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Category Archives: eco baby + child
Natural Child World Magazine – Subscription Giveaway
Would you describe yourself as a modern parent trying to lead a sustainable lifestyle for your family? If your answer is a resounding “yes”, then boil the kettle and put your feet up as there’s a new magazine that is sure to help steer you in the right direction. USA based Natural Child World (NCW) magazine features innovative and modern product design for your children along with articles and tips from a variety of experts on child rearing – in a modern and sustainable way. No tie dye or hippies in sight – promise!
NCW first launched in L.A in early 2011, and quickly attracted a national readership across the USA via outlets such as Barnes and Noble and Wholefoods USA. To celebrate its first birthday, the magazine has just launched worldwide via online subscription, making it an easy and accessible read from your ipad, laptop or desktop computer!
Barbara Manconi, Managing Editor of NCW is no newcomer to the sustainability scene. With a background in “green” marketing, teaching and consultancy work she brings many years experience to NCW. She generously gave us her time to answer a few questions, plus provide us with a quick peek at what to expect in next month’s mag.
1. Where did the idea for Natural Child World stem from?
First and foremost from the love for children and the love for beautiful design. NCW was born with aspiration to promote the attractive side of sustainability to modern parents with a conscience and a taste for life. I wanted to defeat a stereotype: green means sacrifices. I wanted to prove that is possible to live a healthier and a more sustainable life without sacrificing style, taste or performance.
NCW is the result of many years of experience as a marketing professional consulting for international clients and teaching at major American Universities Sustainability and Green Strategies. I couldn’t find for my clients an outlet that would feature exceptional design, great photography and sustainable principles. The sad choice was simply between traditional parenting magazines full of redundant information and far from sustainable content or “tree hugger/granola” type of publication that would alienate the majority of people not willing to “commit” to that extent.
2. What are the main features readers can expect to find in the magazine?
The magazine has a heavy focus on design and style. Simply because giant leaps have been achieved in these industries and amazing companies are producing beautiful products using sustainable principles as tools for innovation. For this reason many of our readers compare us to Dwell magazine. For our clean and minimalistic design and content we have been compared to Wallpaper magazine. The most important thing that also sets us apart I think is the fact that we feature international and global content. From the Fashion Summit in Copenhagen to the small design studio in Melbourne, we bring to our readers the latest trends in modern parenting and modern sustainability with no boundaries and borders. So that parents can feel inspired and more connected.
3. What do you see as the important issues for raising children in today’s climate?
Education is key. At different levels. A) Parents need to educate themselves more than ever to be able to make informed decisions for their families and be able to navigate through often misleading claims. B) Parents need to understand the responsibility of being role models for their children and start shifting to healthier and more sustainable behavior that can be emulated by the little ones.
4. What do you see as important features in designing new products for children?
Leaving aside safety standards that are obviously key, a successful product nowdays is a product that can “grow” with the child. Children grow so fast and get bored so easily, a product that can follow and adapt to multiple life stages will last longer, will meet parents’ (and wallets’) favor as well as create less waste. Another key element is also the opportunity to spur children’s imagination. A new generation of children are growing up oversaturated with technology, and parents are increasingly concerned that imagination and active play are at risk. This is an amazing opportunity for companies to come up with creative ideas.
5. What were your top 3 children’s design products for 2011?
- Kalon Studios Hut Hut Kids, a modern reinterpretation of the rocking horse, created with innovative non-toxic resins (kalonstudios.com);
- 5 Phases 1st hybrid baby bottle internal glass bottle + covered by a shell of plastic; and
- Ubabub pod cribs, ultra stylish and safe, and…Australian!!
6. Can you give us a sneak peek into what’s in store for Natural Child World 2012?
We will be expanding online, launching our online shop and affiliate program, and we are looking at international distribution in Europe, Australia and Asia.
7. Where can Australian readers find your magazine?
The print edition can be purchased online at www.naturalchildworld.com and we are launching our digital edition for computers and iPad in March 2012. This will be available on our website as well and on zinio.com. Currently we are looking into physical distribution into Australia and New Zealand.
++ GIVEAWAY DETAILS ++
To celebrate the worldwide launch, we have 3 online subscriptions to giveaway!
To enter simply follow instructions below.
