Name: sara selepouchin
Shop: girls can tell
Website: http://shop.girlscantell.com
Blog: http://blog.girlscantell.com
Location: philadelphia, pa

What do you make, and how are your products environmentally-friendly?
I hand screen-print drawings of everyday things onto everyday things. It's important to me that girls can tell wares are all useful items or made from discarded useful items.

Why did you start making earth-friendly goods?
I began girls can tell by screen-printing on scraps of really nice fabric that were destined for the landfill. Unable to stand seeing such gorgeous pieces headed for a life as trash, I printed them, and made them into zippy pouches (I still have far too many of these pouches that I use to hold little bits of everything). Eventually my love of housewares got the best of me, so I began printing on other (responsibly sourced) materials, like reusable cloth napkins, domestically made floursack tea towels, and coasters made from locally-produced industrial felt.

What is your favorite material to work with? Why?
Industrial felt. It's just amazing—great texture, and it takes ink really well, so my diagram illustrations really pop on it.

What's your favorite thing you've ever made? Why?
oh, gosh! Every time I draw a new diagram design, I proclaim it my favorite! (but that's a good thing, I suppose!) This is the toughest question by far, but I'll choose one of my newest pieces, a tea towel set featuring a diagram of a tea set, which you can find for sale in my shop

Give us a link to one of your favorite resources for running your business:
A few things, really—I absolutely love my Typepad blog—I tell people how great Typepad has been every chance I get. For more information, check out http://typepad.com/go/craft-blog (use the code "girlscantell" for 20% off your account!). Also, I belong to a fantastic Etsy Team (the Full Time Etsy Crafter Team)— forming relationships with your crafting peers is so incredibly important.

Give us a link to one of your favorite handmade artists:
How can I name just one? I would love to fill my house with the work of MonkeysAlwaysLook—such an amazing eye!

What's your #1 tip for living greener?
Right now, I'm obsessed with composting. It's such a simple thing, and keeps so much waste out of landfills. It's just a sensible, practical, easy way to reduce your impact. Also, living somewhere that makes it possible to live without daily use of a car is probably one of the nicest things you can do for the planet.

What's your #1 tip for crafting greener?
Consider whether your work is contributing to the awful amount of waste we, as makes and consumers, produce. Are you selling something disposable, or something that can be used over and over? Consider everything from the materials you work with (for example, can you buy in bulk to reduce waste?) to the packaging you use to ship your items. Thoughtfulness is key to running an earth-friendly business.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
I'd like to be able to magically beam myself places. I usually ride my bike to commute to my studio (it's about 3 miles from my house), but when the weather's not so nice, it's be great to just blink and appear at my studio.

For information on how to be interviewed for this column, shoot me an email at liz at cosaverde.com. Yay!