Saving the earth- in style
When I first agreed to review Green Chic by Christie Matheson, I admit I was not prepared to be inspired. Aside from the fact that the book arrived with another unrequested book from the same publisher called “Porn Stars Secrets of Sex”, (note- bad practice for publicists) the idea of combining the drive for style with earth friendly tips seemed dubious. After all, it seems almost the purpose of fashion magazines to make us perpetual consumers.
Although I have never been much on following the latest style trends , having a family and raising children who need the newest flair or ever lowering waistline to their jeans has made me a consistent if reluctant consumer over and over again. Green Chic offers well researched facts and suggestions on everything from home care, to transportation, and of course the fashionista staples of clothing, hair and makeup solutions.
What made me want to go back to Green Chic, was that Matheson, admits early on to being a new environmentalist , and she shares an authentic journey of transforming her own life decisions based on her research. I appreciated the places where she choose to give up favorite fashion practices like nail polish as well as some that she couldn’t – deodorant. Her honest tone made the book feel like a conversation I would have with a friend and not a preachy list of “should do’s”.
Where her book made a real impact in my own life choices was when I read the chapter about giving up shopping bags. From Christie, I learned that worldwide, we use and throw away over a trillion shopping bags- Here in the US that translates to an average household disposing of 1000 plastic bags in a year. Most of these bags end up in landfills where they take hundreds of years to degrade and because of their petroleum base they release toxic chemicals into the air, ground and water. Even worse many bags end up in streams and rivers where they poison hundreds of thousands of animals per year. The ten billion paper bags we use in this country, requires fourteen million trees to be cut down. This is a problem where individual choices can go a long way. And it felt like a transformation of sorts, the day I decided I wasn’t going to use another disposable bag-paper or plastic. So even when I have to run out to retrieve the bags from the car, the satisfaction of making this small but powerful change is liberating.
Feeling free from any life habit inspires you to try out others and so the slow process of change which sustains itself also inspires itself. Christie’s also offers some great research for Bedroom accessories, which although it didn’t include my favorite love products, made a seriously good argument for organic cotton sheets. Another shift I plan to investigate soon. So even if you have never thought of yourself as fashion conscious , Green Chic is a great resource for making informed and thoughtful choices on a path to making your life greener and the world a little healthier.
See the following link to purchase. www.amazon.com/Green-Chic-Saving-Earth-Style/dp/1402210825
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One Response to “Saving the earth- in style”
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Thanks for sharing a review of this story. I also was dubious but am now curious to read the book. I think honesty and not preaching helps people want to learn more.