Preserve Toothbrush with Mail Back Pack

Preserve toothbrush in Mail Back Pack

Creating a toothbrush with a handle made from recycled yogurt cups? Fantastic. Preserve has been doing that for years.

Designing Mail Back packaging for that toothbrush that doubles as a postage-paid return envelope so that the used toothbrush can be sent back to Preserve for recycling? Magnifico!


How to Buy: $2.99 for a single brush via Preserve's own website or $13 for a year's worth of toothbrushes delivered automatically (one every three months).


Disclaimer: Nothing to disclaim.

The Natural Dentist

Lots of toothpastes include an ingredient called SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) to help clean your teeth. But did you know that in higher concentrations, SLS is also used to degrease engines and clean floors, according to Wikipedia.

Toothpastes from The Natural Dentist are SLS-free. They're also free of alcohol, artificial dyes, sweeteners and preservatives.

Because really, why should your toothpaste or mouthwash be bright green or bright blue? That's just not natural!

Even though I'm approaching my mid-30s, I still got a kick out of The Natural Dentist's Sparkle Berry Blast flavor toothpaste. The toothpaste relies on minerals (silica and mica) for its cleaning and sparkling power. It does have sodium fluoride to prevent cavities, plus it also has such natural goodies as aloe vera gel, lycopene and grapefruit seed extract.

Technically, Sparkle Berry Blast is supposed to be for kids. And it does kind of taste like you're brushing your teeth with liquid candy. But I'm totally OK with that.

For adults with a slightly less sweet tooth, The Natural Dentist also makes grown-up flavors like Peppermint Twist and Orange Zest. The Peppermint Twist one is supposed to also whiten your teeth (using the silica to remove surface stains). Personally, I've yet to find a toothpaste that does a great job whitening your teeth. For a true teeth cleaning/whitening, I think you need to visit a dentist, but I guess every little bit helps if your toothpaste can help you maintain whiteness between cleanings.

I also enjoy The Natural Dentist's Pre-Brush Whitening Antigingivitis rinse. Unlike many other mouthwashes and rinses, The Natural Dentist's rinse contains no alcohol, so you won't get that "My mouth is on fire!" feeling. Instead, The Natural Dentist relies on Peppermint and Sage Oils to conquer bad breath. Oh and the rinse's whitening power supposedly comes from powdered bamboo. And since 1GreenProduct.com is a hearty fan of bamboo, that's another point in The Natural Dentist's favor.

Where to buy:

Purchase multipacks of Natural Dentist products at Amazon.com.

Alternatively, find a broad list of online and offline retailers at The Natural Dentist's own website.

Update: My source at Natural Dentist tells methat prices for all Natural Dentist mouth rinses have recently been reduced 30% from $9.99 to $6.99 for a 16-ounce bottle.

Even better, by visiting The Natural Dentist website, you can download a coupon for $1.50 off any product.

Tidbits - Hilton Arc de Triomphe, Scandle, Earth Essentials Room Mists, Vespa S-50, Vectrix VX-1, Zipcar, Pizza Fusion, Preserve Gimme 5 and More!

Here are some eco-friendly product and destination Tidbits that caught our eye this month:

• Ah springtime in Paris! If you're visiting the City of Light, why not opt for an eco-friendly hotel. We've heard that the Hilton Arc de Triomphe is a leading participant in Hilton's We Care European Environmental Programme that emphasizes water efficiency, energy efficiency and waste reduction. The hotel may be functionally sensible, but it's also quite stylish. When we stayed at the Hilton Arc de Triomphe last September, we found that the hotel has a slinky, jazzy Art Deco feeling reminiscent of a 1930s ocean liner. If you're a member of Hilton's HHonor program (or if you've got the dough), try to swing an upgrade to the executive level where you'll have access to a super tasty morning-to-night buffet in the top-floor lounge. Kudos to the hotel for providing some relaxing green space via its lush, tropical and beautifully landscaped Andalusian courtyard.

• Looking for clothing that's comfortable, stylish, classy and organic? Sounds like a tall order, but actually Stonewear Designs has you covered on all counts with its Spring 2009 collection. A member of the Organic Exchange (a nonprofit working to promote organic agriculture), Stonewear Designs offers a range of comfy and flattering tops and pants perfect for yoga, jogging or just lounging around the house. The Stonewear website doesn't have a separate section for organic clothes, but if you browse the site, you'll notice that several stylish items including the Twister Top and Echo Sleeveless Top contain 90% organic cotton content.

