It’s not easy to find a good air freshener. One that isn’t created with harsh chemicals and toxins. One that doesn’t mask odors with synthetic perfumes. One that really removes odors safely and effectively, without leaving a trail of residue.

Think about it – with every breath we take… We don’t want to risk exposure to toxins. We just want the bad smell to go away quickly, without killing harming people and planet. When I came across a product line that purported to “eat odor and dirt – and leave nothing behind” I had to give it a try.

Enter Freshana Odor Eliminator … I’ve been spraying this aerosol in different places whenever I catch a whiff of something stale or bad. And guess what, this stuff really works. As directed, I spray each area or surface for 8 to 10 seconds. I’ve tried it in the office, car, shoe closet, living room, dining room, bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and laundry areas. What I love about it, is that it does exactly what it says – it lifts away bad odors without leaving a lingering scent of any kind. It’s like getting a hit of instant fresh air.

I’ve also been testing Freshana Liquid Spray – their food-grade, (safe for use around kids, pets and the elderly) all-purpose household cleaner. It’s versatile and works well on kitchen counter tops, windows, glass, carpets, laundry and other surfaces without leaving any odor behind. Mirrors and glass really shine. These two products are especially great for anyone with asthma or allergies.

How do they do it? There are NO harsh chemicals, carcinogens, perfumes or toxins in the ingredient mix. It’s derived from organically grown, highly renewable sugar cane, from farms located throughout the USA and its territories. We give Freshana our green thumbs up – it really works. (retails as a 2-pak, $16.99 + s&h) You can pick up some @ scentfreeclean.com

full disclosure: we received 2 products for the purposes of this Tried and True Green Product Review: 1, 14-oz aerosol and 1, 16 oz liquid spray of Freshana.

Bamboo poles have many uses and are growing in popularity around the US. Bamboo produces 35% more oxygen than trees and sequesters four times the amount of carbon dioxide, making bamboo poles the perfect alternative to lumber. They’re durable and can be used to build a wide range of items, such as:

• Bikes
• Furniture
• Fence
• Flooring
• Wall Covering
• Furniture
• Decorative Décor

(above) Bamboo Bike frames can be made from bamboo poles, they’re strong, easy to handle and look great, too.

(above) Furniture – Here’s a tiki bar that was made by hand with some inexpensive bamboo poles. Pieces like this one are easy to build, make excellent conversation starters and have a lot of character.

(above) Fence – Bamboo poles are exceptional when it comes to making fencing. You can make (or purchase) crude fences, privacy fences and decorative fences, with relative ease.

Decorative Décor – As shown in the photo above, bamboo poles can be used to accent existing décor in your home or to create an entirely new masterpiece.

Jim Shannon of Pennsylvania-based Bamboo Habitat has been helping people like you with their bamboo pole projects for nearly 10 years now and is available to discuss your project on the phone at your convenience. If you would like to research first you could always visit the American Bamboo Society website, where you’ll find excellent reference material on all types of bamboo. Get your create juices flowing and start your next project with bamboo poles from Bamboo Habitat, today!

• Ouch… Northeast May Get Record April Snow – cnn
  
• From bad to worse? How Making Food Safe Can Harm Wildlife and Water – npr
• I’m feeling queasy already… FDA Proposes Rules for Nanotechnology in Food – yahoo! news
• British Public Backs Wind Farm Subsidies: Survey – bbc
• Fighting free radicals… Avocado Oil: The ‘Olive’ Oil of the Americas – sciencedaily

This post was graciously contributed by Ali Kalis of Recyclebank.

Whether for ourselves, our families or both, most of us want to become environmentally friendly and make the right choices. But sometimes it’s hard to know exactly what to do, or where to find the time to do it! Recyclebank is devoted to help you learn how to go green in your everyday life, giving you that little extra nudge to change your eco-habits. For Earth Month, we put our brains together and collected 10 simple tips that will help save the planet, and your bank account.

