Shopping

Photo: Tony Crider/Flickr

Okay friends, this is as much for me as it is for you. I have become lazy when it comes to using coupons at the store. I don’t spend much time tracking them down. The few I have, I forget to take to the store with me most of the time.

 

So I’m gathering a list of websites to visit while I’m creating my grocery list. These are websites that offer coupons on the foods that I buy — some frequently, some infrequently. You can save up to 30% on healthy staples such as milk, yogurt, meat, and more. Of course, how much you save depends on the prices at your local grocery store. 

 

These are sites that offer access to coupons immediately, but in some cases you need to register to get access. Once you register, you'll likely receive email newsletters, but those newsletters might have more money-saving offers in them.

 

There are many other manufacturers that don’t have immediate coupons on their sites, but they send out coupons in newsletters if you sign up for them. I’ll leave them for another blog post.

 

• Arm & Hammer – A while back, home blogger Matt told us how to clean naturally with Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda. You can get coupons for Arm & Hammer products after registering on this site.
• Bordon – Organic milk coupon.
• Brown Cow – Register to get e-coupons on Brown Cow’s yogurts.
• Coleman – Complete a quick survey and get $5 in coupons for Coleman’s natural and organic meats. Save around 17% on bacon depending on where you live. 
• Earthbound Organics – You have to work for this one. Take a quiz about organics, score 100 percent, and get a coupon. Save up to 26% on salad mixes depending on the prices at your local store. 
• Earth’s Best – Coupons for organic baby food, infant formula, and toddler snacks.
• Laura’s Lean Beef – Sign up for the newsletter and receive an instant e-coupon.
• Lighthouse – You need to sign up to receive a coupon good for Lighthouse products including organic salad dressings.
• Hill’s Science Diet Pet Food – Natural dog and cat food coupons. Must register.
• Horizon – Sign up to get access to the coupons.
• Marzetti – Marzetti has a line of organic salad dressings and dips.
• Mombo Sprouts – Lots of various coupons for different natural and organic products. Changes frequently.
• Newman’s Own – The site allows you to print coupons twice and lets you know when the coupons will change so you can get the new ones when they go up. You can use 50 cent coupons on numerous products. Count on saving around 25% on lemonade, 20% on salsa, and 16% on salad dressings and pasta sauces depending on the prices at your local store. 
• Organic Valley – Coupons for organic milk, eggs, cheese, and butter. Save as much as 30% on a half-gallon of organic milk depending on prices at your grocery store. 
• Pacific Foods – Coupons for soups, beverages, and frozen foods. I love the creamy tomato soup.
• R.W. Knudsen – Register for coupons for natural juices.
• Santa Cruz – Organic beverage and peanut butter coupons.
• Seeds of Change – Organic rice, pasta, and chocolate.
• Simply Organic – Coupons for a variety of Simply Organic products.
• Seventh Generation – Register and get instant access to coupons for household products. Save up to 27% on dish-washing liquid depending on prices at your grocery store. 
• Stonyfield – You need to register for access to the e-coupons. Save around 20% on a box of organic yogurt tubes depending on prices at your store. 
• Tribe Hummus – Tribe makes an all-natural hummus and an organic hummus.

Remember, any of these sites can change or omit their coupons at any time.

 

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Happy America Saves Week! Whatever you do, don't run out and buy me a present. That would defeat the whole purpose of the holiday.

America Saves Week 2010 (February 21-28) is a nationwide campaign involving more than 1,000 nonprofit, government, and corporate groups that encourages individuals and families to save and build personal wealth. The event's website is loaded with free resources and advice, including a nifty calculator that allows you to track your net worth. (Warning: The calculator is easy to use, but the results might be hard to take.)

America Saves Week is a perfect time to start getting your financial house in order and maybe jump-start that flagging New Year's resolution to spend less and save more.

 

Here are my top five tips to help get you started:

1) Go on a fiscal fast:
Swear-off all spending for a couple of days - or ideally an entire week - as a sort of "spending detox." It's time to use it up, make it last, or do without.

A fiscal fast will save you some money (put it into savings or pay off some debt with what you save!), and teach you about how you spend - and probably waste - money in a typical week. It'll also remind you of how many terrific things in life are free.

