If I told you I took a miter saw to a child’s KidKraft kitchen, slapped a square of Plexiglass on top and called it art, well, you might call me crafty. Others might call me crazy. And a few might offer me cash. The latter is the reaction that architect Greg Lynn is hoping art lovers will have toward his new collection of one-of-a-kind furniture made from recycled, melted kids’ toys. And so far, he is right on the money.
Looking for a soft toy that your baby can grow up with? Organic Monsieur Tsé Tsé is so cuddly and adorable, your baby will want to grab onto him and never let go. He’s perfectly baby safe; made with organic cotton, embroidered eyes, and as designer Raplapla notes, “A smile that won’t fade.”
HaPe International is the maker of a great line of all natural bamboo games that were developed by designers, teachers, and technicians from over 15 different nations. I have personal experience with these games, and I can say with certainty that they make wonderful Christmas presents!
Sometimes we need a little reminder of how fortunate we all are. If you are reading this post and have enough money to buy your kids new toys this Christmas, now is a good time to consider your good fortune and count your blessings. In Lilongwe, Malawi, children have no toys to play with, so the crafty little buggers make their own toys from old milk cartoons, cigarette containers, cornhusks, and whatever other trash they can find lying around.
Here he comes! Here comes green racer! Recently featured in the ‘Pulse’ section of the Sunday NY Times were a collection of kids’ items that adhered to a particular theme: simplicity. Of the items featured, the Bamboo E-Racer caught my son’s eye with its sleek, somewhat natural design.
First, there was the PedoBIKE (a rustic and rugged simple machine), then came the Like-A-Bike (sleek and smooth, it features minimalist design), and now, taking the innovation even further is the Wishbone ‘pre’ Bike. Answering the call for cutting-edge, sustainable options for kids, the guys at Wishbone Design Studio put together a convertible trike/low rider/big runner that is manufactured using 60% post-consumer recycled plastic, sustainably managed woods, eco-friendly bonding agents and non-toxic paints.
If your little one is hoping for a new stuffed friend this holiday season, you can’t go wrong with an Earth Friend. The Earth Friends are a group of wonderful dolls created entirely from organic and recycled materials. Look how sweet big Jax is above.
It’s no secret that here at Inhabitots we adore our owls. If you have a penchant for owls too, or simply want to give a big hoot by keeping it ‘green’ this holiday season, then this post is just for you - chock full of beautiful, kid-friendly, eco-owl paraphernalia, perfect for gift giving.
Move over boring teddy bears and bunnies! There’s a unique new eco-friendly plush toy on the block and its the cutest thing ever. Say hello to the Felted Sting Ray, a hand-crafted critter that is sure to delight the little ones in your life. With a face on both the top and bottom, this 100% wool critter is double the fun, and is sure to be your tot’s favorite new plush friend.
Here’s a gift to bestow on a child this holiday season that will last him a lifetime: the knowledge of how to live sustainably. The Idbids Eco-Friendly Starter Kit is filled with fun tools which teach children to be environmentally aware, and ten doable “iddy biddy” steps he can take to keep the planet green. Led by a 100% organic Egyptian cotton plush toy bursting at the seams with personality: a cloud named Scout, a flower named Lola, or a water drop named Waverly, playtime meets getting down to business making the world a better place with this award winning kit.
In a previous post we highlighted some great eco-friendly tea party sets. If you’ll be purchasing a tea party set as a holiday gift for a lucky little one, don’t forget to include the treats and sweets!
Here are some earth-friendly tea party food options that are beautiful and yummy… sure to entice tots into a delicious land of make believe!
Little peeps love to play with pretend food, but we don’t all have the room or the budget for an entire play kitchen set. One way around this is to downsize to a smaller pretend food play idea: the tea party! Tea parties are extra fun because children get to munch on pretend sweets, treats, and other party fare at their leisure. Tea parties are also mobile. During the summertime, a child can throw a garden tea party, while a tea party in front of a cozy fire wards off winter chills. Your little one can even carry her tea party set off to her best friend’s house, to be a traveling hostess with the most-est!
Here at Inhabitots, we feature and review a variety of unique green toys, particularly handmade toys, and toys crafted and sold by smaller companies. Toys like the Brian Driscoll Pull Toys shown above. However, if the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) has their way, we won’t have as many beautiful items to share with you on Inhabitots, and as parents we will have limited choices when it comes to the toys we choose for our children.
It doesn’t have to be this way! You can help support handmade and ‘green’ toy options.
Toy cars and trucks are wildly popular gifts during the holiday season. Kids love to push and power vehicles and “Vrrooom!” the day away with play wheels; and we’ve found a line of earth-friendly, adventurous cars and eco-trucks from Sprig Toys that will get kids’ motors running. We’re racing to get Sprig cars and trucks because they are battery free and kid-powered, via pushes and pumps to create lights and sounds. They’re made out of recycled wood and reclaimed plastic, and they’re paint free and presented in minimal packaging. They’ve got us all revved up!
It’s the children in our lives who will inherit this planet from us, and as grownups, its our duty to keep it clean and green for their future. Kids naturally gravitate towards environmental stewardship, so encourage their ecological leanings this holiday season with these cute, fun, green gifts this year.
