I am so excited about Amazon’s new Amazon Green program that offers a broad selection of green products.  You’ll find your favorite eco-friendly items here and discover new ones as well.  From light bulbs to Energy Star appliances to cleaners and much, much more, all the green things you need are here. 

Click here to check it out. 

Happy Shopping!

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It may seem dated, but there are many reasons to consider replacing your gasoline-powered lawnmower with a good old-fashioned push lawn mower:

• Save money because push lawn mowers don’t use gas
• Save money because push lawn mowers are inexpensive
• Save the planet because you will greatly reduce your carbon footprint with a push mower
• Enjoy the process more because push mowers are not noisy
• Decrease risk of injury because push lawn mowers are easy and safe
• Never worry whether or not your push mower will start
• Improve your health and fitness by pushing the push mower

Of course, if you have a huge lawn, the push mower is not for you.  However, if your yard is a manageable size, I urge you to consider getting a push lawn mower.  The push mowers are easy to obtain online; here are a couple that received good reviews:

In the spirit of full disclosure, I should tell you the LuSHHus lawn mower is a gas-guzzler (it was actually passed down from my father-in-law.)  The need to replace the LuSHHus lawn mower will soon be upon us, and I look forward to talking to Mr. LuSHHus about the benefits of a push mower.  An added benefit for him: I’d be a lot more willing to use the push mower than the noisy, big, gas-powered one we currently have!

Cheers!

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You may or may not have seen this post last week in which I briefly mentioned Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style.  As promised in that post, here is a more in-depth review of the book and all it has to offer style-conscious consumers.

Author Christie Matheson gives readers a completely realistic and easy-to-follow guide to becoming more Earth-friendly in this book.  Whereas many "green guides" try to tell you how to compost and install solar panels, Matheson’s tome suggests using CFLs (compact fluorescent lightbulbs), washing your clothes in cold water, cleaning the lint in your dryer, line-drying clothes, and using cloth napkins and hankies (how LuSHHUS is that last one, especially?!).  Not only does the author offer these and other totally do-able suggestions, she also goes through how to accomplish each green move step-by-step.

Additionally, I love the green gift guide that Matheson developed for seemingly everyone I know and the ideas for creating an eco-chic table. 

In this day and age, one in which we all really need to take steps to reduce our carbon footprints and to be more eco-friendly, many of us are turned off by people and guides that demand drastic and often costly changes in our lives.  This book, Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style, is different.  You will find exciting and fun and easy and stylish ways to incorporate eco-friendly habits into your life.  In doing so, you will make a difference!

Happy Earth Day!

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It’s Earth Day and I have a special deal to announce for all living a LuSHHus life readers courtesy of Embroidery by Valerie.  Check out these reusable canvas bags, pictured above, from Embroidery by Valerie for your groceries and for other toting needs.  The bags come in two sizes: Small - 13"x14", $15 including monogram; Large - 18"x13", $17.50 including monogram. LuSHHus readers will get 20% off your order of these canvas bags when you mention LuSHHus!!!  That makes your prices $12 for the small bag and $14 for the large bag.  You can choose the font and color of the name or initials you want embroidered on these bags.  Send an email to vriener@austin.rr.com to place your order.

Happy Earth Day!

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There are many choices for laundry detergent at the store, but most are expensive and are not eco-friendly.  At my last MOPS get-together, one of the girls shared a recipe for homemade laundry detergent that is dirt cheap and environmentally safe (I haven’t done the calculations myself, but I am told that the breakdown results in a load of laundry costing less than 2 cents with this stuff!).  Although I never thought this was something I would do, I admit that I couldn’t resist and am now eagerly making detergent and other cleaning supplies!  Here’s the recipe:

Liquid Detergent

1 quart water (boiling)
2 cups bar soap (grated) - We used Fels Naptha
2 cups borax
2 cups washing soda

1. Add finely grated bar soap to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted. You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.

2. Pour the soap water into a large, clean pail and add the borax and washing soda. Stir well until all is dissolved.

3. Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.

4. Cover pail and use 1/4 cup for each load of laundry. Once it’s cool, add 5 - 7 drops of your favorite essential oil per gallon. Stir the soap each time you use it (it will gel).

Powdered Detergent

2 cups finely grated soap
1 cup washing soda
1 cup borax

1. Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.

2. Use 2 tablespoons per full load.

Happy cleaning!

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This is the Eat Well Guide widget that you can use to find local and sustainable foods near you.  In fact, this tool will help you find fresh, wholesome food all around the U.S. and Canada.

Enjoy!

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If you, like me, are interested in reducing your carbon footprint, then you may want to try Eco-Me.  This is a line of products that aims to take the toxicity out of our homes.  For instance, in the Eco-Me Home Kit, you will find all you need (except vinegar, oil, baking soda, and water which you supply) to make your own all-natural cleaning solutions.  There are also kits for body, baby, dog, and cat. 

Oh, and in case you don’t know, your carbon footprint is the impact your activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced. 

Cheers!

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The formal review is coming soon (on Earth Day, of course!), but I just had to quickly mention how much I love Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style.  I got this book yesterday and read it cover-to-cover last night.  Each and every page is chock full of tips that you can use to make your life a little more green.  I have added this book to my list of LuSHHus Lit (which you can see in its entirety in the left sidebar), and I urge you to get it and read it!

Thanks!

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If you are looking for ways to do the right thing for our planet, look no further than Ideal Bite.  This website is a free resource full of tips on how you can do your part.  You can even sign up for a daily email here so that the advice comes in automatically. 

Cheers!

Enter your search terms Submit search form

Web luxurystylehappinesshealth.com

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I came across a website called BeGreenNow that lists some easy ways to be easier on the environment.  I chose some of the easiest ones to share with you here at living a LuSHHus life.  In case you just don’t know how you can do your part, please check out this list of eco-friendly ideas that will reduce your carbon footprint.

• Check your tire pressure regularly. Under-inflation increases tire wear, reduces your fuel economy, and leads to higher greenhouse gas emissions. If you don’t know the correct tire pressure for your vehicle, you can find it listed on the door to the glove compartment or on the driver’s-side door pillar.

• Have fun! Ride your bike. It’s a great way to travel and it can help you and the air get into condition. Vehicles on the road create more than 25% of all air pollution nationwide.

• Avoid high speeds. Above 60 mph, gas mileage drops rapidly. The http://fueleconomy.gov/ web site shows how driving speed affects gas mileage.

• Replacing each regular bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb saves 150 pounds of CO2 a year per bulb.

• Landscaping your home for energy efficiency can reduce your heating and cooling bills, the largest component of your home’s energy use. Your overall landscaping strategy will depend on your regional climate.

• Of the 25 billion single-serving plastic water bottles Americans use each year, 80% end up in landfills. Recycle your water bottles and, better yet, choose to re-use a refillable water bottle made of a refill-safe material.

• Consider buying a laptop for your next computer upgrade; they use much less energy than desktop computers.

• Look for the ENERGY STAR® label on home appliances, electronics and other products. ENERGY STAR® products meet strict efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Cheers!

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I don’t claim to be 100% green or the biggest friend of the environment on the block, but I do try to make small changes and sacrifices whenever possible so as to be a good environmental citizen. In order to share some green things I love and some green things I want to try, I have created a list of products, services, and sites that are all eco-friendly and that are mostly stylish and LuSHHus. If you have any great green ideas that living a LuSHHus life readers can use, I’d love to hear from you. 

Please check out The LuSHHus Green List in its entirety (see link below.)

Cheers!

See more of my The LuSHHus Green List list at ThisNext.

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