiful as they are functional. This specialized bit of technology will be incorporating a fitness app this year, but already allows for users to send emergency alerts instantly to friends and family with the touch of a button – which we love – and offers the popular vibration alerts for specific programs and people.

In the end, choosing to use smart jewelry that works for your lifestyle should, in essence, help you check your screen a little less and be with your family and friends a little more. A small investment, some might say, to gain back that precious portion of our lives.

Do you spend too much time on your smartphone, or is it totally necessary? Are there any smart jewelry pieces that you would consider using? Why or why not? Let us know what you think on the EcoSalon Facebook page!  

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Image of Woman with Phone via ALTRUIS

The post 4 Pieces of Beautiful and Functional Smart Jewelry: Stay Connected in Style appeared first on EcoSalon.

Tangerines, strawberries, and melons…oh my! With innovative fruit leather handbags, these Rotterdam students are making waves and reducing food waste, one purse at a time.

According to the Government of the Netherlands website, Dutch consumers throw away approximately $2.8 billion (USD) worth of food. This is equivalent to nearly 14 percent of the total food purchased in each household and has led to an alarming degree of waste. Among the items discarded most often, such as milk, bread, vegetables, and oils, is the crucial component to these leather-like bags being made by the students – fruit.

In reality, when discussing food waste, the word waste actually means the disposal of edible goods that are still fit for consumption. As an attempt to combat the food waste epidemic, the Damn Food Waste advocacy project was created to bring awareness to Dutch citizens. Its mission is to educate others on how to make the most of their waste – learning how to extend the shelf life of products, recipes and ideas for leftovers, and even how to make new bread from old bread, are just a few of the educational exhibitions presented.

In addition to the steps the country is already taking, students from the Willem de Kooning Academie in Rotterdam are working diligently and creatively in an effort to reduce fruit waste from the local market. According to its website, the twice weekly outdoor market in Binnenrotte, Blaak, is the largest in the Netherlands, and in turn means the largest amount of fruit and vegetable waste – to the tune of around 7, 700 pounds of discarded items per day, containing pieces as benign as an “imperfect mango and some squashed nectarines.”

The fruit leather purses got their humble beginnings as an answer to the illegal dumping of waste by market vendors. Any leftover and flawed produce that didn’t sell would cost retailers approximately .13 cents per every two pounds of disposable waste, so they sought a cheaper alternative. Willem de Kooning Academie students scoured the market’s leftover fruit for months and eventually developed a new material from a “particular process” that they deemed Original Rotterdam Fruitleather.

As part of their graduation project, students from a variety of design backgrounds collaborated on several levels in order to plan, conceptualize, execute, market, and curate their fruit leather handbags. With the philosophy that “food isn’t trash, you just need to find a different purpose for the resisting material,” they sought a solution and believe that they found one in gastronomy.

Inspired by the chefs that use different techniques to transform fruits and vegetables, including the method for creating fruit leather, the students’ process is similar in that they also mash, cook, and dry fruits, but have chosen to keep their exact recipe under wraps. And, in case you were wondering, they do remove the seeds and pits before getting started.

Although these purses are currently better used as a delicious snack than as a substantial handbag (material standards can be viewed here), the Rotterdam students and their tasty totes are being supported by Materia, a leader in the realm of innovative materials. Their goal is to develop a studier, more durable material from the perishable goods in order to turn this concept into a reality.

If successfully marketed mainstream, the impact the students’ fruit leather could make in reducing food waste has the potential to spur change all over the world. Not only would it give designer handbag retailers a run for their money – step aside Dooney & Bourke – but it would be an excellent catalyst for redesigning other products that may be compatible with this material, like wallets, jackets, belts, shoes, and even home goods. Imagine the conversations and awareness those icebreakers would conjure up!

This inventive team seems to have thought of everything, including the fruit leather material swatches already available in varying shades of earth tones, because as they’ve discovered – different fruits produce different leathers. So here’s to hoping there’ll be a purse ripe for the picking in our futures very soon. In the meantime, check out the Facebook page for regular updates on the ongoing project.

Now that you’ve had an in-depth glimpse into the world of fruit leather handbags, we want to hear from you! Would you purchase a purse made from fruit? If this material is reinforced, what are some of your ideas for creative applications? Let your voice be heard on the EcoSalon Facebook page!

Related on EcoSalon

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Image of Fruit Purse via Fruitleather Rotterdam

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The electric blue is kind of cool. White’s got the Apple look going for it. Black is still the new black. No comment on the sea foam green.

