Is there a hole in the heart of that beloved camel cashmere from your freshman year at Stanford?

Don’t become unraveled! The crafty set – people like Stefanie Girard, who wrote Sweater Surgery – take the green approach to spinning yarns, reconfiguring new objects d’smart from those ratty pullovers that once warmed our bones.

Handwash your old sweater (I like to use baby shampoo) and treat it for unsightly coffee or red wine stains. Then circumvent those Jarlsberg cheese holes in the wool and make something cool!

Here’s a look at 10 reclamations, from Ugly Dolls to pretty petal pins:

1. Stuffed Toys

A favorite project at Brandeis Hillel Day School in San Francisco, parents are asked to contribute old sweaters for the students to conjure their own, arty Ugly Dolls. My own 10-year-old, Lauren, made this creature in just a couple of days and they instantly became BBF’s.

2. Bitchen Boatneck

Deborah Lindquist makes her groovy dog wraps from recycled cashmere sweaters, and you can do it, too. Just find a square without holes and make two for the front legs. Then your pet can walk the walk!

3. Beaded Cuff

I love this upscale take on the 70s tennis sweat band. The beaded cuff woven by Olive Brown is simple to make, by cutting your own elongated rectangle from your rescued sweater, stitching the borders and embellishing with beads or other hot glue glam.

4. Pet Bed

Lately, my pug has taken to sleeping in the laundry basket. Why not take your old sweaters and other scraps and make a patchwork pet bed, like Apartment Therapy suggests? Gather an assortment of old sweaters and a pillow and get working on that soft place for your pooch to land.

5. Pullover Coasters

Olive Brown made these from a shrunken woman’s fair aisle v-neck pullover. The set of eight, sold at Etsy, is something you can also try to make by cutting the circles and top-stitching the front, leaving a zigzag stitch on the back. The edges are finished with an overlock stitch.

6. Snuggly Slippers

Follow the footsteps of Craft Stylish, and avoid booties made from yucky  synthetic materials. These old woolen slippers are stitched with love. All you need is paper, a pen, scissors, an old sweater, thread, a machine, a scarp of yarn and a crochet hook. Have fun padding around!

7. Doll Clothes

If you or your child can knit, this book from Amazon provides patterns and ideas. I always loved sewing my own Barbie clothes from discarded items that wound up in our rag box. Let your kids try their hand at Project Runway ensembles using old sweaters. Try some lederhosen for that Heidi doll!

8. Flower Brooch

Thick rose wool felt from a rescued cardigan is paired with a heavy vintage bronze shank button in this classic flower. Found at Etsy, you can arrange your own floral jewelry with scissors, glue and a pin from your neighborhood craft store. Add a center flourish and attach to blazer lapel. You grow, girl!

9. Cell Phone Cozy

Craftbits is calling! Pick up and read the steps for making your own, fetching felted mobile phone pouch with a key ring at the top for attaching to jeans or your purse.

10. Teapot Cozy

We adore these at EcoSalon and even touted the beauty of the pot sweater for Mother’s Day this year. This one from Etsy is ideal because the pretty blue yarn is washable. Accented by a handknit multicolored flower with a vintage button for the center, it’s about 19 inches around and stretches over a 4″-to-6″ teapot. Not handy with a needle? Ask a friend to help.

Main Image: Amazon

Have you entered one of the giveaway contests this week yet? Your chances of winning are certainly better than the lottery! Here’s today’s Mother’s Day prize: this indispensable Buddha bowl. Equally perfect for a calming cup of tea at the end of a hectic day or an energizing boost of warm oatmeal in the morning, this simple piece of serve ware rests comfortably in your palm as you wash away your worries in functional, timeless style. Holds just the right amount of soup, noodles, tea or cereal. Your choice of color, a $28 value. Leave a comment to enter to win. Good luck!

I’ve made peace with housework, but I still loathe mopping. I save that dreaded chore for last, when the kitchen floor is just too dirty to keep ignoring.

So what do I use to mop? My broom closet features an old fashioned string mop, but since I have to squeeze out the excess water by hand, using it becomes up becoming wet and unwieldy.

Method gives us the Omop, and though it is ergonomic and uses corn-based, compostable sweeping cloths, I see it as just another plastic product. The essence of green means creatively using what we already have instead of producing and buying new stuff all the time.

Speaking of creative reuse, we were given a Swiffer, which has a goofy name but works well. Once all the spare Swiffer pads ran out, I used it to push a wet rag around the floor, which go right to the wash. If you’re crafty, check out these ideas for DIY reusable Swiffer pads. Very green and very sustainable.