(i) LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW telling us why you’d like to win a subscription to Natural Child World; AND for an extra entry
(ii) By midnight on Friday 24th Feb (Australian EST), “Like” Natural Child World on facebook with comment “I’d love to read Natural Child World in Australia”.
The winners will be drawn at random on Saturday 25th February 2012 (Australian EST). The winners will be notified by email. GOODLUCK!
Posted in Competition/Giveaway, eco baby + child, Interviews
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Nude food all wrapped up!
Are you into Nude Food? If this concept is foreign to you, you either don’t have kids at school, or you are a prolific user of plastic wrap!. The concept of Nude Food (nil plastic/rubbish in lunchboxes) was introduced in various pre-schools and schools around Australia just a few years ago, and is gradually being accepted as a normal practice – Savings millions of plastic bags going to landfill each year!. But is it easier said than done? It does take some thought, but with a few basic pieces, it is very easy!
Nude Food - Not a placky bag in sight!
Reusable Lunchskin Sandwich and Snack bags - 3 sizes!
Nowadays there are so many lunchboxes available with various compartments for storing salads, sultanas, homemade muffins and sandwiches – and no plastic wrap etc is required. But some are still faced with the dilemma of what to store their sandwich in to keep it soft and fresh. Speaking from personal experience, Lunchskins are the answer! Made from food grade fabric and available in large Sub size, Sandwich size and snack size, they keep sandwiches together and fresh – and at the end of the day you can just shake out the crumbs, or place in the dishwasher (yes!) and reuse it the next day! The large size fits teenage/adult sized rolls or two sandwiches, the standard size is great for one sandwich, and the snack size is great for crackers, nuts, and smaller morsels – great for toddlers snacks when out and about.
BPA Stainless Steel Drink Bottles
There really is no excuse to keep buying plastic bottled water everyday when water from the tap is clean and free, and you can simply refill a sturdy stainless steel drink bottle. We do love the unique designs on the Earthlust stainless steel drink bottles, and the fact they are BPA free is the wonderful icing on the cake so to speak.
So there it is – Nude food options all wrapped (erhemm unwrapped) up – For kids AND adults! What will you be using in the office or kids lunch boxes in 2012?
Lunchskins and Earthlust bottles available online at State of Green.
Posted in eco baby + child
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GIVEAWAY: Planks by Green Hat Workshop appeal across generations
What type of present do you buy for kids at Xmas time? Do you go for the whirring, spinning and flashing toys that chomp through batteries but excite kids no end. Or do you focus on toys that inspire imaginative play and get little brains thinking and analyzing. Planks falls into the latter category, and the kind creators from Green Hat Workshop are offering up a Box of 100 – perfect timing for Xmas!
Box of 100, 200 and 500 Planks!
No shaky hand placement there!
What may look like a simple concept, is in fact pure genius. Long slender pieces of plain timber are used as building blocks to construct anything you like. And it WILL appeal to all ages. The planks are perfect for little fingers learning to stack and knock down. A few years down the track, the same fingers will be constructing forts, trains, fairy houses and more. As teens and adults join the throng, wondrous architectural and sophisticated forms will take shape.
Defying the laws of physics - now that's just showing off!
To see the Planks in person, you can visit the Magnolia Square Market at St Kilda Town Hall in Melbourne THIS weekend (Fri evening – Sunday) where they will be exhibiting…..OR…..you can enter the giveaway below!
++ GIVEAWAY DETAILS ++
To be in the running to win a box of 100 Planks, just show Green Hat Workshop a little love by liking their Facebook page AND leave a comment below. The winner will be drawn at random on Wednesday 16 November 2011 after 7pm. (Australian entrants only).
Posted in Competition/Giveaway, eco baby + child, gifts
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GIVEAWAY: EcoNino Organic Change Mat Cover
Today we have a giveaway that will introduce a bit of colour and pizzazz to an otherwise generally unattractive but extremely functional space —– the baby change table. Usually, the baby change mat is a non descript foam mat covered with plastic or a terry towelling cover. Functional – oh yes. Attractive – Far from it!
Kylie Black of Australian brand Eco Nino, has released a range of GOTS certified 100% organic change mat covers that are not only wonderfully soft and sensitive on your baby’s bare skin, but also provides a lift to an area that can be quite unattractive (in more ways than one!)
The stripey covers come in a range of colours to suit your décor and are designed to fit all standard change mats – and Kylie is providing one lucky reader the chance to WIN one!
