Nov. 5, 2007 issue
By Karen Springen  

Deck the Halls with LEDs: Your Christmas decorations can burn just as brightly with less electricity

This year, Americans will send nearly 2 billion holiday cards, use more than 38,000 miles of ribbon and leave millions of Christmas trees on the curb. Does that mean you should feel guilty for having a great time? Nah. Neither does it mean forgoing any of the elements that make the holiday season special. “You don’t have to sacrifice the celebration for sustainability,” says Zem Joaquin, founder of ecofabulous.com and eco-editor of House & Garden. Her advice: be “eco-wise.” Here are a few secrets for an environmentally friendly—but still festive— holiday season.

Lights. Buy strings of LED lights, which look the same as conventional incandescent bulbs but last longer and use 80 to 90 percent less energy. LED lights, like the 300-light garland for $8.99 at homedepot.com, are also safer since they barely warm up. And invest in timers that automatically shut off your lights and cost as little as $9.99.

Aug. 13, 2007 issue - Water use soars in the summertime, and drought-affected regions have been tightening their faucets in an effort to conserve water. While some towns have gone so far as to restrict lawn watering and public fountains, better technology and a new EPA labeling system called WaterSense make it easier to be miserly with your H2O at home. Some room-by-room tips:

Bathroom: In the past 10 months, 35 models of high-performance, high-efficiency toilets that use less than 1.3 gallons per flush, compared with the standard 1.6gpf, have earned the EPA's WaterSense seal of approval. Unlike many of their low-flow predecessors, these new models, which sell for $200 to $550, guarantee a clean flush (for more information, see epa.gov/watersense). If you bought your toilet pre-1994, it probably uses 3.5gpf or more, and you could be eligible for a rebate from your local water utility if you switch to a more efficient model.

And pick up an aerator (from $2 at hardware stores), a gadget that screws into your faucet and either introduces a steady supply of bubbles or separates the water into thin streams that can save you more than a gallon a minute. Finally, check out water-efficient showerheads at your local hardware store or at niagaraconservation.com.

It's been 30 years since Elvis Presley sagged to the floor and died alone in the upstairs bathroom of Graceland, the Memphis estate that was his Mount Vernon. This year, Graceland's managers expect 50,000 for a week of commemorative events.

Since his death, the aura of the King and the Colonial revival mansion he bought in 1957 has never stopped growing. During an official U.S. visit last summer, the then Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi insisted on touring Graceland. There, before a chuckling President Bush and Elvis's once wife, Priscilla, and daughter, Lisa Marie, Koizumi mugged like the King and crooned "The Impossible Dream."

Elvis was casual about money, and that is the only reason that the Graceland house—which would be dwarfed by a modern rock star's pool house—is open to visitors. Although Presley transformed America's music, he left an estate so relatively small (reportedly less than $5 million) that Lisa Marie, his principal heir, needed ready cash when he died. Lisa Marie's mother shrewdly hired professional managers, who licensed and merchandised Elvis's image and turned Graceland into a world-renowned tourist attraction. Lisa Marie reportedly takes in a lavish yearly income.