Green Talk® » parties

Pingg Paperless Invitations: Even Your NonGreen Critics Will Love

Anna@Green Talk — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:37:59 +0000

Pingg Online Paperless Invitations

Nowadays, I am finding that I am receiving quite more email invitations than I use to. However, when it comes to the “big day events” such as weddings and bar mitzvahs, paper seems to be rule of thumb. With such great online invitation websites such as Pingg and Paperless Posts, you can have your cake and paperless too. (And did I mention how much you can save?)

I have been playing with both Pingg and Paperless Posts for the last couple of weeks since I too have a “Big Boy” event coming up. Yep. The fourth bar mitzvah. And yes, Kemosabi, the last bar mitzvah. (Many of you might remember the 3rd Son’s Green Bar Mitzvah.) I used Pingg to send out my “Save the Dates,” and I found it to be extremely easy to use. (Next post, I will talk about Paperless Posts. I am spreading the love around between the two sites.)

What I love about Pingg

What I love about Pingg is the ease of creating an invitation and sending it out. The Company offers free as well as premium online invitations for any occasion. In addition, for a $10 fee, you can send your invitations advertising free as well have your own website where you can upload your pictures and videos.

Additionally, how many of you have spent a bundle on paper invitations? Once the party is over, where do you think your hard earn cash invitation goes? In the trash. Most people probably don’t even recycle it. Pingg’s low cost options allows you to spend more on other items and be environmentally savvy as well.

Pingg has the gifts covered as well. You can attach a links to your registry such as at Amazon.com, Macy’s, and Pottery Barn. Perhaps, you are seeking a group gift for your event or money donations for a charity? Your website could feature a Paypal account.

I made

The Pingg Envelope in Your Mailbox

The beauty of Pingg is I could see who opened the emails and whose emails bounced. Pingg not only told me when my invitations went out but actually notified me to fix the bounces. Changing email addresses was a snap in their dashboard.

What about Relatives who don’t have Email Addresses?

I hear this questions all the time when I talk about online invitation services. Pingg offers a postage option. They send your invitation to your non-email recipients for a fee

“Have pingg address, stamp and mail invitations directly to your guests. Send to your entire guest list or to a select few. Continue to collect their RSVPs online via a unique RSVP code found on each mailed invitation. All invitations are sent by first class mail, domestically and internationally, and arrive within 7-10 days.

Postal pinggs:

are 5×7 folded cards protected by clear envelopes
includes printing, stamping & mailing
$2.50 + postage”

Since older folks may not have access to a computer, you could easily put a phone number on the bottom of the invitation.

Did I opt for the Premium Package?

The premium package is $10 and this enables your invitations to be sent without advertising. In addition, you can choose a premium template. The $10 fee is per invitation set.

Would I use Pingg again? Absolutely! I love the ability to send to my guests an email and written invitation. And by the way, some of you have still not opened my save the date. You know who you are.

Join the Conversation:

Have you used Pingg or any other online invitation service?
What was the reaction from your guests?
What was your experience with Pingg or online invitation services?
Did your service offer to send written invitations?
Would you use an online thank you?

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Jelloware Take Jello Shots to a New Environmental High

Anna@Green Talk — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 23:46:40 +0000

Remember Jello shots? Ah, come-on, you aren’t that straight. How about making jello shots environmentally cool? Get out of town, Anna. Are we talking about Organic vodka Jello shots?

Um, No.

I am talking about Jelloware, the e-brainaic child of uber cool The Way We See The World, a group of dynamic out of the box designers. These bright colored glassses make you feel like Alice in Wonderland on an environmental trip. No fooling.

Use it, then throw it in the grass. No waste. Great Design. Don’t have to worry about breakage. And best yet, your grass will thank you in spades. Or is that blades?

According to the website:

“Jelloware re-imagines the concept of drinking, and imparts a new experience in the way it feels, tastes, smells, moves, and is even disposed of. The cups are made entirely out of agar agar and cast in different flavors, such as lemon-basil, ginger-mint, or rosemary-beet, each specifically designed to compliment a corresponding drink. Jelloware is meant to be thrown into the grass after it is used, as agar agar is a seaweed extract and actually nurtures the growth of plant.”

So, who told you Jello shots were bad for you?

Got a creative e-design? List it in the comments below.

Tip via Treehugger

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Greenfield Paper’s Grow A Notes: Why Trash? Just Plant.

