Blog Posts by Daily Grommet

Who doesn't love a fresh bouquet of flowers? And when the garden is in full bloom, there's nothing nicer than giving (or keeping!) fresh cut flowers that are ready to display. Mother Nature will supply the blossoms -- and in the "flower holding" department, Daily Grommet has discovered a clever solution with Jill-able vases.

Jill-able - Flat Folding, Reusable VasesUnlike a traditional glass vase, Jill-ables are unbreakable, collapsible and reusable. Just add water to create a sturdy, colorful vase, and simply collapse it when it's not in use-they even store flat in a drawer, taking up no more room than an envelope. Jill-able vases come in four different colors and are made from recycled plastic, so they're both earth-friendly and a real space saver.

Perfect for gifting and reusing, the Jill-able vase is a nice way to share flowers with a friend without adding to their clutter. It's a particularly thoughtful choice for small apartments, kid-busy homes, classrooms, or hospital rooms. Keep a few for yourself, too, and enjoy

Ah, low-rise jeans. So flattering to the rear end, yet capable of causing so many wardrobe malfunctions. If your shirt doesn't behave or if you're naturally long-waisted, you've got to hike at your clothes all day long to avoid the dreaded Muffin Top effect. As in, MY BELLY, LET ME SHOW IT TO YOU.

Luckily, someone's come up with a clever, cute solution: the Blush topless undershirt. A Daily Grommet reader told us about the Blush shirt, and how perfect it is for layering. Like a tube top you wear around the waist, the Blush undershirt creates the look of an extra layer without the extra bulk (or "two shirts in my armpits," as Sheila put it). It's a particularly great accessory during pregnancy, when it can be worn to cover your ever-protruding belly while also holding up your favorite (unbuttoned) pants. Genius!

BlushUnlike similar products, the Blush undershirt has a smooth seam, comes up higher on the body for a more comfortable stay-put, stetch-to-fit, and features non-shrink,

Tom Szaky started out as a young man with a dream and a whole lot of . . . worm poop. Really! He first encountered a worm composter as a student at Princeton, and once he saw how organic fertilizer was born, he was hooked. Eager to turn this earth-friendly process into a business, he dropped out of school and soon landed a million bucks in capital investment.

TerraCycleUnfortunately, the money came with directives that didn't mesh with Szaky's green focus. The whole endeavor almost came to an end until he realized he could move the business forward with the cost-cutting step of repurposing discarded soda bottles as packaging.

Today TerraCycle not only sells that same fabulous organic fertilizer in recycled plastic bottles, they boast an entire line of 100% recycled products. Whether you go for fertilizers, cleaners, or any of their "zero carbon footprint" products fashioned from recycled drink pouches (the pencil cases are my favorite), you're getting something cool and helping the earth.

You're off for a hike or a run, but where to put your keys, phone, and energy bar? Forget the bulky waist bag, and give this sleek little storage belt a try instead. Athlete and entrepreneur Kim Overton came up with the idea after being frustrated by trying to hold her keys in her sports bra while jogging, and designed the SPIbelt, a slim, no-jiggle belt with an expandable carrying pouch for personal items. This clever container morphs from mini-sized to large enough to hold all your essentials and then some.

SPIbeltThe SPIbelt stays comfortably secure in place while you're moving. Use it for athletic events, traveling, concerts, theme parks, trips to the playground, club outings, hiking-or just to keep the bare necessities on hand during times you aren't carrying a bag. It's perfect for kids, too, and can be used to hold emergency contact info, money, or any necessary medical items like an inhaler or EpiPen.

Maybe you need handy access to your electrolyte replenishing gels during that

If you haven't yet given Pandora a try, you're in for a treat. People are wild about this unique music service, and for good reason -- Pandora is an Internet radio station that only plays music you love.

PANDORA Personalized (Free!) Internet Radio How does Pandora do it? It's based on the Music Genome Project, a sophisticated collection of musical information. Pandora founder (and pianist) Tim Westergren, on right, worked with two friends to create the Music Genome Project in 2000 and it has grown into the most thorough analysis of music ever undertaken. Each song in the project is analyzed by an actual human musician using up to 400 musical characteristics. Pandora uses this information to create playlists based on musical similarity.

Enter the name of one of your favorite songs or artists, and Pandora quickly scans its database of analyzed music - new and old, well known and completely obscure- to find songs with interesting similarities. Pandora dishes out the tunes, and you sit back and enjoy a customized listening

Think about the evolution of coolers over the years.

First, there was the cheesy 99-cent Styrofoam number -- how bad for the environment were those?! For a while, the kids loved the extruded plastic Playmate Jr. because there were cup-holder cutouts in the lid. Although durable, carrying this cooler felt like hauling bricks. Then, there was the sleek microfiber stitched coolers with just space for a couple of cans and a snack pack of chips. Nice for one -- but what about the rest of us?

Kelty, a premier name in camping and outdoor equipment since 1952, has finally ended our search with the Kelty Basecamp Pop Duo.

What sets the Kelty Pop Duo apart besides sheer quality?
Kelty Basevamp Pop Duo Cooler

• A convenient prep area - like a mini-counter. Very handy for making sandwiches at your next tailgate.
• Storage section for kitchen utensils. No more wrapping the paring knife in a paper towel.
• Simple good looks and spaciousness - always in high demand.

Back in college, the best way to get a little clarity was to ditch class, sleep in, stay in pajamas all day, and let our brains reboot. As working parents, we don't get that option anymore. These days, the best thing to do is take 10 minutes to calmly write a to-do list.
B Designs List Maker Desktop Caddy
Experts agree that writing down your intentions is the best way to start making them happen, and of course, the simple act of making a list forces you to prioritize. (Is organizing the vegetable bin really as important as finally getting life insurance? Hmmm.) The only hitch is that those lists are jotted on whatever scrap paper is handy. The backs of envelopes, the Kenmore Elite ad on page 35 of Domino magazine, the margin of this or that flyer we get in the mail. And when we lose the lists, those to-dos don't get done.

That's why Daily Grommet was thrilled to discover the "List Maker" Desktop Caddy from B Designs, a husband-and-wife-owned stationery company just a stone's throw from Grommet headquarters. Each

41pounds.orgEver since we found 41pounds.org, our trips to the mailbox are so much less stressful! This nonprofit organization is named for the 41 pounds of junk mail the average adult gets each year. The company was founded by the three DeVries brothers who turned their own frustration with junk mail into a service that stops up to 95% of unwanted deliveries. Sure, it's something anyone could do -- but, honestly, who has the time?

For $41, 41pounds.org will protect your mailbox from unwanted junk for five years, plus donate $15 to the charity of your choice. Total charitable contribution: $100,000 and counting.

Here at Daily Grommet, we tested the service and we're pleased to say we're pleasingly junk mail free. Think of the time saved sifting through all that stuff. Think of the paper kept out of landfills. Think of the smile on your letter carrier's face (and for those of you who can't live without those catalog, the service is customizable, so you still get the ones you want).

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