Need Something Green This St.Patrick's Day?

The Cow Hugger Pin at  Herbivore Clothing Company $1.00

Around the time we got married, there were numerous jokes about how I was trading in my super-Jewish last name for a super-Irish one. It was like I became a character from Angela's Ashes overnight. But as a newly Irish-Through-Marriage person, I have had a lifetime to look forward to wearing green on St.Patrick's Day. I adore green. I like wearing it. I like decorating my home with it. I like eating it. I mean, if you haven't seen pictures of our wedding, we had some really amazing green going on.

So I thought as a nice little Sunday afternoon post, I'd share some cool green things to help you get into the St.Patty Day celebration this year, and of course protect you from those eager pinchers. I'm strong believer in prevention. And green.

Plus there's a little contest at the end...

The Vortex Trading Company has a number of cool designs that you can get printed on a green American Apparel Shirt (see why that matters below). My favorite today is the UFO-logy Flying Saucer shirt. It features "31 common UFO saucer types that have been witnessed by our follow earthlings" and has an undeniable nerd-factor that I find irresistible. It reminds me of The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951 not 2008) and that alone makes smile.

Vintage Map Oval Necklaces by The Weekend Store on Buy Olympia are a cool and unique way to add a little classy green to any outfit. I like the Paris one myself, and not just because it's super green, but they have LA, New York, Chicago and San Francisco too. Several of those are green as well.

American Apparel Leisure Dress in Kelly Green... sure it's kinda preppy, but it's still kinda awesome. It's comfortable and not so trendy you'll feel dated in 3 months, but it's also American Apparel. A lot of people don't realize how important it is to buy ethical clothing. I don't just mean skipping the fur, leather, and wool. I used to work in the fashion industry promoting animal friendly fashion, and admit I found that challenging at times. But there's so much more than just cruelty to animals to fix in this industry: it's impact on the environment, support of wage slavery all over the world, and products that are often disposed of or replaced based on trends rather than if the item has actually worn out.

American Apparel is a pretty remarkable business model in the fashion industry. Yes, they sell leather, so they're not perfect, but they operate the largest garment factory in the US and are vertically integrated, eliminating the use of sewing subcontractors and offshore labor. Their average sewing machine operator makes around $12 an hour. They also promote environmentally-friendly practices, using solar power, recycled fabric scraps, and organic cotton. I mean, even their stores in China sell American-made clothing, produced by people with benefits who are paid more than a criminal wage. Similar companies like No Sweat haven't survived in this fickle and unethical industry, and that's a real shame.

"Curse you and your inevitable betrayal!"

This adorable necklace from Modcloth reminds me of one of my very favorite sci-fi quotes from one of my very favorite sci-fi projects. Post a comment telling us who said it and what your favorite sci-fi quote is, and you could win a SURPRISE! We'll choose one winner randomly from the comments this Friday March 11th. You know you wanna win this - we give out good stuff. So start your search engines and post your comments and WIN!