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Welcome to our new Mama Cafe section, where we feature articles on Green Parenting. We have a wide variety of exciting features coming up to make it easy for everyone to sustain our organic babies and children. You may also want to check out our family life bazaar for more sustainable products and tips. Happy parenting!

Wednesday
Mar242010

Easter Eco Presents for Little Ones

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Easter is an exciting time for little people - Easter egg trails and time with ma and pa as it's the school holidays! Whether your little person is off school for the holidays or you've recently welcomed a new member to your family, we've lined up some special small pressies to make their Easter extra memorable!

Let's start with the all important Easter egg. Whether or not you watched Panorama's 'Chocolate - The Bitter Truth' aired last night on the BBC, the sad truth is that much of the chocolate available these days has meant unfair trade, even child labour. Giving you plenty of time to order online before Easter arrives, A Lot of Chocolate is the yummiest destination for organic and fair trade chocolate so you and the little ones can enjoy tucking into Easter eggs without the bitter taste. Even better, A Lot of Chocolate also make vegan, dairy free varieties.

Let's start with the Easter bunnies - the one The GIN Lady is going to buy for her own little cherub. The Easter Bunny is filled with 150g Divine Fairtrade milk chocolate mini eggs. The key reason why we're opting for this one, is that my cherub (and yours?) turns into a small devil when she's had too much chocolate. With this Easter bunny we can control the amount of chocolate given... so it can be eaten over days rather than a whole egg in one go! What's really lovely about this Easter Bunny is that this purchase helps to support farmers at the Kuapa Kokoo cooperative in Ghana, and they also get a share of Divine's profits too. What's not to love about this Easter Bunny?! Priced at £4.99, it's a bargain too, as the Easter bunny container is reusable too.

If you're vegan you'll love the fair trade Safari egg boxes! Each box contains 30 Divine mini dark chocolate easter eggs with a choice of either a monkey, giraffe, tiger or zebra - we love and so will your little one.

Easter bunnies don't have to be made from chocolate though. We have fallen for Quail By Mail's collection of bunnies all handmade here in Britain from recycled fabrics! Sitting pretty in a carrot purse, your little one will play happily, putting her bunnies to sleep or getting them out to play. And at £14.95, it'll be worth every penny as this pressie will make for a lovely Easter surprise. Visit Quail By Mail today!

Easter is a fabulous excuse for the whole family to get together, so why not treat your little people to a brand new outfit to impress! Babies in particularly can't indulge in Easter eggs as it's far too much for their digestion, so if you're a new mum (or you'd like to gift a new ma), you'll adore Frugi's Bunny Babygrow and its matching Bunny Knotted Hat - so cute! As with all of Frugi's baby and children's clothing, their outfits are 100% organic cotton with much attention to every style detail. Visit We Love Frugi today!

My own pre-schooler is going to dress up for Easter Day in a fabulous dress from Green Eyed Monster, which we bought at Mimimyne. Green Eyed Monster are famed for their remarkable graphics; unique colourful patterns give each of their pieces, from dress to t-shirts, for both boys and girls, a special sense of style and we're loving this eco friendly label! The Akina dress we bought for our little girl comes in a range of sizes from 1 to 10 years, and it's the organic jersey cotton we're ultra impressed with - it boasts a fabulous quality. In a rich purple with its Japanese graphic print, further embellished with swarovski crystalline embellishments, their Akina dress is a huge hit with my little one as well as her parents!

Boys are equally catered for at Green Eyed Monster. Their graphic tees will be a tremendous success with your little men, as well as their organic denim range. Contemporary, cool and eco friendly, little people are in for a real treat this Easter, don't you think?!

So Happy Easter indeed, with fair trade Easter eggs, Easter toy bunnies, and cool clothing from We Love Frugi and the Green Eyed Monster!

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Friday
Mar192010

Funky Eco Friendly Wallpaper for Children

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There has been an explosion of colourful wallpapers for children this last year and is a fabulous way to brighten up your kids bed and playrooms. What we particularly love about our round up today is that they are all non-toxic... do you really want your kids to breathe in a big whiff of formaldehyde? Thought not. So look no further than our groovy selection of funky wallpapers to cheer up your kids the eco friendly way!

