My treasured, vintage wooden picnic basket will be packed with a  conscience on Friday as my family heads to our annual Fourth of July celebration in downtown Sonoma. Instead of the ubiquitous plastic ware and paper plates that end up in landfills, we're opting for reusable picnic ware and some great vegan recipes, including a refreshing Island Chiller cocktail. 

Looking to make your spread more sustainable?

Well friends, when it comes to a picnic, I always share. Here's a blueprint for the red, white and greening of your 4th!

The Set-Up

If you're headed to the park or the beach, cotton blankets or patchwork quilts make for ideal intimate seating if you can't score a picnic table or don't own folding chairs. Check out the cute cotton throw at Orvis ($69). I personally loathe the vinyl spectator chairs with drink holders used by those professional picnic people (the same folks who when floating on canoes never crash into the trees). If you're gathering in your backyard, then you don't have to worry about seating. Instead, focus on a reusable tablecloth that you can style with red flowers from your local farmers' market.

The Picnic Ware

Avoid paper and plastic and opt for reusable bamboo bowls and either biodegradable or compostable utensils and containers, both available at Branch. I use retro green trays with compartments from Restoration Hardware that are easy to perch on your lap. It's also a good idea to go with cloth napkins, despite the allure of the patriotic patterns on disposable napkins lining the aisles of supermarket shelves. If you don't own cloth ones you like, try the fetching garden snail motif napkins ($26) at Ortolon.

The Vittles

Have you ever tried a vegan stars and stripes American flag pie? It's the sparkler on the great vegan Fourth of July barbecue menu  suggested by Vegan Paradise. The offerings include marinated tofu fingers and grilled tempeh steaks instead of fatty meats which are bad for the air. The fatty drippings release carcinogenic hydrocarbons that can spoil our fun. Shew, you yucky toxins! I also love the grilled veggies and corn and the Island Chiller cocktail made with mango, tofu and coconut milk. There's even a recipe for nutty chocolate bananas. Crazy!

Non vegans will find great gourmet picnic recipe tips at Fine Living including Caprese Bites ( a portable Italian salad on skewers), pesto chicken wraps, New Jersey Potato Salad and Lemon Bars. Have a look.

The Grape

For grazers content with a simple wine and cheese affair, you can have a delightful picnic overnighted to you from Diamond  Organics that includes red wine from an organic coastal vineyard, cheese from free range cattle raised with an ocean view, a fresh baguette baked in Santa Cruz and colorful organic fruit ($99). For a little extra, you can add wild smoked salmon and an organic bouquet. 

The Entertainment

Follow all of this by sneaking in a good post-parade eco nap (very good for my environment) so that you're rested and ready to sit under the stars for a fireworks display (not too much in the green department, there). Don't forget the good green bug juice, like Greenhead Insect Repellent at Stop Biting Me.

Happy birthday, America.

Image: dcJohn

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

I can learn a lot from Friday night dates with my husband.

For starters, I learned I can convince him to change out of his crumpled work clothes into something chic if I smile real big and hand him a martini when he comes through the door. Once the babysitter arrives and we are ready to roll, we don't just have to walk down to our neighborhood haunts on West Portal, but can actually venture out to new places in the City. Like...the de Young Museum at Golden Gate Park. Yes, on Friday we explored Friday Night at the Museum which a friend had told me about during a morning workout. From 5pm to 8:45, all exhibits are open, including the amazing glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly, which we explored after a glass of wine and observing some very serious tango dancers closing their eyes and strutting across the lobby.

But what is a date without shopping, you ask? Naturally, I had to do my EcoSalon homework (what an excuse) and hit the museum gift shop, where I was blown away. One standout: The baskets woven from telephone wire by Zulu weavers from Aita Design ($300 for the large one). Apparently these fabulous spiral baskets are crafted with methods passed down from generation to generation, including weavers recognized internationally for their work, which is largely done at home. I also learned just because I drool over something and find it fabulous doesn't mean my husband will buy it for me, even if my birthday is just around the corner. Maybe next week I should deliver that martini in baby doll pajamas. What do you think?

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

When a client said she wanted to do Swedish fabrics in the bedrooms of her remodeled vacation house in Tahoe, I went searching for sources other than IKEA for textiles that could translate into gorgeous bedding. While I think some of IKEA's ready-made bedding is cheerful in that whimsical Scandinavian fashion, the texture is too rough for my taste. Bedding needs to be not only visually inviting but soft to the touch.

The Northern lights led me to Textile Arts and its line of appealing eco-friendly fabrics,  including Traditions, a folk art brocade, and the ultra-modern Louisa's Squares. The fabrics in this collection are all comprised of organic cotton, linen, hemp and bamboo, grown without pesticides and bleached with hydrogen peroxide instead of the usual toxins. This wonderful source for fabrics (as well as other modern decor) gives discounts to trade members who register. In addition to the eco line, the company offers a large assortment of  printed cottons and oil cloths in traditional and retro patterns.


