Have a happy Halloween - eco style

Halloween can be great fun for kids and adults alike, but with all the sweets, costmumes, pumpkins and lights being used the environmental impact can soon add up. Luckily, there are a few things we can all do to make our Halloween celebrations a little better for the planet.

Reusing old costumes (for example by swapping them between friends and families) can be a great way to get something new for nothing. If old costumes aren't your thing, then costumes can easily be created by recycling any old rubbish found lying around the home - I think a newspaper monster could be a pretty scary costume!

Buying fairtrade sweets and chocolate, like the selection of Divine chocolate at Ecocentric, means that the producers are getting a fair deal - always good for your conscience. Organic pumkins are also a great way to cut down on your negative environmental imprint, and instead of throwing away the seeds, why not wash, then gently toast and salt them for a tasty snack?

Eco-friendly decorations for your Halloween party are also easy and fun to make. You can use of a whole range of used packaging, like washed crisp packets and chocolate wrappers, to make shiny bunting, and old tin cans with holes poked in them make nice little lanterns with a candle in them. For a safer version, Ecocentric's Candela lights give out a lovely warm glow, but are cool to the touch and rechargeable.

However you celebrate Halloween, I hope you have a ghoulish - and green - day!

Eco-home focus on Dream Homes tonight

Just a quick heads up for tonight's episode of Dream Homes:

On the site of an old signal box in Wisbech, newlyweds Russell and Delia Swann are building a brand new house - with their bare hands. Using the latest sustainable methods, including recycled yogurt pots in the kitchen, this is going to be one of the greenest houses in the country. But all that’s in the future. The reality is that, just three months after their wedding, Oliver Heath finds Russell and Delia living in a caravan at the start of one of the coldest winters on record.

Catch it at 9pm tonight on the Discovery Channel (repeated tomorrow at 8pm and Sunday at 7pm)

Win free personal design advice from Oliver Heath PLUS a copy of his award winning new book 'Urban Eco Chic'

We're giving you the chance to get your home interior decorating question answered by Oliver Heath, and to win a copy of his new book.

Oliver is an award winning TV designer and architect, and founder of online eco homewares and eco gift store ecocentric.

In this special competition Oliver will be personally answering 5 of your best design questions by email. This is a fantastic chance to get a fresh, professional eye on your home design challenges and inject a bit of eco chic style into your life, all for free!

AND if that isn't enough, you also have a great chance to WIN a copy of Oliver's new book - 'Urban Eco Chic' - with a personal dedication from Oliver to you.

Although only 5 people will get the exclusive chance to get their questions answered by Oliver, we will be addressing the other issues raised by your questions here in our blog over the next month. Make sure to keep coming back to check if your question topic has come up!

To enter the competition, just fill in your name, email and your question for Oliver in the online form.

Full terms and conditions are available here

Hurry! The competition closes at midnight on 12th November...

childrens bedrooms

Good news – my wife Katie just had a little baby girl! Added to that over the last month we have moved house – believe me these are two major life changes that shouldn’t happen anywhere near each other!

However it has got me thinking ever more about designing eco children’s bedrooms.

As there wont be too much energy use, your main concerns will be the creation of a happy and healthy space for your precious child to live, sleep (and occasionally scream!) in. Remember that childrens immune systems are in development and so more susceptible to the effect of toxins.

The main things to think about are:
- Reducing toxins found in furniture, paints, and toys
- Reducing dust levels – cutting down on unhealthy dust mite.
- Good natural ventilation- cutting out the build up of damp and potential mould
- Safe Low energy lighting


Floors
Natural wood floors are great for interior design, they will also help to cut down on surfaces that trap dust (such as carpets. But if you do want some soft surfaces, try rugs or whip stitched sections of natural carpets made of wool with natural backings.

Walls
Paint walls in natural paints that don’t contain Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) which can off gas toxins onto the floor or surfaces below. VOCs are found at their highest levels in conventional eggshell or gloss paints

Furniture such as beds, wardrobes and chairs
Choose solid wood furniture that wont contain formaldehyde resin glues (found in MDF, chipboard and plywood) which can off gas. Vintage furniture can look great when given a lick of paint or even a little wall paper.

Beds
Mattresses can trap high levels of dust which leads to dust mites, these can be vacuumed clear. Alternatively you could use a closed cell structure natural latex mattress or use organic fibre mattresses which wont have been exposed to toxins in the production of the materials.