Anna@Green Talk — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 00:49:47 +0000

When my son was being bar mitzvahed, I was determined to green the event as much as possible. One of my goals was no paper, whether it was recycled content or not. The invitation was a web page created on Myevent.com. Inexpensive, creative and definitely a big hit.

When it came to the thank you notes I was stumped. Was it proper to send out email thank you notes? I knew I could create a beautiful thank you note on the website Ping which could be emailed to his guests. So, I twittered all of my twitter followers and asked them. Even the die-hard greenies said no to the email thank you unless it was close personal friends. I even wrote about it on Green Talk hoping the consensus would say yes. Everyone basically told me to do the right thing. Handwritten.

Back to the drawing board. At the Go Green Expo, I met the owners of Greenfield Paper, which create seeded invitations and paper. As my loyal readers know, I can get a little garden obsessed and this concept was right down my alley. According to the Company, all the paper is made in San Diego, California and they use recycled post consumer pulp and cotton to make the paper. Then they add earth pigments not dye for color.

The card stock was a little pricey for me at $3.50 a card. We had 125 thank you notes to write. To my relief, they also carry just plain paper which they gladly cut into postcards for me. This cut the price down to less $2 per thank you note. The envelopes had to be recycled unfortuneately.

I was beyond excited about my new find. People could plant their thank you notes! That year, they would have wildflowers to remind them of the amazing time they had at my son’s bar mitzvah. All you have to do is wet the paper and plant. Genius, I thought.

So, I thought. Being the ever obsessive detailed person that I am, I looked to see what type of wild flower seeds were in the paper. One contained mostly annuals. Some may or may not have been deer resistant. Looking back, I have no idea why all of these things mattered since the chief goal was not to recycle or trash.

The Company did carry paper with Catnip seeds, which is a perennial in my area. I love Catnip. (See picture above. I grew this one from seed and look at it now!) When it is in bloom it has white flowers. It is easy to grow and deer do not like it. (Cats do!) See here about cats and catnip. I was set! So, I thought…

What about the people who lived in apartments or who could care less about gardening? I know non-gardening types exist (hard to believe) but could not imagine who would not care. I had to plan for this contingency since minimum recycling was my goal.

In the body of the thank you note, we added a sentence that if they did not want to plant the thank you note to give it back to us. Some people mailed them back. Not one of my best ideas, I decided. Adding to the carbon footprint by having people mail them back? Some times I definitely over analyze situations…

What did my son think of the cards? He found them hard to write on because the seeds slightly protrude. He suffered through.

Did it grow? My aunt and uncle in Florida tried to plant it in a pot and told me it did not grow. Hmm. I thought, perhaps it was the pot? I tried this, and planted it in the ground. We have had an overabundance of rain so I was sure that it would sprout. Two weeks later, nada. Not one peep.

I called the Company and they told me that like any new seed you have to make sure that you water it often. Perhaps mine dried out or that pesky neighborhood cat ate my seeds. No wonder she has been hanging out at my house lately…They advised me to put it in a pot like you would new veggie seeds to monitor their progress.

I absolutely love the idea but I am not sure you should buy it to have wildflowers. It definitely disintegrated since I checked the site where I planted it. If you love the idea for invitations, the Company offers this as well. See their bar/bat mitzvah and other invitations and announcements. The Company even makes custom paper made out of forget me nots and vegetables!

In addition, to their seeded offerings, the Company carries exotic paper made out of non-conventional sources such as recycled blue jeans, junk mail, and the skins of garlic bulbs just to name a few, hemp paper, recycled wrapping paper and holiday cards. My favorite product besides the grow your own notes is the “do it yourself” business cards for your computer made out of hemp. If you love their products as much as I do, see here for a list of retailers. I ordered directly from the Company.

Readers,

have you used these types of seeded papers?
Did I do something wrong?
Could it be the seed were too old? Too much light exposure to grow?
Would you have thumbed your nose to proper protocol and emailed a thank you instead?

Planting minds would like to know!

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ECHOage Eco-Friendly Birthday Parties: Teaching Children to Give Back

Anna@Green Talk — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 03:09:52 +0000

With four children, it seemed every time I turned around, I was planning another birthday party or taking my children to one. By the time I started the birthday party circuit for my last one, I was worn out. Countless invitations sent; endless returns of birthday gifts, and thank you notes that I had to argue with my children to write. Don’t even go there with the amount of plastic toys and packaging I either disposed of or bought.