• Like candles? Like body oil? Get the best of both worlds with The Scandle(R) Body Candle. As the candle melts, it produces a warm massage oil. It sounds a little painful, but actually feels quite relaxing. Scandle says all its candles are made with 100% natural ingredients like soy butter, shea butter, jojoba, vitmin E and essential oils. The 10-ounce candle ($24.95-$25.95 MSRP) comes packaged in a re-usable ceramic container. You can then purchase additional candles on their own at www.abodycandle.com and insert them into the container. The travel size 4-ounce candle ($12.95 MSRP) comes in a metal tin made from recycled materials. FYI, Scandle says its petroleum-free candles use a 100% cotton wick. Purchase Scandle online or search for a store near you.

• It's nice to see eco-friendly products make their way further into mainstream stores. The most recent evidence of this trend: CVS has begun selling its own brand of Earth Essentials(TM) Aromatic Room Mists. Packaged in recyclable 7-ounce aluminum cans, the room mist uses a non-aerosol spray to disperse essential oils. The mist itself is apparently non-toxic, fully biodegradable and has not been tested on animals. The mists are available in CVS stores nationwide and at CVS.com for $3.99. Interestingly, I've been reading lately how essential oils have excellent antimicrobial properties, which suggests that using essential oils to freshen the air could kill nasty bacteria and viruses at the same time... (Here's another related story on the potent power of peppermint essential oil from Discovery.com...)

• Did you shiver through last winter? Or are you looking for a way to lower your cooling bill this winter? Maybe more home insulation could save you money and make your home more eco-friendly by cutting down on the energy required to heat and cool your house. Johns Manville claims to be ahead of the curve in completely removing formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, from its fiberglass attic insulation. Johns Manville also says that it uses the highest percentage of post-consumer recycled glass (20% percent) among all fiberglass insulation makers. Click on the Where to Buy link on Johns Manville's homeowner website to find a contractor near you who carries Johns Manville insulation.

• Alternative eco-friendly and chic transportation option #1 - The Vespa S-50 (MSRP $3,199). Introduced late last year, this scooter offers classic Italian styling, top speed of 39 mph and sips gasoline at 85-90 mpg. Available now at a Vespa Dealer near you.

• Alternative eco-friendly and chic transportation option #2 - The 100% electric 2009 Vectrix VX-1 (MSRP $10,495). An update of the first Vectrix scooter introduced in late 2007, the 2009 VX-1 is highway-legal with a top speed of 62 mph and an approximate range of 35-55 miles. Since Vectrix scooters burn no gasoline, they're much better for the environment than vehicles with internal combustion engines. If the price seems a little steep, look out for the VX-2 (30 mph top speed, 40-50 mile range, MSRP $5,195) scheduled to arrive in Vectrix dealerships by this coming June.

• Alternative eco-friendly transportation option #3 - Scooters aren't ideal for carrying huge loads (although they can manage in a pinch, apparently).
  If you only need a car occasionally, why endure the enviromental waste and expense of owning your own vehicle when you can share a fleet of cars with a bunch of other folks in the same situation. That's the premise behind various car-sharing services including Zipcar, U Car Share, Mint (NYC only) and Connect by Hertz. Save money on parking, gasoline (generally included in the car-sharing hourly rates), insurance, maintenance and more while still having access to a car when you need it most.

• Pizza Fusion is a chain of pizza restaurants with locations in 13 states using organic ingredients in its pizzas, delivering pizzas in hybrid vehicles, offsetting 100% of its energy use with renewable energy certificates, serving food in containers made from corn starch, providing utensils made from potatoes and generally adhering to a lengthy and extremely impressive list of environmentally-friendly practices. How about the taste? It generally gets good reviews on sites like Yelp, particularly from folks who like the vegan and gluten-free options.

• Looking for a way to recycle #5 polypropylene plastic (used in many containers for yogurt, cottage cheese and other dairy products)? Many municipal recycling programs do not accept #5 plastics. That's why Preserve, Organic Valley and Stonyfield Farm have teamed up with Whole Foods to let customers drop off #5 plastics in "Gimme 5" bins at a growing list of Whole Foods stores. Preserve then recycles the plastics into a wide array of kitchen and bath products -- some of which we have previously reviewed here on 1GreenProduct.com.

