Green toys for the holidaysLike it or not, it's that time of year, the time when retailers shove the "holiday shopping season" down all of our throats with incessant ads and special doorbuster deals. I love Christmas (or I used to before it started November 1st) but I'm not all that into the thrill of buying stuff on sale. I've always enjoyed shopping for my daughter, but I've gotten increasingly depressed about the fact that everything available for kids at big box retailers, from clothes to toys, is made in China under less-than-desirable conditions.

So I got Barbara-Streisand's-version-of-Jingle-Bells-level jazzed when I found out about Green Toys, a California company that makes eco-friendly toys out of recycled plastic right here in America. They've got all the big items little kids love (trucks, tool sets, tea sets, and more) at reasonable prices. A few of these items cost significantly more than the price you'd pay at a big box retailer for non-recycled, foreign-made products, but many cost just about

By Trystan L. Bass

Christmas parties are filling the calendar, and New Year celebrations are soon to follow. You want the house to sparkle for your family and guests.

Can you evoke a Norman Rockwell holiday while also playing nice with Mother Earth? You bet.

The first stop for eco-friendly winter décor might be your front yard (or a local garden supply store). As the University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture notes, evergreens come in a wide variety of colors. Gather up pine, cedar, spruce, fir, holly, boxwood, nandina, aucuba, and magnolia leaves and boughs. These make beautiful wreaths, swags, and centerpieces for use inside the house as well as outside.

Fruits and vegetables are lovely, old-fashioned decorations on tables and trees. Care2 has instructions for easy, inexpensive candleholders made of oranges studded with cloves. These will look pretty and smell very Christmasy.

The same page also has tips for stringing cranberry garlands and making pinecone

By Lori Bongiorno

Whether you're hosting or on the guest list, chances are you'll be shopping for wine and beer this holiday season. Great taste and sustainability are not mutually exclusive.

Here are some suggestions for finding the most planet-friendly options.

Beer:

• Drink beer from local microbreweries to reduce the amount of fossil fuels used for shipping and support nearby businesses. Read the BeerAdvocate's directory for ratings of breweries, beer stores, and related establishments in your neighborhood
• Try organic beer. The barley used to brew organic beer is grown without synthetic pesticides, but there's no guarantee that the hops (a perennial plant that adds bitterness and aroma) will be grown organically. That's because the USDA allows producers to use conventionally grown hops if they can't find organic versions. Just a few brands to look for: Peak Organic Brewing Company, Butte Creek Brewing, and Bison Brewery.
• The greenest thing you can do is make

Custom-decorated cloth napkinsBy Lori Bongiorno

Using cloth napkins instead of paper is a great way to cut down on waste. The laundry can pile up, though, for a family that uses them at every meal. That's why I was thrilled when I unwrapped my friend Jill Bouratoglou's creative homemade gift.

Inside was a set of cloth napkins with a clever eco-friendly twist. A different image was screen-printed on each napkin. She told everyone in my family to choose the napkin with our favorite design and use it at every meal.

Now that we've all been "assigned" a napkin, I'm told I don't have to wash them after each use. That's the best part, of course (think about it: you don't wash a hand towel after every single use either). Although, it doesn't hurt that the napkins look like they were purchased in a stylish boutique.

Jill assures me that these are easy to make. (I'm still impressed.)

Here are directions she adapted from several sources:

1. Gather the following supplies: White cotton napkins, nontoxic fabric

Girl with holiday lights, Getty ImagesBy Lori Bongiorno

There's a lot of talk about upgrading to LED Christmas lights. So what should you do with your old incandescent lights? It's not likely that curbside recycling will take them, but that doesn't mean they're destined for the landfill. Check to see if there's going to be an event in your local community over the holidays.

Otherwise, take advantage of HolidayLEDs' free recycling program. You do have to be willing to pay postage, though, since it's a mail-in program. Still, it's a great option for those who would rather not throw their old holiday lights in the trash. An added benefit: The company will send you a coupon for a 25% discount off LED lights sold on its website (a particularly appealing prospect for those who haven't made the upgrade yet).

Earth911 has helpful suggestions for those who would rather donate or reuse decorative lights.

If you're in the market to buy LED Christmas lights, look for strings that have the Energy Star stamp of