All Posts Tagged With: "nigels eco store"

Erica writes …

I’ve been looking at ways to become a bit greener for the new year and hopefully save myself some money too.

For me energy saving lightbulbs have been a no brainer way of being green - who doesn’t want to save money on electricity and have to change bulbs less often?  But, as I have a couple of rooms with dimmer switches, I haven’t been able to change over all my lights, so I was very interested to see these dimmable light bulbs.  They will dim from 100% to 2% brightness and have a life of 16,0000 hours.  Whilst they are quite expensive, they should save you £100 in energy over their life.  Available from Nigel’s Eco Store for £13.69.

I’ve also been using eco balls for my washing for some years. These are very simple to use - you just throw them in on top of your wash.  They can save you a fortune in detergent and are great for the environment.  Our first set lasted nearly 2 years (but we were childless then) and our second set doesn’t look as if it will last quite as long (strangely I seem to be washing more often now I have a child).  The balls can also save you money on your energy bills if your washing machine allows you to use a reduced lenght of rinse cycle.  To help them clean the balls contain mineral salts that produce ionised oxygen.  At the moment they are available from Nigel’s Eco Store for £29.99 (or £27.99 if you buy more than 1 set) rather than the usual £34.99.

Avoiding using new carrier bags when I’m shopping is one way I’ve tried to be green especially over the last year or so.  I have quite a few reusable shopping bags, but never seem to have enough for my monthly shop and they can be bulky to carry around.  That’s why I like these eco friendly shopping bags which are durable, lightweight and waterproof plus they look great and there are lots of designs to choose from.  They roll up small so you can pop one into your handbag, one into the glove compartment and you could keep on in your child’s buggy too.  Available from Nigel’s Eco Store for £5.99.

 Sue writes…

If you want to have a green, eco Christmas and are wondering about how to decorate your house for the festive season, you’ll love the Christmas ideas on Nigelsecostore.com.

I’m always looking for something unusual for my Christmas tree, and these recycled CD Christmas Tree Decorations are just the thing. Their simple designs will co-ordinate well with any other decorations you may have, and their shiny surfaces will catch the light and make them sparkle – children will love hanging these on the tree. The decorations can be bought separately for £3.99 each or you can buy a set for £10.49

Fairy lights can look magical in the garden and these outdoor solar lights are ideal if you’d like to decorate the trees in your garden. The lights are waterproof and come with an integrated controller so that you can select various options such as continuous, burst, pulse, flashing etc. The lights have a sensor so that they only come on when it’s dark. 50 fairy lights cost £19.99 and 100 fairy lights cost £29.99.

Finally, if you need a new Christmas tree this year, why not consider one of Nigelsecostore’s Grow Your Own Christmas Trees. Real Christmas trees are more eco-friendly than artificial trees as they are carbon neutral, absorbing as much carbon dioxide as they grow as they will emit when burnt or left to decompose. My favourite is the Norway Spruce Christmas Tree. A 60-75cm tree costs £32.99 and comes ready planted in its own pot.

Nigels Eco Store at present are offering 10% off their christmas range, if you order before midnight of the 13th December 2008.

Brenda writes…

If you shop at Nigels Eco Store before the 15th November in their Christmas section you can get 10% off, if you enter the code ECONOV.

Here are a few of the eco goodies you can pick up from there.

Scots Pine Xmas Tree

This would make a great gift for a young family wanting to start a few traditions of their own. Most families have their own little niche when it comes to xmas decorations, present giving etc. So why not give a gift of a real xmas tree and watch how it develops, alongside the receiving family. It comes with full care instructions and can be kept in a pot for the first 2-3 years. But if given the right TLC, it can grow upto 36 metres in 10 years! £24.99. Continued

Brenda writes…

With all the press coverage recently of the shortage in energy resources, I thought we should show you what products are out there to help.  Here are a choice of 3 energy saving devices from TGF favourite, Nigels Eco Store.

Energenie Standby Shutdown

New on the market, this is unique in the way that it works compared to the others on the market.  It recognises when a product has been left on standby and automatically switches off the mains power.  To switch it back on  again, just press the green button on the energenie.  It can be used for more  than one product as long as the max load is no more than 13A.  Price is £13.97 + delivery.

Ecobutton

This is a great gadget for your desktop computer.  It attaches to your computer via USB and sits next to your computer and it automatically puts your computer into the most economical sleep mode, thus saving you money by cutting down your electricity waste.  The Ecobutton is RoHS compliant and is made from recycled plastic.  Please note it does not work on Macs yet!.  Price is £14.99 + delivery.

