Daily Loaf

Do you remember the old VHS cassette tapes that have long been replaced by DVDs? Do you ever wonder what became of all those outdated tapes? Many of them, no doubt, ended up in landfills but some of them have actually been put to good use. Many of them are being used to design beautiful cosmetic bags and handbags for your fashion pleasure. You’ll be amazed at just how lovely these items look especially when matched up with one of your favorite outfits.

Recycled VHS cassette tape handbags and cosmetic bags are a real piece of art. They’ll go with anything and they can be used for any occasion regardless of whether its business or social. They make great gifts for the holidays or as a gift for yourself when you feel like you deserve something special. The handbags are designed in several different sizes and shapes to suit most any taste or need. You’ll find they have enough room to carry all of your necessities.
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Recycled Innovations Contest:

Eco-Innovators are those who think outside of the can to create treasure out of trash. The City of Largo’s Recycled Innovations Contest encourages innovators to make a useable creation for photo submission in their online event.

All entries must be made of 75 percent or more recycled or material that would otherwise be discarded. Contrary to a recycled art show, Recycled Innovations are items that may be reused in daily activities. Accepted entries will be functional items made of materials that can be diverted from the waste stream.

The City of Largo’s Recycled Innovation Show will give participants the opportunity to get their designs noticed across Tampa Bay and beyond. Innovative prizes will be awarded to the greatest innovators in various age categories: Tiny Innovators, Junior Innovators, Tween Innovators, Techie Innovators, and Macgyvers.
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Things are really starting to get organized at the CL office as we’ll continue to show you with part 3 of their green office makeover. The Sales, Marketing, and Classifieds departments get into the action next! I had the pleasure of working hands-on with James (Ad Director), Joran (Marketing + Promotions Director), and Terri (Classifieds Manager) in their workspaces. My plan for each department was to follow the 4 Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle) to create more space and better organization in their areas.

The video starts off with London (Operations Manager) painting the stage in CL’s new event space – that’s just for fun! As the camera pans through the lobby, I’d like you to note that the very special “something” we created for the community is finally revealed. It’s CL’s Community Center! It’s a very cool place for members of the community to bring their business and event flyers and place them on the table or bulletin board to share with others. This center also contains CDs and other items that CL wants to share with you – for FREE! So stop by and take a few! This is one way CL is recycling items and giving back to the community at the same time. A pan to the main hallway of CL’s offices shows that items previously blocking a clear passageway through the offices have been strategically moved to other more appropriate areas to allow for an easier, safer, and more visually appealing walk through CL.

Video after the jump
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What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

St. Petersburg College’s new Natural Science, Mathematics and College of Education building is certified LEED® Gold- St. Petersburg College recently announced that for the second time in as many months, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has awarded LEED Gold certification for one of its new campus buildings.

Best of the Bay of the Day: Best organic smoothie- Believe it or not, algae and bee pollen add up to a delicious drink called the Spirulina Power Buzz. Read this to find out where to get one.

Tips to improve gas mileage (and save some green)- Do you have a lead foot or drive an inefficient automobile?  Here are a few simple tips to improve gas mileage and save a bunch of green!

Living Sustainably in Tampa Bay: Darren Brinkley, owner of REAL Building- Brinkley is the owner of REAL Building and home that he built for his family in St. Petersburg is the first home in Florida to achieve the LEED for Homes Gold Rating.
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I’m a green office specialist and I’ve been privileged to be a contributor with the Creative Loafing Green Community since its launch this April. Sharing my green office tips through my posts recently led to an unexpected proposition from CL’s online producer, Stephen Hammill. The proposition: to come to CL’s office and consult with them on their office cleanup and reorganization project. Happy to assist my green partners in any way I could, I agreed.

I arrived at CL’s office at 810 North Howard Avenue in Tampa on July 1st for the consultation, workplace and workspace needs assessment, and walk through. I was met by their smiling and enthusiastic operations manager, London. We were joined shortly by Joran, their marketing director, who began to immediately follow us around with a camera (that was kind of creepy at first, but I eventually got used to it).

At the conclusion of the needs assessment, the scope of work became clear.

