Sprout Watches: Time to Go Green

Yeah, watches made of corn. Well, sort of. But first, let's go to the beginning.

I stumbled upon the brand, "Sprout" while doing some xmas shopping, and browsing blogs and websites for eco-friendly gifts. I was immediately intrigued. I'd never heard of the brand, and most definitely had never heard of watches made from corn.

So, here's the deal. The company uses eco-friendly materials to make their watches. One of those materials is corn resin. It looks and feels like plastic; yet is bio-degradeable.

As I was perusing their website, though I liked how the organic cotton bands looked, I was most smitten with the corn resin. They were big and bold. That's my preference for a watch. But if you like things a little more dainty, fear not. Sprout carries watches made with Tyvek, organic cotton, or fish leather, too.

Me? I'm sticking with the corn. Love the size. Love the colors. Look at how boldly chic these babies are:

Since I had no experience with these watches; I headed to the "Sale" section of their website, where it was buy one, get one free (at the time). I opted to get a white band with green face (technically, the mineral lens was green), and a purple band with white (mother of pearl) face.

My first day wearing my white with green one, I got several compliments. Everyone seemed to notice it, and everyone was suprised that it was 'eco-friendly.'

The band is uber comfortable. No hairs getting yanked out (like sometimes happens with metal or elastic watches). No redness, itchiness, or sweating; like occurs with cheap metal watches.

So far, I've only had one problem. My favorite one (with green face) seems to be losing time; as in, over a period of two days, it'll fall back about 20 minutes. My guess is, the battery is draining. Bummer. (PS: both watches were 'running' when they arrived) So, I contacted customer service. They offered to replace the battery for free (if I ship it back). I'm always paranoid that things will get lost in the mail, so I'm still deciding if I'll take them up on that offer, or just take it to a local jeweller to replace the battery.

Speaking of the battery, that's another "green" step this company is taking. The batteries they use are mercury free. On top of that, the dials are mother of pearl, and the packaging is from recycled materials. You might notice, too, that each watch has a (or a few) small diamond. They are certified conflict free. Overall, the average Sprout watch is 80-86% eco-friendly. Not too shabby.

For more info on their materials, visit their Eco-Facts page.

Personally, I'm addicted to these watches. I love how they look on; and seem to go with anything. I never knew corn could look so good.

Sprout officially has a new fan.

As if that weren't enough, Sprout is involved with several philanthropy projects too, including 1% for The Planet; in which they donate 1% of their sales to environmental groups around the world.

Prices for their watches range from $30 to $75, and are availabe for both men and women.

For more information and to order, visit: SproutWatches.com