Beauty And The Perils of Your Indoor Environment

Re-blogged from Nick & Gen’s Healthy Lifestyle

#GreeningBeauty

​Are you eating too much toxic furniture? (serious stuff)​

In the survey we ran last Monday, someone suggested that we go deeper into the other sources of toxic load our bodies are subject to in our modern world – aside from food or water. Then, I read the report called “Toxic Free Home Guide” that Annmarie Skincare is giving away this week (when you grab one of their free sample kit HERE, shipped for free worldwide) and was completely shocked.   On page 6, Cate Leger, a green architect from Leger Wanaselja Architecture states: “Essentially, we eat our buildings. They off-gas. They degrade. They rust. All of it comes off and settles into the dust on the surfaces all around us and some of it inevitably enters our bodies.” And she goes on adding: “The industry has very strong trade secret laws to protect product formulas — so that companies do not have to tell us what they are using…” I had heard that some chemicals in paint and cleaning products can be harmful, but had never really looked into how polluted our inside air really is. Then I found this report by the EPA, that says: “While most people are aware that outdoor air pollution can damage their health, many do not know that indoor air pollutants can also do the same. Studies of human exposure to air pollutants by EPA indicate that indoor levels of pollutants may be 2 to 5 times – and occasionally more than 100 times – higher than outdoor pollutant levels. Indoor air pollutants have been ranked among the top five environmental risks to public health.” In other words… that smog you see outside and makes you cringe because you don’t even want to imagine what it’s doing to your body? Well, the inside air of some buildings are 100 times WORSE. Annmarie’s report is 90-pages long, so it would be hard for me to tell you everything that’s in it. But at the same time, I don’t want to leave you with such a teaser. So here are a couple of things from the report that you can apply to your life right NOW: Choosing the right chemical-free mattress (and sheets) is really, really important – for example, memory foam mattresses are found to emit 61 chemicals. Something to keep in mind once it’s time to change yours. Household Hazardous Waste Project says air fresheners don’t freshen the air at all… They mask one odor with another, while diminishing one’s sense of smell with a nerve-deadening agent. You should really trash your Febreeze and buy some essential oils diffusers instead. Any candle or product containing the ingredient “fragrance” is usually toxic. This word is used to hide a mixture of several dozen to several hundred chemicals, with many classified as toxic — none of which are required to be disclosed to consumers. Use natural candles made out of beeswax. Most antibacterial soaps contain triclosan, an endocrine disruptor (just like BPA in plastics) that can affect your thyroid. That’s why Governor Mark Dayton of Minnesota recently signed a bill legalizing a measure BANNING triclosan-containing products in the state. The law will go into effect January 1, 2017. Stick with natural soaps without that ingredient! Seriously… this free report is better than most ebooks sold for $20-30 bucks these days. It’s really just another reason you should really grab one of Annmarie Skincare’s sample kits on this page. Have a great day! ​#GreenBlogNetwork​ ​Green Blog Network * Greening Hollywood * Greening Beauty Greening Paris * Greening Vancouver​​

Cannes Film Festival Photos (from Bulgari)

 

Cannes, France May 25th – the following celebrities wore Bulgari jewelry at the 2012 amfAR’s Cinema Against AIDS during the 65th Annual Cannes Film Festival at Hotel Du Cap on May 24th, 2012 in Cap D’Antibes, France.

•         Petra Nemcova

 ·          Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

 ·          Julianna Margulies

Petra wore a white gold and diamond necklace, diamond stud earrings and a white gold, diamond and ruby ring, all from Bulgari’s High Jewelry Collection

Aishwarya wore a yellow gold, emerald, ruby and diamond ring from Bulgari’s High Jewelry Collection

 

Julianna wore a white gold, diamond and mother of pearl ring and white gold, diamond and mother of pearl earrings , both from Bulgari’s High Jewelry Collection

 

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Academy Awards Red Carpet Inspires Eco-Fashion For Designers And Movie Stars

[This guest post is by Jemima Lopez. You can read more about her on the website: Zen College Life]

The carpet may have been red at the 84th Academy Awards, but if fashion designers have anything to do with it, future star-stilted award ceremonies will soon be filled with a lot more green in the coming months—Giorgio Armani, Chanel, Tom Ford, Karl Lagerfeld, Gucci, and Yves Saint Laurent are just some of the few designers who are rumored to have been inspired by the stunning eco-friendly dresses seen at last Sunday’s award ceremony.

