Freebie Alert: Pet Food and Garnier Haircare

What do pet food and haircare have in common?  Well, not much except that the following two companies both make versions of these products with natural/eco-friendly ingredients and both companies are offering free samples.

HALO:  Sign up for their email newsletter and receive a printable coupon for 2 free cans of Spot's Stew pet food.  This brand can be found at Whole Foods and PetCo, amongst other places.

Garnier Fructis:  Request a sample of Garnier Fructis Pure Clean shampoo and conditioner.  This haircare line is 92% biodegradable and the bottles are made of 50% recycled plastic.

Is That Your Natural Color? (Make Your Own Easter Egg Dye)

My family traditionally has an Easter Day Egg-stravaganza where we dye dozens and dozens of eggs in every color of the rainbow.  This year rather than purchasing a dye kit,  I'm going to have everyone color eggs with dyes that we can make ourselves.  Not only will this more natural and eco-friendly, but it will be a fun science experiment for the kids. 

I thought I'd share the recipes that I'm planning to try to achieve various colors.  Many of these DIY recipes were obtained from Kiwi magazine.

Freebie Alert Update: Recyclebank -- Green Your Home Challenge

**They've opened up new rooms!  Living Room and Bedroom.  Visit now to earn more points!**

I know I've mentioned this before, but Recyclebank is a company that I really like.  They are all about my two favorite things -- living green and saving money.  The people at Recyclebank are committed to helping the environment by rewarding individuals for taking action to do something green.  This could be as simple as taking a product survey, or more involved actions such as curbside recycling.  Whatever steps you decide to take, Recyclebank will reward you with points.  Save up points to redeem for rewards ranging from from grocery store coupons/freebies, to discounts on your favorite products, to free magazine subscriptions, and much more. 

If you are not yet a member of the Recyclebank community, click here to join today.

For members, Recyclebank has a "Green Your Home Challenge" running where you can earn points by reading various household tips for eco-friendly living.  This week they're focusing on the kitchen.  To earn up to 70 points, visit their Challenge webpage and click on the small bluprint near the bottom right corner of the screen.  Then visit the kitchen and click on the plus signs that show up to earn your points. 

Freebie Alert Update: Earth Day 2011

As most of you know, April 22nd is Earth Day.  Many stores and organizations are offering freebies and other deals to help celebrate this special day.  Here is a list of the best deals/freebies that I can find.  I'll be updating the list throughout the week as I become aware of more deals.

• Lowe's Home Improvement Center:  Lowe's will be giving away 1 million trees to customers who visit a participating store.  While you're there, don't forget to recycle your rechargeable batteries, CFL's, and plastic shopping bags.

• Starbucks:  Receive a free cup of coffee or tea when you bring in a travel cup on April 22nd.

• Caribou Coffee:  Receive a free cup of the coffee of the day when you bring in a re-usable drinkware on April 22nd.  You can also receive 50 cents off a cup of coffee everyday when you bring in a reusable mug.

• Origins:  Bring in your current skincare (new or empty container) and trade it in for a full-size Origins cleanser -- Checks and Balances or A Perfect World.  You must also print out and bring along this form.  Offer good on April 22nd only, while supplies last.

Back in the Game (Short-term)

Last week I mentioned that I'm going to be taking some time off from this blog to focus on my family.  Well, with Earth Day and Easter coming soon, I anticipate finding ideas and deal alerts that are too good to keep to myself.  So although this isn't a full comeback, I'm going to be posting periodically for the next few days.  Hope you all enjoy the week!  

Change of Plans

I've been posting on this blog for a little over a month now, so I decided to take a moment and look back on what has transpired.

I've been interested in helping the environment and saving money for fifteen years or more.  But I've learned so much in this last month, and it's really changed my view of true "green living".  I've started looking differently at everything I do, and critically examining every product that comes across my path.  My family has even become more aware of the 3 R's (reduce, reuse, recycle).  My kids are often heard saying "hey, we could use this to..." 

Speaking of family, as much as I'm enjoying writing posts, I realized that I'm spending so much time researching and writing posts that I've been neglecting my family.  So I decided that I'm going to take a break from writing and focus on them for awhile.  I would like to blog again at some point, but when is TBD.  Hope you'll all be patient with me and join me once I get going again!  In the meantime, keep looking for your own ways to Live Green and $ave Green!

Freebie Alert: CFL Light Bulb

Photo Courtesy of Rodney Strong

Energy-efficient compact flourescent light bulbs (CFL's) emit the same light as an ordinary incandescent light bulb, but they use up to 80% less electricity and last 10 times longer.  So by switching just one of your current light bulbs for a CFL could save you 80% on your energy cost for that light fixture or lamp. 

If you take the pledge to change at least one standard light bulb with an energy-efficient CFL, Rodney Strong will send you a free CFL bulb to get you started.

It's important to note that CFL bulbs cannot be thrown in the trash, and will need to be recycled.  To find a place to recycle your CFL bulbs, visit the Earth911 website.

Co+op Deals Through April 15th

Health food stores and co-ops are a very good source of organic and natural products.   This list contains some co-op deals and coupon match-ups to help you save green while living green.  Co+op Deals are good at over 150 co-ops that are part of the National Co-op Grocers Association.    This list is based on the Midwest-area Co+op Deals Sales Flyer so some prices may vary depending on your area.

There’s a new Co+op Deals Coupon Booklet available at your local Co+op Deals store. All coupons in the booklet are valid 4/01/2011 through 5/31/2011.