I could never escape the invitations, but I did escape the presents by either telling all the parents to bring books, which my children hated or donate to one big gift. Some parents were uncomfortable giving money, or forgot and would bring a gift that I would have to return. So, in essence I accomplished nothing and hoped for the day that my children would no longer have group birthday parties.

My Calgon relief? A new online eco-friendly birthday party website named ECHOage . It is a website for US and Canadian residents, which teaches children about giving to those less fortunate. How does it work? Each guest contributes a gift amount. ECHOage collects all of the gifts and deducts a 15% administrative fee. The balance is split in half. One half of the proceeds is contributed to a charity of your child’s choice and the other half is returned to you to purchase one meaningful gift.

As an added environmental bonus, it offers adorable online invitations, RSVP tracking, and online thank-you notes. Reduce your party’s carbon footprint with no more shopping, no more returns, less plastic and no more trees cut down to create invitations and thank-you notes.

Why ECHOage? Co-founders, Debbie Zinman and Alison Smith, as moms, felt my pain. (They told me so. Well, not really, but I knew they felt it.) They believed that there had to be a better way and created the “one gift, one cause solution” to teach our children about giving and getting off the parties, plastic, and presents treadmill.

How do you begin? Simple. Choose one of the 12 colorful online invitations. Online invitations are wonderful for the Earth since no trees are cut down to create them. What happens if someone prints the invitation because they are afraid they won’t remember the date? Doesn’t this negate your tree-free theory?

These moms thought of everything. You can simply type in your email address in the find a party section, and the website will send you a link to the invitation. Now, if you do print it, the eco police will not come knocking at your door. Simply, recycle the invitation.

After you choose the invitation, now choose a cause that resonates with your child. (Above is one of the listed charities.) The charity name will appear on the invitation. Talk to your child about which charity he or she feels that they would like to donate to. I love this component of the website because many of us are very fortunate and others are not. Giving to help others whether it is time or money should be taught at a young age where it becomes a natural gesture as they grow up.

A charitable tax receipt will be sent to you evidencing the donations. Currently, only four charities are listed for US and Canadian residents. These charities were chosen by the founders since they directly contribute to improving the lives of children as well as having a proven track record of implementing their goals.

Additional charities will be added that meet the above criteria. However, Debbie explains, “[i]f our list of charities was long, children would get overwhelmed when choosing. Also, we want the choice to come from the child hosting the party and not from the parent who would undoubtedly have a favorite charity in mind.”

Now, you are all set. Collect everyone’s emails and send out the invitations. You send them out one by one or as a group. In addition, you can print the invitation for people who do not have computers such as elderly relatives.

One of my favorite components of RSVP is that you can tell your host about your child’s allergies such as if he or she has food allergies, uses an oral inhaler, or carries an EPiPen. In addition, you can provide your cell phone number in the RSVP in case the host needs to contact you during the party.

The Payment page offers your guests the choice of a gift amount from $10 to $40, and is paid through a secure ECHOage online payment center.

The tracking systems tracks your guests RSVPs and reminds them a week before the party to respond. After you receive all of your RSVPs, you can close your party and you will be sent the balance of the money for your one meaningful gift. In any event, ECHOage will close your account two weeks after your party, and send you the balance.

Before the party, print out your child’s award, and put it on the front door, which lets your child’s guests know that your child is a hero because he or she gave back to the world for another child.

After the party is over, it is time for your child to write the thank you notes. No problem. ECHOage has it covered with their online thank-you notes.

Love the idea but your date is too far away? Consider saving the date with ECHOage, and the system will remind you six weeks in advance to tell you to get on the stick and ECHOage your party.

Co-founders Zinman and Smith’s concept had me at hello. No further selling for me. I had only one concern. The administrative fee seemed a little to high. However, the founders explained that this cost is to cover web development, web hosting, secure online administration, and general administration of the site. I totally forgot about those costs.

Still not convinced and have other concerns or question. Check out the FIVE page FAQ section where every imaginable question thought of has been answered. These moms have it covered coming and going.

So, what are you waiting for? ECHOage your party! Your child will be contributing to a better place.

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Thank You Notes Via Email? Are They Eco-Proper?

Anna@Green Talk — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 06:14:34 +0000

Updated: 12/11/2011

Life is full of dilemmas where you struggle to do the right thing. I am sure all of you have been in this situation where if you do one thing or the other, there is a consequence to your choice. Kind of like a no-win situation. Here is mine at the moment. Can I send email thank you notes for gifts my son will be receiving for his upcoming bar mitzvah?