• There are lots of hip (and often expensive) organic cotton shirts out there, but sometimes you just want a basic long-sleeve organic cotton t-shirt. For those occasions, Macys delivers in spades with its Field Gear Organic Long Sleeve Tee (MSRP $39.50, but we've seen the sale price fluctuate between $9.99 and $14.99). Given the sale price, we found the shirt is surprisingly comfy and well made. The cotton had a substantial, almost sueded feel and even a couple of grommets under the arms for ventilation.

• Men looking for white organic cotton underwear have an option with the Calvin Klein Naturals collection available in boxer brief, trunk and classic brief styles. (Note - The underwear is technically available in black and willow colors too, but when we tried ordering some black briefs from Amazon.com, we received the white underwear by mistake. When we returned the product and tried again, we got the white underwear the second time too. That's why we think you can have any color you want, as long as it's white.)

• Not satisfied with the expert eco-friendly reviews here at 1GreenProduct.com? You can get loads of reviews from consumers like yourself at Buzzillions.com, a site where verified purchasers write reviews about products they've bought. Buzzillions has lots of non eco-friendly products, of course, but they've also got sections on Energy Star products, products made with recycled materials (more than 300 reviews on the Keen Ventura Canvas shoe!) and organic products. Don't be surprised if a given product, like that popular Keen shoe mentioned above, shows up in more than one category. FYI, Buzzillions said they would monitor this blog and would be happy to get comments/feedback on how 1GreenProduct.com readers like their site. This is your soapbox! Feel free to speak out.

• Should every business strive to be a Green business? In the sense that being Green means reducing waste and figuring out how to improve efficiency, the answer is probably Yes. If you're a small business owner looking for some practical ideas on making your business more eco-friendly in the hopes of saving some money, improving customer loyalty, boosting employee motivation and having a lighter impact on the planet, you might glean some useful information from Daniel Sitarz's new book, Greening Your Business. (FYI, publisher EarthPress says it prints on 100% recycled post-consumer waste paper using soy-based inks and offsets its carbon emissions with the purchase of wind-energy credits used to subsidize the construction of wind turbines on the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota.)

Grohe WaterCare Faucets

IOHO, simplicity is frequently an eco-virtue.

Scrap all the bells and whistles (except for the Jingle Bells) and just give us a product that does one thing and does it spectacularly well.

Maybe that's why we're so enamored with the Relexa showerhead (MSRP $40) by Grohe.

Relexa comes in one color - chrome.

It's non-adjustable, with an ultra simple easy-to-clean design. (A smaller showerhead means less space for dust to settle!)

Grohe uses something called DreamSpray(R) Technology to deliver an even spray from the showerhead. SpeedClean(R) nozzles made from silicone apparently make it easy to erase limescale buildup.

We haven't been testing the Relexa long enough to vouch for the SpeedClean claims, but we can verify that the DreamSpray does deliver a relaxing, steady washing experience.

Even better, you get clean while saving water. Relexa is part of Grohe's WaterCare collection of faucets and showerheads, which means that it uses up to 30% less water than a typical showerhead. Many of the faucets in the Grohe WaterCare collection also carry the EPA WaterSense label. (Apparently, WaterSense standards currently apply to bath faucets only at this point, which explains why the Relexa and other Grohe WaterCare showerheads don't use the EPA label...)

A quick look through the rest of Grohe's online WaterCare catalog shows that the company has an array of water-saving faucets capable of matching the style in any kitchen or bathroom. Depending on the faucet, you can also choose an array of finishes including chrome, SuperSteel, RealSteel, brushed nickel or oil-rubbed bronze.

Whether you prefer the traditional Seabury (MSRP $384+), modern Atrio (MSRP $604+) or sleek single-handle Talia (MSRP $361+), you'll know that you're helping with the crucial task of water conservation.

If you choose a Grohe WaterCare faucet, you'll also benefit from high-end technology like Grohe's SilkMove(R) teflon-coated cartridge that is designed to deliver friction-free and maintenance-free durability. Again, we didn't have our sample faucet long enough to vouch for longterm durability, but we can say that Grohe delivers on its ease of use marketing claims. We really were able to easily control the single-handle Talia faucet with just one finger.

FYI, the Grohe faucets and showerheads we tested were made in Germany and seem to have the high quality that one would normally associate with German consumer goods (cars, wind turbines, solar panels, sausages, etc.).


