We all have clothes in our wardrobe that we don't wear, but exactly how many bras have you got gathering dust in your drawers? According to new research by charity Oxfam, British women are guilty of hoarding nearly £1.2billion worth of bras! Perhaps the bra doesn't fit just right or it was an impulse purchase, but if you're not wearing it why not donate it to charity?

Oxfam has launched the 'Big Bra Hunt' and is appealing for women to donate their forgotten bras to the charity. The hunt, which is supported by Helen Mirren, Zoe Ball and Miquita Oliver, takes place throughout April with Oxfam hoping to collect one million bras.

Some of these bras will be sold in Oxfam shops around the UK, while others will be sent to Frip Ethique, a project run by Oxfam in Senegal that sorts and trades unsold second hand clothes from Oxfam and provides essential employment for disadvantaged women in West Africa.

Helen Mirren, says: "Before I heard about this campaign I had never thought to donate my bras to Oxfam. I'm sure many women have a number of bras stowed away left untouched for years. The Big Bra Hunt really highlights how every last item donated to Oxfam can be used in a truly unique way, making a real difference to people all around the world."

So ladies, bring your unwanted bras into an Oxfam shop near you and do your bit for charity. For other ways to donate please visit www.oxfam.org.uk/bra.

New research commissioned by Lib Dem MP Jo Swinson has found that, despite promises from the confectionery giants, little progress has been made to reduce card and plastic waste and improve recyclability associated with the popular Easter eggs.

80 million Easter eggs are bought every year which generate an estimated 3,000 tonnes of UK waste (Wrap), and the 2012 Easter Egg Packaging report shows the percentage of Easter egg boxes that is taken up by the actual chocolate egg (that's what we all want really) has not been reduced from last year's 38%.

The report also criticises some manufacturers for failing to ensure that their packaging is made from widely recyclable materials - we all know what a headache that can be as different councils seem to have different rules for what can and cannot be recycled. Luxury eggs from Thorntons, Baileys and Marks & Spencer all continue to use plastic packaging that is not recyclable in most local authorities, MP Jo Swinson found. This means that a vast amount of the Easter egg packaging will end up in landfill sites once the chocolate has been devoured.

This year though, Nestlé has become the first major confectioner to make its full Easter range 100% recyclable. Nestlé is behind one in five Easter eggs sold in the UK, so this move is set to save 726 tonnes of plastic waste going to a landfill this Easter. The company has among other things swapped the 48 tonnes of plastic used to secure mugs and eggs with recyclable cardboard certified by the FSC and a compostable film for the windows. This is a 30% reduction in packaging on mug eggs.

It is time for manufacturers to stop hiding behind green credentials and look at what in reality can be widely recycled. Alternatively perhaps the UK should look to its neighbours in the north, where papier-mâché eggs filled with sweets is the norm for Easter. These are great for the environment as they can be re-used year after year, and double-up as decoration around the house.

The latest Egg Packaging study, the sixth year it has been published analysed 11 eggs and drew comparisons between eight brands also surveyed between Mars, Nestlé, Cadbury, Thorntons, Sainbury's and Marks & Spencer.

This is the time many of us look to spring clean our wardrobe and perhaps add a few items ahead of the summer season. But how can you do it on the cheap? Let's introduce you to swishing.

The term 'swishing' was first coined by a sustainable PR agency based on the noise of rustling clothes from your friends make as you swap old clothes for new. And how we like to swish!

Clothes swapping parties have increasingly grown in popularity worldwide over the past couple of years, and there are now several websites dedicated to the activity that will give you advice on how to host your own swishing party, where you can find out about forthcoming events and even swap your unwanted clothes and accessories online.

How to host swishing party

With Facebook it has never been easier to organise a swishing party for you and your friends. Just pick the day, create an event, invite those you think would be interested in coming and start going through your wardrobe.

As your friends come around with items they'd like to pass on, serve some refreshments and get browsing. The swishing etiquette is to bring items that are in good condition and to take away the same number of items as you bring to the party.

Sometimes you could get lucky - I got a wonderful Jaeger dress once. It all depends on where your friends like to shop...

Reasons to start swishing?

Every year in the UK we buy around 2 million tonnes of clothes and throw away approximately 1 million tonnes. Just think about all the energy, water and toxins that have been used to produce and get rid of these items.

Chances are also that you have several pieces of clothing in your wardrobe that have never been worn, bought with the intention to fit into them once those last stubborn lbs had vanished or it was such a great deal in the sales that you simply couldn't not buy it...

