I just love it when I find a product that I love, and then find out there’s a worthy cause and an ingenious idea behind it. That’s what happened with Down East Doormats. I saw one and loved it on purely aesthetic grounds. They’re colorful, fun, slightly industrial and right up my alley. So how psyched was I to learn that the company that makes them, The Maine Float Rope Co., is dedicated to a great endeavor. See, in Maine, lobster fisherman use float-rope to tether multiple traps together on the ocean floor. The problem with float-rope is that it can entangle whales, which sometimes leads to their injury or death. Now, Maine lobstermen are required to replace float-rope with sink-rope. But Penny Johnson (the company’s owner) had a brilliant idea- to collect and recycle the rope and turn it into terrific, colorful and virtually indestructible doormats. There are tons of choices of colors, both bright and muted, solid or striped. Now that’s a purchase you can feel good about!