Green-American gifts

Maybe it's too late for Christmas 2007 but let's not forget, VALENTINE'S day is right around the corner.

Anyways. I've also been trying to buy more "Green" products, products that are recycled or good for the environment...

How about this awesome snack tray made from a record?
And made in the United States!
http://store.greenfeet.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=6003-02262-0000


Store.greenfeet.com also has a lot of other fun gifts, some made in the US, some aren't.
They have plants in a bag, that you grow out of paperbags, handmade soy candles, etc.

They even have this great cushion to sit or lay on, made from pop bottles!



"Made from Recycled Materials
Made with soft EcoFleece outside (from 87% recycled soda bottles) and fully stuffed with 100% recycled polyester fiberfill, also from soda bottles. Both fleece shell and inside pillow are commercial machine washable and hypo-allergenic. The Landing Pad saves 170 soda bottles from clogging up our landfills. 60"dia. X 10" h. Made in USA."


If you need a tote for toting around your items and not needing to use disposable plastic bags, Greenfeet offers chic totes for doing so.

The brown bag on the right is made in the US and runs for about $24.00.

Happy Holidays!

Socks

Target doesn't sell American-made socks. That might be why I was so happy to find all kinds of great socks at Marshall's, the discount store similar to TJ Maxx.

One brand, Wyoming Wear, makes a great fleece sock for the adventurers in your life. At Marshall's, they were priced at $7.99. On their website, the only picture they show is of an ugly style, for $12.99. (Wyomingwear.com)


Marshall's also had Columbia sportswear socks, heavy duty ones that a fashionable lumber jack might wear, for a reasonable price.

Sorry

I'm sorry for the lack of posting.

Today's brand is Crafstman. Quality tools, made in America, extensive product line. Great Christmas gifts for the man in your life. Sold at K-Mart/Sears.

Clothing, very briefly.

NO NONSENSE! No Nonsense socks and hosiery are made in the good ole' U S of A. A quick visit to their website disapointed me though, because their pajama tops are not made in the United States. Seems like if they can make some socks here, they can make a tank top in the same facility. On the other, environmentally friendly hand, they are making some "Organic" and bamboo clothing items. Good for them.

I looked at some baby clothes, none of which were made in the USA. I'll keep looking.

Dishes, part one

Corelle dishwares are made in Corning, NY (home of the glass factory!). They offer many different styles and patterns, and have kept up with the changing times, and now make Asian style dishes, which are usually square-shaped. They come with great warranties, and even offer break-resistant ones, which were fun in my undergrad days because we HAD to test them out by throwing them against the counter...and watching them bounce to the floor, completely unharmed. JOB WELL DONE, Corelle!

Also, Anchor Hocking makes casserole dishes and other glass dishes, IN AMERICA. This company offers a nice package of dishes, plastic covers, and travel sleeves that keep the food warm, for an insanely low price. Great wedding gift.
Anchor Hocking Six Piece Oven Basics Bake 'n Take, as seen above. Anchor also makes measuring cups (glass) in America.

Pyrex pie plates. Made in America.

Support your neighbor.

I have to introduce you to one of my addictions. Http://www.etsy.com . Home of everything home-made. Purses. Earrings. Dog clothing. Soap. I know a lot of it is probably made of foreign materials, but maybe you'll sleep easier having that CUSTOM MADE pillow case under your head, knowing that etsyuser22's children have an extra slice of bread to split equally at dinner tomorrow.

In all seriousness, it's a great site.

Email

I sent a message to both Alloy and Delia's, two companies that started out as mail-order catalogs but now offer both catalog and web-page ordering. I originally thought that the two were competitors, but based on the identical responses, I now know that at least their customer service is sourced through the same company.

Hi Jenna,

Thank you for contacting us at Alloy.com.  We will be
happy to assist you today.

Because our merchandise comes from several different
vendors, we do not have specifics on each country
of origin. If you would like to inquire
about a specific item, we will do our best to assist you.
Otherwise we are unable to generalize based on the
previous information given.

If you have any other questions or comments please
email or call us at
1-888-50-ALLOY from 8am to 12am EST, 7 days a week.  We
appreciate your
business and are pleased to be able to assist you.
Again, thanks for e-mailing Alloy.com!

New Fall Arrivals - Shop now!
http://store.alloy.com/frontpage.do?_QQ=8-73

Thank you,

Naomi
ALLOY Customer Service





Original Message Follows: ------------------------
Hello,

I'm writing to you to inquire, are any of your products made in
America?
If so, which ones?

_________________________________________________________________________

Delia's provided the same response, with obvious changes to
contact information.

After sending this email, but before receiving their
responses, I realized that at the end of every
description in the Alloy catalog, it states either "USA."
or "Imported.". After receiving their response, it makes
me wonder what that "USA." means--I'm guessing that
the fabrics are mainly imported, but are assembled
in the United States. Better than being completely
made abroad, I suppose.
I do not have a Delia's catalog to look at, however,
a GOOD PORTION of the Alloy catalog has the
"USA" label at the end of the description.


It's a start.

Day One

All this talk of globalization, global warming, buying locally...
I guess it finally triggered something in me. I have browsed online a few times now looking for (mainstream) products that are currently made in America. I wasn't able to find a website like this, though I did find several that supported buying American. My problem with these sites is that the links they provided did not offer much--most of the clothing sites were for blue-collar men to wear to work...with maybe ONE item for women, that one item being a very boring, plain, fitted t-shirt.

So despite being an International Business grad student...I decided to make time in my life to create the website that I wanted to find in my search, but couldn't. Through this blog, I hope to provide curious consumers like myself with a database of items we use, or see advertised, everyday, that are actually made in America. It's not that I don't support the small businesses that the other websites link to, it's more that I don't want to buy something I absolutely hate, just to buy something in the name of buying American.

Here goes nothing.