 10 Tips to Save Green by Going Green – Annual Average Savings

1. Shorten Your Shower – Hop out five minutes earlier and you can save 350 pounds of CO2 emission and nearly $100 each year. Savings: $99
2. Sell Unused Sporting Equipment – Collect that unused treadmill, in-line skates and soccer equipment collecting dust in the basement and turn it into cash. Just bring your old sports equipment to Play it Again Sports (locations across the country) and they will determine the value of your items and either pay you on the spot or let you trade in for something else. Savings: $100
3. Cool it Down – Refrigerators use more electricity than any other household appliance, almost five times more than the average TV. Setting your refrigerator between 37°F and 40°F will keep your food stored at a safe temperature without wasting energy. By using a programmable thermostat, you can save up to $150 each year on your energy bill. Savings: $150
4. Don’t Let Good Deeds go Unrewarded – We all try to do small things every day to help the environment, but did you know your good deeds can also be rewarded? Our website Recyclebank.com is a free site where members who pledge to use less energy, learn how to increase their green activities or simply recycle more earn points that they can use for great discounts and deals. Our members earn upwards of $133 a year in reward value — including huge money-saving coupons for Kashi  , Honest Tea and Stonyfield Yogurt. Time these coupons to sales in stores and you can often get items for free. Savings: $130
5. Recycle Old Electronics – Don’t just shove them in a bottom drawer or toss them in the trash—you can recycle old electronics for cash and avoid additional strain on the planet. Sites like Yourenew.com will pay you for laptops, cell phones, chargers and other items. Even older electronics still have parts of value. Savings: $125
6. Smartly Sell Your Books - There are lots of websites that buy used books, but how do you know what your books are REALLY worth? One site may offer to buy your Steinbeck for a buck, while another could be willing to offer $20. Bookscouter.com makes it easy: simply type in the ISBN code from your book and it automatically scans all book buying sites for the best deal. Spend a rainy weekend with your old novels and you could re-coup tons of money. Savings: $50
7. Power Down - Your home entertainment center can use up to 10 percent of your home’s overall energy, even when the devices are turned off but still plugged in. But unplugging your TV, DVD player and other devices can be difficult to do every night. New power strips now feature a remote control that you simply flip to turn off the power. By doing this each time you turn off your TV, you can save up to $200 a year in energy costs. Savings: $200
8. Use Your Local Library – The average American family spends about $118 on reading materials. Why not visit your local library and get your books for free! Or start a book share with your neighbors and take turns reading those bestsellers and classics. Savings: $118
9. Sell Outgrown Clothes – The average American throws out 68 pounds of clothes a year, and most of it is children’s clothes. Gently used kids clothing can be resold through a free service called ThredUp. On average, a user gets about $10 for each box or $20 for each bag you fill with gently used clothes. They do all the work: sending you the box, sorting, selling and finding a buyer for your clothes. All you do is mail it in and wait for your check. Savings: $50 (for two bags and a box)
10. Start a Garden - It takes 18 years for one corn cob to decompose in a landfill, but only a couple of months in a compost pile! Create a compost pile in your backyard or get a green bin from your local garbage man if you don’t have one already. The backyard compost pile is a great activity for the whole family—once it turns to soil, kids can help plant a garden. You can actually save hundreds of dollars a year by growing your own veggies. Check out some info on how to get started. Savings: $200

TOTAL SAVED AND EARNED: $1,222

I recently had the great honor to see His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet speak at my home school, the University of San Diego this past Wednesday, April 18th. His Holiness spoke at all three San Diego Universities: University of San Diego, San Diego State University, and University of California San Diego over the course of two days. He presented on different issues at each school, but chose the University of California San Diego to discuss “The Global Impact of Climate Change: Balance through Universal Responsibility, Compassion and Human Consciousness”.

As a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, the Dalai Lama certainly provided an abundance of insight into how to uphold our responsibility as humans to the preserve the earth we inhabit. The Dalai Lama expressed the critical message that global climate change is not only a political or social issue. It is scientific. He stressed that the problem is upon us and is not a ploy for political attention, but an empirically backed reality.

His solution to this problem begins not with a debate about the issue, but with collaboration. He emphasizes that we, humanity as a whole, must work in conjunction to address our roles in climate change in order to slow and reverse its effects on the world around us. He advised his audience, composed of students, faculty, and guests from around the world, that “The world belongs to humanity … America belongs to the people … not Republicans or Democrats”, and that in addressing an issue as wide-scale as global climate change, the only way to preserve our own survival is to change collectively as a whole, not as a division of political parties.

Looks like the bad economy may have impacted shoppers’ product choices. A recent survey by one of the largest online coupon sites in the US, RetailMeNot.com, had some interesting findings. The coupon site’s survey was conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs.

Some findings:

• 71% of adults feel that they are aware of the positive and/or adverse environmental impact of products they purchase every day.
• Nearly half of adults (46%) say they are more inclined to buy a product if it is environmentally friendly.
• A majority of respondents (59%) said they would be unwilling to pay a higher price for an eco-friendly product or service.
• Four in 10 (43%) report that when they actually make purchases, they don’t think about the impact that products have on the environment.
• 60% of adults report that they sometimes proactively take steps to green their home or lifestyle.
• A third of consumers (34%) say that it makes no difference to them if a product is environmentally friendly.
• 25% say they always take these green actions, while 15% say they never do.

What motivates eco-friendly purchases?

• 40% say they buy green, eco-friendly products when they are readily available and there is no big cost difference.
• A majority (51%) report that they buy whichever products suit their needs at the time, green or not.
• Retailer’s that donate togreen charities — 15% of respondents said it would lead them to be more likely to shop with a green charity donating retailer vs. 39% who said “maybe”.
• A quarter (24%) said that they don’t care about what charities or causes a business supports.
• 18-to-34-year-olds are the most swayed by green cause marketing (23% vs. only 11% of 35–54).
• Women are more likely than men to buy green products if it is convenient and the price point is right (45% vs. 36%).
• College graduates (55%), Northeasterners (54%), adults under 35 (53%) and households with children (50%) are more inclined to buy environmentally friendly products and to pay more for them.