Hundreds of professional and aspiring fashion designers submitted gowns made of sustainable products earlier this year to compete in the third annual Red Carpet Green Dress Contest. This contest, which was initiated in 2009 by environmental advocate and wife of Director James Cameron, Suzy Amis Cameron, was created in the hopes of significantly reducing the environmental footprint fashion can have on the planet. Contest winners had the opportunity of seeing their gowns worn by some of the hottest Hollywood stars at the Oscars, including Best Actress winner Meryl Steep, on Feb 26. That said, below are some of the winners as well as the Hollywood stars who rocked the dresses.

 

Designer: Valentino
Star: Livia Firth
Italian movie producer and environmental advocate Livia Firth wore this lavish, bright red custom-made couture Valentino gown, which according to the “fashion police” was beautiful enough to dub her as one of the best dressed. What many didn’t know however was that the fabric was a hybrid of polyester derived from recycled plastic bottles and Valentino’s house silk. She also wore diamond earrings from Celleija, a sustainable jeweler. Hubby Colin Firth did his part to sustain the planet too—he recycled the Tom Ford suit he wore to the Academy Awards the year before.

Designer: Valentina Delfino
Star: Missi Pyle
Latina fashion design student Valentina Delfino

Global Colding

Click Here to Watch 30-sec Video

Click Here to Watch 30-sec Video

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Super Bowl MADONNA in BULGARI

MADONNA wearing BULGARI earrings at the SUPER BOWL. Photo credit GETTY images.

February 5, 2012 Indianapolis, IN –  Madonna wore Bulgari earrings during her half time performance at the Super Bowl.  The earrings (Ref. E1433 / 3421) are from Bulgari’s High Jewelry Collection, and are made of white gold and diamonds (19.6 cts). 

Question of the day: who can tell us if the diamonds and gold are ethically sourced?

Leymah Roberta Gbowee Nobel Peace Prize Winner

Nobel Prize Winner 2011! Leymah Roberta Gbowee

 

<p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/30118633″&gt;

Leymah Roberta Gbowee</a> from ALOUDla on Vimeo.

 

In a personal account of the communal power of women to change history, the founder of the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace chronicles the unthinkable violence she’s confronted living through civil war and the peace she helped to broker by empowering her countrywomen and others around the world to take action.

Monday, October 03, 2011

Mighty Be Our Powers: How Sisterhood,
Prayer, and Sex Changed a Nation at War 
In conversation with Reverend Dr. Gwynne Guibord

http://paigedonner.wordpress.com

Paris For Peace And Yoga

Modeled after the NYC Day of Yoga, free and open to willing participants, Paris organizers of the event admitted they’d had 6,500 people sign up on the website to attend this morning’s hour-long practice in the 7th Arrondissement, en plein air. They had organized for and expected 2000 participants.

The practice was led in both English and French and an elegant Cellist played on stage, accompanying the entire session with live sitar-like music. Practitioners were from all ages, mature to the young, and attendees included mothers with infants, families with children, young couples, men, women and even a few of our furry friends.

Sponsors of the event which included BeYoga, Go Sport, SportForUs.com, Soy Joy, Lole, VaiVai and the Mairie de Paris, passed out complimentary yoga mats, t-shirts, energy bars, coconut water and tea and re-usable tote bags.

On this gorgeous October Sunday morning of Paris Fashion Week, a yoga respite en plein air was a welcomed and stimulating detox! Namaste!!

All photos by Paige Donner c. 2011  http://greeningparis.blogspot.com

Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011 Introduced In U.S. House

June 27, 2011	www.safecosmetics.org
Dear Green, Our hard work is paying off! This year, you and thousands of Campaign for Safe Cosmetics supporters urged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to get cancer-causing formaldehyde out of Brazilian Blowout and other hair-straightening products. And recently, you signed the petition to the Obama Administration asking for prevention to be a major focus of our country’s cancer plan (we joined our allies at the White House in May and dropped off all 73,000 signatures!). Well, we have exciting news: you’ve helped build the momentum for Congressional leaders to reintroduce the federal Safe Cosmetics Act in the House of Representatives Friday. This bill (H.R.2359) would give the FDA the authority it needs to ensure that personal care products are free of harmful substances like lead, 1,4-dioxane and chemicals linked to cancer. Existing law, which has not been updated in 70 years, allows companies to use these and other toxic chemicals in products we use on our bodies every day. We know that the U.S. can do better to protect our families and to remain a world leader in the marketplace! Please urge your House members to co-sponsor the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011. Here’s how: 1. Email them using our easy form. 2. Call them. Use our Legislator Lookup, dial the number for your federal Representative (we’re not contacting Senators yet), and use the email text as a guide for your message to the staff person who answers the phone. Calls usually take about 1 minute, but they are really important! 3. Visit them. You have the right to meet with your Representative (or his or her staffers) to tell them that you want safe cosmetics. Check out our Legislative Toolkit to learn more. Please take action and spread the word! Thanks for all you do to make cosmetics safe for all of us. Sincerely, Lisa, Mia, Stacy, Jamie, Marisa, Nancy and all of us at the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics P.S. If you haven’t seen it already, check out The Story of Cosmetics, a short film that breaks down why we really need the Safe Cosmetics Act.	YOU did it! Thanks to your support, Congress is now considering the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011. Ask your U.S. Representative to sign on as a co-sponsor.

