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Oh Christmas Tree, are you Real? or Fake this Year?

Our lovely Christmas tree all done up!

This year we decided to buy a real tree. Now, I wasn't too keen on the idea and I definitely thought it wasn't a very "green" option. But sometimes, once in a while, Christmas just needs to feel like Christmas I think. And besides that, Mike loves Christmas about as much as I love Halloween and so I thought I would compromise and go with a real evergreen.

However, if you are thinking about skipping the real thing or even the traditional for that matter, here are a few very inventive, very eco-friendly tree ideas:

My Modern Met

I have seen this done using only green books but I love this colourful option. Create your own book tree.

Designs that Inspire to Create Your Perfect Home

A tree built with love and plywood scraps.

pfadvice.com

No time time for measuring, sawing or constructing, try a ladder tree.

Apartment Therapy

Now this is a very cool "tree"display. Very creative but I imagine it would have taken a lot of patience to put together.

A Collective of Vintage Teaspoons

Save those green bottles for the holidays and build your own Christmas tree with recyclables.

Christmas can still be grand even on a small scale ...

Flickr

Love this sweet fabric and wood tree.

Diggers List Blog

Recycled newspaper Christmas tree.

Natural Modern Interiors

A driftwood tree, made from gathered pieces of wood.

So, are real trees for Christmas really that bad?

I did my research and found some interesting pros and cons to help you decide - real vs. fake?

Real tree Pros:

real trees, being natural, will decompose naturally and used as mulch for Spring/Summer growing
the beauty, fragrance and festive quality of a real tree just can't be replaced
they provide oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide removing pollutants from the air (this could be seen as a con when they are removed from their environment but up until the time they are removed, this is a pro!)
some Christmas tree farms are placed in areas that would otherwise be unusable
when harvesting these trees, each one cut down must be replaced by another, planting new trees every year
tree population is not reduced due to Christmas tree farming; but instead is maintained

Real tree Cons:

these trees provide food, shelter and homes to animals so we would be taking that away
they reduce soil erosion and surface runoff
some are grown with harmful pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers
some Christmas tree farms use land that could possibly be better used

Fake tree Pros:

need only to be purchased once and can be reused every year
fake trees have come a long way since the 50's, they can look better and less artificial today
No messy cleanup
You save money over time

Fake Tree Cons:

they don't really last forever and will eventually end up in landfills
most are manufactured using a polyvinyl chloride (or PVC), which is a petroleum-derived plastic
they are non-renewable and polluting
some artificial trees actually come with warning labels due to their lead content

What do you think? Real or fake, and why?

Please leave a comment, would love to hear your thoughts!

Sources: Green Living online, Science 2.0,

My Green Blogging Needs Improvement

Photo Source: Dmitry Kononenko 2010

In my perfect world I would quit my job.

I would be a full-time blogger/writer, work from home, and continue with my baking business part-time.

I would travel to where I please, when I please while making a living doing what I am passionate about.

That's the kind of lovely life I would be happy with. But, the trouble is, how do I make it a reality?

I don't know how others do it, what they endured, or even if it really is worth my while to pursue such a dream. In my dream, I would definitely have more time to research, to blog, to hone my writing skills and share my ideas, recipes and inspirations with others.

After a long day/week of working full-time, running errands, and reviewing my after-work projects, I usually have just enough time to sit at my computer, at my blog page and just stare at it. Usually because I am either too tired to come up with something witty and wonderful to write, or mostly because of time, I haven't done any research or cooked anything exciting to write about.

However, I must confess, time management has not been my only road-block. Because lets be real here people, I have an addiction. I can't help it. Just like any addict would admit, I just want it so bad -- even just 20-30 minutes a day. That's all! And I have it under control ...usually. Until those 20-30 minutes turn into 2-3 hours a day! Eek! This addiction my friends, is to a wonderful website called pinterest.

I love that site for too many reasons to name, but mostly, as a creative person and visual learner, it's my inspiration drug. From it, I am filling my head with a plethora of projects -- home, craft, art, party, gift and recipe ideas. Ideas that I am eager to try and hoping to share with all of you.

If blogging were my full-time job then it would be a different story. But as of yet, I barely manage two entries a week. Sad really, because I love blogging. and taking photos, researching, learning and writing. And as mentioned, I have so many freakin' ideas just waiting to burst out of me I can't take it!

So, it's time to take baby steps, for the month of October I will stick to what I like and know best, visuals and research. I will share with you, what I find to be green inspired projects and recipes, every other day for this month and perhaps the rest of the year.

My goal will be to keep each entry short and sweet and include pictures, media or video of things that inspire and delight me or encourage and teach me to live green.

xo
SL

Got Vegetables? Make Juice

My latest, most favourite, amazing thing to do in the morning is to drink a cup of freshly made juice! Made with wonderful, organic vegetables and fruit, it's easy and super nutritious for you.