Swishing is like a car boot sale with better things, more fun and none of the bartering.

Going to swishing events can be a lot of fun - I once had the beautiful Kelly Brook bag my finds - and it is the greenest, most sustainable way to update your wardrobe out there.

Find out more about swishing here:

www.swishing.co.uk

www.swishing.com

[Image source]

We love the environment and we think nothing is better than to come across fashion brands that do the same. No doubt we live in a throwaway society of which many fashion labels are guilty of fuelling hungry consumerism in people where we end up looking for the next trend or piece of clothing as soon as we've got one. But then there are brands like Lost Property of London.

The brainchild of Katy Bell, Lost Property of London takes abandoned fabrics and lovingly transforms them into fashionable yet very practical upcycled bags. No surprise that green fashion queen Livia Firth is a fan!

The bags are created using as many eco design principles as possible, making each item from recycled materials and by hand. We're definitely sold and will be putting this on our birthday wish list! Check out the gallery below to see more of these exquisite bags.

Prices start from £120 and are available online from www.lostpropertyoflondon.com.

We're not sure this will be the saviour of the global economic crisis, but we like the sound of green banks. And if done well, it could place Britain among the top when it comes to creating a sustainable future for the world.

The first Green Investment Bank is designed to accelerate private sector investment in 'green' projects and is expected to employ 50 to 70 full-time staff across its two sites in London and Scotland. The bank's headquarters will be in Edinburgh, while the main transaction team will be based in the City of London.

Business secretary Vince Cable said: 'This decision will allow the GIB to operate effectively and achieve its mission of mobilising the additional investment needed to accelerate the UK's transition to a green economy.'

The state-owned bank will get £3 billion in public funds to help companies fund clean energy schemes and encourage private sector investment in similar projects. The Government said it will invest in green infrastructure projects from April, which include offshore wind power generation, commercial and industrial waste processing and recycling, energy from waste generation, non-domestic energy efficiency and support for the Green Deal will be the first priority sectors for the GIB, subject to approval by the European Commission.

Valentine's Day will come and go, and we like to think that people celebrate their love each and every single day rather on a day made popular by a greetings card company to sell more cards...

February is halfway through; spring is hopefully around the corner (unless we get another cold snap!) so why not start planning how to spring clean your home in the most green way?

Commonly used leaning products are known to contain lots of nasty things that you really don't want your children/animals/skin to get in touch with. So why not invest in products that will help you feel good and care for the environment?

If you don't feel like making your own cleaning products (think hot water, vinegar, baking soda and a hint of lemon), Ecover's ecological selection of products is a good place to start as they are made from plant-based ingredients that will leave no nasty residues or irritants on your skin. Also, all their bottles and containers are made from Plant-astic, a renewable, reusable and recyclable plastic derived from sugarcane - Ecover is the first cleaning brand in the UK to manufacture its bottles from this material.

But spring cleaning is not just about the products. There are plenty of other things that will help you tidy up your house, all ready for the new season.

Reduce the mess in your home. Go through places where 'things' tend to accumulate - closets, the top shelf of the kitchen cupboard, the attic, under your bed, and anywhere else you're likely to have stored items that will be 'dealt with later'.

Reuse anything you can. An old bed sheet can be made into several dishcloths. Got lots of books that have no home? Stack them up next to your bed/sofa for a unique side table.

Donate unwanted things to charity. Because you don't have any use for that old jacket or the kitchen pans, chances are someone else will. So carry anything you don't want to your local charity shop and help them as well as helping yourself. For bigger items, list them on Freecycle and see if anyone wants to take them off your hands. The more you can recycle and donate the less ends up on the skip!

Happy cleaning! Got any tips on how to green spring clean your home? Please share them in the comments below.

Coffee is a big global business and many - myself included -are practically addicted to it. Unfortunately the high consumption of takeaway coffee leads to more landfill as UK coffee shops are failing to make it easy for java addicts to recycle the estimated 2.5 billion takeaway cups thrown away each year.

It is consumer group Which? that has warned the UK coffee industry of these startling figures after its investigation found that consumers are confused by the use of 'mixed materials' and end up throwing the cups in the general waste bin. Of the 2,471 people surveyed more than half admitted that they throw their paper cups in the general waste bin instead of recycling them.

One solution to the brewing problem is to encourage people who drink their fair share of coffee to invest in reusable coffee cups and bring these with them on their daily coffee run. Starbucks is already trying to sway its customers to think more eco-friendly by offering 25p off for anyone bringing in their own cup.

