Here are some alternative ideas:  On the left – wooden seed starting trays, top center – Pot Maker, make your own from recycled newspaper, top right – ecofriendly Cow Pots made from recycled cow poop, bottom center – seeds starting in soil blocks made by the Handheld Soil Blocker on the bottom right.

If you are a local gardener, Taft Farms,in Great Barrington has a drop-off for used pots – that they reuse, and Pittsfield residents can access our recycle schedule here.

]]> http://crispina.com/2012/05/reconsumereyes-seed-starting/feed/ 3 http://crispina.com/2012/05/freak-of-the-week-liz-olney/ http://crispina.com/2012/05/freak-of-the-week-liz-olney/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 12:13:39 +0000 Crispina http://crispina.com/?p=1249 A true living treasure of Berkshire County, I cannot remember how we first met, but I know it was waaayyy back.  And, I know, we have had a whole lot of high jinx since!  Like the time we drove to show in NYC in a driving blizzard in a beat up old rental van with no heat or defrost. I, wearing completely ridiculous shoes and thin socks, she, in her wooly socks and winter boots!  We pulled-over and worked on our product in the thick of it, laughed the whole time and lived to tell about it!

Liz lives in a little loft in the heart of Housatonic, MA where she makes the most magical leatherwork.  Not leatherwork like belts and sandals, Liz’s work is more like Tiffany with a dab of Hundertwasser, and sprinkle of Hogs N Heifers mixed in.  Her level of craft is unmatched – a true alchemist.  Wearing her sparkly bracelets allows the wearer to scatter rainbows throughout their days.  Owning one of her wallets has brought me years of organized satisfaction – knowing I have supported a friend, fellow maker, and the earth – as her quality is long (maybe lifetime) lasting.  In addition to being a masterful maker Liz freely shares her wealth of knowledge of industry secrets – like where to get the best cutting and sewing tools, what kinds of adhesives work best for what material, and who to call when advice is needed to make an old machine work for a new application.  Simply put, her ingenuity reaches into many realms.  She is a people person with a love for her trade, the planet, and world peace that is tangible upon initial contact.

Here is a clip from her Etsy Shop:

Liz Olney started her career as a leather craftsman when she first arrived in New York thirty years ago from England, making leather clothing for rock stars and movie personalities. This led to a career in the handbag industry designing for various well-known companies such as Carlos Falchi, Sharif and Donald J. Pliner.

After achieving great success in the fashion world, she decided to start her own line of products that reflect her personality.

Combining her sense of whimsy and meticulous detailing, she launched her own collection of handcrafted leather jewelry, bolo ties, chokers, belts, hair ties, pins, pouches, bags and more.

Liz is happy to be creating a line of functional and practical state of the art leatherware that appeals to women and men, young and old alike, and hopes that her work will bring joy and appreciation for the fine craftsmanship she so lovingly delivers.

The Berkshires are very lucky indeed, that Liz is in our midst.  You can meet her, selling her delightful wares, at a trunk show at Andrew Stuart – a new gallery located right next to the South Egremont Fire Station – opposite Kenver’s on May 18th from 4 to 8 and Saturday May 19th from 12 to 5.  If you are not a local person, click here to see her work – she has an Etsy shop, and facebooking with Liz is always entertaining.

Unpaper Towels are simple squares, the size of a piece of paper towel, cut from soft and absorbent birds-eye cotton with a tidy little serged stitch running the circumference.  They are available in lots of beautiful colors and are designed to fit into a simple, well made dispenser called a Towel House.  Two Towel Houses sit on our kitchen shelf, each takes up about the same amount of space as a roll of paper towels.  One is filled with UnPaper Towels – that we use for everything from wiping a counter spill, to drying hands, and often, they double as table napkins.   The second Towel House is used to dispense plastic produce bags for re-use.

When I talked to Kai, the mom of the operation, she told me that one of her daughters is getting married this spring so shipping time might be running a little longer than their usual 2 weeks.  I quote her here:

Who knew that we’d begin looking for ways to cut our family expenses, but would wind up going green?

. . .and open a shop on Etsy to offer our family’s solution, the Towel House. Transition away from paper towels to eco friendly unpaper towels made from washable, reusable, wonderful cloth!