The Juicer: A powerful little Hamilton Beach juicer that makes a very full, healthy glass of juice (about 2-3 servings) from: 1 large apple, 1 large lemon, 1 large carrot, and a large bunch of kale or spinach makes ...

The Green Machine

(kale or spinach, carrots, apple, lemon)

Another fantastic juice recipe I concocted (name still pending):

2 medium beets
1 cup strawberries
1 cup pineapple

Everything chopped, add to the juicer and blended together. Add ice and enjoy!

So why is freshly made juice so healthy for you? Well to learn more I visited Care2 website which had a neat little list that explained the benefits of various fruits/vegetables ... here are a few from their website:

Carrot: strengthens the eyes and helps clear up skin eruptions.
Celery: helps to clear the skin (so does cucumber juice)
Ginger: helps with inflammation in the body, such as arthritis and is known to remedy nausea.
Lemon: is excellent for counteracting a high-fat, animal protein rich diet. Helps the liver in its daily detoxification process. It can also help to really cut the taste of those green vegetables in your juice.
Apple: helps to relieve constipation, heal the intestines, and softens gall stones.
Radish: benefits the thyroid gland (in small amounts and mixed with other juice).
Kale & Collard: strengthens the bones due to high levels of calcium, potassium and Vitamin A.
Plums/Prune: helps alleviate constipation and can be used for liver disease.
Tomato: helps restore health to the liver, and can be used to treat diarrhea and chronic indigestion.
Watermelon: alkalinizes the blood, and can be used to treat urinary problems, edema, and canker sores. Its diuretic properties benefits the kidney’s and bladder. Juice the rind with the flesh for a sweet, thirst quenching drink.

DIY: A Zen Pathway to Your Home

Here's a fun diy project you can do to add some colour to your home, particularly to an entryway. I found this idea - colourful tin planter cans - online and knew I would love trying this and I did. And it was easy ...

1. Using a thick nail and hammer, hammer in a few holes on the bottom of each can.

2. Using water-based acrylic paint (which is what I used here) paint your tin cans.

3. Any colour really will do here, choose your favourites! I stuck with lighter, pastel-like colours.

4. Finally, once the paint is completely dry, fill each tin can with soil and your favourite house plant.

Having plants in the entrance way to your home is very feng shui.

DIY: Coffee Sleeve Greeting Cards

Whenever I buy a coffee from any coffee shop I always try my best to avoid taking with me a coffee sleeve. Now, I appreciate that they are just looking out for our well being - caution, it's hot! - but after years of baking and working with my hands I have personally developed an immunity to extreme hot and cold feeling in my hands. Besides that, coffee sleeves just seem so wasteful to me, I mean really, am I that dainty that I can't hold my coffee cup without the extra cardboard sleeve?

Anyway, for the odd time when I do forget to leave the coffee sleeve behind I always make sure to recycle it ... until now! My niece - the brilliant little tween that she is - suggested that we make greeting cards out of coffee sleeves. So that's what we did with the sleeves we collected from our Starbucks visit.

Here are the steps ...

All you need is a variety of craft paper, some glue, scissors, and a little creativity to come up with a cute folded greeting card. I added some sequence to the border on this card for a nice accent. The great thing about these cards, besides the fact that you are reusing and up-cycling, is that you can design them for anybody and for any occasion.

Close Encounters of a Natural Kind

Maple Leaves

Creeping Thistle (Cirsium arvense) ... it is creepy.

Chicory -- official name: Cichorium intybus

I believe a type of Cockleburs, ha! Cockleburs ...

My Scarlet, the harlot

Hawk's-Beard (Crepis), that's a cool name.

Tree bark mushrooms

Moss and dead leaves. To me it was art.

Daisy Fleabane or, really cute mini daisies ... that are also weeds.

This lovely Clover flower has a friend. I could not find any 4-leaf clovers.

Very purple and pretty Pasture Roses.

Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)

Bee Chicory flower.

Wild raspberries look delicious.

Wild mushrooms ... maybe not as delicious?

Scarlet in the meadow.

A pretty flower which I do not know the name of.

A Picnic in the Park

Mountain goats at the High Park Zoo

A lovely weekend for a picnic and with a long weekend coming up there will be plenty more time for picnics in the sun. This picnic was in Toronto's beautiful High Park area.

Our lunch came from The Big Carrot, an amazing shop similar to Whole Foods Market but on the east end of Toronto. On the menu (pictured here): Vegan paella (bottom), Lentil Paté (to it's right) and Mary's raw gluten-free crackers.

Vegan Paella from The Big Carrot

Scarlet with her treats.

A picnic wouldn't be complete without a treat for my sweet - okay, no more rhyming! We did get Scarlet something yummy and fishy to chew on, mostly to distract her while we ate our own food and so she wouldn't feel left out.

Community Garden in High Park

High Park is a gorgeous, massive, very green and flourishing park on the west end of Toronto. Within it there is a Zoo, Community Gardens, swimming pool, tennis courts, dog off-leash area, and much more. Plus many events like concerts and plays are hosted there.