Why the Email Thank You Note Problem?

Let me back track a minute and give you the whole issue. The thank you notes are only part of the issue.

My son is being bar mitzvahed in a couple of weeks. I am trying to green this event as much as possible. In doing so, I had to look at my carbon footprint.

My first hurdle was the invitations. I considered the amount of paper that would be used to create a one of a kind invitation that would end up in the trash. In each invitation, there were separate pieces of paper for the response, directions, and separate party cards. I am just getting started how far reaching impact of these invitations.

Then I thought about all the fuel used to truck those invitations across the country and then some to truck the responses back to me (which of course never make it back to me by the due date.)

Given these factors, I could not bring myself to do the paper route. I decided to create an invitation website that was fun and creative to keep me out of the dog house for not sending out formal invitations. I even became a celeb since people remarked how much they liked the website.

Are you starting to get the picture of where I am going here with the thank you notes?

Went Green on the Invitations? How Do I handle the Thank You Notes?

Whew! I crossed that invitation bridge with very little repercussions from older relatives and friends. So, now my son is receiving gifts from those guests who can not attend. Here comes that darn Earth dilemma again.

When you receive gifts, what are you suppose to do? Yes, I see Emily Post’s hand waving in the background to answer the question. I’ll call on her since she is definitely the maven on manners. She says,

“All gifts should be acknowledged with a note, unless the goodies were opened in front of the giver—then you have the chance to thank them in person. An important exception: many of an older generation expect a hand-written note. Providing them with one is an appropriate gesture of respect and consideration.”¹

But, Carbon Footprint vs Etiquette?

What about the trees, chemicals, and fuel used to say “thank you.” How do I reconcile being a Mother Earth lover and doing the right thing? Is emailing a thank-you on a designed card via a website like Pingg proper? Wouldn’t it be tasteful, cute, and fun?

Or rather, is emailing thank-you’s just too cold and impersonal even if done in the name of my fearless leader, Ed Begley, Jr.?

Some people would say the heck with it. Do what you think is right in your heart.

Although my mother is no longer here with me, she taught me that manners are very important. She even went so far as to tell me that if I could not attend a function, I should always send a gift. Doing the right thing was very important to her. Most important, you always sent a thank-you note for a gift.

In my mother’s world, class and manners were the same. She even had a copy of Emily Post’s book. I kept her book to remind me of what she taught me.

Seeking Guidance through Social Media. What Do my Peeps Have to Say?

I posed the question with to my Twitter followers hoping they would give me some guidance. (Twitter is like the new instant messaging for adults. My feed of my posts are on Twitter so people can follow what I write about along with any inane comment I want to make including if I am going to the bathroom.) Unfortunately, no answers from the followers.

I even did some “googling” to see if others have asked this question and found the following:

On Ask Yahoo, a reader posed the following question: ”When is it appropriate to send a thank-you note via email rather than mail?”

The staff replied in short:

“The most formal of thank-you notes is probably the wedding-gift thank you. These notes are traditionally handwritten on formal stationary cards. This personalized “thank you” is absolutely required of brides and grooms because it shows appreciation and sincerity. Emails (and phone calls, for that matter) will seem far too hasty, and they show none of the thought and care that goes into a handwritten note.”

What Does Ophra Think?

What does Ophra think? (Yes, we are tight. So, I posed the question to her. She referred me to her website.) On Ophra.com, in the Relationship section, the etiquette columnists weighed in:

“It also depends on whom you’re sending it to. If you have a person who lives on the Internet, you can get a thank you card that that is animated and dances and does all kinds of fabulous things. If that person would love to get an e-mail thank you, that’s the person you send it to. Your momma doesn’t want that. She wants appreciation and handwritten notes!”

“Kim Izzo, etiquette columnist, says,

“It’s making the effort. People really appreciate getting mail that’s not a bill, for one thing, and just taking that extra bit of time to write a thank you note really means everything….

Harriette Cole, syndicated columnist:

“It also depends on whom you’re sending it to. If you have a person who lives on the Internet, you can get a thank you card that that is animated and dances and does all kinds of fabulous things. If that person would love to get an e-mail thank you, that’s the person you send it to. Your momma doesn’t want that. She wants appreciation and handwritten notes!”²

Now, someone is kind of on my side. What about the green part, ladies and gentlemen?Should my son save the world like spider man by sending out cute emailed thank-you’s or go the paper and pen route with Emily sitting beside him saying, “dear, make sure you address it properly?”

