I’m a huge fan of stainless steel dishware and it became a permanent staple when I learned all my Disney printed licensed plates were produced with polycarbonate plastic 2 years ago. I quickly decided that safety and quality needed to come first over designs with licensed friends that wanted to entertained thoughts of leaching chemicals into my children’s food.  When I saw the stainless steel dish set from Untangled Living I was so excited to review a product that was amazing quality and provided kids with a child-friendly design they would gravitate towards using. The butterfly and gecko designs beautifully etched into the cup, bowl, plate, and cutlery are awesome.  Check out both adorable designs – I always love it when a designer can take a practical item and give it a design that kids will also love without the heavy influence of commercialism.

I really recommend this for a unique baby shower or 1st birthday gift.  To really get your full value for the product – it should be started with little ones because the bowl and cup in the set are sized for very small hands and portions.  The plate and utensils are a great size for a toddler – 5 year old, but an older child will not get great use from it. The quality is wonderful because it’s 18/8 – 304 steel grade and is dishwasher friendly. I have since purchased this dishware for a gift since receiving mine to review and think the design, packaging, and set combination is good value and makes a special gift. These sets are available to purchase through the Untangled Living site or through various retail stores like our friends over at Nayla Natural Care.

With the beautiful spring weather on the West Coast slowing becoming a staple around here – my mind’s been drifting to upcoming baby showers with Spring being the magical season for celebrating new little bundles. I have a deep affection for great quality stainless steel solutions and will be featuring more products in upcoming articles and a contest will be announced shortly! Stay up to date with Mommy Footprint posts by joining our new fan page on Facebook or using the subscribe to updates option on the right sidebar of this article.

In researching ways to remove toxins from your bedding, mattresses, and bedrooms, I received tips from the co-founder at Sleepy Sheep and  Saplings that I wanted to share. These tips are things you can do immediately that will ease your anxiety level with dust mites, bacteria, mold, and chemicals. I appreciate that these two solid business owners would pass along product knowledge and freebies that can improve the health of our homes. Here are some tips you can implement tomorrow from the experts!

Chelsea from Sleepy Sheep told me that sunlight is a natural virus killer. To immediately de-tox your bed, pull your duvet down and expose pillows and sheets to sun light.  Open your curtains in your bedroom during the day as this allows moisture to evaporate from your mattress and allows sunlight into your bedroom, which helps prevent mold and fungus from growing.

Wash your pillows monthly to keep dust mites and other allergens at bay. A clean pillow improves your sleep by helping you breath properly while you sleep.

When taking your bedding (or clothes for that matter) to the dry cleaner, try to find a cleaner that markets themselves as green. Why? Many dry cleaners will use a chemical cocktail to finish your items called sizing. Ask that this step not be used to finish your bedding so that sizing or Teflon agents aren’t being added to your ‘cleaned’ bedding.

Chris from Saplings Sustainable Kids Decor offered some great tips for removing common toxins from your bedroom starting with wall decals. These popular wall stickers are the hot decorating choice with parents because of their convenience and versatility, but most on the market are made from PVC (poison plastic that off-gasses chemicals). Look for decals that are stamped vinyl-free or PVC-free and are made from polypropylene or fabric.

One of the easiest ways to improve the air quality in your child’s bedroom is to use VOC free paint. Chris recommends the new Natura line from Benjamin Moore and Yolo Colorhouse in rooms they have done….both brands have great quality and are a safer paint choice.

Smell your room! Basically, your sense of smell is one of the best things you can rely on when safeguarding your room. If you are using anything that has a strong smell, be it your paint, bedding, decor ~ be cautious. Anything you put in your child’s room should be odour free straight out of the package (** great tip **)!

The last tip from Chris can be read in it’s entirety from this article and the great thing about it is you probably have most of the ingredients at home! A recipe to decrease chemical residues and smells from dyeing process and use of conventional scented detergents &/or fabric softeners:

Wash several times or soak overnight in a tub of water with one of the following:

1/2 cup of vinegar
1/2 – 1 cup of pickling salt (don’t use in an enameled tub as it will cause it to rust)
1/4 – 1 cup of baking soda (will have to rewash several times to remove residue).

For any and all organic bedding & decor requirements, the owners at Saplings are ready to answer your questions. They’ve done the research and put together their site to keep the confusing nature of shopping for organic bedding simplified.  Two of my favorite rooms from their site are below.

