'Best Gift on Earth'

Before Christmas

The gifts, painstakingly wrapped and topped with glittery ribbon and bows, now lie in a heap on the floor. The trash cans quickly filled, the excess sits in plastic bags for the next garbage pickup.

Does this sound like you? Frankly, this situation applies to many.

Every year thousands families spend on decorative packaging, only to add to their waste after the holiday is over. This year, don’t forget to give a gift to Earth by recycling and reusing gift packaging in all its forms: ribbons, bows, gift bags, shirt boxes, etc,.

After Christmas

What to do with the following holiday trash:

Electronics

• You don’t need to throw out all your unwanted cameras, printers and computers in the trash can, or wait for a family member or friend to reuse it. Check with your local town or city to see when the next electronics recycling collection day. The collection days are always free for residents.

Tinsel

• Store and save for next year or reuse for a child’s school project.

Foam peanuts or Bubble wrap

• Call your town’s UPS or nearby shipping companies and ask them if they would like to reuse the materials for their own packaging.

Christmas Tree

• Unless your Christmas tree is plastic like mine, consider grinding down your live tree for mulch. Your best bet is to check with the local recycling officials for when trees can be dropped off or curb-side picked up.

Cardboard Boxes

• Save for re-use or recycle. But make sure to pull out any pieces inside the box that are not of cardboard material (plastic or foam pieces), or the cardboard box may be thrown in with the trash when taken to recycling.

Plastic Bags

• I always reuse plastic bags to line the trash bins in my home office and bathroom. However, you can also take the unwanted plastic bags to recycling stations at drug stores and groceries.

Plastic Packaging Pillows

• Save these for future packaging or shipping. Otherwise, pop the pillows until flat and also drop at your local drug store or grocery for recycling.

-S. Gonzalez

*Photo courtesy of flickr.com and alifedesign.blogspot.com

'Eco-friendly DIY: Flower Vase'

Practicing eco-friendly goes well beyond buying into electric cars and stocking the supply cabinet and fridge with third generation and organic products.

Going green is a way of life. It begins simply, by taking a look around you and finding new uses for ordinary items like furniture and accessories.

Try starting with an empty glass bottle. With patterned paper and an hour to spare, you can create your own recycled flower vase. This do-it-yourself project makes also a great rainy day activity for the kids.

Here’s what you will need:

- Recycled glass bottles

- Patterned wrapping paper (do not pick thin paper that might fall apart with pressure or the application of glue)

- Krazy glue or glue dots

- Scissors

- Goo Gone (to remove labels)

- Pencil

What to do:

1. Finding unused and recycled glass bottles in your home is a cinch. But remember to scout out empty bottles that vary in height and color. The idea is to eventually mix and match the glass vases amongst your décor, or to rotate them around a room individually. You wouldn’t want all your vases to be identical, would you?

2. Picking your favorite five bottles or less, remove labels with hot water. Apply Goo Gone if the labels do not peel away as easily. Lay the bottles on the flat sheet of wrapping paper.

3. Wrap the patterned paper around the bottle, and make sure to have the paper overlap by at least a half-inch. Mark the desired length with a pencil.

4. Cut the paper to your desired width. Tip: Taller bottles should receive a band that measures at least 5 inches wide and smaller bottles can manage with 2- to 3-inch bands. Use your best judgment.

5. Either using the glue dots or Krazy glue, adhere the paper to the glass and apply glue /glue dots to the area where the paper will overlap itself for extra support. If desired, cut a narrow band of contrasting paper to attach to the top of the wide band. And voilà!

6. Place flowers in the vase or leave them empty and place around your home.

-S. Gonzalez

'Gray Matter'

The gray building known as the AC Hotel in Bologna looms over the tennis courts in front of it, casting an ominous shadow over terracotta rooftops. It may not compliment the architecture of this medieval city, but it is one of Bologna’s most modern and luxurious hotels.

I got word only a few weeks ago that I would be traveling to Bologna again, my second time in the last six months, to attend an annual party. Complete with live music, food, wine, art and fashion, the 10-hour bash would take place at the Impero Villa.

I imagined that I would spend my short stay in a hotel typical of most European cities: a small accommodation with paper thin walls, classic fixtures and a narrow staircase in place of an elevator.

But AC Hotel was different.

New, urban and cosmopolitan is at the heart of the hotel chain’s mission. With locations in Spain, Italy and Portugal, AC Hotels redefines luxury with its state of the art services and rooms designed for comfort.

I held my breath as I swiped the room door open with the key card.

Soft. Inviting. Modern. A cream curtain covered the length of a wall with windows, filtering only soft light into the room. A minimalist black chair with foot stool and a longer black stool for my luggage were the other pieces of furniture in addition to the bed. An ample-sized closet opened with the pull of a sliding door.

Eco-friendly. The lights and power in the room needed the key card to be inserted through a slot by the door in order to activate. Without the key card, all electric powered fixtures would turn off after five minutes or so. While the idea is not altogether new for most European buildings, the feature was helpful in lighting the room when entering into the bedroom at night.

Sleek. Chic. A sink made completely of glass allowed me to stare at the dark hardwood floors of the bathroom as I watched my hands. The bathroom “curtain” was a thick panel of glass that extended halfway across the tub. A directional shower, complimentary soaps and toothbrushes were thoughtful touches.

Making my way to the exercise room on the top floor and later to the ground floor restaurant, I had no idea what else was in store on this business trip.

To be continued...

-S. Gonzalez