For anyone seeking vintage Scandinavian textiles, such as the Josef Frank designs of the 1940's, check out Just Scandinavian and the stunning botanical motifs of the designer who died in the mid-1960's but whose designs are still printed (show here and above).


And at Scandinavia Design Center you will also find a range of lovely Nordic upholstery fabrics to suit your Viking hunger for all things Swedish.

Now, here's a tip for customizing bedding: I seek out local upholstery sewers, like Dreams in San Francisco, and ask them how much yardage I will need for a queen or king duvet. Usually, I take the down comforter into the work room with me to get the exact fit. I also love to customize bedskirts since generous ready-made ones are hard to find. This requires measuring the drop from the top of your box spring to the floor. If you have a carpet, the drop will be shorter than on hardwood. I like the skirt to extend to the floor without about a half-inch extra to puddle. Look for a work room in your city and customize your own Scandinavian ensemble.

Matching sheeting is easy with all that's on the market. My favorite retail source: Cuddledown. I really love the eco-friendly, 400-thread-count Sateen Hotel bedding with simple embroidered stitching which coordinates beautifully with busy prints.

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

In the current economic climate of massive corporate lay-offs and gas prices nearing $5 a gallon, it would seem risky to open a posh green home design store peddling eco fireplaces ranging as high as $12,000. But Fred Segal is banking on its reputation as the hippest L.A. store around since 1976. If the brand could invent the first fashion jeans it can certainly market ultra cool fireplaces fueled by renewable green energy.

So two months ago, it boldly opened the doors of Fred Segal Green at the tony address of 500 Broadway in Santa Monica, where Segal opened its second fashion store years ago. The 1,200 square-foot green decor showroom featuring a stunning array of furnishings, accents and books, has already drawn in the celebrity crowd, including Robin Williams and Meryl Streep.

"David Caruso bought some recycled can top bags by Dalaleo for a friend," shares salesman Phillipe Dubois in a lovely French accent that must work quite well in the pristine, upscale setting. Dubois tells me the response has been excellent from not only the loyal Hollywood clientele that has been buying designer jeans and trendy frocks from Segal since 1976, but from all over the world since the Santa Monica retail mecca is already packed with summer tourists.

What will you find at the new, sustainable Segal's? Those stylishly surreal felt rocks by Ronel Jordaan; The efficient and low carbon Ecosmart Fireplaces from Australia which run on denatured ethanol; Laptop bags by Monacca and throws and cushions by a variety of pure wool and cotton textile brands. Dubois adds there's a great selection of architecture and design books, as well as fun toys for rich kids, I mean, for cute little green kids of all ages.

The store is currently designing its new web site but has one page up at fredsegalgreen.com. If you are visiting L.A. soon, you won't want to miss this new eco haunt. (310) 395-5699.

And don't feel bad if you don't buy anything. According to Dubois, even Meryl was "just looking."

Image: Hello Dollface

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

I like to think that if Donna Reed married Al Gore they undoubtedly would have settled on a Big Chill refrigerator for their suburban kitchen.

That's because the retro appeal of these babies would please any fan of 50s chrome and Formica. But on the inside you won't find frozen TV dinners or a power source that sucks up too much energy. These stamped metal throwbacks are designed with modern function and efficiency, including moisture control and temperature management systems that appeal to our energy-saving sensibilities. You could call it a hybrid appliance.

Of course, we designers are all about color, and I'm a sucker for anything this cool and cubic that comes in a shade called lemonade pink, the color selected for a spread in Martha Stewart's magazine. Can't you just imagine the fun of decorating around that? Other options include orange, jade green, beach blue, buttercup yellow, cherry red, black and white.


These appliances fit seamlessly into the cottage, beach and urban retro kitchens and are available in two sizes, the larger retailing for $2695 and the smaller studio series for $2495. You can buy direct from the company or find a dealer in your hood. The line also includes stoves and dishwashers with the same retro packaging.

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

As I prepare for summer entertaining in our garden, I cannot forget the first time we unveiled our yard after major landscaping: my 40th birthday luau thrown by my husband, complete with tented tables, hula dancers, fire throwers and that mysterious dish called poi.

What struck me most arriving home that day from the salon was how our garden was illuminated with torches and lanterns. It was such a dramatic statement. I've added various lighting accents outdoors each summer to try to capture that ambience I adored on my birthday. Here are some great torches and lanterns you can install, as well, to set your garden aglow.

