Valentine’s Day is around the corner and if you don’t have the time or confidence to up-cycle a gift for your lovie the least you can do is make your purchase responsible. Show how much you love your hunnie and our environment, kill two birds with one stone if you will (No actual birds should be hurt please and thank you). Here are some awesome deals from some even awesomer eco-fab places.

chocolate that makes a difference

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Eco-Elegant Valentines Day Flowers & Gifts Starting At $29.95- OrganicBouquet.com!

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Save 10% On Organic Linens + Free Shipping
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Kee-Ka has Free Shipping for orders $75 or more. Continental U.S. only.

Check out what Ecoist.com has for you for this Valentine’s Day

Great Natural Brands – Save up to 50% Right Now…!

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Unique Gifts Under $30 at ChildTrek.com

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 I am not religious but every year my mother would get me a candy Advent Calendar and give me a tiny gift every day until X-Mas Eve. To this day both traditions are extremely special to me. Not necessarily because I got gifts or candy everyday before the big day but because my mother was sooo excited everytime to give them to me. One day when I have little pups of my own I fully intend on sharing the tradition with my puppies!
I have noticed in the passing years the advent calendars I see are not up to snuff! As per usual I feel you can do it yourself and have a much better time with it. You can change up the calenders every year or keep the ones you make. This is an excellent activity to do since it is getting quite chilly outside! I found this excellent little ditty on FamilyFun.com which is an amazing resource all I did was add a little green!

Materials
Templates
Recycled Green paper in different shades (you can totes use any shapes or colors you want)
Double Sided Tape
Glue
Old Gift Bows or Ribbon
Small gifts or candy
Recycled Tissue paper
Marker
Any odd’s and ends you have around the house that can spruce up your little trees!

Directions:

1. Download the templates and trace the shapes on green paper. Use double sided tape the cones together. Make the other 23 trees of different colors and sizes.

2.Cut or punch out 24 paper circles and write the numbers 1 through 24 on them. Glue the circles to the trees. Add a star or bows to the tops of the trees or save them for the 24th tree.

3. Decorate the trees anyway you like using whatever craft stuff or odds and ends you have around the house to make them unique or leave them plain.

4.Wrap small gifts in tissue paper and place them underneath the cones. You can also use homemade coupons for special things like staying up later, a special dinner or dessert.

Mandala Record Bowls

Hello the holidays are here! You know you need something to be a center piece or to hold decorations so why not try Mandala Record Bowls?! I know we have all seen the bowls made out of vinyl records before but these have some panache! They colors and designs are hand painted on there. Mandala offers a variety of colors and designs. I am in love with these record bowls. I am not going to lie they are a tad pricey but I completely think the record bowls are worth it for their design and craftsmanship! Click here to get your very own Mandala Record Bowl now!

About:Carnation Pink Mandala Record Bowls are created from recycled 12″ vinyl records. The “platters from the past” are upcycled with fresh acrylic paint and an original Eye Pop Art mandala design which is painted freehand with glossy highlights.

The record bowls are hand painted in original psychedelic patterns, heated, and lovingly sculpted into uniquely organic, flower-like forms. The spindle holes are filled so the bowls are water tight and functional. Semi-gloss polyurethane is used to finish to protect the paint and make the bowls food safe. The original record labels intact (and also sealed with polyurethane) on the bottom of each bowl – which record will YOU get?

Eye Pop Art bowls are fantastic for holding fruit, candy, candles, trinkets, or anything your heart desires. They are bright, colorful art objects to set on your coffee table. They are eco-friendly and make a great conversation piece! Surprise your guests when you tell them to flip the bowl over and see the very interesting recycled material that it was made from!

Most of us have fond memories of the days when all we listened to was records – let the music live forever with a Mandala Record Bowl.

Mandala Record Bowls by Christine Claringbold are hand painted with original designs using high quality acrylic paints, then heated and lovingly sculpted into unique organic, flower-like forms. The artist has sealed up the spindle hole to make the bowl water tight and functional. The entire bowl, as well as the original record label on the bottom of the bowl, has been sealed with a glossy finish.