 

2) Practice spending procrastination:
When it comes to discretionary spending, it usually pays to put off buying until tomorrow what you're tempted to buy today. Studies have shown that we have regrets about nearly 80% of the discretionary purchases we make within the first year of making the purchase.

Force yourself to wait at least a week between the time you see an item in a store and when you go back to purchase it. Chances are great that you'll reconsider and never go back to buy it.

 

3) Put your finances on autopilot:
To paraphrase Jack Nicholson's character in A Few Good Men, "The money? You can't handle the money!" Have your paychecks and other income deposited directly into your bank account(s), including automatic allocations into designated savings and investment accounts.

Then authorize your creditors (e.g., credit card companies, mortgage lender, insurance company, etc.) to automatically withdraw your payments every month from your account. By putting your finances on autopilot, savings becomes automatic and you'll never have late fees or missed payments again.

 

4) Pay with cash only:
Studies have shown that when you pay with a credit card, you're more likely to buy something than when you pay with cash, and you're more willing to pay more for it (see my previous post on credit cards).

Psychologically, it's just harder to part with actual greenbacks than it is to whip out the plastic. Try paying for everything with cash for a week and see how much you save.

 

5) Conduct a "What the heck was I thinking?" audit:
Sit down once or twice a year and look back at your major discretionary purchases during the preceding months. Then ask yourself one simple question: "If I had it to do over again, would I have bought that?"

Make a list of expenditures you regret, and learn from those mistakes. You'll probably notice some patterns, like maybe you're prone to buy clothing on a whim that you regret later. Or maybe you rush out to buy the latest tech gadget the day it comes out, before the bugs have been worked out and increased demand causes prices to drop.

 

So, break out the box wine and join me in a toast to America Saves Week 2010.

 

Jeff Yeager is the author of the book The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches. His website is www.UltimateCheapskate.com.

Follow Jeff Yeager on Twitter and friend Jeff on Facebook. Friend TDG on Facebook and follow TDG on Twitter.

 

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Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc

The Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on a marketing claim that may have ensnared many environmentally conscious buyers: "bamboo."

While clothing and other textiles may have started off, at some point, as the rapidly regenerative bamboo, the FTC says companies can't label rayon as bamboo, even if it's made from bamboo. Why?

Because, according to the FTC:

Rayon is a man-made fiber created from the cellulose found in plants and trees and processed with harsh chemicals that release hazardous air pollution. Any plant or tree – including bamboo – could be used as the cellulose source, but the fiber that is created is rayon.

The FTC this week sent warning letters to 78 retailers about misguided use of "bamboo" marketing. Among the warned retailers: Amazon.com, Barney’s New York, Bed Bath & Beyond, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Bloomingdale’s, Costco Wholesale, Garnet Hill, Gold Toe, Hanes, Isotoner, JC Penney, Jockey, Kmart, Kohl’s, Land’s End, Macy’s, Maidenform, Nordstrom, Overstock.com, QVC, REI, Saks Fifth Avenue, Sears, Shop NBC, Spiegel, Sports Authority, Target, The Gap, The Great Indoors, Tommy Bahama, Toys R’ Us, Wal-Mart, and Zappos.com. Last year, the FTC sued several retailers for advertising rayon as bamboo.

"We need to make sure companies use proper labeling and advertising in their efforts to appeal to environmentally conscious consumers," David C. Vladeck, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a prepared statement. "Rayon is rayon, even if bamboo has been used somewhere along the line in the manufacturing process."

If retailers and manufacturers fail to comply, the penalty can be severe: $16,000 per violation.

The FTC's consumer tips include this information about "bamboo" rayon:

• Rayon made from bamboo uses "toxic chemicals in a process that releases pollutants into the air."
• "Extracting bamboo fibers is expensive and time-consuming, and textiles made just from bamboo fiber don’t feel silky smooth."
• "There’s also no evidence that rayon made from bamboo retains the antimicrobial properties of the bamboo plant."
• "No traits of the original plant are left in the finished product."

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Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc

(Photo: Getty Images)

Still have holiday shopping to do but aren't up for a trip to the mall? There's plenty of time to shop online. The best part is that you don't necessarily have to pay huge fees to make sure that gifts arrive by Christmas.

