June 8, 2007

Green Goods: Sprig Makes Consumerism (Almost) Guilt-Free

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HILO_gravyboat.jpgTo anyone who’s browsed the “green” issues of Domino and Dwell, it’s no surprise that you can now buy beautifully designed, environmentally sound products that don’t involve hemp. For those with a modern aesthetic, the new Sprig.com offers a plethora of elegant glasses, aprons, drawer pulls, and other must-have accessories for the stylish environmentalist.

Sprig was created by the Washington Post folks, back in April, but its staff has a solid history working for high-end, consumerist glossies like Vanity Fair and In Style Home and it shows in the site’s design. The pretty site easily guides shoppers through categories—home, food, fashion—featuring trendy goodies from eco-friendly manufacurers, who range from the large and well known (Muji, Pottery Barn) to the gal who hand sews vintage-style aprons in her home studio.

Another key feature of the site is that it tells you exactly why each product is “green” and allows you to search by how the product helps the environment, whether it’s vegan, resource-saving, sustainable, or recycled. My faves: the classic, hand-made British 28″ suitcase by GlobeTrotter and the Emma Gardner fair trade, hand-knotted rug with the gold/cerulean blossom pattern.

And even their tagline aims to make green consumerism fun: Sassy People are Into Green.

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WE CAME UP SHORT.

We just wrapped up a shorter-than-normal, urgent-as-ever fundraising drive and we came up about $45,000 short of our $300,000 goal.

That means we're going to have upwards of $350,000, maybe more, to raise in online donations between now and June 30, when our fiscal year ends and we have to get to break-even. And even though there's zero cushion to miss the mark, we won't be all that in your face about our fundraising again until June.

So we urgently need this specific ask, what you're reading right now, to start bringing in more donations than it ever has. The reality, for these next few months and next few years, is that we have to start finding ways to grow our online supporter base in a big way—and we're optimistic we can keep making real headway by being real with you about this.

Because the bottom line: Corporations and powerful people with deep pockets will never sustain the type of journalism Mother Jones exists to do. The only investors who won’t let independent, investigative journalism down are the people who actually care about its future—you.

And we hope you might consider pitching in before moving on to whatever it is you're about to do next. We really need to see if we'll be able to raise more with this real estate on a daily basis than we have been, so we're hoping to see a promising start.

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