Video after the jump
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What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

The Earth Charter: How ethics can change the world (video) – The Earth charter was created by thousands of people representing hundreds of countries aiming at a universal ethical code of conduct for human beings. How do we treat each other? How do we treat the world? These questions were raised and answered.

City of Tampa Green Business Designation Program- As of this week, the City of Tampa became one of just a handful of cities nationwide to start a green business designation program.  Outside of the West Coast (California and Washington state), Tampa will join major metropolitan areas like Philadelphia and Knoxville in rewarding private businesses that have become or want to become more environmentally-friendly.

Why buying recycled, repurposed products is so important- Preserving the Earth’s natural resources is vital to the future of the planet and all of its inhabitants. Buying recycled and repurposed products is a great way to make a positive impact on the environment by cutting back on waste and the resources needed to make new items.
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Buying “green“, eco-friendly products is becoming more and more popular in this day and age. But why is it so important? Preserving the Earth’s natural resources is vital to the future of the planet and all of its inhabitants. Buying recycled and repurposed products is a great way to make a positive impact on the environment by cutting back on waste and the resources needed to make new items.

Everything you do for the planet, no matter how small, can add up to make a huge difference. Just imagine how much energy and other natural resources would be saved if everyone made it a point to buy some type of green products regularly, whether its clothing, accessories, personal care products or something else.
By making that type of a commitment you’re taking the first step to saving the planet and its natural resources. Plus, there’re many other benefits to buying green. Some of them are listed below:
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What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

TRA’shion Fashion and Art Show 2009 (photos) – The fabulous trashionistas were out in force for ARTpool’s annual TRA’shion Show, and photographer Chip Weiner caught all the recycled green glamour.

Letting go of addictions: Using alternative methods to release addictions of any type- Kelly Rothwell gives us alternative methods such as energetic healing, visualizations and affirmations, that can be used to not only cope with such addictions but to understand the reason behind the addiction and let it go for good.

Living sustainably in Tampa Bay: Dave Starman’s biodiesel fueled car and green lifestyle – The first in a series of profiles, by Jack B., of individuals who are living sustainably in Tampa Bay. This profiles Tampa Bay resident Dave Starman.
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Wondering what to do with those items in your house that you don’t know how to or where to recycle, and don’t want to just throw them away? Why not get crafty and rework those items by making them into handy things you’d actually use?

I found these great sites that are dedicated to making useful items by recycling and repurposing what most people would just throw away.

-Recycle This features ways to use over 600 items and has over 8000 suggestions of ways to reuse, repurpose or recycle things that would otherwise go in the trash. They’ve covered items from around the home, office and garden, things for particularly hobbies or sports, and random bits of technology that have broken or are just out of date.
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What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Steps to becoming greener: Reducing your waste, reusing and recycling: Joshua Poll gives some useful tips for ways to start reducing, reusing, and recycling things you thought you could just throw away.

Genetically engineering cows that will produce less methane, reducing greenhouse gases: Geneticists in Canada are trying to engineer a cow that produces less methane, resulting in less greenhouse gases, reports Brian Roberts.
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Here are numbers 5 and 6 from my list of 12 ways to start living greener and smarter.

Picking up trash on the ground is part of living green, if we all took 10 minutes a day and cleaned up the waste and trash we walk over, everyday, it would make a difference, not only in our environment but in taking pride and investing in our communities.
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People know all about recycling everyday items, right? Glass bottles, aluminum cans, newspaper, steel cans (where accepted), plastic bottles — these are pretty simple things to keep track of. How about those items you use every day but don’t really think about chucking until they’re dead? Television sets, DVD players and computers are all items we pretty much use on a daily basis, but when they stop working or you’re hankering for an upgrade, what should you do with them?

No matter what, do not throw them in the regular trash. Many of those circuit boards probably have lead or cadmium on them. (Sure, it could be zinc, copper, or something else less nasty, but do you really want to risk it?) When such elements aren’t disposed of properly or reused in a safe way, they can leach into the ground and cause all sorts of problems to the soil and water table. When life depends on water and a clean aquifer, this resonates with everyone who lives in Florida.

But fear not, intrepid recyclers! There are spots throughout the Tampa Bay area just itching to take in your old electronics, grind them up into their separate components, and redistribute the metals and chemicals as they can: Read the rest of this entry »