The short version is that SIGG shouted out creative,  imaginative designs that were to be produced on a limited edition SIGG bottle.

Folks used the  provided template, submitted their design, and then the public voted for the best, along with SIGG and guest judge Sarah Backhouse.

Over a span of seven weeks, they recruited about 2,000 designs from 78 different countries.

Winning designs are featured on .4 liter; .6 liter; 1 liter sizes of a limited edition bottle of SIGG which will be distributed and sold in U.S. retail stores and on SIGG’s official website.

First place winners also receive $1,000 cash, 5% licensing fee of all bottles sold (wholesale value), a feature on SIGG’s official website and social media channels, and  collection of 100 bottles of their winning SIGG design.

The three runner ups and People’s Choice winner will receive the same features on social media channels, as well as $500.

The creativity and the level of talent blew the judges away, according to the President of SIGG North America, Rob Dewar. “Narrowing down the finalists was a very difficult task as there were so many standout designs,” he explained. “Ultimately we selected designs that would best align with SIGG’s future collections.”

Backhouse added that because each design has their own story of conservation and eco-awareness, “it was inspiring to explore all the different graphics and see how art and ecology came together for these artists.”

Folks can purchase the winning bottles on mysigg.com starting in Fall of this year. The 0.4 liter bottles will be $19.99, 0.6 liter bottles $21.99, and the 1.0 liter bottle $24.99.

To see more submissions, visit www.talenthouse.com/design-for-sigg

To  bring you up to speed, SIGG delivered a call out for creative,  imaginative designs (using the provided template) for the chance to have it produced on a limited edition SIGG bottle. Everyone who submitted design now has their design displayed online, and now the public gets to vote. SIGG and guest judge Sarah Backhouse will choose a winning design in each bottle category and announce them three days before Earth Day 2012 (April 18th).

These winning designs will each be featured on one of three sizes (.4 liter; .6 liter; 1 liter) of a limited edition bottle of SIGG which will be distributed and sold in U.S. retail stores and on SIGG’s official website. These three winners will also receive:

• 5% licensing fee of all bottles sold (wholesale value)
• A feature on SIGG’s official website and social media channels
• A collection of 100 bottles of the winning SIGG design
• $1000 each

Three runner-ups will each receive a feature on SIGG’s social media channels and $500, and the highest voted artist will be delivered the People’s Choice award, featured on SIGG’s social media and $500.

And you should just see what has been submitted! With nearly 2,000 designs, it is hard to decide who should get the votes–especially with the influx of eco-driven talent.

Here are some of our favourites with their descriptions:

“Water infinity” By Antonia Feigl

[click to view]

The artist says:

Water Infinity
Water seems endless, but is it?
I translated water into geometric forms. The waves loop around and around and around the bottle.
Waer may seems to be a never-ending ressource, but is it really? Look closer. Think about it.

The colours of the blue water and the silver background are shiny and sparkling (like the bottles, which are already available). 

We love it because:

It’s fresh and clean and delivers one of our favourite natural resources.

“Integração entre produto, meio ambiente e reciclagem” By Bruno Fontes

[click to view]

The artist says:

Baseado no princípio da empresa, em que após o período de vida útil de cada garrafa, a mesma ainda pode ser reciclada, elaborei esse layout mostrando que os produtos em geral da empresa em nada interferem no equilíbrio e meio ambiente, podendo estar sempre em perfeita harmonia e num equilíbrio contínuo, além de que SUSTENTABILIDADE seria a linguagem geral de todos.

Um detalhe que porventura poderia chamar atenção na embalagem é o neon fosforescente verde aplicada somente no logo da reciclagem. Com as luzes apagadas chamaria atenção.

(Translated: Based on the principle of the company, in which after the useful life of each bottle, it can still be recycled, I prepared this layout showing that the products of the company in any way interfere with the balance and the environment, and may always be in perfect harmony and balance in a continuous SUSTAINABILITY beyond that would be the general language of all.

One detail that might happen to call attention to the packaging is the neon green phosphor applied only in the recycling logo. With the lights out call attention.)

We love it because:

It is the essence of what we believe in, all wrapped into a detailed but simple design.

“Nature vs City” By Danielle Kasony

[click to view]

The artist says:

In this artwork I wanted to do something that showed the world and how it is today. We are over run by cities and destroying nature more and more. This is to appreciate what we have and save the Earth.

