This amazingly easy and cute reusable sandwich wrap was made by Betz White, author of Sewing Green and she’ll show you how to make it step by step.

Make some Cloth Snack Bags.

Make a lunch box out of an old Nintendo – yeah it’s true.

Oilcloth Lunch Bag Tutorial – so cool and you can reuse an old tablecloth.

Reusable-Upcycled Lunch bag – made with a reycled bird seed bag.

Make a lunch bag out of old jeans.

Make a sweet as candy Vintage Pillowcase Lunchbox.

Make some other eco-friendly snack bags.

Make your own insulated lunch bag.

Make an ADORABLE burlap bag! So flipping cute you will faint. This one was made of an old coffee bag, but you could use any sort of burlap.

Add in some homemade cloth napkins.

NOTE: Since most homemade lunch sacks are fabric, don’t forget to make some little reusable covers for your ice packs or your bags will get too wet. Basically, make an ice pack cover like you would a snack or sandwich bag.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

I showed him all the choices, and he looked them up and down, and sideways, and made me read him the stats about them. He’s eight, and he’s saying, “So what does that bag measure?” For pete’s sake. Anyhow, his decision…

You won’t believe it:

He says, “I think I’ll just stick with the Bamboo Bag.” WHAT! Just to clarify, a week ago when his lunch bag broke, all we had around was that Bamboo Lunch Sack I recently reviewed, so I had to pack his lunch in that. Here’s Cedar a week ago:

• “Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!” Don’t make me take it to camp! It’s not coooooooooooooooooooooool!“
• “I don’t like Bamboo – even if it is a tree!” I know it’s not a tree, but he’s 8, so…
• “Why is it so green!? I want a blue lunch bag.“

But all of a sudden last night he’s on the Bamboo Lunch Sack train? Huh? I say, “You said you hated it, you said, find me a better one, what the flip is up?” To which he replies, “I’ve decided I like Bamboo. It’s soft and you can’t have it back.” Well then!

I don’t know why I bother sometimes. In any case, I don’t have to buy a new bag right away, although, as previously mentioned, this bag is not ice pack friendly so I likely will buy the non-toxic ice pak and sweat free cover I mentioned yesterday.

Kids right?

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

In any case, Cedar my son is super picky about stuff. Clothes, toys, books, and so on, so I knew choosing a lunch pack wouldn’t be easy, but it’s actually been harder then I thought. He’s snubbed some eco-lunch kits as not cool enough already and our options are wavering. Of course I want eco-friendly, so I decided to post on it. I’ll choose some that I think Cedar will like and after let him choose. Along the way maybe you’ll see something you like for your kid. NOTE: Cedar is very boy – so all these will be ‘boy’ type kits. Later maybe I’ll post a girl friendly bunch…

Laptop Lunch System in Periwinkle: Cedar already gave this kit a color thumbs up, but he doesn’t like the water bottle. I told him fine, use your Kleen Kanteen. This kit comes with the Laptop Lunch insulated carrying case, water bottle, the Laptop Lunch Bento Box with all inner containers and utensils, and one copy of The Laptop Lunch User’s Guide. All Laptop Lunch products are phthalates, bisphenol A (BPA), and lead free. If he gets this lunch set, I’ll probably also pick up an extra set of interior containers.

Waste Free Lunch Kit: I like this kit, but I’m guessing that Cedar won’t like the bag color. He might though. Who knows. Because this bag is cloth, if he picks it, I’ll have to also get the non-toxic ice pak and sweat free cover (shown above as well) – a non-toxic green ice pack in a Squiggle cover made from plastic bottles. All Kid Konserve products are made from safe, non-leaching, bisphenol-A free (BPA) lead free and phthalate free materials.

The bag I think Cedar will like best so far is the ACME Bags – Recycled PET Medium Thermal “6 Pack” Lunch Bag – it’s boring but basic, which he’ll like. Perks include…

• 90% post-consumer recycled content
• Made from recycled plastic bottles & containers
• 100% lead-free materials
• Zipper closure and exterior slip pocket
• Thermal insulation keeps contents colder longer
• Made with Fair Labor/Fair Wage

Fleurville Lunch Pak in silver digital camo. Can be worn as a back pack or carried with handle.

• Closed-cell insulation throughout the entire body of the bag works as an insulator.
• Easy to clean lining.
• Hidden name tag.
• Heat reflective, easy to clean lining.
• Project pocket.
• Exceeds CA Prop 65 standards for lead and other toxins
• PVC-free/Teflon®-free

These are the most Cedar + earth friendly I found. I’ll let him take a look then I’ll be back later to let you know which pack wins the cool factor for this picky kid. My vote is with the laptop lunch kit, but I’m still guessing he’ll pick the ACME bag. We’ll see.

Which bag would your child like best do you think?