EcoCentric have an incredible array of wallpapers and silhouettes for little people, from the downright groovy to the sublime. Eco wallpaper has clearly come a long way in recent years judging by the colourful prints, patterns and materials used. Take their Fun Fair Delux Eco Wallpaper for instance: Its bold graphics will certainly stimulate his imagination but won't threaten his health, as it's printed with eco friendly non-toxic water-based inks on 225gsm heavy paper made from sustainably sourced materials. And from a practical point of view, it's sturdy, wipeable, colour fast for 125 years and is completely fire retardant - phew! Get a free sample from EcoCentric.

A slightly less imposing variety, but just as funky is The Lost Garden Deluxe Wall Scene. Its sky blue backdrop features some gorgeous birds and flowers and is pretty as a picture. This wall scene contains 4 panel drops, which can be interchanged to create your own look. Either go the whole hog and decorate the whole room or simply create one feature wall. Either way, you can opt for sky blue (pictured below), blue, green and brown. Why not get a free sample from EcoCentric to try it out.

The Lost Garden Deluxe Wall is the same as above, but we're equally in love with the sublime green as it brings the outdoors inside.

If you simply want to jazz up your little person's bedroom or play space without decorating the whole room, you're bound to like the idea of EcoCentric's wallpaper silhouettes. They have a fabulous array of high end animal shapes, handcrafted from real vintage wallpaper by Dutch designer Inke Heiland. They are simple to put up, as they come with a "do it yourself kit" complete with glue, a brush and instructions. Their zoo of animals come in retro blue, pink, green and red - we love.

We couldn't resist sharing the red rooster...

The retro blue ostrich...

And elephants are always a sure bet with kids, especially this very cute pink variety!

To view EcoCentric's whole wallpaper range, click here.

Another super destination for "gorgeous, non-toxic, vinyl-free, environmentally friendly wallpapers" is our friend Lisa Harland. Lisa's organic furnishings company has a clever line up of decorative materials, from upholstery fabrics, furniture, headboards, bed linens and home accessories, and in the case of wallpapers, Harland also caters for children.

Retro and modern, Harland stocks Mini Moderns, the eco friendly wallpaper collection by Absolute Zeroº and is printed with non-toxic, water-based inks on paper from FSC certified forests. And these wallpapers definitely are a good match for kids, as sticky dirty fingers aren't a problem as they can be wiped down easily - bonus! Harlands have a quite a few designs on offer, so no doubt your boy or little girl will find something they like, and please do request a sample.

We like their Knock Knock version as it's a fun way to count...

And we also love the idea of letting the kids graffiti colour in the walls with this super Tick Tock wallpaper. What fun!

 

Why not check out Harlands Organic Furnishings complete range of children's wallpaper as they have 13 wallpapers to choose from, and have a good choice for both girls and boys.

Happy decorating!

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Thursday
Mar112010

A Special Eco Friendly Mother's Day Celebration

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Mother's Day is a long standing tradition to celebrate our mothers and mamahood. And being a mum myself, it's only now that The GIN Lady truly appreciates the hard work parenting entails, although it's worth every second of it! Whether you gather wild flowers on your way to your mum on Sunday as tradition would have it, or you want to treat your mum to something special, the whole point is to take the time and show your love and appreciation. Today we've come up with five smashing treats to show how much you care and plonk a great big smile on Mum's face!

Being a mother can be exhausting - whether you're a stay-at-home mum or working your socks off at the office. Either way, being a mum is a full time job and it's incredibly easy to forget the all important pampering. To help mum escape from the daily grind, Puresha, the online natural beauty store, has put together a cracking mama gift pack.

Inside your mama will discover some yummy organic and ethically sourced Chococo - a chocolate lovingly handmade in Dorset, along with one of Cargo Plant Love’s bestselling ecocert lipsticks, designed by Bond-girl-turned-mum Denise Richards. Puresha shares "This sheer praline shade is perfect for all complexions. There's also a Soap and Paper Factory Geranium Solid Perfume as well as a gorgeous tub of Fig Fizzing Bath Powder. This is truly a yummy mummy gift!"

