There are a number of print techniques available for printing on a reusable bag and it will influence the material you decide to use and even the style that is suitable.

Silk screen printing:

This suitable for non woven,  cotton,  jute and RPET ecobags.  It is the perfect choice when the art work is simple and bold. Block colours work best – shades and tones will not print well and will drive up the price of the bag as each tone might count as a different print colour. See the silk screen printing process in action

Example of bag using heat transfer technique

Heat transfer:

For a photo quality finish a heat transfer might be the ticket. Essentially a tattoo or a decal is created and with the use of heat bonded onto the bag. This method can be used for non-woven bags, cotton bags, jute or rPET bags. The limitation is that there are a set amount of sizes available. It is more expensive than screen printing but the advantage is you can get a brilliant photo quality.

Full Colour Process:

Example of bag using full colour process printing

This is best for graphic or digitally created artwork and pictures where many colours are used.  It is also referred to CMYK print technique. It will give a contemporary and quality finish. The additional finish of a matte or gloss laminate can be applied to enhance the look of the bag and is worth considering as well if your budget will stretch. This is perfect for woven and non-woven laminated bags, just like the bags sold by the large supermarkets.

Full colour process is possible on non-woven, woven and rPET bags.

The process you choose, will depend on the type of bags that suit your promotional campaign.  For more information on choosing the right printing technique for your reusable bags, contact Matt at Smartbags or visit www.smartbags.co.uk

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

Research has revealed that 78% of Britons don’t know how or where their savings are invested.  We investigate further, asking the public where they would and wouldn’t want their savings invested.

This video is part of our campaign, in the build up to National Ethical Investment Week, to raise awareness of the good you can do just by saving money with an ethical bank – and of how easy it is to do.

Where Your Savings Go (National Ethical Investment Week) from Charity Bank on Vimeo.

To learn more; join one of Charity Bank’s borrower visits, explore Charity Bank’s ‘Think Ethical, Save Ethical’ microsite, or visit www.charitybank.org

Charity Bank – Ethical Bank is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Whilst many drivers are concerned about their carbon footprint, they often cannot be without a car. Now more and more of them are finding a way to reduce the environmental impact of their journeys, without having to give up their four wheels.

Car-sharing on your daily commute over the course of a year can save the equivalent CO2 emissions to offsetting seven trees. Which is one of the reasons that, in the past 12 months, over 70,000 people have signed up to the free liftshare network.

liftshare Week (3-7 October) starts on Monday, and aims to help reduce the 38 million empty car seats on the UK’s roads every morning. By joining liftshare.com, you can look for other people in your area who want to share their journey – then just take turns driving. Or contribute to the fuel costs if you don’t have a car and are just looking for a lift. It’s a win-win-win… for the environment, for your wallet and for introducing you to like-minded people in your community that you never would otherwise have met.

(And if work is happy for you to help reduce their car park issues, why not help your colleagues share too by downloading some posters from www.liftshareWeek.com?)

Help save over 120,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions over the next year: join the growing number of car-sharers and share your commute!

Post by Cecilia Bromley-Martin, Head of Communications & PR, liftshare

The Printable Craft Shop is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Are ethical savings really viable?  Can you earn a good rate of interest and still save in a way that benefits society and the planet?

If you are expecting to earn 10% on your savings, then the answer is probably no.  But then, as dramatically demonstrated by the Icelandic Banking collapse in 2008, excessively high returns may not be sustainable anyway or involve risks you may not be happy to take.

If you are looking for a more reasonable rate of interest for your savings, then principles and profits can, and do, coexist.  Take the Charity Bank Ethical ISA for example, as well as being consistently listed in the Which? Best Buy table, 100% of the ISA’s depositors’ money is invested in charities and social enterprises.

There are further advantages to choosing a bank with principles. At Charity Bank, these principles apply not only to the projects we fund, but the entire way the bank is run.  We genuinely value our customers – and this translates to real benefits for our savers.

We don’t only offer our latest deals to new depositors, for example.  Instead, our default account settings are favourable to all our depositors, our products and terms are simple and we ensure customers can easily transfer accounts.

If you ignore ethics and principles, then your savings options will, admittedly, be wider, but wouldn’t you rather save with a bank that delivers both, enabling you to sleep at night knowing your money is working for the good of society and the planet while offering you a fair return?

Charity Bank is an ethical bank that finances social enterprises, charities and community organisations, with the support of depositors and investors who place their money in ethical savings and ethical ISAs to facilitate real social change.

Charity Bank – Ethical Bank is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

After much hard work, some tears and a great deal of patience from our IT guys we have done it. The brand new Fairwind website is here with more features and useful services to help make your shopping experience with us even better.

It’s the same website address and the same great service, just with a new look and more features.

Website features

My account – store your details, delivery addresses, track your order and save time.

My wishlist – send your wedding, birthday or Christmas list to friends and family with our wishlist service.

Search by event or interest – shop for animal lovers, the eco-conscious, a wedding or christening and more.

Up to date stock – you will know as soon as you “Add to basket” whether the stock is on its way or on backorder.

Image zoom – get a really good close up look at the product images before you buy.

More ways to pay – choose from Sagepay, Paypal and Google checkout.