If you shop online on Thursday, December 17, you can take advantage of Free Shipping Day. Hundreds of merchants (so far the count is 671) are offering free shipping deals with guaranteed delivery by December 24. Details about the specific promotions from participating retailers will be available starting at 12:00 a.m. EST on December 17.

Many businesss will offer free shipping on all orders. Others have specific requirements, such as a minimum amount spent in one order. Regardless, it's definitely worth checking out the Free Shipping Day website on Thursday to find out if your favorite retailers are participating.

In most cases, Thursday is your last chance to ship via ground and have your packages arrive by Christmas Eve. So even if a merchant you want to buy from doesn't participate in Free Shipping Day, it may be your last day to choose ground shipping (which is not only good for your wallet, it's also good for the planet since that is five times more efficient than overnight air).

Here's a small sampling of retailers participating in Free Shipping Day: 

• 1-800-Flowers
• Adidas
• American Eagle Outfitters
• Apple Store
• Borders
• Brookstone
• Chefs Catalog
• Eddie Bauer
• Gaiam
• JC Penney
• Kiehl's
• Levi's
• Lord & Taylor
• Macy's
• Nike
• Nordstrom
• Pottery Barn
• Ralph Lauren
• Sears
• The Body Shop
• Timberland
• Toys R Us
• Urban Outfitters
• West Elm

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

Check out Yahoo! Green on Twitter and Facebook.

(Photo: Ablestock / Getty Images)

It’s holiday season once again, and your available shopping days are steadily dwindling. You’ve been too busy … you haven’t found “just the right thing” for your beloved recipients … you feel a nervous breakdown coming on …

Is a hair-pulling, last-minute trip to the mall the only solution?

No. Before you flash the plastic, consider “shopping at home” for the holidays this year. Shop your closets, cabinets, and plastic storage bins. Browse your basement, your attic, and the space under your beds. All that accumulated clutter that isn't right for you? It may be perfect for someone else. Yes, it's time we added a word to the "reduce, reuse, recycle" mantra: "regift."

Regifting not only helps preserve your wallet and the environment, but - if you do it right - your friendships. Here are seven last-minute gift ideas you can find around the house that your friends won't find tacky.

 

Mixing bowls

If you’ve got one of those neighbors who loves to borrow things - especially baking ingredients - why not preempt her next request? Scan your pantry for unopened items. Think confectioner’s sugar, chocolate chips, cans of baking powder, unopened sprinkle sets, even cookie cutters.

Then package up a baking kit for her, placed inside the best mixing bowl leftover from that long-ago housewarming party.

See more homemade food gift ideas, these gift ideas for cooks, or other creative alternative gifts.

 

 

 

(Photo: Getty Images)

Books

If you have a pal who's always lending you new books, this one is a cinch. Train your mind on the guy who's always buzzing about the new David Sedaris - and head to your bookshelf!

Seriously, when was the last time you read Moby Dick? Jane Eyre? Everyone’s got books lying around that they'll never read, or that they finished and placed right back on the shelf.

Make your pal a “2010 Recommended Reading List,” and wrap up a small collection of gems from your bookshelf.

 

 

 

(Photo: Getty Images)

Candles

This one's great for the babysitter. She works hard to look after your kids, and deserves a little R&R.

Start with an attractive box. Add some of the unused gift candles (who doesn't have these clogging the hall closet?) and top it off with a packaged dash of homemade bath salts (just mix coarse sea salt with lavender or other essential oils).

Voila! Instant home spa kit.

If the home spa treatment isn't right, how about a professional job at a green spa?

 

 

 

(Photo: Jason Homa /
Getty Images)

Vintage clothes

Remember all the stuff from the ‘70s and ‘80s you actually wore? These things are now called “vintage.”

Mine your attic and closet for well-preserved blouses, dresses, scarves, and hats, and wrap up each piece in colorful tissue paper.

Don’t forget to dig inside your old box of costume jewelry, too: A layered chain necklace can be transformed into a funky, stylish belt.

Vintage not your thing? Check out the complete green outfit for her, and these less formal clothing gift ideas.

 

 

 

Kitchen gadgets

For the person who's always wishing for one of those “magic” kitchen appliances, (hi Mom!), think about any housewarming gift you’ve ever received: Is the speedy chopper machine/juicer/instant egg boiler in your pantry gathering dust?

