Celebrating the Oscar winner’s greenness

OSCAR winning actress Sandra Bullock grabbed our attention in Speed, won our hearts in While You Were Sleeping and wowed us in The Blind Side, but her down-to-earth approach to living green and to giving big when it’s needed earns our respect and admiration.

Bullock’s green roots

When asked about green living, Bullock gives credit to her mom. Raised on macrobiotic foods, and taught to steer clear of chemicals and pesticides, Bullock ‘the adult’ lives the organic lifestyle that Bullock ‘the kid’ struggled against.

“It wasn’t fun as a kid. We went to the neighbors for our Cheetos” she says. “She recycled everything – nothing was bought and disposed of. It’s astounding to me now more than it ever was when I was a kid.”

Bullock and husband, Monster Garage host Jesse James, practice eco-chic living – it’s why we’re celebrating her today.

Bullock’s Bess Bistro

From the moment she dreamed up The Bess Bistro, her cafe in Austin Texas, Sandra took her green approach to the restaurant biz.

With tabletops constructed of recycled flooring, and takeout containers made from sugar cane and potatoes, a mother-earth cleaning regime that includes fresh lemon juice, baking soda and vinegar (and a little elbow grease) and delish menu plump with organic produce and southern delicacies, the Bess Bistro is hailed as a “Green Paradise”.

Bullock’s big give

When things get bad, Bullock starts giving.

Her recent headline grabbing donation of $1 million to Doctors Without Borders‘ emergency operations in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, is not her first big give. She’s been there and done that before with a $1 million donation to the American Red Cross after the 2004 Tsunami disaster and an undisclosed amount donated toward the rebuilding of Warren Easton High School after the 2003 New Orleans flood.

Bullock’s Bessence soy candles

For ‘something to fall back on’ Sandra started an organic candle business when she discovered that traditional candles use petroleum-derived paraffin and contain a lead wick and other harmful chemicals. Bessence candles are soy-based, hand-poured and feature recycled packaging.

Natura’s down-to-earth approach to green

We like the way Sandra approaches green living and take a few pages out of her book for own use.

From our use of vegetable dyes and biodegradable plastics, to the practice of carding our own wool and choosing vegetable based oils for our products, Natura practices eco-logic in everything we do. And we never stop seeking new green initiatives.

At Natura we’re big Sandra Bullock fans, and love that she’s a fan of our too. Sandra’s bought lots of mattresses and bedding from Natura (the Bullock-James household is quite large) and we hope everyone on their ranch is sleeping well!

For always seeking an earth friendly option, we salute OSCAR winner Sandra Bullock in this week’s Eco-Celebrity Beat.

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