upcycle, recycle, rethink, deconstruct (and win!)

Hey, I've got a question for you! It's painless, I promise! Would you like to win some method products? No no, not those dinky little contest prizes method lust gives out. I'm talking lots and lots of method products! I'm talkin' a years worth of method products! - Now, where did I put those smelling salts?

method and Dwell (that awesome modern home magazine full of a zillion houses I'd love to live in that makes me really depressed every month as I peruse that magazine because I realize I probably will never get to live in one of those zillions and zillions of modern homes... oh but I digress (as per usual!) are having a contest! Here are the details (straight from Dwell's mouth! Or well rather, their website:)

"Dwell and method, two arbiters of style that aim for pride of place on your shelves, dare you to defy us with your ideas for upcycling, recycling, rethinking, and deconstruction—beginning with your empty method bottles. We think real creativity is about taking a second look, and breathing new life into the old. We're looking for imaginative creations that give method product bottles and packages a sexy new lease on life. Enter now through June 30!"

Be sure to take a look at some of the submissions (seen here!) They're so awesome!

So get creative, think green, and enter here, and now! Time is ticking on by! Deadline is June 30th! Good luck!

green corporate ethics?

Here's a very interesting new article from method co-founder Adam Lowry, writing for treehugger.com, concerning so called "green plastics" and how they might just not be as green as they want you to believe (No! From the plastics industry!? I'm shocked... wink.)

"Corporate ethics is one of the most critical components of the green tech revolution today. The foundation of sustainable product design is innovation in base materials, novel new green chemistries that replace dirty ones, better building materials that don't pollute or off-gas, and novel new plastics that are compatible with the environment. However, there is a concerning trend emerging of material innovation half-measures that create wonderful marketing claims for their producers, but no significant environmental benefit.

Nowhere is this trend more evident than in the world of plastics. In an effort to improve upon the dismal environmental fate of most plastics that end up in our landfills, gutters, or oceans, an enormous amount of energy has been focused on creating biodegradable, plant based, or somehow greener plastics ... These new technologies are exciting and necessary. However, new findings are emerging that shed light on the fact that eliminating the unwanted consequences of plastic use and fundamentally reinventing the plastics that pervade our daily lives is harder than it looks.

A new study published recently in Environmental Science & Technology shows that the class of plastics known as oxo-degradable plastics, may not be as green as they seem. Oxo-degradable plastics are regular polyethylene (PE, or "#2") or polypropylene (PP, or "#5") plastics that contain special additives that cause them to degrade when exposed to sunlight or heat. The promise is appealing—plastics just like the ones we use everyday, without any of the nasty side effects. But this new study shows that instead of actually degrading the plastic, these additives simply break the plastic down into particles too small for us to see, making it potentially more dangerous by mobilizing into our soil and water small particles of plastic that can absorb pollutants and other chemicals..."

Read the entire article here!

meet me!

Ok, well, you've already met me, lots of times here on ole' method lust, I know! But it's also the title of a new article (possibly for inclusion in an upcoming new book!) by David Bunnell. He's been writing a book on brand advocacy, and method was of course included! Not only that, but I was surprised when he asked if I would like to be interviewed for the book, too! How could I pass that up? So, here is my interview! (I even drew my own self portrait! What do you think? Does it look like me?) I hope you enjoy it, even just a little (if not just lie to me, ok? I'll probably not be able to tell the difference, and my feelings won't get hurt. And I have very thin skin, so you wouldn't want to hurt my feelings, cause I'll bleed and bleed all over. Oh yeah, and cry a lot, too!) So without further blah blah blah:

"Meet Nathan Aaron, Method’s Advocate Extrordinaire | by David Bunnell

Definition: Brand advocates are people who habitually review products and share their opinions with others around them. The sharing can be done in-person around the water cooler with a few close friends or it can be done online with email or on social media networks where advocates can reach many thousands of peers almost instantly.

Marketers are increasingly seeking out brand advocates and oftentimes “energizing” them by providing tools that make it easier for advocates to write product reviews, post messages, answer questions from customers or potential customers and even share coupons.

All companies have advocates. Some companies have fanatical advocates, amazing people who do amazing things for the companies or brands they love. Apple is an example, and so is Method; the environmentally friend cleaning products company.

One such fanatical advocate, profiled below, is Nathan Aaron who was so taken by Method, he launched a blog called “Method Lust” on which he has posted hundreds of articles about Method, the people who work there, and the importance of nontoxic cleaning products.

I learned about Nathan when I recently visited the corporate headquarters of Method in San Francisco. Below is a profile I recently wrote about him:

Struggling to explain his unusual advocacy for a brand of cleaning products, North Carolina graphic artist Nathan Aaron shrugs his shoulders and says, “Maybe I don’t have much of a life.”

But once you hear his story, you’ll realize this isn’t true. Nathan is a very interesting, passionate, and creative person..."

Read the rest here!

washed up?

Quick question, method lust peeps! I've been hearing quite a few advocates mention the fact that method's marine naturals body wash has been disappearing from their store shelves, never to return. In fact, a couple people have even suggested Target has clearanced the item completely! So my question is, are you having trouble finding method's body wash in sea minerals, waterflower, or refresh mint scents? Or is your Target store still stocked and dandy? Let us know!

lemony mint and friends!

I found some surprise goodie joys at my local Target yesterday! I knew method already had a slew of new hand washes that have hit our happy shelves (of course I knew, this is method lust yo!), but the poo-poo problem was two hand washes, lemon mint and hibiscus flower in gel, were only available in Target stores that also carried a large grocery store section (Target, you don't ever make no sense to me, alright?)

Well, luckily for me (and therefore, you too! Cause we're all friends here, really now) I stumbled upon an end cap near the hand wash at my Target, with a title card hanging above the shelves that said "special purchase" and low and, the second half of that phrase is, behold I found the lemon mint and hibiscus flower gel hand washes! But obviously as the sign says, they're a special purchase, so I'd run on out and pick up a few while the pick'en'of'em up is good!

laundry room love - it's a wrap!

Check out method's all wrapped up official laundry room love video! So adorable! Did you contribute?

body 2 body

Here's another chance to be heard by method! Recently over on Facebook they asked what people liked/disliked/wanted to see from their body wash line (past and present.) Today they're asking more details about not only their marine naturals body wash line (which it seems many method advocates have begun to notice missing from their Target store shelves? I'm not sure what's up, my Targets are still plenty stocked, but it's something to keep in mind,) but also body care in general!

"Now a follow-up question: have you used our marine naturals body wash? tell us what you think. and if you're feeling inspired, let us know what else you'd like to see in body care from method."

As we all know, body care was something they tried out with body lotion, body wash, body bars, body scrub and shaving cream years ago. But then they decided to shelve most of the line, and the body wash was all that survived. Sounds like there might be new plans for expanding the line! So jump into the discussion over on their Facebook page, and give them your wants, desires and of course, lusts for a new method body care line! (Ooh, I get happy goosebumps just thinking of it!)

method hearts virgin!

Oh how you will totally want to check out this adorable video above, and then click on over to method's official people against dirty blog to learn all about it, and their collaboration with Virgin America!