Where to buy:

Use the Showroom Locator to find the closest place where you can examine and select a Grohe WaterCare faucet or showerhead. Since Grohe products are not carried in big-box retail stores, your other option would be to place an order through a designer or plumbing contractor.

Moen Water-Saving Faucets and Showerhead

I still remember Mrs. Symington, my high school biology teacher who had served in the Navy, telling us stories about 2-minute military showers where you were expected to get wet, turn off the water, soap up, then turn on the water to rinse. 

While I admired such water conservation, my own showers used to be quite profilgate (30-40 minutes). I'm pleased to say that I've cut that down to a more reasonable average 10-15 minute shower, but I still keep looking for ways to reduce my water use even further. 

That's why I was so pleased to find the Flow-Optimized Moen Water Saving Showerhead. This 1.75 gallons per minute (gpm) showerhead offers a 30% water savings over the industry-standard 2.5 gpm nozzle. Made in the USA, this simple but stylish showerhead can also lower your energy costs (by reducing your hot water usage). 

Available in Chrome, LifeShine® Brushed Nickel or Oil Rubbed Bronze, the Water Saving Showerhead can coordinate with many different Moen bath collections.

What sort of a showering experience does the Water Saving Showerhead deliver? Well, you won't get the tropical downpour feeling of a gigantic rain showerhead, but the Water Saving Showerhead's innovative spray formers concentrate the flow of water in a way that feels simultaneously gentle and soaking. Moen says that its designers have carefully arranged the streams of water to provide great full-body coverage, a claim that seems reasonable based on our personal testing. 

We also like clever design details, like the way that the showerhead has two flat places on its connecting nozzle that let you get a good grip with a wrench in order to fasten the showerhead tightly onto the water pipe.

If you're putting in new faucets, check out some of the WaterSense®-labeled lavatory faucets in the Fina™, Rothbury™ and Muirfield™ collections. The faucets use flow-optimized aerators that deliver water at a rate of 1.5 gpm (versus 2.2 gpm for traditional aerators).

Note that not all every faucet in a collection may have the flow-optimized aerators, so be sure to look for the WaterSense certification to  ensure you're getting a water-saving faucet.

Where to buy:

Use the "Where to Buy" link on Moen's website to  find a wholesaler that stocks the Flow-Optimized Water Saving Showerhead (MSRP $36 and up), the Fina faucets (MSRP $524 and up), the Rothbury faucets (MSRP $232 and up) and the Muirfield faucets (MSRP $78 and up). 

Moen also has a link on its site to online retailers that carry its products. It can be a little difficult to find certain products on these e-tailer sites, but we were able to find the Rothbury WaterSense faucets on Faucet.com, for example. 

Preserve

As hard as we try to minimize our use of plastic, there are always some corners of our modern lives where plastic endures.

Consider the toothbrush. Odds are, we're all using a plastic one.

(Random thought - What were toothbrushes made of before plastic became a common material? Where there wooden toothbrushes? Thanks to Google and Colgate, I now know the most advanced toothbrushes of the late 18th Century were made of cattle bone with swine-neck bristles. Yum!)

Anyway, these days if you can't avoid brushing with plastic, at least you can brush with a recycled plastic toothbrush. A company called Recycline® makes the Preserve® toothbrush by recycling Stonyfield Farm yogurt containers. (Containers that once held organic yogurt, natch.)

When your toothbrushes wear out, instead of chucking them in the trash, you can send them back to Recycline in a postage-paid package (download the label from Recycline's website). Your old razors will be reborn as plastic lumber for park benches, decks and other sturdy objects.

Recycline also makes Preserve razors. Not only is the handle made from the same type of recycled plastic as the toothbrushes, but the blade cartridge can be popped out and changed. (So you don't have to throw away the whole razor when the blade wears out.)

The newest Recycline products bring Preserve into the kitchen with cheery colanders, cutting boards, mixing bowls and storage containers. Most of these made-in-the-USA products are made from 100% recycled plastic and are also dishwasher-safe. The amazing Paperstone™ cutting boards are created from a combination of natural resins blended with 100% post-consumer recycled paper.

Frankly, the design rocks on all the Preserve products - especially the kitchenware. Credit the folks at Evo Design who partner with Recycline to give all the Preserve products an organic feel plus great functionality. Especially with the new kitchen products, everything looks great and is easy to use. Little cutouts in the Paperstone cutting boards, for instance, make it a pleasure to grab and carry a wet cutting board full of sliced scallions over to a pot of bubbling chili.