Save a whole bunch of resources like trees, money and landfill space when you ReConsumerEyes and use UnPaper Towels in your home. Customer service, as well as quality, and durability of product are impeccable.  Thanks Kai and family!

Karl and I have known each other for many years.  When we first met he was a crazy funny circus guy doing a fabulous job making a creative living while single-parenting his beautiful little daughter.  We share an alternative outlook on work and following a path of creative inspiration to pay our bills.  (And, funnily enough, we both own churches!)  Years passed and our circles connected here and there spinning into the future, happy to know the other is out there creating interesting things.  When my family landed in Pittsfield in 2006 at the former Notre Dame church, it was heartening to find a large piece of Sculpture by Saliter just across the busy street from our home.  When I interviewed Karl for this piece, I found a note taped on the door heading out of his house that reads: Be a Source of Love on the Planet.  Precisely Karl.  Thanks.

Share with me a little bit about yourself and business.

I am Karl Saliter, 46 years old. I live in Cornwall Bridge, CT, where I keep a pretty messy studio, outside of an old church where I live part time.  My work in sculpture takes me all over the world, my most recent, far-away piece, was a 9-foot turtle egg for the city of Akumal, Mexico. This month I made some cool stuff for the CT Commission on Culture and Tourism.  It is in Hartford, in a foundation recipient show at their gallery at 1 Capitol Center.  Today I dropped off a piece for a show at Noble Horizons in Salisbury, CT. Saturday, I will bring a large piece to the Ober Gallery in Kent, CT.

Who has been most influential in your work?

The most influential sculptors on a practical level have been Peter Busby and Tim Prentice, two very accomplished artists who have been crazy generous in helping me find my way.  Who do I most look up to?  Calder.

In Circus Arts, I learned everything from Mark Farneth of the Can Do Circus. And, from watching the Muppet Show.

When and How did you know to follow your entrepreneurial path?

I was 19, and I knew from watching my dad, that I stood a good chance of becoming obsessed with my work, whatever it was going to be.  I decided that given that probability, then my work should be primarily fun.  Then I met Mark, watched him do a street show, and I knew this was for me.  With the sculpture, when I was seven I read an article in Highlights magazine, “How to Make a Turtle.”  They described how you get a flat round stone, and five small round ones, and glue ‘em together with Elmer’s Glue.  It worked!   Then they said you could paint it, and that worked too.  My turtle was awesome, and I have had the gift of being over appreciative of myself as an artist ever since.

Where do you find your inspiration?

Lately, in meditation.

Aside from working, how do you spend your time?

I do yoga, I teach yoga, I read a lot. I try to be alone a little every day, I hike.

What is your fondest memory?  Why?

Texas, 1987, hitching cross country, tent pitched on a meadow overlooking the highway, sitting outside, playing the harmonica, watching the reddest sunset you ever saw ever.  I was truly alive, autonomous, and deeply grateful.

If you were able to have lunch with anyone – dead or alive, who would it be?

The Dalai Lama

What are you most passionate about?

Animal welfare,factory farming,people bullying those poor dudes who happen to have incarnated outside of our species.

What is a goal for your next 12 months?

I am closing in on some financial goals, but what could be less exciting than that?  In my show, I want to introduce a marionette I had made by Lee Zimmerman, puppet master.  I want to learn how to play it funny, have pulling it out and using it become smooth and easy, then grow a 5-7 minute improv piece from the puppet.

In sculpture, I hope to get this residency in Taiwan I’ve been applying to for years, clean my studio (HA!) and complete this series I’m doing called “Serial Ego Killer”, parts of which are now in Hartford and at Endicott College.

Where would you like to be in 10 years?

In ten years I hope to be shifted entirely over to sculpture, doing only 12-13 performances a year, and creating work which I cannot even think of now.  I plan for the sculpture to grow larger and more substantial for the next seven years, then implode, then come back from nowhere in a different form.  But I’m open to whatever.

How would you like to be remembered?

A loving father, a very funny showman, a sculptor who redefined what is possible in play with form (no, that’s not toooo lofty.)  A dependable neighbor.  A friend to miss.

