eeboo Eco-Friendly Board Games are Fun for the Whole Family

by Marni Fogelson-Teel, 04/03/12

eeboo, robot explorers, board gamesEeboo’s whimsical design and learning-through-fun activities (including other Inhabitotsfavorites like their nesting blocks) are supported by lots of green cred: the small, family run business uses simple materials which are often recycled and colored with non-toxic inks, and consistently exceed safety standards. But their products are not just for kids – you can fill up those extra post-dinner hours of sunlight with a family board game. Eeboo’s games are printed using soy inks and do not include any plastic. Plus, the eco-friendly messages continue into the themes of the games themselves.


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Inhabitots Roundup: Easter Fun for Little Ones!

by Beth Shea, 03/31/12

eco kids, green kids, eco baby, green baby, eco easter, green easter, eco-friendly easter basket, green easter basket, fair trade organic easter chocolate, fair trade easter bunny, how to dye easter eggs naturally, are eggs safe for baby, green easter toys, eco easter toys, easter toys for baby, easter toys for kids, handmade easter toys for kids, handmade etsy easter toys, eco-friendly easter eggs, biodegradable easter eggs

Easter is just around the corner, and our basket is brimming with eco-friendly goodies and green tips to make your celebration super sustainable and eggs-tra fun! What would Easter be without eggs? Learn how to dye your Easter eggs naturally with your kids with our easy tutorial. And we take the guesswork out of egg safety issues with our informative post: Can your baby have Easter eggs? And other egg safety tips. Looking for a vegan and vibrant alternative to eggs? Opt for Apple n Amos’ gorgeous non-toxic wooden easter eggs. You can also really green your egg hunts by hiding treasures in eggs that are made out of compostable corn instead of plastic.

On to the candy! Sweet Earth’s organic, Fair Trade chocolates boast a festive selection of Easter themed treats to help you put together a delicious and ethical basket of goodies for your little chickadees. Yummy Earth’s sour jelly beans are sweetened with fruit juice and free and clear of most food allergy ingredients. Peeps be gone! Check out this fantastic upgrade on the classic Easter candy: Have it Sweet’s spring marshmallow birds.

If you’d rather fill your babe’s basket with toys instead of sugar, peruse our top handmade Etsy picks of 6 adorable, eco-friendly handmade Easter gifts little ones will love. Imagination Kids has super sweet offerings as well: a fabric Easter basket filled with wooden Waldorf toys, and a wooden play food carrot and bunny set. Teething babies will love sinking their teeth into this cute personalized Easter egg teether, and tots can get crackin’ on their counting skills with this colorful Chick-A-Dee natural counting and learning toy. If you have an older child who is into sewing, or you’re so inclined to make your baby a unique gift with your own two hands, gear up with a hand-stitching project kit from Threadfollower, and create a precious little keepsake bunny. Amidst all of the festivities, don’t forget to relax and enjoy the holiday. Perhaps these lavender rabbits will be the perfect reminder to unwind. Have a Happy Easter!

Organic Cotton Giggle Scraptopus is Made from Baby Clothing Factory Scraps

by Julie Seguss, 03/27/12

This bright and cheery octopus from Giggle isn’t only adorable and fun for babies, but also it’s a brilliant way to repurpose fabric that would otherwise be discarded. Scraptopus is made from leftover 100% Egyptian organic cotton fabric scraps from the production of Giggle’s Better Basics baby clothing line. Your baby or toddler will love tugging at every single one of this cuddly companion’s eight legs. Plus, it doubles as a teether giving this eco-friendly toy even more legs!

+ Better Basics Scraptopus $15.00

+ Giggle

Animal-Themed Wooden Instrument Set is a Musical Menagerie

by Julie Seguss, 03/24/12

Inspire your little musician with this cleverly designed wooden music set. Each instrument is animal-themed, making it a menagerie of music fun – an elephant rhythm block, a bunny tambourine and a lion castanet are included. This adorable eco-friendly music set is handmade from a variety of natural woods and finished with linseed oil, which is music to our ears.
Free Universal Construction Kit by F.A.T. Labs Connects LEGOs to Tinkertoys and 8 Other Building Blocks

Free Universal Construction Kit by F.A.T. Labs Connects LEGOs to Tinkertoys and 8 Other Building Blocks

With the new Free Universal Construction Kit from F.A.T. Lab and Sy-Lab, kids will go connect-o-crazy exploring the now endless possibilities of inter-connectivity between their once incompatible building sets. The kit allows LEGO blocks to snap to Tinkertoy cogs; makes it okay for K'nex to link with Lincoln Logs; and sees that Duplo, Krinkles, Zome, Zoob, Gears! Gears! Gears! and Fischertechnik pieces all play well together, too.

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Imagination Kids Fabric Easter Basket is Filled With Wooden Waldorf Toys

Imagination Kids Fabric Easter Basket is Filled With Wooden Waldorf Toys

Looking for an eco-friendly alternative to classic plastic Easter baskets filled with plastic grass? Imagination Kids has a plastic-free solution that we love. They fill a natural fabric basket with a selection of their Spring and Easter-themed handcrafted, wooden Waldorf toys. The best part? You get a say in what goes in your kids basket.

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6 Safe and Non-toxic Play Jewelry Choices for Kids

6 Safe and Non-toxic Play Jewelry Choices for Kids

In recent years we've seen that cheaply made jewelry is often contaminated with chemicals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, chlorine, PVC, bromine, chromium, nickel and mercury, all of which have been linked to some serious health issues like cancer, liver toxicity, impaired learning, immune system problems, birth defects, allergies, conception problems and more. That said, many young children love to play dress up with their very own collection of jewelry. Now, you can ban all play jewelry and curtail imaginative play or say yes to fun and dress up by providing your child with some lead-free, non-toxic jewelry piece of their own. Below are some great places to find fun, beautiful and safe play jewelry for your child.