The iPhone 4 accessory wagon continues its quick ramp-up with this new solar-powered battery charger/case available from SimeniBiz. (Read: “Direct Wholesale from China.”) It comes in not-exactly-rainbow colors, but its non-toxic, protective soft silicone sheath is “environmentally friendly” – whatever that means these days. I’m also digging on their marketing line: “Free solar power.” Um, okay. Thanks!

The “high-power” solar panel on the base of the case and built-in 1500 mAh Li battery is where you store the electric stuff. I know, mAh is a “what’s that?” term for me too, but 1,500 of ’em is a pretty healthy storage capacity; enough to “top off” your charged phone, says EnviroGadget. This is a good thing for those of us who get all nervous when the percentage charged icon falls below 98 percent.

The deal is that its battery charges when it’s left in the sun, with or without the phone in it. It can also be charged with an AC adapter, car charger, or USB charger via a 5-pin cable. The “dash” is simple enough for me, with three light indicators for capacity – 25, 50 and 100 percent – and an ON/OFF switch. Yep. Can do.

The post Calling on Sunshine appeared first on EcoSalon.

Since we’ve been on a bit of sun kick lately (hey, it’s August), here’s a solar-powered gadget that’s going to multi-task today. First, it’s going to thrill you with its ingenuity and get you thinking about how quickly personal solar-powered charging is coming along. It’s going make you think about all the times you looked down at your laptop, saw the “7 percent charged” note blinking on menu bar and thought, “Wouldn’t be nice if I could just plug this thing into something and keeping working?”

Yes, the Voltaic Generator Solar Laptop Charger is a solar-powered carrying case powerful enough to charge a laptop. We first showed it to you a few month’s ago in a solar-powered gadget round-up, but here are some details on what’s in the bag:

The case does its thing with high-efficiency monocrystalline cells and a battery pack that stores and converts electricity generated by a 15-watt, 20-volt panel. It’s being billed as more of a “mobile office” deal, as the case will also charge cell phones and most other handheld electronics.

The Lilon (lithium ion) battery has a capacity similar to a typical small laptop battery and is stored inside the bag, so it’s good to go whenever you need it (as in, “Hello! Hello! Still there?! Damn!”). When the bags not in the sun (with direct sun, a full charge takes five hours), the battery can be juiced using an AC travel charger. An Indicator light inside the handle shows it working.

The bag itself (shell, webbing, mesh and lining) is comprised of fabrics made from recycled PET (soda bottles). It’s strong. It’s water-resistant. It has an aluminum frame and a silicon handle, and weighs in at 4.5 pounds, including the solar panel and battery. It’ll hold something as large as a 17-inch MacBook Pro and comes in four colors.

Cost for packing sunshine: about 500 bucks.

And now, this case is going to serve its second solar-related purpose of the day. Writing about the Voltaic Generator Solar Laptop Charger requires no more from me. Nope, no 1,000-word tome today on Darwin, global warming or the evils of The Man. I’m outta here. It’s gonna be a scorcher and I’m hitting the chaise lounge that’s screaming at me from my balcony. Lates.

The post Case on Point: Laptop Carrier Bags Solar Battery Charger appeared first on EcoSalon.

Here’s today’s Mother’s Day giveaway: the iconic Yes bag.

Mom will get plenty of admiring glances when she carries this unique and coloful bag. Crafted from scraps of recycled fabric in a myriad of bright hues, a $64 value. Leave a comment to enter to win. Good luck!

The post Mother's Day Giveaway #9: Yes Bag appeared first on EcoSalon.

Meet the rubber beach slip-on that became an urban fashion staple: The Flip Flop.

So popular are these rubber thongs, you’ll find barrels full at your favorite boutiques in mod patterns, as well as more sensible Eco versions for the camping set.  College kids (male and female) ride bikes to school in them and teens pair them with dresses..even on winter days. They offer zero support but there is no taking back the craze. The good news is you can store your pile over your closet door, thanks to Organize.

This Bamboo Flip Flop Rack by Jokari® is an over-the-door organizer made from fiber friendly bamboo and can house up to 12 pairs of your favorite zories. The rack comes with two metal hooks on top that mount right over the door and a third hook at the bottom that is attached to an elastic strip to accomodate door height. It fits over any standard size door, and actually looks pretty cool. Since they’re in plain view, you’ll never forget to grab a pair en route to your next pedicure!