Or to give another example, consider the apple-inspired food storage containers. Yes, the design is adorable, but it's also well-crafted. Lots of storage containers use a pop-off lid, but the screw-top lid on the Preserve containers seems to fit more snugly. You'll probably preserve your food better and are less likely to make a mess if someone drops the container accidentally.

In regular use, all the Preserve kitchen products performed great while brightening up the kitchen. My only small gripe is that the the regular cutting boards seem to scratch a little easily. Recycline calls these boards knife-friendly, so maybe the softness is supposed to help your knives last longer? Anyway, I preserved the feel and the endurance of the Paperstone boards certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. (Plus it's just so cool to think you are cutting on a board made partially out of paper!)

One last bonus -- since Preserve tableware and kitchen products (except for the Paperstone) are all made out of 100% recycled #5 plastic, they can all be dumped straight into the recycling bin -- provided of course that your community recycles #5 plastics. Unfortunately, not all communities recycle #5 plastic, so you may have to search a while to find a way to get these items into the recycling stream. (Hint: Put "#5" and your location into the Earth911 search box to find someplace near you that takes #5 plastic!)

Where to buy:
Recycline says that Target has started carrying the Preserve toothbrush nationally (though we couldn't find it on Target's website yet). For now, Preserve Kitchen products are available exclusively at Whole Foods. If you're looking for anything else, check out this store locator and then call to make sure the product you want is in stock.

Caroma Sydney Smart Dual Flush Toilet

Australia - known for its shrimp, its beer, its beautiful beaches and its dual flush toilets.

OK, maybe not so famous for the dual flush toilets, but it should be!

Bathroom products manufacturer Caroma has been making dual flush toilets Down Under for 25 years. Put delicately, dual flush toilets use a little bit of water to wash away liquid waste and a more robust flush to cleanse the bowl of solid matter.

A number of Caroma toilets have made in stateside. In fact, Caroma claims to have the most EPA WaterSense approvals (36!) of any brand doing business in North America.

All of these WaterSense Caroma toilets are dual flush, high-efficiency toilets (HETs), meaning they use 20% less water than the currently mandated federal maximum of 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf).

But we're most excited about the dual flush Sydney Smart model. Caroma claims that the Sydney Smart offers "the lowest water consumption of any toilet now available in North America."

The little flush button on the Sydney Smart uses just 0.8 gallons of water, while the major flush lever swooshes 1.28 gallons around the bowl. Caroma says that these levels set "a new benchmark for water conservation in North America."

(If you needed any proof that North America needs water conservation, just check out these recent news stories from North Carolina, California, Georgia and even Hawaii.)

Where prior attempts to mandate water saving toilets resulted in reduced flush power, all WaterSense certified toilets are judged not just on water savings, but also on flushing performance. (If you have to flush a toilet multiple times to get rid of waste, you pretty much negate any per-flush water savings.)

Caroma says that the Sydney Smart's large trapway is virtually unblockable (please don't take that as a challenge), so one flush should be all you need.

Caroma estimates that the Sydney Smart can save a household more than between 18,000 and 30,000 gallons of water per year (depending on whether you're replacing a 3.5 gpf toilet or a pre-1980 toilet that may use as much as 5-7 gpf).
Some Green choices require us to make big lifestyle changes. The Sydney Smart gives us a chance to save thousands and thousands of gallons of water per year at the push of a button.

I'm not saying you should rip out your old toilet this minute and put in a Sydney Smart (though if you have an antique water-guzzling toilet, it might make eco-sense), but if you're building a new home or planning a bathroom rehab, the Sydney Smart seems like a very intelligent Green choice.

UPDATE (6/30) - On July 1, Caroma will release its newest high efficiency dual flush toilet, the Sydney Low Profile. Designed for bathrooms where space is at a premium and available in six bowl configurations, this HED uses 1.6 / 0.8 gpf, offering expected annual water savings of up to 18,000 gallons of water per year for a family of four switching from a single flush toilet. Two configurations of the Sydney Low Profile have already received approval from the EPA's WaterSense program. 

Where to buy:

Find distributors around North America through the "Where to Buy" page on Caroma's website. Designed for easy installation, the Sydney Smart has a MSRP of approximately $319.

JCPenney Simply Green Collection

When times are tough, we must all tighten our belts.

Perhaps reconsider the annual summer jaunt to the Riviera. Skip the pedicure when getting a manicure.