Made from a recycled 12″ vinyl record, the finished size is about 10″ in diameter and 3″ deep (about 25.4 cm in diameter and 7.62 cm deep).

Product Notes:
- Hand wash gently with a damp cloth, air dry. Please do not put in the dishwasher, oven, or microwave!
- These are hand made items and may take up to one week to ship..

It is holiday time!!! This is an expensive time of year forever one so we at The Green Beagle want to help you save your green while being green for the holidays. If you have to spend money give it to companies/business that hold the same values as you do.

Free $5 to spend at GiftsWithHumanity.com

5% OFF Any Order at My Good Greetings

10% off The Green Dollhouse

$3 Off Digital Shower Timer Gift Sets

Save 10% On Nokero Solar Light Bulbs

Save 15% On Our Full Line of Personal Solar Chargers

Making money for Sierra Club has never been easier.

15% off Science Kits
Coupon Code NATURALPET15 – 15% Off Only Natural Pet Brand Products!

Use Coupon Code WEATHERIZE to Save 15% on our Home Weatherization Inspection and Repair Manuals
Shop and Save this Holiday Season with NOVICA! Take $10 off any purchase over $40! Use Code: NOVICAEX3
Save 15% Off All Ink Cartridges
Green & Gorgeous! Sustainable, Socially Responsible, Stylish Baby and Kid’s Clothes at Positively Organic

Kee-Ka has Free Shipping for orders $75 or more. Continental U.S. only.

Free Shipping On Orders Over $100
Save $10 On the American Wilderness Dinnerware Set (Nov, 11-17).

10% off through 12.31 with code Holiday10

Eco friendly gifts from Ecoist

Unique Green Gifts Under $30 at ChildTrek.com

Free Shipping on the Sustainable Office Supply Sample Pack
Overstock Items Marked Down Today at GildenTree.com! Shop Today!

Save $22 on Trilogy’s Top 3 Skincare Lines

Green Gifts for Kids
Green You Holiday with these Fabulous Eco-Gifts
FREE Afterglow Cosmetic Shipping! Order $90+ and receive free USPS Priority Shipping inside the US.

LovingEco has deals everyday on hot green items!

FREE shipping when you spend $100 from Coyuchi.com. Use coupon code: Organic100

Ecoist Halloween Bag

I know you are probably getting tired of me constantly writing about Ecoist products but I really can’t help it. I know Halloween is over but I am in love with this bag like you cannot believe. Halloween is my favorite holiday and this bag is soo super cute!! I will keep it short and sweet I just wanted everyone else to fall in love with this bag like I did! The design stays true to the usual Ecoist form but the pattern is super cute and perfect for more than just Halloween, I think anyway. You should get one for yourself now before they are sold out.  You know next year Ecoist will come out with something newer and even cuter (if that is possible) for Halloween so grab yours now!

I think I have mentioned before how I love writing letters and sending cards which isn’t the greenest of approaches to correspondence but I go out of my way to find the green-est stationary I can get my hands on. I do my part and send out actual stationary only when I need to express that personal touch that e-mail/e-cards cannot display.
While searching for some invitations for a family member’s upcoming baby shower I came across Twisted Limb Paperworks unique designs. Twisted Limb’s handmade paper is just as unique as the company. You should be happy to know that the paper is made here in the USA which is a quality I will never get enough of. The colors and texture are much more fun than you can find in boring old mass produced stationary. Just feel one sheet of Twisted Limb paper and you will immediately see a difference. You can see the care and love put into producing Twisted Limb products. This paper isn’t made for the sake of cutting down tree’s it is an alternative to a necessary evil that will probably plague the world for quite a few more years.