What we particularly love about Puresha's approach is that you can also tailor make your own bespoke gift box by emailing hello@puresha.com. Even better, to make sure mum receives your gift in time, they will send it direct to your mum with a personalised card with any message you like. It will arrive beautifully wrapped up too in unique and re-usable hand-printed Furoshiki cotton wrapping. All in all, by giving mum this special natural beauty gift, you can save £15 on the whole box's contents, usually £55, as it's only £40 as a special treat!

How about breakfast in bed? Or deliver mum (and why not yourself at the same time?!) an incredible box of food sourced from local producers across the UK. The GIN Lady is totally sold on the idea of the Virtual Farmers Market, as she has recently tucked into a box full of delicious goodies. There's so much to rave about this nifty new foodie heaven. As The GIN Lady is just finishing reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, it has never seemed more important to support local producers. The Virtual Farmers Market is a brilliant way of doing just this because you can fill your virtual shopping trolly with lots of yummy goodies, in particular with foods that you can't find on the High Street. VFM is not trying to replace the supermarket... rather this is the perfect online destination to shop at every 6 to 8 weeks to fill your larder with delicious unusual food stuffs - from meat, cheeses, sauces, fish, you name it, they have it!

Lucky for us, the Virtual Farmers Market is giving our lovely readers the chance to sample their goods with a whopping 20% off! There is a minimum order of £25 excluding delivery, but your money will be well spent - your tummy or mummy's tummy will be tickled pink with the produce and you'll be doing British farmers a huge service too! We've put Sillfield Farm's breakfast box in the spotlight or just go to VFM and browse to your heart's content... simply enter GINLADY at the checkout to get your 20% discount! Visit the Virtual Farmers Market today!

If you're a mum yourself, and you want to treat Grandma to a special surprise, another creative idea that could become a little project for you and your little one is to put a special photograph album together with some gorgeous photos of you and your little one(s).

Undercover offer some large photo albums in recycled leather and are all handmade in Britain. They come in a massive rainbow of colours to suit your taste, from aubergine to lemon, and are jumbo sized (33.5 x 33.5cm), comfortably holding four 6" x 4" photos on each page. With forty pages to fill, you'll have so much fun putting together your own personalised photo story to delight your mum. Haven't got the time? Buy one now and do a bit over time to gift at a later date! Visit Undercover UK now!

Before we get to the all important card (we've found a fabulous eco friendly card company!), we couldn't resist another pamper gift. NEOM, the luxury organic body care and home fragrance label, has a wonderful, uplifting bath oil to gift to mum - she will love it! Using only the finest natural ingredients, their Complete Bliss aromatherapy bath oil will instantly lift your mum's spirits with its Moroccan Blush Rose scent. At £32, this touch of luxury will go down a treat. Visit NEOM today!

And now to the all important card. We came up trumps with Alice Palace, an original fun illustrator who offers a wide range of cards to suit all occasions and messages. We adore her sense of humour and imagination, and all are done sensitively to the environment: Each card uses high quality recycled uncoated board, recycled envelopes and biodegradable polybags. You can also get your hands on her illustrations as large mounted prints, canvasses, aprons and shopper bags - how clever is Alice.

Even if you've already found your Mother's Day card, we highly recommend browsing Alice Palace's website - it's a treat in itself!

Happy Mother's Day!

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Thursday
Feb182010

Upcycled Toys from Recycled Fabrics

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Our kids - and us - can never have enough toys, but surely there's not enough raw materials to go around? Think again. A few special outlets specialise in the use of reclaimed, recycled fabrics and are able to entice us with highly original toys and playthings to excite our little people's imagination... while diverting precious materials from landfill. You'll love our upcycled toy round up... this is cool hunting for kids!

We have long been visiting Quail for sustainable clothing, and on one of our latest trips, we discovered their ever so cute toys for kids. Beautifully handmade from recycled fabrics, Quail's toy accessories are fun, original and as sustainable as their clothes.