Find Karl at Sculpture by Saliter – or on a yoga mat in Mexico.

]]> http://crispina.com/2012/05/meet-karl-saliter-freak-of-the-week/feed/ 4 http://crispina.com/2012/05/reconsumereyes-dotties-coffee-lounge/ http://crispina.com/2012/05/reconsumereyes-dotties-coffee-lounge/#comments Wed, 02 May 2012 19:06:18 +0000 Crispina http://crispina.com/?p=1212

Our neighborhood is graced by Dottie’s Coffee Lounge, that is owned and run by Jessica Lamb. She is a Berkshire County native who has come home from The Big Apple to spread her good word. Included in her message is the desire to teach environmental stewardship by example. One of the ways she is doing this is through her glass jar coffee to-go program. Customers bring her empty glass jars that are about the size of a good cuppa coffee. When ordering drinks to-go, one can request a jar rather than the standard paper cup with ‘Java Jacket’. Pretty simple stuff that really makes a difference!

Dottie’s Coffee Lounge is an oasis of fun and culture here in Pittsfield right on the corner of North and Maplewood. Be sure to stop in for a most delicious coffee or lunch if you are in this neck of the woods.

ReConsumerEyes is a weekly column written by Crispina ffrench highlighting simple ideas to lessen our global footprint. If you have an idea for a feature please email Crispinaffrench@gmail.com

Charlie and I met waaaay back, in 1989.  As a matter of fact, Charlie is my son, Ben’s dad, and, dear friend of the family.

Charlie is a farmer, and has been since he sold corn off a card table on the side of the road when he was 14 or 15 years old.  His dad was a dairy farmer, so Charlie grew up in a pretty traditional farm family setting – eight kids, barn full of cows, lots of hard work, great homemade meals, laughter, family, crops and the great outdoors.

Today, Charlie runs Paley’s Farm Market The Good Earth Farm, located on Route 343 in Sharon Connecticut.  Formerly a hayfield for The Morris Paley Farm, his 40 acre piece of land stretches from Connecticut across into New York State.  Ten Mile River runs through the peaceful, gently rolling fields pushing up early crops of lettuces, and peas with all manner of summer to follow – corn, squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, beans, a rainbow blaze of cut flowers, fresh culinary herbs and perennials.   Not only does Charlie plant and harvest this multitude of crops, he has a lively shop packed full of the fruits of his hard work along with other locally grown foods, gardening tools, seeds, unusual perennials, bedding plants and supplies.  There is really good coffee sold by the cup and locally produced baked goods from the area’s best suppliers.

Every spring I make the trek south with an empty car to load full of all sorts of starts for Alchemy Initiative’s cutting flower garden.  Giant zinnias, nasturtiums of all sorts, extra tall snapdragons, foxglove, amaranth, cosmos, and so many more are available to the early bird shopper with a hankering for unusual varieties.

Long hours of hard work, all dependent on Mother Nature wear on the body, mind and business after years so Charlie is planning his next endeavor.  He is available as a hands on New Farm/er Consultant.  This season he is working with Hotchkiss School on their newly acquired, former John Blum Dairy and Breeding farm in Salisbury Ct.  He laughs out loud when he realizes that he is now the ‘old-timer’ with the wisdom and knowledge sought by greenhorns.   Full of valuable knowledge, ranging from suppliers, technique, to reading weather patterns, and soil content, Charlie is an asset to his community and inspiring to many.  If you are in his neck of the woods, stop in and support natural, local, second generation farming and our heritage.

Paley’s Farm Market is open 8-5 seven days a week from April – September at 230 Amenia Rd, Sharon Ct, 06069, 860-364-0674

This week’s ReConsumEyes features Cameron Allshouse, a native of Pittsfield (Shire City), MA, and mom of two. She lives her life as a conscious consumer and keeps well educated and up to date with the latest recommendations of how to live a sustainable life.  One thing that surprised her on her journey was the huge influx of “stuff” that came into her life with the birth of her first child.  The giant tidal wave of tiny clothing, toys and other miscellaneous baby care items soon overwhelmed her, and her husband.  And the pile only got larger as their daughter grew and they had a second child.