Toys
Buy solid wooden toys and avoid plastic toys particularly those made of PVC (like rubber bath ducks) which contain phthalates- which have been shown to cause a wide array of health issues affecting the liver, kidney, lung and blood pressure, but most importantly is their reported effect on the reproductive tract of boys.

Lighting
It goes without saying that you should use low energy bulbs but I advise using the bulbs that have the curly filament encased within a conventional bulb shaped cover. Low energy bulbs contain small quantities of mercury which can be released if broken. Alternatively use a tough lamp shade such as polypropylene, which can be recycled at the end of its useful life.

Heating and ventilation– thermostatic valves
Bedrooms need to be both heated and properly ventilated – this will keep the rooms living conditions healthy and comfortable. Children’s bedrooms should be kept at between 64.5 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit, this can be achieved by using a thermostatic radiator valve to regulate room temperature.
Use trickle vents in the windows to maintain regular air changes, this will reduce the build up of damp and mould.

Oliver's book wins green award

Oliver launched his new book 'Urban Eco Chic' last month and it has already picked up an award. The ultimate onlne luxury lifestyle magazine Hot Brands Cool Places gave the book its Green Award.

Urban Eco Chic is a design-led guide to eco-decorating, helping interior designers, green builders, and homeowners make eco-friendly choices that transform the home into a sanctuary of sustainable style. The book is filled with loads of inspiring colour photographs and presents the visionary eco-style of green designer Oliver Heath, who believes in balancing the elements of nature, vintage, and technology.
Urban Eco Chic is also about achieving a balance between function and style, teamed with a conscious effort to reduce one's environmental impact. Urban Eco Chic combines the use of pioneering technologies powered by the least energy possible, sustainable natural materials that leave the lightest footprint and recycled or recyclable products such as vintage furniture and accessories.

Oliver is giving sneak previews of elements of the book on his style column on the ecocentric website.
Read the Hot Brands Cool Places review of the book here

Oliver will personally sign all copies of the book bought from ecocentric, and you can also request he add a special dedication - an ideal Christmas gift!

Recycling is high design

Want a sneaky peak round Oliver's home?

In this video he made for Recycle Now Oliver shows how the glass and plastic that we faithfully put out for the council to take away each week becomes beautifully designed products that can be incorporated into the design of your home.

Oliver really believes in sustainable design and in this tour round his home he shows you exactly how he has practiced what he preaches - and gives some great advice along the way.

To pick up some great recycled home accessories and other recycled and eco gifts, check out ecocentric

Congratulations to the Peoples Award winners

Congratulations go to the Zon hearing aid who won the Peoples Choice Award from Cooper Hewitt Design Awards

It was a hot contest, in which our Ovetto recycled recycling bin held its own. It was great to see over one fifth of the nominees were green or sustainable designs, showing that this sector can compete against the big boys in the design world - a trend that I'm sure will only increase over the years.

Oliver's quick tips for saving energy

These simple tips are great for those who don't have the cash to splash. In fact, rather than spending money on being a bit greener, these low-cost eco tips will actually save you money.

• Clean your windows regularly. Dirty ones are depressing, while clean ones let in more light.
• Position white or reflective surfaces, mirrors or light coloured tables near windows to bounce light around. It is amazingly effective.
• When boiling the kettle, only fill it with as much water as you need.
• Use a good quality washing powder and wash at a lower temperature such as 30°C; over a year it will save you an amazing amount of energy.
• Air dry your washing outside to cut out the use of your tumble drier.
• Switch to a green energy supplier who provides power from renewable sources. Simply request to change and they do the rest.
• Cook with the lids on pans.
• Thick blinds or curtains insulate the windows and stop heat loss; look for vintage ones at secondhand shops, markets or online.
• Fit silver foil covered boards (make or buy them) and fit them behind your radiators, they are amazingly effective at kicking heat forward.
• Only use the dishwasher or washing machine when it is full, or use an economy programme. However, modern A-rated appliances are now more efficient than cleaning by hand.
  

London is the fairest city of them all!

Today London will become the world's largest Fairtrade City. Almost 1,000 retailers and 600 catering outlets have signed up to stock fairtrade certified goods.

London is the 400th place in Britain to be awarded the status by the Fairtrade Foundation.

