Clothing and textiles are easy to recycle in the US, yet according to the EPA, 11.8 million tons, or 5% of our landfills, are packed with these materials. And while the federal government is working hard to recover and recycle textile waste once it ends up in landfills, preventing these materials from ever entering that cycle is more effective.

Before you haul your clothes to your local Planet Aid donation box, or schedule a Goodwill pickup, consider some of the other ways you can refurbish your wares. Do you own any clothes or textiles that you can transform? When I was a kid, my mom took all of our old t-shirts, cut out the slogans and patched them together into a crazy quilt. And instead of just ditching the t-shirt remains, she used the leftovers as rags.

REUSE
Maybe you’re not a quilter, but it’s possible that your worn-out bedsheets can be turned into drop clothes, rags or Halloween costumes. Cool fabrics can be turned into patches for holey jeans, worn out pants can be converted into cute skirts, and you can always cut the collars off of t-shirts and use them as headbands! You can always change pants into shorts, long-sleeve shirts into short sleeve shirts, and anything into painting clothes.

The best thing about reusing old clothing is that you can be creative. Think about your resources and your needs, and see if what you have on hand matches what you need. You may not be able to turn an old sweater into a new skirt, but than again, maybe you can! And remember, you don’t have to know how to sew to turn old clothes into new items!

RECYCLE
If you aren’t a tailor, consider offering your clothes to your friends whenever you clean out your wardrobe. If you really want to liven things up, ask your friends to comb through their closets for castoffs too, and hold a party where several of you go through each other’s clothes and take home what you like.

Be sure to grab everything you want to banish from your home – pants, shirts and dresses, but also belts, shoes & socks, purses and bags and even outerwear. While you may be sick of a particular blazer and consider last season’s purse to be tired, your friends may not feel the same! Whenever I give away clothes, I’m always astonished to see what my friends take home, and I always feel like I’ve just been on a free shopping spree whenever my friends toss me their old digs!

To complete your clothes-swap soiree, consider gathering all of the castoffs that no one has claimed and taking them to your local clothing donation box as a team. And remember, when planning a swapping soiree, invite friends of all different sizes, not just those that wear your size – even if you don’t think your size 2 and size 12 friends will have anything to swap, you’d be surprised to see what people have hanging around their closets!

RESELL
If you’re more inclined to make a little money off of your old clothes, especially if you have a professional wardrobe full of expensive items, or you have recently gained/lost a great deal of weight and need an entirely new wardrobe, think about selling your clothes to a consignment store. While each consignment store has its own policies, most will take new and gently-worn items that are relatively new. Once a store has agreed to consign your clothing, they will place it for sale and give you a percentage of the sale price.

Consignment shops will resell your clothing for a relatively modest price, and enable others to purchase nearly-new items they might not otherwise be able to afford. I spend plenty of time perusing my local consignment shop – Second Time Around Clothing – and often come away with bags, designer tops and jackets I could never afford if new.

By reusing, recycling or reselling your old clothes, shoes and household linens, you ensure these items don’t end up dying a slow death in a landfill, and you get to have a little fun too!

In the past I’ve written about calculating your carbon footprint in order to determine how your lifestyle impacts carbon emissions. Today however, I’ve been looking at a slightly different kind of footprint that can be calculated.

My interest was first piqued watching the National Geographic Channel – lately they’ve been playing a commercial for Human Footprint – an upcoming program that is set to air on April 13. In this special presentation, host Elizabeth Vargas and her staff set out to present viewers with a snapshot of not only how much each of us consumes, but also how all of the things that we consume have been created, constructed, manufactured and produced.

In the NGC Blog, Vargas answers questions about the process of laying out everything humans consume, and how it has impacted her own life – in actually paying attention to everything that comes into the home.? I thought all of this was pretty interesting myself, and set out to find out more about the project. Since this particular Human Footprint project is still upcoming however, I wasn’t able to find too much information – maybe they’re afraid that too much advance information will spoil the show!

Instead, I looked around online and found the UK television Channel 4 has created their own Human Footprint show and website. By entering your birth date in their site, the Human Footprint Calculator generates an estimate of how much you have consumed since birth. While I am expecting the National Geographic Human Calculator to be somewhat scary, the Channel 4 project is kind of cheeky and made me launch more than cry.

After entering my information, I found out that I’ve taken an average of 12,627 pills over the course of my life, and also that I’ve live approximately 1,042,070,400 of my allotted 2,475,576,000 seconds so far. While the little tidbits like these, which include how much vomit I have emitted since birth, how many microwaves and TVs I’ve owned, and how many centimeters my beard has grown (odd, since I am a woman), the real value of the site is in the “more information” links attached to each factoid.

