The self catering cottages at Combermere Abbey lie at the heart of an organic farm, down a one mile drive in the gently rolling countryside of North Shropshire. Our 5* cottages, decorated to a very high standard, provide peace, privacy and comfort. The estate offers wonderful walks, cycling and tennis, or you can stroll around the restored walled gardens and the only known fruit tree maze in the world. The cottages are perfect for both couples and groups. Guests can order meals in advance, book caterers for larger parties, enjoy holistic treatments in the property or simply come to relax away from a very busy life. Dogs are welcomed with their own Pooch Pack. We are members of Green Tourism and have a green visitor charter.

http://www.organicholidays.co.uk/at/2955.htm

Organic Holidays is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

We have an organic food pantry on site.

Experience a natural organic way of life without sacrificing life’s little luxuries, on a farm stay camping holiday close to the North Norfolk coast. Our canvas safari lodges are in a stunning rural location with the biggest skies in England. There’s a wood fired cooker range within the tent and outside is your own dedicated camp fire. You can shop at the small site pantry for any provisions you need. We can also provide some dishes that you can either cook yourself or simply put on the range and warm up for a tasty instant meal. All our meal options use local produce and are designed to be wholesome, nutritious and, most important, tasty. Located close to sandy beaches, great walks and a host of great adventure activities. http://www.organicholidays.co.uk/at/2954.htm

Organic Holidays is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

This is your invite to join the Word of Mouth Adventure. Join Us in the battle to uncover the local gems you never normally hear about, and support the muchbetter local businesses.

In a world where most travel choices seem to be formulaic, mass produced, and greenwashed…a world of muchbetter adventures is out there.

Independent, individual and personal. Run by friendly people who share your passion for adventure, live locally, and know the best spots.

Hard to find aren’t they? If you have been lucky enough to find one, then support them and help others find them too. It is give and take – share your suggestion, and benefit from one next time you are planning a trip! Together we can revive the soul of adventure.

You can add your suggestion to the site here: www.muchbetteradventures.com/joinus

What happens to my suggestion?

We will add all suggestions to the site so others can get straight in touch.

We’ll check them out ourselves, reward the most ethical (or ‘muchbetter’, if you will) with featured profiles, and offer sustainability consultancy to help others start on the road to muchbetter-hood.

Know an area well?

You can become a muchbetter ambassdor.
As well as your suggestions, the travel guides are being put together by a collection of voluntary ‘ambassadors’ – skiers, surfers, climbers, cyclists, trekkers, divers and locals in adventure hot spots around the world. Help create the full muchbetter guide, get featured and earn money.

Much Better Adventures is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Truly Ethical is expanding its range of eco friendly craft kits for children with four new Fair Trade kits:

• Space kit
• Flowers kit
• Fish kit
• Theatre kit

Each kit uses components that are fairly traded, recycled or sustainable, or all three.  The kits are aimed at children from three years old, and encourage them to use their creative talents whilst learning how to be environmentally friendly. Children can use their imagination to make the kits, or follow the simple instructions.

The kits, which have been designed and produced in the UK, include Fair Trade craft items such as tissue paper, beads made from magazines, material off cuts and jute.  These components come from countries such as Uganda and Nepal.   Even the boxes the kits come in are used to make the final product. 

“Our craft kit components are carefully sourced from suppliers who support Fair Trade manufacturing.  Our philosophy aids projects such as helping Tibetan refugee children and assisting the growth of local communities in the poorer areas of the world by providing employment,” says Anna Smith, owner of Truly Ethical.  “We were inspired by the success of the Truly Ethical craft kits we launched last year and so have been busy coming up with new ethical craft kit ideas to expand the range.  We sell fun, affordable products that make a difference to the world and teach our children about Fair Trade.”

The craft kits are priced between £5.99 and £9.99 (RRP) and are available for both wholesale and retail purchase.

Truly Ethical works alongside its sister website, Ethical Party Bags, which supplies a range of ethical party bag products and gifts.

Ethical Party Bags is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Ordering a resusable bag is easy, but I am often asked how long it will take and the steps involved. Even if it does seem obvious it is easy to forget an important detail.

Organising and planning are essential to help you save time & money. Once you have designed your bag, you will need to contact your chosen supplier and email the details required to get your order ready.