We love it because:

We understood what it meant before having read the description, and love how clear it depicted her goal for the bottle.

+++

So you want to get voting?

Here are the details:

Who: SIGG North America & TalentHouse

What: After a wildly successful launch on February 9th, the SIGG Design Contest with TalentHouse will now be open to the public for community voting. With 1,980 design submissions from every corner of the globe including Brazil, Egypt and Nepal, there is a vast selection of artwork to peruse and explore.

When: Voting begins March 30th, 2012 at 10am PST and ends on April 9th, 2012 10am PST. One People’s Choice Winner along with three additional winners and three runner-ups will be chosen by Sarah Backhouse and SIGG’s panel of judges, and announced before Earth Day on April 23rd.

Where: Cast your vote online at:  http://www.facebook.com/SIGGNorthAmerica/app_171350439587 and visit http://www.talenthouse.com/design-for-sigg.

SIGG, in conjunction with Talenthouse, is looking for artists, design lovers, and SIGG fans to develop and create an original graphic for the chance to have it produced, sold, and brought into SIGG’s 2012 Collection.

SIGG bottles are designed and manufactured from a single piece of pure aluminum, giving them a uniform, seamless construction. They have a solvent-free, eco-friendly powder-based coating on the exterior of the bottle, are reusable, and are 100 percent recyclable. Visit mysigg.com to learn more.

Every year, SIGG launches a new collection of SIGG bottles, featuring many unique designs. Now, SIGG is inviting folks with a creative gene to submit their imaginative design (using the provided template) for the chance to have it produced on a limited edition SIGG bottle. Artists have complete control. There are no boundaries.

Anyone who submits a design will have theirs displayed online, and then the public will vote for their favorite. SIGG and guest judge Sarah Backhouse will choose a winning design in each bottle category and announce them three days before Earth Day 2012.

Three winning designs (as selected by SIGG and guest judge Sarah Backhouse) will each be produced on one of three sizes (.4 liter; .6 liter; 1 liter) of a limited edition bottle of SIGG which will be distributed and sold in U.S. retail stores and on SIGG’s official website. These three winners will also receive:

If you missed our other app-loving posts, catch up first:

iPhone Apps With the Planet in Mind

The Best Eco Apps for iPad and iPad2

New Eco Apps for Kids

Mediacore and Promoting Eco-Awareness

our own Ecoki app (get it now!)

Got those already? Here are some more of our favorites:

Fooducate

It can definitely be daunting to always be checking out ingredient lists, nutrition claims and labels, and various health markings on products. That is why Fooducate is so awesome! We can’t all sit around at the grocery store and analyze every label to death, but Fooducate can.

Fooducate allows users to automatically scan a product barcode and see both good and bad product highlights. It can let you compare products, find better alternatives, and learn more about food and nutrition.

Created by dietitians and concerned parents, it uses your mobile’s camera to scan the UPC barcode, and gives you the info for over 200,000 unique products (and growing daily). The simple-to-use interface is available on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android OS version 2.2 and up, and let’s you get into the nitty gritty of the product. We’re talking too much sugar, hidden trans, excess preservatives, food colorings, serving size trickery, and more!

Get it here from the app store.

According to Tappi, an association connecting paper making and forest practices, about 300 million metric tons of paper and paperboard are produced each year worldwide.

Frankly, we think that’s too much. That’s why we like companies that recycle. And paper companies that make paper products from recycled paper? Even better.

Ecojot delivers a tree-friendly response to this with their range of 100% post-consumer recycled paper products. The clever designs make you want to get creative, offering whimsical, nature-inspired designs for everything your writing requires.

Developed from an already thriving stationary company, Miragepaperco, the crew harnessed the  emerging eco-trend, developing a range that attuned to the times. Soon, the Canadian-based ecojot emerged, a marriage from the brainwork of sibling team Mark and Carolyn Gavin, with eye-catching prints with eco-savvy design.

We love when companies take an extra step to enhance their greenness, and ecojot is no exception. All of their paper and board is acid-free and chlorine-free; they harness vegetable-based inks and glues; and the paper and board is all acid- and chlorine-free.

They also keep the trees in mind; nary a new tree is used to make their paper, but they really take an extra eco-loving step by using a paper mill powered by biogas.