++ GIVEAWAY DETAILS ++
To go in the running to WIN an EcoNino Organic cotton change mat cover, please leave a comment below AND “Like” EcoNino’s Facebook page. The winner will be drawn at random on Wednesday, 9 November 2011 after 7pm.
Posted in Competition/Giveaway, eco baby + child
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Odds & Ends have it all stitched up with reclaimed materials.
Do you love plants but manage to kill everything left in your care? Andrea Daniel of Odds&endS may have the perfect solution for you. Her plant range looks good, requires no watering, they withstand extremes of temperature, never wilt and are not plastic! Too good to be true, you say? Okay, whilst the cacti plants are not real, they look close to the real thing, although a lot cuddlier than the real version!
Just last year, Andrea Daniels launched Odds&endS, a craft label devoted to traditional crafting techniques utilising antique and reclaimed materials. In addition to her signature cacti pieces, Andrea also creates some very friendly looking soft toys and patchwork blankets crafted from old pullovers made pure wool, cashmere and mohair jumpers.
Trained in Industrial design and holding a BA in Fashion Design, Andrea works part-time in the fashion industry, in addition to running Odds&endS. Between juggling both occupations, Andrea kindly spared a few moments to share with us a little further insight into Odds&endS:
1. What inspired you to start Odds and Ends? I have trained in Design (Fashion and Industrial Design) and always been a self-confessed craft lover. What started as a hobby making soft toys and cacti for friends, lead to participation in some design markets, which then developed into private and retail orders. Odds&endS was initially about finding inspiration in my large collection of vintage textiles, to create unique handmade products.
2. Who inspires you? My family are a wonderful support and encourage me to keep up the work involved in running a label. Creatively, I admire Ray and Charles Eames for their whimsical sense of design, coupled with their beautiful appreciate for form and function. If I had one wish, it would be to visit their home case house study #8 – so amazing!
3. What are your favourite pieces? In my collection of Odds&endS, I do love to make the knitted cacti. I never expected for a product concept to literally evolve the way that it has. I have to giggle when I find myself gravitating towards the landscaping magazines and botanical journals when I am at the Newsagent.
Beautiful original 1950's pots in "The Vintage Collection"
4. What does a typical day at Odds & Ends involve? No two days working on Odds&endS are the same. I try to vary my work tasks each day, but guaranteed there is always lots of knitting and hand sewing to complete! Over time I have worked out ways of streamlining my practices, so generally I will work away at one task at a time. For example, I will spend a morning on knitting, afternoon sewing and then preparing/cutting pattern pieces for the soft toys/blanket collections. Evenings are great for administration and time for online marketing….I love blogging, and reading other design blogs!
5. What can we expect to see from Odds & Ends over the next twelve months? I am very excited about Odds&endS expanding into new product categories in the coming year. I hope to launch a stationary and illustration collection in collaboration with my sister Renee who has a background in printmaking and design. I also have some exciting exhibition proposals in the making…expect to see some larger than life knitted cacti!!
6. Share with us your easy eco living tip: I love thrift shopping, and where possible buy preloved over new. There is so much character in a vintage piece and often the quality and craftsmanship exceeds the fast mass production products of recent times.
Thanks Andrea!
Posted in eco baby + child, gifts, Interviews
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KeepCup release a new bold range of reusable coffee cups
Just when you thought Keep Cup reusable coffee cups couldn’t get any cooler, they have gone and released their new Summer/Winter 2012 Rocker Series featuring some very hot new colours!
The bold and edgy range carries through all the impressive attributes for which KeepCup has won a long list of awards – they fit under barista espresso machines, their thermal properties keep your drink hot for 20-30 minutes longer than a regular disposable cup, they fit into most car and bike cup holders, are BPA free AND designed and made in Australia.
For the big coffee drinker - 454ml KeepCup will keep them going!
The OTHER good news is that Keep Cup has now also introduced the babycino cup, which makes perfect sense – Bubs can now share in babycino’s whilst on a stroll in the pram, and the small sized cups are perfect for pre-schoolers to sip on milkshakes and hot choccies!
Very Cute babycino cups!
We are excited to announce State of Green has just received an order of the new Rocker colours and babycino cups hot off the production line - To be the first of your friends to score your very own Rocker series reusable coffee cup or babycino cup, pop on over to our store and we will get it to you toute suite!