A) ALLOW ENOUGH TIME! I can’t stress this enough. Check your deadline and work backwards. You need to allow up to 6 to 10 weeks for the whole process – art work preparation, approval, production and delivery.
B) Provide the bag spec: dimensions of the bag Height x Width x Depth in centimeters, the style and quantity. If you have a quote it is often easiest to copy and paste those details back in your email.
C) Confirm your choice of handle. Option can include a standard handle, an over the shoulder handle or a bespoke handle which is the exact length and width you desire.
D) Confirm your choice of fabric colour from those available. If you have specific print colours, confirm Pantone colour codes.
E) Advise how many sides of the bag you would like printed – front or back, or both? It is possible to print on the side and bottom panels too.
F) Attach your artwork to the email. Read How should I send my artwork? for details on preparing artwork.
G) Give an accurate description of how you would like the artwork to appear on the bag – centered, bottom right etc. Include artwork size in relation to the bag size (e.g as a percent figure or in H x W cm)
H) Confirm the delivery address for the bulk order as well as your billing address if different. Make sure contact name, phone numbers and email addresses are given.
I) Include a purchase order.
J) Advise of any hard deadlines.
K) Any other special instructions you may have.

A) You will receive a PDF proof of your artwork on a template within a few days. Approve this via return e-mail.
B) Within 10 working days of the PDF proof approval you will receive a pre-production sample. This will either be a photo or the actual physical manufactured sample of the reusable bag you have ordered. Usually approval will be made from a JPEG photo of the bag which will be emailed to you. If however, you prefer to receive the physical sample for approval this can be posted to you. Approval from a physical sample will add an extra week or two onto the process.
C) Approve this sample by return e-mail.
D) The bags will then go into production, which usually takes between two to three weeks.

It normally takes about 30 days for sea shipped delivery. Sea/air can be as short as 10 days and Express Airfreight will be shorter, both will considerably add to the price and require confirmation and quote at time of order.

While it seem like there is a lot to remember the most important thing in my experience is to ALLOW ENOUGH TIME. Each bag is custom made and printed. When you make the effort to design and produce a bespoke bag that portrays your brand you will see by the result it is well and truly worth the time invested.

If you’d like to know more about the ordering process, please contact leanne at Smartbags or visit www.smartbags.co.uk. Or you can add your question here and I’ll get back to you.

Smart Bags is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Online gift shop, good-luck-gifts.com has launched range of virtual e-Gifts to allow people to send presents over the internet in an environmentally-friendly fashion. The gifts carry an assortment of messages to cater for all types of occasions . . and people can add their own messages too.

 Designed for busy people who often don’t have the time to wait for a normal gift to arrive in the post (or by courier) – or who have maybe left things a bit late, these are easily-sent gifts that have a very low impact on the environment. They can pass on a Good Luck message, or say Congratulations, Best Wishes or With Love . . completely online.

“If nothing else, it helps brighten peoples’ lives by letting them know you are thinking of them,” say site owner and founder, Melanie Bourne. “Because we are based in Spain, many of the e-Gifts possess the magical symbol of the lucky Indalo – a well-known local good luck symbol that is reputed to offer protection and prosperity. But because the gifts are ‘virtual’, little or no harm is done to the environment.”

The e-Gifts are also an extremely useful as a means of sending a present (or wish) last minute, or even a convenient and fast solution for someone who has forgotten to send their special wish on a particular day. Of course all gifts are also available as real items too – for example ceramic tiles, porcelain plates, wall plaques, business card holders, and so on.

“Environmentally-friendly gifts with magical powers to make people feel good: What could be better!” says Melanie.

More information: good-luck-gifts.com is owned by Indalo Art . . an English-run business in Andalucia, Spain, that produces artistic jewellery and household gifts based on the good luck symbol of the Indalo – a rainbow-man figure made famous by the ancient Indian tribes like the Sioux, the Hopi and the Cree, and the neolithic civilisations of southern Spain some 4,500 years ago. Every lucky charmstone or item of jewelry is a natural, hand-crafted product. Indalo Art is involved with the art and culture of Spain, not only through the Indalo symbol but also by being active within local society – teaching art, and supporting a local centre for people with learning difficulties in order to give alumni more independence and a better quality of life.

Websites: www.good-luck-gifts.com & www.indaloart.com 

Indalo Art is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Now Spring is finally here with longer sunnier days to look forward to, it’s the perfect time to refresh your beauty routine…

Protect your skin from the ageing effects of the sun with an SPF moisturiser and lip balm  

Put the spring back in your step with Trevarno Propolis Ointment perfect for treating cracked heels and rough, dry feet

Slough away dead, dry skin cells and reveal soft glowing skin with an invigorating body scrub 

For glossy, healthy hair to rival a princess, try John Masters Organics products

For more inspiration visit www.naturalworkscompany.co.uk

The Natural Works Company is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Habitat Aid’s “Meadow Anywhere” seed packets, sold through Hillier’s Garden Centres, have now raised £8,000 for Butterfly Conservation and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust.

Habitat Aid Ltd. is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more