But it isn’t just keeping it recyclable and renewable that makes ecojot as green as they are. They are big supporters of Evergreen, a national non-profit organization dedicated to developing sustainable societies. A portion of their monthly proceeds supports Evergreen, too.

Principle designer Carolyn Gavin has developed reverberant, colourful designs, with twist of retro, a dab of nature, and a little geometric flair. Colour schemes of sky blues mingle with flashy fuchsias and sun-kissed yellows, each one with its own distinction, making it one-of-a-kind. They also add customization for companies, giving your business or organization a unique flair.

We especially love the Journals and Notebooks. Offered in three sizes, these hard covered, coil-bound books let you record your inner-most thoughts or your daily drivel. They conveniently lay flat when opened, and the heaviness of the paper doesn’t let markers or heavy inks seep through, allowing you to write on both sides. The two larger sizes are lined, keeping your orderly and organized when you just might not be feeling that way.

The rest of their line includes:

Agendas
These coil-bound books lay flat with ease, offering large spaces in their calenders to record the day’s events. We love the elastic that keeps it bound shut, an added bonus when you have to shove in a few to-do notes along teh way.

Calenders
The calenders are nearly a foot long and just a few inches wide, designed as a slim reminder board for your important dates, like your parent’s anniversary and your nephew’s birthday.

Cards
Their cards come in packs of a dozen (with envelopes in tow), flourished with their trademark designs on the front, and a blank inside for your personal messages. With all of the choices of designs, you can find your favourite match for your Spring luncheon with your friends or your cat’s birthday extravaganza. (Even the plastic bag that it comes in, by the way, is biodegradable, naturally derived from corn. Love it.)

Sketchbooks
Heavy duty sketching paper makes up this perfect pad for the budding artist or day-to-day doodler. They also offer a version for your kids’ masterpieces.

Workbooks
Go to school in style with a slim design that can easily go with you to class and slide in the pages of your text book. Coming in a package or two, the colours complement each other, helping you stay  style-savvy, sustainable, and hopefully, smarter.

Ecowrap
When you want to brighten up a gift and newspaper won’t cut it as the gift wrap, their recycled wrapping alternatives are the perfect answer, with their matching recycled “ribbon” and party-perfect designs.

Folders
Make your filing cabinet a little more fun with their nature-inspired file folders. They come in twos, combining a solid colour with their trademark design, making you want to pull open the drawers to dig out old bills.

Not sure which to choose? We recommend the journal to start, with its simple lined paper that can be used for any of your needs.

The ecojot Journal

• 6×9-inches
• available in designs: ecoCOLORS, 3R’s
• 150 lined paged
• $17, with a percentage towards Evergreen

Visit them at www.ecojot.com

Whether you want to simply reduce your carbon footprint, or get a whole lot greener, these apps are for you. Here are our favourites:

Solar Panel Advisor ($1.99)

This eco-educational app shows you what a solar panel could do for you. Launch the app, face your iPad toward the sun, and find out how much solar power would be generated by any size solar panel under the same strength of sun. It will then describe how solar energy helps your energy bill. If you already have solar panels, you can use it to monitor them at home and get automatic maintenance and cleaning reminders.

My Recycle List (free)

This simple app allows you to locate places where you are able to recycle specific items. Just select your items from a list, and look at the locations possible. You can also save the locations yo prefer, so you can easily organize different recycling locations. It also saves emissions, because you’ll have the details of where to recycle without having to drive all over town.

My Carbon Footprint (free)

Download My Carbon Footprint to see how clean and green you are. Plug in the details of how you live, work, and eat, and it tells you how you impact the planet. It also sends you a fresh list of eco-tips and rewards you with cool badges and bragging rights for Facebook.

Control4 My Home (free)

Control4 My Home turns the iPad into an energy-efficiency remote for all your home’s appliances, lights, and electricity-using utilities. You can completely control your home’s computers, televisions, security systems and everything else! It works alongside Control4 all-in-one energy-saving automated home systems–convenient, but expensive… okay, and really cool.

iBooks (free)

Avid readers will love iBooks, giving you free access to an entire library of full downloaded books. It also allows you to take notes, highlight, and locate specific passages, perfect for students and professionals. A great way to organize your library and reduce your paper consumption, this is a must for anyone who likes a book or two.