Join the Conversation:

Do you only send written thank you notes or have you sent email ones as well?
What do you think the rules are on sending email versus written thank you note?
Do certain occasions warrant only written thank you notes?

PS. I hope you got my joke with the photo by Susan Williams. Get it? Hand written thank-you’s? I know my sister is laughing.

Update: 12/11/2011: I ended up using seeded paper thank you notes for son #3′s bar mitzvah. However, for son #4, I opted to send out Pingg email thank you notes to the kids and computer generated thank you notes on hemp paper from Greenfield Papers for the adults.

When I posed the question to my friends about sending them a email thank you note, I was emphatically told I must send personal hand written thank you note. Sheeesh. You can’t win.

Resources:

¹“Etiquette Everyday ~ Communications. Being Thankful: A Thank-You Note Q&A.”Emily Post Institute (accessed August 7, 2008.)

“Thank you Note Etiquette” Ophra.com, Relationships (assessed August 7, 2008).

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Ditch Invitations and Go Paperless at MyEvent.com

Anna@Green Talk — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:16:39 +0000

I am in the throws of planning a Bar Mitzvah and have made a commitment to make this one as green as possible. For those who do not know a lot about a bar mitzvah, the amount of detail involved is similar to a wedding. It is a ritual in Judaism when a boy reaches the age of 13 (and a girl, the age of 12), that he has come of age to observe the commandments of the Torah. Today the ritual has been expanded to include a religious service led by the child and a party or reception afterwards. For a 101 on bar mitzvahs, read here.

Each bar mitzvah (this being my third), I try to do something different.

First Son’s Bar Mitzvah, Clever, Not So Green.

The first son’s theme was puzzle pieces reflecting the various pieces of his life. I cut out 200 plus puzzle pieces, strung them on a white ribbon as a necklace. Each puzzle piece identified how the guest was part of my son’s life whether the guest was family or friends from his soccer team or nursery school.

Second Son, Getting There but Made Carbon Footprint Faux Pas.

The second son had a DVD invitation which featured a montage of his life. Since his bar mitzvah project was both the Nike Recycle-a Shoe program that I discussed in this article and recycling electronic media through GreenDisk ( see my GreenDisk article), we decided to enclose a self-addresses envelope to return the DVDs for recycling. I did receive many of the DVDs back. In reflection, my carbon creative footprint was huge. Not only did I create a product that could have ultimately ended up in the trash, I requested that they re-mail the DVDs back to me! What was I thinking?

Third Time Around, Let’s Go Paperless.

This go around I have been looking at my own carbon footprint in preparing for this party. The most obvious change that I could make was to go paperless with my invitations. Not only would it save me money, but it would lessen my footprint from taking down a few trees in the name of invitations that either are thrown out or recycled. No more DVDs for me. (Although, I have to admit, it was a pretty clever invitation.)
I started to research what was available online that would accomplish my needs for the bar mitzvah. I am fortunate that I have a lot of cousins; however, many are from out of town. They all fly in for the weekend, and we literally go from one meal to the other. So, yes there is a lot of partying the whole weekend. Quality time with your relatives.

I needed a program that would allow me to give everyone notice of all the weekend events. I could have used a WordPress blog template but I wanted something a little more private and finally found three sources to use: Myevent.com, E-vite, and Pingg. Both Pingg and E-vite are free. Other e-vite type alternatives are listed on Evite Alternatives, which includes among many MyPunchbowl, Renkoo, and Socializr.

Since I have five different events planned, Pingg and E-vite do not work for me. With these two services, I would have to send out a separate invitation for each event. On the other hand, I could create an easy website with Myevent.com of all of my events, upload photos and a video montage of his life. It would make my life and my guests lives easier as well. Read on about all the great features that Myevent.com contains to make this special website for my son.

What Makes MyEvent.com Special?

This website provides templates for weddings, bar mitzvahs, or any event from reunions to corporate events. I chose one of the templates and altered its colors for my taste. In a matter of hours I was able to customize my website with all of the various basic features. I am no techie, so if I can do it so can you.

You can have a flash intro and your choice of music to play as your guest browse through the website. Your welcome page can include pictures, text, and video uploads from YouTube or Google. My son’s page contained another montage of his life which I uploaded through google video along with a welcome letter.
In addition to the welcome letter, you can include a poll. Many people think my son looks like one of my other children or me, so I included a poll as to whom he resembles the most. I included the “milkman” to be funny but it is actually receiving the most votes.You can also include a quiz about your child’s interest which is fun for his classmates. He chose 4 different items about himself.