If you're interested in doing your bit to reduce coffee cup waste, one brand of reusable mugs is KeepCup, the first barista standard reusable coffee cup. And you can personalise it to be any colour you like!

Currently, about 3.6 million tonnes of glass is used in the UK every year and over 1 million tonnes goes to landfill.Yet glass is the perfect material for recycling as it can be recycled indefinitely.

The energy saved from recycling one bottle will power: a 100W Light Bulb for almost an hour, or, a computer for 25 minutes, or, a television for 20 minutes or a washing machines for 10 minutes.

One company that is doing its bit is By Nature which offers an extended range of recycled glass homeware. Among the recycled glass items featured above is Nkuku's Laksha glass (£4.95) and Jeevika Jug (£11.95). Stylishly embossed they are handmade from 100% recycled glass.

For more information go to www.bynature.co.uk

The time is nigh for me to move out of the parental abode and into university accommodation! With the independence will come the possibility of properly implementing a green way of living. Here at home, we don't have such displays of domestic eco-friendliness but uni will hopefully inspire more soon-to-be undergraduates, like myself, to go green.

Here are five pointers to help you, as a live-out student, towards a more sustainable lifestyle...

1. Buy second-hand textbooks
Whatever your subject, chances are the prices of your textbooks will chomp a sizeable bite out of your budget. Before you hit the book store, browse the net for ex-students flogging their used books for less. There's a slight chance your search will yield little as new edition replaces old edition rapidly but it's worth a shot. My graduate brother hoardes his Law tomes for no apparent reason - I think they remind him of richer times.

2. Recycle, recycle, recyle
Things'll most likely be a bit manic throughout the prime cut of your settling in at uni but when you get a moment, do locate your nearest recycling post. With studying being quite common among students, you will get through a lot more paper than you care to. Pot Noodles too. And beer cans. And coffee jars (okay now I'm just speaking for myself.) But really, try and get into the habit of separating and recycling, Also, try to use the back of rough paper instead of binning it - god knows how many times your tutor wants you to emend that thesis.

3. Leave your car keys/travel pass at home

Okay that's probably not too wise or commendable realistically as you might need a speedier travel alternative than foot should an emergency arise. The point, is walk to your lectures even if the bus stop is literally a stone's throw from your front door. I'm a 25 minute walk from my classes but the campus consists of luscious greenery, which I'm a sucker for, and whispers too of rabbits that scamper about merrily. So I'm not complaining. Plus it's money saved. (Also looking to tone the legs a little.)

4. Green societies and clubs
For the devout greengoers primarily, societies given to sustainable living are an essential. Join or, in the event that there isn't one, your shining moment as founder awaits you. The group can share ideas on greener living, fundraise and - here's a crowdpleaser - drink in the name of eco-living. A-free-shot-for-every-recycling-trip game? Recycling bins would be brimming!

5. Don't make plastic cups a long-term thing

Or plates and cutlery for that matter. Plastic cups may see you through your pre-carnage warm-up sessions amongst flatmates, particularly at the start, but don't continue to use them just because they mean less washing-up. They pile up on both the waste and your budget.

Photo credit

Plastic bottles and the seemingly thoughtless discarding of them in this country has been a topic we've looked at many times before. One big brand that has come under fire from environmentalists for using plastic bottles - adding to landfill contribution - has announced it is finally rolling out its partially recycled bottles in the UK.

A move that is certainly going to improve its eco creds, PlantBottle bottles are made from 22.5% plan- based materials and up to 25% recycled plastics and more than 200 million are due to hit the shelves this year. This type of packaging has already been introduced in the US and carries a PlantBottle logo and on-pack messaging to explain about plastic bottles and the harm they do to thirsty consumers.

It is good that one of the biggest brands in the soft drink sector is finally taking measures to reduce its contribution to landfill. Let's hope Coco-Cola's aim to have all of its bottles made from a combination of plant based materials and recycled plastics by 2020 comes true.

The company has also enlisted Wayne Hemingway to create a limited edition umbrella that is made entirely from five plastic bottles. If you'd like to get your hands on one for the rainy season, the limited edition umbrellas are being sold exclusively at Harvey Nichols.

Recycling is an issue we really care about in Hippyshopper offices, especially the recycling of plastic bottles - a topic we've written on previously.

When working in central London it's far too easy to pick up a bottle of water or fizzy drink than attempting to drink the rather dubious tap water. And until bottles are 100% biodegradable we will continue to have a slight sense of guilt when picking up yet another bottle.

In modern society - with plastic bottled drinks having become such a commodity - it is difficult to really see how things will become better very soon...

