Best Halloween Present Ever: Cole the WonderPup

I mean, seriously!

How's anyone supposed to get any work done with this bundle of love in the room? Readers, this is Cole. Cole, say hello to your new audience.
Forgive him - he's new to the U.S. and a little shy. As those who have been following this pup's story will know, Cole is a rescue dog from Taiwan. After weeks of anticipation, we picked him up at the airport last night at 8pm. Boy, was he tired! Not tired enough to sleep through the night, mind you - yaaaaaawn - but really, really tired for a couple of hours there.

How can I be so in love with a critter I've known less than a day? Guess I fall fast. But, lemme tell you, if you met the sweet puppy joy that is Cole, you'd be in love too.
The stoic King Oberon is handling the toy- and bed- and attention-stealing newcomer with his usual grace.


What's that? You want to see more?

Sonnets from the Pillowuese (LooLo!)

LooLo pillows, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

1. With your sophisticated frills and organic material, you're the epitome of sustainable style.
2. You're biodegradable. So should the day ever come that my love for you fades (it won't! I promise), I can throw you away and know that within one year you'll be reabsorbed into the earth.
3. Your chic jewel tones are created with non-toxic dyes.
4. Soft and supportive, you're filled with Kapok, an eco-friendly fiber.
5. I could go on, but really, aren't the images worth a thousand words?

Designer Limelight: Mod Green Pod

How snazzy are these prints? Mod Green Pod is the go-to line if you're looking for crisp, fun, colorful textiles hand-printed with water-based dyes on organic cotton. They also make vinyl-free wallpaper!

Green with Glamour sells some cute Mod Green Pod pillows:

Mod Green Pod in all its editorial glory:

(InStyle)

(Domino)

Ben Harper: Green Rock God

As if his amazing music weren't enough to make this girl in particular swoon, Ben Harper is also a tried and true greenie. His tour bus runs on biofuel, his latest CD is packaged in recycled materials and printed with soy ink, and he sells organic bamboo band t-shirts on his website.

"We're in the midst of environmental renaissance," Ben says in a video interview over at Sprig.

"Ain't that the truth," I respond. "And a happy Friday to all!"

Object of My Affection: Ciel's Kimono Shrug

Dear reader, I'm in love. This gorgeous kimono shrug is sexy, sustainable, and I can tell that high, upright collar would be muy flattering. Made from the undyed, organic wool of freeroaming Peruvian alpaca (ah, to be freeroaming in Peru!), this sweater sings its siren song from the fab new U.K. online ethical boutique, Fashion-Conscience.com.

Why, oh why, must the US dollar be so darn wimpy?

Wee Ones Wednesday: DucDuc

There's so much about DucDuc that I love, it's hard to know where to begin. Though it is, in essence, an environmentally responsible children's furniture company, much of the furniture would look sharp in any room of the house. Take the table above, for example. Made out of sustainably harvested wood with non-toxic finishes, it's supposed to be a children's play table. And sure, the reversible panels are walnut on one side and white dry-erase board on the other, and they slide out to meet a child seated on the bench (and to reveal lots of storage space), but still. Am I alone in thinking this would be a really cool dining table?

Imagine the fun dinner party menus you could script on the dry erase panels!




I also heart the Cabana Canopy Bed:
The Cabana Desk:
The Parker Panel Crib:
And the Dylan Bonding Bench:

Pack My Bags: Birdbath Bakery

So, apparently there's this bakery in New York - that might or might not be called Birdbath - with ginormous cookies and muffins and croissants all made from organic ingredients.

Wait. It gets better.

Billed as a neighborhood green bakery, Birdbath's walls are made of wheat, its cups are made of corn (which, as you might imagine, is biodegradable), and its shelves are made of recycled paper. The entire bakery is wind-powered. Non-toxic paint. Reclaimed wood floors. The staff wears vintage 50s dresses and jackets made of hemp. They compost their organic coffee grounds and get their milk and cream and honey from farms just north of Manhattan. And there's a 25% discount if you arrive by bike or skateboard (apparently the sign in the above window is outdated).

Frankly, the bakery's website - with images of organic sugar-covered pastries and lime-colored delivery rickshaws - views a bit like green porn.

I wonder how long it would take me to bike there from SF.

Object of My Affection: Gaiam Nylum Bedding

Just when I think I'll never find a glam organic duvet cover, Gaiam comes to the rescue with this distinctive, stylized allium bedding. Printed on 220-thread count organic cotton, the black-and-white Nylum print would look amazing in a room with boldly colored walls. And even though the bedding has that chic, modern look that usually translates to big bucks, a queen duvet cover will only set you back $178.

I kind of get an Art Deco vibe from this print, don't you? Or is it Art Nouveau?

Seasonally Chic: Round Robin Press

Don't you think these Round Robin Press cards would make the most adorable holiday cards? They're printed on recycled, tree-free, plantable paper! Yup, that's right, just stick 'em in the ground and let nature do its thing... depending on which card you choose, you'll wind up with a little patch of basil, chives, or wild flowers.

Happy Friday, brides: the press also does custom invitations and announcements!



