peace. love. recycle.

Guess what time it is?!  A whole year’s gone by since my sister and I first discovered Teens for Jeans, and now it’s back for its 4th year!  Stop by your local Aeropostale before February 13th and donate your gently worn jeans!  Aeropostale and DoSomething.org works together and takes your donations to a local charity or homeless center.  Aeropostale thanks you by offering a 25% off your next pair of jeans from their store.

Think of it like this!  By donating your old jeans that you haven’t worn in ages (for whatever reason… I like to blame the holiday food!), you’re making more room in your closet for new clothes! :D

Leave me a comment if you do decide to stop by Aeropostale with your jeans!  I’d love to hear about your experiences :)

I found out about this reusable bag simply from browsing JustJared.com, an awesome website that I get all my celebrity gossip from =P  I like when I find things like this randomly online!  Many of you know that I love reusable bags, and I am never without one when at the grocery store or at the mall.  I use different kinds of bags depending on where I am.  I use the simple, cheap tote bags that Forever 21 sells when at the mall because clothes aren’t that heavy; plus, it would look kind of weird to be carrying a grocery type of bag full of clothes at the mall… at least in my opinion hehe.  For grocery stores, I go for the reusable bags that can hold up to 25 pounds, which is a necessity when buying groceries.

So when I saw this product, I instantly wanted it!  Not only is it cute, but purchasing this particular bag will provide food for one child during an entire school year in an underdeveloped country!  And of course it reduces the waste of plastic bags that are NOT recyclable through your neighborhood garbage pick-up.  Although most grocery stores are starting to offer recycling bins solely for plastic bags outside the store, there are SO MANY plastic bags that get tossed into the garbage and thus lay in wastelands for years and years and years!  Just thinking about it now makes me sad all over again… It seriously takes no effort to carry around your own reusable bag since many of them fold up into tiny pouches.  I keep one in my purse and one in my car at all times =)  Anyway, back to the point!  If you’re shopping around for a reusable bag, I highly suggest purchasing a FEED bag!

Now, I know that they’re pricy for a reusable bag.  But think about the children!  I know some people would say, “Well, for that price, I would rather just donate that money directly to the children.”  Yeah, they say this, but how many of them actually go through with it?  Since you would be spending that money to feed a starving child, you might as well also get a bag!  Plus, if you divide the price by how many times you will use the bag, it practically pays itself off!

I think this cause hits close to home because I’m currently taking a class about child development and how crucial an education and nutrition is to their development.  I’m also taking a lab where I am a caregiver to children 3-4 years of age, and it kills me to ever think of them without an education or food.

One more thing I wanted to say… I don’t want to sound like a hypocrite, but I don’t own this bag.  I am a poor college student who is neck high in loans and credit card bills… but I am saving up for this bag for the near future!  I guess I’m recommending this reusable bag to those who can afford it without feeling guilty!  I don’t want to feel like I’m forcing it on anyone =)

OH and just to throw it out there, stores like Safeway, Walmart, Rite Aid, and I’m sure many others have bins outside of their stores where you are encouraged to bring back those plastic bags to be recycled.  They recycle those types of bags specially because the neighborhood recycling doesn’t accept them.  So at the very least, take advantage of those bins! =)

More Information: The FEED bag

SUMMARY: The FEED bag is a fashionable reusable bag offered exclusively through Amazon, partnering with the UN World Food Programme and spokesperson Lauren Bush.  Purchasing this bag will provide food for a child for one school year in an underdeveloped country.  The price is $35 with free shipping.  I’m not sure how many pounds it can hold, but it’s made out of burlap so it’s definitely durable.  Oh, and it’s reversible! =)

I can’t remember where I stumbled upon this, but I found out about this a couple of days ago and thought I would pass it on.  Teens for Jeans is an organization created by Aeropostale and DoSomething.org where you can donate any gently worn pair of jeans to Aeropostale, who will then turn around and donate the jeans to a local homeless shelter!  It’s a really great idea because it helps out the needy and allows us as consumers to reduce the amount of waste by finding the jeans another purpose!  I know I have an absurd number of jeans just collecting dust at home and taking up valuable closet space because either they don’t fit me or I just don’t wear them anymore, and  I know many of you have that same problem!  So please take a little bit of time out of your day to go through your jeans and donate those that you no longer wear =)

Aeropostale is accepting jeans in good condition from January 19-February 14!  AND they’re offering a 25% off coupon towards a new pair of jeans, so go get started! =P

More information: TeensForJeans.com

And you can take it to the next step just by signing up to receive email updates from DoSomething.org!  It only takes a few seconds, and you’re under no obligation whatsoever to do anything after that.  However, it’s nice to keep your eyes open to the different organizations out there, and if you happen to see something that interests you or something that you can offer some assistance to, then go for it!

P.S. I love that Ashley Greene is a spokesperson for the campaign! I really like her because she’s beautiful and seems really down to earth.  Plus, Alice is my favorite character in Twilight and Ashley portrays her really well =D