Turning Black Friday Green, Part 1

The Friday after Thanksgiving is Black Friday, the largest shopping day of the year. It's a day that celebrates consumerism and large corporations. There is very little about this day that is sustainable.
Rather than joining the masses looking for the cheapest mass-produced, socially-irresponsible gifts, why not make this year a Green Friday?

The greenest way to spend the day after Thanksgiving is not to buy anything at all. Stay at home, enjoy family, a day off work. Or participate in a Buy Nothing Day event in your area. If there isn't one, start one.

Or, if you choose to do some of your holiday shopping this Friday, buy from local, independent storesand socially responsible companies. Avoid the malls, chain stores, etc. Consider buying online from small businesses, home businesses, work-at-home moms, and small green companies who are the real deal in all of their business practices. Instead of driving around town hunting for the best bargain, why not use your holiday shopping as an opportunity to do good, to support local, sustainable and fair trade businesses?

Here are a few of my favorite items from green businesses in Colorado. Some of them are from small local companies here in Colorado Springs and others are from other parts of Colorado. On Friday I'll post part 2 with some of my favorite items from other parts of the country.

1. Lotion Bar Cafe - Look at these cute cupcake bath fizzies. Wouldn't these make great gifts for your Mother-In-Law, Sister-In-Law etc? These are a special item just for the holidays. You can't even find them on the website, but you can see them on their facebook page and email the owner, Holly, to order them. She also makes birthday cupcakes all year. The ingredients are baking soda, organic shea butter, cocoa butter, grapeseed oil, and borax. The fragrance comes from a blend of essential oils and high grade fragrance oils. Not all of the fragrance oils are phthalate free but you can ask her which ones are and she's in the process of transitioning away from oils with phthalates in them.  The topping is royal icing and decorative sugars.

2. Kitten Britches - Kirin makes the cutest handmade eco-friendly plushie dolls. Kirin is a former elementary school teacher turned doll maker. Whenever possible she uses eco-friendly materials. Is there something special you want? She'll do a custom order for you. Her shop is on a short vacation while she prepares for the holiday season, but she assures me she'll be open again on December 1st. Wouldn't these dolls look cute peeking out of your child's stocking? Be sure to check her store on December 1st to see all of her designs.

3. Yobel Market - I couldn't pick just 1 favorite bag from Yobel Market...so I picked 3. All of these bags, in addition to being great gifts, are also beautiful, eco-friendly ways to wrap gifts. Yobel Market is a non-profit Fair Trade store located in Colorado Springs, CO. They are "committed to empowering and promoting the value of exploited, displaced and impoverished people groups of the world through the provision of sustainable economic opportunities by marketing beautiful, handcrafted products utilizing micro-financing and Fair Trade principles." You can learn more about their mission here.
• This extra-large bag is perfect for toting heavy loads, diapers, or groceries. It is re-inforced and highly durable as well as waterproof. It is made from garbage collected by Jakarta's Trashpickers who are paid 6 times their normal living wage by XS Project in Indonesia. The bag comes complete with a wine bottle pocket and small inner pouch.

• This durable and eco-friendly jute handbag features an earthy yet urban tree print and contributes to the freedom of women coming out of the Songanachi Brothels of Calcutta, India. Each bag brings freedom not only to the woman who made it, but her family as well and provides a livable wage, health care and pension plan.

• This purse is made by women in Cambodia who are a part of the Sak Saum Project, and is a Silk/Cotton Combo. Sak Saum is the Khmer word for dignity and is the name of this project based in Phom Pehn Cambodia, employing women who have been trafficked into the sex industry or other forms of modern-day slavery. This project provides a way out through consistent income, counseling, life-skills and hygiene classes, spiritual formation, and a chance to be a part of a loving community. This project also provides micro-loans to Cambodian families in need of consistent income. Raw silk is stunningly beautiful and very durable.

4. Rocket Glass - Makes products that are created from 100% recycled glass hand-gathered in Colorado. Using primarily wine bottles, each glass is fully heat treated over an eleven hour process to ensure it is one of the strongest, most durable products on the market. No chemicals are used to avoid polluting air & water, and we place every one of your purchases in a hand-made, wooden gift crate at no additional charge.  They have a wide variety of designs so there's a little something for everyone.

5. Mama Made - Makes reuseable snack bags, wet bags and more. Sewn at home by a Denver mama these bags are great alternatives to disposable plastic bags. And, their cute, too!

6. Clementine Art - Looking for eco-friendly alternatives for your child's art supplies? Check out Clementine Art's products. Their line includes natural markers, paints, glue, crayons and modeling dough. You can buy their products directly from their website or you can find many of them at local stores, including Whole Foods. You can get the entire set in this cute gift set.

7. Hip Mountain Mama - Last year some of my daughter's favorite presents came from Hip Mountain Mama. This year I think I'm adding this beautiful vintage scarf to my wishlist. Super soft cotton with vintage applique makes this scarf a great addition to any wardrobe. The stitched fabric on the scarves are so fun and colorful.

8. Sprig Toys - Sprig makes the cutest toys from recycled wood and reclaimed plastic. Last year my daughter got their Dolphin Explorer Boat and a year later it's still her favorite bath toy. My favorite feature is that I can clean it in the dishwasher. This year she is a typical princess-obsessed 4 year old and is already asking for Princess Penny's Story Building Palace.

9. Buy Well Coffee - Buy Well Coffee's Café Hope features the Naranjillo cooperative and 51 women farmers who have farmed this special coffee. Excellent body and sweet, prominent notes of chocolate, caramel and hazelnut. A purchase of this coffee directly supports the women farmers in Peru. It is both Certified Organic and Fair Trade.  

While all of these companies are located in Colorado, all of them have online stores and can ship.  For orders outside of the continental US be sure to check with each retailer to make sure they can ship to you.  Do you have a favorite green company in Colorado?  If so be sure to share with us all by posting in the comments.  

Check back on Friday for Part 2, including many of my favorite products from the rest of the US.  Or, subscribe to the RSS feed by clicking the button on the upper right corner of this article. 

Note: All images are owned by the individual retailers.