Back to School Shopping—the Stubby Pencil way

I kind of geek out over shopping for school and art supplies. Well, certain kinds of shopping and certain kinds of art and school supplies that is. Like many shopping ideals I have, I dream of shopping in a cute little brick & mortar independent store for eco-conscious, well-made and aesthetically pleasing supplies, supporting a local merchant and bringing my own reusable bag (of course) to tote my purchases home.

Ah, no big-box stores, no bright fluorescent lights and dry air that makes my eyeballs hurt. No plastic bags, no extra wasteful packaging. Voting with my dollars and, instead of trying only to save a buck, being willing to pay a little more trying to support companies who care about sustainability and the future of our planet that our kids and grandkids will inherit.

So there’s not a brick and mortar art & school supply store around here but there IS Stubby Pencil (www.stubbypencilstudio.com). I stumbled upon the Stubby Pencil website a couple years ago via a craft blog I love (surprise, surprise) and have been hooked ever since.

You will find stuff at Stubby Pencil that I guarantee you won’t find in any big box store, at least not around here. Some of my personal faves include:

An amazing array of the coolest pencil sharpeners and scissors, lefty’s included, eco-highlighter pencils—hey, no plastic and no caps to lose (and they come in yellow, pink, green, blue and orange), soy crayons, glue sticks and paste that smell like almond marzipan (mmm!), rulers made from recycled phone books, Forest Choice pencils, Eco-friendly colored pencils, and washable markers made from 25% recycled plastic that can be re-dipped in water if they dry out.

I just visited their site again and they’ve added a lot more to their selection—they even have creative kits and crafts, which are perfect to stockpile for presents throughout the year. I receive no monetary compensation from Stubby Pencil for my endorsement, but I do have a special offer for Current readers: use the coupon code CURRENTSAVE now through 12/31/12 for 15% off your Stubby Pencil order. I’d love to know what you choose!

Go local to lose the holiday loco

I’m not sure how it can be November already, and already everywhere I turn I see the glossy Christmas ads and hear about Black Friday.

            If you know anything about me, you can probably guess that I’m not a fan of Black Friday and in fact refuse to shop on that day. From my eco-friendly perspective, the extreme consume-consume-consume mentality that our culture fosters leaves in its wake a tremendous amount of waste.  After Christmas, garbage cans will overflow with wrapping, with boxes, with plastic shrinkwrap, and the discards that are ‘so last year.’       

            Will anyone be the happier for it? 

            There is also that ‘waste’ that is less obvious—the time spent driving to and from the stores, the gas used to get there, the time spent looking and in line, and likely a huge amount of money spent on things that aren’t wanted or needed.

            I don’t like a lot of stuff, and clutter makes me twitchy. However, I live in a house with five other people, so I have had to learn to deal somewhat. More ‘stuff’ to deal with = not fun for Mom. Last year we got our kids art lessons, along with a few clothes and a few toys and books.

It was a great balance. No one was overwhelmed by heaps of stuff, we paid cash all the way, and we supported local businesses.  And of course, I recycled all the packaging and wrapping (I use newspaper, kraft paper and aluminum foil. I also like to use cute fabric bags—even better!).

            This year I plan to do the same. It’s a conscious decision to turn away from the marketing, from the greedy culture that always wants the next big thing. I’ll shop the independent stores, eat at the independent restaurants, and support the local artisans. They are numerous here in and around our town, and as an independent artist myself I was so grateful that people bought gifts from me. I can’t think of a better way to spend my holiday dollars.