While work has kept me busier than ever, I’ve been fortunate to get so much out of all the time I put into Strawesome!

* I’m most proud of operating our business debt free for 4 years!  We haven’t even used a credit card – we’ve simply invested back into our business.

*  In June 2012, our family was able to settle into a new home in a friendly and beautiful community that we love.  Times were tough in prior years and I’m proud to say things are looking up.  We were even able to make some renovations on our new digs.

* We have been able to provide our two boys with fun extracurricular activities like sports, Cub Scouts and guitar lessons.  In the past, this was not something we could spare in our budget, but we’re making it a priority for the future.

* Strawesome has been able to donate to many causes around the world in 2012!  From local events to retreats on the other side of the world, Strawesome newbies are sipping everywhere!  We look forward to continue donating to a wide variety of causes in 2013.

* In late 2012, Brian and Essential IT worked extremely hard to update Strawesome’s website.  Anyone who has developed a website knows how challenging the process can be at times, but with the help of the team at Essential IT we’re proud of our website and its wonderful functionality.

* Early this year, we welcomed aboard a new distributor, Kula Wellness, in Australia and New Zealand. Kula is making Strawesome straws more attainable for customers far away from us!

And our future is bright!

In April, we’re headed to our first big trade show – the Green Festival in New York City.  We’re really excited about this and are preparing like crazy for a great booth with a great presence at this show. If you’re in the area, make sure to stop by and visit Strawesome – we love to see our customer’s smiling faces!

We’ve hired a few helpers around the office that are making larger projects more feasible and in the future we’re looking to expand even more!

Everyday we are presented with exciting new opportunities that will continue to take Strawesome to another level.

To celebrate the past four years and the many more to come, we’re offering FREE SHIPPING through Sunday, March 17, 2013 on USA shipping addresses only. Use promo code: WONDERFULL4

Comment below with someone you’d like us to send a FREE straw to and why you chose them, and we’ll choose one entry randomly on Sunday, March 17, 2013 – and you’ll BOTH get a straw!

Thank you for all your love and support of my business and passion in life.  Without you, I wouldn’t be as fulfilled as I am today!  I’m looking forward to the future of Strawesome!

Love,

Daedra

I was recently introduced to the online resource for all things recycled called Recycle Scene.  And being that it’s February they have some great ideas for Valentines that I plan to use with my two boys.

I love this website because it’s a great resource for people that have been recycling for years and need to step it up and find creative outlets for their recycling.  On top of the many great craft ideas they also have ongoing ideas on how to recycle items you might not think about, why you should buy something that is recycled and my favorite – going BEYOND the recycling. Small things add up (like straws) but so do many other things.

Needless to say this website is a great resource that many people should bookmark and read!

And of course I want to give away a straw for a comment so tell me one thing you’ve learned about our wastefulness that lead you to become a better recycler.  One comment per person please and winner will be chosen on Monday, February 4, 2013

~Daedra

]]> http://blog.strawesome.com/recycle-scene/feed/ 61 http://blog.strawesome.com/straw-storage-solution/ http://blog.strawesome.com/straw-storage-solution/#comments Mon, 28 Jan 2013 16:25:26 +0000 Daedra Surowiec http://blog.strawesome.com/?p=665 One of the many concerns with glass items like our Strawesome straws is where to store them when they are not in use.  While we offer up our own ideas on storage it would be nice to hear how everyone else stores their straws.

We’re offering up a free straw for one lucky person who comments on this post telling everyone how they store their glass straws safely.  We’ll choose one random winner on Friday, February 1, 2013.  One comment per person please!

~ Daedra

Some people think that glass straws are dangerous because they can break.  Yes, glass could be dangerous if you were to have it break in your mouth, in your hand, or in your beverage; but this is very unlikely.  The glass we use is so strong that you can’t bite into it.  You’d have to drop or bang it on something harder to break it.

There are many other items used in the kitchen made of glass that have the same risks:  measuring cups, coffee pots, glass bowls, and drinking glasses. Each of these items could break if they hit up against something harder, but we all use them regularly and it is rare that one breaks.  The bottom-line is that under every day normal usage, glass items are safe whether you are drinking from them or handling liquids and foods that you will consume later.  Maybe the ultimate example of glass being used everyday and being risky are eye glasses.  We seem to think those are safe enough for everyone on the planet to use on a daily basis.

Breakable is Better

Things that last forever are not always the best for us (think about all the toxic plastic straws that will be harming our planet years after we are gone).  Most of us need change or we get bored.  Things that are breakable, fragile, or temporary can sometimes be the finer things in life that leave us better off: ice cream cones, pets, the seasons, love, and even life itself.

Take love for example. Just because you can get your heart broken, doesn’t mean you should shy away from opportunities to fall in love and be deeply vulnerable with another person.  Falling in love is an experience that brings forth aliveness and happiness in one’s life.  In other words, falling in love is worth the risk of getting your heart broken.  Without your heart being open and vulnerable, you could never experience love.

Glass Straws are Guaranteed

Likewise, Glass Straws offer so many benefits that they are worth the risk of breakage.  But how do you deal with loss?  When your lose a loved one, you can’t replace them and it may hurt for a while because you loved them.  When something glass breaks, you usually have one option – go buy a new one.  In most cases, you can’t just call up the company that made the product and ask for a new one. It can get a bit frustrating when you are one drinking glass short of a coordinated table setting, or your prescription glasses fell to the ground and now you can’t see.

This is where Strawesome sets itself apart from other glass product manufacturers.  We are willing to stand behind our glass straws and provide you a free replacement if your straw breaks (even for those one-of-a-kind ones)!  You can read our replacement policy here.  So not only are our glass straws safe and better than plastics, but our Lifetime Guarantee is unlike any other glass product you can buy.

