Brand new to the scene is Qraft – a simple to use site which allows you to rent rather than purchase toys and gear ranging from big ticket items like yachts, helicopters, planes, RV’s, ATV’s and sexy cars to camera lenses and camping gear. After sign-up, you can either post your valuables and let others rent your stuff, or vice versa. Allows for daily, weekly and monthly rentals; and searching via location or item.

The electric mountain bike (above) goes 60 miles on a single charge and rents for about $25/day. Check it out @ qraft.com.

Rescued scooter parts in the spotlight today: Putting a new spin on upcycling is Bel and Bel Studio, with their very unusual Mannequin Floor Lamp featuring a handlebar and headlamp from a defunct Vespa scooter. Pick up at Salt and Ethic for 1500 €.

Love dogs, hemp and eco-conscious products with a socially conscious mission? Meet Better Buddies, a new line of pet beds — comfy bedrolls, donut beds and pillow beds in attractive styles and different sizes.

Designed by two-time Emmy winning, Julie Marie Berman, (currently starring in ABC’s General Hospital), the line of eco-friendly pet beds is created from an array of sustainable materials: hemp, organic cotton and recycled PET (recycled plastic bottles).

They’re also on a mission to create a world free of homeless pets. Berman is an ambassador for the Best Friends Animal Society and donates 10% of Better Buddies’ profits to support their cause. Find more details and prices @ betterbuddies.com.

(photo above: better buddies on lawn and below: close-up of Leaves in Loft bed donut).

More about Glendale, California’s efforts to ban the sale of commercially bred dogs, cats and other pets … lifted from Better Buddies’ blog:

The City Council of Glendale, CA. voted to draft a proposal on June 14th to ban sales of cats and dogs in the city and on August 24th voted unanimously to make that proposal reality. The stores have 30 days to comply. (more…)

Honeydrop Beverages is a healthy line of teas and juices powered by honey. The Brooklyn, NY-based company is a leading producer of natural teas and juices made with a spoonful of pure wildflower honey, domestically sourced from regional beekeepers across the U.S..

Honeydrop recently announced their “Buy a Bottle – Save a Bee” initiative where a percentage of the profits from each bottle sold are donated to local beekeepers throughout the country to help battle Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), an epidemic threatening the global bee population. (more…)