Inhabitots

Kent and London Sustainable Alphabet Drawers

“F” is for flower barrettes, “S” is for organic socks, “T” is for little tees; the Alphabet Drawers have your child’s collection of gear organized from A to Z. Inspired by vintage printing blocks, this chest of lettered drawers is not only beautiful, it will help a child learn his ABC’s simply by residing in the same room! The 26 drawers are perfect for storing all of your little one’s clothing and accessories, and it may graduate to home office use, as a fabulous filing cabinet – no labeled ABC dividers necessary!

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5 Easy-to-Clean, PVC-Free Travel Changing Pads

Savvy parents know that PVC-free is the way to be. One of the most poisonous plastics ever created, polyvinyl chloride (or vinyl) presents great environmental and health hazards from manufacture to disposal. Considering that toxic additives like phthalates and lead continue to leach, flake, or off-gas from PVC throughout its life, moms and dads would be prudent to give the plastic a wide berth, especially when it comes to their babies’ bare tushies.

While PVC-derived travel changing pads abound because the material’s waterproof and wipeable properties are a boon when you’re on the road, we managed to scrounge up several planet-friendlier options that are just as easy to clean, even when you don’t have a washing machine standing by.

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Eco-Chic Baby Slings by Serena & Lily

Motherhood may be causing you to lose sleep, but you don’t have to jettison your sense of individuality—or style—as well. Serena & Lily’s flax linen and organic cotton Market slings are, in a word, gorgeous, featuring delicate hand embroidery, bold block prints, and dreamy color palettes, along with a seamless, buckle- and strap-free construction that makes storing them a cinch. (Hey, you’re sleep deprived, remember?) Tuck your precious cargo into the folds of one of these beauties, and with any luck, no one will even notice those bags under your eyes.

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Recycled PET Stroller Totes by Dante Beatrix

You and your bambino have places to go, people to see, things to do—now all that’s missing is a trailer (or at least one über-roomy bag), to haul all that baby gear in. The perfect size for strapping to yourself or a stroller, Dante Beatrix’s adorable eco stroller totes are made from nylon derived entirely from recycled PET plastic bottles, and they’re trimmed with natural canvas.

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Beaba Multiportion Baby Food Freezer Trays Make Mealtime Easy

Making your own homemade organic baby food is a tasty and healthy way to feed your little one; but finding non-toxic storage options that won’t result in freezer burned food can be tricky. Simplify the baby food making process, and your life, with a set of clever Beaba Multiportion Freezer Trays. Each BPA-free silicone container consists …

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Corn PLA Toddler Tableware From Dandelion Earth-Friendly Goods

Dandelion Earth-Friendly Goods’ ReUsable line of Corn (PLA) child-sized plates, bowls, sippy cups, and utensils are designed to help your tot transition to mealtime independence in eco-friendly style. The bowl’s deep sides reduce splashing, the divided sections on each plate keep foods separate, and the flatware and cups are the right size for tinier grips. What’s the hoopla over PLA? Find out after the jump…

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PREGNANCY SWIMMING: An interview with Olympian mom Dara Torres

With all the emphasis on exercise and physical fitness these days, it seems amazing that just twenty years ago doctors advised pregnant women to ‘rest up’ and cut back on exercise while pregnant. The jury is in, and doctors now advise that exercise is good for expectant mothers and their babies – both pre-delivery and postpartum. One of the best exercises for expectant mothers is swimming, because it is easy on pregnancy-vulnerable joints, the cool water prevents you from overheating, and the buoyancy of water alleviates some of the stresses of gravity on the extra weight you are carrying. I swam while pregnant, and I found swimming to be a lifesaver for me when I could no longer jog, do karate or do pilates. I actually managed to swim right up until the day before I gave birth, and feel like swimming helped me to stay in shape and have a complication-free birth.

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Hit the Beach with Sprig’s DuneBug’s Sand Truck!

Hit the beach this summer with the eco-friendly DuneBug’s Sand Truck from Sprig. The DuneBug allows for a total beachy adventure, and it’s perfect for both sand and water play — featuring a built-in bucket, shovel, and rake in one easy-to-tote package. Your child can zoom the truck around or build an amazing sand castle. No worries about water splashes either; the DuneBug features special water-resistant materials that won’t dampen the fun!

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Inhabitots Link Roundup of the Day

We’re loving this placemat to bib tutorial we found at luvinthemommyhood! This ‘super easy repurposing craft’ turns inexpensive, eco and baby friendly placemats into stylish, one-of-a-kind bibs! Kudos to this creative mommy!