If you don’t mind being old fashioned, consider getting on your hands and knees for those tough spots. I know, this sounds like a flashback to Cinderella, but if your kitchen isn’t too big (and mine isn’t), then it’s really not a big deal to use your body and put some elbow grease into it. I certainly wouldn’t want to become a slave to my floor, but for occasional cleaning, I don’t mind.

What’s your mopping method? How do you deal with this arduous chore?

Image: hive

Hand contact spreads 80% of infections. For each minute of the work day, you touch an average of 30 objects. There are over 20,000 germs on every square inch of your desk, which is almost 400 times the amount found on toilets. Approximately 3000 bacteria lurk on your hands. Women’s hands harbor a more diverse variety of microbes than those of men.

These unsettling statistics are enough to make germophobes out of us all. But, you can’t very well run to the bathroom every five minutes to wash up. That will get you an interesting reputation around the office. So save yourself some money and help the environment, too, by making your own sanitizers. These antiseptic gels can easily be concocted using basic household items.

In a small bowl, mix ¼ cup each of pure aloe vera gel and grain alcohol with 5 drops of tea tree essential oil. To make it smell less pungent, add 5 drops of your favorite fragrance oil. Using a funnel, pour this blend into a bottle small enough to stash in your purse. (Rinse out an empty tube of makeup or lotion to make use of waste.)

Now, what about your contaminated desk? Don’t even think about buying a can of Lysol! Here’s an all-natural alternative:

Pour ¼ cup each of tea tree essential oil, lavender essential oil and white vinegar into a spray bottle. Add 2 cups of distilled water and shake well. Clean your work space using this blend every evening before you go home to disinfect surfaces.

For more tips, check out Mike’s green guide to chemical-free cleaning.

Image: Weird Beard

Is the economy beating you up? It’s time to get creative. Next time you have an ache or pain, forget about a costly trip to the drugstore and test drive some of your grandmother’s remedies instead. It’ll save money and be gentler on your body and the environment. Recessionistas (and Gents), welcome to the DIY medicine cabinet.

Indigestion and Heartburn

It almost goes without saying – but consider why you’re getting heartburn in the first place. Did you overeat? Too much grease or spicy food? Eating late at night? Scout out the cause and try to stop this before it happens. Then, put down the antacids. The belching, bloat and heartburn caused by indigestion come about because you don’t have enough stomach acid to do the job right. A spoonful or two of apple cider vinegar will help break down the excess food that is causing you trouble and bring your stomach back to balance.

Sore Throat

Sore, scratchy throats are usually a sign of a cold or flu coming on, so you don’t want to ignore this symptom, but you can relieve the pain by gargling with warm salt water a few times a day and then drinking a soothing honey-lemon tea.

Sore Muscles and Bruises

After a hard afternoon of rowing with a friend, I resigned myself to a few days of burning muscles and soreness. But my friend saved the day with a tube of arnica cream. He rubbed it on my shoulders and voila, instant relief and absolutely no aches the next day. The humble arnica flower makes an incredible cream that no medicine cabinet should be without. Use it immediately to speed up the healing of bruises, sprains, sore muscles and other general aches.

Stop Bleeding

You’d think it would burn, but a sprinkle of cayenne pepper on a cut will quickly stop the bleeding and actually relieve the pain.

Ear Infections

Ear infections can become quite serious and cause permanent damage, so please see a doctor if your ear ache has become severe. But if you feel like your infection is mild and at the beginning stages, put a few drops of garlic oil or white vinegar into your ear canal and lay down on the opposite side to let those drops do their work. Garlic and vinegar create an environment that won’t support the bacteria causing the infection. Repeat a few times a day until the symptoms disappear. (If your symptoms last longer than a few days, you should definitely see a doctor!)

Burns

So you bumped up against the stove again? Ouch. Rinse first with cold water, but then immediately apply aloe vera gel to the burn. For those of us who don’t have aloe in the house, slice a potato and rub its cool, soothing juices all over the burn. And honey, with its antibacterial properties, is also good topical ointment. If you can catch the burn immediately, mustard is also reportedly a great salve.

Athlete’s Foot

It’s a foot fungus, and it stinks. Air those piggies, then soak them in salty water, wash them with garlic juice, or soak them with diluted white or apple cider vinegar. All of these things will help kill the fungus. But you have to be persistent, consistent and diligent: no matter what treatment you use, do it a few times a day and stick with it until at least a week after you think the symptoms are gone! Fungus excels at hiding out and coming back when you least expect it.

