Friday, November 21, 2008

eco friendly friday

I have been thinking about eco friendly Friday all week. What should I write about this week?
A lot of people have commented saying we do that and they do it because it saves money. Yes, going green does save money.
I am not sure how exactly I became such an eco friendly person, but I am and for the most part that is one of the things Rusty loves about me.
Last night I went down to base to babysit, so the marines could go to the ball. I watched all the guy's get dressed in their uniforms. They always look so handsome. Then Amber and Heidi got dressed. Amber wore the same dress she wore to prom last year, and Heidi borrowed a dress from Nikki.
Now that is recycling at its best. I am not sure why, but the girls go to a lot of formal events, so we are always on the look out for nice used dresses.
Yes, I said used. So many people buy formals and then wear them once and then they sell them for nothing. I swoop in and buy them up. It saves me money and I am keeping something else out of a landfill.
For me it goes further then that. I think about what really goes into the dress or any of our clothing for that matter.
Cotton is grown, it is sprayed with pesticides, and then harvested by big fuel sucking machines. Then the cotton is milled, woven...ect. You get the picture. Most of our clothing is made overseas so it has to be shipped here, and that consumes more energy.
The clothing industry is very hard on our environment and most people sacrifice the planet for fashion. I do think that is wrong on so many levels.
When you think that you need new clothing, try looking at thrift stores or yard sales first. I am always shocked at the amount of nice clothing I find at these two places.
One of the big issues I have is what to do with Ryans shoes. Ryan goes through a pair of sneakers about every two months. I just can't believe how hard he is on shoes. So I went on search for way's to reuse Ryan's old shoes. I was so shocked at all the different ways shoes can be recycled. Niki has a program where it takes all old shoes and grinds them up and then Niki makes all sort's of stuff from the old shoes.
As I sit here this morning in my late father in laws shirt, Rusty's sweat pants and socks that don't match, I have to wonder how much clothing I have saved from the landfills and how much money I have saved.
Please check out the following link. Even if you have desire to ever recycle your shoes it is really neat to see how shoes are recycled.

http://www.nikereuseashoe.com/

8 comments:

Cassey said...

That is SO neat! Thanks so much for sharing that link!!!

Chrissie a.k.a. HoneyB said...

We always switch around prom dresses. Some of those things are so expensive and we were lucky to know people who do pageants all the time. Now talk about a closet full of fancy dresses only used once.
That is neat about the shoes. I'll have to look at the site.
Hope you have a great weekend.

Sage Ravenwood said...

Wicked cool idea. Thanks for the heads up on it. (Hugs)Indigo

Heli gunner Tom said...

Hi Keltie,
thank you for the warm comments on my Christian and Military Journal! I learned that few things are impossible for an average person with the heart of a lion. When I was laid off at Chrysler for 6 years along with 6000 other guys and gals, I immediately went back to school to study more welding,etc. A few years latter I was asked to join a huge Financial Corp to learn that trade and even passed my Fed. Securities exam! You and your son sound like winners too!
Please email me at: tschuckman@aol.com

Tom S
Wisconsin

betty said...

this was a great entry Kelli! I learned a lot about different things regarding clothing that I didn't know!

I just told the hubby tonight that I need a few winter tops to wear around the house and I told him I'm going to a thrift shop; I don't need to spend $30 on a sweater; I can get something a lot cheaper there and just as nice

I know there's an organization, but for the life of me I can't remember the name of it, that takes prom dresses and then donates them to girls who want to go to prom but can't afford a dress; that's another good way to recycle too :)

betty

Lori said...

Thanks for the links!

Unknown said...

Hi! Love your "eco friendly friday" series!

I like the whole concept of reusing things ... whether it's clothing, appliances, computers ... whatever. Not only does it cost a lot less (and who couldn't use a few extra bucks in their pockets), it's better for the earth. I live in an apartment and when residents have items that others might be able to use, they place them next to the dumpster with a sign saying "free". It has become the hot spot of our neighborhood. And very few items ever go into the bin.

You're right ... it's recycling at it's best.

Thanks for sharing your ideas ... and BTW ... thanks for coming over to my blog. I'm so glad that your friend gave you my link and that you like my site. I'm going to follow you, too!

Take Care!

Small Footprints
http://reducefootprints.blogspot.com

Janice Lois said...
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