If so, rinse it off and package it up for Mom. Add a gently-used cookbook from your collection or a set of handmade recipe cards.

 

Workshop tools

While you’re “shopping,” don’t forget to look in the garage. If the deluxe tool set you gave your husband for his birthday is still sitting on his workbench, unopened, chances are he really doesn’t need it.

But Dad does! Would he like work gloves, too? Chances are there’s a brand new pair around there, too.

Looking for a newer toy for your man? Check out these cool green gadgets for the working guy, and some for pure fun too.

 

            (Photo: Getty Images)

Wine

For a quick turnaround on a gift, this one can't be beat: Just hang onto any wine left in your foyer from Thanksgiving gatherings or pre-holiday get-togethers, and look inside your dining room display case for a spare pair of glasses (after all, do you really need 12?). Relaxation for two is served.

This one also comes with a built-in excuse if you get caught: You loved the wine so much, you wanted others to enjoy it, too!

Not quite right for your friend? How about giving them a tasting at an organic winery, a recycled doorknob wine stopper or one of these other gifts for wine lovers.

 

See? Regifting doesn’t have to be tacky. Done thoughtfully and tastefully, regifiting can make you one smart Christmas cookie!

Jodi Newbern is the author of Regifting Revival: A Guide to Reusing Gifts Graciously from Synergy Books ($12.99 at barnesandnoble.com). Learn more at regiftingrevival.com.

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I'm not good with crowds or long lines, so even doorbuster deals aren't enough to get me out of the house the week after Thanksgiving and into a mall parking lot. What I will do is log on and do some early holiday shopping online.

From fair-trade crafts from around to world to homemade gifts, you can support sustainable enterprises and please everyone on your shopping list when you buy on the Web. Not only is shopping online more convenient, it's more efficient and can even qualify as good for the environment.

Etsy

An online marketplace for anything and everything handmade, Etsy.com is the place to find lovingly crafted items from hundreds of thousands of artists. From traditional crafts made hip to housewares and fine jewelry, Etsy is a wonderful place to shop for custom and one-of-a-kind items for anyone on your list - especially those hard to shop for people who are too cool for anything mass-produced.

Find a gift made from recycled materials. See great ideas for recycled home decorations from Etsy.

 

Ten Thousand Villages

Ten Thousand Villages works with with artisan groups in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to bring you fair-trade jewelry, home decor, and the perfect handmade gift.

Check out the selection of recycled treasures. See more one-of-a-kind recycled gifts.

 

Worldstock

Overstock.com's Worldstock features thousands of items made by skilled craftspeople around the world, shipped directly to you with the artisans receiving an average of 60 percent of the sales price. From furniture to clothing, Worldstock has an assortment of beautiful handcrafted items.

What better way to show your love than with a gift that gives back?

- Kathryn McGrath
Originally published in NRDC's switchboard blog.

 

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(Photo: Courtesy of Mindy Pennybacker)

Forget the Maidenform Bra: For more than a decade, I've dreamed of myself with an Energy Star fridge - but never thought I'd ever own one.

Why dream? They make a big, green difference. Refrigerators are the single most energy-draining appliance in the average home, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

To qualify for EPA's Energy Star, however, a new fridge must now use at least 20% less energy than federal regulations allow for a new model with comparable specs. That's up from 15% less in 2007. Depending on the age of the old fridge you replace, an Energy Star model can cut your refrigeration energy costs in half, the EPA says, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the fossil-fuel-burning power plants that supply 70% of our energy in the U.S. How cool is that?

Reader, I finally popped for the big-ticket item just last month, and, having learned my lesson, I'll tell you how you can do better.

But first, why didn't I make my dream reality years ago? Because, out of combined frugality and dread, I made do with the fridges that came with the apartments I rented or owned in New York City for 27 years. After all, they worked.

Savings on utility bills

My frugality was short-sighted, because an Energy Star fridge will save you $165 in electricity bills over its lifetime, and that's if you buy it instead of a new conventional model that has to meet stricter federal standards.

