I was very happy to read the other day that Australia is planning to ban incandescent bulbs in favour of compact fluorescent light bulbs. I can’t believe the Government is actually going to do something useful. It’s great news – a good start to doing something for the environment.. It’s a simple change which everyone can make, which will lead to less carbon dioxide entering the environment. Let’s not forget the financial savings we’ll all make as well.

I hope that along with promoting compact fluorescents they will promote the proper disposal of these bulbs. They do contain mercury which can be dangerous for the environment if not disposed of correctly. It would also be great if they were to promote LED lighting, perhaps by putting money into developing these extremely efficient lights.

From the Australian:

Federal Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the standard incandescent light bulb, which has been around for 125 years, will be phased out by 2009.

It will be replaced by the compact fluorescent bulb which costs $5 more, but saves an average of $30 a year, and is around 80 per cent more energy efficient.

Mr Turnbull said the plan was expected to save up to two million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions in Australia over time and, if introduced globally, could have an enormous impact.

Low efficiency halogen lights will also be phased out but the more efficient ones will remain.

This has had numerous mentions in the blogosphere including:

Groovy Green

While this announcement is still just that, here’s to hoping that such a strong position becomes law. There’s no reason we should still be selling a light bulb that wastes so much energy.

Celsias

Legislation is being proposed in California to ban incandescent bulbs beyond 2012. Australia, however, in an example of enviro-friendly one-upmanship, is giving the antiquated and power-hungry bulbs the flick from 2009.

Treehugger

As best as we can make out from the myriad stories doing the rounds, the environmental group Planet Ark were about to announce a new campaign next week, in partnership with Philips. It was to be called Ban the Bulb. But the new federal Environment minister, Malcolm Turnbull, stole their thunder (and, it seems, their idea) by announcing today that incandescent light bulbs were to get the flick (as the newspapers are headlining the move).

Let’s hope it’s not all talk and it becomes law.

Most of us are aware of the wasteful nature of plastic bags and the damage they can do to the environment and especially to marine wildlife. Taking your own reusable bag to the supermarket is fairly common place and sometimes essential with certain supermarkets banning plastic bags.

I live fairly close to the supermarket so I walk there with one of those trolleys which you see old ladies pulling around (apologies to any old ladies reading this) which I can’t remember what they’re called. Yeah, it’s a bit embarrassing but when you’ve got a lot of stuff to carry it’s indispensable.

Of course, sometimes I just buy a few items on my way home and so use a little fold up bag which I carry in my handbag. It folds up to around 10cm by 5cm making it ideal for carrying with me at all times. It can take a fair amount of stuff and these days, I couldn’t live without it. It is getting a bit scruffy though so I’m thinking to replace it with an organic cotton tote bag. One that would fold up to fit in my pocket would be perfect but I am yet to find one like that.

Organic Cotton Tote Bags

If you are looking for an organic cotton tote bag you can try these two sites.

• Earth Tote Bags have a handful of different tote bags which would carry an awful lot (they look huge) but are not exactly what I’m looking for. A bag like that is just too big and not suitable for doing the shopping. On the other hand it would be great for taking to the beach so if that’s what you are looking for then these bags would be ideal. They also sell hemp bags and organic cotton string bags which look a bit more versatile.
• Justsite has a 100% organic cotton canvas tote bag which I really like although it only comes in khaki and I would much rather have one in black.

I might have to keep looking until I find exactly what I want. What kind of reusable bag do you use?

I only recently discovered Natural Fashion (link removed at the request of Natural Fashion), an Australian wholesaler of certified organic cotton products. Looking around their site, you can see that they have a lot on offer. Along with a large range of organic cotton clothes (for men, women, and children) they also sell homewares (such as rugs, blankets, bedding, and cushions), and a great range of organic soft toys.