Crazy Weather ($1.99)

Teach your children about weather and climate change with this educational app. Written as an interactive story, it is a fun and exciting app perfect for younger children.

iGrowIt ($0.99

The perfect app for new gardeners and seasoned horticulturalists, iGrowIt helps who you choose what to plant and then. Select and tap on “What can I grow today?”, and you’re given a list of vegetables perfect for planting in the current month. Each list includes instructions on how to plant and harvest the vegetables, along with plenty of recipe ideas to enjoy them.

SoundPaper ($4.99)

Whether your constantly jotting down to-do lists, taking notes in a meeting, or are a college student with loads of books and binders, this app is for you. The keyboard allows you to type notes as though you were on your regular computer, along with drawing sketches and recording audio with just single tap. It delivers a well-rounded way to take notes, with all info right in one single note/file. It also helps the environment by saving a load of paper and extra equipment.

What are your favourite eco-friendly apps?

Check out some of our favourite iPhone apps that benefit the planet, as well as the details on Rainforest Survival Challenge, an iPad app designed to educate children ages 8 through 12 about plants and animals in the Amazonian rainforest.

Golf balls are an eco-hazard, even if it’s not something we readily think about. But every year, hundreds of thousands of golf balls are manufactured, most of which are made from petrochemicals like Surlyn or urethane.

And what happens to them? They often end up in forests and waterways, and lay there for years and years.

However, the answer is as easy as making them from a renewable source. After all, we’ve seen that before. A University of Maine professor and student teamed up to make planet-friendly golf balls from lobster shells.

Professor David Neivandt and golfer/undergrad Alex Caddell developed a ball made from the byproduct of the lobster-canning industry.

Maine Today reported that the research team has discovered a way to produce golf balls using the empty shells of lobster. The best part? It costs just about 19 cents per ball (considering, for you golfers out there, you’re paying upwards of about four dollars already).

The balls take their eco-friendliness a step further – they are biodegradable. Because of this, they are designed and used for the beach and on cruise ships, where you don’t plan on seeing that ball again.

The bonus of these balls are that they are reusing an ingredient that would just be wasted, and that they are biodegradable, too.

The University of Maine has filed a provisional patent for the lobster shell recipe. It can also be used to make other decomposable products, such as planters and surveying stakes.

Image courtesy of The University of Maine

And even if you don’t know much (or anything!) at all about art, it’s still easy to be captured and taken in by the rich, swirling colours of the Abstract Expressionists, the mild, melding colours of the Impressionists, the picturesque portraits of the Romantic period, and the eclectic ready-mades of Modern Art.

Eco-Friendly Exhibits

Many art galleries are shifting into a new territory now–the green one. They aren’t ditching their old works, but adding a little more planet-friendly production inside their doors.

Leaning toward some eco-exhibitions open the art gallery doors to a wider population. Those interested in planet conservation are more inclined to visit a gallery that they may not have thought about before. The reasoning for this is that the galleries can look at the greener products, packaging, handcrafted materials and recycled products to make them a large part of their showcase.

Some art galleries, as you can see from the Art Gallery, take it a step further by offering auctions, allowing you to take a piece home with you.

With the incorporation of greener art, this allows for locals to be highlighted in other locals’ homes.

Eco-friendly art gives the chance for lesser known artists and artists in the area to showcase their work for thousands of art goers. By eliminating shipping costs, along with shipping fuel to transport the art (and artists) for shows, it reduces pollution from the emissions of going from point A to point B. Local artists also are supported with boosts the community and economy, both two things that make it even a little more green.

If you’re local art gallery doesn’t have an exhibits, and you have the space and passion for showing off things green, why not host your own art show?

Hosting Your Own

If you’re interested in hosting your own, here are some tips to get you started.

Make sure it’s green! Sounds obvious, doesn’t it? But the art itself should be good for the environment as well. For example, some paintings of trees with toxic paint isn’t really the way to go. Look for items made of recycled materials or materials that don’t harm the earth.

Explore the background. Ask their artist his or her practices. Waste should be disposed of properly and materials should be eco-friendly. Ask them to speak to the folks who come and see your exhibit about their practices, or, minimally, pen them an artist’s statement to distribute.

Practice what they preach. Is just the artist’s works eco-friendy? Or their lifestyle as well? This is great information to be included in their lecture or statement.

