We are sooo lucky!

Berwyn friends--I'm sure you already know about the awesome restaurant that is coming to Roosevelt Road, Autre Monde. If you don't, you need to look them up on Facebook or the interwebs.

They will be using local, organic ingredients whenever possible. To make it even more possible, they're trying to raise a little money to build their own green house on site. Just imagine how cool it would be to order a salad that was harvested out back the same day (maybe even hour)! Click on the title of this post to donate some cash to help bring this dream to reality. Then they will be writing a book about their adventure. There are some great give-aways for donors, too. Please check them out--I know the owners personally, and I promise this will be a HUGE boon for our little up and coming town. They have years of combined restaurant experience and they know what they're doing. I can't wait to have my first glass of organic wine at the bar of Autre Monde!

I Scream You Scream

It's almost officially Summer, and that means it's time for ice cream! I'm lucky (or unlucky) to be located a half block from a great little ice cream parlor--Over the Rainbow. They serve hand dipped Hershey's ice cream and stock over 35 different flavors. Tom (the owner) laughs at me when I walk down there with my bowl and spoon in hand, but he knows I'm only trying to save the planet (and him a little money). . .

I have several customers who have mentioned to me that they or their kids can't eat dairy, so they have to miss out on one of Summer's best treats. GOOD NEWS! Tom has gotten some soy ice cream! And it's good! He's got two flavors: chocolate and peach cobbler. And it's from a local company called Temptations. They make it with Chicago Soydairy Soymilk, organic evaporated cane juice, and other ingredients. The chocolate flavor is even gluten-free!

Tom has toys for the kids to play with while you're there, including the Melissa and Doug ice cream parlor set. (conveniently available at Fly Right Gifts).

The 3/50 project

Click on the following logo to read some important information on shopping local and keeping your favorite businesses around. It all makes sense, and if we all do it, think what an impact it would make on our communities! I have several devoted customers (you know who you are) who I'm sure already know this--in fact it was a customer who brought my attention to this website!

Act locally!

We've all heard the saying, "Think globally, act locally". This is a main focus for my store. But I wanted to get my business cards printed on recycled card stock with biodegradable inks. What's a girl to do? There is a web printer called GreenerPrinter.com that seemed like the perfect one to do my business cards. But I thought I should check with the local guy--Able Printing Services, who is right across the tracks from my store at 6837 Stanley Avenue. Well, Able does all kinds of green printing! They were totally helpful, and they'll have them done a lot sooner than the web place. And I can just pick them up and save on shipping and the pollution that comes with it. I guess my point is this: just because you don't know if there's a local resource for what you're looking for, just ask! I really didn't think that Berwyn would have such a great printer. And their shop has been family-owned and operated right here for over 35 years. Who knew?

The Bloom -n- Zoom is going to have a lot of flowers and plants to put in your garden, and they are being sold by a local greenhouse. Where do the plants at Home Depot come from? I don't know, but I'm pretty sure they're not from around here. We just need to think more about local resources--which is easier to do now that gas is almost $4/gallon. Yeah, the plants might be a little more expensive, but they're probably worth it, for many reasons.