Here is an EXCELLENT, but long, article on bamboo in the Mother Earth News.

Though long misconstrued as an exclusively tropical plant, bamboo can actually be grown as a farm crop in much of the United States. Once you learn how to plant, grow and utilize this fast-growing, beautiful and functional backyard resource, you may never go back to wood.

From shoots to poles, it’s all in this extensive article by Daphne Lewis.

Full Article Here or Print Version Here

Several years ago who would have thought that commercial supplies companies would be touting “green” products? I was surprised to find this in my inbox (well, it actually went to junk mail, but I saved it).

Introducing ideallygreen.com…

At HD Supply Facilities Maintenance, we’re helping you go green with ideallygreen.com. Our new website is a resource for how you can achieve your own sustainability goals.

• Search “ideallygreen” for green products
• Learn more about our sustainability initiative
• Find links to key organizations and associations that support sustainability

Visit ideallygreen.com to learn more today!

Now mind you, this takes you to the HDSupply (Home Depot group) site, but talk about a tide of change. Of course, the cynic would say — as long as they can make a buck on it, they’ll be green.

From LiveMint.com – part of the Wall Street Journal group:

Given the increasing fragility of the earth, opting for green designs makes both aesthetic and ecological sense. However, choosing from a plethora of natural materials can be bewildering if you don’t know what you are looking at. Here are some “green” materials and their uses.

BAMBOO

This grass species is an extremely versatile material with more than 1,500 documented uses. Being one of the fastest growing plants in the world, it takes three-five years to mature compared with most wood species, which take between 12 and 20 years. Another advantage is that bamboo can grow even on infertile land. It is a viable alternative to wood, with certain species exhibiting strength and physical characteristics comparable with wood. Its extensive roots bind soil together and its rapidly growing green cover releases the much needed oxygen into the air. Bamboo can be worked on easily and is used to craft a wide variety of home products. New technological innovations have resulted in hi-tech industrial products such as laminated bamboo flooring, reconstituted bamboo board and corrugated bamboo mat roofing. Slats of bamboo, in varying degrees of thickness, are woven together to make the ubiquitous chiks (blinds) so common in hot and humid climates.

Full Article Here

This just in from the Southtown Star in Chicago

Consider shopping for eco-textiles when going green

February 26, 2008

By Christopher Appelt

This week, I want to discuss one of my wife’s favorite topics, clothes shopping (yes, she knows I wrote the previous sentence). I’m sure by now, many of you have become aware of various environmentally friendly clothes and other items made from fabric (like sheets).

You’ve probably seen things made of organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, recycled fabrics and recycled soda bottles. There are even fabrics made from corn, soy and milk!

Despite the fact that I’m not very fashion forward, even I have noticed more and more eco-textile options. Yes, it seems that even the fashion industry is starting to be environmentally friendly, and fashion conscious folks won’t have to sacrifice.

As is always the case, we have to be vigilant and can’t necessarily take everything at face value. Take organic cotton, for example. Just like organic foods you buy at the grocery store, organic cotton is grown without synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. That’s great because it causes less pollution.

However, cotton requires a lot of water to grow. Plus, an organic designation applies only to how the cotton was grown. The dyes and processing involved with making the fabric or clothing still can involve the use of nasty chemicals.

Check the labels. Look for things like “low-impact fiber-reactive dyes” or even better, vegetable dyes. See if there is a statement about not using formaldehyde in finishing. You might also check to see if the fabric is a blend. If it is, see if it’s blended with another sustainable fiber like the ones I listed above.

Bamboo has been getting a lot of attention lately. I still remember seeing a bamboo shirt for the first time almost two years ago. I thought the concept was interesting, and the fabric felt as soft as silk.

What is so amazing about bamboo (there are many species of this type of grass) is how quickly and easily it grows. In fact, it has become a nuisance in some places where it has taken up residence as an exotic species. It can be grown without fertilizers or pesticides, so it doesn’t cause pollution. Not only has bamboo burst onto the scene as a sustainable textile, but it’s also a durable and useful building material for making bowls, furniture and flooring………

Full Article Here

This is a great article in Popular Mechanics February issue on Green Design.

Your home may be your castle, but there’s no need for exorbitant utility bills to make it as pricey as the real thing. From windows that can insulate against Antarctic temperatures to a machine that converts your garage into a biofuel pumping station, these pages showcase today’s most ingenious products for achieving energy and water efficiency. They also feature resourceful ways to cut the amount of waste produced by constructing and furnishing your home. We combed the shelves and found lamps built from recycled car parts, countertops created with waste-coal fly ash and Adirondack chairs that were once plastic jugs. We even discovered hydrophobic concrete capable of resisting water damage from your DIY moat. Now that’s our kind of engineering.

Full Article.

I know that we are a clothing company, but when it’s bamboo clothing, we are into bamboo in its many forms.

So, today’s question is: “How Do They Make A Round Plant Into A Flat Floor?”

Thanks to Core77 Design Supersite  blog we have our answer.

Seems like every year somebody makes something cool out of bamboo: bicycles, snowboards, laptops, or a thousand other things. But the most common apps we see are slightly more mundane–flooring and cutting boards. Which got us wondering, how the heck do they get that stalk-like plant into flat, laminated boards?

Full Article Here

Do You Bamboo?
By styleexchange
I learned that along with being soft, bamboo fabric is as durable as cotton if not more so, and bamboo can also grow up to four feet a day (!!!), so it’s not causing any harm to use it in our clothing.My boyfriend and I both picked up …
- http://styleexchange.wordpress.com

As you may or may not know, the Red Panda is the mascot for Shirts of Bamboo. A portion of our profits go towards helping sustain our red furry friend.