Recycle Your Old Cell Phone

                                                                                   Photo by Percy

There are a variety of ways to recycle your old cell phones. Verizon Wireless has announced that they will recycle your phone in exchange for a gift card. Just take your old phone into any Verizon store and have it valued. The gift card can be used for merchandise or can go toward your monthly bill. But if you feel like being generous you can donate your phone through Verizon's HopeLine  project which helps victims of domestic violence. 

Back to The Start

Cultivate a better world. Nice work Chipotle.  

Cable Labeling

Label everything! I love this simple yet smart idea. How do you label? 

Tights and Pantyhose Recycling

The average life span of tights and pantyhose is not very long. Well now you can extend the life of your tights even after they rip and snag. Sheer No Nonsense has created a recycling program that will recycle your unwanted hose into material used to make park benches, toys and playground equipment. They accept all brands. You will have to pay for shipping but it will be worth it to know that your tights are not clogging up the landfills.  

Under Sink Storage

I love to clean and I love to organize. So you could imagine my excitement when I saw this idea. Looks pretty easy to install with a tension curtain rod. Now just make sure you are not using toxic chemicals to clean your house. 

How to Fold a Fitted Sheet

                                                      

Martha Stewart's- How to Fold a Fitted Sheet

1. Stand holding the sheet by the two adjacent corners of one of the shorter edges. With the sheet inside out, place one hand in each of these two corners.

2. Bring your right hand to your left, and fold the corner in your right hand over the one in your left, enveloping it. Next, reach down and pick up the corner that is hanging in front; bring it up, and fold it over the two corners in your left hand; the corner that's showing will be inside out.

3. Bring the last corner up, and fold it over the others; with its right side showing, it should envelop the other three corners.

4. Lay the folded sheet on a flat surface and straighten it into the shape shown.

5. Fold the two edges in so all the elastic is hidden.

6. Fold the sheet into a rectangle.

7. Continue folding until the rectangle is the size you want it to be.

Stuffed Animals for Emergencies

After the Holidays your kids are overloaded with stuff. This is a great time to appreciate the new items and recycle the old. Stuffed Animals for Emergencies is a great organization to donate stuffed animals to. They distribute the stuffed animals to kids who are in need after emergency situations such as fires, illness, accidents, neglect, abuse, homelessness and even weather emergencies. So while your kids are enjoying their new toys help out another child who is less fortunate by donating today. 

Escape Your Stuff

I love this commercial for Smart Car. If you can relate to this you might want to give me a call.

The Knitwear Doctor

Winter is here and it's time to break out those sweaters. You might have noticed your sweater  has been nibbled on by some unwanted creatures. If there are only a few holes in your favorite sweater send it to the Knitwear Doctor. The Knitwear Doctor will repair and restore your sweater back to new. So before you recycle that damaged sweater see if can be repaired.

Semihandmade

Everyone dreams of having their ideal kitchen but the reality is that not everyone can afford it. Enter, Semihandmade, an affordable sleek eco-friendly cabinet design company. Simply order your custom kitchen cabinetry from Ikea, minus the doors, and send your plans over to Seminhandmade.  Then you can pick and choose your very own custom cabinetry. Super sleek and eco-friendly. 

Recycle Your Crayons

Crayons are great to color with and create beautiful pictures. But what do you do with broken crayons? Don't toss them in the garbage. Crayons are made from petroleum and do not biodegrade in landfills. You can package up your unwanted broken crayons and send them to the Crayon Recycling Program, where they will be made into new crayons. Or you can recycle them yourself with your own crayon maker. The Crayola Crayon Maker turns crayon bits and pieces into new crayons. What a great way to recycle and create you own crayola colors! 

Lego Storage!

There are many ways to organize your kids legos. You can sort by color by size and by project. But in reality, unless your child loves to organize keeping it clean can be difficult. Swoop Bags keeps legos contained and can easily be cleaned up and stored. 

Recycled Notes

While I am not a huge fan of post-it notes,  it's good to know in most places you can recycle them. Just make sure your local recycling service accepts mixed paper. Post-it notes can be dangerous if not used properly. I've seen them clutter up walls and get lost with important information. So post wisely and recycle! 

Less = More

Environmentalist Graham Hill's presentation "Less is More" fully encompasses NWH beliefs. I met Graham at an event in New York City a few years back. It was actually at his apartment on the lower east side, not the 600 sf one he lives in now. When I told him I was a professional green organizer he face lit up and he asked me if I would take a look at some of his stuff in a back room he was unsure what to do with.  He liked my approach and the concept of my business. His talk at TED is inspiring and I really hope it gets people thinking about what they consume and how they live. 

Pet Organizing

Bebeto Matthews/AP

I love hearing about lost pets being reunited with their owners. My cat is an indoor pet but I still had a microchip inserted in her. You never know what could happen and it's better to be safe than sorry. Home Again is a lost pet's best chance at returning home. After reading about Willow, the lost cat from Colorado who ended up in NYC, I'm not so sure she was lost. I bet she wanted to see one of the best cities in the world.