Since I've been editing hippyshopper, I've been amazed to discover how many safe and non-toxic everyday substances work wonders around the house, and are more than sufficient for the jobs we tend to give use harsh chemicals for.
I thought I'd already got the set, but then I discovered another un-sung wonder substance: soda water. Read on after the jump to discover its hidden powers...
Related: Top 10 eco-friendly uses for olive oil | Top 10 eco-friendly uses for salt | Top 10 eco-friendly things to do with lemons
Continue reading >>
This quick and easy craft by RePlayGround transforms the bottom of soda bottles into really cute candy dishes. The ribbons make all the difference!
I'd also love to use this for dips, and other titbits. Or even to store jewellery neatly across my dresser. The possibilities for pretty little containers are endless!
Via Crafty | Craftzine
Related: Pin plus button equals brooch! | How To: Make a gorgeous notebook from a tea-tin
It's one approach to tackling the problem of sweatshop labour! We put our intern Emily Tan writes: to work on one of the new 'make your own' dress kits from eco chic label Gossypium to see just how much work goes into putting together a garment. The answer: quite a lot, as this is only day one in Emily's dressmaking diary. Find out after the jump how to cut out the right shape for your dress and make a versatile 'obi belt' from the excess fabric.
[via Crafty Crafty]
Continue reading >>
Emily Tan writes:
In this era of vehicle pollution, bikes are the good guys. When I lived in Amsterdam, I biked everywhere and loved every moment of it. But now I reside in London I'm, quite frankly, too terrified to try biking! Perhaps this ingenious turn-signal jacket on Instructables by Leah Buechley will give the confidence to brave London's busy-streets. That, and a full-suit of indestructible body armour...
Via CraftyCrafty
Related: Review: The powabyke electric commuter bike | Psychedelic low-power bike lights
Emily Tan writes: Believe or not, this gorgeous notebook is handmade from a recycled tea tin. This incredible tutorial on WiseArts has images to guide you every step of the way (and that's just how I like it). The best part is, the tute can be adopted to suit almost any tin to create exotc, retro, or kitsch notebook covers - all you need is the empty tin and a biiiiig hammer.
Via Craftzine | CraftyCrafty
Related Posts: How to make recycled newspaper beads | Decorate your home with vintage and recycled tiles
What a fabulous use for old umbrellas!
The team over at craft portal ReForm School created this giant sunshade almost entirely out of recycled brollies. The end result was achieved by simply sewing the edges of each umbrella together, then adding eyelets around the perimeter. It worked a treat during a party they were throwing for fellow crafters and lent a really festive look to the patio. While I don't think I could whip up anything quite on this scale, a smaller version might work well for my balcony, especially since I find most umbrellas on sale today seem to break within weeks, and are hard to dispose of responsibly. [via Craft Magazine]
Emily Tan writes: Ever since I saw the Sun Jar I've been secretly hankering after one myself. Besides the gorgeous mood lighting, and the fact that it's eco-friendly, the mere idea of trapping a sunbeam in a jar captures my romantic, fantasy-loving imagination *blush*. Ahem. Right.
Well, if you're crafty you can make your own Sun Jar with Megan of Not Martha's incredibly detailed and wonderfully image-filled tutorial. Using cheap-as-chips Ikea jars and a low-cost garden solar light, she creates several of these adorable jars to light up her patio. [Via Crafty Crafty]
Related: : How to make a sylish lamp from an old blender | How to make a vintage-style cork lamp
Since I've been editing hippyshopper, I've been amazed to discover how many safe and non-toxic everyday substances work wonders around the house, and are more than sufficient for the jobs we tend to give use harsh chemicals for. 
digg this | del.icio.us this
| 
Stumble It!
