Success! Fabulous Females Free Fashion Swap 3

This afternoon I threw my 3rd seasonal clothing swap at LaunchPad, an amazing arts & fun non-profit community center in Crown Heights. It was the most successful swap to date. Over two dozen women came to share smiles and exchange clothes with their neighbors. Shout out to the gals from Five Boroughs Clothing Swap who spread the word about the swap and sent many delightful delegates.

Hurray for an afternoon spent saving the planet, saving cash, and making new friends and outfits!

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

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Wondering what I'll do with all the clothes no one claimed? The remaining three huge bags of clothes will be donated to the local Goodwill, so the love keeps on spreading! Huge thanks to LaunchPad Mike for driving the stuff over.

Brooklyn Green Team & Brooklyn Green Drinks host fundraiser for GrowNYC

On Thursday March 24th, Brooklyn Green Team and Brooklyn Green Drinks will host a party to raise funds for GrowNYC at Lowlands Bar in the Gowanus. Before a few days ago, I'd never heard of the Brooklyn Green Team. Apparently they're "a grassroots group dedicated to reducing their own carbon footprint and inspiring others to do the same through small actions which make a big difference" and they're celebrating their 4th anniversary. Brooklyn Green Drinks is a networking event where the borough's green business folk chat each other up. Usually you have to pay to for this privileged, but admission to this party is free so you can save your dollars for the auction benefiting GrowNYC, a deserving non-profit that helps New Yorkers reduce waste through a variety of resources including textile recycling, composting, and more.

Thursday, March 24th. 7pm-10pm
Lowlands Bar: 543 Third Ave at 14th Street, Brooklyn, NY
Organic Beer and Wine Specials + a specialty green cocktail. DJ. Silent auction (including items from Kaight!) Organic menu food from Luscious Food.
Free Admission! 
RSVP via Facebook.

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

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Compost at Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket!

This weekend GrowNYC began a 4-month pilot program to expand current food scrap collections from NYC households at select Greenmarkets, including that at Grand Army Plaza on Saturdays 8am-4pm. Shoppers can drop off fruit and vegetable scraps to be transported to a compost facility where they will become a fertile soil amendment for local farming projects and other uses.

This program complements the existing, ongoing Greenmarket food scrap collections conducted by their community partners, Lower East Side Ecology Center (Union Square), Western Queens Compost Initiative (Sunnyside, Jackson Heights) and the Ft. Greene Compost Project. I missed the inaugural collection but I look forward to participating next weekend.

For more info on other scrap collection sites and a list of acceptable scraps, visit http://www.grownyc.org/compost

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

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E-Waste Recycling Events in Park Slope

The Lower East Side Ecology Center is holding electronic waste recycling events in Park Slope, Brooklyn to responsibly recycle unwanted or broken electronics from New York City residents. They accept electronics from households and small businesses, as well as not-for-profits. They do not accept home appliances such as microwaves, refrigerators, or air conditioners. 

For more info and a list of acceptable materials, visit http://lesecologycenter.org/

Saturday March 19th, 10am-4pm
5th Ave. btw 3rd and 4th St, Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY 11215

Saturday, March 26th, 10am-4pm
5th Ave. btw Sterling Pl. and Douglass St., Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY 11217

Ever wonder about what happens to cell phones once we're through with them? Check out this 2008 NY Times Magazine article. 

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

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Spring Cleaning Sale!

In celebration of the approaching Spring and the renewal it makes us crave, I am offering 20% off all apartment cleaning and home organizing services for the entire month of March! Contact me to book an appointment today.

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

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I stopped n swapped then I met a son of a farmer.

I went to the Stop N Swap in Fort Greene today. The swap was full of the busy energy of workers organizing incoming goodies and swappers of all ages and genders doing some intense digging. Also present was a lovely joy people seemed to take equally in sharing with others and finding fun things for themselves. I discovered this amazingly creepy, quirky handmade wooden and cloth monkey doll. It was a such jewel! I wonder where it came from and who took it home.

Later, I went to the Brooklyn Public Library for a reading and Q&A session with Eric Herm, author of Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth. Herm is a fourth generation farmer from Texas who is in the process of going organic on the huge areas of land he farms with his father. Apparently the transition is a long, hard, and expensive one, but one Herm views as imperative for the future of the planet. Herm also emphasized the urgent need to move away from the model of shipping in our food from afar, suggesting we rely more on local food production as oil becomes more expensive and more difficult to obtain. Herm was quick to point out that lots of inspiring things are happening here in Brooklyn: the food coop, the Greenmarket, and all the rooftop farms. He encouraged us all to start growing on what little land we have-- be it a few inches of soil surrounding a tree or even a box on our windowsill.

Olivia Lane is a Blogger, Green Living Educator, and Health Coach trained at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She's also author of Baking Soda & Bliss: The Healthy & Happy Guide to Green Cleaning.   

 

Stay connected: Free Gift // Facebook // Twitter // Instagram // Pinterest // YouTube

Plastic Albatross' Domestic Detox : This is Serious!

Last night I attended a lecture about detoxing our homes. It was hosted by Professor Jenna Spevak of Plastic Albatross. Plastic Albatross is a community-based campaign to educate the public about toxins in plastics and other household products, and how these substances affect the health and fertility of humans. I was surprised to learn exactly how many undisclosed, untested, unregulated, and potentially harmful chemicals are in everyday products. Since World War II, 80,000 synthetic new chemicals were introduced to consumers and  62,000 of them have not been tested! Those that have been tested have been discovered to be carcinogens and neurotoxins. They have also been linked to learning disabilities, asthma, and obesity. Despite this alarming research, manufacturers continue to be allowed to develop and sell products containing these chemicals. Manufacturers police themselves and claim the amount of toxins in their products are too negligible to hurt us. This doesn't take into account what happens when those chemicals in one product interact with those chemicals in other products a consumer uses. Also these chemicals are considered ‘persistent bioaccumulative toxins‘ or PBTs. They don't just enter our bodies, hang out for a few minutes while we use the product, then bounce off to outer space. PBTs accumulate in our bodies, our food and our water.

Our plastics inside an albatross (seagull) chick's belly :-(

 I consider myself pretty savvy about green living. I work at an eco-friendly shop and I recently started a small business offering green residential cleaning. I belong to the Park Slope Food Coop. I like to think of myself as educated enough to make informed "green" consumption decisions, but the lecture highlighted dangers even I wasn't aware of. Did you know food wrapped in plastic, especially oily food, is bad for our health because the oil of the food absorbs the plastic oil of the packaging? I didn't!

Luckily, Spevak offered healthy alternatives and now I am able to make even smarter choices. Upon arriving home from the lecture, I felt like a veil was lifted. I was surprised to see so many plastic things in my fridge and throughout my home! I am now committed to make a real effort to reduce my plastic consumption beyond not drinking bottled water and accepting plastic bags at stores. The tub of whipped Earth Balance in my fridge will certainly be my last!