Bags Instead of Boxes

Although we recycle all corrugated boxes, paperboard boxes, plastic bottles, cans, and mixed paper, not everyone lives in a municipality that makes it easy to do so. Many people are not able to recycle corrugated cardboard. And even if they can, many are not in the habit of reusing and recycling. So we decided to reduce in the first place. We ended up choosing Tyvek and recycled manila envelopes over boxes because of many reasons.

1. SleepPhones are soft and do not require padding for protection during shipping.
2. Boxes are too big for some mailboxes, like those for apartments. 
3. Boxes are more easily lost because they are separated from the rest of the mail during delivery.
   
4. Envelopes take up less space in the landfill.
5. Envelopes weigh less than boxes. They are cheaper to ship.
6. Because they weigh less than boxes, it requires less gas to transport for the post office.
7. Tyvek envelopes can be recycled.
8. Manila envelopes that we use are already from recycled materials and can be further recycled in some places under mixed office paper.
   

When we started out, we used nice tuck mailer boxes to ship SleepPhones. There was a flap that could be tucked in to close the box, so it didn't require tape to be sealed. The thought was that if opened carefully, the boxes could be reused by the customer for various things. But after realizing that our reusable boxes were just being thrown out by most people, we figured that we would save landfill space by using minimal packaging instead.

If you place a large order from us, then we may ship your SleepPhones using a box. We often keep the nicer boxes we get from our suppliers for reuse in these situations. Therefore, you may get a box labeled Staples, Amazon, or some other company, but it is actually from us. Some people may think that we are being cheap, but we think we are practicing an ecologically sustainable concept. It takes our precious time and basement space to sort and store these boxes, but we do so because we want to reuse them. This type of conservation not only helps our bottom line (which helps our customers), but makes the world a slightly better place for future generations.

Corporate Responsibility - Environmental

SleepPhones are Green.

• The fleece headband is made of 88% recycled plastic bottles. The manufacturing of the fleece is done by Polartec® in Massachusetts then shipped directly to Pennsylvania via FedEx ground.
  
• All of the electronics in the SleepPhones are RoHS compliant, which means that they are free of lead. They can be safely disposed.
  
• SleepPhones headquarters is powered by 100% wind energy.
  
• Streamlined operations in order to reduce waste. For example, the instruction booklets are printed two at a time so that there is minimal paper waste.
  
• Ink and toner cartridges are recycled.
  
• The SleepPhones packaging was carefully chosen to minimize materials and weight which uses less fuel to transport. We do not use packing peanuts. We reuse plastic balloons, bubbles, and boxes from our suppliers whenever possible.
  
• Almost all manufacturing waste is recycled (cardboard, office paper) or reused (leftover fabric).
  
• We decided to ship via USPS not only to save both the customer and us money, but also because the postal carrier has to make a trip to your work or residence anyway. FedEx, UPS, and DHL need to use gasoline getting the package to you.
  
• Computers are on a smart strip so all peripherals automatically turn off when the computer is not on.
  
• Our employees work from home, so they do not have to drive to and from work every day. Nor do they have to drive their kids to day care.
  
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Here is how you can help!

• Reuse as many of the packaging parts as possible.
  
• If your SleepPhones came in a corrugated cardboard box, please reuse and recycle your box.
  
• If your SleepPhones came in a Tyvek® envelope, please recycle the envelope! For Small Quantities (less than 25 envelopes), turn any Tyvek® envelope inside out, so the unprinted white surface shows on the outside. Stuff the inside-out Tyvek® envelope with other used Tyvek® envelopes for recycling. Address and mail the envelope to: Tyvek® Recycle, Attn. Shirley B. Wright, 2400 Elliham Avenue #A, Richmond, VA 23237. More information on recycling Tyvek
  

Lavender Soap Coming Soon!

We have been working with the owner of Annadele Sundries to bring you the best lavender soap with the highest quality ingredients available. They are a Pennsylvania home-based company that hand-makes soap. It takes weeks for the owner to make the all natural soap using traditional methods. The ingredients are saponified olive oil (for moisturization), saponified coconut oil (for rich lather), and essential oil of lavender. We use high quality steam distilled lavender oil from French Lavendula angustifolia. There are no petroleum or animal derivatives, sodium laureth sulfate (a strong detergent), or antibiotics (good germs on the skin keep the bad germs at bay). This adds to our line-up of products that are good for your sleep and for the environment.

Lavender SleepPhones Coming Back

We have been almost completely out of lavender SleepPhones for a few months now. We tried a few different colors, but couldn't find one that we liked as much as the original. So we are now placing an order with Polartec® to make our special lavender in recycled plastic bottles. It takes months to produce, so we won't have any lavender-colored SleepPhones until 2010, but we are bring it back eventually! Our sheep have approved the color sample.

New Design SleepPhones

Our pretty recycled blue SleepPhones have arrived! They will be available for sale by this weekend. I'm still designing the instructional brochures for these.

This is the newest design of SleepPhones with a velcro closure, completely adjustable and removable speakers, and super soft and stretchy. The black and blue fabrics are 88% recycled plastic bottles, 12% spandex, from Polartec®, a fabric manufacturer in Massachusettes. The fabric can be tossed in the washing machine when the speakers have been removed. To keep its antistatic, wicking properties, we advise not using fabric softener.

We are very excited about these new SleepPhones. They will eventually replace all other models. For now, we will continue to sell the older models until they are gone because some people may like them more. This new model will be the ones going to retail stores in the next few months.