You don't have to harvest rainwater to make your house greener. But you can do your share by shopping with these eco-conscious companies.We've overheated it, poisoned it and filled its lakes with landfills. To be sure, we've done our share to stomp on the planet. Now that saving it has become a critical imperative, where do we start? With a skill that comes naturally to most moms: shopping. Finding greener alternatives for the hundreds of products you buy for your home takes some digging, but that's where we come in. We've waded through the costs and claims of eco-friendly goods to put together this room-by-room green shopping guide.

Nursery
An infant's vulnerable body needs TLC. Burt's Bees baby skin-care products are made with gentle ingredients like sweet almond oil rather than mineral oil, a petrochemical. Burt's Baby Bee Diaper Ointment is a natural for your child's nursery ($9/3 ounces, www.burtsbees.com). When selecting paint, insist on zero volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Two to consider: AFM Safecoat Flat ($32 to $37/gallon, www.afmsafecoat.com) and YOLO Colorhouse Inside ($40/gallon, www.yolocolorhouse.com). Formaldehyde is found in pressed wood products like particleboard (used in some furniture and cabinets) and in some textiles, so choose wisely. IKEA carries a solid beech crib that converts to a toddler bed (Sniglar crib, $80, www.ikea.com for store locations). Pacific Rim Woodworking's solid maple crib ($670, www.daxstores.com) is finished with tung oil and beeswax. Add a crib mattress made of organic cotton and naturally flame-retardant wool ($233, www.daxstores.com), and top with George Baby's organic cotton crib sheets ($10, www.walmart.com). Other simple wooden products range from the Taj birch child's chair by Argington ($63, www.vivavi.com) to charming toys like Mossy Creek Woodworks' hardwood rattle ($20, www.sagebabynyc.com) and Poppywood's 30 wood blocks ($20, www.poppywood.com). And what's a night in the nursery without a rocking chair? Danko Design's Equilibrium rocker ($446, www.econsciousmarket.com) has a beech frame with a seat and back made with surplus car-seat-belt material. The eConscious Market site is part of a new breed, detailing vendors' environmental policies and listing green and humanitarian nonprofits that will get a donation with your purchase.

Family Room
Green living doesn't require major purchases; some low-cost items pay for themselves with utility-bill savings. When you plug in motion-sensing outlets from SensorPlug ($20, www.amazon.com), there's no more bugging your kids to turn off the lights—the outlets do it for you. An Energy Star programmable thermostat ($59, www.lowes.com) lowers the temperature when you're out and raises it before you return. The result: a drop in heating costs of 1 percent for each degree lower, if the setback period is eight hours long. If you're in the market for a new sofa, rug, computer or TV, shop around for planet-friendly products. Energy Star televisions, including flat-screens, use 30 percent less energy than conventional ones do. Dell's OptiPlex Energy Smart desktop ($622, www.dell.com) has earned the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool's gold medal by meeting Energy Star standards and reducing toxic materials. And while a couch or carpet doesn't suck up electricity, both can emit noxious fumes. Contributors of VOCs in the home are synthetic carpets, paddings and glues. A wool rug or carpet made with hemp/cotton and jute backing and natural rubber adhesive (www.earthweave.com, call 706-278-8200 for sizing and prices) is non-toxic. The NaturalLee brand of upholstered furniture, including the Lockport sofa ($1,900, www.crateandbarrel.com), meets Sustainable Forestry Initiative requirements and uses water-based finishes, organic and natural fibers, 100 percent recycled pillow fibers and soy-based cushions. One tree is donated to American Forests for each purchase.

Bathroom
You can make a difference in even the smallest room. Enjoy spa-like indulgences such as cotton towels ($37/set of six, www.walmart.com), a super-soft cotton terry robe ($60, www.landsend.com) and the flattering light of a soy candle ($14, www.freshwave.com)—all made from renewable resources. A hemp bath mat ($89, www.rawganique.com) and shower curtain ($90, www.ecochoices.com) offer the same advantages. Another way to limit the amount of plastic floating around is to buy a Preserve toothbrush and razor with recycled handles made from emptied yogurt cups ($13/four toothbrushes; $7.25/four razors; www.recycline.com).

Help conserve limited resources with tree-saving toilet paper and tissues (Green Forest and Marcal brands), a water-saving toilet and showerhead and a faucet aerator ($240, toilet; $6 and up, showerhead; $1.50 and up, faucet fixture; www.niagaraconservation.com). And see how your toiletries stack up at the Environmental Working Group (EWG) cosmetic safety database (www.cosmeticsdatabase.com). Some 25,000 products are checked for toxic ingredients. One of the best lipsticks is Miessence Grape Lip Creme ($26, www.miessenceproducts.com), and a top mascara is Jane Iredale PureBrow Fix & Mascara ($20, www.janeiredaledirect.com). Aveda's shampoos and conditioners are made with plant-based ingredients; the 33.8-ounce size ($25 and up, www.aveda.com) saves on plastic. As a final touch in the bathroom and elsewhere, consider  signing up for green electricity, which averages about two cents more per kilowatt hour. Go to www.epa.gov/greenpower/locator to see if you can get power from renewable sources (wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, biogas, solar).

Kitchen
To help you decide when to choose organic produce, EWG lists the "Dirty Dozen," the fruits and veggies with the highest pesticide load: peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, lettuce, imported grapes, pears, spinach and potatoes. When lugging food home, stash fold-up totes ($8, www.envirosax.com) in your purse and car, and forgo the plastic bags. Another way to reduce plastic use? Switch from bottled water to a stainless steel bottle ($16 and up, www.kleankanteen.com) that you refill.

Recycling preserves resources and reduces waste, so look for tree-saving paper towels and recycled-plastic trash bags (Natural Value, Earth Friendly and Seventh Generation brands). For serious recyclers and gardeners, the Compost Keeper ($60, www.target.com) has a tight lid and charcoal filter to contain odors. Recycled glassware ($70/place setting, www.homeandplanet.com) and bamboo cutting boards ($10, www.greenhome.com) are stylish and made of sustainable materials. When lusting after new appliances, stick to Energy Star models for refrigerators, dishwashers and range hoods. Upgrading to stainless steel? Find matching kitchen chairs at Emeco. The Navy chair ($385, www.emeco.net) is made from 80 percent recycled aluminum.You can clean green, too. The Shark Steam Mop ($80, www.sharksteammop.com) uses only water to clean floors. For counters and appliances, look for products with the Design for the Environment logo on the label. Fantastik OxyPower and some other S.C. Johnson products have it.

To Find More Green Products Not On Our List