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"Tomorrow is Earth Day, dolls, and that means we&amp;#x27;ll be bringing you plenty of stylish coverage of all things green. It&amp;#x27;s no longer about tree huggers, granola munchers, and women who wear Birkenstocks (although I can&amp;#x27;t lie, I&amp;#x27;ve been accused of being at least two of those), but learning to live your life in a sustainable way. So how good have you gotten at it? I&amp;#x27;ve always been something of a nature lover--I&amp;#x27;m obsessed with the beach, anything outdoor space in Manhattan larger than six square feet makes me squeal, and I love running along the Hudson River--but about two years ago, I decided to get serious about being green. I changed all of my light bulbs to compact fluorescents (a cheap and easy way to lower your electric bill!), started becoming increasingly uptight about my and my roommate&amp;#x27;s recycling habits (I recently schlepped a bag of old cell phones 80+ blocks to make sure they weren&amp;#x27;t landfill-bound), and started paying more attention to my consumption habits in general. Along the way, I&amp;#x27;ve picked up a few great tips for being a greener shopper, and I thought I&amp;#x27;d share &amp;#x27;em with you: - Carry your own reusable bag with you at all times. I personally love Envirosax, because they fold up to be very tiny and can fit inside any handbag. You don&amp;#x27;t always know when you&amp;#x27;ll be stopping by the mall or the grocery store, so this way you&amp;#x27;re always prepared. If you live in a suburb where you drive to the supermarket, keep your reusable bags in your trunk. - Recycle your old clothes. I advocate cleaning out your closet at least twice a year, giving the stuff you don&amp;#x27;t want to the Salvation Army or Goodwill (and don&amp;#x27;t forget to collect your tax exempt form!), and sending the stuff that&amp;#x27;s unfit for donation to a recycling center. Most major cities have information on their websites about where you can do your recycling. - Hold a clothing swap. Just because you&amp;#x27;re sick of your old duds doesn&amp;#x27;t mean everyone is! I&amp;#x27;ve gotten some great castoffs from chic friends at these--check out exactly how to throw one here! - Shop for eco-friendly fabrics. The Environmental Protection Agency has decreed that seven of the 15 pesticides used on cotton crops are known human carcinogens. Organically-grown fibers, including cotton, are becoming increasingly available and affordable, so look for labels with an eco-conscience. Loomstate for Target just hit shelves and it&amp;#x27;s pretty damn cute! - Get smart with your cleaning habits. Dry cleaning often employs carcinogens (check with your local laundry to see if they use &amp;quot;wet cleaning&amp;quot; or liquid CO2 techniques, both earth-friendlier, instead) and is pretty costly, to boot. Many items that say &amp;quot;dry clean only&amp;quot; can actually be washed by hand or on the gentle cycle with some Woolite. Test a small, inside section of the garment before cleaning the whole thing. If you choose the washing machine, set it on the lowest temperature. -Shop vintage! This is one I&amp;#x27;ve been pushing for ages, not only because I love the way vintage clothes look, but because they always have a sense of mystery and history that new clothes don&amp;#x27;t. And smart consumers know that pre-owned items are a lot friendlier to the environment, too. So tell me ladies...how green are your fashion habits? Which of these rules do you already follow? Which ones have you been inspired to adopt? And how committed are you to reducing your own carbon footprint? Share! PLUS: Check out 70 new reasons to live green now! More Cool Ways to Get Glamour.com Wherever You Go! Add glamour.com to your Google homepage Follow Slaves to Fashion on Twitter! Photos: Istockphoto, courtesy of Envirosax, courtesy of Target"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/fashion/blogs/dressed/2009/04/how-green-are-your-shopping-ha>