A stylish - and eco-friendly substitue for the typical eye-sore dog bed

Props to Molly for coming up with this wonderful solution for all of us dog lovers who are also earth-friendly. Dog bed duvets! You can either cover your existing dog bed with a chic and stylish Molly Mutt duvet, or get the whole kit and get the stuff sack too, which is a mesh bag in which you stuff unwanted textile goods - old blankets, stuffed animals, towels, etc. It keeps textiles out of the landfills and gets you a stylish place for your beloved pup to lay his/her head.

Here's a description from the Molly Mutt site - where you can see and learn more about the product.

"molly mutt diy dog bed kits are an exciting new approach to keeping textiles out of our landfills. Cover your existing dog bed with the molly mutt dog duvet, or - here's the cool part - fill it with the old clothes and bedding you've got laying around your house. ready to toss those jams & one-eyed care bears from the mid-nineties? throw those in your new cover! Your dog gets a new bed, and you get a fun, easy way to recycle your old things - not to mention some extra space in your closet."

Here's the duvet I picked out for our 1 year old female Australian shepherd, Storm. I love the fabric design.

the mesh stuff sack

Empty stuff sack and duvet

I filled out stuff sack with some mismatched linens, and old throw rug, and an unraveling blanket. One thing to keep in mind is that if you plan on moving the bed around a lot, depending on what you fill it with it can be heavy. This can be a good thing though on hardwood floors because it keeps the bed from sliding around too easily.

The sack is easy to put in the duvet and it really shapes up nicely.


The bed stuffed and ready to sleep on. If it starts to look flat I just lift it up and give it a good shake to "fluff" up the contents.

Storm, positioning herself where she can guard her stuffed weasel and the table pedestal she chewed the life out of as a puppy

Here's my Remi - 70lbs but he sees Storm sleep on it (she's only 35lbs) so he does too; even though one end of him is always hanging off. Isn't he ccuuuutteee?

Another great thing about stuffing the duvet? When it gets stinky you can just toss the stuff sack and the fillers in the wash!

Now, your dogs may be well mannered and only sleep on their beds, but ours sleep on the beds, the chairs, and the couches. And that means that things that I can't fit into the wash end up a little...funky. Luckily Molly makes a great line of sprays and washes to keep your stuff smelling fresh. I really like the dog bed deodorizer because you can literally spray it on anything and it's perfectly safe and natural.

Check out all the awesome fabric choices -






They are all so cute! The pups too!

All of the sprays and washes, and the great duvets and DIY dog bed kits can be found on the Molly Mutt site.

What do you think?

disclosure: I received the Molly Mutt duvet, stuff sack, and bed deodorizer as a sample

The CL 2010 House of the Year - and it's all eco-friendly (and beautiful)

Eco-friendly is getting prettier and prettier every year, making it not just easy on the earth, but easy on the eyes. Country Living put together this idea house full of inspiration. The house is actually a modular, pre-fab cottage, and available for purchase by the public. Read all the details for the house, rooms, and resources here.

What do you like about this house? Not like so much?

I LOVE the entryway. What a great space to see first thing when you walk in the door after work.

What do you think of wallpaper on the ceiling?




You may think all of these framed prints cost a fortune, but really all you need to accomplish this look are some basic frames, and then a used book of botanical or nature illustrations. Carefully remove the pages that you like and insert them in the frames!








A dream closet

To all you bohemian chic lovers - you'll LOVE this sale!

Really great home decor on sale! If you like the whole bohemian, Moroccan, and eco-friendly look than you will LOVE this sale going on at HauteLook. It's a members only designer discount site, but if you click my invite link, your membership is free and fast to sign up. Hurry - the sale ends tomorrow at 8 AM!

Once you're signed up, go to the "Living" tab, then click "Karma Living" Enjoy!













Again, here's your invite

Country Living 2010 House of the Year

Home Green Home is the name of Country Living's 2010 House of the Year. For almost a quarter century now, Country Living has built, and decorated, an entire house from the ground up every year. So this year they created an environmentally friendly, modular home. This 1,607 square feet prefab cottage was erected at the World Financial Center in downtown Manhattan. Interior designer Katie Ridder decorated its rooms with eco-smart furnishings and accessories.

An overall eclectic-cottage style with quite a number of interesting eco-friendly ideas.

It reminds me a bit of the house in the Disney-Pixar film Up.


In the entryway: cabinets for storing coats, a table for holding mail and a bench for pulling shoes on and off. Chicken wire adds pattern and texture to the cabinet doors.

Wallpaper: This pattern relies on paint that's free of potentially harmful VOCs (volatile organic compounds). It was also used for the ceilings in the dining and sitting areas.

Floors: Rescued from abandoned buildings and used throughout our house, Mohawk's elm planks come with an aged patina.

Table: built from sustainable poplar and water-based, low-VOC finish.

Light fixture: The small holes in this recycled-aluminum globe cast a soft glow.


The living and dining spaces open up to each other, so they were unified with blue upholstery, worn wood surfaces, and walls painted in Moroccan Spice — from Benjamin Moore's zero-VOC paint line, Natura.

Sofa and armchair: organic-cotton upholstery for the couch and recycled-fiber fabric for the chair. Both pieces feature sustainable wood frames and recycled metal components.

Mirror: A halo of reclaimed-wood spokes surrounds this looking glass.

A projector stand was used as a plant stand, a white garden stool as a side table.


Dining chairs: Constructed from sustainable hardwood and soy-based cushions, these seats are upholstered with recycled-fiber fabric. The hydrangea motif was stenciled.

Dining table: Weathered wood, salvaged from antique elm doors.

Rugs: Natural vegetable dyes create these soft, muted hues.


Classic country details in the kitchen: an apron-front sink, beadboard cabinets, and a barn-wood island. The roman shade is actually a repurposed tablecloth.

Cabinets: custom cupboards from sustainable plywood and a soy-based adhesive.

Sink: a foot pedal by is an ingenious add-on that decreases water waste with a more controlled flow.

Island: A row of vintage stools complements this workstation, custom crafted from reclaimed wood.

The mudroom is located just off the kitchen. It offers storage and a sink suitable for gardening chores. The countertops are made from fast-growing — and thus extremely renewable — bamboo.

One old book, Art Forms in Nature, was recycled into a hallway's worth of prints.

In the master bedroom the horizontal beadboard makes the room appear wider. A four-poster frame, made of sustainably grown Mindi wood, supports a 100 percent organic cotton-and-hemp mattress.

Walk-in closet.

Master bathroom: a double-basin sink and separate commode room make this space ideal for two people. The mirror frames are fashioned from old bourbon barrels. A salvaged dresser was transformed into a double vanity.


The master bathroom and bedroom are connected with two different shades of blue. Organic cotton towels are stacked in open storage bins built from reclaimed wood

In the guest room a recycled-iron frame holds a soy-based foam mattress.


A reupholstered old chair in the guest room sitting area. The wall-to-wall carpet is woven from shredded plastic bottles.

Home office nook.

Downstairs Powder Room with vintage wallpaper and pedestal sink.

The wraparound porch was outfitted with wicker seating and table made from recycled aluminum frames and reclaimed cypress. The plank-top table is also made with salvaged cypress.

Enclosed Porch. A birdcage is used as a terrarium on a vintage teak unit with plenty of storage space.

Photography: Lucas AllenIf you'd like to see how this modular house went from factory to finished in 30 days go here.
All images from Country Living.