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

1. Serve organic and local foods and drinks at your feast. Organic can cost more, yeah, especially if you’re feeding a crowd, but you can get more organic bang for you buck if you start at the top and work your way down. For example, an organic turkey is a smart organic purchase because of pesticides found in poultry. Buying specialty organic bread and rolls – not so crucial. Few pesticides are found in conventional bread products. Learn which types of foods you should buy organic.

2. Create a vegetarian meal: Skipping the turkey, ham, bacon bits, and whatever other meats you like at Thanksgiving, is a great way to keep your holiday green. (Tip via our feathered friend above).

3. Use real linens: Cloth tablecloths and napkins are an easy way to keep it green. Even at the kid’s table!

4. Stay put: Getting into your car, or worse, an airplane, to travel about the country is a terrible waste of resources. Stay at home and stay green.

5. Use eco-friendly tableware: Keep the lead off the dining room table and opt for earth-friendly dishes instead. Soon, I’ll post about some dishware options.

6. Place organic flowers on the table: Organic Boutique has their new Thanksgiving selection of flowes up, and they are beautiful. Take a look at their Fall Asiatic Lily Bouquet:

7. Participate in this month’s green challenge: Buy Nothing Day will reduce all sorts of after Thanksgiving issues – gas issues, consumer issues, and let’s not forget stress. Make this a more peaceful Thanksgiving.

How are you greening your holidays? Let me know in the comments, or vote in our poll (sidebar to the right).

November current events at Tree Hugging Family – themes, reviews, news, and more…

[turkey pal via stock.xchng; flower image via Organic Boutique]

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

I’m inviting you to take the paper towel challenge in May. I’m going to do this with you and report my results as well. I’ve come a long way in lowering my paper towel usage, but there’s always room for improvement. My co-blogger Jennifer won’t be doing this challenge since she doesn’t use any paper towels. I’ll talk more later about how my cat is the source of some of my paper towel usage.

Here’s how the Paper Towel Challenge works:

Week One (May 4-10): Make a note of how many rolls of paper towels you used and what you used them for. A piece of paper on the refrigerator should do the trick. You can mark your progress more easily if you use the same brand/size throughout this month. If you haven’t switched to recycled paper towels, now would be a great time.

Week Two (May 11-17): Stop using paper towels for two of the purposes you listed. Use cloth instead. Try to reduce your paper towel usage by one half before the end of the month. If you used two rolls last week, try to only use one roll a week by the end of the month. If you used one roll last week, try to only use half a roll a week. Keep track of how many rolls you’re using and what you’re using them for.

Week Three (May 18-24): Have you made progress? If not, you may need to look again at how you’re using the paper towels. If you’re using them for napkins, try cloth napkins instead. If you’re using them for cleaning, use rags or sponges instead.

Week Four (May 25-31): Come back here and tell us how you did. And if you didn’t meet your goal, keep trying. If you met your goal, let’s party!

Don’t forget to come back here often to let us know how you’re doing and talk to others who are taking the paper towel challenge.

Image via flickr. That’s not my cat.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

What does World Wildlife Fund want you to do during Earth Hour? Well, turn off your lights! The rest is up to you. People in six continents will be in the dark with you.

Here are some suggestions on what to do during this hour in the dark:

-Think about how to implement some of the ideas from Earth Hour: More than Just an Hour.

-Give up a disposable product you currently use. (Ideas: Replace paper napkins with cloth. Use a gold filter instead of paper coffee filters. Use a real cup instead of disposable ones in the bathroom. Stop buying bottled water.)

-Consider living closer to where you work.

-Make some new green goals.

-Commit to always taking your own bags to the store.

-Think about how you can buy products with less packaging.

-Decide to start buying at least five organic products each month at the grocery store.

Inspire others now by commenting on this post. Tell us how you are going to observe Earth Hour 2008.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

Restaurants in several cities like San Francisco are required to use recyclable, biodegradable or compostable containers instead of Styrofoam, but not my city.

Yet, take-out is sometimes a good thing, like when Michael and I were both sick with colds on Friday night. Neither of us wanted to cook. And nothing we had at home sounded good anyway.

So, take-out it was. And when I opened the bag, I thought, “Now, there’s a blog post!”

Out came three sets of plastic forks and knives with paper napkins, all wrapped up in plastic. Well, unless the cat has started eating with a fork, that third set was a bit crazy.

If you are eating at home, isn’t it so much nicer to use real silverware? Also, cloth napkins are much better with messy food. They don’t crumple into nothing.

Here’s the tip:

The next time you order take-out, tell the person over the phone or at the window that you do not want plastic forks or wooden chopsticks, etc. (Well, that’s assuming you have some real chopsticks at home.)

Since some places like to staple up your bag with a receipt, it really is key to request that you don’t receive any unwanted items when you order. If you keep take-out menus at home, try adding a note about this.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family