The Metro was happy to report that Boris Johnson said it was 'super news'.

It is great to know that people are sticking to their values despite talk of recession in the news. Sales of Fairtrade increased by 55% over the summer - word is obviously spreading about the message and the benefits these certifications offer to producers worldwide - and, of course, that it is often the highest quality product...

Having been a supporter of Fairtrade for years it is really exciting to see them becoming more the norm in households across the UK.

Dream Homes is back!

Oliver Heath's TV show Dream Homes is back by popular demand, and will be showing on the Discovery Channel.
Join Oliver as he travels across Britain meeting the people who are fulfilling their dream of building their own home.

Each week Oliver joins someone either building or renovating their own dream home, and inspires them with his design advice and by taking them to visit award winning architectural buildings or interior settings to encourage them in the dreams.

You can catch the show on Thursdays (9:00pm) on the Discovery Channel with repeats on Friday at 8:00pm and Sunday at 7:00pm.

Tonight's show:
Oliver meets Geoff and Sarah McCormack who are building their dream home in Maida Vale. Or, at least, Geoff’s dream home - Sarah is not so sure that she wants to sell their existing luxury flat. Recruiting architect Nicolas Boyarsky, they opt for a steel and glass house in contrast to the Victorian street alongside. But their new home is not to everyone’s taste.

Top spots for eco chic shopping

This week Oliver has been chatting to Kate Watson Smyth from the Independent, tipping her off to the best places to visit for renovating and decorating an eco chic home.

Retrouvius
"Lots of people already know this site, but it really is one of my favourites. You can find unique pieces, and buying old furniture really is green. It's good for a browse and for getting ideas."

Junkystyling
"I buy very little from clothes shops. Instead, I will pick up something from the market and take it to this place in the East End of London for alterations - they adapt it to fit with bits of other material or some tailoring. It combines recycling, vintage and style all in one."

Brighton Sunday Market
"I love going to markets to look for furniture. Get to know the markets where the dealers go, as that is probably where the good stuff is."
Brighton Station Car Park, Trafalgar Street

Earthborn Paints
"I feel very strongly about paints: most are full of toxins, and give off fumes. My range for Earthborn are breathable. They soak up the moisture from the air as well as having no toxins"

Squint
"Save all those little bits of material that aren't good for anything else and use them in patchwork to cover a sofa or chair. It encourages us to become less precious about our belongings."

Brighton and Hove Wood Recycling Project
"I live in Brighton and come here all the time. The great thing about it being local is that the chances are someone will have thrown away something similar to what you are looking for, so there is a good chance you will find a door from the right period, say, or a floorboard the same width as what you need to replace. It's also a bit like a museum – you can see what people think is junk."

Charnwood
"A lot of wood-burning stove designs are rather Victorian in style, but this English company has great contemporary designs. I can pick up wood to burn from the reclaimed yard, and it's much more energy efficient. With a conventional fire, about 80 per cent of the heat goes up the chimney; with the wood-burning stove that 80 per cent is pumped into the room. It also adds character and focus to a room."

Vaillant
"Having a 1960s house is great as there are cavity walls which we can insulate – harder with a Victorian property. We are putting in a new heating system and this company has a really good range of products, such as ground-source heat pumps and solar-heating systems: high quality, efficient and reliable."


You can visit Oliver's own online store offering eco homewares & gifts - http://www.ecocentric.co.uk/

Read the full article here

More energy saving ideas

Ok, so I promised you some more energy saving ideas following on from the tips from the Energy Saving Trust.

There are lots of simple ways to do save energy which don’t require such a big change or cash injection as a wind turbine or photo voltaics on the roof. Small changes around your home can make dramatic savings on your electricity bill, and help you to do your bit for the environment.


Installing an energy saving monitor will help you see where the biggest waste in your home is. It is really easy to put in and most have a seperate real time monitor so you can simply turn appliances on and off and immediately see the savings or wastage for each. There are a few out there, so have a look into which is best for you.



Did you know…when plugged in overnight, a charger keeps pumping your phone with energy, even when it is fully charged? Even when your phone isn’t attached, if it is plugged in, your charger uses electricity, increasing your bill prices by the minute!

The answer? Solar powered chargers. They use the power of the sun to charge your phone, saving you money off your electricity bills, and dont need bright sunshine, so work at any time of year. And you dont need to be near a plug to top up that battery. Which to get?

