National Endangered Species Day is Friday, May 21st.  Join us in recognizing Endangered Species Day; a day to learn about the threatened wildlife in your area and also to share the importance of wildlife conservation with family and friends.  North America is home to a variety of wild plants and animals, however, scientists estimate as many as 1/3 of the United States’ native species are at risk of extinction, mainly due to human-caused threats such as habitat loss and global warming.

“This year, Endangered Species Day comes at a time when wildlife faces an extra urgency:

• The BP Oil Spill continues to gush oil into fragile marine and wetland ecosystems, threatening sea turtles, sperm whales and other endangered and threatened species in the Gulf. Also at risk is Louisiana’s state bird, the brown pelican, which was deemed "recovered" and was removed from the Endangered Species list just this past fall of 2009.

• Shell Oil is pushing to drill in Alaska’s Chukchi and Beaufort seas–newly-designated critical habitat for polar bears, which were listed as "threatened" last year.”

-www.nwf.org

For more information on what you can do to help the environment, visit the National Wildlife Federation’s website at www.nwf.org

And remember, ENDANGERED means there’s still more time.

For three days only Save 15% on Grant Dawson at Rain Collection in support of National Endangered Species Day! Grant Dawson Collections strives to bring about environmental change by giving back more than we take from the Earth.  The company has earned the prestigious Silver Exemplary status of the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC), a non-profit coalition of industry leaders committed to promoting sustainable practices within the home furnishings industry by raising awareness among consumers and buyers. A portion of all Grant Dawson profits will be donated back to the SFC to help maintain a healthy balance between environmental conservation, social equity, and economic development.

Warm weather, sun shining down and the breeze passing by…all signs that the much anticipated Spring has finally arrived.  The snow has melted, birds are chirping and the weather makes it hard to stay indoors.  After a long and cold winter, most of us feel the urge to start anew.  Spring is suitably defined as the ’season of growth’ and most of us grow during Spring by taking part in the annual tradition of Spring Cleaning.  Nature seems to start a new chapter every Spring and we too feel deserving of such a change.  So we go through our humble abodes to clean out the old and bring in the new.

At Rain Collection we take part in this annual tradition every year, and with that being said we would like to share our spring cleaning tips with our much appreciated followers.  Many of us love the feeling of cleaning out the ‘junk drawers’ and the piles that we said we’d go through someday.  With that ’someday’ quickly approaching, we have a plethora of eco-friendly options for where to bring or what to do with the old items you may no longer want or have use for.  Listed below are just a few select options for environmentally responsible spring cleaning:

• Earth911.org- a webpage that is dedicated to the 3 R’s of being eco-friendly; reduce, reuse and recycle.  Whatever it may be that you need off of your hands, this site will give you various options on where to take it or what to do with it.  From local recycling centers to organizations for the less fortunate, this site has an option for almost every situation.
• Freecycle.com- an online organization dedicated to reusing, reducing and recycling one man’s trash into another man’s treasure in your local community.  This website offers bartering and trading free of charge.  The items you list on this page will be given, not sold, to someone in need of what you no longer do.

• Craigslist.org- another online organization dedicated to the reuse of sustainable materials. On this site you can either barter and trade, give away for free or even sell your items at reasonable prices to people in your community and the communities surrounding you.  And remember, whatever money you make when selling your old, unwanted accessories, can be used to give your home a face-lift with new home decor!
• Garage Sales- a great way to sell gently used items that you may no longer have a use for but are still in good condition.  You could either have your own garage sale or get a few neighbors in on it to attract more buyers.  You may also call your local community organizations such as the park district or local high school, who will more than likely have an annual garage sale to raise money for their associations.
• Local Veteran Organizations- Groups committed to taking donations from surrounding neighborhoods and using them for veterans in need and their families.  Most of these types of groups have a person call your home ahead of time to let you know when their donation vehicle will be in the area for ‘pick-up’, making it even easier for you to donate. 

Old clothes, bicycles, lawn chairs and items such as these can be reused and do not need to be tossed to the curb.  Almost every community has an organization that would benefit from these items.  Your local YMCA, homeless shelters and underprivileged children groups would willingly accept any form of tangible donation you may have to offer.

While you enjoy the blossoming of the flower buds and the smell of the grass after it rains, try to do your part during your spring cleaning to ensure future generations the possibility to enjoy these eccentric qualities that make Spring such a beautiful time of year.

You’ve snuffed out your candle for the last time. So now what? You have this beautiful glass vessel and no wax to burn. This got us thinking - how can we recycle all of these glass candle containers?

Working with the team here at Rain Collection we have come up with a short list of ways you can reuse these beautiful pieces.

• Change jar for coins
• Burning tea lights
• Drinking glasses (especially k.hall)
• Potpourri
• Store seeds
• Candy dish
• Bath salts
• Forks/knives/spoons for outdoor entertaining
• Store cotton, q-tips and other bathroom items
• Vase
• Store nails, bolts, etc.
• Store seashells

This list is a work in progress for us. We are always trying to find unique ways to recycle the luxuries we enjoy. We hope this quick list will help you find ways you can reuse your beautiful glass candle containers too.