Indoor Art - Review and Giveaway

This week is dedicated to organic and eco-friendly toys. Today’s post will focus on our little indoor artists. From crayons to paint our children love color. Sadly it always ends up on their clothes and sometimes in their mouths. Even though most children’s art supplies say non-toxic they should still not be in baby’s mouth. It is best to go with an earth friendly and healthy alternative. They are not much more expensive and are fun and easy to use.

Paint Review...for our Little Picasso

I was walking in a cute town next to my home last weekend and stopped into a shop one of my friend’s recommended called Eco Carmel. Not only was this shop earth friendly, it also had some of the most unique eco items I have ever seen. When I saw these Glob paints I just had to try them out, I knew I was gearing up for the toy blog and thought I would give these a try so I could tell all of you how they work and it was perfect timing because these paints are great for egg decorating.

Glob paints are made from botanical extracts and natural food-grade ingredients. The colors smell good enough to eat! All you have to do is add water. Based on how much water you add the paint can be used as watercolors, paint for Easter eggs, wood stain and play dough. Once you mix your paint you can put it in the fridge for a few days and it will still work.
When I used these paints I mixed them in tiny glass jars and added water until I had the consistency that I wanted. I painted the top of my box where I keep my embroidery floss, as you can see they were easy to use! I highly recommend this product. You can follow the link below to their site to order your own or if you are close to Carmel, CA you can stop in to Eco Carmel.

Crayons...hopefully for paper and not walls

I love crayons, they are the perfect thing to pack in your play bag to keep the kids happy during “boring” moments. Even though I do love crayons I do not love the idea that the baby will put it in her mouth and receive some questionable chemicals. The solution? All natural options like soy crayons. For these I turn to Earth Grown Crayons on Etsy. Not only are these products natural, they are adorable!

   ~ Meet MELISSA of Earth Grown Crayons ~ artist, wife, mother of 3. 

  ~ Purpose ~ her grandfather’s farm began her love of soy, years later she uses it to create all-natural and biodegradable crayons. ~ Design Inspiration ~ her love of animals and life. ~ Products ~ her crayons are from American grown soy and are free of herbicides and pesticides and the pigments are non-toxic, even the packaging is from recycled materials! ~ Her Favorite ~ the fish crayons, they are fun and popular! ~ Find her Products ~ on Etsy, earthgrowncrayons.etsy.com. ~ Win a Set of Fish Crayons ~ to win these fun fishy crayons become a follower of this blog and comment below that you want to be entered to win! You can enter up to 5 times, see extra entries.

For extra entries:
1. add earthgrowncrayons to your favorites on Etsy by following this link, http://www.etsy.com/listing/65867918/walleye-fish-soy-crayons-handmade-all
2. add Anya’s Green Baby to your favorites on Etsy by following this link, http://Anyasgreenbaby.etsy.com
3. Purchase an item from either of the stores
4. Bring a friend to the blog and have them follow too!

Resources
Glob Paint: http://www.globiton.com/color_blends.html
Eco Carmel: http://www.ecocarmel.com/
Earth Grown Crayons: http://www.etsy.com/listing/65867918/walleye-fish-soy-crayons-handmade-all
Anya’s Green Baby Etsy store: http://Anyasgreenbaby.etsy.com


Come back for my next blog post on outdoor toys!

Play Time - Organic and Eco-Friendly Toys with Reviews and Giveaways!

This week is dedicated to organic and eco-friendly toys. I have to admit I hate toys, those plastic monstrosities are everywhere! Invading your living room, under your foot in a dark hallway and always on the floor of the bedroom. I feel that there is a time and a place for toys. My mother was a single mom who took me everywhere. I had to learn how to entertain myself for long periods of time. Together we came up with the play pack. I would pack a bag of goodies, crayons with coloring books, my favorite dolly, paper doll books a snack...you get the idea. I would be fine by myself for hours. When I took my first nanny position I continued this practice and had the children pack a play bag. To this day you will find crayons, paper, a snack, a drink and boo boo aid in any of my purses!

So as you can see I actually love toys, I just hate the plastic with tons of tiny pieces that breaks the minute you take it out of the box and was made in China by child labor toys! I fear holidays and birthdays to come when I have to lay down the law for presents but what else is a green momma to do? Over the next week I will review my favorite eco-friendly toys with NO plastics! I will also profile some of my favorite artists who hand create some amazing products and I will have two toy giveaways! Please visit my treasury on Etsy, http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d9a0f638b7f8eef34dba9c7/organic-and-eco-friendly-toys to see other organic toys that I love.

Today’s blog is for the babies and for that we turn to simple objects like stuffed animals and mobiles.

Stuffed Animals

I love simplicity and stuffed animals are in our life in moderation. One for the bed, one for the car and play bag. In my experience a baby quickly decides which is the favorite and then curses of plagues to you if you ever, ever loose it! To avoid this, buy two! Until then I like to have one at all times, it can be a nice distraction on those car rides when baby has had enough.

We have two, one that rattles and one that does not. Toys that make sound are heavily considered before entering our family, only soft noises are allowed. We have a small stuffed giraffe by Gund that makes a very soft, non-annoying rattle. It is made and stuffed with organic cotton. This one works well for distracting at grocery stores, restaurants and car rides. The other one is little monkey by miYim, he is also made from organic cotton and all-natural organic dyes. He is small enough to be leashed to a car seat or stroller for that cuddly toy on the go. As you can see in the picture, even the packaging is eco-friendly.

Mobiles

I once nannied a child who hated diaper changes. This baby would run from me and say “no, no no!” as his little poopy diaper sagged. The only way I could get him to cooperate was to become the tickley “Poopy Monster” so it became a fun game and to distract him with a mobile above the changing table. I still love mobiles, there is something so charming about them. If you are looking for that perfect statement or you have a willful child like I did a mobile is the perfect solution. We ordered the most beautiful mobile from The Starcraft on Etsy. When I contacted them about an interview and a giveaway the answer was YES! Here is a little information about those works of art and how you can win one for your baby (or just for you!)

~ Meet FRANCES of The Starcraft ~ artist, newlywed, mother of 2 little boys.   ~ Inspiration ~ her grandmother’s vintage creations and her customer requests. ~ Products ~ her adorable mobiles are all handmade with love using recycled papers from books, newspaper, vintage map papers and music papers. 
~ Her Favorite ~ her natural no-wax star mobiles.  
~ Find her Products ~  on theStarcraft.etsy.com, use coupon code “musthavemore” to get 20% off! 

 ~ Win a Mobile ~ to win this adorable mobile from The Starcraft become a follower of this blog, follow the link above to add thestarcraft to your favorites on Etsy and comment below that you want to win. (www.etsy.com/listing/67689473/ursa-minor-w-spheres) The winner will be randomly chosen from the entries on Monday 4/11 at midnight (PST). Believe me, this one is worth it!

Come back tomorrow for some information on artistic toys like crayons, chalk and paint...and of course, more giveaways!

Links
Etsy toy treasurey: http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d9a0f638b7f8eef34dba9c7/organic-and-eco-friendly-toys

Frances at The Starcraft: theStarcraft.etsy.com 

Giveaway: www.etsy.com/listing/67689473/ursa-minor-w-spheres

Gund: http://www.gund.com/

miYim: http://www.miyim.com/