Going Green . . . One step at a Time

With Earth Day approaching, and the Mother Nature Arts and Craft Show coming up, I have been thinking more and more about how I can be kinder to Mother Earth.

Everywhere we look, “going green” is all the rage! Is it just a catch phrase or are people genuinely concerned about the planet we live on? At my last craft show, some obnoxious person saw my “green” jewelry and asked if I had any recycled toilet paper. Ha ha, not funny.

I recently read an article from a fellow jewelry designer, Linda Guzik, about what “going green” means to her, and I loved how she summed it up. Linda says, “Think about how your Grandmother used to live. She probably bought only what she needed, used what she had and didn't throw a single thing away until someone forced her to!”

Now to a clutter bug like myself this is both good and bad. I do tend to not to throw things away until forced to, but in the mean time, I accumulate more stuff! Enough already! I have decided to make some choices when it comes to my jewelry business to honor Mother Earth and be more socially responsible.

First, I am going to start using up my stash before getting more “stuff”. Now this is not going to be easy! I am constantly getting e-mails for new ideas and great deals on beautiful stones and beads. But the truth is I have a ton of ideas floating around my head using materials I already have. (This should help my bottom line as well!)

When I do make a purchase, it will be for more sustainable materials. I love using seeds in my jewelry making, and you will be amazed at how beautiful these naturally dyed seeds are! Another positive outcome from purchasing sustainable seeds is it helps support farmers and artists from developing countries.

Another change that I will gradually be making in my jewelry designs is using only fair trade silver. What is fair trade you ask? Well, fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach to empowering developing countries and promoting sustainability. The movement advocates the payment of a fair price as well as high social and environmental standards. I like the sound of that!

In the end, will my new jewelry making choices make a huge impact on our world? Well . . . probably not. Will I making some impact? Definitely YES! Those small changes are a wonderful place to start. And I always try to remember, every journey begins with the first step!