Yet another reason why the octopus is such an amazing creature. Oh! And I don’t think I posted about it since I got the last bit of color done on my octopus tattoo! Here it is, finally finished! It was done by my friend Henry Rhodes at Electric Ladyland on Frenchman Street in New Orleans. He wants me to come back for some additional grey shading in the negative space, but other than that, this baby is done! I’ve got pictures from the whole process on Flickr. (It’s taken 4 sessions so far!)
I’m published! Well, sort of… I wrote a short one page review awhile back of the handmade eco-friendly dish sponges made by Laksaware for the book The Complete Guide to Eco-Friendly House Cleaning: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply by Anne Kocsis, and the book is out now! It feels pretty cool to have something I wrote in a book, even if it’s just a page or so! I just ordered some new scrubbies by Laksaware recently… I have LOVED replacing those store bought dish sponges with her crochets scrubbies. The first ones I bought lasted me about a year and I totally prefer them over the store bought sponges now.
My boyfriend has us hooked on watching old episodes of Soap. He discovered that the entire series is available for instant viewing with Netflix, via our XBox 360 connection and we’ve been watching a lot of episodes. I’d never seen it before (cause you know, the show was canceled before I was born), but I’ve really been enjoying it. It’s totally ridiculous of course, and pretty funny.
The Etsy Trashion street team is hosting a week long sale from April 16 – 22 in honor of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Every shop will be doing a different promotion, ranging from free shipping, to free gift with purchase, to up to 20% off. Visit the team on Etsy, or view their blog or Facebook page to get a list of participating shops.
The Nature Conservancy is also celebrating the 40th anniversary of Earth Day by providing suggestions for simple things the average person can do to help protect oceans. Their Top 5 Earth Day Actions encourage protecting oceans in ways ranging from shopping with reusable bags to adopting a coral reef. You can check out their website for more details, but in short, here are their Top 5 suggestions for actions you can take:
1. Use Reusable Bags. (Like the b.b.begonia reusable shopping bags I’m carrying in my shop!) Hundreds of thousands of marine animals die every year from ingesting plastic bags. 2. Eat Sustainably. You eat fish even when you don’t: 36% of world’s fisheries catch is used to feed farm animals. 3. Green Your Gardening. Plant native species – they require less fertilizer, which can seep into oceans! 4. Adopt A Coral Reef. 70% of all Earth’s coral reefs will be destroyed by 2050, act now! 5. See Oceans, Save Oceans. See OCEANS (4/22-4/28) & a portion of ticket sales benefits Conservancy’s work on coral reefs.
April is Adopt a Pet month AND Prevention of Cruelty to Animals month, and a couple of great indie businesses are doing special promotions in honor of our favorite critters. Emily Elizabeth Jewelry is donating 50% of proceeds from select animal-inspired jewelry to the ASPCA. Ex-Boyfriend has created some fun keychain bottle openers featuring original designs and illustrations of adorable animals, and now through April 17th, 100% of the proceeds of sales of these keychains will go to the SPCA. This is on top of Ex-Boyfriend’s everyday practice of donating 5% of net profits to animal shelters and rescue organizations.
Our mission: Spreading joy, understanding and empathy through delicious tea, witty conversation and the wanton destruction of inanimate objects while wearing Sunday dresses.
Who was it that said while the wars of the 20th century were fought over oil, the wars of the 21st century would be fought over water? That statement feels pretty close to home when you think about the fact that by 2030 two-thirds of the world will lack access to clean drinking water.
Today, March 22, is World Water Day, a date sanctioned by the United Nations to bring awareness to that very fact. Right now more than one out of six people lack access to safe drinking water, and that number will continue to grow unless we can do something about it. (Did you know that even in the United States, only 90% of the country currently has access to clean drinking water??)
Tapped is a new award-winning documentary about the water crisis, and the exacerbating effect that the bottled water industry has had. Today, in honor of World Water Day, they are donating 10% of all DVD sales to charity: water. Also starting today, they are doing a film tour to promote the documentary and urge people to quit the bottled water habit. Tapped producer Sarah Olson and director Stephanie Soechtig will be collecting pledges for people to reduce their bottled water use and they’ll trade people their empty bottles of water for a Klean Kanteen reusable water bottle. They’ll be in New Orleans on Saturday, April 10th at The Republic to screen the film and collect bottles. You can see the full tour schedule here.
Carry a reusable water bottle instead of buying bottled water, and make the switch from the bottle to the tap. The production, transportation, and disposal of bottled water consumes large amounts of water and energy.
Take the pledge to only use bottled water when absolutely necessary.
Tell your local officials to put the repair of water infrastructure at the top of their agenda.
Take shorter showers. Shorten your shower by a minute or two and you’ll save up to 150 gallons per month.
Invest in a low-flow toilet or put a plastic bottle filled with water in your toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush.
Turn off the tap while brushing teeth, shaving, and washing your hair. Turn off the water while brushing your teeth and save 25 gallons a month. Turn off the water while you shave and save up to 300 gallons a month. Turn off the water while you wash your hair to save up to 150 gallons a month.
Run dishwashers or laundry machines only when full. Washing dark clothes in cold water saves both on water and energy while it helps your clothes to keep their colors.
Choose landscaping plants with low water requirements.
Eat foods that require less water to produce. The amount of water used to produce animal products and processed foods like soda and chips far exceeds the amount used for growing vegetables and grains.
When grocery shopping, try to buy more whole foods like vegetables that are in season, and a variety of grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
When you are washing your hands, don’t let the water run while you lather
On July 15, 2009, Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-3) introduced H.R.3202, which would create such a trust fund. While the bill is excellent in many respects, it should be strengthened to ensure public dollars go to public water systems, not to subsidize corporate profits of private water companies. By signing this petition, you can show your support for a Water Protection and Reinvestment Trust Fund that protects and strengthens our publicly owned water and wastewater systems. Take Action »
It’s that time of year again, where it seems like almost every day there’s something exciting going on. It’s hard to squeeze it all in sometimes! I’ve got a bunch of events coming up soon, with the first two being a free encore screening of Handmade Nation to celebrate the DVD release of the film and then a handmade home shopping party sponsored by NOLA Eats.
The free film screening of Handmade Nation takes place next Wednesday, November 18 at The Big Top (1638 Clio Street, New Orleans). I’ll have copies of the DVD on hand for sale, but if you need to buy it online, it’s also now available at BuyOlympia.com.
The New Orleans Craft Mafia, myself included, will be doing a craft market to accompany the film screening. The craft market will run from 6-10pm and the movie starts at 8pm. When we did a screening in September at Delgado, courtesy of the Irma Thomas W.I.S.E. Women Center, director Faythe Levine was there and we had a standing room only crowd! This is such a great documentary, so if you haven’t seen it yet, I highly encourage you to come out!
I’ll also be doing a handcrafted shopping party sponsored by my friend Leslie of NOLA Eats on Thursday, November 19 from 7:30-9pm at The Orange Couch (2339 Royal Street, New Orleans). This event is also open to the public, and I’m excited about the venue. I haven’t been there yet, but based on their website, the location looks amazing! I’ll have some new offerings on hand since the last handmade home shopping party I did, including reusable shopping bags by bbbegonia and bath & beauty products from Manor Hall Soap Company. (I swear by their foaming facial cleanser!)
MissMalaprop.com is where modern handmade meets sustainable design. I spotlight the best in independent designers & artists, eco-friendly and sustainable products, New Orleans & Gulf Coast based businesses and issues, and people & organizations who are working to make the world a better place.
I believe that one person can make a difference and that everyone can be that person.
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