Shauna Chapman, the creative force behind Quail By Mail shares "Finding ways to use scrap fabric is the type of eco-creative craft I love and the crafters I commission love to sit and chat while they make them." Shauna adds "Something new and cute is made from scraps of fabric creating something utterly unique. Most children's toys are made by the millions - where is the character in that?" We'll second that! You'll love Quail's colourful 'free range' chicken family...

Quail's Chicken Family, And what about Quail's gorgeous 'teddy friends'? Take your pick from a cool selection of handmade animals with moving limbs: A dinosaur, kangaroo, elephant, bear and rabbit - the latter we think would be perfect as an Easter present for your little ones! And at £10.95, these recycled teddies are exceptional value considering the craftsmanship and original designs.

Two members of the Quail 'teddy friend's - The Elephant and Teddy Bear.

Lined up next is a very handsome chap from Biome Lifestyle. Dressed up in red and cream, this teddy has been lovingly handmade with recycled fabrics and has been stuffed with hypo allergenic materials. A real character indeed, we think you'll love him for his originality as much as your child will. A collectible piece surely? Buy now from Biome Lifestyle.

Recycled and Handmade Teddy from Biome Lifestyle

Upcycling need not be limited to the cutest play toys and teddies. Original Stitch is a fantastic new destination for children and home goodies where they specialise in the creative use of reclaimed fabrics. Take their Pencil Roll kits - all kids want one but none are typically available as original as their pencil offering.

Original Stitch offer beautiful pencil rolls in a variety of vintage fabrics.Versatile in its use - pencils, pens, even paint brushes, we're loving the choice of fabrics to suit your boy or girl's taste.

We love the fabrics used for Original Stitch's Pencil Roll

Either opt for 'Boy Brights', 'Boy Darks', 'Girl Brights' and 'Girl Pastels'. There again, there are plenty of boys who like pink, and many a little girl who would fancy the boy brights. Let your little people decide or surprise them with a gift they'll spend many a merry hour playing with.

Another item on Original Stitch's colourful shelves are their backpacks for little people - either mini backpacks for toddlers or under 3's plus their big kids backpack. The GIN Lady's little one loves her backpack as does all her nursery friends too, but we've never seen one quite as eco friendly or funky as Original Stitch's collection. So let your kid be part of the backpack carrying crowd, but do it in original, sustainable style!

Original Stitch's Mini Backpack in Pink

Visit OriginalStitch.co.uk to find out more.

Another option is to have your own toys custom made from your own batch of unwanted or preloved clothes. And this is what Magic Pumpkins & Faery Dust excel at! While this lovely website has a fantastic array of ready to order organic and fair trade toys, we adore the idea of recycling our own clothes - Yours, a close grandparent's, even outgrown kids clothes, and upcycling them into adorable toys. The sentimental value is profoundly increased, creates a special story around the toy, and ensures your toys are utterly unique! Here are a couple of Magic Pumpkins & Faery Dust toys to help you decide which toy to have custom made...

Here's Bertie... even if you don't choose to recycle some of your own clothes, Bertie is designed on a 1920s-30s style and is made from organic cotton and filled with organic Welsh sheep fleece. Measuring in at 27 cms, he's utterly adorable.

Bertie is old fashioned but can be refashioned with any preloved fabrics you want to reuse.Ragdoll's will never go out of fashion, but imagine having your own made from your kids cast off gear...

Lotta can be custom made but is pictured here in organic cotton and is plant dyed.Magic Pumpkins & Faery Dust is a delight to visit, not just for its toys, but is a great place to discover some gorgeous clothing and accessories for our special little kids. And as is always the case, this lovely independent store only uses organic, fairtrade and reclaimed fabrics.

That's all folks for this special upcycled toy feature. Enjoy visiting our crafty friends and we hope your kids enjoy playing with our lovely selection.

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Saturday
Jan302010

Adorable Eco Friendly Dresses for Little Girls

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Make your little girl's day by gifting her an extra special eco friendly dress. Today The GIN Lady has rounded up our top seven dresses that not only look a treat, they can save the planet in their own extraordinary way. Starting from only £8.00, they won't break the bank balance either!