If you replace a 20-year-old fridge with an Energy Star model, you'll save $100 a year, which climbs to $200 a year if your old one dates from the 1970s, EPA says. Plus, you get cash rebates in most states for Energy Star appliances.

My Energy Star fridge, which replaced a 20-year-old fridge and cost me $590 after a $50 state rebate, will pay for itself in electricity charges in six years. Since the average refrigerator lifespan is 10-14 years, the rest is gravy!

Reducing my household carbon footprint

A fridge made prior to 2001 is responsible, on average, for releasing about 1,600 pounds of greenhouse gases from power plants. That's about one-fifth of the average U.S. home's 20,000-lb. carbon footprint.

Finally, refrigerator recycling I can trust

My dread was better founded. I didn't want my old fridge releasing ozone-depleting greenhouse gases and rusting in a landfill. Until recently, there was no way to responsibly recycle a fridge due to lack of manufacturer or retailer take-back programs in the U.S.

Now, federal law requires that the cooling chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), banned in the U.S. since 1993, or newer hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) be recaptured. Most municipalities or states now have fridge pick-up and recycling programs.

For how to recycle an old fridge in your locale, check out Energy Star's resources. And, in a voluntary partnership with EPA, Sears will take away and recycle your old fridge, no matter who made it, when it delivers your new Sears-purchased model.

I finally bought my long-desired Energy Star fridge when the old one broke down. My husband and I had recently taken over my old family home in Hawaii. The double-door fridge started slowing down and warming up noticeably after my birthday party, when the cranky old through-the-door ice dispenser got abused. First the ice melted into puddles on the floor and the ice cream was soft. A few days later, the fridge stopped cooling altogether.

First, being frugal, we called Mr. Lee, the trusted repairman who's fixed our family's appliances for decades. He shook his head. "Look at that. That's the coolant puddling," he said. So it wasn't water! "It's gone. Beyond repair," Mr. Lee said, and charged us $74 for the house call, which included a new copper water pipe and flow valve to which we would hook up the new fridge.

The freezer was full of precious frozen mango harvested all summer from our tree. We needed a new one now.

As luck would have it, there was a Sears appliance sale. It included Kenmore Energy Star refrigerators. We went to Sears and asked the salesman about the EPA program; he confirmed that they would haul away our old one and deliver it to a recycling company for a $20 fee. "They remove the coolant and recycle the steel," the salesman assured us. "Don't worry! It won't go into Waimanalo Gulch." (That's the overflowing landfill on our island, Oahu.)

How to choose the most efficient Energy Star fridge

As it turns out, not all Energy Star fridges are made alike. It's a staggered scale, depending on the size and features of any given unit; to get an Energy Star, a model has to save 20% of the energy used by a unit with comparable specs. Before going to the mall, I had quickly perused Energystar.gov and committed to memory the following tips:

Size matters - In general, the EPA says, 15-20 cubic feet fridges are most efficient. We chose a 20.5 cubic foot Kenmore Energy Star model.

"Are you sure it's going to fit?" asked the salesman. Of course, my husband and I hadn't measured the doorways, having left our tape measure in New York.

"Sure," I said. After all, this one had to be a lot smaller than the side-by-side, double door avocado green giant that had dominated the kitchen for two decades or more. But as it turns out, it barely made it, even after the delivery guys pried out the door jamb.

That's how it earned the name My Big Fat Energy Star Fridge.

Top-mounted freezers are most efficient, followed by bottom-mounted, then side-by-side. Our biggie, model number 253, comes with a top freezer.

Avoid automatic and through-the-door ice-makers and water dispensers, which use 14-20% more energy. We chose automatic defrost and ice-making, but stopped short of through-the-door.

Check the Energy Guide label, which gives a model's estimated yearly electricity use and operating cost. Some Energy Star models use less energy than the required 20% below the federal standard for fridges with the same capacity and features.

Learn more about the FTC's Energy Guide rules here. The model we chose was at the low end of the spectrum for cost and kWh.

We chose right. Right? To guard against buyers' remorse, I called the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

"Do you want me to praise you or criticize you?" asked Harvey Sachs, senior fellow at ACEEE.

I sucked it up and urged him to be honest.

"You did the best you could in the circumstances. If you'd been really brilliant, you'd have started shopping 30 days before it failed," Sachs said.