To emphasise the growing issue bottle wastage, a giant plastic bottle family recently visited the capital. The 10ft sculpture, created by artist Bamber Hawes, is made out of 827 plastic bottles - the number of bottles the average family consumes each year.

The horrible truth is that only 100 of every 500 plastic bottles used in the UK are being recycled at present. So out of the 13 billion plastic bottles consumed only a meagre 20% reach a recycling plant to get a second lease of life.

New research by SodaStream also reveals that Brits hugely underestimate the amount of bottle waste they generate; with almost half of all adults believing their families use between 1-5 bottles a week when the actual figures is double that.

Perhaps the fact that ONE PET bottle takes around 450 years to break down will make you think twice about picking up unnecessary drinks from the shop in your lunch break...

Most of us has a tendency to cling on to things we don't use anymore, call it sentimental value, hoarder instinct or simply because we might possibly have use for it in the future... In fact, recent research found that nine out of ten hang on to items we never or rarely use.

However if you have a flat that is scattered with old games consoles, unloved toys or perhaps a wardrobe filled with clothes that you don't really wear there is hope! Of course you can take any unwanted items down to your local charity shop, or you can go online to www.netcycler.co.uk - a new swapping site - that allows you to swap and give away unwanted items for things you really want and need.

By creating matches between offers and wishes all you need to do is list what you want to get rid of and what you would like in return. In the words of a well-known meerkat: Simples!

You can also give away things for free or in return for a charitable donation.

Could it be more easy to minimise waste and clutter in your home and give unwanted items a new lease of life? Get netcycling now!

PS: there is even an iPhone app to make things really easy...

Food waste. It never stops to amaze me how much food we actually throw away each year.

Personally I am a repetitive food waster. I go to the shops and get mesmerised by the colours in the fruit and vegetable aisles - usually post-work and without a shopping list - and end up buying more than I need or will eat over the next couple of days. What usually happens? At the end of the week I will find a half full salad bag or a lonely courgette at the back of my fridge, too far gone to even attempt to rescue parts of it. So in the bin it goes.

According to the Love Food Hate Waste campaign, UK households throw away 8.3 million tonnes of food every year, most of it could actually have been eaten. This amounts up to an average of £680 a year thrown out with the rubbish.

Why are we wasting so much food?

Well, a lot if it falls into the categories of 'cooking or preparing too much' or 'not using food in time'. How often have you not bought a bag of apples because they looked delicious, only to forget about them until you re-discover them a little soggy and brown. Not so appetising anymore, are they?

Another reason for food waste is simply because people's plans change. You might have planned to use that mince before its use-by-date tomorrow, but then a last minute call from a friend sees you heading to a restaurant in town.

And how are you with leftovers? In the freezer for another day or can't stomach eating one day old food?

How can I cut my food waste?

There is a group of people called freegans who live according to alternative strategies. Combining the words "free" and "vegan", Freegans avoid buying any products to the greatest degree possible. Instead of heading to their local shop entrance, they head to the back of buildings to rummage through the rubbish of retailers, offices, residences and other facilities to recover food and beverages, as well as other goods.

But if this is not your cup of tea, here are some tips on how you can reduce your food waste and perhaps even save a few pennies in the long run.

We like it when celebrities put on their environmental boots and help raise awareness about issues.

The latest to do so is US rapper Pharrell Williams who has teamed up with Kiehl's to create a Limited Edition Eco-Tote, to help raise awareness for World Earth Day, 22nd April 2011. The eco-tote is made using Bionic yarn technology in which fabrics are created from recycling plastic bottles. How cool is that!

Unfortunately it is only US customers who take part in the Kiehl's 'Recycle and Be Rewarded' scheme - recycling their empty product bottles, jars and tubes at their local Kiehl's stores from April to June - that are eligible to receive the complimentary bag. We kind of wanted one for ourselves... Is it too late to relocate across the pond??

On our daily quest to find the eco movements out there we came across Green Office Week - yes there is a week for everything these days.

It's all good being green at home, but what is the state of your office? A 2010 Avery environmental survey found that one in three office workers has a lazy attitude when it comes to looking after the environment at work, despite 69% believing that being eco-friendly at work will make a substantial difference to the environment.

Simply by making a few small changes you can make a difference to the environment - something we all should be doing every day of the year. Green Office Week (GOW) runs from Monday 9th May to Friday 13th May this year and is encouraging you to make your office greener by daily themes. So why not use this year's Green Office Week as a start to a greener office environment!

Check out the gallery below to see how you can make your office greener in just five steps!