Conscious Cyber Monday...

It's that time of year again!  Yes, friends, it is Cyber Monday!  Just as I did on "Black Friday," I encourage you to make conscious, socially responsible, eco-friendly decisions when you are purchasing gifts this year.  In the case that you happen to be surfing the web and looking for great deals, I rounded up some of my favourite ethical acquisitions from the last year and urge you to check out the shops from whence they came!  Here we go: 

For the fitness lover/t-shirt addict in your life, hop over to Wakened Apparel and pick up this mandala tank, see what else Om Matters has along the lines of their Om Revolution, and find the "This Shirt Does Good" tee at Do Good Shop. If you have pals who like to spend lots of time outdoors and want everyone to know it, take a look at what Indy Brand has on offer and be sure to snag them a "Protect Our Parks" tee from Recover Brands! 

Yoga addicts, we warned: I've been doing a TON of research on the best eco-friendly leggings brands and I have a few to share with you here!  The first two pairs here are the Ripples and Cockles leggings from Inspire Active Wear.  The graphics on these are created from every day things by owner, Barbara, and turned into locally-made leggings that are created from plastic bottles!  These butterfly cropped leggings are also made from plastic bottles, but come from Yoga Democracy.  They are definite statement pieces and I get tons of compliments on them! The fourth pair of leggings in this lineup were featured in yesterday's #SustainableSunday post and are zero waste beauties from Chic River.  The last pair in this lineup are lovely pink long leggings from Canadian company, Rose Buddha Wear.  The art work is all hand created and the leggings are made from recycled plastic bottles!  

For the scarf addict in your life: 

I love MyIchca!  This sister-run company has a seat in India where employees are paid a fair living wage to block print scarves (and household textiles, also).  One of their block-printed scarves is first in this lineup.  In the middle, I have two hand-dyed scarves that have been made by Heshima Kenya.  The navy and scarlet scarf was gifted to me by Freedom Array.  Heshima Kenya runs the Maisha Collective, which supports a group of women in developing countries.  Freedom Array is also stocked with lots of other fair trade goodies.  The last scarf in this lineup is another fair trade piece from Krama Heritage.  The "krama" is a traditional Cambodian scarf and this company has set out to get everyone in the world wearing one to help rebuild war-torn Cambodia.   

... and because I'm a bit jewelry obsessed, here is a roundup of my favourite fair trade pieces: 

Starting with the gold bar earrings at the top left and moving clockwise, there are the War and Peace earrings from Ten Thousand Villages, the Starry Night earrings by Fair Anita, some re-purposed studs from Color by Amber, my go-to silver Soresa hoops from Paisley & Sparrow, handmade Guatemalan tassel earrings from My Wola, Treasure Trunk earrings from Mata Traders, Ani earrings from Bluma Project, and ending with my gold-dipped quina leaf earrings from Simply Nature Bio Goods!    

Some of my favourite bracelets of the year are these Empowering bracelets from Color by Amber, the Be Still clay band from MudLOVE, the Veda wrap bracelet from Do Good Shop, and the Starry Night wrap bracelet by Fair Anita. 

On my ring finger are the Crescent Moon ring by Amy Waltz Designs and my October Birthwood ring from Simply Wood Rings.  On my middle finger are the fern ring from Felise Designs and a hidden Montana sapphire ring from Gardens of the Sun.  On my pointer finger is the gold bar ring from GlobeIn and some fun stacking rings from Amy Waltz Designs. 

Finally, I am loving the grey ombré necklace from Bluma Project (though they have TONS of other awesome pieces for this holiday season) and the Half Circle necklace from Ethic Goods has seriously been a go-to piece this year.  I love that it has both gold and silver beads (repurposed from spent artillery shells) because it matches with everything! 

That is it!  Everything in this post is either handmade, re-purposed, eco-friendly, up-cycled, and/or fair trade!  I've tried to include tons of links to make it easy for you to find just the thing you need for everyone on your list!  Be sure to click around, though!  These shops are filled with amazing pieces that help improve the quality of life for people around the world! 

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