Although I hope there won't be a next time for me anytime soon, here, for your benefit, are Harvey Sachs' rules for choosing an Energy Star fridge:

1. Think about the attributes and style you want, first, without fixating on how much you'll save. That way, you'll have a fridge that will suit your needs and you'll feel comfortable with. Timeless and classic styles are advised. After all, it will be with you at least a decade, probably longer. Note models with those attributes.


2. See which of these models is even more efficient than the minimum Energy Star savings of 20% above the federal standard. "On the Energy Star website, you can sort by size, freezer position and other features," Sachs says. "Download the Excel chart of Qualified Refrigerators and look at the columns labeled configuration (i.e., freezer position), volume, and % better than the federal standard."


3. Ask yourself, how big a fridge do you really need? Choose the smallest fridge that meets your need. It's likely to be more efficient, plus your kitchen will look better, and you'll have more room to move around in.

"Trust me as someone who's been through three kitchen remodels in the last three decades," Sachs said. "The happier you are with your fridge, the less likely you'll feel inclined to change your kitchen."

Last but not least, here's my tip:

Measure your doorway and dimensions of the space that will hold the fridge before you go and buy!

I did make one style decision: The fridge came in white, beige, black, or, for extra, stainless steel. I chose black, because it matched the stove. One of my brothers complained that I didn't choose white, and he misses the through-the-door ice dispenser. But the brother who most insistently used this feature, and quite possibly triggered its crash at my birthday party, said he didn't miss this little luxury at all. Go figure!

Resources:

Start with the Energy Star Refrigerator Buyers' Guide at energystar.gov, and explore all the different charts and tips.

For more fridge selection and energy-saving advice and information, go to ACEEE.

See the Union of Concerned Scientists' Greentips for refrigerators.

Figure out what you can save with an Energy Star fridge on EPA's Calculator. To calculate your fridge's emissions, first determine its wattage (for how-to, see DOE's energy efficiency site), and follow this formula, which uses a national average of 1/34 lbs. of CO2 per kWh (kilowatt hour): (# of Watts x # of Hours Used Daily x 365 days)/ 1000 x 1.34 lbs CO2/kWh = x lbs. CO2/yr.

If you want to get a more exact personalized number, use your state's coefficient (which depends on whether your energy mostly comes from coal, fuel oil, or natural gas), which you can find here.

To see what kind of incentives/rebates are offered for buying Energy Star appliances in your state, type in your zip code at DSIREUSA.org's database.

Mindy Pennybacker, former editor-in-chief of The Green Guide, is founder of the green living website and blog GreenerPenny.com. See her "My One Green Thing Today" tips on GreenerPenny.com's Facebook page or follow GreenerPenny on Twitter.

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The mad rush for holiday toy shopping is on. This can be tricky territory for the eco conscious parent. The bad news — a new law designed to improve toy safety may end up reducing green toy choices.

Here’s the scoop: The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) sets mandatory safety standards for toys, clothes, and other items used by kids 12 years and younger. Toy manufacturers will have to test their toys to prove they are safe.

There clearly are issues with toy safety as evidenced by the huge toy recalls a couple of years ago after high levels of lead were discovered in a bunch of holiday toys. Since then the CPSIA, enacted in 2008, has restricted the amount of lead and other chemicals allowed in toys.

Yet problems still exist. Flash forward to a couple of weeks ago, when toy testing done by the Center for Environmental Health showed that of 250 children’s products tested, seven had lead levels that exceeded federal standards. We’re talking Barbie and Disney brands among the seven.

So this tightening of the safety standard screws on toy manufacturers seems all good. But for small toymakers who often make green toys, this required testing could knock them out of business. While costs associated with testing won’t cause a ripple in a big toy manufacturer’s budget, the fees may be more than a lot of mom and pop toymakers can absorb.

With required testing for lead content and certain phthalates due to start on February 10, 2010, time is running short for those who want to alter the law before it goes into effect. The Handmade Toy Alliance is mounting a campaign for change.

If you want to get involved you can sign their petition or use their sample letter to write to your Congress person or Senator.

While shopping for earth friendly toys right now, Greenopia’s toy reviews may help you find the perfect green car, rattle, puzzle or doll. You might want to buy a few extras to save for next year.

