We tend to associate new year's resolutions with personal growth and development, but why not forgo the usual slimming and money-saving this year and aim to make the world a better place with some pledges for greener living?

I've come up with a quick set of resolutions that I would do well to put into practice in 2008, but I'm sure you can come up with your own. If not, feel free to nab hippyshopper's resolutions for a greener year, and let me know how you get on with them!

1. I will make sure I carry and actually use my bags for life. No getting lazy when the nice checkout lady offers to pack for me.

2. I will support local shopping and find new places to use my wedge card by checking their site regularly.

3. I will grow my own tomatoes - a really easy crop to grow (even in a window box) and one that uses up a heck of a lot of energy when grown comercially, organic or no.

4. I will up my fitness level by walking wherever possible, and will continue to benefit from using the cheaper bus fares in London.

5. I will reduce my calorie intake along with the world's greenhouse gas output by cutting down on dairy, particularly *sob* cheese...

Follow the jump for 5 more eco resolutions - if you think you can take any more!

What's the easiest way to piss off a vegetarian A-lister at Christmas? Celebrity skin care doctor, Neetu Nirdosh found out the answer pretty quickly this festive season, when he sent staunch veggie Victoria Beckham a load of skincare products -- presented in the carcass of a turkey.

It seems pretty unlikely that VB will be applying any of the products, which had presumably got quite intimate with giblets prior to the big day. Dr Nirdosh clearly did not do much in the way of reasearch, as while she doesn't make a big deal of the fact, it is well known Victoria is a strict veggie and -- unlike many of her fellow fashionistas -- refuses to wear fur.

[Via Ecorazzi]

If Christmas has left you feeling more fraught than festive, I've got a few suggestions for how you can spend that tenner your nan slipped you. I'm a selfless kinda girl... so I've been putting myself through the genuinely hideous ordeal of trying out some of Lush's latest goodies for you. I hope you appreciate it.

First up was the You've Been Mangoed bath melt. This had a really nice, invigorating smell - citrusy, sharp, almost like citronella, with a fainter Mango scent underneath it. For my evening bath, I gave the Pop in the Bath Bubble Bar a go. Top marks for aesthetic appeal go to this beautiful little flower-shaped sparkly thing - problem was, it took me a good ten minutes of holding it above the bath before I could bring myself to crumble it in! It smelt a bit like a comforting combination of dried flowers and sherbet (happy childhood memories usually go well with a relaxing bath!).

Christmas may be done and dusted, but there's plenty more of winter to endure yet with most of the freezing weather yet to come. I've not yet bought a proper winter coat, and am hoping to get something special, so I've been having a good browse on The Hempest, where you'll find stylish outerwear for men and women made from sustainable materials.

This coat, the 'ladies long hoodlamb' coat is particularly desirable and as the site says, has 'all the bells and whistles' you'll need to get you through to spring! Its outer shell is made from a hemp-and-cotton combo loaded with pockets, and lined with patented cruelty free hemp satifur. If $329 seems like a bit of a tall order, why not check out the 70% off sale at Adili, which runs until the end of the month?

It's terribly fashionable to wear scaled-down everyday objects round your neck, and eco-designer Linda Loudermilk has taken the trend into the ethical arena with this frankly adorable tap-shaped charm whose profits go towards clean water campaigns.

Priced at a reasonable $65 and available online from Uncommon Goods, the 'Water is a Human Right' charm necklace is made from reclaimed silver. A generous donation is made to the YEW Foundation with each purchase, to support organisations with clean water initiatives.

[via Inhabitat]

Hollywood babe Natalie Portman is stepping elegantly into the vegan shoe market as she collaborates with chic New York label Te Casan.

The predictably-named Natalie Portman Collection for 2008 will arrive in the label's NYC boutique in February, and is available to pre-order on the website from 15th January. The only glimpse I've had so far is this sultry pic of Nat wearing patent red Mary-Janes, suggesting that the range will be right on the spot for current trends. Rumour has it that Nat is not, in fact, a vegan herself, but it's good to see she's doing her bit in style...

As well as being made without animal ingredientsl 15. 5% of all Natalie Portman shoe profits will be going to charity. At $200 they're not what you'd call cheap, but as Just Jared points out, they're still a heck of a lot cheaper than Stella McCartney's vegan heels!

Walking the streets at night could soon be a less intimidating experience for many, as a crop of solar-powered 'tree' lights by Brit designer Ross Lovegrove are set to blossom all over Europe.

The tree-shaped lights and other eye-catching objects were installed in the city of Vienna during Vienna Design Week in October, and are attractive and fun alternative to the less energy efficient street lamps we're used to (street lighting consumes as much as 10% of all the energy consumed in Europe). Reports from the show were very good, and the panels held their charge for the entire week, with 'minimal sunshine'! This bodes well for a new technology that could save millions in lighting cost and see the carbon footprint of our towns plummet as costly lighting is replaced.