Cameron and her hubby had so much ‘stuff’ that they began to store it away wondering what best to do with it all.  So much of what they had, and didn’t need, was in nearly new condition and could be useful to someone with a child at the appropriate stage.  Small batches of sentimental things were passed on to friends and relatives, but still there was so much more.  Funnily enough, at the same time, it was difficult to find the clothes and toys needed for her children’s next stages without buying new.  Even knowing many other people with children, hand-me-downs were few and far between.  In 2010 Cameron decided to create a venue to purge all the amazing, useful kid-gear she had that was going unused, and find some gently used things to accommodate her children’s progress.  The Giveaway was created when Cameron sorted out all of her family’s outgrown toys and clothing and set it up, tag sale style, in her backyard dance studio.  She spread the word at local baby groups, Berkshire County La Leche League, and to friends and family.  She asked people to bring items they were not using and take items that would be useful.  New homes were found for the vast majority of clean, organized and barely used toys, clothing, and gear.  The remainder was donated to local groups such as Redfield House and The Kids’ Place.  The event was a huge success.

Since then, The Giveaway, has grown and expanded to a twice-a-year event. Cameron partners with local women’s group GROW to help, get the word out and with all the sorting and setup. Last fall over 50 families participated and the number grows each time.  People continually express amazement at the volume, and quality of items donated and up for grabs.  There are always even a few brand new items with tags still on, most often, in newborn sizes, leftover from baby shower gifts.  It is overwhelming to see the overconsumption that occurs for a tiny new one who will grow out of things so quickly, and Cameron has figured out how to diminish that perfectly!

The event appeals to many different people.  It is great for like-minded parents, and, is smart, financially.  People can know this happens twice a year and plan to get items at The Giveaway instead of putting out money they may not have.  There have even been teachers who have picked up supplies for their classrooms, including extra clothes for kids who show up unprepared for weather and need to borrow something.  It is a way for people to try greener options with out a big investment.  Cloth diapers make a regular appearance and are a great way for people who are curious to try them out.

Another wonderful aspect is the exposure to reuse for people who don’t regularly practice it.  When people arrive and see the well cared for goods available for free – they see their kids’ excitement, and it illustrates how happy kids are with things that are just new – to them.  There are often beautiful handmade items that people don’t want to just drop in a box somewhere, but feel like they have a better chance of finding a good home through this small local venue.  The whole event is also a special lesson for the kids involved.  They learn they don’t need to ask for all kinds of stuff at the store all the time because there is the toy swap to look forward to instead.

This Spring’s goodies include puzzles, games, stuffed animals, hats, socks, shoes, baby, toddler, and kids’ clothes, maternity clothes, coats, costumes, cloth diapers, a desk, a bouncy seat, books, movies, sippy cups and much more.  On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/events/322161414500735/ and Gathered Resources of Women’s online calendar http://gatheredwomen.org/calendar/ .

Come check it out at 88 Sheffield Street, Pittsfield, MA, off of Highland Avenue,  Friday April 27th 4pm – 7pm, Saturday April 28th 10am – 4pm, and Sunday April 29th 10 – 4pm.

]]> http://crispina.com/2012/04/reconsumereyes-toy-kids-clothing-giveaway/feed/ 5 http://crispina.com/2012/04/earth-day-handmade-or-recycled/ http://crispina.com/2012/04/earth-day-handmade-or-recycled/#comments Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:30:38 +0000 Crispina http://crispina.com/?p=1175

Today, Earth Day, we honor our Mother planet, the one who gives all life.  My days are filled with question about how best to share the urgency I feel to live Earth’s adoration.  I am proud to have curated a Fashion Show highlighting the best fashion designers out there using recycled materials.  Please take a moment to see all the amazing clothing designed by professionals, and donated to Alchemy Initiative to sell to support the mission- Drawing community through the arts, food, and careful consumption.

Bidding on these amazing things ends tonight!  So far, there are some unheard of deals that should not be missed.  Click this link (and scroll down) to see what I am talking about and remember to err on the side of handmade or recycled when making any purchase!

Namaste, Great Mother Earth – I nod to the wellspring of magic in you that gives us each our magic.

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