The post Over-the-Door Mat appeared first on EcoSalon.

A friend of mine wants to keep it hush-hush when her daughter is gifted a hand-me-down dress, as if wearing used garb signifies poverty or shame that might not fly in her affluent social circle.

My friend is a European whose family often struggled to make ends meet. And although she keeps it all in the closet, she accepts these offerings for all of the right reasons: they are clean and usually in perfectly good condition; It’s wasteful to go out and buy a new outfit when you can recycle; people who snub second hand goods are snobs. She may aspire to the don’t ask, don’t tell policy, but she knows better.

In fact, there’s a entire culture of thrifty moms who surf newspaper classified ads, Craigslist and Ebay to locate gently-used clothing and objects for their children. Seizing on this trend, an emerging site called handmedowns provides a one-stop destination condensing all of the shopping sites into one.  It combines the listings from the top five classified sites with original postings from trusted hand-me-down users.

It’s a brilliant idea because recycling clothes is good for us and for the shaky economy. The credit goes to two Hollywood dynamos: Norah Weinstein, a lawyer and mom who also founded The Hollywood Reporter, ESQ, and Jane Buckingham, who authored the bestselling Modern Girls Guide to Life.

“The sites that were out there had some great listings, but were simply not designed with a parent in mind,”  remembers Weinstein, who tired of sifting through torn, stained cast-a-ways on the web. “Our goal is to raise the bar for children’s classifieds and create a more family-friendly atmosphere.”

Buckingham adds they are saving parents time and money by pulling together safe, user-friendly products. Safety, they say, is heavily promoted to stay on top of government product recalls.

When you visit the site, you can click on your location and what you are shopping for (clothing for girls, boys, toys) and the age range. In terms of clothing, from layette to child sizes, you will find everything from shoes to winter outerwear and cute little legging outfits. There also are categories for selling, donating or giving your items away for free.

As the founders put it: “Once you start shopping at handmedowns, it may be hard to buy at retail prices again.”

It’s great news for kids who don’t have older siblings or cousins. I never met a kid who didn’t smile when I handed them something one of my girls had worn, from party dresses to ski parkas. For some, it’s even more special knowing your new posession was loved so well.

Image: manuel

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Take Back The Filter has launched a campaign pushing Clorox (the owners of Brita) to either set up a filter recycling program or create a reusable filter with a permanent housing, in which you only have to replace the environmentally-safe carbon granules inside. No plastic to throw away. British company Aqua Select has already done this, but so far no American company has jumped on this eco bandwagon. Take Back The Filter is working to change that, and if you’re a filter-lover like me, you can help them do it.

The post Take Back The Filter appeared first on EcoSalon.

Sometimes my daughter Syd’s drawers smell a bit gamey, like her soccer uniform after a match of  living up to her title as “the finisher”. She’s a darling girl, don’t get me wrong. But she has a frightful habit of  tossing items into her drawers to avoid that exhausting chore of putting them in the hamper. Enter drawer sachets. They give off that happy floral odor that can even compete with dirty socks.

Here are a few nicely packed bundles gathered from from the natural garden.

Show at top, and pretty enough to give as a hostess gift, this lime green natural linen drawer pillow was crafted by graphic designer Lotta Hellberg using safe dyes and aromatic potpourri. $22 for a set of two at Eco Artware.

Lavender is always a draw. Just ask the bees. These Sonoma Lavender sachets from Body and Home are $18 and are wonderful for lingerie drawers.

These Eco Seashell bags from Little Things Favors are not just for the bridal party. They’re Florida Coast fresh and add a delicate scent to the closet. $350 each. And for bringing in the great outdoors (and deterring the moths at the same time) the Natural Wild Herbal sachets at Eco Day Spa are $7.99 and tres outdoorsy.

The post Top Drawer Sachets for Scent and Shooing Moths appeared first on EcoSalon.

Bamboo cosmetic brushes are the fashion buzz, being touted in the December issue of InStyle as one of many new little ways to go green. As the magazine observes, “they’re making floors out of this prolific woody plant, so why not hair rollers and makeup brushes?”

The ECOtools, which we featured in a post several months ago, are only $10 for a 5-piece set at various drug stores,including Rite Aid.

You can also buy them online at Paris Presents. While these appear to be the only truly eco make-up brushes around, there are other cool bamboo tools out there, also available at Paris Presents. These include the  loofah face scrubs, a bath bristle brush, and a foot file.

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