About Twisted Limb Products (you can read more about Twisted Limb Paperworks by clicking here):
■Eco-friendly: We want you to fall in love with any of our designs knowing that they have the highest environmental integrity possible. The paper we make and use is the very best from an environmental standpoint or we don’t carry it. Except for the eco-friendly vellum, which is 30% PCW recycled and processed chlorine-free (best available), all paper that you receive from Twisted Limb Paperworks is 100% PCW recycled and processed chlorine-free; most are also manufactured carbon-neutral. Learn more about our sustainable business practices.
■Artisan-crafted in the USA: Our handmade paper and invitations are carefully made from start to finish in our colorful carbon-neutral art studio in Bloomington, Indiana

If you must purchase stationary or have an event that requires invites do your part and support businesses that support our environment, better yet that support our environment and our country! Did I also mention that they support your wallet by not charging a million dollars for their beautiful products?? Twisted Limb Paperworks goes out of their way to make beautiful, high quality stationary for their customers so go out of your way to do the right thing and choose green! You don’t be disappointed.

Matt & Nat Laroux Clutch

I have been drooling over Matt & Natbags for years! I love their style and design! I refuse to wear or purchase leather or any article of clothing or accessory made from an animal but that being said I also love fashion! I went to college for it!  While most of my friends were wearing Chloe, Marc Jacobs, Chanel and so on I was quite limited to bags that I liked that didn’t look “hippish” but that didn’t look cheap either. It sometimes was a grueling process to find shoes, bags wallets or even sometimes coats. Now with businesses like Matt & Nat those of us who choose not to participate in torturing animals have the opportunity to show the rest of the fashion world you don’t need leather or snake skin to be fashionable!
For my birthday this year some of my fave friends got together and purchased me my first Matt & Nat bag! I am in love! I had been dying to get my own for a while but was trying to be conservative. I can’t get enough of it. I have been wearing it everyday and every time someone asks me about the bag I give them the story of Matt & Nat.

About Matt & Nat:In the summer of 1992, I was challenged by a Mahatma to go vegetarian for 30 days. At the time I had no idea that this choice would have such an impact in my life as well as that of others.
Three years later, I was completing a degree in marketing and corporate law when one of my courses required me to develop a business plan and go out to attain funding from banks. I came up with the idea of MATT & NAT, got a B on the paper and got zero ‘pretend funding’ from 2 banks. Nevertheless, feeling that this would be my life’s calling, I decided to forego the idea of attending law school and start a brand shaped by duality, the idea of creating beautiful things that have a positive impact. The characters in the acronym M&N represent this journey.
Over Fifteen years later, our team is continuously working towards this goal, developing beautiful (we hope) products for people who appreciate a smart, unpretentious, socially conscious brand characterized by minimalist design and utility.

Positive impact, every little bit counts!
As has been the case since our humble beginnings, our line is cruelty-free, using no animal products. Veganism has been proven to be one of the most effective ways to fight global warming.
As an example of the spirit and commitment of MATT & NAT, all linings of our bags and wallets are made of 100% recycled plastic bottles. In fact, on average we recycle 21 water bottles to make the lining of each bag.
In 2011 we introduced cork labeling inside all of our bags, an innovative material in the fashion industry that is sustainable to the environment. Cork extraction is one of the most environmentally friendly harvesting processes in the world.
Every now and then we also donate bags to women’s shelters around Montreal, feed the homeless people of this city a vegetarian meal and throw product out of our office windows to loyal fans.

I always love featuring green businesses to bring their name out there and in hopes that people choose to do business with a company that has our global ideals in mind. Many times these companies are small and home bases but if we as a global green community choose to only do business with small sustainable companies we can hopefully push out the big “green fakers” out. Earth Divas is one of these smaller companies that keeps sustainability and recycled materials in their sights. Earth Divasoffers a variety of items that are handmade by women and fairly traded for women. I am loving the concept that more and more businesses are helping women around the world gain their independence. Support Earth Divasby purchasing one of their adorable bags or hats! Don’t forget to peruse their jewelry too!!

