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Just a quick note to wish all of you a very HAPPY HALLOWEEN from all of here at FromTheWorkBench and Northern Tool!

Hopefully this finds you having a great time, staying as green and safe as possible, and enjoying one of the spookiest, and silliest holidays of the entire year.

Check back in bright and early Monday Morning for all new tips, tricks, news and relevant advancements in the world of Alternative Energy!

Happy Halloween!

It’s almost here!  We mentioned yesterday some amazing ways for you to transform this Halloween into the greenest yet, and by now I”m sure your costumes are made (hopefully out of recycled materials like I mentioned yesterday!) your Trick-or-Treating route is picked out, and heck, maybe even thought about some reverse-trick-or-treating!  The last thing you have to do, is fill up those bowls will all natural candies and treats!  The doorbells are about to ring, it’s time to get ready!

Yesterday, we talked about how one of the best ways to stay green was to put a ban on classic candies, and replace them with organic, all-natural treats.  Not only will the treats be better for the kids that are eating them, they are better on the Earth and environment at the same time.  Talk about achieving two awesome goals at one time.  At any rate, thanks to this article, I found some of the best organic and natural candies you can buy:

• YummyEarth Organic Lollipops
• Endangered Species Chocolate Halloween Treats
• Betty Lou’s Organic Golden Smackers
• Jelly Belly Natural Flavors
• Glee Gum Natural Chewing Gum

There you have it.  Who says you can’t be Eco-Friendly AND the cool house on the block?!  Try it this year, I have no doubt once you try Greening up your holiday, you’ll never go back.

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Only Two days left!  Halloween is officially on the horizon, whether you’re a fan of the holiday or not.  If you’re not, that’s cool, but keep in mind there are thousands and thousands of little kids dressed up that certainly are.  If you are, this article will help you even more!

I just found a great article on some very simple, very important, and very fun ways to make Halloween a heck of a lot more Green, without ruining all of the fun and spirit of such a cool, laid back holiday!  As always, feel free to head over and check out the full article for a lot more ways to keep your Halloween as Green (and orange) as possible, but for now, here are their top 5 ways to be Green this Hallows Eve!

“Skip the Plastic Costumes” - These are harder to recycle, and even the soft-vinyl costumes can release dangerous chemicals into the air.  NOT good.

“Get Creative At Home” - Make your own costumes and decorations out of old, recycled things you can find around your house!

“Face the Facts” - Choose organic and natural make-up when you do use costume make-up.  Traditional kinds can have dangerous chemicals and some even are tested on animals.

“Bar Classic Candies” - Try organic, all natural treats this year, not big brand, big name candies.  They are healthier and more environmentally sound.

“Choose a Kid-Friendly CarryAll” - Instead of plastic sacks or pumpkins, opt for reusable canvas bags like you get at grocery stores this year.  Buy a blank one, let your kids decorate it.

There you have it!  Check out the other tips at your leisure, but those 5 should be a great start to making this Halloween a lot more Green, instead of all orange!

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Ladies & Gentleman, Halloween is officially only 3 days away!  The countdown has begun and if you have kids, have neices or nephews, grandchildren or any other little ghouls and goblins that might be trick-or-treating with you this year, I have a very novel, very awesome suggestion for you!

This year, instead of, or even better, in addition to actually taking your loved ones trick-or-treating, take them Reverse Trick-or-Treating!  What the heck is reverse-trick-or-treating, you might be asking?  Well I’m glad you did.

Reverse-Trick-or-Treating, is when you team up with the kind folks over at Global Exchange and their Fair Trade organization to help spread the message as to the benefits of Fair Trade, as well as the plight of many cocoa farmers around the world.  What you do is, sign up through their website, receive informational cards and even samples of their Fair Trade chocolates and sweets, and then when you ring someone’s doorbell, give THEM a sample and a little lesson, while You get their candy in return.  Perfect, and perfectly simple!

In the article I read suggesting this, it is the second year the company has done this, and last year was a wild success and helped make Halloween about a lot more than just ringing doorbells and stashing candy.  Over a quarter of a million samples will go out this year, get your hands on some!

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