Trading, Swapping, Contests, and Winnings!

Getting what you want without using money is a very green technique and so cool. Kami from Illinois who entered the Props and Pans blog spot contest and won one of our “All Nighter” Dirt Candles! Congrats Kami!

How about trading services with a friend? Don’t pay for a babysitter. Bring your kids to a friend’s house and offer to watch her kids next time she goes out. Or how about asking your electrician neighbor to fix that light switch in the basement that never worked and you, being a dentist, clean all his kids teeth in exchange….okay, something like that anyway.

A green economy is a community of people meeting each others’ needs---and there are many creative ways to connect and prosper without using money. Personal connections are made…and the bargaining begins! How about swapping books, toys, clothes…. Remember the days of grandma’s classic recipe exchange?! This concept has been around for a long time.
Check out http://www.freecycle.org/ for more information on swaps.



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Dirt Candle Giveaway with Props & Pans!

Let me explain, Dirt Candles are not dirty or made out of dirt...many people have asked me that very question! They're just as natural as good old fashioned dirt that gets under your finger nails when you are gardening…okay, I guess that didn’t help!

Anyways, the best part about Dirt Candles (besides the fact that they are all soy, recycled glass and recycled cardboard, etc.) is that they smell SO good. I love the natural smelling aromas as they drift through the entire house and actually improve my mood on a day that stinks (pun intended).

In honor of our review today on Props and Pans, we're giving away a Dirt Candle of your choice to one lucky reader! Read the 11 fragrance descriptions on Celery Street and comment on our blog to tell us which fragrance best matches your personality! We will announce one random winner on Tuesday, December 9^th.

The Best Friends Dirt Candle, with scents of hibiscus, tulips, hyacinth, lily of the valley, jasmine, gardenia rose, lemon, and lavender essential oil, perfectly reflects my kitchen where those four legged fuzzy members of the family hang out, waiting for a morsel to fall.

We look forward to seeing your favorites and reading your comments!

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Storybooks to go!

First off, I wanted to congratulate Jennifer again on winning the Sheriff Daisy Bag from Mielie at our Open House. And I needed a reason to post this cute picture...smile Jen!

In other Celery Street news, we got more cool bags in! Our new Recycled Storybook Purses from Repurposed 4 You have such great character (no pun intended)! Each purse is handmade from the pages of recycled children’s books and stitched to vinyl, keeping the pages looking fresh and fun. Great care has been taken to salvage the perfect original preloved books, place them with the best recycled textiles and sew them with love. Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham, Richard Scarry Cars and Trucks or Sendak’s Wild Things will have people stopping you in the streets to recite a favorite line from their favorite book. It is amazing how those stories are ingrained in our memories from our own childhood or from reading the story 440 times to our own children!

Where The Wild Things Are is one of my favorites. “No, no, please don’t go, I’ll eat you up I love you so!” I still like saying that to my now 12-year-old son who no longer appreciates it! Here is Maurice Sendak reading with some of his little fans at the Manhattan Museum.

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picture of Maurice Sendak courtesy of Getty Images