For each of the categories that the Human Footprint Calculator spits out, you can click on their additional resources links and be taken to informative sites. Although most of the links are to British organizations (and all of the measurements are in the English system), I thought the entire project was interesting and worth a look.

Stay tuned, I plan on reviewing the National Geographic Human Footprint, and I’m sure they’ll have some helpful follow-up information on the program once it’s aired.

I’ve compiled a list of small things you can do in your home and everyday life to live a Greener life. Some of these tips are tried and true (turning off the tap), while others are just gaining momentum (replacing incandescent light bulbs). Try a few and remember, even if your contribution to the green movement seems small, every little thing helps.

1. Bring your own reusable bags to the grocery store – or any store for that matter. According to the EPA, Americans consume over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps every year. Those plastic bags end up in trees, waterways, and in the stomaches of animals – hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine life die from ingesting plastic bags. Even if you reuse plastic bags (for garbage, cat litter, etc), chances are that you don’t end up using ALL of the bags you bring home – so mix it up and bring reusable bags when you shop.

2. Put down the keys when you’re going less than a mile. The less you drive, the less gasoline you use, the less Carbon Monoxide (CO) is released into the atmosphere. If you live in a walkable (or bike-friendly) area, try walking or biking when you go for coffee, cigarettes, beer or other sundries. Even if it takes a few minutes longer to walk (it takes about 20 minutes to walk a mile), the benefits of walking well outweigh the inconveniences.

3. Unplug your charging devices. You know all of those pesky chargers laying around the house – cell phones, wireless mice, battery chargers – when they’re plugged into the wall, they’re using energy. Try pulling the plug when you’re done charging your devices and reduce your energy consumption – even if just by a little -only 5% of power drawn from chargers is used to charge devices – the other 95% is wasted.

4. Turn off your lights and replace burnt-out incandescent bulbs with energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. Compact fluorescent light bulbs are 4 times more efficient than incandescent bulbs, last up to 10 times longer, and use 50-80% less energy. While the expense of buying all new bulbs seems high (I would recommend replacing bulbs as the old ones burn out), consider that you’ll be saving money through decreased energy consumption and increased lifespan of the bulbs.

5. Plant flowers, vegetables, shrubs, tress – anything but grass! Maintaining a grass lawn is environmentally damaging – according to the EPA, up to 5% of US carbon emissions are produced by lawn mowers. And to power all of those mowers, Americans use 800 million gallons of gasoline! By planting your yard full of flowers, vegetables and trees, you reduce the amount of grass you need to maintain and diversify your habitat. The more flowers you grow, the more likely you are to invite birds, butterflies and other small creatures into your yard. Trees shade your home and clean the air, are fun to play in and are habitats for squirrels, birds and insects. And by growing vegetables and fruits, you provide food for your family and rely less on agribusiness for your dietary needs.

6. Throw a heavy blanket on the bed and turn down the thermostat while you sleep. The more you set back your thermostat at night, the more heat you save overall. By setting your thermostat back 5 degrees during your nightly 8-hour slumber, you save 5% in energy costs. The recommended thermostat setting is 68 degrees during the day and 55 degrees at night during winter months – settings which will save you 13% in energy costs.

7. Buy Local. From food and drink to clothing, crafts and furniture, the more locally-based businesses you frequent, the more green you can consider your purchases. By cutting out the need for your products to be shipped (via truck, train or airplane), you reduce the carbon footprint of your purchases. Plus, the more money you spend locally, the more likely that money is to stay in your region and boost your local economy.

8. Pick up trash when you go for a walk. Don’t be embarrassed to reach down and pick up someone else’s discarded drink bottle or plastic bag, be embarrassed that the trash is on your streets. By picking up your neighborhood you show a commitment to keeping the earth clean and beautiful, and you encourage the behavior in your neighbors.

9. Turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth, shaving or washing the dishes. Every minute you run the faucet, 1.3 gallons of water runs out. By switching the faucet off while brushing, washing dishes or shaving, you save small amounts of water that add up over time. Check out other water conservation tips here.

10. Read your newspapers online. Newspapers are widely recycled – over 88% of all newspapers are diverted to recycling plants. At the same time, 12% of newspapers aren’t recycled and that contributes to the largest category of solid waste in landfills – paper and paper products. While there is a certain romanticism to reading the newspaper around the breakfast table, on the subway, or in bed on Sunday mornings, is that romanticism really justified given the environmental impact of tossing out the news?

