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Here's a post from one of my favorite sites, Treehugger! Brazilian design studio Rosenbaum collaborates with TV show Caldeirao do Huck in a segment called Lar doce lar (Home Sweet Home), which helps families in need re-designing their homes to improve their lives and self-esteem.

In its latest work for a family living in the outskirts of Sao Paulo, the firm included this neat vertical garden made from recycled PET bottles.

Although the idea is cool in itself, it's so much better knowing that it's part of a project to improve the lives of three women (mother and two daughters) that live in a one bedroom home with an income of 200 Reais (130 US dollars) a month.

Putting together an urban farm was not the designer's whim either: the women already had an eco-conscience and grew in small containers made from recovered food packaging.

The arrangement is of course thought for vegetables that don't take a lot of space to grow, like spices and medicinal herbs. Continue reading to learn about this vertical garden!

Here's a post from one of my favorite sites, Treehugger!

In the tiny home, smart storage is a must. Hiding life's necessities behind sleek cabinetry often makes a space appear larger — and makes living organized and clutter free.

So cabinets and hanging closets are integra inl the design of Graham Hill's LifeEdited apartment renovation project in Manhattan.

Is it a surprise that a search for affordable cabinets with a sleek, minimalist approach and versatility in size leads us to none other than IKEA? We also have four other savvy solutions. Seen something better? Let us know in the comments.

1. Ikea Pax Shelving

There's a reason people turn to IKEA Pax cabinets — they are versatile, relatively inexpensive, and fairly easy to install. Oh yeah, and flatpack.

For Graham's LifeEdited space, shelving is everywhere in a variety of forms, but the ability to mix different sized units makes Pax a winner. Luckily, IKEA's green credentials are not too shabby. IKEA's MDF and particle board is made to German standards for off-gassing, VOCs are low, and there's no formaldehyde.

Pros: Price. Each double set of sliding Lyngdal doors costs $300. Shelving innards without shelves runs about $200.

Cons: Can be slightly rickety if not installed properly, doesn't have quite the sleekness of some Italian designs (see below).

Price: Around $900 for this unit with all of its shelves and extras.

2. Henrybuilt

These are custom-built cabinet and shelving units, and it shows. Henrybuilt aims to merge the European modular kitchen systems idea with custom cabinet-making skill. In materials such as oak and walnut, these cabinets are built to last.

Henrybuilt uses a "high percentage" of FSC-certified woods and sources bamboo and FSC-certified birch veneer for laminates.

Pros: The custom aspect would allow the LifeEdited space to be filled with an assortment of storage and cabinet units most suited to the floor plan.

Cons: Price, and perhaps timing. The company is also in Seattle, not close to the LifeEdited apartment.

Price: Custom by quote request.

Check out three more space-saving cabinet solutions for tiny apartments!

Related stories from Treehugger:

• No Longer Used For Evil, Oil Barrels Remade Into Sweet Cabinets
• 10 Ways to Monitor Power in a Tiny Apartment
• 5 Energy-Efficient Induction Cooktops For Small Kitchens

I'm excited to present a post from one of my favorite sites, TreeHugger!

From Artists of Humanity comes an innovative design that turns more than 200 plastic shopping, dry-cleaning or newspaper bags into a colorful plastic bar stool, called "ReVision."

Made by inner-city youth in Boston, Massachusetts, the stools received the Social Responsibility Award by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) at the 2011 Architectural Digest Home Design Show in New York City.Besides fast foot chains, AFH is the largest youth employer in Boston, where they are based. They provide employment to more than two hundred inner-city teenagers per year, many of whom are under-served, in commission projects including painting, video, animation, sculpture, 3D design, graphic design and screen printing. The youth work with mentors and develop entrepreneurial skills. And they work out of a Platinum LEED-Certified building, called the Epicenter, which was designed in part by former participants of their programs.

Continue reading to see more!

Last year I told you about a Consumer Reports study, which detected bisphenol A (BPA) in the inner lining of most canned goods. And while the FDA has yet to ban the use of BPA in food packaging, it did announce earlier this year that the industrial chemical may pose some concern. As a result, the government agency is investing $30 million into a more comprehensive study on the effects BPA has on infants and adults.

In the meantime, those of you who are worried about your exposure should make sure your to-go containers and water bottles are BPA-free. Unfortunately, most canned goods are still made using BPA. In these instances it might be best to seek out foods packaged in glass, paper, or freezer bags. As I said earlier, most canned goods are made with BPA, but not all of them! The eco-conscious folks at Treehugger were kind enough to round up a list of seven companies making BPA-free canned goods.

1. Eden Organic canned beans, grains, and chilis
2. Vital Choice Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) cerified salmon, albacore tuna, sardines, and mackerel
3. Oregon's Choice MSC certified albacore
4. Eco Fish albacore tuna
5. Wild Planet skipjack and albacore tunas
6. Trader Joe's canned corn, canned beans, canned fish, canned poultry, and canned beef
7. Edward & Sons Native Forest and Nature Factor goods of fruits, vegetables, chutneys, and coconut milk