Lifestyle

Fretting over what to give this holiday season? Try giving gift cards instead of presents. Gift cards are more useful and green then conventional presents - there's less packaging involved, and the recipient can choose what they really want. Worried about retail stores going under?

Green Perspective combines two of my favorite things - environmentally-friendly gifts and convenient on-line shopping. Green Perspective, a Philadelphia-based company, offers green gift baskets with themes like "Green Your Kitchen" and "Eco-Mom" that you can easily align to the needs of the recipient (or yourself!). Trying to get a friend or family member on the green wave? Check out the beginner “greenie” gift bag Intro to Green (though with items like a bamboo cutting board, reusable travel mug and envirosax bag, this a gift that anyone would find practical use for - hint, hint friends & fam!) The pre-filled gift baskets mean you don’t have to deal with tedious decision-making. We could all use a lot less of the ‘what should I get them??’ gift-giving grief around the holidays.

Getting ready for Turkey day preparations? The biggest travel day of the year surely makes an enviromental impact ... so here's 6 ways to help you green your Thanksgiving meal:

One easy way to live greener is to reduce waste you'd typically kick to the curb. To my friends I'm commonly refered to as "JuleBay." My nickname (derived from being an E-Bay connoisseur) actually symbolizes my aspiration to live green. When I visited my eldest brother in Denver, I thought he was crazy for selling his CDs & movies. But between my iPod, Netflix & local library, why should I keep a storage facility in my humble abode when mostly everything's on-demand? Therefore, I jumped on the e-Bay bandwagon to rid myself of excess "stuff".

With the economy in decline and auto sales down, car prices have dropped - increasing appeal for buyers. SUVs account for approximately one of every four vehicles sold today. Their popularity among Americans is note-worthy. However, the SUV's environmental impact is

What's your Green IQ? Here's a fun, quick quiz from Cotton (as in The Fabric of Our Lives):

Looking for some green reading materials at your local library or to give as a gift? Try "the Green Book: the Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time" by Elizabeth Rogers & Thomas M. Kostigen. This book blends celebrity anecdotes of how celebs like Justin Timberlake, Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, and Tyra Banks embrace living green with practical green advice. You can learn hundreds of

Thinking about Halloween costumes for this year? Rather than going to a Halloween speciality store and spending $40 on a costume worn once, try renting from a theatrical or costume shop. Feeling extra creative?

Use a toaster oven for smaller meals and snacks, you'll use a third to half as much energy as your regular oven uses. Still need to use a conventional oven?