A few weeks back, Doug from Natural Fashion sent me a sample top (pictured) to try out and review so here goes (permission to display the relevant photo was rescinded by Natural Fashion and was therefore removed):

Organic Cotton T-Shirt Review

• Over the last year I’ve tried quite a few organic cotton t-shirts and have always found the fabric to be very soft, this t-shirt is no exception. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s softer than regular cotton but it’s soft nonetheless.
• I washed the t-shirt in 30 degree water (as I now do with all my clothes) and it came out clean and in good condition, as you would expect.
• I know it’s not very environmentally friendly but I put it in the dryer to dry. It dried fairly quickly and didn’t seem to shrink so no complaints there.
• The main reason I like to dry my clothes in the dryer is so I don’t have to iron them. I usually take the clothes out of the dryer and hang them up immediately without ironing them. With t-shirts, you can usually get by doing that, but not with shirts unfortunately, which probably explains why I don’t have many shirts in my wardrobe. Anyway, I got the iron out of storage especially and found this t-shirt to be easy enough to iron, even for me.
• My main complaint about this t-shirt and others available from Natural Fashion is the colour. I know it’s natural but I would never wear this, it just doesn’t suit my skin tone. I’m sure some people won’t mind, and will even like the colours available, but it’s not for me. I’m sure they could find some natural dyes to broaden their range and customer base.
• The other slight negative is the design. The above design is something my grandmother might wear, not anyone I know around my age (30ish). Out of all the designs shown on the site, there are 2 maybe 3 which I might consider wearing, though of course, not in the existing colour range.

So as far as the feel of the garment and the quality goes, I’m happy to recommend Natural Fashion’s organic clothing, but I hope to see some improvements in the colours and styles available in the future.

Update I

It seems that the guys at Natural Fashion aren’t too happy about this review.  In fact, the tone of their emails to me suggests they are bloody pissed off. They even went to the trouble of highlighting, in red, all the negative comments I made, ignoring all the positive things I had to say, of course. What I wrote is too negative and unbalanced for their liking. What do you think?

They pointed out that I made a comment about my Grandmother in a review I wrote about their organic toys as well. I hadn’t even realised I’d done that. Something about their products must remind me of her, don’t know why . Admittedly, I probably could and should have left that comment out.

For the record, I have nothing against the colours of their clothing; it is natural fashion after all. These colours are just not to my liking and don’t suit me.

I never said their designs are rubbish, that only someone over 70 would wear them or that they are bland. I didn’t say that and I’m NOT saying that. The designs are fine, just not to my liking. Doug at Natural Fashion tells me their designs are trendy and contemporary but that is not my opinion.

You know, if you are going to ask someone to review a product for you, you have to accept what they have to say. Should I have written a glowing review just because they sent me a free t-shirt or because they are paying for banner advertising (the banner on the right sidebar) or because they are considering giving me 10% commission on clothing sales from my site? I don’t think so.

If I loved their designs I would have said so. I have mentioned Tonic T-shirts numerous times on this site because I love their organic t-shirts. Their clothing is my style. I love the colours and I love the designs and I won’t hesitate to say so and to link to them even though I am not affiliated with them in any way whatsoever. They didn’t even send me a free t-shirt. I mentioned that it would be nice if they had more designs and now a few months later, they have. Surely that’s the value in reviews. You get to find out what your customers want and then give them want they want.

I’m flattered that Doug thinks hundreds of people will read this review and that my opinion has the power to dissuade people from purchasing their products. I like to think that my visitors are intelligent enough to make up their own minds about what they do and do not like. The purpose of this website is to show people where they can buy organic products in Australia and overseas. It is not my role to try to convince people to buy certain products from certain suppliers. I’m just trying to point out where to find products and then it’s up to them if they want to buy something or not.

This post was never meant to be a sales page; it’s just a review which is purely my personal opinion. It’s up to everyone else to make up their own minds about Natural Fashion.

Update II

If Natural Fashion isn’t to your liking you could try Shirts of Bamboo. They have a great range of organic and bamboo clothing. The fabric is super soft and their clothes come in a wide variety of designs and colours. For more information see:

• bamboo clothing
• bamboo socks and underwear
• bamboo baby clothes
• bamboo towels
• bamboo knitting yarn

I’m back from my week long holiday and have been busy catching up on the latest organic and environment news, as well as responding to the many, many emails I have received while away. The most pressing news is that Urban Baby is having a summer clearance sale with 30% off many items and up to 50% off the Gaia organic cotton baby range. Other major brands on sale include:

• Eternal Baby
• Eggheads
• Tiny Tribe
• Butterfly Kiss

Lots of bargains can be found in the baby clothing ranges but also on sale are:

• baby bedding
• homewares
• accessories
• bags
• travel items
• toys

The sale will continue until the items are sold out. Visit Urban Baby for more information.

I’m going to have to plead ignorance here because I don’t have a clue about knitting. I don’t know how to knit and I don’t understand why people knit. Some of my best friends are hooked and love to tell me about the latest item they are making or some great yarn they bought, so I get that people are interested in knitting.