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For 20 years, the people behind Buy Nothing Day have been pleading with consumers to avoid the frenzy inherent in “Black Friday,” the no-holds-barred shop-o-rama that comes the day after Thanksgiving.

This year, they’re ramping things up and calling for an all-out wildcat strike against the “capitalist consumption machine.” Socialists, you say? No, just worried people who want to take a stand in the face of “crises of ecology, psychology, and faith.”

Dearest readers, I’ll let them say it themselves — give this a look, and visit the Buy Nothing Day site to learn more:

This year we’re calling for a wildcat general strike. On November 27/28 we’re asking tens of millions of people around the world to bring the capitalist consumption machine to a grinding — if only momentary — halt.

We want you to shut off your lights, your televisions, and other nonessential appliances. We want you to park your car, turn off your phones, and log off your computer for the day. We’re calling for a Ramadan-like fast. From sunrise to sunset, we abstain en masse. Not only from shopping but from all the temptations of our five-planet lifestyles.

Instead we’ll feed our spirits and minds with a feast of subversive activities: pranks, shenanigans, credit card cut-ups, bicycle swarms, mall invasions, and all manner of culture jams and creative détournements … and some of us will take things even further with sit-ins, demonstrations, passive resistance, and acts of nonviolent defiance, anarchy and civil disobedience.

If we can create a big enough ruckus on November 27/28, then we may be able to catalyze what the Situationists tried to set in motion half a century ago: a chain reaction of refusal against consumer capitalism … a sudden, unexpected moment of truth … the first ever global revolution.

So think about it — and at the very least, I encourage you to rein in your shopping this holiday season. Here’s an interesting look at the role of products and packaging in our current climate crisis; when all is said and done, they can be tied to 44 percent of our greenhouse-gas emissions. In the words of Santa’s seamstress, “Yikes.”

Related Links:

• Ask Umbra on trash, toxics, and tots
• Growing up green: How to shop for a green baby
• Ask Umbra on shower caps, computers, and junk mail

(Photo: Getty Images)

Consider shopping online instead of making a trip to the mall this holiday season.

You'll save time (on driving, parking, and waiting in line) and money (it's easier to comparison shop online).

It's a lot less stressful since you don't have to deal with crowded stores.

Purchasing something on the Internet is more efficient than a dedicated car ride to the store, so shopping online is good for the environment too.

One downside to online shopping is that shipping costs can add up quickly. Luckily, several mainstream retailers, such as Apple, Kmart, and Nike, are offering sweet shipping deals this year.

Most of the free shipping offers are based on ground shipping, a plus for the planet as well as your wallet since sending a package by plane emits eight times more carbon dioxide than sending by truck.

These deals will get you started:

• Adidas: Offers $5 flat-rate shipping on every order. You'll get free shipping when you spend $49 or more through December 16.


• Amazon: Free super-saver shipping on orders $25 and over.


• Apple: Free shipping on all orders over $50.


• Blue Fly: $7.95 flat-rate shipping for all orders.


• Crocs: Free shipping through December 31. Use this coupon code at checkout, CHOOSESHIP.


• Gap Inc. stores: Athleta, Banana Republic, Gap, and Old Navy all offer $7 flat-rate shipping on every order. You'll get free shipping when you spend $50 or more through December 15.


• Gaiam: $0.99 shipping on any size order through December 8. Use this code to redeem, WSSH99.


• Flip Video: Free shipping on all orders.


• Home Depot: Offers free shipping on most orders over $49 through December 2.


• Kate Spade: Free shipping on all orders.


• Kiehl's: Free shipping on orders of $50 or more. Enter this code at checkout, KIEHL.


• Kmart: Free shipping on toy orders of $49 or more through December 17.


• Nike: Free shipping on all orders through December 22. 
Enter promo code, GIFT, at checkout


• Steve Madden: Offers free shipping when you enter this code, SMFREESHIP.


• Zales: Offers free FedEx shipping when you spend $149 or more.

Looking for more deals? The offers above are just the tip of the iceberg.

Check out FreeShipping.org, FreeShippingDeals.com, and CouponClock to find additional deals and coupons. Keep in mind that many retailers offer one day only or limited time deals so it's worth checking back.

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

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