Eco-invite. Send invitations via email, start up a web page or blog, connect with local places that will help you promote it, and spread the word via mouth. Don’t use up paper when most of us rely on Internet, anyway.

Dine without disposing. If you can reuse your glasses and plates, then do it. Same goes for napkins; opt for cloth. Contact a local catering company to see what you can use. Plastic and paper plates not appreciated.

Dine local. Nothing says eco-friendly like local eating. Contact a few farmers and businesses in the area, asking each for a dish or two. Chances are, they will even do it gratis.

Support another source. To give back even more, ask the artist if they have a cause they would like to support. Then, place a container near the entrance to collect donations for a local green cause, such as an animal rights group, or a bin for canned food items for a local shelter.

Here are our favourite environmentally friendly kitchen design ideas:

Start Recycling

If you don’t already, make sure you recycle everything you can: paper, glass, metal… You’ll be surprised on how little waste you have.

Separate It

Once you start recycling, you’ll find it much easier if you keep it separated, instead of doing it the day that you bring it out. Keep the paper, bottles, plastics, and metals in their respective containers, depending on how your community prefers it.

Energy-Efficient Appliances

Most large appliances have eco-friendly choices, with advanced technology that allows them to use up to 50 percent less energy and water than standard and older models. Look for the Energy Star Rating when choosing refrigerators, ranges, dishwashers and even some small appliances, like microwaves.

Go for an Induction Stoves

Induction cooking work by using electricity to produce a magnetic field that reacts with the ferric content in specific cookware. This, in turn, creates heat. The cookware gets hot and heats the food, but the stove-top doesn’t. That means that the heat isn’t wasted, food gets hotter faster, and energy and time is saved. Induction cooking is approximately 90 percent energy efficient. Gas and electric radiant, on the other hand, are 50 to 60 percent efficient.

Concrete  Countertops

Use materials that are both durable and water-resistant for  countertops, as well as back-splashes. Stained concrete is non-toxic and uses natural pigments instead of surface stains.

Energy-Efficient Lighting

Maximize natural light wherever possible and low voltage for task and mood lighting. When possible, just flip on your range hood, and use a dimmer for dining areas.

Eco-Friendly Flooring

Renewable sources can provide you with a comfortable , affordable and durable floor. Bamboo and cork are great choices. They both mature in roughly half the time (or less) that hardwoods, grown in colder climates, takes to reach market size.

Keep It Cozy

Good insultation provides comfort and energy efficiency in a kitchen.. To add insulation to your already existing kitchen walls, blow fibrous insulation material, such as fibreglass or cellulose and mineral wool,  into the enclosed wall, floor and roof cavities. By “dense packing” the insulation, it inhibits air circulation within the cavities, which elimates condensation, moisture problems and air leakage.

How have you made your kitchen eco-friendly?

Image courtesy of trueformconcrete.com

Well, just imagine if that uniquely American, keeping up with the Joneses, one-upmanship attitude that we have towards consumerism and home improvement, which results in the U.S. consuming about 25 percent of the world’s resources, actually solved some of our environmental problems instead of just creating them.

Here’s how it would have to play out:

• After you notice that your neighbors have switched out all of their home’s incandescent light bulbs, in favor of energy-saving LED lighting, you then decide to purchase an array of solar panels for your home. Now your newly purchased, low-wattage light bulbs are powered by the sun while your neighbors still receive monthly power bills from a coal-burning energy conglomerate.
• A co-worker comments to you that she has just completed a home window replacement project, which she estimates is going to cut 20 percent off her home’s annual power consumption because her new vinyl windows are insulated with double glass panes that have energy-saving reflective coatings. Suddenly, you’re motivated to replace your home’s old single-pane windows with new triple-paned models. Plus, you install some R-50 insulation in your home’s attic and replace your ancient, oil-burning furnace with a new ground-source heat pump. After completing a home energy audit, which estimates that you may have helped reduce your home’s annual power consumption by a third, you boast to your co-worker about your goal of becoming a carbon-neutral household within five years.
• During a holiday meal, your brother-in-law brags that his family has dropped its household water consumption by one-third simply by installing low-flow showerheads and ratcheting back the number of days they water their lawn to once a week. Not to be outdone, at the next family get together, you show your brother-in law the rain harvesting barrels that you have purchased, which are connected to drip irrigation lines that feed your new organic vegetable garden and the drought-tolerant native landscaping around your house and…

Well, you get the picture.