Tunic's are so easy to throw on and if you're little lady is anything like The GIN Lady's then you'll know this is a bonus - no tricky buttons or elaborate designs saves a lot of fussing around. We Love Frugi is the name of the brand, and the name is apt as we adore this little organic cotton tunic. Either pair with funky or plain tights or leggings and voila, a super little outfit. What's more, it's currently on sale, so if you're quick off the mark, you could grab this cute little number for only £8.80 (normally £22.00). Sizes from 2 to 6 years. Buy now from We Love Frugi.

Frugi Snowflake Tunic DressCarrying on with the tunic theme, we love Tatty Bumpkin's tunic because it's ever so warm with its brushback fleece made from organic cotton. Its mulberry palate is delicious and your little princess will look fabulous and feel oh so cosy as this warm dress also features a zip neck to keep her neck warm when the wind gets up. And as any mother knows, little girls do have a penchant for pockets, so thumbs up for its contrasting orchard pink pocket. Sizes from 1 to 7 years. Price £20.00. Buy now from Tatty Bumpkin.

Tatty Bumpkin Tunic Fleece Dress in MulberryThis dress from Linen Kids has really got our hearts thumping as we're loving the details and its rich rose colour. The stunning hand made ornaments of roses and leaves really make this sleeveless dress a picture to behold and your little princess will fall in love with this little number as much as we have! Made from boiled wool, this dress won't itch, but will still keep your girl nice and warm. Sizes 1 to 8 years. Price €26.00 (that's around £22.50). Buy now from Linen Kids.

Linen Kids Woolen Sleeveless Dress with RosesLittle Shrimp is a cool destination for organic baby and children's clothes. As a marine biologist in her younger days, The GIN Lady's eye was immediately drawn to Little Shrimp's Hoodie Top with Sea Horses and Roses Print - so funky! Made from organic cotton and dyed to GOTS standards, it surely gets the eco tick, but gets an even bigger one for being so unique. We love! Sizes 3 to 6 years. Price £29.00. Buy now from Little Shrimp.

Little Shrimp Hoodie Top-Sea Horses and Roses PrintWe often check out Mama Earth's fair trade and eco friendly clothing for little ones, and while there's a few dresses we'd like to mention, we couldn't take our eyes off their Chocolate Brown and Blue Velvet Party Dress... it's divine! Definitely a dress to bring out on special occasions, this gorgeous pinafore dress features a frill petticoat, a pretty little bow at the waist and vibrant splashes of blue. How can you resist?! Sizes 4-5. Price £26.00. Buy from Mama Earth.

Mama Earth Brown and Blue Velvet Party DressEditor's Pick: Nixie Clothing is a firm favourite of The GIN Lady's as its outfits are upcycled from cast off fabrics destined for landfill. This is the most environmentally friendly way to wear fashions, as it avoids the need to produce loads of dyes and fabrics to make new clothes. Upcycled clothing does tend to be pricier due to their unique manufacture - but these one-off pieces are adorably unique and ideal for a young individualist. Best of all, its the highly original and creative approach to Junior Fashion that we love Nixie Clothing most for. Nixie has sold out of most of its current collection, but we did find some pieces at eKernel, and prices are currently reduced to £24.00. We also highly recommend contacting Nixie Clothing to make sure you'll be the first to know when new stock hits their gorgeous virtual shelves.

Nixie Clothing Upcycled Smock DressLast but definitely not least is the most luxurious among our picks: A handknitted cashmere blend smock dress by Sue Hill Handknits. Sue Hill's small team of expert handknitters create the most delightful outfits for little people, including young boys, and her dresses are stylish, unique and heavenly soft to touch. If you invest in a dress, it will prove a popular heirloom, but if you have no one else to pass onto, then you could always sell on at a children's second hand clothing store to recoup some of your investment. Sizes 3 to 6 years. Price £75.00. Buy from Sue Hill Handknits.

 

Sue Hill Knits Smock Dresses

Please visit our eco fashion site, Sustain Your Style, for more eco friendly children's clothing.

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