There is even a page for you to upload pictures of your family and friends. Uploading was very easy. All I had to do was to click the particular picture on my computer and click the word “submit.” The picture instanly appeared on my site.

My favorite section was the details of event sections. I entered all the different events on this page, attached a map for directions, as well as a picture of the venue. My guests could easily scan all the event of the weekend. Forget about printing those direction cards!

The site also contains the option of RSVP-ing by email to the broadcast you send out or to the website only. A link to the website is included in your broadcast of the invitation. I chose the website RSVP but I still receive notifications through my email so I can track visitors through another type of software (excel). All my events are listed on the RSVP so if you are an out of town guest or family, you would rsvp to those events specifically for you.

The website tracks your guests’ RSVPs for each event. I am using excel so I can have an instant number of guests attending each event without hand counting the guests. There is even a message board so people can leave messages. Unfortunately, they can not upload their own pictures with their messages.
Similar to any other website, there is a contact page. Your guests can easily contact you with questions. If the website does not have a template for a page you want for your site, then you can create your own additional pages. Don’t like a template page like polls, then remove it from your website.

The second part of the website is the planning part where you can upload an excel guest list by emailing the company or entering in the names by hand. Make sure you follow the format that they suggest.
I can view at anytime, a report as to who has RSVPed as well as edit RSVPs. Some of my guests RSVPed twice to the same events.

Invitations can be sent out by each event or a broadcast can be sent out for all of the parties. I chose the broadcast method because I thought it was too cumbersome to send out invitations for each event. The only problem I had with this is that the email did not include all the names of the family members that I invited. It was just a single email to the email recipient. If every family member had their own email then this would not be a problem. I had to send out another broadcast to those guests whose whole family was invited.

Want More Features?

If these features are not enough, you can upgrade to the premium features which include a blog, a feed for the blog, budget tool, and increased number of photos to upload, a message board, and other features. In addition, you can create your own header and send it to the company who will upload it for you. Still not satisfied with the website designs, the company can create one for you for an additional charge.

Not sure that this concept is for you? No problem, There is a free 7 day trial so you can play around with the site to see if it meets your expectations. Check out some of the websites created on the site.
What has my experience been so far? Terrific. The customer service has been wonderful to deal with. I can email or call them with any questions. My guests love the site. Some think I created it all by myself ( yeah, in my sleep.)

The basic monthly price is $9.95 and the upgraded website is $14.95 a month. So, have an upcoming party, reunion, business event, baby shower, wedding or bar mitzvah? Consider using MyEvent.com. Convenience wrapped up in one paperless green site sure to tread lighter on Mother Earth, the orginal party girl.
So, what is your favorite way to make and/or send invitations that are kinder to the Earth?

Photo by permission of Fiona Wilkerson

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Let Me Count the Way to Reuse Your Mylar Balloons

Anna@Green Talk — Tue, 06 May 2008 02:57:16 +0000

Photo by permission of peretzpup

With Mother’s Day fastly approaching, what would be nicer than a flower arrangement with a shiny Mylar Balloon inscribed with the saying, “Number 1 MOM?” How about your Memorial Day or 4^th of July party? Mylar balloons just add to the festival attitude. Just name the celebration, and there are Mylar balloons created for that very occasion.

Mylar balloons have their pros and cons. Mylar balloons last longer than natural latex balloons, and rain cannot deter that special message from being seen by all. However, longevity comes with a price since these little wonders do not biodegrade for a very, very long time. So, what do you do with them when they sink to the ground? Most people just throw them away and never give it another thought. They don’t realize that those balloons will sit in a landfill way beyond little Susie’s birthday.

Recently, I was asked to come up with some ideas on how to reuse these balloons. They needed to use them so they would last for several days outside. Telling them not to use the Mylar balloons was not an option. I thought and thought and did a little research and found the following ideas on how to reuse these shiny wonders.

1. Use the balloon as either gift paper or a gift bag. Snip of the bottom. Either put the gift inside the Mylar like a gift bag, and then tie it with a ribbon. Alternatively, cut it in two, and use it as wrapping paper.

