I Love the Earth!
Gifts for Your Granola Friends, People Who Don’t Want to Wear Animal Parts, and Everyone Who Recycles.
Reduce, Reuse, ReSnackit!
Earth Friendly Product: ReSnackit Reusable Snack and Sandwich Bags
Earth Inspired. Mom Invented. Child Endorsed!
Earth Friendly Product Highlights: Why Resnackit? Ever notice how many plastic baggies you go through? Approximately 20 million baggies are thrown away every week in US schools. An average family spends $300 per year on snack packing materials. It takes 1000 years for a plastic bag to break down and as it does toxic substances leach into soil and enters the food chain.
Earth Friendly Retail Price: $7.99—9.99 Sandwich size and Snack size in a varied array of colors for the corporate executive to the tiniest toddler. www.resnackit.com
Chief Blonde says: Well when I first saw these, the mom in me said, “Great idea, but how do they stay clean?” Well, you can wash them in the washing machine, dishwasher, or hand wipe. NEAT! I also liked the fact they have no lead, BPA, Phthalates or PVC. My absolute favorite is that they are made in the USA! ReSackits come packaged so cute–with actually no packaging. They are just tied with a bit of twine and a really cute card explaining how they work. The fabrics are adorable and the quality of construction screams handcrafted. Watch the video, it explains so much!
Join. Reserve. Unlock. Drive.
Car-sharing Service that gives Urban Residents Access to Vehicles by the Hour or by the Day.
Earth Friendly Product Highlights: With the impact of the recession, owning a car – or giving one for the holidays – just isn’t what it used to be. In fact, a recent survey shows that the average American household spends 19 percent of their income on vehicle-related expenses. Add in the hassles of city parking, and many urban residents are questioning car ownership altogether. A gift of a a Zipcar membership gives the receiver the gift of car ownership – without any of the high costs and hassles.
Some of the benefits of Zipcar membership include:
- More money in your wallet – Zipcar members report saving an average of $600 a month or $7,200 a year compared with owning a car
- Gas, insurance and parking – included in every reservation
- A car for any errand or occasion – Zipcar offers more than 30 makes and models
- Access to cars globally– Zipcar has 6,500 vehicles in 28 North American states and provinces
- A reduced carbon footprint – Zipcar members drive less, and walk, bike and take public transit more; each Zipcar takes 15 – 20 personally owned cars off the road, and Zipcar offers reduced rates on select hybrid vehicles, starting at just $8 an hour
And for the iPhone users among family and friends, the new Zipcar iPhone app allows them to actually honk, unlock and lock their Zipcar – all from their iPhone. Check out a guided tour here.
Earth Friendly Retail Price: Membership cost $50-75. Hourly rates around $7 depending on city. Daily rates available. www.zipcar.com
Chief Blonde’s Remarks: I was not able to try this service. It doesn’t exist in our town. However, I have read about it extensively, it seems like a good value for the consumer and a great idea for the city environment. Just the fact that it has survived this long is a testimony to the service. Watch the video!
You’ll Never Miss A Birthday Again!
Earth Friendly Product: Jack Cards
Sending Paper Greeting Cards on Time for Every Important Occasion has Never Been so Easy!
Earth Friendly Product Highlights: Jack Cards is changing the way people purchase and send greeting cards by delivering ready-to-mail cards to you, to personalize and send, just in time before each important occasion. The site makes it easy to do something special for others.
No more last-minute dashes to the store, tedious card-aisle cruising or post office hassles, Jack Cards is the new must-see site that lets you order all of your paper greeting cards online, in advance of upcoming dates, not only for the holidays, but for the year ahead (birthdays, anniversaries, Mother’s Day….) You simply upload your contact information and important dates, and then choose from thousands of fabulous greeting cards (they’re not your typical drugstore card.) Best of all, Jack Cards remembers important dates for you, addresses and stamps your envelopes and delivers each card to your home or office, just in time for you to personalize and send.
Earth Friendly Retail Price: Membership is free, cards range in price from $2.45 to $6.95.
www.jackcards.com
www.jackcards.com
Chief Blonde says: I tried this service myself. I spent $12 and was able to get three cards purchased and delivered to my house without going to the card store. I would say that’s fairly comparable with Hallmark. The cards were of good quality and the delivery was quick. Certainly an earth friendly idea!
Give Back by Shopping with a Conscience…
Earth Friendly Product: Better World Books
Reduce your Carbon Footprint while Giving the Gift of Reading!
Earth Friendly Product Highlights: Better World Books is a for-profit social enterprise that collects and sells books online with each sale generating funds for literacy initiatives in the U.S. and around the world. With more than three million new and used titles in stock, Better World Books is a self-sustaining company that balances the social, economic and environmental values of its stakeholders. Used books come with a gift card explaining how this gift has helped spread literacy worldwide by benefiting charities like Books for Africa or Invisible Children.
Better World Books diverts books from landfills by conducting book drives on 1,800 college campuses, and by collecting discards from over 1,800 libraries. Since its founding in 2003, the Mishawaka, Ind.-based company has raised over $7 million for its non-profit literacy, library and college partners; donated over 1.3 million college textbooks; diverted more than 29 million pounds of books; achieved over 9,000 tons of carbon offsets through carbon-neutral shipping, and created more than 200 full-time jobs with meaningful benefits.
Earth Friendly Price and Deals: In time for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Better World will also be running several discount promotions at the end of this month, including $5 off any purchase of $30 or more and $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. Better World offers deep discounts (cheaper than Amazon) plus free shipping in the United States. Better World also offers a Bargain Bin, where book lovers can purchase any 5 books for $15, all year round. www.betterworldbooks.com
Chief Blonde says: I didn’t buy any books from here…YET! But I have bookmarked it and it is going to be the first place I check in the future. Prices are LOW!
Chief Blonde says: I didn’t buy any books from here…YET! But I have bookmarked it and it is going to be the first place I check in the future. Prices are LOW!
Blogger Note: Products were provided for this post for Evaluation purposes only.
Other 2009 Holiday Gift Guides for Women over 45:
