Coco De Mer Sale

Valentines day is over but sexy times is year round.

Coco de Mer is one of my favorite stores in LA and they’re having a sale starting this week and it’s not to be missed.  This might be the time for me to pick up that sustainable rubberwood paddle I’ve been wanting.

Oh god!  I just went on the website to pull some pictures and I found my new obsession.  A jade cock ring!!!  To be worn as a bracelet, of course. ;  )

Happy Double V-Day!

The more popular name for the Vietnamese New Year is Tet, where as the formal name is Nguyen-dan. Tet is a very important festival because it provides one of the few breaks in the agricultural year, as it falls between the harvesting of the crops and the sowing of the new crops.

The Vietnamese prepare well in advance for the New Year by cleaning their houses, polishing their copper and silverware and paying off all their debts.

It’s customary for elders to give lucky envelopes with crisp new bills to the their  younger relatives for good luck.  Thanks to my procrastination, all the banks I went to were wiped out of new bills so I got rolls of brand new dollar coins.  Not exactly baller status, but hey, we’re in a freakin’ recession!

Happy Lunar New Year!  Chuc Mung Nam Moi!   Gong Xi Fa Cai!

And here’s our prez wishing us the same!

Oh and for that other Vday celebration, here’s a little treat from Grist.  A DIY guide to making your very own non-toxic love juice, made from water and flax seed.  Yeah, that stuff you get a Trader Joe’s to sprinkle on your cereal.

You try it first and get back to me.  Thank me or hate me later.  ♥ ♥ ♥

Year Of The Tiger 2/14/10

Vietnamese/Chinese New Year is just a few days away and many of us are cleaning our homes for the festive period.  Here are a few tips to having a red + green new year.

When house cleaning, be sure to use cloth or old rags that can be washed and reused instead of disposable paper towels which are convenient but wasteful.

It is a tradition to buy new clothing and new stuff to replace the old ones, but think twice before buying new stuff. Do you really need them? Consider donating old clothing and items instead of throwing them away. And recycle where possible.

Reunion dinners are a time when family members get together to have a feast. While cooking, make sure that you have sufficient but not excessive food. Too much food not eaten ends up as waste. Remember that the quality of eating dinner together is more important than the quantity of food.

While visiting relatives and friends or going sightseeing, try to take public transpo or carpool. Share your car with others and spend time together. Also, reuse old red packets or hongbaos to make art decorations and lanterns for your home. Be creative and have fun.

Wishing everyone a green and happy Vietnamese/Chinese New Year! Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Below is a pic of my long drawn out project of lessening my load of “stuff.”  I chose to start off with the most dreaded section= my electronics.  I went through all of my chargers, usb cords, random plugs, cell phones, batteries, ear pieces, mp3 players, old keyboards, dvd players and more.  I organized what would be kept, what was broken, what could be recycled or donated.  The pic below is some of the stuff I’m distributing out.  It feels good to get rid of the clutter.  Next up, my closet.  Oi vei!

Condom Hair Bands

These hair bands were made from condoms.  A woman was given one from her local salon in China and was gifted with a little surprise when it started to unravel.  They were originally reported to be made from used condoms but further investigation found that they were actually made from unused rejects from the jimmy factory.  Phew.

I’ve had heard of jizz in the hair but a condom?  Nast!  Where the hell is my scrunchie?

It’s A Wrap

People often ask what we do with the clothes we purchase for videos, commercials and movies.  From my experience, they’re usually turned into the production company.  I know much of it is kept or gifted out but sometimes it gets to the point where you just don’t need another pair of jeans or a sweater set used on a mom character in a Fed Ex commercial.

Welcome to It’s a Wrap.  It’s where the clothes used on actors end up and it’s open to the public.  Most of the items are brand new or have only been worn once or twice.   The clothes range from the Gap to various designer labels.  I found an unworn pair of Gucci shoes for  $250 and a kick ass Vivienne Westwood skirt for $75.

Definitely worth a visit.

12 Year Old Gored By Bull Twice

A twelve-year-old bullfighter from Mexico was gored by a bull during his bullfight on Sunday in Colombia.  After the first incident he went in again and was gored a second time.  His father jumped in to help and was gored as well.  Fortunately for them, neither was hurt seriously but the parents of the kid are freaking idiots!!

I’m not going to lay in to the kid because he’s only 12 but his daddy needs to be gored in the cojones.  That poor bull.   They get petroleum rubbed in the eyes so they can’t see and needles in the testicles so they move more impressively. Every bullfighter that gets impaled, gets what’s coming to him. It’s a disgusting thing and calling it “part of the culture” is just stupid.

Bosom Buddy Bra Recycling

Bra Recyclers is a textile recycling company, specializing in recycling bras and providing deserving women in communities who are facing challenges with a basic lingerie staple.  Recycling bras raises awareness about delaying the number of re-usable textiles, such as bras that are unnecessarily being sent to landfills and could be used for women and girls in communities who are experiencing challenges in their lives

The Bra Recyclers would like to do their part to assist deserving women with a recycled bra. A portion of all bras will be distributed to women’s shelters, transitional housing and to support groups for breast cancer support survivors.

Most of the drop off locations are located in Arizona with one in Sacramento, CA and Dallas, TX.  Otherwise they can be sent to this location:

Bosom Buddy Recycling  23844 S. Power Rd, Ste 102-433 Queen Creek, AZ 85142

Gangsta’s Paradise = 2012 Olympic Stadium

Each year, England’s police forces manage to gather an impressive pile of metal in the form of guns, knives, and old keys. Most of the weapons are confiscated off of criminals, while other metal comes from spent ammunition at police firing ranges.

Scotland Yard’s 2009 pile contained 52 tons of metal, much of which is being used as part of recycling projects. One of the major projects for the metal is in the construction of the 2012 Olympic site in Stratford, east London. The weapons will be melted down and reused in girders and other steel that is needed for the construction efforts.

Source Green Daily

H&M Organic Cotton Isn’t 100% Organic

Over a year ago, H&M announced that they were introducing more organic cotton into their lines.  I’ll admit- I buy from H&M (yes I contribute to fast fashion too) and I have purchased at least 3 tshirts based on the fact that I was sold on the whole organic cotton thing.  Well, looks like someone pulled a little “Sigg has no BPA’s” white lie.

Lothar Kruse, a director of the independent testing laboratory Impetus in Bremerhaven, who examined the cotton fabrics claimed around “30% of the tested samples” contained genetically modified (GM) cotton. The head of the Indian agricultural authority, Apeda, Sanjay Dave, told the newspaper they were dealing with fraud on “a gigantic scale.”

The GM cotton found in the brand’s collections has been traced back to India which now supplies nearly half of the global supply of organic cotton. According to Organic Exchange figures – to be released shortly – India produced 61% of the total amount of organic cotton produced in 2008/09 with some 107,000 tonnes of fibre out of the total 175,113 tonnes grown worldwide.

Via GOOD

Trash Turned Into Shadow Art

Dirty White Trash (With Gulls), 1998

British-born and -based artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster skillfully skirt the boundaries between beauty and the shadowier aspects of humanity, playing with our perceptions as well as our notions of taste. Many of their most notable pieces are made from piles of rubbish, with light projected against them to create a shadow image entirely different to that seen when looking directly at the deliberately disguised pile.

Dark Stuff, 2008

Metal Fucking Rats With Heart Shaped Tail, 2007

Source Environmental Graffiti

Look What Washed Up On Our Beaches

Southern California beaches delivered our own trash right back at us after last week’s storms.  Rubber tires, shoes, bottles, cans, toys, food wrappings, shopping carts and over all crap washed up on shores, putting the Department of Public Works on overtime mode to clean it up before the next rain comes in which is supposed to be today.

Next time that trash falls out of your car and you just leave it, remember that winds and rain eventually pull that into our storm drains, creeks and riverbeds which leads into our oceans.  Take pride, don’t litter.

Source/Picture (Allen J. Schaben) LATIMES

Amber Alert

Just like my pretend lover Michael K from Dlisted says, “What the hell kind of GD outfit is this”?????  Most people say they wear fur to keep warm, but this?  I just can’t..

The prettiest people do the ugliest things 
For the road to riches and diamond rings
. . .
We’ll buy a lot of clothes but we don’t really need ‘em 
Things we buy to cover up what’s inside

—Kanye West, “All Falls Down”

Earth Hour 2010

It’s coming up…who’s participating?

Earthhour.org

Donate Old Cell Phones And Shoes For Haiti

There are an estimated 130 million phones retired in the United States every year.  If even a small percentage of them are sent to Phones for Haiti, it would contribute millions of dollars towards relief from the devastating earthquake. ReCellular will give 100% of the phone value as a contribution to the American Red Cross; charities like the March of Dimes and Susan G. Komen for the Cure have already earned more than $10 million dollars in contributions through their partnerships with ReCellular.

With rescue and repair missions already underway, it is critical that funds get to the region quickly.  By using the postage paid label, supporters can have their used phones, chargers and cell phone batteries sent to ReCellular within just a few days, allowing for the rapid distribution of funds.  All phones are accepted, though newer phones will provide the most value to the charity – in some cases $100 or more.

Sport Chalet is collecting shoes to benefit the Haitian people who have been devastated by the massive earthquake. Gently worn men’s, women’s and kids’ shoes can be dropped off at any Sport Chalet locations through Jan. 31. The shoes will be sent directly to Soles4Souls for distribution to the Haitian people along with necessities such as food, bottled water, medical supplies and baby products.

They Say It’s Your Birthday…It’s My Birthday Too

As some of you know- I have several jobs (Hey mon, I Jamaican!  I got tree jobs, what about you?  You lazy coconut!) and one of my favorites is handling operations for a DJ I’ve loved since I was a wee one.  His name is Marques Wyatt and he’s been running DEEP here in Los Angeles for 11 years strong!  Some of you may remember his other joints- Brass, MAC’s Garage and Does Your Mama Know?- what, what?!?!?!  Damn, I’m aging myself.

Although I’ll be working this Sunday night, you can find me shaking my birthday butt on the dancefloor to some other legends such as Timmy Regisford, Dj Adam 12 (She Wants Revenge, AFEX) Anthony Valadez (KCRW/Dublab)  and the lovely Joplin.  No work or school on Monday so I’ll be looking forward to seeing some of you there.  If I can still see at that point.  : )

1/16 Happy Birthday today to one of my favorite Capricorns- SADE!  Queen is 51 and still looks the same as back in the day!

1/11 You know I love me some Mary J!!

1/19 Dolly Parton shares my actual day. Love this song with her and Willie Nelson from 1965.

1/16 Ok, she’s not a singer but hot mess Co-Kate Moss is another Capricorn I gotta give props to.  Why?  Johnny Depp is why- Durrr!  Here she is doing her best Nomi Malone pole impression, minus the glitter, high waisted thong and big hair.

Birthday Sex..

I wish!

Off to Ojai Valley for some early birthday madness.  If I have the brain cells, I’ll write a few posts from one of those chairs up above…but I’m not making any promises!  A drink would feel so much better in my hand than a laptop.

Happy Birthday to all my fellow Capricorns!  This one goes out to the ones I’ll be spending this weekend with.  xo

I Love Lalalu Organic Pride Tee’s

How adorable are these organic tee’s created by Bay Area native, Luz Tello?  I love the multi cultural and earth conscious messages.

I’m without a baby friend at the moment but these are making me want one ASAP!

Visit Etsy to see the rest of the line  I Love Lalalu

Thank you Karl.  That Pho clip has my name all over it!  xx

Bob Barker Plays ‘Bullseye’ On Japanese Whalers

Another whaling ship arrived in the Southern Ocean today, unexpected and right on time: the Bob Barker.

Thanks to a $5,000,000 contribution from American television personality and icon Bob Barker, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was able to quietly purchase and refit the former Norwegian whaler in Africa. The ice strengthened fast chaser boat quietly departed from Mauritius on December 18th to join up with the Sea Shepherd ships Steve Irwin and Ady Gil in the Southern Ocean.  Barker has also funded the cost of a helicopter that will accompany the society’s ships. The aircraft is named The Nancy Burnet after the president of United Activists for Animal Rights, an organization Barker also supports. This new helicopter will participate in future campaigns.

“I’m delighted to be able to help the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in its mission to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans,” said Barker.  ”There is lot of talk about preserving our ecosystems and species, but this is one organization that puts these words into action.”

And remember, Bob Barker reminds you to help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered. Goodbye, everybody!

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

Vintage Jewelry By Nola Singer

Thanks to Nola Singer for blinging me out on NYE.  LOVE.

Make Art On Trash, Win Free VIP Coachella Tix

TRASHed :: Art of Recycling celebrates 7 glorious years at Coachella in 2010.

Get TRASHed In Front of 60,000 People & Win Coachella Tickets!!

If you were born with the artistic ability to design a recycling bin like no other…
If your notebook doodles or murals alongside the 101N leave more to the imagination than
the mayans, the ghost kid from three men & baby + the dinosaurs COMBINED…
Then you’re invited to participate in TRASHed Coachella.

Everyone from Hunter S Thompson to Fugazi has represented during the past 7 years.
Now here’s your shot to make the history books and get your redesigned recycling
bin in front the world.

There’s two rounds of competition. Winning Northern America and then the world competition.
20 finalist will be selected each receiving tixs and vip passes for Coachella Festival 2010.
Submit your artwork and be considered to design one of the 20 recycling
bins featured at Coachella. What’s even better is that the non offensive redesigned bins
will be placed in schools throughout Southern California after Coachella to inspire the future
recyclers of the world! Next steps? Send a link to your artwork, concept and/or website.

On January 31st, 2010… 20 artists and 5 alternates will be selected to redesign 96 gallon
recycling bins.

For more info go to Global Inheritance Email:  Coachella [at] globalinheritance [dot] org

So Long Decade, Hello Twenty Ten!

Happy New Year everyone!  Be back once I recover from being FUBAR!!

Thanks for the pic Julia!  x

California Trans-Fat Ban Goes Into Effect January 1st

I’m not sure if that’s a good thing since that’s the day I’m going to be crawling to Canter’s for a greasy breakfast to cure my hangover.

On Friday, California will become the first state to ban restaurants from cooking with trans-fats which is the substance linked to clogged arteries, strokes and coronary heart disease..   The  ban on oils, margarines, and shortenings containing more than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving will be monitored by restaurant inspections already conducted by local health departments. Violators can be fined up to $1,000.

NACS

Shepard Fairey. ‘Nuff Said

PAUL WATSON

EVOLVE DEVOLVE OFFSET

Global Warning Warhol

LOVE UNITES

POWER UP WINDMILL

JAWS WAVE x surfrider foundation

Los Angeles Recycling Centers Are Disappearing

Thanks to that little bugger called “the economy crisis” recycling dispensaries are diminishing along with “green” jobs for at-risk youths , high-school dropouts, former gang members and parolees.   FTW!

Pic Ricardo DeAratanha / LA Times

Kid Sister Against Fur, For Shelters

Preach it Sister!!!

PETA

Kiehl’s X KAWS

Kiehl’s has partnered with New York-based artist, KAWS, in recreating their classic Creme de Corps labels. 100% of Kiehl’s net profits from the sale of Limited Edition Crème de Corps will Support RxART.

RxArt, a non-profit organization, is committed to fostering artistic expression and awareness through the challenging yet rewarding task of engaging young patients through contemporary art in pediatric hospitals. By curating installations in hospital settings, RxArt provides a humanistic and creative surrounding that helps to relieve stress and anxiety, while increasing appreciation for contemporary art in pediatric hospitals. For more information on RxART visit www.rxart.net.

8.4 oz. $26.50; 16.9 oz. with Pump $44.50; 1 liter $70.00

Marc By Marc Jacobs Goody Bags

One good thing about living in the shopping district of Melrose and Fairfax is the shopping.  Most of the shops are pretty pricey but I can always count on finding something cheap and chic when visiting MJ.

My latest find was a bright yellow reusable shopping bag for $9 and a small clutch made from recycled plastic for $14.  Win!

8410 Melrose Ave West Hollywood, CA 90069

CNN Heroes Of 2009

Last night in an attempt to pull myself away from my own drunken pity party of downloading picture hell, I turned on the boob tube and stopped dead in my remote tracks once I caught glimpse of the hot piece above.  It was CNN Heroes of 2009 and I got a quick reality check of people with real issues and the ones that are doing something to help.

Bartender Doc Hendley is providing clean water to communities worldwide. Through creative fundraising, his nonprofit Wine To Water has brought sustainable water systems to 25,000 people in five countries.

Jordan Thomas, 20, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, lost both of his legs in a boating accident in 2005. Since then, his Jordan Thomas Foundation has raised more than $400,000 to provide prosthetics for children in need.

Efren Peñaflorida gives Filipino youth an alternative to gang membership through education. His Dynamic Teen Company‘s 10,000 members have taught basic reading and writing to 1,500 kids living in the slums.

Thowin’ in this clip of Maxwell performing just because..um..it’s Maxwell!  Swoon.

Check out the rest of the heroes and their inspiring stories here.

Oh Yeah, Happy Holla*Daze!

No Mariah Carey, Bing Crosby or Chipmunks here. Enjoy!

I’m Baaaack!

It’s been a long time, I shouldn’t have left you.  Without a strong rhyme to step to!

Long story short-  over 3 weeks ago, our server crashed.  Once we finally got back up and running, we found out that the file storing all the pictures posted with each blog post got corrupted : (  Hence the FML!!!   Which means I’ll be spending my holiday time downing eggnogvodkatini’s and trying to replace some of the images that were lost.   Please bear with me.

Believe it or not, I missed you guys!  xx

UPDATE:  UGH!  I lost over 1,500 pictures.  Today I replaced 11.  That’s right- ELEVEN!  I have to relocate the images on Google search or on various websites, resize them through a photo site, rename them and insert them into each post.  This is going to take PHO-EVA!  I want to stomp on a nativity scene right about now!

Moving on to candycaneginandtonic…. and an episode of Intervention.  Yeah, that’s the ticket.  Life seems like a bowl of cherries after watching that mess.

Rent A Living Tree For Christmas

Founded in 2008, the Living Christmas Company, a socially conscious-based business headquartered in Redondo Beach, Calif., introduced a new concept of celebrating the holidays: Renting the highest quality local varieties of living Christmas trees as an environmentally conscious alternative to traditional cut or artificial trees.

You get a live, potted tree delivered to your doorstep. Simply choose from a wide variety of locally-grown trees and they will deliver it to your home or business. After Christmas they ‘ll pick up your tree and return it to their nursery until next year. You can even watch your tree grow as your family grows by adopting the same tree year-after-year.

This year, Living Christmas paired up with Goodwill, so if you have any clutter you want to unload, just have it ready when they come to pick your tree up and they will deliver your donations for you!

I don’t do holiday decorations any more but this is making me want to, especially if the owner- Mr. Scotty Claus is doing the deliveries himself. *wink*

Pope John Paul II Is Rolling In His Grave Over This PETA Ad

No I don’t work for PETA. I just can’t help but to post these racy/controversial pics they keep churning out. This outcry in particular made me laugh.

“The fact is that cats and dogs are a lot safer in pet stores than they are in the hands of PETA employees,” Catholic LeaguePresident Bill Donohue said in a statement. “Moreover, pet stores don’t rip off Christian iconography and engage in cheap irreligious claims. PETA is a fraud.

“Those who support this organization sorely need a reality check. They also need a course in Ethics 101.”

Dear Nana, Dad, Saint Anthony school that I attended in Chicago, IL and baby Jesus- forgive me now for I am about to sin with this response:

Homeboy from the Catholic league is talkin’ about ethics? They disapprove of an image of a half-naked girl with a cross and a rosary, but the second you mention anything about the dirty little secrets that go on behind closed doors in their hood, they say, “Never happened.” Yeah, right. Hypocrites!

There, I said it. Now for my Catholic Guilt Syndrome that’s about to kick in: Dear sis, If I all of a sudden combust in to a ball of fire tonight, you get first dibs on my clothes and belongings, give the rest to the girls and my love to the fam.

Let’s get back to the message at hand. Buying from pet stores means buying from puppy mills and that sucks wrinkly, sagging balls. ADOPT and RESCUE is the only way to go.

Intolerable Beauty: Portraits Of American Mass Consumption By Chris Jordan

Cell phones #2, Atlanta 2005 44 x 90″

Crushed Cars #3, Tacoma 2004 44×60″

Recycling Yard #6, Seattle 2004 44×59″

Haunting and thought provoking comes to mind when viewing the photographic works by Chris Jordan, a Seattle-based photographer and environmental advocate.

Every day, 426,000 cell phones are discarded.

Photographer Chris Jordan heard statistics like that and wondered “what, exactly, does that mean? What does that number look like?”

His answer resulted in a unique photographic document that puts into perspective precisely how much is thrown away by otherwise responsible citizens.

I love his work. Check out Running the Numbers and Midway: Message from the Gyre

I have to admit, while house cleaning recently, I was tempted to throw away my Sonicare toothbrush. On the Phillips website, they claim you can recycle the battery and they listed Best Buy and Radio Shack as places to take them to. Well guess what? They fucking lied! I went to both places and my ass got denied. I was so frustrated, I just wanted to toss it. But I came home, read how to take out the damn battery myself and then took it to an e-Cycle drop off. Total pain but I felt good for making the effort.

Please take the time and effort to recycle your gadgets. Don’t toss them in the trash! The electronics don’t recycle themselves. You buy ‘em, you take them to e-Cycle heaven.

Source Lost In A Supermarket

DAMN! UK PETA Nudes Go There Compared To US Ads: NSFW

The pic above looks like a typical ad I would expect from PETA but the ones below? Holy Playboy!

I know people say using naked people to bring attention to the fur industry doesn’t work, but it did for me. My last post caught the attention of a friend. He reposted it on Facebook and admitted to using fur in his clothing line in the past. After some back and forth commentary he actually took the time to watch the video and immediately declared he would never use it again! WIN!!!

Thank you for sharing Raymond!

Source Village Voice

Tofurky And Gravy Drink By Jones Soda???

WTF? Grody to the max!! This is the description on the Jones website. Drink at your own risk.

Some people are crazy for turkey around the holidays… others not so much. For those of you with veggie leanings, Jones teamed up with the good folks at Tofurky® to bring you a meatless option.

We created this special soda for all you veg-heads out there. Best served with mashed potatoes and a couple of laughs, we hope you enjoy drinking it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Happy We-Stole-Your-Land-and-Killed-Your-People Day! Oops, did I just type that?

Off to SF for gluttonous activities for the next 4 days. xx

Oh, And Thank You For Rainbows. Amen.

The subject isn’t funny but PETA really cracks me up. The commercial was rejected by NBC and will not air during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on the tellie. Boo.

The World’s First Recycled Surfboard Is Here

Business partners and surf industry veterans, Joey Santley and Steve Cox introduced two first-of-their-kind revolutionary endeavors, Green Foam Blanks and ReSurf Recycling, at the Action Sports Retailer (ASR) trade show in San Diego, Calif. earlier this year.

With deep roots in the surf industry, both Santley and Cox recognized southern California as an epicenter for surfboard manufacturers with more than 1,000 surfboards being produced per day between Los Angeles and the Mexico border. Additionally, nearly 20% of the foam needed to shape each board is rendered as waste and inevitably ends up in landfills.

This unusable foam, partnered with other somewhat toxic materials required to finish each surfboard, equaled an incalculable amount of waste coming from the surf industry. Green Foam took that waste and created the world’s first recycled surfboard blank.

Totally bitchin’ dude.

Source NY Times

Method Is So Fresh And So Clean, Clean

Message: When did clean become so dirty? Method believes you deserve to know what chemicals are in your “cleaners.” Support the Household Product Labeling Acts at People Against Dirty.

Get LOST In A 727 Fuselage At Hotel Costa Verde

Hotel Costa Verde, a resort near Quepos, Costa Rica, opened its newest suite earlier this year in a refurbished Boeing 727 airline fusilage.

The vintage 1965 aircraft, which was once owned by Columbia’s Avianca Airlines, was transported piece by piece from San Jose airport, and mounted on 50 foot tall pillars in the hotel’s coastal location in Manuel Antonio National Park.

The 727 is not the Hotel Coste Verde’s only example of airplane recycling, however. The hotel’s El Avion restaurant, cafe and bar make use of a refurbished Fairchild C-123 cargo plane.The cargo plane was previously owned by the US government and involved in the controversial Iran-Contra affair in the 1980′s. Escándalo!

Source Lost In A Supermarket

Dayna Decker Eco-Couture Candles

My girl Fawn Dang (best name ever!) recently gifted me this candle and I’m infatuated with its scent and the crackling wick.

Unlike most candles, Dayna Decker – Chandel candles emanate the sound of soft crackling firewood because they use clean-burning and eco-friendly wooden wicks. That’s right. These cool candles have an EcoWood Wick set in a gel-like natural resin-based wax infused with botanicals encircled in a hand-blown, glass container. Very cool as far as scented candles go.

Why EcoWood Wick?

• Organic and Healthy
• Burns Clean
• Emits a soothing crackling sound
• Intriguing horizontal “teardrop” shaped flame
• Remains rigid and upright
• Less post soot dispersion with diminutive carbon build up
• Longer Burn hours due to a cooler flame

Thanks Fawnita! xx

Gucci’s Signature Stripe Just Got Cooler. And Greener

I never thought I would see this day but now that it’s here, let’s join arms in an interlocking G formation.

Gucci has joined forces with the Rainforest Action Network and decided to stop using paper from Indonesian rainforests and plantations as well as avoiding the suppliers Asia Pulp and Paper.

“Standing rainforests are not a luxury, they’re a necessity if the world wants to stop climate change,” said Mimma Viglezio, executive VP for global communications. “Our actions are lowering our own carbon footprint, but we hope that they will also raise awareness inside the fashion industry that it’s possible for our industry to make a difference for rainforests and for the climate.”

With this policy, they are ensuring that all paper categories used by the group, from printing paper to shopping bags, do not come from endangered forests.

The Gucci Group also owns Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen so this small change is going to make a HUGE difference.

Source Gear Live

Coco Eco Mag Holiday Issue Is Here!

Here is the holiday fashion story co-styled by Sarah Griffin and myself. The lines that we received for this story renewed my faith in eco-friendly fashion. Talk about good, green and glam!

Listed below are a few of the lines that were used.

• Beyond Skin
• Allison Parris
• Susan Woo
• Sielian’s Vintage Apparel
• Thien Le
• Mr. Larkin

Go to Coco Eco Mag to see the rest of the issue.

Alicia Silverstone Is The Kind Celebrity In Coco Eco Magazine

Each issue we work on gets more exciting than the last and this one was no exception. Sarah Griffin and I co-styled Alicia Silverstone who was an absolute sweetheart to work with.