My only experience with knitting came from when I was very young, maybe six or seven, when my grandmother tried to teach me to knit. I’m left handed and my grandmother, who is right handed, thought it was best to teach me how to knit left handed. Is there even a difference? Anyway, she couldn’t do it and when I just tried to copy her she stopped me and insisted I should learn to do it the ‘left handed way’. So for her it was left handed or not at all. Well, it was not at all, thanks Nanna. I know she meant well but she’s never understood that I can do many things right handed as well as left, but anyway…

So I gather one of the keys to a great garment is the fibre. Shirts of Bamboo has a 100% bamboo fibre yarn which they claim is as soft as cashmere and silk but as durable as cotton. You can also put clothes made with this bamboo knitting yarn into the washing machine and dryer. That’s surprising; I would have thought hand washing knitted clothes was the way to go but I guess not.

This 100% bamboo yarn comes in the following colours:

• yellow
• black
• red
• white
• blue
• green
• natural (no dye)

Visit Shirts of Bamboo for more information.

I’m heading off for a bit of a holiday for the next week. I won’t be taking my computer with me so if you leave a comment or send an email, please be patient, I’ll get to it as soon as I can.

I’m leaving Friday the 9th and will be back Thursday the 15th of February. I haven’t had a break for ages so I’m really looking forward to this.

I’ll be back soon!

The Sustainable Living Festival is being held next weekend in Melbourne where you can learn all about:

• sustainable living
• environmental issues affecting Australia
• organic food
• eco friendly cleaning
• environmental careers
• solutions to climate change
• electric cars
• ethical and sustainable investments
• sustainable construction

To keep you entertained there will be

• films
• art
• performances

Exhibitors include:

• Sustainability Victoria
• Australian Conservation Foundation
• Honda Civic Hybrid
• Alternative Technology Association
• Captains Creek Organic Wines
• Conservation Volunteers Australia
• Going Solar
• Greenfleet Australia
• Roundtable Wines
• Waterwise Systems

About the Sustainable Living Foundation:

The Sustainable Living Foundation (SLF) is a community based not-for-profit organisation committed to promoting, celebrating and practicing principles of sustainable living.

The Festival draws together diverse approaches that focus on social and ecological sustainability. Staged at Federation Square, this unique event fuses interactive displays, demonstrations, artworks, exhibits, designs, films, multimedia and live performances.

Where: Federation Square Melbourne
Date: 16-18 February 2007 (Friday to Sunday)
Time: 10am to 6pm (to 5pm on Sunday)

Bamboo fabric’s natural antibacterial and hypoallergenic properties make it perfect for clothes which fit close to your body such as socks and underwear. Bamboo clothing is also quick to absorb moisture, more so than cotton, keeping you dry and odour free; again making it an ideal choice for intimate apparel.

As well as feeling good on the skin, choosing bamboo socks and underwear has other advantages. Bamboo is a sustainable resource which is produced without the use of pesticides, herbicides, and other chemicals. This means the soil in which bamboo is grown retains its micro and macro organisms, ensuring the fertility of the soil. The lack of toxic chemical runoff also means that local waterways such as rivers and streams will not become polluted. Other benefits to the environment are that bamboo crops require much less water than cotton and they produce much more oxygen. Overall, it’s a great plant which can be made into many products including affordable bamboo underwear and socks.

Bamboo Socks for Men, Women, and Babies

A wide variety of bamboo socks are available and in various sizes and colours. Choose from:

• bamboo ankle socks
• bamboo sports socks
• bamboo 1/4 athletic crew socks
• bamboo 3/4 athletic crew socks
• bamboo baby socks

The fabric used varies depending on the socks but is generally made of 85% bamboo and 15% nylon. They are very absorbent and soft and are ideal for playing sport or just everyday wear.

Bamboo Women’s Underwear

The bamboo underwear pictured is made of bamboo, cotton, and nylon to keep you comfortable and dry. Styles available include:

• bamboo low rise hipster bikini
• bamboo high leg brief
• bamboo thong panties
• bamboo g-string

Bamboo Sports Bra

This bamboo sports bra is lightweight and the breathable bamboo fabric will keep you cool when working out. It provides support but is soft enough to allow you plenty of freedom of movement. It is made of a blend of bamboo and organic cotton. It would be nice to see it available in other colours but hopefully that will happen in the not so distant future.