Here's wishing you all a very happy, green and groovy Christmas from all of us at Hippyshopper and its parent company, Shiny Media. We'd love to herer how it's going: did Santa bring you anything particularly eco-friendly this time around? Maybe you got a Tefal Quick Cup or wind-up radio. If so, you'll find plenty of feedback from other owners on this site!

Or, are you already shocked at the sheer quantities of waste piling up around you? If so, you might want to check out recycle now's Christmas recycling tips. Oh, and I do hope you cooked your sprouts the environmentally friendly way...

Finally, here's a little goodwill message to you all. Follow the jump for our totally paper-free e-card!

DIY and craftiness are both direct paths to green living, and the Make Lounge in London is a great place for busy people to channel their creative urges after work. Based in Angel, Islington, the contemporary craft classes have proven very popular, with communters dropping in to relax over a bit of crafting and conversation without having to commit in advance to a long course.

Many people will be hoping to kick-start their creativity in the new year, and the classes offered at Make Lounge are an ideal way to re-connect with it. This year, they've anticipated the influx of wannabe crafters and have brought in gift vouchers for the first time. So if you live in or around London and know somebody who'd really enjoy the chance to dedicate some time to crafting, why not buy one for them? The vouchers range from £10 to £45 and can be printed out for immediate use once you've paid on the site. A great gift for anyone wanting to dip their toes into the wonderful world of craft while making friends at the same time!

If you're looking for a last minute treat to give your home a bit more festive cheer before the big day, a set of eco-friendly LED lights will work a treat to brighten up those dark corners.

It's too late to order online now, but Ikea is selling some really funky colourful star-shaped eco-lights. Each tiny light uses just 0.6 watts -- that's far less than a CFL energy-saving bulb.

Outdoor light displays are the real culprits when it comes to C02 usage, but the Guardian's guilde to a low-carbon Christmas still points out that conventional Christmas tree lights left on for 10 hours a day over the 12 days of Christmas produces "enough CO2 to inflate 12 balloons".

Need convincing? Click here for a video of us testing out Oliver Heath's fantastic colour-changing LED fairy lights to see how they compare to the traditional sort.

Here's some good news if you were hoping to enter our Media Talent Award in association with LG. We've heard that a few would-be contestants would like a little longer to answer that elusive question 'what is style?' so in the spirit of festive goodwill, we've extended the entry deadline to 1st January.

The standard of entries so far has been very high, and we're having a lot of fun arguing chatting amongst ourselves about our personal faves. Here's one that I felt deserved a mention:

Once we've seen all the entries, three people will be shortlisted from each category: that's video presenters and video editors. If chosen, you will need to be able to attend a judging date on week commencing 14th January at the Shiny Media office in London.

Another day, another wind-up lantern. It's pretty heartening that I can now think of at least three different ones, made by different companies, because it means that green gadgets are well and truly here to stay.

This Cyba-Lite Lantern gives 8-10 minutes of light per one minute of winding, but there is also an option to charge from a solar panel or cigarette lighter if your own kinetic energy isn't quite up to it. The brightness is from 15 LEDs. Just £29.99 for a handy green camping companion.

Now it's not that kids don't care about the environment, it's more that they don't actually think about it. They hear about global warming at school, and they chuck their rubbish in the recycling bin when they get shouted at, but as far as anything else goes, well Nikes are just cool, alright?. Hopefully these lovely little torches should change that, as they are rechargeable and will never need batteries. They're really cute too, and you can choose between a cow, frog or pig. Just squeeze the lever to create some juice and they'll shine oh so brightly for a little while. It's good exercise for the arms too....It's $8.99 from Perpetual Kid.

This lovely armchair is a shopping cart turned into a fabulous chair by recycled design gurus reestore. I particularly like the retro pattern that's been used here, but Annie's plainer sister, upholstered in smart black is beautiful too.

Reestore are doing a great job for the environment here as trolleys are generally ditched due to unaligned wheels or exposed wire. Once transformed by reestore they become beautiful yet functional, upright chairs. One still has the logo from the shop it came from! Annie costs £390 and is available to order online. I'd recommend having a good browse on reestore's site, as you'll be amazed and charmed at how many fab ideas they've developed.

[Via Inhabitat]

After months of intense pressure from Australia to abandon the hunting of humpback whales, it seems that the Japanese government has finally caved in. In a statement from the country's new chief spokesman Nobutaka Machimura, it was announced that "Japan will not hunt humpback whales".

The statement comes shortly after Australia threatened military-style action, as Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced plans to send an armed observation ship to track the Japanese whaling fleet and gather evidence for a possible lawsuit at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Until today, Japan had stood by its plans to hunt humpbacks around Antarctica, insisting that the whales were being hunted for 'scientific purposes'.

Mr Machimura said of the u-turn: “It’s true that Australia expressed quite a strong opinion to Japan on this. As a result, I hope that this will lead to better relations with Australia.” [Via Environmental Graffiti]