Check out the Round Robin Press Etsy shop!

(Via Freshly Found)

This Just In: Ecolect Launches, Green Designers Rejoice

Courtesy of TreeHugger comes news of a fantastic new website: Ecolect. The site, the brain child of a couple of RISD grads, is a search-friendly database of sustainable materials - like the bamboo Shanghai screens above - which will make it that much easier for designers and home enthusiasts to think green. The best part? Visitors to the site will be able to rate materials, write reviews, and upload images of projects where the materials were used - kinda like Yelp (only populated by savvy greenies).

Check out this gorgeous reclaimed timber flooring:
In the founders' own words: "Ecolect’s mission has always been simple, yet ambitious: to help designers find sustainable materials, to provide makers of new materials a space to publicize their innovations and create a vibrant forum for designers committed to sustainability to share their inspiration, occasional frustration, new information and everything in between."

Designer Limelight: Izzy Lane

Our new puppy was supposed to arrive today, but due to an airline mix-up he won't be arriving for another 10 days. Sigh.

These Izzy Lane coats do help lift my spirits. Company founder and vegetarian Isobel Davies rescues sheep that would otherwise have been sent to slaughter (for being male, missing a pregnancy, lameness, size, age, or coloring imperfections), gives them a new home in her sheep sanctuary, and - in a process that might as well be magic for all I know of it - has their undyed fleece spun into these amazing coats. Read the full, remarkable story here.

They're very Jackie O. meets Wuthering Heights, don't you think?




Discovered via Hoping for Happy Accidents.

Variations on a Theme: Recycled Glass

The recycled tranSglass pieces above were designed by Emma Woffenden and Tord Boontje as part of Artecnica's Design With Conscience program. I adore how the finish and colors are reminiscent of sea glass - but I'm a sucker for anything well-designed that maintains a beachy vibe.

The sleek, recycled glass carafe set above is the perfect bedside addition to a guest room. Plus, you get to buy it from the coolest website ever: ReForm School.


I love the oversized wobbliness of this recycled glass vase (above) from Sundance - it's somehow goofy, awkward, and beautiful all at once.

These glass vases/carafes from Branch Home get the Green Star: not only are they made of recycled glass, they're processed in an electric furnace powered by wind energy. Each one is made by hand, so no two are alike. I like the idea of clustering a few together - just like this image - on a fireplace mantel or sideboard.

Object of My Affection: Uhuru Console

How great would it be to come home after a hard day's work and drop your keys and mail onto this amazing table? Uhuru's console is slim enough to fit into even the narrowest of entryways, and that combo of darkened steel and puzzle-pieced wood is incredibly chic. Best of all, the tabletop is assembled from over 500 scrap pieces of walnut that would otherwise have been tossed in a landfill. Just goes to show: one person's trash is an eco-chic person's treasure!



The console retails for $3800 and is available as an end table and coffee table as well. What do you think? Worth the price?

This Just In: Chairs Wear Sweaters! Gore Wins Nobel!

Doesn't this image just warm your heart (and bum)? These uniquely stylish and oh-so-clever sweater-upholstered chairs were a DIY project of green style guru Danny Seo (of books and blog Simply Green). On a rainy Fall day like this, it's nice to picture myself on one of these comfy chairs with my feet tucked under me, steaming cup of cocoa warming my hands, and a well-read copy of the Sunday Times spread out messily all over the table.

Here's what Danny wrote about making them:
"I reupholstered some floor model Ikea chairs I bought on super-clearance about a year ago with some cashmere and wool sweaters I picked up at Goodwill. It was easy: just unscrew the seat cushion, wrap a sweater over the cushion, staple gun into place underneath, trim off excess, screw back on and voila! Sweater chair."


Betcha Gore never thought he'd have sweater chairs as an opening act! Here at Style Saves the World, style comes first!

Truly, though, a HUGE congratulations are in order as it was announced today that Gore (and the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) have won the Nobel Peace Prize for their success in spreading the word about global warming. Congrats, fella!

(Image: M J Kim/Getty Images)

Only a couple days left to nominate me for LaissezFaire's Top 10 New Design Blogs to watch! Email your vote for Style Saves the World to toptentowatch@gmail.com!

Object of My Affection: Bubble Swing

When I first read about these indoor/outdoor swings over at housemartin, I was blown away. Not only are they made from recycled metal, but the designs manage to be both whimsical and modern, playful and elegant.
They're made by the UK design team Fletcher & Myburgh. I bet the solid metal swings like the ones above and below would look amazing next to pool or pond where the water would reflect beautifully on them.

In only somewhat related news, if you're in New York you might want to check out a couple of upcoming House & Garden eco-design events (part of NYC Design Week). On 10/17 there's the FutureFashion Show at ABC Carpet & Home, and on 10/20 and 10/21 there are a couple of free Eco-Chic Shopping Tours (also at ABC). Let me know if you go! I'd love to hear about them.

Wanna nominate me for LaissezFaire's Top 10 New Design Blogs to watch? I'll be your bestest friend! Email your vote for Style Saves the World to toptentowatch@gmail.com!