Looking for more information on PVC? Check out the category on Mommy Footprint called PVC Info. Discover why this plastic doesn’t belong in your bedroom or anywhere near children.

I love blocks and if there was only one toy a child could own I would recommend building blocks. Even babies love to chew blocks and knock over anything mommy or daddy builds.  Toddlers are so incredibly proud of themselves when they manage to stack a few blocks before they tumble down. And older children, even my 7 year old, creates amazing designs from his imagination with blocks. They are a classic toy that should be a staple in any child’s closest.  Here are 3 amazing sets of blocks – all different – all with serious WOW power.

Ukoonto Blocks

Canadian manufactured, produced, and distributed, these blocks are made by hand (yes that is correct!!) by Hans, the founder of Ukoonto. These blocks are made from never-used, recycled Maple wood. The blocks are untreated and contain no toxic materials making them safe for teething gums and all children to explore. Each of the 50 blocks included in a set are hand-crafted by Hans – what a different experience than traditional painted blocks that are mass manufactured in China. Available through Pedagogy Toys – call and order with contact info on their website:

Tree Branch Blocks:

The creativity of nature is abundant with this next set of blocks. Made from Alder trees, these blocks are kiln dried with a wax finish. I love that Natural Pod has sourced this product local to their home base on Canada’s West Coast ~ Vancouver Island. These blocks are sold in 3 different sets of sizes – with a great scale in price. Tree branch blocks are like functional pieces of art for children.  A magical gift idea for kids of any age.

A Little World

Here is a little gem that reached through my monitor and just made my heart so happy.  These blocks are truly special and creative, made by an Etsy artist that is simply brilliant with their design concept of little Christmas house blocks made with felt.  Are they not just the cutest?

Obviously for the younger crowd, but what a wonderful, heirloom, unique gift these would make for an expectant mom or baby’s first Christmas this year. While you are at A Little World’s Etsy shop – check our the mobiles for babe (the sheep are my favorite). . . simple, modern, and fun designs!

Whether you prefer traditional, nature, or artistically inspired designs, building blocks are a classic, timeless gift for all children. If you are looking for ideas this Christmas – these three featured products are just the ticket. And yes with Halloween only hours away, it’s officially time to start Christmas gift planning for 2009 – Santa has started listening.

I’ve recently discovered a company that seemed to connect lots of little dots similar to my own journey of trying to reduce the amount of PVC and Phthalates that surround my family.  That unique company is called Little Inkers Alternative Naturals and they are so much more than a company that makes t-shirts ~ although they have managed to produce some of the most adorable t-shirts ever (!).  Little Inkers concept is so much deeper and the founder Airiane has shared similar light bulb moments that have launched her to produce amazing and sustainable clothing.

Little Inkers founder Airiane was a mom doing everything right; proud supporter of breast feeding, making organic baby food, avoiding painted toys because of lead, plastics, so when her son was born with vanishing testicle syndrome she began to research what could have caused this.  After watching the CBC documentary The Disappearing Male, she was dismayed to think his exposure to PVC and Phthalates could have attributed to this syndrome. What could have caused her son to have exposure to these chemicals/types of plastic that is known to cause testicular problems?  Inks.  Airiane’s partner had been working in production print shops using a type of ink called Plastisol ink for years.  After watching The Disappearing Male and spending countless hours researching male genital birth defects, the founder of Little Inkers was led to believe there’s a link between her partner printing with the Plastisol inks containing PVC/Phthalates and her son’s birth defects.  Read more of Airiane’s story via her blog.

Have you ever thought about PVC and Phthalates existing in our clothing?  In your children’s clothing?  I certainly hadn’t so I find the Little Inkers concept, mission, and final product very inspiring. They make their garments from sustainable fibers (bamboo, organic cotton, and soon to arrive ~ hemp) and each piece is hand printed using inks free from PVC and Phthalates.  This conception and story of this company is inspiring – but the  finished product can only be described as cool!  Check out a few of my favorite designs. The tree lungs print is awesome and a cool way to make a statement for kids of any age – adults included!

Little Inkers has recently moved to manufacturing their own garments in Canada and hand prints them in their own custom screen-printing company called Greenprint Studio.  Their Greenprint company only prints with inks that are free from PVC and Phthalates as well as soy and orange oil processing products.  The evolution of the children’s line Little Inkers Alternative Naturals fills a niche in the infant and children’s market by offering natural clothing printed with cute slogans promoting breastfeeding, attachment parenting, homeschooling, gay parenting, and political awareness. 

