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Happy (Green) Holidays

Giving fair trade and environment-friendly gifts doesn’t mean sacrificing style

By Lauren Brown
   WITH rising income inequality and the sinking state of the environment, holiday shoppers can be more conscious of global issues this season by giving fair trade and environment-friendly gifts.
   We don’t have to drastically change how we celebrate the holidays in order to reduce our carbon footprint. Simple adjustments like buying holiday foods from local farmers or turning down the thermostat add up. In keeping Mother Earth in mind, we can take this one step further and include some eco-friendly retailers on our gift lists.
   Lucky for us, the area boasts many vendors that make this task simple enough, whether buying for new parents, alternative fashionistas, organizational fanatics or sports enthusiasts:
   Greendesign
   Tim McNulty, owner of greendesign in Princeton, proves a veritable source of information on many things eco-friendly. His store opened this past summer after he researched the environmental hazards we encounter each day. This research was the byproduct of the desire he and his wife had to provide a safer environment for their two children.
   Mr. McNulty enjoys passing on his knowledge to customers, and this quaint shop proves that, while you will only find eco-conscious products here, you won’t have to sacrifice style to do your part for the environment and yourself. Greendesign builds its inventory from roughly 75 vendors, providing products from toys to furniture, kitchenware to body oil and jewelry.
   For the baby or new parents on your list, greendesign sells baby clothing made from organic cotton and offers wood products, from ImagiPlay toys to solid wooden teethers. Here, the original rubber ducky makes a comeback — this bath toy foregoes the use of plastic and stays true to its name, providing a safe and virtually indestructible toy.
   If you know a Rachel Ray wannabe with eco-conscious roots, fix your eye on the bamboo utensils and bowls or the eye-catching glassware from The Green Glass Company. The glasses come in different colors and sizes, since they come from recycled wine bottles from the company’s partner network (for more information, visit greenglass.com).
   For those on your list that like to look and feel good, check out the Trillium Organic line of skincare products or the jewelry case for necklaces and earrings that any fashion-savvy woman will love. From the earrings created of sea glass to the smooth glass circle pendant designed from the bottom of a beer bottle, these gifts will undoubtedly become conversation pieces. And sports enthusiasts can always use an eco-friendly water bottle, so pick up a Klean Kanteen stainless steel bottle, likely to last a lifetime in the gym bag, rather than a landfill.
   Located at 42 Witherspoon St., Princeton; 609-651-4643
   Fair Industry
   Lauren Markley, founder and designer for Fair Industry (fairindustry.com) in Princeton, aims to create stylish, yet ethical clothing and jewelry. Her vision turns into reality with the help of Asian Hut, “a Bangladesh organization that supports hand weavers, spinners and embroiderers facing unemployment due to the mechanization of the garment industry.”
   If the jewelry lover on your list takes joy in knowing what she wears not only looks good, but also does good for the world, peruse the shop’s collection. “The handcrafted jewelry comes to life in Bombolulu workshops of Mombasa, Kenya, founded to create employment for people with physical disabilities,” Ms. Markley writes on the Web site. While the human interest of fair trade makes you feel good emotionally, the fact that these products are handmade and not mass-produced by machines means less damage to the environment.
   For those with style and a do-good heart, Ms. Markley recommends a few of her popular pieces — the asymmetrical coconut necklace, handmade in Kenya; cuffed trousers in chocolate brown herringbone tweed, handwoven in Bangladesh; and her long sleeve pintuck blouse.
   Located at 224 B Marshall Ave., Princeton, 609-240-7015
   Origins, Palmer Square
   Origins provides eco-friendly products and services — from the soy-based ink used on all printed material to the recycled packaging and organic ingredients. The company believes “the well-being of our planet is vital to the well-being of the people who populate it.” The stores and facilities that bring you these products go above and beyond the call of duty when it comes to ensuring that the environment and you, the consumer, receive star treatment.
   This season, in line with thoughts of ginger bread cookies and sugar plums dancing in your head, don’t miss out on the Origins ginger line, featuring body wash, bubble bath, whipped body cream and, to top it all off, Ginger Essence, the sensuous skin scent.
   Located at 56 Nassau St., Princeton, 609-430-9440
   Sustainable Threads
   Sustainable Threads (sustainablethreads.com) in North Brunswick “promotes fair trade, eco-friendly and hand-crafted, life-style products.”
   ”As an environmentally-conscious business, we promote natural fibers and encourage the use of vegetable dyes in all our cotton products,” write co-founders Poonam Abbi and Harish Hathiramani on the store’s Web site. If you are looking to add splashes of non-traditional color to your holiday décor, or if you have someone on your list that likes a pop of color to accessorize an ensemble, head to Sustainable Threads.
   ”Our products appeal to people interested in alternate art forms, and those who make choices to support the environment, physically and socially,” says Ms. Abbi. “By buying fair trade, eco-friendly gifts, we extend this celebration to include people who perhaps are not always recognized. Our product tags provide you a glimpse of the artisan and help in making a connection.”
   Sustainable Threads offers a line of organic, cruelty-free silk scarves. The Surprise handbag, made from 100 percent silk katran (scrap/recycled silk fabric) with wooden handles, makes a great companion gift. You’ll feel even better knowing that this bag is the hard work of members of low income artisan communities in less economically developed countries. This group uses as much recycled and reused raw material as possible.
   For the person on your list keen on organization, consider swivel jewelry boxes, made with recycled, handmade and tree-free paper. “This Earth-friendly paper is processed chlorine free, made using 100 percent cotton hosiery waste (the scrap fabrics left from making cotton T-shirts) and recycled into beautiful, soft fabric paper,” Ms. Abbi says.
   For office dwellers, consider pen holders, fabric notepads and fabric photo frames. These colorful pieces come from 100 percent cotton fabric, hand-woven on bamboo looms, and will brighten up the long winter days that lie ahead.
   Located at 84 Riverbend Drive, North Brunswick, 732-940-7478
   This holiday season, don’t think that eco-friendly means super-boring. There are plenty of options to make this gift-giving time one that includes sustainable products, resource conservation and many great memories in between.