Swing Salon's Green Initiatives
We believe that beauty should extend beyond the limits of our surface area - our skin and hair – it should emanate from within us and radiate beyond us. If the price we pay for beauty is to pollute our bodies and the environment we live in, is it really beautiful?
That said, unless you are a tropical fish living in a remote coral reef, it is impossible to live as a being on this planet without polluting it to some degree. But we can live mindfully; increasingly aware of the impact of our choices and acting in a way that minimizes the damage we do – perhaps even contributing to the health of our bodies, communities and planet.
Following are some of the steps taken in order to create a healthier environment for our clients, staff, community and planet. We look forward to being able to invest even further in greening our salon.
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| Save a Sea Otter - Get a Haircut
Swing Salon has joined forces with Matter of Trust to address emergency oil spill clean-up. Hair mats made from salon donations of hair soak up oil that has washed ashore after a spill and leave the water clean. These mats are then detoxified by oyster mushroom spawn. After a few months the end result is nontoxic landscape grade compost.
We love that the Oil Spill Hair Mats project give our clients an opportunity to donate their unwanted hair to a good cause - even if it is not long enough to give to such organizations as Locks of Love. All types and lengths of hair are welcome.
Learn more about this intiative on Matter of Trust's site and read press coverage from such publications as Scientific American and Plenty Magazine.
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| Wind Power
Swing Salon is powered by wind through ConEdison Solutions Green Power program. Wind-generated electricity is clean and reliable. It uses no fuel, emits no greenhouse gases and causes no acid rain. By choosing ConEdison Solutions Green-e certified energy we know that we are directly supporting emission-free renewable electricity and a clean energy future. Switching to WIND Power can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by the equivalent of planting about 418 trees or not driving about 5,325 miles each year. You can learn more about how to switch to green energy by visiting ConEdSolutions or call 1.866.WIND.123.
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Products and Services
Swing Salon color services, both single process and highlighting, are available using formulas that are free of aggressive chemicals such as ammonia. The result is luminous, lasting, extremely conditioning color that covers grays completely.
Swing retails the Modern Organic Products and Kevin Murphy lines of hair care and styling products that do not use artificial fragrance, incorporate certified organic ingredients, offer sulfate-free solutions and do not test their products or ingredients on animals.
Green Community
Swing Salon is a member of Green America‘s Green Business Network. Green America is the nation's leading non-profit educator on socially and environmentally responsible consumption and investing. The Green Business Network is dedicated to helping socially and environmentally responsible businesses emerge and thrive to form a global green economy.
Swing Salon is a particpant in the Lower East Side Ecology Center's EcoBizNYC program. EcoBizNYC seeks to reduce air pollution, carbon emissions, and airborne environmental health hazards in NYC through environmental auditing, education, and action. Learn more on www.ecobiznyc.org.
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| Swing Salon's Interior
Indoor Air Quality
Many of the hazardous chemicals in modern interiors are members of a family called volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. The distinctive smell of a newly remodeled interior is primarily due to the off-gassing of these toxic compounds from such sources as plywood, carpets, paints, finishes and other products. VOCs contribute to pollution indoors and out. We chose a low-VOC paint to decorate the salon. These paints are manufactured without many of the harmful compounds normally found in paint. This choice reduces emissions of VOCs into the salon, improving indoor air quality and reduces the formation of urban smog.
Swing salon also uses a carbon filter air purifier that removes the finest particles from the atmosphere.
Light & Furnishings
In 2009 Swing Salon conducted a complete lighting audit and replaced all possible iridescent bulbs with compact florescents (CFL). Our electricity usage dropped dramatically which also resulted in major savings. You can learn more about CFL options on the Green Depot's website (www.greendepot.com) or by visiting one of their stores.
Whenever possible, we selected Swing’s furnishings from Ikea. Not only are they affordable and well designed, but Ikea has an established commitment to supporting environmental health and social responsibility. Friends of the Earth lauded Ikea’s phasing out of hazardous chemicals and the World Wildlife Fund has noted its eco-friendly wood sourcing.
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We welcome your comments, suggestions or questions...
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