Need some new jeans?  Take an old pair to Gap and get 30% off a new pair of Gap 1969 jeans.  The Gapwill take your old jeans and use them to create eco-friendly insulation.  If you have a Facebook account, “Like” Gap and get 40% off a new pair!

In March, Gap participated in this event recycling over 270,000 pairs of jeans.  The jeans were recycled into insulation for 500 homes in under served communities and for special projects, including Hurricane Katrina rebuilding efforts.

It only runs through October 20! I’m all over this – I so need a new pair of jeans!

The obvious way to get more life out of your shoes is to give them to someone else who will use them or donate to a local charity. But sometimes, shoes just aren’t in good enough condition to be worn again.  Like many things these days, don’t put them in the garbage – it takes 1000 years for shoes to decompose in a landfill.    Recycle them!  Here are a few options:

Nike Reuse A Shoe – Shoes are put through a process that uses a “slice-and-grind” technique, where each shoe is cut into three slices – rubber outsole, foam midsole and fiber upper. These slices are then fed through grinders and purified to be made into Nike Grind.  The Nike Grind material is then made into new products such as track or playground surfaces, outdoor tennis courts and some Nike products such as the outsole of the Nike Pegasus.  Only athletic shoes and LIVESTRONG wristbands are accepted at a drop off facility in countries all over the world or you can mail them in.  I live near a drop off facility and drop off our old shoes there.

Recycled Runners – This online shoe recycling directory will help you find a place to recycle athletic shoes at a drop off facility near you.

Okabashi Shoe Recycling – Okabashi will take back their own shoes, sandals and flip flops and recycle them into new shoes or other goods. When you send them in for recycling, make sure to include your email address and they’ll give you 15% off a new pair!

Unique Eco – A company in Kenya takes old flip flops and makes them into raw materials for local artisans to make unique hand made crafts to sell in local shops and craft fairs.  You have to mail them to Kenya but consider the postage a donation to a great cause.

Earth911 – This online recycling guide will tell you where to recycle anything – just type in ‘shoes’ and your zip code and will find the nearest facilities.

With the exception of detergents, my laundry routine was eco-friendly before I even wanted to be eco-friendly.

WASHING

I sort all the laundry into piles in the following order:

1. Adult or child
2. White, dark or color
3. Gentle or Heavy

While the sorting in itself isn’t all that eco-friendly, I do make sure that the piles are large enough to fill up the washer. No use in running half a load. If they aren’t, I’ll combine piles to make a load big enough.

I wash almost everything in COLD water. It saves $$ and energy and IT WORKS. Promise. The only things I wash in hot water are sheets, towels and anything with poop on it (thank you to my kiddos).

I use eco-friendly detergents like Seventh Generation or Earth Friendly Products. I don’t add fabric softener to the cycle but if you wanted to, Seventh Generation makes an eco-friendly version. I rarely use stain removers or bleach and if I do, they are…you guessed it. Eco-friendly stain removers or bleach. If I think something might be stained, I wash it at least once or twice to see if it will come out on its own. It generally does. If it won’t, I will use a stain remover, like BabyGanics or an eco-friendly bleach like Seventh Generation and voila – almost everything comes out.  We do occasionally having a clothing casualty but it’s rare.

DRYING

Almost all clothing gets thrown directly into the dryer for 10 – 20 minutes of light drying, enough to take out the excess water and wrinkles. I never use fabric softener sheets. Then I hang *almost everything* on a drying rack or on a hanger. I consider this to be the most important part of my laundry routine for several reasons:

• I rarely have to iron since everything is dried hanging and comes out wrinkle free.
• Clothes don’t shrink. Believe me, I’ve compared brand new dried in the dryer pants to brand new dried on the hanging rack pants and there was a whole size difference.
• Far less wear and tear. Colors don’t fade. Dark blue jeans stay dark blue. The fibers don’t get as ruffled and worn looking.
• There is no static cling.
• We save tons of energy and less wear and tear on our dryer.

I’m not going to lie, this does take more time than just throwing everything in the dryer but seriously, most of our clothes are wrinkle free and I could pass down my kids clothes for years because they stay in such great shape. I’ve even had friends comment on what great condition their clothes are in.

For sheets and towels, I use Seventh Generation Fabric Softener sheets. They are paper so once they are used, I can recycle them – LOVE THAT! I also dry sheets and towels in the dryer all the way. If I had the space for a laundry line outside, I would definitely put them on the line outside. The sunshine dries whites whiter!

There you have it – my laundry routine. Not as simple as most but has lots of great benefits! What is YOUR laundry routine?

If you ever have your clothing dry cleaned, you definitely need The Green Garmento.   It’s a reusable dry cleaning bag – take your clothes in it TO the dry cleaner and HOME from the dry cleaner.  It eliminates all those annoying plastic bags you bring home from the dry cleaner (and who knows what kind of chemicals are hanging out in those bags!).   It’s made from a recyclable, non-woven polypropylene so it doesn’t trap chemicals in it like plastic does.

The Green Garmento is not only a reusable dry cleaning bag but it functions as hanging garment bag, carrying bag and hamper. Check out this video to see all the ways it functions.

It’s washable, in cold water, and you can hang it to dry.  If you need a new one, you can send your old one in for a discount on a new one and the company will recycle your old Green Garmento for you. 

If your local drycleaner doesn’t carry The Green Garmento, supply the company with their contact information and they will send you a free Green Garmento – you pay for shipping and handling. 

WHERE TO BUY:  Purchased online, The Green Garmento comes in several colors and lengths – at $9.99, this is an easy and inexpensive way to go green!

Aren’t these cute for fall?  The Zoe & Zac line from Payless Shoes is designed by Summer Rayne Oakes, spokesperson for Planet Green, author of “Style, Naturally: The Global Guide to Sustainable Fashion and Beauty” and often referred to as an ‘eco-model’.

These black patent Laurel moccasins feature an eco-friendly patent upper with a recycled PET PET bow detail, organic cotton lining, a padded insole for comfort and a recycled rubber outsole.  All for $24.99!  Love them!

There are 23 other products in the Zoe & Zac collection including shoes for men and kids and handbags.

Make sure you enter our Green Goodies Giveaway – over $50 worth of green goods for your home and baby!