But shall we give up our environmental ideals and settle for non-green products? Never!

Relax. There's no need to get so emotional because JCPenney has introduced a complete line of amazingly affordable eco-friendly home and fashion products with its Simply Green collection.

The items in the Simply Green collection adhere to three basic principals:

1. Organic (grown without synethetic pesticides or fertilizers)
2. Renewable (at least 25% of the content from a source like bamboo or soy that regenerates at a rate equal or greater to the rate at which it is harvested)
3. Recycled (containing content left over from the production process or reclaimed after consumer use)

We had a chance to review some of the Simply Green home furnishings products first-hand:

• The 300 threadcount cotton and bamboo rayon blend sheets (on sale for $19.99 to $59.99) may not be quite as breathable as 100% cotton, but they have a sumptuous feel - particularly for the price. They haven't gone through the wash yet, but the build quality seems strong and durable.
  

• The 100% organic cotton woven blanket (on sale for $39.99 to $44.99) has a great summer weight, but we recommend washing it before use to remove any loose fibers. (Using the blanket on the couch before washing, we found that light-colored blanket + dark-colored pants = lots of visible fuzz.)

• The 100% organic cotton towel (on sale for $5.99 to $9.99) is a fantastic green value as far as we're concerned. Dries quickly, has an appealing soft texture and holds its color well (at least through initial washing). What's not to like?

Frankly, at these sale prices, all the green products listed above seem like excellent buys.

Where to buy:
Order online at JCPenney.com or at more than 1,000 JCPenney retail stores nationwide.

Price Pfister Ashfield WaterSense Faucet

From a green standpoint, the ideal faucet is the one that does the job (washes your hands and other objects) while using as little water as possible.

Ladies and gentlemen, we present a top contender for ideal green faucet: the Price Pfister Ashfield WaterSense model.

Water shortages are no laughing matter. In recent months, major U.S. cities like Atlanta have faced the specter of pipes running dry. Worldwide, rising populations are putting ever greater stress on fresh water supplies.

There are little water-saving tricks that can help conserve this most precious resource. Ever since Mrs. Symington's high school biology class, I've learned to turn off the water while I'm brushing my teeth, for instance. And I'm in awe of those who somehow manage to take 3 minute showers. (Personally I'm a 15-20 minute shower guy...)

Anyway, Price Pfister is making it easy for us to take a giant step toward water conservation. The beautiful trough design of the Ashfield faucet limits the faucet to a maximum of 1.5 gallons per minute (gpm) of water flow versus the 2.2 gpm industy standard. Despite cutting water volume by 30%, the faucet still promises not to compromise "the user's water experience."

Think the Ashfield trough would be out of place in your sleek modern home? Stay tuned for another Price Pfister faucet with the same water-saving advantages, but modern-inspired lines coming later this summer.

Meanwhile, if you want to save water without switching faucets, Price Pfister has Eco-Pfriendly™ aerators that can be added to existing faucets - saving up to 2,200 gallons of water per year by Price Pfister's calculations.

Note that the Ashfield faucet has EPA WaterSense certification.

Where to buy:
You can find the Price Pfister Ashfield WaterSense faucet nationwide at major home improvement retailers including Home Depot, Lowes and Menards.

Eco-Friendly Selection at The Company Store

I have this crazy idea that eco-friendly products should be attractive, well-made and affordable.

Fortunately, it looks like The Company Store had the same idea.

You don't stay in business 90+ years unless you know a thing or two about what customers want. Turns out that The Company Store's customers want loads of great new eco-friendly items including organic cotton bedding, fun pillows made from recycled plastic bottles and handsome rugs made from jute (a rain-fed crop that Wikipedia says needs little fertilizer or pesticides).

Of course, as readers of 1GreenProduct know, we're kind of wild about bamboo these days. So we had to try The Company Store's affordable 70% bamboo / 30% cotton towels ($6-38). Color us impressed. The bamboo loops not only suck up water, they're pleasantly nubbly texture makes you feel like you're drying yourself with a teddy bear.

We also checked out the 96% bamboo knit loungewear. Our verdict? This super-soft and breathable body-hugging fabric is so comfortable that you may not want to get out bed and get dressed. Both styles - chemise plus robe (sold separately, $29/$59) or knit tee and long pants (sold together, $49) - offer an appealing balance of femininity and functionality.

Style + function together? Now that's the kind of company we love to keep.

Where to buy:
Online at The Company Store website.