We love our local co-op. Every month they publish an amazing newsletter that is full of fresh articles and ideas that inspire us to “live green”. When I read their December cover list called “Celebrate the Eco Way”, I knew I had to share it with Mable’s readers. Enjoy and have a wonderful green holiday season!

“During the holiday season we tend, as a whole, to consume more. And, in doing so we create more… waste, that is. The following is a short list of ideas to help you reduce, reuse and recycle this season.

• Purchase living gifts such as house plants, garden seeds or potted trees that can be transplanted in the spring.
• Reduce waste by offering homemade food items or personal services as gifts. Baking cookies or preparing a meal a week for someone who would appreciate the help are two examples.
• Reuse holiday wrapping: use old maps or pages from newspaper comics for wrapping gifts.
• Reuse good quality, nearly new items as gifts or as donations to less fortunate individuals and families. Local charities can help distribute these items.
• If your celebration calls for a Christmas tree, compensate for the harvest of your tree; arrange to plant a new tree in your yard or neighborhood next spring.
• Give gifts that promote eco friendly life style changes. For example: cloth napkins and tablecloths, cloth or string shopping bags, a compost bin, gift certificates to resale shops, lunch boxes, reusable or biodegradable picnic plates, cups and utensils, recycling bins, or any gift made from recycled materials.

To preserve the spirit of giving, don’t try to give too much. Less “stuff” means less waste and a healthier environment for everyone.”

Article courtesy of San Diego’s organic and vegetarian Ocean Beach People’s Co-op.

It’s coming down to the wire to be able to get gifts to their place before the 25th, but thankfully online stores are helping out with free upgraded shipping, free shipping, and more coupons. Check out these stores for their gift guides and shipping deals.

Gaiam – FREE 2 Day Shipping on Any In-Stock Order with Coupon Code: FEDEX13. Offer only Valid Wednesday Dec 19th – expires Thursday, Dec 20th at 10:00 a.m. EST.

LittleMissMatched -10% off orders through December 24th with Coupon Code: AFHOL10. Very cute items with emphasis on miss matched pajamas, socks, and more!

Brookstone – View Brookstone’s top Holiday gifts. Get 50% off the In-Out Blanket in a Bag – a $39.95 value, now only $19.99!

Buy Costumes – Get 25% OFF Christmas items (costumes, party supplies, decor, etc.) with the special Coupon Code: holi25.

The Succulent Wife – Just increased their last minute savings coupon to 15% OFF! Coupon Code: Merry15. Offer is valid now through 12/21. They have great gift ideas and lots of handmade artisan goods for those with an eco-friendly gift giving agenda.

Just last night I stood impatiently at the local Target Photo Center to get my digital photo prints and I asked myself “Why aren’t I at home in my comfortable pajamas doing this online? It’s probably cheaper too.” Guess what? It is cheaper, plus if this is your first time ordering, with the right timing, you can get your first 10-20 prints free.

If you’re like us you accumulate some good pictures from your handy digital camera throughout the year. Well now half the work of sending out photos, or creating some quick and easy gifts is already done. With just a handful of pictures you can create a 2008 calendar (the recipient would have to remember your birthday), photo books (great for long distance relatives), mugs, stationary, mouse pads, puzzles, and more. You know, the classic customizable products. All this can be done in a few minutes, resulting in quality gifts getting shipped directly to your gift recipient and you never had to leave the house. Double Gift Score!

Snapfish – Has some great gift options at low prices. They claim to be #1 and you get 20 free prints when you first sign up. FREE upgrade to Expedited Shipping at Snapfish! Select standard shipping upon checkout. (free upgrade valid 12/18 only)

SmugMug.com – More focused on photo sharing, and organizing, but has just as many options to print photos to gifts. This is a site for the photographer, amateur or pro, it’s a definite crowd pleaser.

Wallhogs – These guys are for your bigger wall covering posters, canvas prints, and vinyl. I’m talking up to 7 feet long removable vinyl wall decorations from one of your awesome photos! That’s a gift!