All it takes to accelerate our country down a path towards energy-efficient living and environmental sustainability are some groundbreaking changes in how we spend our home improvement dollars. If only we could covet our neighbor’s super-insulated house walls instead of their super-sized, four-car garage.

Image courtesy of solarpowerauthority.com

• Homemade ornament ideas
• Eco-friendly wrapping paper
• Gifts under $20
• David Suzuki recommended gifts
• Vegan recipes and tips
• A load more recipes
• More gift ideas

And also check out the awesome swag (like this gorgeous pillow) from etsy artisan NestaHome.

This hemp pillow is hand stamped with antique text printing blocks using water soluble inks onto a dark red 50% hemp/50% cotton fabric.

Check them all (including non-holiday options) out here!

From Ecouterre:

Jeans are one of the few universally worn and loved garments around the world. Wardrobe staples for everyone from fashionistas to tiny tots, to the burliest construction workers, jeans are a simple basic that everyone has in their closet. But what do you do when your jeans wear out on you? We want to know, so we’ve partnered with the Gap 1969 Stream to shine a light on the most creative denim reinventions on the planet—show us your stuff and stand a chance to be featured on Ecouterre, Inhabitat, and the Gap 1969 Stream, plus a $200 Gap gift certificate.

The Ecouterre Recycled Denim Challenge

The team at Ecouterre is looking for photographs of your  recycled-denim creations. Anything from dresses to jewellry to handbags…. They want to see it.

Upload your pictures here by 11:59 p.m. EDT, October 20, 2010. Winners will be featured on the Gap 1969 Stream.

You’ll Win…

The grand prize winner will win a $200 Gap gift certificate, as well as a featured article on Ecouterre and Inhabitat. A second “People’s Choice” winner will be selected based on online voting, and this winner will be featured on Ecouterre.

For more information and the rules, visit Ecouterre.

Image courtesy of Ecouterre

He gave a few wonderful examples of how sharing databases around the world connects information and leads us to greater understanding of all things on a global scale. The explosion of databases available online since that speech has been rather noticeable, even when simply browsing nonchalantly on the web. Most of these databases utilize the wiki system, including one known as the Green Building Brain a project of the Open vGreen Building Society.

The Green Building Brain is a free to use and add to online database, designed to showcase green building practises, resources, planning tools and more. It is currently still in a beta version, at greenbuildingbrain.org. According to its agenda the goal of the site is to provide green builders, and enthusiasts alike with a place to store and share “an evolving repository of green building knowledge.” The primary piece of the interface is going to be the World Green Building Map.

There will be a large variety of Web 2.0 features including, RSS feeds, tagging, and forums within the interface.

Though in the beta version the content is primarily case studies of green buildings. The hope is that the site will expand to include information on construction methods, codes and standards, products, new technologies, and funding and incentives. Since the project is entirely open-sourced, the founders are constantly looking for more information and people to help push the project forward.

The primary groups running the project are Vancouver Design Nerds a non-profit society of designers and artists, and Recollective, a green building and sustainable community consulting company in Vancouver, Canada. However, there is always appreciation of anyone who wants to contribute.

We are still living in the information age, and with the breakthrough of the internet we have access to vast sources of information, but it is often still difficult to filter through and find credible sources. Utilizing contributions from professionals and showcasing only the most outstanding projects, the Green Building Brain has proven its credibility.

The Green Building Brain is an incredible project that can hopefully allow everyone to find information about Green Building projects that are close to their own home. Sharing databases of information that are built by people across the globe is the future of the information age.

Perhaps in the future, those who understand climate shifts and environmental factors can collaborate with the Green Building Brain, and showcase the ideal places to build certain types of green buildings. Meteorologists could collaborate sharing information on sun rising, and setting times, to maximize solar use. Geologists can assist with databases on rock types that act as the best thermal mass. The possibilities are endless. Our future, is without question a collaborative one.

www.greenbuildingbrain.org

From guest blogger Marina Chernyak

A mosaic is created by inlaying small pieces of colored materials, whether of the same size and shape or not, in order to form a picture of a pattern on a surface. Often times, it is made with the use of colored tiles, broken pieces of glass and stones.

