Cotton may be advertised as "the fabric of our lives," but maybe that's only because Plastic and Cellulose Fibers - the Fabric of Our Lives! didn't have the same ring. The truth is, unsurprisingly, that natural fibers like cotton, linen, and wool make up a significantly smaller part of the textile market than their manmade counterparts. So what are we really bringing into our home and putting next to our skin? What processes go into making these synthetic textiles? The Etsy Blog has a good article on this: More

"So why bother recycling or riding your bike to the store? Because we all want to do something, anything. Call it 'action bias.' But, sadly, individual action does not work. It distracts us from the need for collective action, and it doesn't add up to enough. Self-interest, not self-sacrifice, is what induces noticeable change. Only the right economic policies will enable us as individuals to be guided by self-interest and still do the right thing for the planet."

MUST READ: Going Green But Getting Nowhere | The New York Times

Here at Re-Nest we've written about thoughtfully remodeled older homes, impossibly tiny (but amazing!) apartments and innovative new houses that hit homeruns in the sustainability department. But what if those aren't an option for you? I recently read an article about a family who bought a too-big home during the housing boom and are now in the difficult position of being upside down in their mortgage and unable to sell. While the reasons aren’t always financial, many people are stuck in these less-than-ideal (and less-than-green) living situations. So how do you make the most of it? More

Incredibly and depressingly, the House voted today to withhold funding to enforce part of a 2007 law that increases efficiency standards for light bulbs, despite mounting evidence that new efficiency standards will help the environment and save consumers about $6 billion a year by 2015. Representative Michael Burgess, Republican of Texas, said "the federal government has no right to tell me or any other citizen what type of light bulb to use at home... Consumers want the 100-watt light bulb, and some consumers need the 100-watt light bulb." Read more at The New York Times.
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There are several online and printable guides to safer and sustainable seafood, including the Smart Seafood Guide, the Seafood Watch Pocket Guide from the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Wallet Guide to Ocean-Friendly Sushi from the Blue Ocean Institute. But this infographic by David McCandless & Derek Guo provides a visual guide to all the latest consensus and date from Marine Conservation Society, Greenpeace and the SeaFood Watch— and it's also downloadable as a pocket guide! More

As reclaimed, vintage, and reused turn into buzz words for large retailers, we can't help but feel like they lose a bit of their value. Restoration Hardware had reuse-inspired pieces for quite sometime, including burlap sack pillows that weren't originally burlap. Their new line-up of beautiful pieces for outdoor spaces and gardens are made from truly reclaimed pieces, but how sustainable is it to buy out all of the vintage barrels to make chandeliers? More

The project began with conversations between a collective of women artisans in South Africa and Swedish designers. The topics included recounts of the women's daily lives, their husbands and children. Love, life and death. The effects of HIV, poverty, gender inequality and unemployment on their society. And now these stories are literally written into the beadwork. More

In a posh seaside location, stands the police station in the Tunis suburb of La Goulette. Now its walls stand blackened by smoke and fire, the interior full of police officer's notebooks, files and identity card applications lay in ruins from the popular uprising in Tunisia. But from these ashes, rise beautiful images of average Tunisians, young and old... More

I'm curious: what do Re-Nest readers think about using animal hides in their home? I've heard arguments (discussed below) that fall on both sides of the spectrum. I understand that if you're a vegan, this question has an obvious answer. But if you're someone like me who, while not a vegan, refrains from eating factory-farmed meat and dairy products, is extremely conscious about where and how food and home products are produced, but also strongly dislikes synthetic, petroleum-produced alternatives... what do you think about it?
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I know! They look just like those plasticky chairs! The single material, industrially manufactured, injection molded resin chairs that are everywhere! But they're not: they're Porcelain Chairs by Sam Durant and they made me take a second look at what I walk past and sit on every day. More