Bamboo Men’s Underwear

While it’s a great idea to get your man some bamboo underwear, I don’t think much of these 70% bamboo/30% organic cotton boxer shorts. It’s nothing to do with the fabric but I think the design leaves a lot to be desired. They are just too big and baggy. However, I’m sure there are some guys out there that love this kind of thing so if that’s the case then go for it.

These bamboo underwear and socks are available online at Shirts of Bamboo.

Organic cotton clothing is becoming more popular as people become aware of the health and environmental risks of using pesticides and herbicides on crops. Even though demand for organic cotton products is rising, it’s still not that easy to come by.

Natural Fashion has a wide range of cotton products which are certified organic. The cotton comes from small farms in Brazil which work to support the local community by providing employment. They produce a wide range of products including clothes for men, women, and children, homewares, accessories, and soft toys. No chemicals, bleaches, or dyes are used in their production so are a completely natural alternative.

Women’s Organic Natural Fashion

If you want simple, natural coloured clothing then Natural Fashion has plenty of choice for women. The women’s range includes:

• t-shirts
• tank tops
• dresses
• skirts
• shorts
• trousers
• jeans
• jumpers
• sleepwear
• jackets
• socks
• scarves

The design is generally very casual so you should be able to find some good basics for everyday wear.

Men’s Organic Natural Fashion

There is less on offer in the men’s organic cotton range but still enough to please most guys. The range includes:

• plain t-shirts
• v-neck t-shirts
• polo neck t-shirts
• long sleeve t-shirts
• sleeveless t-shirts
• shirts
• jackets
• jeans
• sleepwear

Organic cotton clothing is generally very soft making it great for sleepwear or for wearing around the house.

Children’s Organic Cotton Clothing

I think the children’s range of clothing is the best on offer by Natural Fashion. They have some very cute outfits including dresses, tshirts, shorts, socks, sleepwear, tracksuits, and organic cotton soft toys.

Organic Cotton Homewares

I was surprised to see that there is also a wide variety of natural homewares available. My favourite items are the cushions but they also stock:

• organic hammocks
• organic serviettes
• organic placemats
• organic rugs
• organic bedding
• organic tablecloths
• organic blankets

Natural Fashion also produces a range of bags and shoes so if it’s organic accessories that you’re after then check out their site. For more information, read my Natural Fashion review.

If Natural Fashion isn’t to your liking you could try Shirts of Bamboo. They have a great range of organic and bamboo clothing. The fabric is super soft and their clothes come in a wide variety of designs and colours. For more information see:

• bamboo clothing
• bamboo socks and underwear
• bamboo baby clothes
• bamboo towels
• bamboo knitting yarn

The Sustainable Gardening Australia (SGA) website has lots of useful information for organic gardeners, both home gardeners and professional gardeners. They provide information on:

• sustainable gardening
• gardening tours
• sustainable garden centres
• green gardening training
• getting your garden centre certified as sustainable

The Bayside Community Nursery in Cheltenham (Victoria) has just been certified as sustainable by SGA. The nursery deals mainly in indigenous Australian plants including native:

• trees
• shrubs
• groundcovers
• grasses

The nursery does not sell fertilisers and pesticides, which are rarely, if ever, required when growing native plants and also help the environment by using cardboard boxes rather than plastic bags when selling plants.

Benefits of Getting Certified

The SGA site suggests a number of benefits of becoming certified sustainable:

• Reducing the amount of environmentally damaging pesticides and fertilisers used by gardeners.

• Encouraging gardeners to avoid the use of pesticides by keeping their plants healthy- plant choice and positioning, companion planting and soil conditioning.

• Encouraging gardeners to fertilise their plants with products that enhance soil structure and encourage healthy soil biota.

• Reducing the number of environmental weeds escaping from gardens into natural areas by:

• Educating gardeners about which plants are weeds in their area.

• Teaching gardeners how to control plants in their gardens to stop them spreading outside their fences.

• Reducing the amount of water gardeners use.

• Encouraging mulching, plant grouping and low water use irrigation systems.

• Reducing the off-site environmental damage that can be caused by gardening.

• Offering alternative products to old-growth timber, whole bush-harvested plants and pots produced in unsustainable ways.

If you are looking for a sustainable garden centre in Melbourne then give the Bayside Community Nursery a try, otherwise you can find a list of sustainable garden centres here.