Rashes and Allergies

Prescription and OTC antihistamines can cause some serious side effects. Before you head for the strong stuff, try green tea, which contains compounds with antihistamine properties. You’ll need to drink 2-3 cups a day to get the full effect.

Acne and Sensitive Skin

First you really have to look at your lifestyle, because imbalances in your health can show up in your skin. But in the meantime, wash your face with oatmeal. It’s a gentle exfoliant and draws out oil and impurities.

Flatulence

Some foods, like beans and raw veggies, are more likely to cause gas, but if you find flatulence to be too common of an occurrence, try taking a digestive enzyme with your meals. You can find these at any health food store. In the meantime, make use of digestive spices such as ginger, anise, peppermint, coriander and dill. You can make tea with these ingredients or incorporate them into your food.

Headache and Migraine

Try rubbing peppermint or lavender oil on your temples and the base of your neck; sniffing these oils may also help. Rub a fresh cut lemon or lime on your forehead. Feverfew is a good herbal remedy for headaches. Have a little caffeine by way of green tea, and don’t forget to use an ice pack for 20 minutes to dull the throbbing.

Dandruff

Have you looked at the ingredients in dandruff shampoo? It seems like they contain almost everything in the Toxic Ingredients You Must Avoid list. Better to try something natural first before resorting to chemicals. Many people swear by rubbing aloe vera gel onto the scalp (leave it on for 20 minutes than rinse it out). This will certainly help with dry, itchy scalp. Another remedy is a rinse with apple cider vinegar. Try these remedies a few times before deciding if they work for you. Even dandruff shampoo requires regular use to see results, so give the natural stuff a chance!

Nausea

The classic cure for nausea or carsickness is ginger tea or candied ginger. You can chew on the stuff raw, if you like, but it’s so spicy and strong it might just make you feel worse. Sniffing real peppermint or lavender oil can also help.

Constipation. First, drink more water and eat more fruit and salads. You’re backed up for a reason and taking lots of laxatives is not the answer. Meanwhile, drinking a few teaspoons of olive oil mixed with a bit of orange or (diluted) lemon juice can help things get moving. Another surefire remedy is 1/4 teaspoon of epsom salts drunk in 1/2 a glass of water. Sometimes calorie restriction or avoidance of healthy fats (such as the good fats found in fish, nuts and avocados) can worsen constipation. And though it’s counterintuitive, some people relieve their constipation by actually cutting back on grain consumption! True, grains contain fiber, but some people don’t digest grains very well. Other causes of constipation include stress, depression, inactivity and nutritional deficiencies. If your constipation is chronic, it may be a sign of a more serious problem, so please seek medical advice and adjust your lifestyle.

Toothache. There’s nothing so bad as the shooting pain of a toothache. You don’t want to ignore a tooth problem, because an infection that close to your brain can be extremely dangerous if it spreads. But in order to reduce swelling and pain while you wait for your dentist appointment, try putting a few drops of clove oil on your tooth and gums, and bite down on a smashed piece of garlic (which has excellent antibacterial properties). This has always worked for me.

Give some of these remedies a try – and share your own tried-and-true treatments, too.

Images: FXR, Muhammad Adnan Asin, Mr Wabu, Goldring, Unhindered by Talent, Fotoos Van Robin, titanium22, aussiegall, craig Cloutier, Muffet, tillwe, Stuart Pilbrow, sh0dan, Fotoos Van Robin

I’m not referring to my favorite pasta dish or sports car, but rather the fabulous modern kitchen designs of the Italian manufacturer, Valcucine. Founded in 1980, they’ve perfected the art of the sleek, clean and simple space where we cook. But what I find even more commendable is their effort to be green.

For almost three decades, Valcucine has been diligent in its technological and engineering advances – all geared toward lessening their environmental impact. They embody the ultimate in cutting edge design meshed brilliantly with an eco-conscience. To wit, Valcucine supports reforestation projects and founded an organization that promotes environmental education and preservation.

In 1988 Valcucine introduced a one-piece “dematerialized” front panel resulting in cabinets made with 65-85% less material than other brands. More recently they created an all glass base unit that is non-toxic, resistant to heat, water and steam and 100% recyclable. Read more about Valcucine’s environmental philosophy here. And learn more about their products and all the possibilities here, here and here.

In the current climate of all things prefab, modular and adaptable the Valcucine kitchen fits right in. In fact, the Artematica Vitrum fit right into one of the full-scale prefab prototypes (the Cellophane House) built for the 2008 MOMA exhibition – Home Delivery: Fabricating the Modern Dwelling (read my post about the show here). Both the house and its kitchen cabinetry use aluminum structural frames for support. Artematica Vitrum cabinetry is also made with tempered glass, a lightweight and completely recyclable and sustainable material.