However, mosaics can also be created in many other ways, such as with the use of pieces of paper. It can also be a painting style, where in one draws and paints on these shapes on. In addition to these techniques, eggshell mosaics are popular arts and crafts projects for kids.

With the advent of modern technology, too, computers can also generate mosaic-style images using a set of your own pictures. Whatever form of mosaic one chooses, the end result is still the same: it adds a WOW factor to your space.

Creating your own mosaics can be a fun and relaxing way of spending a lazy afternoon, and believe it or not, it’s quite easy to do.

Plus it’s a great way of recycling old stuff in your home. Talk about turning trash into treasure!

The chosen material is chipped or broken ceramic plates; the best options are  when these materials are colored or hand-painted. Old floor tiles are also good options. You can also buy some, like this package of 1000 Tiny Mosaic Glass Tiles An added bonus to using these materials is that breaking these into smaller pieces is a great stress reliever.

To be safe, I put them inside an old pillowcase before breaking them with a hammer. The only drawback with this type of material is that you often end up with unevenly shaped pieces, which is not necessarily a problem unless you prefer using a uniformed tile. You can also try using a tile cutter, but I prefer the uniqueness of the hammer method.

Other materials you will need for a project like this would be the following:

• A project “base” or something to stick the pieces on. For example, an old terra cotta pot or empty wine bottle. It could also be your old table top, a mirror, a wooden box or even the lid of an empty ice cream can.
• Tile or cement glue such as Duco Cement Multi-Purpose Household Glu An alternative for this is a glue gun. Although the glue gun does not harden as much as the tile or cement glue does, it is quite effective and in case you make a mistake, it’s easy to remove.
• Mosaic sealant, although if you’re doing a glass table top or a mirror that does not need waterproofing, you can forgo this.
• Tile grout like Weldbond Tile Grout Sealer to fill up the spaces between the colored tiles (stones, plates, or whatever it is you use)
• A tile squeegee to spread the grout. Don’t use your fingers as this can lead to a lot of cuts and injuries!
• A sponge or paint brush to clean up the final project and cover with sealant.

How to go about it:

1. Prepare the tiles you will use (be it the broken plates, cut-up pieces of paper, etc.). It would be best if your tile pieces were flat and of the same thickness. This ensures that your final design will be even and have a flat surface.

2. Sketch out your pattern on your base. If you are using an old table top, you may need to prep this This will help guide you in placing the tiles.

3. Glue on the tiles on the appropriate spots of your design. Make sure you leave a little space in between each tile for the grout. This is what will make your design stand out.

4. Prepare the grout by following instructions in the package. Using the squeegee, spread over the entire design making sure to fill up the spaces between the tiles. Scrape of the excess and wipe the design down with a cloth or towel. Be careful when doing this as the tiles may move since the grout and glue may not have set yet.

5. Leave to dry for several hours before wiping down with a damp sponge to remove excess grout. If need be, cover with sealant.

Of course the easiest way is to go out and purchase a mosaic tiling kit, just choose your design and everything is all set. However, doing this from scratch adds a more rewarding feel to the project.

These projects can also be a good family activity, given of course that the tiles you decide to use are suitable to your child’s age. This can be a fun way for them to learn colors, patterns and more importantly, patience and perseverance!

Marina Chernyak is the co-owner of 1001Shops LLC, a one stop shop of unique imported products like Limoges boxes, antique Walking canes and many more.

Image: Recycled Bangles Mosaic Art Bird Sculpture Nek Chand India – Ant Smith

Green Smoke has launched, what they call, a smarter alternative to tobacco smoking. Their electronic cigarettes contain only nicotine so they cost less and don’t have odor. (And therefore, cleaner for the environment).

They will also save you money, they say. Over $1600, in fact, each year. Quit Smoking with Electronic Cigarette and vapor king.

In addition to the odorless feature, they produce less waste – one cartridge is equivalent to thirty cigarettes.

What do you think? Great alternative or just fueling the “keep on trying to quit smoking” fire?

Would love to hear your thoughts on this on twitter. The top site is Ecigarettereviews.com

*Update: One of our dear friends suffered with quitting smoking, and her lungs were in pretty bad shape. She tried these “water vapor” electronic e-cigs, after reading the huge report by Boston University, that basically said that there is not a single reason to not try these if you are trying to quit. There is NOT A SINGLE cancer causing ingredient in these devices. She has switched to these, and after a couple months she can breath, and feels great. She is now on a very low dose (2mg) and will soon go to 0mg nicotine. All that she is putting in her lungs is water vapor. These will save her life, they are just the same as nicotine gum, but they have a 98% success rate.

