Your Daily Thread – EcoSalon

The Old Spice Hottie Goes Vegan, and Other News from Our Eco Pals

Heather Dale — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 19:50:56 +0000

Isaiah Mustafa aka “The Old Spice Guy” ups his sex appeal after confessing he’s on a vegan diet – Ecorazzi
It’s not a bad idea to begin tackling your fall gardening – Planet Green
Volvo is the latest automobile maker to jump on the green car train – Triplepundit
Did you know that you get fewer pests, a more balanced ecosystem and healthier crops with organic farming? – Tonic
10 supplements from your naturopath you should exercise caution before taking – Blisstree
Finally, the 4-11 on the SunChips compostable bags – Your Daily Thread

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Get Outta Your Car and Into the Outdoors

Your Daily Thread — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 17:33:03 +0000

Take Your Trips Outside the Car

I’m starting to think there really is no place like home. In his wonderful book, The Circumference of Home, Kurt Hoelting takes one year off planes, trains and automobiles in order to act on behalf of the planet, curbing his travel emissions and roaming-by foot, bike and kayak-his native turf. He writes: “The more I explore my home ground, the more it comes alive, and I have to put to rest the illusion that I am limiting myself by doing so. Everything we need to be happy really is near at hand.”

With that in mind, we at YDT have been thinking about how to stick close to home in eco-style this summer. Or, if we do trek farther, how to ditch the car once we’re in that new place, to wander without four wheels.

Here’s some inspiration:

Embody summer at home

At Make Grow Gather, Kelly Wilkinson has a “Lazy Summer Project” and attendant to do list. She doesn’t want to miss eating a ripe peach or star gazing this time around. She’s also featuring one post a week from someone describing their perfect summer day. With two so far, there is no mention of far-flung travels or automotives – more like homemade lemonade, hammocks and a morning spent reading in an NYC park (via new urban habitat).

Take a hike, don’t take the car

Escape Hatch at Readymade has clever resources for getting to hiking trails from a few major cities, without driving! Car-free Hiking feels like the perfect solution for enjoying the great outdoors and not smogging them up on your way there. If you’re in L.A. or otherwise not on the list, check metro or Google Maps’ transit option. And TrailLink might help you find a new knoll to trek.

For more car free travel options, check out the full-length article at Your Daily Thread.

Editor’s note: Article by Danielle Davis. Originally published by our friends at Your Daily Thread. Your Daily Thread has simple, everyday updates on living a green, active lifestyle. Be sure to visit them and say hi, and follow Your Daily Thread on Twitter, too!

Image: mikebaird

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Get Unnecessary Oil Out of Your Life

Your Daily Thread — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 16:53:27 +0000

There aren’t a lot of ways to wean yourself off of oil (at least not until the solar-powered jetpacks I dream of nightly turn into a reality). In the meantime, Your Daily Thread has a few solid tips for replacing petroleum-based products with healthier alternatives.

It has been over 45 days (at an estimate of 504,000 gallons a day) since the B.P. oil spill occurred in the Gulf of Mexico. While we here at YDT have left the reporting of it to major news sources, we can’t help but think about it and all the devastation that has come.

On an individual level I have wondered, what can I actually do? There are obvious things like drive less, donate human and pet hair trimmings to Matter of Trust, but beyond that I wondered”¦

I took a look around at everything around me and realized, it’s all from oil. Every possession was brought to me through oil and many of the products I owned include oil-by products.

I thought, what if we get the unnecessary oil out of our lives? Things like plastics, mineral oils, Vaseline and the additional 6000 + products made from crude not used for gasoline production. This is something that we all can do, no matter where we are. To get started, here are five recommendations to get oil based products out of your life.

Mineral Oils: Mineral oils are found in common skin care products like Johnson and Johnson’s baby oil. Bottom line is you don’t need it and it is nowhere near as good for your skin compared to natural and essential oils. Get the 411 on our guide to essentials oils.

Plastic Containers: Why store food in plastic when you can store it in glass? I recently converted my entire food storage system to glassware and used many left over pasta sauce and jam jars in the process. Glass Tupperware type storage is always an option too. As always, avoid plastic water bottles and take out items are a great idea too.

For more tips, check out the full-length article at Your Daily Thread.

Editor’s note: Article by Tracy Hepler. Originally published by our friends at Your Daily Thread. Your Daily Thread has simple, everyday updates on living a green, active lifestyle. Be sure to visit them and say hi, and follow Your Daily Thread on Twitter, too!

Image: uscgd8

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