Some magazine-branded franchises come and go, while others become nothing less than a part of our culture: Time's Person of the Year. Vanity Fair's New Establishment. U.S. News & World Report's Best Colleges. And, of course, our all-time favorite: Penthouse Forum. But the most iconic brand extension of them all has to be the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. And now, Hearst's venerable women's service brand has sexed up its famous imprimatur by introducing the Green Good Housekeeping Seal, today announcing the first-ever goods to get the stamp, including products from Clorox Green Works, Aveeno and Nature's Source. And as with all stuff that earns the Seal of Approval, the publisher offers a money-back guarantee if the environmentally conscious goods it endorses do not live up to their promise. (Vogue, meanwhile, is not likely to return your money if that Philip Treacy hat ends up attracting a flock of nesting egrets.) At a time when some magazines seem to crank out sidelines such as blogs and iPhone apps just to say they did, GH gets big props for keeping a legendary franchise, and one that actually has value, relevant. And with so many companies nowadays making oftentimes-flimsy claims about how kind to the planet their products are, we welcome this kind of eco-policing.