Gift vouchers – email or post gift vouchers for any amount from £5 to £500.

Blog – follow our blog and get the latest news and events from Fairwind as well as our musings on the world.

Share – more ways to share products with friends through social networks.

Overseas customers – better service with clear delivery charges and immediate ordering

Free delivery offer

To celebrate the launch of the new website we are offering free standard UK delivery for all orders until the end of the month. Simply shop online now – no promotion code needed.

So go on give the new website a try – and let us know what you think

Fairwind is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Photo credit: Ron Bailey

Go on a mini-safari

It’s amazing what you can find. Woodland safaris work best, but you’re bound to encounter wildlife anywhere you go outdoors – albeit on a miniature scale. Take a magnifying glass and guide book, keep your eyes peeled, and see how many different species of trees, flowers, slugs, snails, insects, birds, small mammals and fungi you can spot. (The Woodland Trust has lots of information on what you’re likely to see.) Care for nature by leaving it in peace afterwards – though a notepad and a sketching pencil will help you remember what you’ve seen.

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Get your wellies on

Sometimes the simplest things in life are the best.  Instead of complaining about the autumnal weather, pull on a pair of wellingtons. Splash, wade or paddle your way through any puddles you find. Swoosh through piles of crisp fallen leaves. Go for a walk first thing in the morning when the grass is soaked with dew.

And all with dry toes!

Have a bonfire

A sure way to keep cosy on chilly evenings: light a campfire (with due regard to fire safety, of course). Tell stories, sing songs, or just have a proper heartfelt chat. Best of all, the smell of woodsmoke will remind you of all the things you love about autumn.

Sawday’s Canopy & Stars is a luxury camping and glamping website, with many destinations open over autumn and winter in locations perfect for enjoying the great outdoors.

Canopy and Stars is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Wherever it’s invested, money takes a journey. This might be round the globe, round the big banks or round the stock markets. Sometimes it does some good along the way, sometimes it doesn’t.

Charity Bank makes sure that our customers’ money takes a shorter journey.  It spends less time travelling around and goes directly to charitable projects that benefit everyday communities, every day.

We invite you to join our 2011 Different Journeys programme, an inspirational opportunity to discover for yourself the difference our depositors’ money is making to our borrowers and the people they serve.

Each visit gives you the chance to meet the staff of the charities we support, as well as the people they work with and help.  We are hosting eight visits throughout National Ethical Investment Week.

We are hosting visits in the Midlands, Yorkshire, London, Cardiff, Hastings, South West, North West and Northern Ireland.

Learn more or sign up on our dedicated campaign micro site for National Ethical Investment Week.

Charity Bank – Ethical Bank is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

The last few years have seen a high level of publicity for the Quaker businesses of the past. In particular the sale of Cadbury to Kraft reminded the general public of the value of these responsible and socially minded companies, and the men who led them. There is more and more said about the need to return to these values, and apply them in the 21st Century. So how can we as Quakers lead from the front and show how to Build Responsible Businesses?

Speakers:

Mark Reckitt – Group strategy director at the Smiths Group, previously senior manager at Kraft,Green & Blacks and Cadbury.

Deborah Cadbury – Television producer and author of Chocolate Wars.

There will be an informal networking event at Friends House 6-9pm on Tuesday 15th November, the night before the conference.

For more information and to book, click here

Quakers and Business is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Freeset has just celebrated being in business for 10 years! Of course, Freeset isn’t like a familiar business. Freeset is a business with a double bottom line. You may well ask what we mean. At Freeset, success isn’t just measured by turning a profit. Success is measured by lives changed and opportunities for Freedom offered. Profits are used to create more opportunities for freedom and women who have been trafficked are given genuine choices and chances in life. We’re a business with a difference!

Last year Freeset made 175,000 bags and 42,000 T-Shirts and now employs nearly 200 women. Many of these women have been trafficked and all exploited through prostitution with little freedom to change. Through the work of Freeset things are different and trafficked women how have choice.

We think the best way to celebrate 10 years is to hear the voices of those who have been at the heart of the journey – the wonderful women at Freeset…….

“The difference between the jobs offered by Freeset and any other jobs is the women in the line are considered totally untouchable to any other employer in our society.  We are not even considered regular human beings.  In contrast to that Freeset is providing identity to these women by offering them jobs.  So Freeset is more about freedom than just a mere job.”  -Mena

The day I got my first salary was the most memorable day of my life. That day I chose the path to freedom.” -Kundula

“When I was in line and when I used to get a lot of money (though irregularly), I never had any planning or had no intention of saving.  But after working here and getting used to drawing a regular salary, I have learned how to keep a balance between things and how to save.” – Bebe

“Freeset is very significant to me.  It is a place for freedom…..Freeset is for all the women in the line.  This is the only place for their freedom.  Whoever is not in the line can get a job anywhere but the women in line have no opportunity to get a decent job.”  -Santosh

“I never look back to the life I had before.  I am a free person now.” -Janat

“I wish all the women in line could get freedom by coming here. I want Freeset to grow more.”-Sandiya

“When we come to Freeset we feel like it is our family. I can’t wait to come to work when I’m at home.” -Mena

www.freesetbags.co.uk

Freeset is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more