Blog Give-a-way

Keeping with the analogy of straws and hearts, we want to give away the awesome hand-made glass heart shown in this post’s photo.  To be eligible to win, share an experience that on the surface seemed dangerous or worthless, but turned out completely contrary. We will pick a random winner on January 11th, 2013.

Happy New Year!

- Brian Surowiec

Packing materials!

Because we ship fragile items we need to use packing materials so that our glass straws arrive in one piece. I’ve researched alternatives to bubble wrap and packing peanuts, something other than plastic, and the alternatives I’ve found didn’t work well for our product.  So we decided to make this necessary evil a positive experience.  All of our bubble wrap is recyclable and contains 50% pre-consumer recycled material.  And our packing peanuts have never been purchased.  We actually “rescue” them from local retailers that were just going to throw them away! Sometimes they are the decomposable version, but most of the time they are regular Styrofoam peanuts.

Lucky for me I have a great way to reuse all the packing materials I get in the mail.  With the busy holiday shipping season coming up I wonder what everyone else does with the packing materials they get. You know, bubble wrap, packing peanuts, wrapping paper, boxes, envelopes, etc.  I’ve heard some creative ideas over the years and now I want to hear from you guys!

I’ll give away a straw to 3 different people who comment and tell us about their most creative re-use of packing materials.  Contest ends on Saturday, November 3rd.  One entry per person please!

Much love,
Daedra

It is completely thrilling to know how many of you sip through glass instead of plastic, have given my handmade creations as gifts, have your kids drinking through them, drink green smoothies through them and enjoy them in your cocktails.  And I know many of you have even improved your health by simply sipping through a glass straw.

With that in mind, I would LOVE to see them in action!  The first 25 people to post pictures of Strawesome glass straws in action on facebook and tag “strawesome” will make me smile and receive an electronic gift certificate. Each certificate will be valued at $10.00 and can be used towards any online purchase at Strawesome.

10,000 Thank Yous!

~Daedra

Exposing the truth is the first thing that can be done. Our courageous friends at #STOPMONSANTO Film Project are creating a movie to educate viewers about what Monsanto is doing and what the company stands for. But they need our help to raise the funds to get this project off the ground (they have 2/3rds of the way to go to reach their goal).

We are donating 25% of our sales over the next few days towards this project. Our request is that you visit #STOPMONSANTO Film Project to see what the project is all about and then if you are aligned, either donate directly on their site and/or place an order on our website using coupon code: STOPMONSANTO. Hurry, the opportunity to fund this project ends tomorrow night. Place your order by 10pm Saturday night so we have time to make our donation.

Click the image or links above to read all about it. Please help us get the word out by forwarding this to your friends and family. We can make a difference by taking responsibility for the health of ourselves and future generations.

- The Strawesome Family

You know what I’m talking about, right?

Well, Ms Meghan Telpner, the Toronto-based nutritonista you may know from her blog Making Love In The Kitchen is here to the rescue. She has put together the ultimate detox program that I’m totally going to participate in!

Now this is not one of those lame, cheesy fad detoxes that requires you to starve yourself while pumping your body full of supplements and laxatives. No way. Not her style.

The ladies over there have named it The Fab Uplift Detox Program. And wouldn’t you know- she is giving away a few spots in this program. If you play your cards right (or in other words, enter), you can win one of the limited number of spots in The Fab Uplift Detox Program. The program is valued at $89 and registration opens Friday, September 7th.

 The full program will kick off Friday, September 22nd.

This cleansing detox is about rebooting your system and getting a fresh start. It is designed to help identify and eliminate hidden food allergens, boost immunity, shed a little poundage but most importantly, support you in kicking those icky food habits and cravings that tend to derail us.

Included in the program is all of the following:

• A full 16-Day Detox Program ebook which you can download immediately upon registration.
• 4-day pre-cleanse coaching tips and recipes.
• 8-Day Cleanse program including meal plan, shopping list and recipes.
• 4-Day Post Cleanse guidelines.
• Loads of info on why you should detox, what it means to detox, what this detox entails, and how to keep it going after the sixteen days have passed.
• A daily email offering tips and support, progress, and bonus recipes.
• Daily tweet coaching tips throughout the day (follow at #fabdetox)
• Email support throughout the main eight days of the detox
• Extra sweet incentive: At the end of the cleanse, send in a before + after on how you feel or a general testimonial and you will be entered to win some of our most fave detox goodies from some of our most fave detox loving brands.

You can get full deets on the program over on Meghan’s website.

 Please enter a comment below to be entered for a chance to win!

 You can earn extra entries by telling us in a comment if you:

*Liked Meghan and Strawesome on Facebook

*Following Strawesome @BeStrawesome and Meghan @meghaninc on Twitter

or

*Tweeting about the Fab Uplift Detox Program, linking to Meghan’s website and including @BeStrawesome and @meghaninc in the Tweet

The contest will close on Thursday, September 6th at 12 a.m. EST.

Get your entries in soon!

Be well,

~Daedra

1. I don’t know if I’ve ever thought about being someone that made a difference, but through Strawesome, I’m contributing to the health and well-being of people and the planet. It is happening naturally and that makes it so satisfying.

2. I have fun at work and I love it! Strawesome is a lot of hard work, especially while being a mom, but it provides an outlet to get my creativity out.

3. Strawesome is another way to be with and provide for my family. I love that our family business gives us the flexibility to be there for our kids and that they can be included now and in the future.

What about you? What is your labor of love? Share with a comment below. I’ll pick a winner Tuesday after Labor Day and send you a FREE glass straw! One entry per person.

Back to Work!
Daedra