I’ve always wanted to be one of those people who knows how to give the perfect gift – something that is both practical and beautiful, well-designed, environmentally friendly and affordable. And while I have always given generally thoughtful presents (interesting books being my specialty), I lack that special knack for finding gifts that light up people’s eyes when they’re opened.

In an effort to help others out there who have trouble finding great gifts, I’ve compiled a list of beautiful and practical presents that are well-designed, affordable, and most of all, environmentally friendly.

Baby Shower
New babies need everything, so finding gifts for these tiny creatures isn’t difficult. I like to buy things that will last (strollers, savings bonds), but also understand that most new parents need baby staples like onesies, crib sheets and cold weather gear. Kate Quinn Organics, offers an Organic Sherba Baby Bunting that looks warm, comfy and large enough to fit an infant for 6 months. The site also has a selection of organic bodysuits and infant sacques that make good gifts. Babies-R-Us has even gone green and offers a line of natural and organic products on their site. I found a set of 3 organic receiving blankets (by Tadpoles) and an Organic Cotton Sleepsack (by Halo Innovations) that are lower-cost alternatives than the organic baby boutiques. I also love this bib by Peaceful Company – when it’s not your baby, it’s not as outrageous to pay $12 for a bib!

Father’s Day
Dads can be tough to buy for – mine already has everything he wants or needs and is rarely forthcoming with gift requests. One thing he might like however are these Vintage Record Coasters. Handmade by Elsewheres, these coasters are old 45s, and basically just really cool. Elsewheres also makes a Snack Tray, Bowl and Clock out of old records. If your dad is a cyclist, he might like the Bike Chain Bottle Opener or the Recycled Bicycle Chain Bowl. The Elsewheres gifts are edgy – but if your dad is as cool as mine he might just like them.

Graduation
The end of college is prime time for upgrading your graduate’s clothing, outerwear and accessories. Laptop bags are a necessity – especially during job searches – and can complete any outfit. While it was difficult to find many eco-friendly bags, I managed to track down a few. Hip & Zen sells a Recycled Plastic Laptop Bag made out of plastic shopping bags that use no dyes. Each bag’s color is produced during the manufacturing process when plastic bags of different colors are layered to create a unique design. If a laptop sleeve is a viable alternative, you can find laptop cases made from recycled Columbian tires from the UK company TREAD. Handmade from salvaged tires, these cases are designed for Macs.

Housewarming
For some reason I’ve always thought that stationary makes for lovely housewarming gifts – especially if you’re giving it to someone new to the area. Paporganics is an organic paper goods company that makes stationary and gift wrap. Their cards are printed on 100% recycled paper; the Cultivated Card series is adorned with illustrations of fruits and vegetables and finished with witty quotations, while their Organic Cards are made from 100% organic cotton paper and contain real flower petals.

If your friend or family’s new home has room for a garden, consider bringing the Sunflower Garden or Shirley Poppy Garden gift boxes from VivaTerra. These pretty boxes are decorated with their respective flowers and filled with flower seeds. If you want your gift to mean even more, help your friend plant the seeds than sit back and wait until the flowers bloom!

Mother’s Day
If your mom deserves to be pampered on Mother’s Day, consider giving her this 100% Organic Cotton Spa Robe from VivaTerra. This waffle-pattern robe is chemical-free and can be paired with a set of Organic Cotton Spa Towels for true luxury. I also found an organic chocolate company called Vere that hand makes their treats using sustainably-grown, pesticide-free, organic cocoa beans. You can get Vere truffles, caramels, bars, brownies, wafers and even vegan treats. If your mom is anything like mine, she’ll love the gift and possibly even share.

Weddings
I know that wedding registries have made gift giving a no-brainer for a lot of people, but I still like to find more personal gifts for new brides and grooms. If you have similar sentiments, check out Pangaya, an eco-chic online retailer that sells tableware made from 100% recycled products. The Seaglass line of tableware on the Pangaya site is designed and manufactured by the Riverside Design Group and constructed from post-industrial/pre-consumer recycled glass.
VivaTerra is another eco-friendly store that has plenty of items that fit my gift criteria – I like their Thatched Bowls (hand crafted with recycled metal twigs), Root of the Earth Bowls constructed from reclaimed Chinese Fir trees, and River Stone Placemats and Runners made from hand gathered stones.

I hope this little guide has given you some great gift ideas – let me know what you buy and as always, feel free to send me ideas, suggestions and comments on what you’ve read.