First Barley and Birch debuted an adorable clothing collection for tots, and now they have a blog too. Go meet the masterminds …

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‘Agon by Naef’ Swiss Made Sustainable Blocks

‘Going green’ often constitutes getting back to basics and surrounding one’s family with non-toxic goodness as well as visually engaging design. Eco-friendly furnishings and toys are a significant household investment, particularly when the product is as timeless as this Agon by Naef block set. Naef Toys of Switzerland stand for quality craftsmanship through and through. It is great to know that interactive design like this still comes in the form of beautiful Swiss Made objects, for both budding green minds and a lifetime of play.

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Carton Furniture Kid’s Set by Riki Watanabe

The Carton Furniture Series, originally designed in 1965 by Japanese industrial designer Riki Watanabe, is an oldie but goodie. Reproduced by Tokyo’s Metropolitan Gallery, the Kid’s Set is made entirely out of folded cardboard. Although it ships flat, it’s easily assembled into a small table and a pair of stools using a system of tabs and notches—no adhesives or hardware required.

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NEW! gCloth Washable Inserts by gDiapers

We’ve long lauded gDiapers for being the perfect compromise between the convenience of disposables and the reusability of cloth. (Both Jill’s son and my daughter are gBabies.) If you’re looking to make the leap to cloth diapers, the company’s new gCloth inserts have you—and your kidlet’s bum—covered.

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Black gDiapers for Baby Sophisticates!

Love eco-friendly cloth diapers but tired of the childish, bubblegummy pink and blue designs that prevail in eco diaper options? gDiapers to the rescue for your urban hipster baby! As Inhabitots readers know, we’re big fans of eco-friendly gDiapers; so we were thrilled to hear the announcement that the flushable diaper company has recently added new glam black diapers to their line-up of little gPants.

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TwistTogether LED Blocks Make Like a Tree

Just when we thought we could not be more enamored of Glide’s TwistTogether LED blocks, we spotted this window display the company created for the Museum of Modern Art’s Midtown Manhattan store. Using components from their technicolored “Candy” set, the designers pieced together a dazzling, psychedelic tree, complete with branches peeking from within its fluorescent yellow and green crown.

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Polar Bear Bookshelf by iBride

We love polar bears; and we’re certain the Joe Bookshelf by iBride would be a majestic focal point in any room of the house, loved by children and adults alike. Created by a French family in the South of France, the Joe Bookshelf is constructed via a turn of the century process using high-pressure laminate with a pre-recycled wood core. iBride (pronounced e-breed) and meaning “hybrid,” is a play on words in French. Their mission is to create environmentally inspired furniture which doubles as decorative art. Measuring 45″ H x 81″ L x 33″ W, the intricate lattice work in “Joe’s” frame would offer a unique dwelling place for many books and treasures. But, with a bear of a price tag ($6,000), we’ll be admiring this beauty from a distance, much like we would the real thing.

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5 Eco-Friendly Summer Hats For Kids (Plus One for Mom and Dad!)

This summer’s hottest moves are slip, slop, slap, and wrap—that’s slip on a shirt, slop on sunscreen, slap on a hat, and wrap on sunglasses whenever you venture outdoors. To help you and yours stay sun-smart, we’ve rounded up five sustainably stylish sun hats for babies and children, as well as a grownup version for Mom and Dad to keep the sun out of their eyes. (You need all the visual acuity you can muster once you’ve set the little ones loose!)

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DIY Cardboard Rocket Play House

You could shell out $77 for a recycled-cardboard rocket to send your junior astronaut straight to the stars, but we prefer making our own for less than $10 with Say Something Designs’ downloadable plans. All you’ll need is some sturdy cardboard (packing boxes would work great), a utility knife, a pair of scissors, tape, and whatever crafty materials you want to decorate your new ride with. Easy to assemble and disassemble, the Rocket Play House stores flat, so you can stow it in a closet, under the bed, or on a shelf…until the countdown to the next mission begins.

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FYS (Finish Your Self) Junior Chair by David Graas

The FYS (Finish Your Self) Junior Chair by David Graas is part puzzle, part functional chair. This piece was nominated for a best packaging award via the Dutch Design Awards 2007 — which is no surprise since the chair’s puzzle-like pieces are largely derived from the chair’s packaging. The packaging itself is made of 100% recyclable corrugated cardboard. With a little help from mom and dad, kids can delight in assembling their own eco-friendly seating.

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Progressive Kazam 3-in-1 Desk From Balouga

Unlike that closet full of shrunken rompers and too-tight tees, this inventive chair will outwit your child by growing as he grows, from toddling baby to surly teenager. Balouga’s Progressive Kazam 3-in-1 desk, made in France from sustainably sourced plywood and stainless steel, is adjustable to three different heights without any additional parts. Besides the flat tabletop surface, the desk also comes with several slots and notches for attaching the included V-shaped book rack and E-shaped magazine holder/bulletin board.

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Madsen ‘Bucket’ Bike Totes Precious Cargo… and More!