A little about Earth Divas:

What the Future Holds
Our product name is changing from Hemp Sisters to Earth Divas. This transition should be complete sometime next year. Some product will still have Hemp Sister name on it until the transition is complete. We’re changing our name so only items with the Earth Divas name will be handmade, natural fiber, fair trade items. We currently have some items with the Hemp Sisters name that are made in the US and elsewhere and are not fair trade.

Earth Divas products are handmade, natural fiber, fair trade accessories made by women for women from around the world. We currently have items from Nepal and are adding jewelry from Columbia and hemp bags from Thailand. We hope that by next year we can offer products from several other countries.

Our natural fiber, handmade accessories from Kathmandu, Nepal are made by working women’s co-ops and small woman-owned cottage industry producers. We work directly with the people that make these items. We help them source supplies like zippers, rings and buckles, and provide feedback on designs and offer suggestions to improve quality. We work directly with and pay the people that make the items, we don’t work through a middleman, which is fairly common. My wife is from India, and each year for the last four years she and I have spent about a month in India, and I have spent a couple of weeks in Nepal working on new designs and trying to figure out better ways to make the core items that we will always have, like wallets, backpacks, hats and coin purses.

In Nepal, the hemp fabric that we use is from the remote Western Region of Nepal. It grows wild in the lower Himalayan Mountain regions. It is not cultivated or farmed as in all other countries. The villagers in this remote area cut the hemp down by hand and soften the hemp in water. Other larger processing countries use chemicals and softeners to get a consistent, smooth, refined finish. Nepali hemp is a bit rougher and uneven and has some color variations. The stalk of the hemp plant is then brushed into a wool like material and then spun by hand into a strand of twine. The twine is then woven by hand on a pit loom into a piece of fabric that is 1 meter by 3 meters long. The fabric is carted down the mountains on foot and to the nearest road where it is brought into Kathmandu. In Kathmandu, the craftswomen buy the fabric and make the unique and beautiful creations that we offer.

Our recycled silk items are of the highest possible quality because they are 100% silk. The silk is from the waste cuttings in India where silk sari’s are made. Most other recycled silk items contain other man-made fibers like nylon, which is soft, but not natural. Like the recycled silk items, the felted wool items are made by a working women’s co-op. The ladies we work with create the designs and make the items for us. The wool is imported from New Zealand

7 Rings of Peace

Mother’s day is almost here and you know an important part of being a mother is keeping the peace in the home but does she get enough peace herself? Maybe not? Why not give her the gift of peace with the 7 Rings of Peace Earrings made by From War to Peace. These fantastically designed earrings drew inspiration from ancient times where 7 circlesmeant perfection as well as the 7 pointed star which stands to represent the peaceful union of all nations and faiths. How more peaceful can jewelry get right?
The 7 circlesbronze earrings were recycled from bronze that was formerly disarmed nuclear missiles systems. I have written other articles about From War to Peace’s bracelets made from disarmed bullets.
I love these items and I think your mother would too! They can be worn everyday but are elegant enough to be dressed up for a fancy evening out! I may not be a mother but I am definitely going to purchase a pair of these earrings for myself ASAP!

Glossy Treasures Recycled Magazine Clock

Help Save Starving Children by visiting The Hunger Site!

Here is just one more super green item you can purchase for your home that once your purchase is made can buy 25 cups of food for hungry orphans in South Vietnam. The Hunger Site!offers this recycled magazine wall clock which helps reduce waste and feeds children at the same time is pretty cool if you ask me! Visit the The Hunger Site! and see what other things you can get to help feed orphans in Vietnam.

About Glossy Treasures:
It’s time to change the world! Countless colorful magazine pages otherwise destined for landfills are rolled up and placed side by side to create a vibrant timepiece. A fabulous conversation starter and a great way to generate an extra donation for an orphanage in South Vietnam.

•50% recycled magazines, 50% MDF
•Requires 2 AA batteries (included)
•9.75″ dia. (25 cm)
•Handmade in and fairly traded from Vietnam