Web design is no exception, and we love that more and more designers are choosing nature and eco-themes as their inspiration.

An example is CSS Nature (cssnature.org), highlighting the best in nature designs. So why are these environment designs becoming the next best in show?

I can assume its because the simple and rustic – yet flawless – designs have a homey and pleasant feel to them.

They are slick without being pretentious, and gorgeous without being over done.

What are your favourite eco-friendly websites? Any designs that you absolutely love? Post your favourites in our comments below.

But now, the car-maker is ridding itself from its typical construction in favour with going green.

At this week’s Geneva Motor Show, the company unveiled their newest creation: the Ferrari 599. This 200mph electric hybrid has been developed with the environment in mind.

Ferrari’s classic performance, combined with its notable good looks, is married to a pollution and fuel consumption cutting initiative, making their brand just a little greener.

The vehicle is equipped with an electric motor that backs up a more traditional 6.0-litre V12 petrol engine. The typical two-seater design will accelerate from 0-60mph in 3.5 seconds (which, by the way, is faster than its standard counterpart) and to 125mph in 10.4 seconds.

The electric part of the hybrid system also comes into play with braking, taking the energy that is often wasted from putting on the breaks and using it to recharge the batteries. This, then, can move the car simply by electric power.

Carbon dioxide emissions are cut to 270g/km, which is a 35% reduction on conventional models. The company also claims that it is expected to do up to 25 miles to the gallon (petrol- only versions, on the other hand, can do just under 16mpg).

The company’s aim is to harness this green technology as an option in all its cars by 2015, a must with today’s environmental targets to cut CO2 emissions.

It does have a price though. The 599 seems that it will cost twice as much as the £207,000 petrol 559 GTB Fiorano (it’s conventional counterpart). But the company assumes that by time the technology is mainstream, the price will come down to below £300,000.

See other cars unveiled at the 80th International Motor Show’s website. The show runs March 4th through 14th in Geneva.

Images courtesy of carspyshots.net

Also, be sure to check out aluminum radiator manufacturer Mishimoto, who has recently announced their green plan to reduce wasteful packaging by 75%!

Some big ticket items are the most hazardous to the environment, but are deemed crucial in the home, so how can we make them more enviro-savvy for our world?

Your Old Mattress

The Washington Post reports that most mattresses are made out of petroleum based ingredients such as polyurethane foam, and contain flame retardants which are required by law, but are often made up of chemicals harmful to human health.

Aside from the make-up of your mattress, regular tossing and turning can result in a break down of the foam within the mattress and causes dust particles to float into the air your breathe.

In 2006, a Consumer Product Safety Commission study estimated that “the average adult sleeping  on a conventional mattress will be exposed to 0.802 milligrams of antimony and 0.081 milligrams of boric acid, which is commonly used to kill cockroaches every night”. This fact alone has me questioning my Serta Beauty Rest and considering the positives a chemical free mattress may have not only on the environment, but on my peace of mind as well.

Purchasing Your New Mattress

If your in the market to purchase an organic mattress, many retailers such as JC Penney offer organic lines. Another great website to check out and purchase organic mattresses (within the US only) is The Organic Mattress Store (theorganicmatressstore.com).

They offer a wide range of mattresses for babies to adults which are made from 100% pure rubber latex (not synthetic latex) at its core and quilted with pure wool, certified organic cotton, and wrapped in a certified organic cotton fabric cover. The site also boasts duvets, pillows, organic sheets, and wooden and metal bed frames- all environmentally sound.

Lets All Do Our Part

So now that you’re doing your part and trading that old mattress in for an upgrade, it is comforting to know that others are following suit. Mattress giant Sleep Country Canada is taking initiative at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games and donating mattresses for all our athletes to get their rest on, and when the Olympics are completed, they are donating all mattresses, box springs and frames to charitable organizations throughout the Sleep Country chain region.

To read more on environmental sustainability within the 2010 Games check out vancouver2010.com/sustainability and rest at ease on some organic (bed) support.

Image courtesy of smh.com.au