sustainably grown…
taking a look at wood

To celebrate Arbor Day this Friday, we’re celebrating trees. Arbor Day was originally meant to be a simple idea – set aside a special day to plant a tree. Today, that simple idea is more important than ever. Planting and nurturing trees embraces the beauty of nature, helps clean the environment and so much more. So, if Arbor Day is all about planting trees, why are we talking about wood products? Planting trees is just one part of the equation. We also need to look at how we grow, harvest and use wood to preserve the forests that are already here. Continue reading

seaside serenity…
creating an ocean-inspired retreat

beach

Channel the serenity of the ocean with charming beach house inspired décor, no matter whether you live seaside, or miles away from the nearest water. When it comes to the beachy style, there are many different ways to go. We’ve gone beach house boho; you can also go clean and elegant (take a look at the movie Something’s Got to Give for an amazingly decorated elegant Hamptons home), you can go the nautical route, the tropical route, or you can embrace the classic beach house style. Continue reading

it’s the little things…
stuff their stockings with green… gifts

Holiday Stockings The joy of the Christmas stocking – they’re usually stuffed with fun little gifts, sometimes practical, sometimes pretty, sometimes just silly. Stocking stuffers are like little treasures, they’re also great for that office gift exchange, or to have on hand for when that last-minute need for a gift pops up. They’re a terrific trick in large families – you give gifts to the children and let the adults exchange stocking stuffers.

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12 days of Christmas…
the math

Have you ever wondered about those gifts from the song “The 12 Days of Christmas”? And since the lines repeat, does that mean that on Day 1, the True Love gave a Partridge in a Pear Tree, and on Day 2, gave Two Turtle Doves and yet another Partridge in a Pear Tree, etc, etc, ad infinitum on down the line?

It doesn’t sound very green to us. Assuming the gifts do, in fact repeat, it adds up to a lot of… well, stuff. The gift from Day 1 was received 12 times, and the gift from Day 12 was received only one time. So, the formula: Number of times the gift was received X the number of items listed as the gift = Total items.

  • 1 x 12 = 12 Drummers Drumming
  • 2 x 11 = 22 Pipers Piping
  • 3 x 10 = 30 Lords a’Leaping
  • 4 x 9 = 36 Ladies Dancing
  • 5 x 8 = 40 Maids a’Milking
  • 6 x 7 = 42 Swans a’Swimming
  • 7 x 6 = 42 Geese a’Laying
  • 8 x 5 = 40 Golden Rings
  • 9 x 4 = 36 Calling Birds
  • 10 x 3 = 30 French Hens
  • 11 x 2 = 22 Turtle Doves
  • 12 x 1 = 12 Partridges in Pear Trees

Whew! OK, so that means the final counts look like this:

  • 140 people (12+22+30+36+40)
  • 184 Birds (42+42+36+30+22+12)
  • 40 Golden Rings (40)
  • 40 Cows or Goats (40 Maids a’milking have to be milking something)
  • 294 Goose Eggs (42 Geese a’laying are laying at least one egg each per day for 7 days of the song)
  • Unknown quantity of Pears (the song doesn’t say whether the trees are bearing fruit)
  • Unknown quantities of milk (the maids are a’milking after all)

This is of course not taking into account the 22 pipes being played, 12 drums being drummed, the lake, pond or tub for all those swimming swans and all of the pens for the various other bird life, not to mention the activity of the leaping lords and dancing ladies.

We’ve got a better, and certainly more eco-friendly, idea. We’re offering special, one-day only discounts for 12 days in a row. Just in time for Christmas.

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