The Canadian furniture design firm, Holtzundmetal, can attach your previously owned fabrics or reclaimed wood to their steel frame to create a custom piece of furniture that lets you sit on a nostalgic piece of the past or, more appropriately, a recycled piece of your own personal history.

Pictured:  stainless steel frame with repurposed, Circa 1920′s, Canada Post Canvas Mail Bag creating the seatback and seat.

contact them @ holtzundmetal.com

Earth Day – what’s the dillio?  I’ve been inundated with Earth Day related blather for about a month now so I can truly say I’m suffering an acute case of Earth Day Fatigue.  From receiving umpteen emails from Grist about its intentionally provocative “Screw Earth Day” campaign, to press releases hawking everything from eco friendly search engines, organic teas, low VOC paints and tips on everything from green driving, to how to green my manicure, the emails keep pouring in.  Everybody is going green…at least for one day.  Maybe someone could count the number of new products out there with the word ‘eco’ in their name, and let me know.  Now watch, someone’s going to ride our coattails and run a contest about it (maybe we will…).

Back to the task at hand…when, like moi, you’re immersed in green issues 365 days a year it becomes a challenge to join the chorus on a contrived holiday like Earth Day.  Of course, the event gets tons of press and exposure and raises general awareness, but Earth Day’s transformation into a giant marketing and PR event kind of leaves me uninspired.  Ultimately, it’s just another day in the ‘green’ world.

Oh, did you know that just for Earth Day, “The Price Is Right” is going green?  I’d usually rant on for another paragraph or two but I’m so not jazzed I’ll just leave this here, and return to our regularly scheduled programming…

Everyone enjoys spying a brightly plumed gold finch now and again, I know I do.  Whether you’re watching rare red crowned monkey in the Amazon or a house sparrow in Secaucus, the Nikon Ecobins 10×25, waterproof binoculars provide a high quality,  eco friendly choice in outdoor optics.

These binos are manufactured responsibly with lead and arsenic-free ‘Eco-Glass’, a non-chloride rubber body that contains no harmful inks or dyes and a strap and travel case that are produced from 100% all-natural Lenzing TENCEL fiber produced from sustainable Eucalyptus forests and manufactured with minimal waste.  The Ecobins packaging is constructed from 85% recycled material and printed
on recyclable and waterproof FiberStone paper created from post-consumer limestone collected from existing quarries.

Sturdy, light (9.5ozs) and high quality, I just wish they came in a 10X40 version.  Now…does anyone know what an Ecobin is?

$169 @ amazon.com

via: energysavinggadgets.com

• Now if they could start work on my brother-in-law…Experts Aim For Cows That Pass Less Gas – msnbc
• Biomass Could be Carbon Sinner: UK Study – reuters
• How old is George Hamilton? Lizards Sunbathe for Better Health – livescience
• I want to grow up to be an exoplanet researcher…Largest Exoplanet Yet Discovered – sciencedaily
• (video) More American Workers Outsourcing Own Jobs Overseas – the onion
• Inquiring minds need to know…Can Lunar Cycles Affect the Taste of Wine? – bbc

The surest sign that Earth Day is becoming an official holiday is when there’s a sale associated with it.  In this instance the good folks at Further Soap are offering internet shoppers this deal – buy one bottle of Further Soap at the regular price ($18.50), and get one FREE with FREE SHIPPING on furthersoap.com ALL DAY April 22, 2009.

Further Soap is part of a very green product cycle.  Glycerin, that is created as a bi-product in the process of converting the waste grease from the kitchens of L.A. restaurants into bio diesel, is transformed by Further into a great hand soap.  Upcycling waste grease into both bio diesel and hand soap, a very green endeavor indeed.

Go to FurtherSoap.com to take advantage of the sale and reward yourself with a a great deal and a great green product.

A concept whose time has come, the E-waste lamp.  Designer Rodrigo Alonso, with the support of Chile’s  Recycla, has created his N+EW (No More Electronic Waste) light by roto-molding a mix of low density plastic and crushed electronic waste plastic.  This process shapes the lamp’s body in a recycled iron matrix.  The recycled lamp’s base is produced with aluminum, smelted from beer and soft drink cans.

via: recyclart.org

A couple of our favorite companies have teamed up to eco fashion a cool line of bags.

Last October, Whole Foods Market asked Ken Kobrick and Angela Greene, co-owners of Passchal Products if they might be interested in recycling Whole Foods’ large vinyl banners into fashionable bags.  As you may already be aware, Passchal is a Richmond, Virginia based company focused on creating eco luxury handbags from recycled truck and tractor tire inner tubes.

So Ken and Angela took on the project, and cleverly created a line of upscale bags for Whole Foods shoppers that incorporates Whole Foods banner material along with recycled truck and tractor inner tubes. As Ken said,  “Every single one of them is different.”

The eco line is set to roll-out on Earth Day, Wednesday April 22.  An illuminating feature of each Passchal bag is the interior light system designed to help you find what’s in your bag.

Designed to illuminate the interior of the bag when opened, each Passchal bag has a light system to help you find what’s in your bag. / your valuables within.  Another brilliant aspect to this hottie is that it has a light system that illuminates the interior when the bag is opened — making finding those keys, wallet, lipstick or cell phone, a cinch.

Related:  previously on altCon
(1.9.07) passchal – brilliant handbags

• What’s that big glow in the eastern ski?  China Nuclear Safety Chief Warns of Over-Rapid Growth – reuters
• How much hot air is actually produced during a filibuster?  Lawmakers Start on Global Warming Bill – msnbc
• Who’s hiding the hotdog?  Morrissey Walks Off Stage After ‘Meaty’ Smell From Crowd – ecorazzi
• It’ all about power baby… Zero Emissions Car – cs monitor

Multi-tasking solar doo-dads are proliferating like crazy.  This “eco-friendly” pocket-sized gadget features a very bright, 3 bulb LED flashlight, solar panel and storage battery.  In addition to being a handy solar flashlight, the Powerplus Eagle is capable of charging other small devices like cellphones and MP3 players.  With its triple solar wing design the Powerplus Eagle takes 15 to 20 hours of direct sunlight to fully charge.  The LED light lasts 35 hours using a single LED light and 15 hours with all three LED’s shining.  It will charge via AC in 7 hours and will give you 70 minutes of yammering on your mobile phone if your battery runs down.

£26.95 @ gizoo.co.uk