I really appreciate the time Airiane spent with back and forth emails sharing how you can find out if the clothes your purchase for your children contain PVC or phthalates.  First you can ask questions and although it’s a very frustrating undertaking to ask the clerk at Zellers, Walmart, GAP, Old Navy, etc. if their clothing (or any merchandise) is free of PVC and phthalates ~ it is important.  From my experience of never having a clerk able to answer my questions about stainless steel quality with water bottles in these stores ~ I can tell you that employees are simply not given this level of information. I’m sure the president of these stores cannot answer these questions! So what are some other clues to look for?  Price is a big one because safer dyes and inks cost more for printing and we know that bamboo and organic textiles are more expensive. Plastic patches or appliques, sparkle decals, and team numbers, etc. can often contain PVC and phthalates.  Where is the clothing made?  If it’s produced in Europe their laws about PVC and phthalates are much more strict than other countries so this is a good sign. I know I’ve given more than one employee a very large headache when leaving their store, but the more customers asking these questions, more will filter to store managers and owners.  If the public starts demanding safer products for our children that is PVC and Phthalate free, supply and demand will increase, inevitably driving every-one’s cost down.

I am very excited to have found Little Inkers and am inspired by their personal journey that has evolved into this special company. Finding their store has given me more knowledge and forced me to think (again!) about things that are touching my children. Since first looking at their site a few months ago, I’ve stopped dressing my kids in clothes and shoes that have plastic appliques, thinking about what is on their clothes and touching their skin.  I will start asking more questions and demanding more from the stores I frequent. I will also continue to feel good about my choices to not buy cheaply made clothing and think more about how and where it’s being manufactured and produced. Purchasing special items that have been so thoroughly researched and created deserves my business and I appreciate the research and emotion behind the Little Inkers brand. If you are interested in purchasing a onsie in the Little Inkers designs you can visit Grass Roots online or for t-shirts, yoga pant inquires of any size or design, simply contact the Little Inkers site and find out how to order.

Related Articles: Phthalates & BPA Chemicals ~ The Disappearing Male Documentary

Part II ~ The Disappearing Male Documentary

If you believe in love at first sight, get ready to fall in love. Quickly.

From the moment I first saw Tressa and her magical Dress Me Up corner at the EPIC convention, I was stunned by the magical product line that can be summed up with one word tender. And that is what you want to surround your baby with – tender, beautiful, unique, handcrafted, quality items. Tressa has designed her organic product line to be safe (even encouraged!!) to go into a teething baby’s mouth and surrounds their soft skin with organic cotton, lamb’s wool, and earth friendly ink. As a parent you don’t need to question if it contains chemicals, BPA, Phthalates, or harmful dyes.  The entire Dress Me Up line is not only beautiful and made with an artists’ eye, every piece is practical and something a baby will love. Her line of organic toys is what first caught my eye ~ take a peek and imagine the play. Read on to learn about the whimsical and practical items.

I personally love to give gifts that receive the “ohh” and “ahh” factor because of how unique and functional they are.  When it comes to toys for babies and toddlers all they need are blocks or balls. With my summer packed with lots of babies arriving for friends, I’ve really made it my mission to control last minute rushed gift spending and plan ahead with uniquely sourced baby gifts. Why would I head off to Babies R Us and purchase something ordinary (and probably terrible for the environment), when alternatives exist like Dress Me Up? You can feel wonderful about purchasing safe, practical, eco-friendly, unique, and gorgeous products ~ that a baby actually needs!  Sound too good to be true?  Check out the newly unveiled Dress Me Up site that is so clean and easy to navigate through, I keep finding more to love. Here is her signature Dress Me Up Teething BonBons perfectly designed so baby can hold the middle and chew the frozen ends. 

Tressa’s handcrafted items make parents happy to unwrap because above all, she is an incredible artist.  Even her practical items have unique embroidering making all Dress Me Up products one of a kind. I love the leaf bibs, baby blankets, and receiving blankets with the special touch of her handcrafted magic and use of sustainable materials. 

And really, I didn’t need anything else in the Dress Me Up lineup to love and drool over (need to purchase myself a leaf bib) I’ve got the rabbit rattles in my head. Here we go again – a product only a mother could design because they are soft to touch, safe to mouth, and beautiful for a new mom to open. Check out the Dress Me Up site and let yourself fall in love.