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The Uncommon Life

Say What?

August 12, 2011

Finding the perfect gift at UncommonGoods is a snap. But what about writing that card?

We’re here to help you find those words.

If you’re not sure what to say in the bride-to-be’s card, you either:

A. Love her too much for words,
B. Don’t know her well enough to personalize the card, or
C. Can’t stand the witch and don’t even know how you got invited to this stupid party in the first place.

Regardless of your answer, the rule to remember is:

Share your feelings.

Because if you can’t do it in a card, where can you?

But don’t forget – bridal showers are for tea cups, croissants and high-pitched laughter. So talk about your emotions, but do it the way an uptight person would.

Try one of these notes:

Your mother told me to keep my mouth shut. So I’m keeping my mouth shut. Good luck with your wedding.

I love you so much. Even though you don’t see the irony in wearing white.

Thanks for inviting me to your shower. It’s nice to finally see you again.

You picked a good one. I love your fiance. He’s truly been there for me in ways you never could.

Congratulations on finally losing the weight!

But if you’re bold and feel like being completely honest, the best thing you can do is shut up.
And let poignant words of the wise do the talking:

“Love isn’t something you find. Love is something that finds you.”
Loretta Young

“Love conquers all.”
Virgil

And my personal favorite:

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Plato said, “At the touch of love everyone becomes a poet.”
Which makes you far better suited to write this card than I.
Love,
Nina

Place your memorable card atop an equally memorable gift:

Intercourses: An
Aphrodisiac Cookbook		 Bridal Shower
Guest Book		 Porn for the Bride

Guest post by Nina Mozes

The Uncommon Life

Better to Give Update

August 8, 2011

Every three months, we get to write checks to our favorite non-profits. We base the size of those checks on you– which charities you vote for every time you make a purchase from our site.

So here’s what these great non-profits have been doing to make the world a better place.

AmeriCares

It’s been a rough year– from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami to the current drought and famine in Somalia. But that hasn’t slowed AmeriCares down one bit.

Your votes at checkout have helped us send $4,500 in the last three months to help AmeriCares deliver critical medical supplies to people in urgent need around the globe.

American Forests

American Forests joined our program in 2010. For every $1 we donate, they plant a tree. And with your votes, they planted more than 4,400 trees in the last 3 months.

Here are a few projects they’re working on right now.

Ecosystem Restoration in Los Padres National Forest, California
Trees: 224,000
A large-scale project to replant 14,000 acres, to include a sanctuary for the endangered California condor. All but eight percent of this national forest has been deforested by wildfires and other factors.

2011 Red Mountain Restoration, Idaho
Trees: 86,000
Replanting areas of the Boise National Forest to reduce erosion, improve water quality, and support habitats for local wildlife species like the lynx, boreal owl, northern goshawk, and northern three-toed woodpeckers.

Forest For Monarchs, Mexico
Trees: 200,000
A long term initiative that has already planted five million trees in the last four years, this year’s project works to restore 687 acres of the oyamel fir forests that make up the monarch butterfly’s wintering grounds, and will train local residents in sustainable forestry management.

Check out American Forests for more info on how you can get involved.

City Harvest

Using a fleet of 18 trucks and 3 cargo bikes, City Harvest will rescue more than 30 million pounds of food this year, helping to feed more than 300,000 men, women and children each week. At a cost of just 27 cents to rescue and deliver a pound of food, every dollar donated provides nearly four pounds of good food for hungry New Yorkers.

In May, our company helped out with City Harvest’s largest one day fundraiser, Skip Lunch Fight Hunger, where fundraising teams and individuals throughout New York City donated what they would normally spend on lunch to raise nearly $500,000. Those funds will help feed almost 24,000 children and their families throughout the summer months.

RAINN

RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, runs a national hotline to help people in crisis. You voted RAINN into our Better to Give program last fall, and voted to donate $4,500 to support their work over the past 3 months.

The hardworking folks at RAINN just told us, “Last month, July 2011, RAINN helped 12,659 survivors of sexual violence through our hotlines. It was the highest number of people we’ve helped in one month in more than 8 years.”

All these organizations run with the support of people like you, so thanks for your votes! Got a cause you’d like to see us support? Leave a comment to suggest a non-profit doing great work in your community.

