Eco Child’s Play

Rosie Hippo offers parents a place to shop for unique, handmade, organic, fair trade and eco-friendly toys.

They have toys made of wood, made of fair trade materials, they have stuffed animals, pretend play toys, and everything you need to spark your child’s imagination and give them something safe to play with. Read the rest of this entry »

We paid a visit recently to one of my favourite toy stores in the whole world, Hot Toads.  The physical store itself isn’t all that impressive — it’s a small, concrete-floored basement room in a medical building, with sparsely-stocked wooden shelves, draped with puppets and stuffed toys hanging by clothespins from simple lines strung across the room.  The back wall features a working 10-foot long model train table made entirely out of Lego.

But it’s not about the decor — it’s what they carry that makes this place special.  Plan Toys.  HaPe.  Schylling.  Plastic toys made from recycled milk jugs.  Non-toxic wooden toys.  Toys intended to enrich the mind and body of your children, not just feed into consumerism and branding.

And for me, it is a local store, within driving distance, right here in Atlantic Canada.  Unfortunately for my American friends reading this, while they do take online orders, Hot Toads only delivers within Canada.  Sorry, eh?

One of the many cool items they have is a line of large toy cars called E-Racers, from HaPe’s Bamboo Collection.  I had a nice chat with the fellow working there, and learned that apparently these were the first toys to be made from bamboo.  I was surprised that, while bamboo has been used for clothes, cutlery and dinnerware, flooring and even wallpaper for some time, the idea of bamboo toys was still relatively new.

He also filled me in on a fact I had previously been unaware of.  Of course, bamboo is the new golden child of the eco movement: it grows easily and quickly without pesticides, and is therefore a readily renewable resource with low environmental impact.  Bamboo wood is attractive and sturdy, and bamboo cloth is soft and has natural antibacterial properties.  As worldwide consumer demand for bamboo has increased dramatically in recent years, some companies have taken to clear-cutting hardwood forests in order to make room for bamboo plantations.  And despite bamboo’s rapid growth, difficulty in seed propagation combined with over-harvesting has even threatened some species to near-extinction.

Ugh.

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You can collect Frito Lay chip bags, keep them out of landfills and send them to be remade into something useful all while earning money for your school or nonprofit organization.

TerraCycle has teamed up with Frito Lay to collect used packaging from FritoLay snack products- Doritos, Cheetos, Tostidos and other chip bags and turn them into affordable upcycled products- folders, tote bags, purses and pencil cases. Read the rest of this entry »

Tim Barklage and Kevin Tibbs became dads around the same time and became much more aware of the world around them, especially once their little girls started crawling.

They wanted safe, eco-friendly products that wouldn’t harm their children. Kevin Tibbs has worked as a formulation chemist for the past 11 years creating over 300 products that can be found in stores everywhere. Tim Barklage is a self described dreamer with a passion for living green. Together they created Better Life. Read the rest of this entry »

$17 billion a year is spent by the advertising and marketing industry to shape our children’s desires and identities.

Now that the economic recession gripping the world is causing free market ideals to be questioned, it’s time to examine its effects on our children.  Henry A. Giroux writes:

While the “empire of consumption” has been around for a long time, American society in the last thirty years has undergone a sea change in the daily lives of children - one marked by a major transition from a culture of innocence and social protection, however imperfect, to a culture of commodification. This is culture that does more than undermine the ideals of a secure and happy childhood; it also exhibits the bad faith of a society in which, for children, “there can be only one kind of value, market value; one kind of success, profit; one kind of existence, commodities; and one kind of social relationship, markets.”(2) Children now inhabit a cultural landscape in which they can only recognize themselves in terms preferred by the market.

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Art supplies are wonderful and versatile. What other items offer fun play, creative expression, and learning all in one…for very inexpensive prices?

With art supplies children have the world at their fingertips. There is so much that can be done, be made, be transformed…but with toxic ingredients like lead showing up in kids’ products you want to be sure that the creative supplies are not only fun but safe for the little ones.

Stubby Pencil Studio offers the biggest selection around that I have found, of eco-friendly, non-toxic art supplies and old fashioned games and toys. Perfect items to stuff in Easter baskets.

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I love finding companies that have everything I am looking for all rolled into one.

Little Chickie Wear is one of those companies. It has eco-friendly, ethical practices, eco-friendly kid’s products and it is woman owned and operated- by a mom. This is a company I can relate to and most importantly it is a company that can relate to me. A company that knows what moms like me want-safe and cute products for my kids.

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Looking for a new backpack for yourself or your child?  Project Blue features PVC-free DAKINE Oceana Surf Packs:

DAKINE’s project BLUE packs are constructed with 100% Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) fabric and lining, which is made from recycled plastic bottles.  The packs also feature recycled buckles and non-toxic Thermaplastic Elastomer (TPE) waterproof fabric backing. These packs feature a  seam sealed wetsuit pocket, insulated cooler pocket and organizer pocket to keep everything separate and secure.

My daugher loves her Oceana Surf Pack, althoug it is a little large for her seven-year-old frame. I love how Project Blue supports our oceans through the Surfrider Foundation, one of my favorite charitable environmental associations. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you ever had a need for custom printing? Now there is an eco-friendly company that can fulfill these needs. Ecoprintworks uses sustainable organic products, from t-shirts to totes, and water-based inks for their screenprinting. Ecoprintworks is one of the few companies that uses Permaset Aqua, a solvent free, water-based ink from Australia.  Most printers use PVC-based plastisol ink.  PVC is largely regarded as one of the most harmful of plastics.  Permaset Aqua are Oeko-tex certified class I meaning they are safe for children’s garments under two years of age. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve long been a fan of Maggie’s Organics, and I lived in their tights when I was pregnant.  Now Maggie’s is venturing into stuffed animals.  Like their sock monkey, Maggie’s Organics Penguin is made from excess fabric and slight irregulars, including the hat made from tie dyed socks!  Unlike Mattel, that claimed Barbie was going green by making accessories from fabric scraps, I trust Maggie’s because they have always been a Fair Trade and organic company.

CONTENTS: Outside: made with 100% Organic Cotton. Filling: Post-industrial Polyester fiber (from mill scraps)

DESCRIPTION: The second stuffed animal in the Maggie’s Menagerie collection has come to life! Typically Penguins don classic black and white attire… but our Penguin has taken a walk on the wild side, sporting a colorful stocking cap made from our incredibly popular tie dye socks and legwarmers.
The animals are made from excess fabric and irregulars and stuffed with reclaimed polyester mill scrap. The Penguin’s embroidered eyes and securely sewn on hat make it safe for all ages.

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