Radiator Booster

This energy saving idea was featured on top TV programme, Dragons Den.  Plug it in and place it above your radiator, and it captures all the lost heat coming from the back of the radiator and fans it out to the rest of the room.  How clever is that?  It can not be run for more than 6 hours at a time, as the fans need time to cool off, but if you have radiator covers, it can still be used, just put it under the cover.  Only to be used with water filled radiators.  Price was £19.99 now £14.99 + delivery.

Brenda writes…

If you’re looking to cut down your rubbish going in the bin, you should check out this garden composter.

This cool, retro, apple green garden composter, is made from metal and will sit unobtrusively in your garden, and has a small hatch for access to your compost.

Available from Nigels Eco Store for £57.99.  If you order before 30th September and enter ECOSEP, you get 10% off all September orders.

Here are 6 top tips for getting the best out of your compost bin (via Nigels Eco Store)

1. Site your compost bin on a level, well-drained spot. This allows excess water to drain out and makes it easier for helpful creatures such as worms to get in. Place your bin in a partially sunny spot to help speed up the composting process.

2. Good things to put in include vegetable peelings, fruit waste, teabags, plant prunings and grass cuttings. Other things you can compost include cardboard egg boxes, scrunched up paper and fallen leaves. Crushed eggshells can be included to add useful minerals.

3. Don’t put in cooked vegetables, meat, dairy products, diseased plants, and definitely no dog poo or cat litter, or baby’s nappies. Avoid composting perennial weeds (such as dandelions and thistle) or weeds with seed heads.

4. The key to good compost lies in getting the mix right. If your compost is too wet, add more paper. If it’s too dry, add some vegetable peelings or grass cuttings. Making sure there is enough air in the mixture is also important. Adding scrunched up bits of cardboard is a simple way to create air pockets that will help keep your compost healthy. Air can also be added by mixing the contents. After approximately 6-9 months your finished compost will be ready.

5. Finished compost is a dark brown, almost black soil-like layer that you’ll find at the bottom of your compost bin. It has a spongy texture and is rich in nutrients.

6. Spreading the finished compost into your flowerbeds greatly improves soil quality by helping it retain moisture and suppressing weeds.

Brenda writes…

My kids are obsessed with the internet and the computer and as they grow older it gets harder to control what they are surfing, so it is important to get them into good habits from small.  Here are some green kids websites which are interesting and fun for them to surf on those rainy days.

These websites were voted the top 3 Green sites for Kids in the Green Web Awards which were organised by Nigels Eco Store.

This site is suitable as a resource tool for schools, kids and teachers.  Especially useful if you have projects at home to do on the three R´s - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, and we found useful info here when my son was doing his environmental project.

Zero Footprint Kids Calculator

Again another tool that can be used by schools as well as at home.  In simple kidspeak this allows the kids to work out their personal impact on the planet and can maybe give them the impetus to make some changes for the future.

Has loads of tips and advice on how we can all help with protecting the environment, fun for kids and adults alike.

Brenda writes…

Here are some of the best eco-friendly mens t-shirts on the market at the moment.

Made from high quality 100% organic cotton, this mens t-shirt mixes ethical sourcing with a great design. It’s bold, original, and sweatshop-free. Made by Tonic T-shirts in the UK in sizes small, medium, or large. Available from Nigels eco store for £19.99 + £3.99 delivery.

Viva La Fair Trade Revolution

Stag Beetle T-shirt

Brenda writes…

Here are a few kitchen essentials that are good for the environment.

Made from 100% recycled aluminium, this represents a saving of 95% of the energy used to make normal foil wraps. It makes a great food wrap and helps keep the food fresh and nutritious. Available from Nigels Eco Store for £3.20 plus p&p.

Recycled Refuse Bags

Green in colour although there maybe a slight colour variance per batch. Comes in packs of 25, these are extra heavy duty, to prevent spillages(please my hubby, he has a pet hate over thin refuse bags!). Available from Liners, Bags and Sacks for £5.85 plus delivery.

Brenda writes…

Looking for a cool pair of sneakers for lounging about in, but want to buy greener?  Then check out this pair from Ethletic. 

Made from 100% cotton canvas, these sneakers have a tough rubber sole made from FSC-certified rubber.  The FSC stamp is engraved in the sole of every pair - a world first.

You have a choice of colours for men and women.  Sizes range from 4-10.  Available from Nigels Eco Store for £33.99.

Brenda writes…

This innovative Eco Kettle has a unique double chamber that gets you to measure out exactly how much water you want to boil.  This means that it saves you:  electricity, water, money, time and makes it a better choice for the planet.

It comes recommended from the Energy Saving Trust.

Available from Nigels Eco Store for £34.99. Was £39.99.  Have just noticed that this is actually cheaper at Ethical superstore you can get it for £29.50 for a limited time and they are throwing in Chocolate Cookies as well!!  YUM YUM.

This could be handy for when you’re boiling water for feeds.