Gadgets are a part of daily life for pretty much everybody in 2007, so gadget gifts aren’t just for computer nerds anymore! We’ve rounded up some great tech gift ideas for everyone on your list. Whether you’re shopping for a business professional, social network butterfly, or any gadget-lover in-between, keep reading for some retail inspiration.

6 Device Electronics Charger: This little beauty is going to simplify a lot of lives. It’s six tentacles contain “six adapters that fit most portable devices, allowing an entire briefcase-full of electronic office tools to be fully powered in an average of two hours”. Comes with a regular and car charger so that you can also power up on the go.

Roomba 500 Series Robot Vacuum: It’s December 2007, and jet packs are still not available yet. The next best thing would definitely be the cleaning robots available from iRobot. Not only is the new 500 series vastly improved from earlier models, but there are also robots that mop your floors, vacuum up your shop, and clean your gutters. Also, with no AI chip* there’s no threat of your Roomba leading an electronic revolt. *(You’ll need iRobot Create developers kit for that)

Chaotic-Artistic Gadget Organizer: Shopping for an oxymoron? This beautiful tangle of wires is named Harry, and he is as unique and tech savvy as his future owner. Inside his guts you can have fun nestling not just gadgets, but keys, wallets, and whatever else you’re likely to throw on the table as soon as you get home.

DIY Laptop Sleeve/Bag: The laptop bags that we featured in our Indie Christmas part 1 post were amazing, but sometimes totally custom is the way to go. Let your laptop lover design every detail of their bag with the Skooba customizable sleeve that also cleverly transforms into a handled bag.

Bluetooth Rear View Mirror: Between cell phone laws and sloppy drivers, Bluetooth devices continue to prove themselves invaluable for traveling. The only question is, which will make you look crazier: talking to an earbud or talking to your rearview mirror?

USB Podcast Studio Kit: Blogging is so 2006. All the cool kids (and pretty much everyone else) know that podcasting is where its at. With this kit, give your nouveau podcaster “everything needed for crystal clear audio recording and editing”, packed up all cool into an aluminum briefcase.

Check back in a couple days for some last minute gift ideas in our Gadget Gift Roundup Part 2.

One of the most common complaints in relationships is that “I love you” isn’t said frequently enough. Just “knowing” that somebody cares is nice, but reminding them of our feelings with words and gestures is invaluable. With that in mind, when is the last time you told someone “You are really awesome“?

Nothing beats an old fashioned face-to-face “I love you” in terms of heart melting, but words really don’t make a great gift and you can’t display them online either. Awesome Million solves this problem by allowing you to give a sentimental gift that comes with an online certificate. Let that special person in your life know that you think they are indeed Really Awesome by including them in the Awesome Million. Just select a unique number between 1-1,000,000, choose a certificate design, upload a picture of the awesome person and the entire Internet will know of their awesomeness. If they have a web page you can even include a link on the certificate. For those with a MySpace or business website, that makes it an even better gift.

But let’s get more creative with this unique gift idea. Who (or what) can you make Really Awesome? Besides the obvious, here are some ideas:

Your Kids: Lots of people are making their kids really awesome!
Nicknames: stinky.isreallyawesome.com
Businesses: XYZcompany.isreallyawesome.com
Your pets: MyDogAndy.isreallyawesome.com
Being something: BeingVegan.isreallyawesome.com

People, places, things, bands, MySpace pages, businesses… you name it and it can be Really Awesome with this cheap personalized gift. We named our business after our beloved kitty Mable, so we immediately bought a tribute page to her located at mable.isreallyawesome.com. Another added bonus is that when we search “awesome Mable” or “Mable is awesome” in search engines, the tribute page shows up as the first result. What a unique way to tell your Really Awesome person about their gift: just tell them to Google their name and the word “awesome”. Just be sure to order at least a week early to allow search engines to pick up your new web page.

This also makes an easy, last minute gift or stocking stuffer, and at $1 to $5, its apt to be the most inexpensive gift you’ll find all season. It can also be a quick, green alternative to a card. Rather than mailing out a paper holiday greeting card, why not send an e-card from Awesome Million?

$1-$5