Madsen Bucket bicycles are arguably the first urban bicycles designed to transport groceries, laundry, surfboards and kids (though not all at the same time). “After hauling six neighbor kids around in a wheel barrow bucket bolted to the front of our first prototype, we started to realize what a bicycle can really do,” say the folks behind the development of the Madsen kg271/BUCKET bike. Their end product is a stylish mode of utility cycling, perfect for green minded parents looking to combine urban errand running with fun kid hauling!

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Soothing Ewe Warming/Cooling Pack for Kids

For those occasions when no amount of kisses will make a boo boo better, there’s Nova Natural’s Soothing Ewe, a hot or cold pack disguised as a friendly, comforting sheep. Made in Germany from 100% organic cotton and filled with cherry stones, this woolly compress may be warmed in a microwave or chilled in the …

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Tamago Recycled Paper Furniture

If you’ve ever done any papermaking, you know first hand the satisfaction of transforming slushy pulp into handmade sheets or sculpted forms. Tamago furniture is eco-friendly children’s furniture created out of 100% recycled paper pulp from egg cartons — and it puts a whole new spin on recycled packaging. The Tamago (‘egg’ in Japanese) series consists of seven soft contour furniture forms that may be easily recombined to create letters and numbers for endless playtime fun. Even better… your little one can draw directly on the paper surface enabling personalized customization and ‘eggs-tra doodling’.

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Eco-Friendly Word and Math Games by Beyond Learning

Word up! Beyond Learning is the first company to offer planet-friendly games designed to hone your tot’s reading and math skills—no screeching electronic gee-gaws required. Created from 100% post-consumer recycled paper, soy-based inks, phthalate-free lamination, and water-based varnish, Beyond Learning’s beautifully illustrated games for ages 4 and up make finding words and counting numbers a fun family experience. (The little nippers will never know what hit them.) Another plus: A percentage of the company’s sales goes to Healthy Child Healthy World, a nationally recognized non-profit dedicated to protecting children’s health.

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Boikido Eco-Friendly Four Seasons Wooden Block Puzzle

Boikido is an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award winning toy company who recently launched a line of earth-friendly wooden toys for small tots, including, among others, the fun and colorful Eco-Friendly Wooden Four Seasons Block Puzzle. Boikido Eco-Friendly wooden toys are crafted with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood and non-toxic …

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HAPPY FATHER’S DAY FROM INHABITOTS!

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! ENJOY YOUR SPECIAL DAY, DADS!
Jill’s husband boring their son Petey to sleep, by reading him PC World magazine

Beth’s husband and their daughter, Olivia.

Abigail’s husband and one of their twins, Jasper.

…

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Lilly Bean’s Wool Felt Green Eggs & Ham

Say! Do you like green eggs and ham? Now you can eat them in the rain, in the dark, and on a train—or at least pretend to—with Lilly Bean’s woolly interpretation of the epitome of Seussian cuisine. Handmade by artist Hillary Seabolt from washable wool felt, the slice of ham and two fried eggs are exactly what …

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Fidoodle Wooden Puppet Puzzles

The small Toronto-based design company, Fidoodle, offers a great line of toys for young kids (or for those of us who are young at heart). Their online store features mini-blocks, pillows, t-shirts, plush toys and clever wooden puppet puzzles. What’s a puppet puzzle you ask? Read on.

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Zaishu Baby Koi & Kimono Seat/Tables

These limited edition slot-together Baby Zaishu seat/table combinations are created by Zaishu Studio from the company’s off-cuts and spare ink. Each seat/table features silkscreen artwork patterns from 16th century Japan, which is hand printed with water-based inks and varnishes. The New Baby Koi & Kimono seat/tables are perfectly sized for a child, and when outgrown, they may be used as quaint decor throughout the home.

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Inhabitots Link Roundup: Daddy Blogger Edition

In honor of Father’s Day this Sunday, we’re sharing all sorts of fun and advice from daddy bloggers!

The crafty dad behind Gastrokid shares his recipe for healthy, homemade Gatorade, sans the sugar overdose and plastic bottle!

MetroDad uses the express line at Whole Foods to teach his daughter a lesson about dangling participles and proper grammar.

Maya Reads is one dad’s blog about the books he reads with his daughter, Maya. He’s a …

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6 in 1 Solar ‘Transformer’ Robot Kit

The only thing better than a brand new, ‘green’ toy, is one that transforms into six toys! Animated by sunshine, the 6 in 1 Solar Robot Kit is a great introduction to the use of alternative energy, solar power in particular, and the benefits of gadgets being multifunctional. It comes with large, easy to read, do-it-yourself instructions, and includes 25 parts that can be transformed into six different robotic toys: a robotic dog, boat, car, windmill and two types of airplanes (moving or desktop).

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BECK WINS THE ECO-CUTEY TITLE!

Drumroll please….
And now the moment you’ve all been waiting for! We are thrilled to announce that…
Beck has won our Eco-Cutey Photo Contest!

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