Solar-powered tiki torches can be found in a variety of catalogs and on web sites, including the Solar Tahiti Torch at Lamps Plus ($24) which adds a tropical accent while repelling bugs. I think it's cool to line up torches along an entry path to light the way to the garden.

For a more modern aesthetic in the urban garden, the Stainless Steel Oil Torches for the New York Botanical Garden Shop features a stunning metal design atop a stainless steel pole ($300). Since these German torches are pricey, you may want to invest in just a couple to make a statement. The flames burn up to 6 hours which is more than enough time to picnic and linger.

In addition to the torches, I love to hang battery powered paper lanterns along the rim of my covered porch, importing the exotic romance found in the Blue Bayou restaurant in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. I've always been smitten with the Asian lights slung over the tables and fire flies flickering. I've found a delightful selection of paper lanterns at Luna Bazaar in a variety of shapes and colors, which are fun to mix and match for around $8 apiece. Their lanterns use battery operated LED candles which resemble tea lights and have a flicker to mimic real candles.

Lanterns won't keep the bugs away, so be sure to fire up your Buzz Away citronella candles from Dirt Works and enjoy an evening in your very own enchanted garden.

Image: photojenni

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

You don't need Monet to tell you the art of sophisticated al fresco dining extends to the furniture.

Vintage wicker, modern teak and graceful iron tables add style to the garden picnic. Paired with comfortable chairs (good designers avoid matching sets), guests will linger at your table sipping wine, shooting the breeze and swiping vicious mosquitoes to their heart's content.

In the fickle climate of the Bay Area we have to settle on materials that withstand the harsh summer elements. How frigid is it? Mark Twain once said the coldest winter he ever knew was a summer in San Francisco.

Teak is great if you are up for refinishing your table every June or letting it weather to a dull gray. I've also discovered chic, low maintenance alternatives for taking your savvy eye outdoors to the patio, deck or veranda.

 

The Poly-Wood South Beach 40" Dining Table from the Polywood Shop earns its name because of the tropical Miami shades available for finishes ($265), including lime green and lemon yellow which are totally unexpected in the garden. It is made of recycled plastic lumber and other materials and holds up brilliantly in the sun and fog.
 
I don't know about you but I'm a sucker for wicker and rattan, such as the Resort Dining Table ($700) in durable all-weather fiber from His Her Lifestyle. The square shape reminds me of classic McGuire Furniture pieces from the Seventies.

Picnic tables are ideal for kids and I adore the symmetry of 54" Hexagon Picnic Table ($1500) made from recycled plastic milk jugs at By the Yard. It's gorgeous in the weathered wood finish, but also comes in green, brown, white and other choices that might fit with what you already have.

Another fun picnic table is the Lenexa Recycled Plastic Picnic Table ($929 to $1,000) from Benches in five pretty shades. Both of these tables seat up to 8 diners and the dyeing process promises the finish will remain vibrant for years of wear.

A throwback to the wrought-iron patio sets of the Fifties, Martha Stewart's affordable outdoor line at K Mart includes the Everyday Garden Lafayette Dining Table ($112). It only has a one-year warranty, but the good news is that these tables age pretty well, the rust actually adding a timeworn appeal. Hence, the success of the Shabby Chic craze.

If you have your heart set on teak, the Maku Teak Dining Table ($1500) from in mod is an elegant choice with its ultra modern legs and detailed joinery. It's composed of sustainable plantation grown teak and is available in two sizes. Matching chairs are available for around $500 each.

Another teak design I love is the Southern Comfort 60" Dining Table (around $780) from Green Culture. It features a convenient lazy Susan for passing the watermelon and lemonade.

Happy table hunting!

"Take off your shoes!" commands my friend Jodi from Long Island whenever I arrive at the doorway of her pretty, Mediterranean home. But I'm attached to my ruby slippers or Betty Mullers or whatever shoes I wore over. I don't want to comply.

On the foyer rug, I can see the discarded flats, pumps and Converses of those who have arrived before me and have obeyed the "no shoes in the house" rule. Why does this rule agitate me so? Is it because most of my pants are too long and drag without heels? Is it because most of my friends are amazons who diminish me in stature when I'm forced to remove my shoes? Is it because I'm a fashion slave who adores stylish shoes? Maybe I just don't like confronting rules as a guest in someone's home.

Whatever the reason, I recognize that not only is it the homeowner's right to impose a no-shoes rule, it's also good for the planet. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), many of us track lawn pesticides, lead and other chemicals into our homes, not to mention dirt and God-knows-what from our city streets. Removing shoes also is easier on our carpets. Mine takes a beating, even with the removal of soccer cleats and muddy garden clogs.

Still, I'm too design-minded to stand for shoes scattered in my own entryway. The required solution: shoe storage that might convert me and keep my house cleaner.

