Climate Pledge Friendly

As a bit of a departure from my usual "second hand is the best", let's talk about NEW products. There are some things you just want to buy new for hygienic reasons (I'm looking at you, toothbrush) or quality reasons (many electronics). 

For these items, the next best thing is to look at responsibly sourced products with quality and/or renewable components, and lightweight plastic-free packaging. 

It can be hard to find these products or make the right choices, understanding what is a better choice vs just greenwashing. 

This is why I was happy to see Amazon's "Climate Pledge Friendly" filter. I'm going to be honest. I may have rolled my eyes at first. Doubly hard when they revealed the name of Climate Pledge Arena. It doesn't roll off the tongue does it? What was this whole climate pledge anyway? Is it just a good PR move, or will it mean actual results from the big players with the capability and responsibility to make change? Despite my doubts though, I'm pretty excited about the shopping experience. 

There's a couple ways to find the products you want: 

1) Search then filter. First, search for what you're looking for. Once your search results are up, select the "Climate Pledge Friendly" checkbox on the left side, and your results will be filtered. My "paper" search dropped from 3000+ results to 188, making my search for a better product much simpler.

I can tell it worked because each of the products also have the Climate Pledge Friendly badge displayed. Further, you can expand on which certifications led to the product being included.

2) Start from a certification. One of the reasons I like this program is that it's not a made-up Amazon-defined certification, but rather, a collection of independent certifying agencies that are providing their designations.

Visit this page to learn about Climate Pledge Friendly and the various certifications. Here are a sample: 

 

Some you may recognize, like Energy Star, which you'll see on many of your modern appliances and Forest Stewardship Council, which we've talked about before for responsible logging practices. Find the certifications that are the most meaningful to you (do you care about recycled content? organic?) and then click the link to shop all their products. 

After doing some browsing, it appears it's still early days, and you still may have to make some compromises. For example, some of the certifications claim the products are improved in at least one-stage of manufacturing. Meaning you may get recycled content toilet paper, but still in plastic wrap. However, this is a step in the right direction to finding better choices. 

Spotlight: Fremont Vintage Mall

I don't explore my own city enough, often falling into a routine, and visiting the same places over and over again. So when I had a staycation day last week, I visited an oldie but goodie: the Fremont Vintage Mall. 

A short explanation in case you are unfamiliar with thrift vs consignment vs vintage and other types of stores: They are all great ways to recirculate second-hand items. Thrift stores get their products donated to them, and because of that, they are the least controlled for quality and least curated. Think of thrifting as where you can often get the best prices but have to wade through volume. Consignment stores purchase their inventory, so they are more likely to search for items of higher quality, both in terms of condition and meeting a certain bar for theme or brand. Vintage is also very curated, and tends to also represent a specific time period. Vintage and consignment will often have higher prices than thrift, but you'll be more likely to find that treasured or collectible item. 

In the case of Fremont Vintage Mall, it is a collective of 40+ vendors, so you'll see a broad variety throughout the store, but a distinct personality in each section of the store. Here are just some of the amazing items I spotted: 

This awesome vintage Jessica McClintock wedding gown for $85. 

Look at that detail!

These panda and fox flats. So fun!

They even fit. I may have to go back and retrieve these!

For the local sports enthusiast, a vintage Husky mascot. Collectibles was a big theme at the Mall, ranging from sports memorabilia to military patches, to silver spoons and lunchboxes. 

Now that record players are back in style, you should check out their sizeable record collection. (They also have cassettes and CD's if you are rocking the Walkman.) Most vinyl ranged from $.99-$5 each. 

They had several pieces of this vintage Amish design Pyrex as well as many popular designs of china and crystal. 

And the famous turtle lamps. These same lamps are going for $80 or more new, so $48 is quite the deal on this guy. You know your end table is looking for some style!

Or, if classic is more your style, they had multiple Tiffany-style lamps, including this one with built in porcelain sculpture. 

While I'm kicking myself a bit for not bringing home the cute fox shoes, I did bring one item home: this sassy lady fabric. It was a section of over 4 yards for $16, which is a pretty decent price (about the price of the cheapest cotton fabric at Walmart and 50% less than the cheapest at Joann's). 

So, if you're looking to break out of the rut at your regular thrift shops, head on over to a vintage shop, on you may find some unique finds, or even that piece to complete your collection. If you're looking for the Fremont Vintage Mall specifically, it's in the heart of the Fremont shopping district, but keep your eyes open; it's in the basement level, so you're looking for a door that takes you downstairs vs. a storefront. Happy shopping!

Eco-Friendly Exercising

So this story starts with a fencing project. We had a couple sections of fence that were rotting and about to topple over. T started the project, demoing the wood panels with our neighbor. I come to check on the progress, and T says: "Well we got the wood down. Now time to dig up those cement plugs that were holding the posts. Your turn."

Whaaa? Well, challenge accepted. I start digging, and lift out one of the 50lb cement blocks. I'm feeling pretty She-Hulk about the whole thing, like look at me LIFT!  The good news is I know to lift with my legs and didn't hurt my back. The bad news is I don't do a lot of weight-bearing exercise, and the next day my thighs were 100% in pain (can Jello hurt?). 

(How I felt until the next day. But really this is an awesome collector figurine from Kotobikuya.)

Now it's in my head that I should probably start doing some weight bearing squats, and all I have at home is 3lb dumbbells. 

The great news is that as things are starting to re-open, including gyms, the thrift stores are starting to fill up with the fitness equipment that gym-goers had purchased to bring their workouts home. I've been easing my way back into the office, working 1 day/week downtown, which is conveniently 1 block from a Goodwill. I check it out for goodies during my lunch break, and have seen the supply rotate each week, and just a few weeks in, I scored: a pair of 8lb dumbbells for $6 each. 

The cheapest I'm seeing these new are $17 each. Savings for the pair is $22, and I've kept a like-new piece of equipment in circulation! With the supply-chain constraints for various products, it's an added benefit to redistribute as much existing supply as possible. 

It leads me to wonder what other at-home hobbies we'll start to see flood the thrift stores and garage sales: puzzles, games, craft supplies?

Upcycled Bike Waste Makes a Happy Dog!

I love seeing my Aunt T. COVID meant over a year without our usual holiday weekends, but vaccines mean we now get to visit! 

Meeko loves seeing Aunt T almost as much as I do, as she gets plenty of massages and treats when T is around. This past weekend was no exception. T shows up with a gift in hand, which led me to discover a new company! 

Cycle Dogs is a Portland, OR based company, which originally started by upcycling old bicycle tubes into dog collars. They have since expanded their efforts into beds, toys and more, each using post-consumer materials. 

"Cycle Dog has reclaimed hundreds of thousands of discarded inner tube rubber targeted for landfills."

So if you aren't into making your own toys, or just want to support a local business, check out Cycle Dog. I love that they proclaim to help you and your furbaby "lower your carbon pawprint". Not in Portland? You can also find their products at Mud Bay.

Meeko's pretty sold on it too. What do you think? Are these toys just as fun as their traditional counterparts?

And at $8-20 each, these toys are competitive with other quality pet toys.