My Green Goals

I originally started this space to chronicle my adventures as a tree huggin' event planner. It has morphed into a catch all space for my journey to greeness, event planner aspirations, and goal setting. Today, I have goals on my mind. I would definitely classify myself as a good Capricorn, a goal setting, ambitious, and forward thinking individual.

I have so many goals to become more sustainable & self sufficient that I end up getting completely overwelmed. So, let's break it down to this week.

This week/weekend:

1. Start lasagna composting w/ newspaper & cardboard boxes. This will expand my garden space for the fall and spring of next year.
2. Clean out garage: take recycling to the center, organize my "tools" (gardening, storage, etc), donate whatever clutter we don't need, and use what we can in our projects.
3. Blog about my gardening challenges, with pictures. This is a good promise for better blog posts w/ examples of the bugs/issues we encounter.
4. Explore LLC filing procedures & take atleast 1 step forward.
5. Turn compost pile.

I once ran across someone that gives herself 3 goals per day. They were as simple as laundry, work, and make dinner. With this idea in mind, I have decided to make the list shorter than all the things running through my head. Even as I finish up this post, I am thinking of things to add. Keeping it short, though, will help better set me up for success.

What are your goals for this week to live a more sustainable lifestyle? And how will you be enjoying the weekend?

How were you green today?

Everyday I try to be conscious of my actions and the impact those actions have on my immediate environmental surroundings and the whole planet. I try to eat locally grown foods (easier in the summer). I try to drive slower and less aggressively. Although, I cannot cut my miles, I can carpool with my husband (when I wake up on time), and use less gas getting to and from work. Today, we skipped the meat in dinner, I brought my own reusable shopping bag, planted pumpkin and spinach seeds for our fall crop, tended to my garden. I drank tap water, and brought my breakfast in a reusable container.

I fell short in many ways today. I shopped at a chain store purchasing toiletries in plastic bottles, laundry detergent in plastic, and picked up dry cleaning..... Obviously, I have quite a bit of room for improvement. Now, I am a big fan of perfection, but understand that perfection is not possible 100% of the time. Hopefully, making an effort is more important than being perfect.

How were you green today? Do you fall short sometimes, like me?

Eco Local Vendors - 790 The Zone Music Festival

Part of being good to the planet is finding stuff locally. I am in NE GA, and love it here. Yesterday, I went into the city (ATL, locals call that ITP-inside the perimeter) to help the Sierra Club, Green the Governor campaign. There was a green zone and 2/3 of the vendors there were environmentally conscious in some way. I found home made soaps, bottle caps re purposed as earrings, buttons re purposed into rings, vintage broaches re purposed into rings & earrings. Purses, clutches, and make-up cases, made of wrappers and organic cotton. Some really cool stuff.

Well, since I believe local is better, I am going to plug some of these vendors. I haven't necessarily purchased from them, but I have held their products and plan to support them. Couture Recycle: She makes T-shirt w/ sweet sayings like, recycle air..plant a tree, recycle pets, adopt an animal, etc. Check it out! http://www.couturecycle.com

Freshwater Gardens, an Atlanta based body care company, gave away sample soaps. I grabbed the oatmeal, milk & honey body bar. The ingredients are listed as: Coconut oil, palm oil (they assured me it was the "good" palm oil), rice bran oil, olive oil, Castor oil, Shea butter, glycerin, ground oatmeal, fragrance, ground cinnamon. Hmm. Castor oil? Fragrance? Could those be bad? Are any of these petroleum products? I will have to do my research to find out. http://www.freshwatergardens.com/members/freshwater

My Wish List

I want to
1. get active more, preferrably outside.
2. plant a late summer garden.
3. start a compost pile.
4. install a rainwater barrel. (engineered out of used materials)
5. reduce the amount of plastic in my household.
6. reduce our meat comsumption by half.
7. change the water heater to a tankless or geothermal model.
8. insulate attic with denim insulation.
9. install low flow water fixtures.
10.plant some trees on the property. (magnolia and dogwood)

We are in the process of buying a house and I have big plans to make it more energy efficient and to make our family more sustainable. We will join a CSA in Cumming, GA for the Fall season. We figure it will actually save us money on produce while ensuring no chemicals and major fuel expenditures to get it the product to us. I am looking forward to being forced to expand our diets and cooking because we will get veggies I may not normally buy.

The Beginning

Sustainably Chic Ga is a green consulting firm focused on living sustainably, thus preserving the planet for many generations to come. Sustainability has many definitions, but mainly, it entails the environmentally, economically and socially just practices that maintain a world suitable for future generations.

Live chic in the Southeast through sustainable practices, such as buying locally grown foods, using natural products, and following the reduce, repair, reuse, and recycle mantra. As being green becomes more popular, more and more information is thrown at us everyday. It can take a lot of time to understand what works and what consists of "greenwashing." You don't have to be a dirty hippie to live green. You can still be fashionable and on the go, with my tips to live in style while still being kind to the planet. I am continually educationing myself on the latest green living techniques, best products, and can even provide a rating of local farms and local food markets.

This new era should be more than about living green, but about making choices that are fair to all populations. In addition to providing green consulting, I will take you on my journey and through the challenges of truly living a sustainable lifestyle... chicly!