If you’re not into modern, a Valcucine kitchen may not be right for you. But please don’t deny them a little well-deserved praise for their multitude of eco-accomplishments. Molto Bene!

Take Back The Filter has launched a campaign pushing Clorox (the owners of Brita) to either set up a filter recycling program or create a reusable filter with a permanent housing, in which you only have to replace the environmentally-safe carbon granules inside. No plastic to throw away. British company Aqua Select has already done this, but so far no American company has jumped on this eco bandwagon. Take Back The Filter is working to change that, and if you’re a filter-lover like me, you can help them do it.

When my late grandmother lived in Brooklyn, I remember the mysterious chute in the trash room that would send whatever was placed inside sliding down into the abyss. Back then any inanimate object that could fit – paper, plastic, clothing, food – was fair game and would be shipped to the incinerator and burned. We’ve learned a lot about the environment since those days, and now the science of those chutes are being put to good use to green new kitchens with the Clean Chute Recycling System.

Much in the same vein as the laundry chutes that were popular during the Brady Bunch era, the kitchen chute sends recyclables and trash out of the kitchen and through the wall via stainless steel doors installed in the backsplash or countertop. Trash bins sit in an adjacent room such as a garage, laundry room, mudroom or attached outdoor shed.

Made from 80% recycled materials, the units can be custom made to fit a new or remodeled kitchen. The 45° Clean Chute® (pdf) system slides all waste to its proper container in the garage, laundry room, or other adjacent area. Doors are available in stainless steel, copper, brass, tile, wood or be matched to existing appliance color.

The usual Thanksgiving suspects can be so heavy – especially when all are combined – mashed potatoes, stuffing, and rolls, oh my!

Try this ethereal soufflé. It will dress up your Thanksgiving table without causing havoc in the kitchen. It really is easy. Cook the squash a few days ahead and you can mix it up quickly and bake it while the turkey (or tofurkey) rests.

When selecting your squash, do yourself a favor and visit a local farmers’ market to savor all the gorgeous local, organic varieties available right now in every part of the country. You’ll want something orange-fleshed and drier, rather than moist. I used kabocha (shown) when I developed this recipe.

Do the first step of the recipe up to three days ahead for Thanksgiving Day ease of preparation. Simply cut the squash into chunks of equal size and put it in a baking dish. Pour a little water in the bottom of the dish, cover it tightly with a lid or foil, and bake until tender at 400 degrees. When cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh from the skin and refrigerate until ready to use.

Now to the recipe:

Serves 8

3 1/3 cups of cooked orange squash flesh
1 teaspoon chopped fresh organic thyme
6 organic eggs, separated
2/3 cup organic buttermilk
Salt and pepper
1 cup grated organic cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Put the squash in a medium bowl and mash it with a potato masher until broken down and fluffy. Add the thyme, egg yolks, buttermilk and salt and pepper. (To taste for proper seasoning, microwave a small amount or cook a little in a non-stick pan.) Add the cheese and mix to combine. In another medium bowl, with a handheld electric mixer, beat the egg whites until medium peaks form. Fold the egg whites carefully into the squash mixture, being careful not to over mix and deflate the mixture.

Transfer to an 8 cup casserole dish and bake for 40-50 minutes until dry, firm, and beginning to brown. Serve immediately.

Recipe Copyright Vanessa Barrington 2008

Image: The Kitchn

Steel yourself: we’re going to talk about drains.

It would be ungentlemanly of me to mention the amount of my ex-girlfriend’s long hair that used to jam up the plug of the shower – so I won’t. But there’s all sorts of things drains can clog up with: skin, grime, bacteria…let’s not dwell. Here are a few tips on prevention.

 - Luanne reported on sink strainers a few months ago. Terrifically useful. You have your own, yes? (They’re about $7).

 - Don’t use bleach! There are many planet-friendly alternatives: something like the Earth Enzymes (plant extracts and essential oils) sold by Nigel’s Eco Store is what you need.

 - The best time to deal with a problem is before it happens. A kettleful of boiling water down the drain once a week will suffice (check plastic pipes afterwards to see if they’ve started to leak). Even better, a few cups of 1 part baking soda to 4 parts hot vinegar.

 - Poke a clever plastic stick down the plughole.

Just remember: drain aren’t bad. They go bad. Look after them, and they’ll stay as sweet and clean as the air you breathe.

(You can open your eyes now).

Image: mobile street life

With thanks to Kimberly Delaney at Lime.