(above) Eco-friendly, socially conscious fashion line CrOp by David Peck is offering 15% off the designer fashions on their website and donating 15% of sales to the Gulf Restoration Network. Just enter the code “HappyEarth” at checkout – a great way to help clean up the Gulf of Mexico BP oil debacle of 2 years ago. More @ davidpeckcollection.com

(above) Earth Day 2012 marks the second anniversary of the launch of Naya Shoes – dedicated to using materials such as vegetable tanned leathers and linings, natural cork and natural or recycled content fabrics that leave a lighter impact on Mother Earth. They’ve partnered with Shoes.com and Soles4Souls whereby we can mail our unwanted shoes and donate a pair of gently worn shoes and receive $20 off an $80 purchase of a new pair of shoes. Loving these beauties, in sand. Check it out @ naya.com

(above) With the launch of spring’s Cayambe collection, founder Amanda Judge and her team of The Andean Collection continues to create Fair Trade and sustainably made wow worthy body adornments. In addition to bracelets, necklaces and earrings – hats and scarves are now part of the scene; (check out the Fedora in 9 different colors.) Look and feel amazing while helping to support local artisans in impoverished communities in South America.

(above) Thanks to Rogan Gregory and company, LOOMSTATE‘s latest collection, 321 features 3 ways 2 wear 1 piece – voila. The easy on the eye, easy to wear pieces are made of Tencel – yarns sourced from natural tree pulp, and the manufacturing is 99% waste free. Quick drying, wrinkle resistant and ideal for green globetrotting – roll in eco chic style this summer. Available online or at Barney’s ($118-$228).

(above) Art meets ecofashion — the lovely Bubble Azurra necklace is created from recycled glass and sterling silver. Pretty bling for spring.

$129.40 @ the Metamorphosi Etsy shop

Full disclosure: the good folks at Move Collective gave us their latest innovative water filtering product, the bobble jug, to test out. Here’s our review:

With Earth Day upon us it’s a great time to cut-down on waste, reduce emissions and save resources. The daily consumption of bottled water by many consumers creates tons of plastic waste and carbon emissions. A great way to save money while doing Mother Earth a solid is to drink tap water — an endeavor that will keep tons of plastic out of local landfills and reduce the millions of gallons of bottled water products (and the resulting emissions) being packaged and shipped around the globe.

To that end, we were recently asked to review a new product created to increase the consumption of tap water — the shapely bobble jug — a stylish new player in the water filter pitcher market. The bobble jug is the latest member of a product line that includes the very popular bobble bottle created by the Move Collective and designer Karim Rashid.

We endeavored to see if the designer pitcher met its marketing claims — to be a fast, easy-to-use, attractive product that makes drinking tap water a viable alternative to buying bottled water.

what we found

shape: as you can see the bobble jug has a sexy, curvacious silhouette, evocative of its older brother the bobble water bottle. Unlike some taller filter pitchers, the ‘jug’ will fit very nicely into even the most cluttered fridge, while holding a generous 64 fl oz of H2O. It can also be used in the dining room as an attractive serving pitcher.

flavor: the bobble jug’s carbon filter did indeed remove the funky chemical flavors from our town’s tap water, making it very drinkable. One tip — remember to soak that filter as the product instructions indicate. We also suggest pouring out the first pitcher or two after installing a new filter to get rid of any residual carbon particles. You are then good to go.

speed: this baby filters water really quickly, no standing around tapping your feet waiting for the filter to do its job, it’s almost instantaneous.

green quotient: bobble jug is BPA-free and fully recyclable.

• details: a single bobble filter cleans up to 40 gallons (or 150 liters) of water. The filter reduces (in our case eliminated) the taste and odor of chlorine and sediments. You can taste when it’s time to replace the carbon filter — or use the unit’s handy calendar ring to monitor when the filter should be replaced.

• the bottom line: if you have typical tap water that has a funky, municipal flavor — the bobble jug is a fine solution — it looks great, performs well and will get your tap water tasting much better. For those with really toxic tap water, remember, the bobble jug doesn’t feature the most sophisticated filtration system on the planet — those with incredibly bad tap water might want to explore installing a more sophisticated under-counter filtration system.

price: an individual jug with one filter is currently selling for a very reasonable $29.99 — filters go for $9.99 each.

special deal: for Earth Day the folks at bobble have a special offer: spend $30 or more on bobbles, filters, and accessories on www.waterbobble.com and they’ll send you a bobble jug, free of charge. The offer is good until April 3oth.

Check out the ‘bobble’ info-graphic below for a detailed look at how the bobble makes a difference.

Artist Michael Yonke creates some impressive art from reclaimed and repurposed wood. His “Contendo Lux” is a modern wall sculpture made of repurosed old-growth wood that contrasts light and dark elements to create a 3D effect reminiscent of the op-art of Victor Vararely (I worked in his gallery back in the day).

Michael sells his work at his Upcycler Etsy shop.

related: more eco art featured on The Alternative Consumer