The Solio: James Bond gadget of the eco-world. This cool and brilliant solar powered charger uses three solar panels to harness the sun's natural energy. So versatile, the Solio universal charger can be used to power your i-pod, phone, digital camera, blackberry or other PDA's.


The Freeloader: A more compact version also comes with a wide range of phone and gadget tips, and at just £29.95 will make the ideas eco Christmas gift. The experts at SmartPlanet rated this top in their reviews of all the different solar chargers on the market.



We know to turn off lights as we leave a room, and to replace our standard bulbs with energy savers… but we can also go that step further, and reduce our carbon footprint even more by using LED lighting; with a lifespan over 50 times longer, using a fraction of the power of its energy hungry alternative, Light Emitting Diodes last up to 50,000 hours. This versatile technology can be used in all types of lighting from fairy lights to desk lamps.

Energy Saving Week

As if the incentive of saving money wasnt enough to have made us take notice before, the Energy Saving Trust have designated this week Energy Saving Week to encourage us to save energy for the health of the planet, and our wallets.

The aim of Energy Saving Week is simple: to help consumers learn how they can reduce their carbon footprint and show how significant savings can be made in money, energy and time by making a difference. The Energy Saving Trust understand that time and money is something most of us do not have an abundance of.

From 20th - 26th October there will be loads of events and information out there to remind us how easy it is to take small steps to massive effect - just think, if we all took just one of these small step, this would be multiplied thousands of times over to create a massive impact.

Energy Saving Week is the perfect opportunity to discover your Green/Life Balance. We're urging people to take time to make time to change their households' habits to help fight climate change. It doesn't take long to get things started...

Here are lots of things you can do in just ten minutes:

• Start eco-driving sometimes known as smarter driving: check your tyre pressure - under-inflated tyres are dangerous and can increase fuel consumption by up to 3%.


• Call to your local water company to request a cistern displacement device, such as a 'hippo' water saver. Alternatively, fill a plastic bottle with water.


• Contact your bank to tell them you'd like to receive your statements online. Other service providers, such as BT, also offer paper-less billing schemes.


• Mend that dripping tap washer, it could stop up to 5,500 litres of water wastage and, if you're on a water meter, it could save you over £18 a year.


• If you're looking to replace a household gadget or appliance, compare thousands of products and find the best Energy Saving Recommended option.


• Do a free home energy check to see how much money you can save on your annual fuel bill it could be up to £270 a year.

Enough to be getting on with?
We'll pop back with some more ideas later on in the week incase you are sat twiddling your thumbs...

Design classic up for an award

We are very excited that Ovetto, our recycled recycling bin, is one of this year's contendors in this year's Cooper Hewitt Design Awards.

The competition gives people the chance to vote for their favourite example of good design.

We think Ovetto is not only a good design product. It's green, recycled, educational fun and practical.

At the same height as a 4 year old, it is the ideal little friend for a child with colourful doors and slots that beg to be pushed, pulled and played with.

So if you think the Ovetto is the best thing since Eero Saarinen (think Tulip chair) or Verner Panton, then go ahead and vote

It'll be a tight contest - check out who Ovetto is up against!

We'll let you know what happens when the results come out next Friday...

Vintage for kids

We love this ingenious idea for using vintage wallpaper - you know those designs you see in classic 70's films but would never cover a whole wall with...

Dutch design company Inke have a huge range of retro designs cut into shapes of animals or trees - ideal for the kids room. Thay have giraffe, lion, alligator, elephant, birds trees...and the best bit (but possibly the most difficult) is choosing which design of wallpaper you want for each shape... I love this classic combination:

No need to throw out those old rolls, and even a reason to snap them up when you find them in the corner of a vintage store - have a go at cutting your own shapes to create nature montages for a playroom. I know Oliver is already planning a mural for his 2yr old daughters room...

Our two-pence worth

The world of eco chic seems to be growing fast, as more designers and companies are adopting eco-friendly practices, and not just in the name of green washing.

A few of us from EcoCentric will be keeping you up to date with what's new and what's catching our eye in the eco world, from high design products to ideas you can try for yourself to enhance your eco chic home.

Obviously we can't tell you everything as we need some time to run the company, but we will get you the best bits to keep you positive and inspired.

Anything you think we've missed? let us know! Something you want us to offer on the website - ditto!

We hope you enjoy it...