She gave us health tips from her book The Kind Diet, dished out some of her beauty secrets and even shared some delicious vegan truffles with us. I didn’t know such a thing existed.

Go to Coco Eco to read her interview and check out the rest of the holiday issue while you’re at it.

Nextaid World Aids Day Event 12/1/09

This December 1st, World AIDS Day, please join us for a very special benefit at Marrakesh House in Culver City. This event is one of over a dozen NextAid fundraisers held throughout December in cities across the country. [Scroll down for info on the other events]

All proceeds will go toward the creation of an ecological multipurpose facility for the “Kawangware Street Children and Youth Project” in Nairobi, Kenya, and for the education of South African children through the loveLife goGogetters program.

AMAZING MUSICAL TALENT
Louie Vega – Vega Records (http://vegarecords.net)
DJ Rap – Propa Talent / Impropa Talent (http://djrap.com)
Marques Wyatt – Deep- LA (http://deep-la.com)
Turntables on the Hudson with DJ Nickodemus + Nappy G & Brazilian Drum Troupe + Todd Simon on trumpet
(http://turntablesonthehudson.com)
Raul Campos – KCRW 89.9 FM (http://kcrw.org)

Open bar – provided by JETT Vodka (htt:://drinkjett.com)
Light food – Organic and African cuisine
Dessert – Luna and Lary’s Coconut Bliss, Tia’s Bakery, and The Conservatory for Coffee, Tea & Cocoa

Silent Auction: featuring art from the African Diaspora and African photography plus ecological products and services, fair trade items, and more. [Contact Virginia Cheung at virginia4nextaid [at] gmail [dot] com to find out how you can contribute!]

LIMITED TICKETS AVAILABLE – GET THEM HERE AND NOW:
http://www.nextaid.org/wad2009/dec01.html

$75 if purchased by November 20
$100 if purchased after November 20 /at the door

Go to the FB page for more info.

This Is Why Wild Animals Should Not Be Domesticated!!

Yeah, I know. Two graphic animal videos in one day. I can’t help it.

We posted back in February about the pet chimp that attacked Carla Nash after she was called over by the owner to come help her calm him down. He ended up viciously attacking Carla, permanently disfiguring her. The owner ended up repeatedly stabbing the chimp with a butcher knife until the police showed up and killed him.

For the first time, Carla shows the damage that was done to her on Oprah today. Nash lost both her hands in the attack, as well as her nose, an eyelid, and lips.

Here is the interview the crazy chimp lady gave after the attack. I know it’s not her fault that Travis attacked her friend but she should have never had him as a pet in the first place. Now he’s gone and the victims life will never be the same. Not even close. Tragic.

Source Huffington Post

Christian Serratos: ‘Twilight’ Star Goes Nude For Peta

I don’t even watch the show but gotdamn!

I know winter is approaching but remember, no one in the world needs a mink coat but a mink.

And in case anyone is wondering why fur is bad (what planet do you live on?), please have a gander at the cruel and horrific video below.

Lace Your Lobes

Switch out those door knocker earrings for these lovely earrings made from reclaimed vintage lace pieces.

One sale now for only $10 at Otherlovelything’s Etsy shop.

Blog Love: Lady Art Looks

Ladies you must check out my girls hair/makeup blog Lady Art. My favorite section is the Step by Step where they have video tutorials of how to apply makeup. I’m not very good at painting my face but these vids make me want to run out and get the recommended brushes and makeup and go to work on my mug!

Nice job Alana and Azelle! xo

Elizabeth Mitchell vs “V”

I haven’t followed a mini-series in quite some time but I’m definitely going to tune in to “V” featuring one of Coco Eco Mag’s past “green” cover girls, Elizabeth Mitchell.

I loved this show as a kid so I hope it doesn’t disappoint as an adult

Watch the first episode this Tuesday.

I Love Nola Singer Jewelry

I LOVE how Nola takes bits and pieces from precious vintage jewelry and crafts them into her personal art of adornment. I would rock these over a Tiffany’s ring any day.

Jewelry by Nola