Plant-Me Pets are squeaky vegetable friends containing veggie seeds that can be planted into the ground to turn into plants! Their funny shapes, bright colors, and slightly alien veggie look will delight the tiny gardener in your world this holiday season. When playtime ends, these little guys can be plunged head first into the nearest garden plot, or garden pot, and they will eventually grow into a yummy melon, tomato, or pumpkin!
Brian Driscoll’s pull toys are sweetly handmade, eco-friendly gifts for babies and tots. Artist Brian Driscoll lovingly crafts each of his toys with select native woods of Ash, Cherry, Aspen, and Maple. These 100% lead-free toys have rounded edges that are sanded to a baby-safe smooth finish, and topped off with non-toxic mineral oil. Driscoll views his toys as “small sculptures,” and he hopes to instill an appreciation of art in children as they enjoy his creations.
Want to ‘green’ your gift-giving repertoire all the way down to your stocking stuffers? Start with a cheerful, earth-friendly stocking, such as the organic cotton Amenity Holiday Stocking shown above, which is printed by hand with non-toxic, water based, eco-friendly inks. Stuff it with the eco-friendly goodies detailed after the jump, and you’re sure to please your little ones with small delights that will produce big smiles.
I know what girls like, I know what girls want. They want a dollhouse, and a couture blouse. They want some leggings, they’ll grow some Egglings. They want a princess, sans frilly excess. I know what girls want… girls want… girls want ‘green’.
Hip-hop and heroes and things that are furry. Bikes that go zoom, long-sleeved shirts free from worry. A wacky science show that’s inspiring. These are a few of boys’ favorite things:
The Be@brick craze has been going strong for seven years now. Be@rbrick paraphernalia includes watches and clothing items; and there are various blogs, zines and online communities dedicated to all things Be@brick. The small figures, with teddy bear heads and humanoid bodies, come in various versions ranging in size from 3-inches tall (or 100%) to two-and-a-half feet tall. Handsomely sculpted, the Be@rbricks would make a fine addition to a very fortunate child’s environmentally-friendly toy chest, or any collector’s grouping of unboxed ‘Bricks.
Earthentree toys are stunning, natural, exquisitely beautiful toys with a colorful backstory. Earthentree is based in Kirkland, Washington, however, each toy is handmade by an artisan in a community in South India. Deepti Shanker, the owner of Earthentree, was raised in this same artisan community of Channapatna, India, to which she now maintains close ties via her business. Earthentree toy-making techniques are over two centuries old, and oftentimes artisans have learned and inherited their skills as they were passed down by previous generations of family toy-makers.
We all know from The Velveteen Rabbit and Toy Story, that the second we leave the room, toys come to life. Swinging from table lamps, sliding down rocking chairs, and jumping on the bed, toys never quit when it comes to showing their playful side. Lana Organic stuffed animals are wholesome creatures with animation woven through every eco fiber of their being. One need not turn their back on these 100% organic cotton toys for them to energize a child’s room with liveliness.
Every tot deserves to have a furry friend as a cuddly toy, but what to do when fluffy pals made of synthetic fibers begin to populate a playroom intended as a non-toxic, safe zone? Add to this, the fact that endangered species are on the verge of extinction every day, and it is no surprise that both the planet and kids’ imaginations are in peril. Xeko Pals plush toys are the safe alternative to the usual stuffed animal menagerie, as their eco-friendly materials and conservation-minded agenda provide a greener outlook on interactive and engaged play.
Once thought of as a case strictly for charity, reusing clothing items has become an integral and environmentally savvy facet of green parenting. Now that Goodwill clothing is ‘hip’ (the D.C. stores have a Goodwill Fashionista on their payroll), and we are witnessing the advent of the ‘frugal teen’, can a shift in thinking among parents who once turned up their noses at the idea of hand-me-down or gently-used options for children be too far behind?
The eco-friendly WoodPecker Walker from Plan Toys carved a niche in my heart with its precious features, and quickly became our baby’s favorite companion. Crafted entirely of sustainable wood, this walker is as beautiful as it is functional. Two playful little woodpeckers perched at the front cheerfully peck away, making a charming clacking sound as the walker is pushed. The sound they make is lively and frolicsome, encouraging babies to ‘walk on’ down the path to a green lifestyle.
It’s one thing to have your little ones master new vocabulary with ABC’s and budding language skills, but what about encouraging the weirder (aka more fun) side of science mastery? Enter Young Mad Scientist’s First Alphabet Blocks by Xylocopa, featured at this year’s Maker Faire in Austin, TX. These laser-carved cubes of A-B-C alchemy, are just the sort of thing that will get your tot primed for creative storytelling, spelling bee championships, and mad science for engaged young minds.
If you’re a fan of modern prefab architecture and you’re raising little ones, you’ll probably love the Mini Modern Play Shed. Part Case-Study home, part play-house, the Mini Modern Prefab proves that kid’s design doesn’t need to be garish or overly cutesy. Architect Ryan Grey Smith, known for his adult-sized Modern-Shed is bringing prefab to preschoolers with his Modern Play Shed, a smaller but no-less awesome version of his original design. Better than any treehouse or dollhouse we’ve seen, it comes fully loaded with a sloped shed roof, dutch doors, 12 windows, and more.
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toy car made from an old milk carton