One of the best storage benches I've found is the Ethan bench from Home Decorators ($269-$329). It has individual cubbies for housing 16 pairs of shoes and plush microfiber upholstery options in four colors. The same site offers a handsome wicker storage chest with doors for concealing 42-pairs of shoes ($300) which comes in three finishes.

But if you're cramped for space, like most of us, the Mission style shoe storage chest from Improvements ($160) holds up to 9 pairs of shoes in a pull-down design that fits nicely in a hallway. 

And, if you want to keep it cheap and simple, buy one or more of the stackable bamboo shoe racks from Seville Classics ($20). They're designed for bedroom closets, but these utility racks fit nicely under entry tables and are more eco-friendly than their coated steel cousins.

One important tip for establishing a no-shoes inside policy: Alert guests to your rule before they arrive for a party. There's nothing worse than neglecting to get a pedicure or having your big toe sticking out of a hole in your sock while sipping wine and trying to look cool at a shoe-less soiree.

Note: images not to scale.

Image: sarowen

Could fashion save the planet? If it were up to Phillip Lim it could.

The savvy visionary, whose offbeat tailored pieces are peddled at speciality department stores and collected by Hollywood producers' wives, looked to the North Pole this season for inspiration. He found it in the dwindling polar bear population. 

Lim says he was greatly moved by a National Geographic special on the Arctic which warned that polar ice caps are melting at a rate three times faster than they were five years ago. He decided then and there to reduce and recycle. The result is his new Go Green Go collection. I first learned of the line  while reading an Eco AID report in Elle Magazine. I stumbled upon a page featuring a drop-dead white Grecian tunic in the collection. It's so gorgeous, I cut out the image for my daughter who had to make her own toga for 6th grade social studies. "Now, this," I told her, "is a toga!"

The tunic is one of 10 pieces in the organic line, which also includes pants, jackets and bib-front tanks, all lined in organic silk with Lim's distinctive feminine touch. Lim told Elle he had been thinking about doing this collection for a while, then suddenly "it just felt right."The going green part involved avoiding harmful dyes on the sustainable cotton fabric he used. He also had each item washed with tennis balls to create a time- worn affect. Quite the Al Gore follower, Lim also has created a $20 canvas grocery tote, reading: "Smile, you have just reduced your carbon footprint." All of the money earned on the bags will go to Gore's Climate Project.

Lim plans to greenify his men's and children's lines as well.

Image: The Fashion Spot

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.

Summer seems to call for clutches, diminutive bags that rest ever so lightly on our laps at the Hollywood Bowl or on the side of our chair at a favorite outdoor cafe.

With all the hype about the dangers of resting our hefty handbags on the ground (a filthy habit when you think about what collects on that floor) the strapless little clutch is the way to go when paring down for hot weather. Raffia is becoming a popular fabric for green designers producing decorative bags. A trend is to pair the organic raffia with wood, tiger's eye, crystal or other jeweled adornments that really stand out against the understated canvas.

A great example are the raffia cuties from Mad Imports. (Sara, Kim and Larkyn are major fans.)  I'm truly mad for the site's stunning assortment of clutches like the GiGi design which comes in seven amazing shades with cotton lining and a highly tactile, oversize wooden button accent ($69). The yellow bag is to dye for!

A bit more dressy are the hand-embroidered Heather bags ($79) featuring wildflowers and a snap enclosure, available in four shades. Or go totally groovy with the Opal bag ($75) in a rainbow of pretty colors and adorned with a massive oval wooden button.

More upscale but still green is the Eco-Clutch from Simply Soles, a chic little black number forged from recyled water bottles. The darling clutch ($195) even has a detachable black and white silk floral pin to add or subtract panache.

Even more delicate, the Franchi Rue Raffia Floral Flap Clutch ($97) of woven raffia with a lacy macrame trim in either pink or blue from Zappos. This is a great choice to pair with a cotton dress for an afternoon event.

If you have a big budget for a swank event, splurge on the Raffia Clutch by Anya Hindmarch ($385) at Vivre. It's studded with faceted tiger's eye and a gold diamante snap. The same designer makes a similar raffia clutch with crystal adornments and a tassle.

If you have no budget, fool them with the Limited Edition Straw Wristlet Clutch from standby source, Target for a mere $10.49. It's black and tan and pretty darn chic with a little flower in the corner so you still come out smelling like a rose.

Sara’s shameless plug: Hi, it’s your editor. De-lurk, dear reader, and leave this fabulous writer a comment. (We love chatting.) You can also share this post with friends – just click your favorite social bookmark listed below. New reader? Be sure to sign up for the weekly newsletter to win free eco goodies! You can also subscribe to any RSS feed your heart desires.