– © copyright 2001-2010 Safe Cosmetics Action Network –

 

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Global Bee Emergency – What you can do – Global Buzz For Bees

GLOBAL BEE EMERGENCYQuietly, globally, billions of bees are dying, threatening our crops and
food. But a global ban of one group of pesticides could save bees from
extinction. 

Four European countries have begun banning these poisons, and some bee
populations are recovering. But chemical companies are lobbying hard to
keep all killer pesticides on the market. A global outcry now for a ban in
the US and EU, where debate is raging, could provoke a total ban and a
ripple effect around the world.

Let’s build a giant global buzz calling for these dangerous chemicals to be
outlawed in the US and EU until and unless they are proved to be safe. Sign
the petition to save bees and our crops and send this to everyone:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bees/

WHAT YOU CAN DO

* Plant a pollinator-friendly garden
http://pollinationcanada.ca/?n=pc_lib_pfg
* Don’t use pesticides or chemical fertilizers
http://google.ca/search?q=organic+gardening
* Naturalize / plant native flowers in your yard
http://google.ca/search?q=wildflowers
* Become a backyard beekeeper http://google.ca/search?q=backyard+beekeeping
* Support conservation, wetland conservation, biodiversity
http://planetfriendly.net/dontpave.html#links
* Avoid industrial food and GMOs — buy local organic
http://planetfriendly.net/organic.html#food
* Be a pollinator observer http://pollinationcanada.ca/?n=pc_be_an_observer
* Learn more and get involved
http://planetfriendly.net/wiki/?title=Save_the_Bees
* Live sustainably. It’s all connected.

Pollination Canada — pollinating insects are “essential for over a billion
dollars of apples, pears, cucumbers, melons, berries, and many other kinds
of Canadian farm produce”.
http://www.pollinationcanada.ca/

North American Pollinator Protection Campaign
http://pollinator.org/nappc/

Pollinator Partnership
http://pollinator.org/

More Groups, Organizations, Resources
Canada: http://pollinationcanada.ca/?n=pc_partners
North America: http://pollinator.org/nappc/partners.htm
(warning: might include government partners with vested
interests in corporate, pesticide-intensive agriculture)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Post your bee-friendly jobs, internships and volunteer
opportunities with GoodWork:  http://GoodWorkCanada.ca/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Commuun Paris Runway Show F/W ’11

By Paige Donner

Commuun is one of the few Designer labels showing in Paris regularly who sport an ethical fashion approach. And like their famous colleague (Stella) their front foot is on design with their inspiration derived from nature, a respect they carry forward into their fashion designs from collection to collection.

When asked backstage what is the one constant in their collections, Iku Furudate and Kaito Hori responded that sourcing organic textiles is one of their trademarks for their collections. This year’s runway shows in Paris saw a lot of sheers, material that Commuun often uses in their collections.

Many of the fashion label’s fans at this year’s runway show in Paris held on March 7th agreed that this year’s collection bears witness to the design duo’s maturation and growth into their world-class label. Some of the textiles they used – all organically sourced – included an inversed velvet. The pops of color in the collection, too, are nature inspired and their name has nothing to do with “common” but rather references the concepts of community, communion and communication.

All photos by Paige Donner, Copyright Paige Donner

All photos by Paige Donner, Copyright Paige Donner

The NY trained, Tokyo originating design duo of Iku Furudate and Kaito Hori launched their label in 2005 which is also when they first began showing in Paris. In 2007 they won the LVMH and Longchamp ANDAM prizes.

Paige Donner is Founder and Ed. In Chief of Greening Beauty and Greening Hollywood as well as The Green Blog Network.

 

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