Gift Guides

Gift Lab: Beer Making Kits

July 28, 2011

When Kira, our operations analyst, and Jonathan, our sysadmin, saw our new Beer Making Kits, they knew they had to try one out. And luckily for the UncommonGoods team, they shared their results freely. You might think home-brewing is one of those “Don’t Try This At Home” type activities, but read on. Kira and Jona offer up some great tips for the novice brewer.

Beer making kits are $40 each and come in Everyday IPA, Jalapeno Saison, and Chocolate Maple Porter.


Continue Reading…

Maker Stories

On the Road with Tina Tangalakis

July 19, 2011

Tina Tangalakis, founder/designer of Della and our new tribal print macbook and iPad cases, and two interns traveled to West Africa this month to work with their team in Hohoe, Ghana. Tina sent us a travel update from the road about her latest adventures:

It has been exactly one week since myself, Jenna and Chelsea left Los Angeles and arrived in Accra. Accra is the capital city and heart of Ghana, being home to over 1.5 million people and the cultural center of the country.

After two long plane rides and barely making it through customs, we immediately ventured into the busy fabric markets. This was quite a feat after 19 hours of travel, but I found it the best way to initiate Jenna and Chelsea into Ghanaian life. After all, if they can survive the heat and chaos of the large outdoor markets they can do anything in this country.

This early venture was exciting and an overload to the senses. In the markets we were surrounded by hundreds of colorful textiles. The bright colors and intricate designs were like candy to the eyes. This day we were given VIP treatment at the distribution center of ATL, one of my favorite Ghanaian fabric companies. There we registered Della as an official ATL distributor, giving us access to a giant warehouse full of fabrics to choose from. In the warehouse we sourced new fabrics for our Spring 2012 collection and gathered inspiration for several new designs.

That evening we traveled to Hohoe, the small town where Della is based. This journey is typically a 3 ½ hour ride from the capital, however, our travels took us on an unexpected detour as our driver pulled over to fix the van’s faulty brake pad. For myself this was typical, as broken down cars are a way of Ghanaian life. Thankfully, my comrades were content as we sat on the side of the road, in the dead of night, waiting for our transportation to be fixed.

Once safely in Hohoe, the rest of our weekend consisted of both business and pleasure. Saturday we had a meeting with our head seamstresses and tailors, brainstorming ways to better organize our workforce and prepare for the influx of holiday orders. Sunday we took a bumpy car ride to the Wli Waterfalls, where we enjoyed a tropical hike and swim under West Africa’s tallest natural waterfall.

The work week has been full of ideas, designs and challenges. We have begun working in our newly constructed workshop, fully equipped with electricity, fans (a necessity here) and new industrial sewing machines. One of the more involved projects has been working on new designs for our future collections.

It is very rewarding to be here, working side by side with the women and seeing the impact it has on their lives.

The entire process of building a socially responsible fashion line is definitely rewarding; yet, everyday we face little challenges which can be greatly compounded by language barriers, cultural differences and American work-ethic that is not understood by our employees, who are used to getting everything complete on “Ghanaian Time.”

But through it all, the growing pains are worth it, as the expansion of Della is an exciting process. And, when challenges arise, no matter how different our two cultures may be, the best remedy is always laughter.

Design

The Winning Super Hero Dad

June 16, 2011

Father’s Day is just a few days from now, but you still have time to order a gift for Father’s Day delivery. Place your order by today, June 16, at 6 pm, and we’ll ship to your dad for a flat rate of $14.95.

Need a great gift idea? Check out our new fire hose belt, which Kim M. just won for her Dad in our super hero giveaway:

kim M says:
June 10, 2011 at 5:17 pm

My dad worked in the Air National Guard via civil service for over 30 years. We were always SO proud to have a dad who fixed F-16s! My dad has always been supportive of his 3 daughters especially when he became a single dad when we were beginning our teenage years–beating us in basketball as kids (never letting us win),fixing our junker vehicles, helping over the phone to diagnose household mechanical difficulties when we moved away(and teaching me that I can fix a multitude of things myself), and lending us money when we needed it during our impoverished college days.

Now that we are grown and he is retired, he is a wonderful grandpa to my sons and to his 2 grand-daughters. He plays with them, builds tree houses that are the envy of the neighborhood kids, and allows my sons to jabber about anything with him on the phone since we live 8 hours away. He would love this fire hose belt because it is exactly the type of gift my boys would pick out for him. 🙂

Happy Father’s Day to all the super hero dads out there!