2. Use the balloon for scrapbooking. Cut out the letters to use for sayings and/or use the shiny colored part for the backgrounds for your pictures or mementos. (Via Recycle this)

3. Use the Mylar balloons for animal deterrence.

For deer: Cut up the balloon into long strips and tie them to your fence or on a stake near your plants to wave in the wind. See a picture on the Maryland Department of Resources. This will (hopefully) scare deer away. See the Georgia Department of National Resources for more information on how to use Mylar balloons to deter deer.

Birds and fruit trees: On RecycleThis, a commenter suggested hanging them in your fruit trees to scare the birds away.

Woodpeckers: According to the Carolina Wildlife Care, Frequently asked Questions, Mylar balloons or pieces of the same can be used to stop Woodpeckers from pecking at your house. “Hang shiny Mylar strips, Mylar balloons, or aluminum foil around area of home. Woodpeckers do not like shiny, mirror-like materials.”

Birds banging into your windows: Additionally the organization suggests, you can hang these same strips outside your windows to discourage birds from banging into them.

4. Deflate the balloons and use them again. Here are instructions on Inscrutables.

5. Use the Mylar balloon to wrap a bottle of wine instead of purchasing a wine gift bag.

Here are suggestions numbers 6 through 8 from Creative Ways to Reuse a Mylar Balloon.” Read this article for details on how to make the following:

6. Try using the Mylar as packing materials instead of peanuts.

7. Make pompoms out of them.

8. Use them to make photo frame backs. Instead of using a matte stock paper, consider using the Mylar instead attached to card stock as the background.

9. Use for creative art projects. In the alternatively, see if a school could use them for art projects.

10. Use to put around a plant instead of tin foil when giving a plant gift. Just tie a ribbon around the pot to secure the balloon in place.

Help me out with some suggestions! Do you have any ideas on how to reuse Mylar balloons?

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Organic Vodka, Starting From Square One

Anna@Green Talk — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 22:56:15 +0000

Photo by permission of Square One^®

Wondering what would be an amazing New Year’s hostess gift? Consider bringing along a bottle of Square One, organic vodka that not only delivers taste but considers its impact on the Earth. When I first learned about Square One Vodka^®, I questioned whether or not this was just another company jumping on the “let’s be green” band wagon by having perhaps one or two green attributes.

As I discovered, Square One is the real deal from its selection of the vodka’s ingredients, the manner how it is processed, to how it is packaged. But, the story does not stop there. Sustainability is also a core principal of the Company’s corporate practices. Square One^® was started in April, 2006 by Allison Evanow, CEO of the company, along with her sister, Debbie, a leader in the banking industry, and Kimberly Charles, owner of Charles Communications Associates, a respected PR firm. They were determined to show the liquor industry that you can combine social responsibility with social fun. Allison’s background, although unusual, has given her a unique perspective on what it takes to make a quality, good tasting organic vodka in an overly saturated market.

“When Allison Evanow talks to bar chefs about Square One^® vodka, the first certified organic vodka to be made from 100% certified organic American rye, it’s not as sales rep to drink professional. It’s as bartender to bartender. While Evanow was getting her MBA at the Thunderbird School of Global Management, she worked on the business side of the bar and learned what it takes to please an ever-changing mix of first-time visitors and long-time regulars. And while her successful career in wine and spirits marketing may have taken her out from behind the bar, she still creates her own cocktail recipes at home,” according to the Company.

So, why did Allison choose to make vodka organically rather than another type of liquor? Allison explained that due to its popularity, purity, and flexibility in mixed drinks, vodka was the most obvious spirit to manufacturer organically.

However, in order to make the best possible quality vodka and be environmentally responsible as well, you have to start at literally square one, hence the name of the Company.

Allison, as a self- described “foodie,” knew that in order to accomplish her two goals you had to use the freshest and purist organic ingredients and eliminate the use of chemical additives, genetically modified yeast, and synthetic de-foaming agents, which are typically used in conventional vodka fermentation.

She challenged her Company to be environmentally responsible from the ground up. The end results are the following environmental attributes:

All ingredients in the production of the liquor are organic. The organic rye is grown in North Dakota. The water comes from the Teton Range, and all organic nutrients are used for the fermentation process.
All production takes place within a100 foot radius since the distillery is in Idaho, and the water drawn from the an aquifer feed by the Snake River watershed of the Teton Range of Wyoming, which is located beneath the distillery. Producing the product in one place provides the Company with complete control over the end product.
Fermentation process is certified organic by Oregon Tilth and USDA National Organic Program. In order to receive OTC certification, 95% of the material and methods used in the fermentation process must be organic.
All by products of the rye fermentation do not go to waste but are used by a local farm as cattle feed.
No harmful acid-dipped or screen printed glass is used, which is commonly used in the industry. Direct screen-printed bottles almost always employ petroleum-based inks which are harmful to the environment.
The distillery is partially wind-powered from locally generated power.
The easy to remove labels are made of Fassoon® Tree-Free Facestock labels made from bamboo, bagasse (sugar cane), and cotton.
Use of Supreme Corq, the only taint free “cork” allowed under organic certification rules.
All marketing materials are created on New Leaf paper through GreenerPrinter.Both New Leaf and GreenerPrinter are certified green businesses and use 100% wind power in the productions of their products.
The Company has designed a beautiful bottle to encourage reuse as a vase with easy to remove labels rather than creating more energy to recycle it.
The vodka is shipped in chlorine-free partially recycled paper cartons printed only with soy based inks.
Company supports green events and organizations through an extensive donation program for the Environmental Media Association Awards and Global Green benefits to small local launches, and green galas.
The use of carbon-offsets for air travel.
At all of their event, the use of Bio banners, a biodegradable PVC for its banners, and Greenware drinking cups, (compostable cups.)

Despite the above laundry list of green accomplishments, the Company quickly pointed out to me that they are not as green as they would like to be. This revelation is not surprising coming from the all-women leadership of Square One^® where “good” is not enough in a male dominated arena.

Their bottle is not made out of recycled glass since they were limited to companies who would supply their low minimum needs. Additionally, the Company’s distillery does not yet have the equipment to apply recyclable aluminum capsules. However, despite these challenges, the Company is committed to addressing all the ongoing facets of its environmental impact.

Taste?

One pressing question I had was, despite the Company’s wonderful environmental attributes, was the vodka’s taste good enough to be bought by consumers who could care less if it was organic? When I posed this question to Allison, she explained what makes Square One^®so special.

“Rye is generally considered to be somewhat more robust in flavor than corn vodka and wheat vodka. It is a complex grain in that it has a much higher protein and fiber content than many of the other grains, and thus it is harder to coax out the sweetness.But when using certified organic fermentation processes, we were able to keep the nutty flavor of the rye with the slight spiciness, while giving it a silky, almost sweet front palate.”

I can’t give my expert opinion since I am not a drinker so I have to turn to the experts to see how they rate Square One. The Wine Enthusiast’s editors gave it a 90-95 out of 100 rating, which means superb, highly recommended and noted:

“A very attractive bouquet with tropical fruit and floral aromas with a grainy, mildly spicy core fragrance of rye. The palate entry is dry to off-dry, intensely grainy and oily; the midpalate offers a dash of prickly heat along with tastes of crackers, breakfast cereal and bread. Finishes warm, grainy, spicy and rich.”

Square One received four out of five stars from highly acclaimed F. Paul Pacult’s Spirit Journal. In addition, it received a silver medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Both recommendations were reported in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.

Character of the Company

Allison Evanow, CEO of Square One^®, standing in front of a display of Square One bottles.

This Company is a square trying to fit in a round world where bottom line profit and loss statements are more important than quality. Although the cost to produce organic vodka, in order to comply with the Company’s environmental policy, is far more expensive than common place vodka, the Company decided that in order to be competitive they will lower their margin of return and eat some of the cost. How many Companies are willing to do that in this day and age?

Although every product is branded by its marketing and quality of the product, the stewardship of the company is molded by the philosophy of the founders. As a female CEO, Allison also started from square one in structuring the Company’s corporate practices and beliefs. Quality over quantity is the root belief of the Company according to Allison.

In addition, she is committed to maintaining its female majority ownership and is preparing to donate a certain percentage of the Company’s profits to nonpolitical environmental causes. Although the bottom line is important, Allison’s beliefs are that giving back is just as important as corporate growth.

One practice that really stands out in my opinion is Allison’s determination to help create a balance for her employees of their work and personal lives by offering job sharing, flextime, and virtual office options. Having been there herself working the fifty plus hours, Allison decided quality of life for her employees would make her company far more productive than the antiquated inflexible corporate America business model.

Where can you Order Square One?

A bottle of Square One^® costs $30-$35. A bottle is a 750 milliliter bottle, and can be purchased at the following retailers or distributors or found at certain bars. In addition, it can be purchased online.

Listed on the Site is a compilation of cocktail mixes created by Allison and Mixologist, H. Joseph Ehrmann for your enjoyment.

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