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Six Adorable Eco-friendly Handmade Easter Gifts

Six Adorable Eco-friendly Handmade Easter Gifts

If your goal is a handmade, eco-friendly Easter then you have to check out all the lovely Etsy Easter goodies. Etsy shops offer many wonderful Easter gifts made safe and non-toxic for your little one. Because Etsy goods are handmade, you need to order early so you get your goodies in time for Easter. We suggest ordering ASAP or at least two weeks before Easter (April 8, 2012). See our favorite eco-Etsy Easter surprises below.

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Baby Oomfy Dolls are Sweet, Snuggly, Baby-Safe and Help to Save Orphaned Animals

Baby Oomfy Dolls are Sweet, Snuggly, Baby-Safe and Help to Save Orphaned Animals

Soft loveys are an essential part of growing up, so why not choose one for your child that does good for orphaned animals and other kid as well? Baby Oomfy dolls are made in India from non-toxic, azo-free polyester stuffing (recycled whenever possible) and are made without hazardous pellets or beads or small parts, so they are suitable for even the smallest snugglers. With real orphaned wild animals as their inspiration, baby Oomfy dolls come in sweet animals such as monkeys, rhinos, pandas, and zebras. Curious kids can even look up the true animal story behind their cuddly creature.

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Cardboard FORT CUBE’s Can Be Connected to Create a Whole Neighborhood

Cardboard FORT CUBE’s Can Be Connected to Create a Whole Neighborhood

The FORT CUBE connects kids together in creative action-oriented play. Each playhouse is much more than what it appears. The coolest feature that sets FORT CUBEs apart from other cardboard playhouses is their ability to connect together to build neighborhoods, tunnels, mazes and whatever kids can imagine.

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Inhabitots Roundup: Best New Eco-Friendly Toys for Tots

Inhabitots Roundup: Best New Eco-Friendly Toys for Tots

Inhabitots recently attended the 2012 American International Toy Fair, and we were so delighted by all of the great, innovative new toys we can’t wait to try out with our little ones. At the Fair, …

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Organic Cotton Hazel Village Plush Toys Are Full of Personality

Organic Cotton Hazel Village Plush Toys Are Full of Personality

Take just one look at these adorable plush animals from Hazel Village and you know that they'll earn an immediate place in your child's heart. Made from organic fabrics, these 14-inch plush toys are too cute for words. Despite their expression-free faces, they seem to be full of personality. Maybe it's their adorable outfits or their sweet back stories. Reginald Fox here for example tends his garden every morning with a shiny blue watering can and a shiny red bucket for any slugs he finds. Read on to meet the rest of the Hazel Village gang.

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Citiblocs Citi Cars Bring Motion to Eco-Friendly Building Blocks

Citiblocs Citi Cars Bring Motion to Eco-Friendly Building Blocks

One of our favorite eco-friendly block makers, CitiBlocs, just added new Citi Cars to their collection of certified non-toxic toys made from New Zealand pine grown in certified renewable forests. Now your tots can drive a bus, truck, taxi, race car and four other vehicles under and around their Citibloc constructions. What’s more, just like all CitiBlocs are the exact same size, shape and weight, these cars are the same width and height to keep building uniform.

+ Citi …

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Cate & Levi People Puppets Are Made From Upcycled Sweaters

Cate & Levi People Puppets Are Made From Upcycled Sweaters

The Canadian dad behind the brand Cate & Levi never ceases to come up with cute and creative new ways to upcycle wool sweaters. What started with eco-friendly animal hand puppets has since morphed into a collection of everything from baby blankets to animal-inspired hats, scarves and mittens - all made from reclaimed wool. Now, Cate & Levi has launched a new line called People Puppets. Available in four classic characters, fireman, nurse, pirate and princess, the 12-inch …

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Oscar Diaz Studio Tube Toys Incorporate Packing Into Play

Oscar Diaz Studio Tube Toys Incorporate Packing Into Play

Part building toy, part push toy, these smart sets are perfect for car-crazed tots and future engineers alike.

+ Tube Toys (available in the next two weeks)

+ Oscar Diaz Studio

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Knock Down Fun Bowling Kitty Set in Maple

Knock Down Fun Bowling Kitty Set in Maple

We’ve seen soft organic bowling sets and even great wooden bowling sets, but never have we seen a set so purr-fectly cute before. This maple Bowling Kitty Set is made by the same folks who brought us the hyper adorable upcycled kitty …

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Chick-A-Dee Colorful & Natural Counting and Learning Toy is Cute for Easter or Anytime

Chick-A-Dee Colorful & Natural Counting and Learning Toy is Cute for Easter or Anytime

Mama May i is simply one of the coolest Etsy shops around. Everything in this wonderful shop is beautifully made, completely imaginative, plus colorful enough to capture any child's interest. Take for instance, the bright and charming Chick-A-Dee Playset - a true winner when it comes to classic play and learning. Keep reading to learn more and see all of the available colors.

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Let’s Go to the Farmers’ Market Kids Activity Kit Makes Buying Local More Fun

Let’s Go to the Farmers’ Market Kids Activity Kit Makes Buying Local More Fun

This unique and useful Let’s Go to the Farmers’ Market Kids activity kit by Molly Smith contains everything you need to get your kids excited about heading to the local farmers’ market. The kit comes with a handy and hyper cute reusable “strawberry” tote bag, 20 farmers’ market activity cards to engage your …

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LOTS MORE GREAT GREEN DESIGN STORIES HERE... KEEP READING!