Images courtesy of KeepCup.
Posted in eco baby + child, eco brands, eco living
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Bird Textiles launches NEW limited edition organic kids range.
Byron Bay based Bird Textiles is quite the pioneer when it comes to sustainable organic textiles in Australia. Created by designer Rachel Bending, it became Australia’s first climate neutral business in 2004. Designing textiles printed with vegetable based ink upon SKAL certified organic cotton, Bird Textiles has earned quite the reputation for their high quality fashion, homewares and crafts. The LATEST news though, is that Rachel has just launched a small limited edition organic kids fashion range – aptly named Little Bird, Little Bird.
It’s not hard to work out why Rachel decided to delve into children’s fashion – her first child Quincy born just under one year ago has clearly provided the inspiration. In line with Bird Textiles eco ethos, the classic styled range really draws on grass roots styling.
Their printed organic textiles range has been fashioned into a gorgeous playsuit for good old fashioned fun, a smock dress with smocking and frills fit for a garden party, a pinafore which will become a wardrobe staple and a baby sling for warm cuddles. Little Bird Little Bird – we do love your new range and look forward to seeing more.
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New stock arriving …and we are a little in love with it!
It’s time to share with you some of the new eco friendly products we are getting in-store at State of Green! For the kids we have a great range of products that have multiple functions! Cute wall hooks for kids bedrooms are great for hanging clothes, displaying their precious jewellery collection or putting away the kids kinder and school bags. Retro inspired eco-ply money boxes double as a money saving device and act as functional bookend holders too. And last but not least blocks made from sustainable rubberwood have had a modern makeover, with see through rainbow coloured sides that also double as sound shakers, and patterns and swirls to challenge young (and old) minds or simply stack upon one another!
Adults don’t miss out either – Hand thrown porcelain comes in whimsical new shapes. Hanging test-tubes vases straight out of science class now act as unique hanging vases perfect for that freshly plucked flower. Grandma’s old Hanging planters are transformed into modern facetted hanging trays. Birds have never had it so good in their own porcelain bird house complete with timber perch roof. Turning inside out, little delicate creamers and tripot stands feature a flash on internal glazed colour against tactile unglazed exteriors. And finally, sustainable Moso bamboo table and kitchenware is simply a joy to hold in hand.
We do hope you enjoy our new range – And this is just the start of it ……
Posted in eco baby + child, eco living, gifts
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State of Design Festival: Great fun for kids
The upcoming State of Design Festival in Melbourne is packed full of SO much fun. What we love about State of Design is that it encourages ALL people to attend – both young and old and from all walks of life. Today, we focus on the fun to be had for kids, families and even the big silly kid inside that adult body of yours!
ArtPlay Backyard Open Studio: 30-31 July: How many times have you told your kids to go into the backyard to play for a while? At Backyard Open Studio, kids won’t only be imagining the perfect backyard, they will design and create it too! Architects Jeff Nelson and Paula Kilpatrick and Designer Ben Landau will help inspire young design visionaries as kids get hands on experience sketching, modelling and playing in the ultimate backyard!
Eco Cubby Workshop: 21-24 July: The cubby is the ideal kids sanctuary. Whether elaborate or simply designed they capture kids imaginations worldwide, as they transform into forts, pirate ships, fairy castles and treehouses. At the Eco Cubby Workshop kids can work side by side with architects and artists to design a funky, environmentally sustainable cubby house model – a kids nirvana.
Makedo’s Marvellous Life-size Maze: 31 July: Both young and old can become part of the Makedo building team, helping to construct sections of a maze made simply from recyclable cardboard and Makedo’s very cool connectors. All your efforts will be rewarded at the end of the day whe you get to explore, play and get lost inside it!
My Patch My Kinetic City: 24 July: Get the family together and construct your ideal “patch” of city. With the help of experts, you will learn about environmental initiatives and be provided with raw and recycled materials to create your very own patch – At the end everyone’s creative patches will come together to form an “imagined Melbourne” – Looking forward to seeing the result – What does the Melbourne community ideally want?
Paper Plane Acadamy: 23-24 July: Here is your chance for both young and old to show off your paper plane folding and flying prowess! This workshop offers you the opportunity to learn paper folding techniques, and test out your creation in the Aerial Playground’s purpose built obstacle course – the big test is whether your plane will glide smoothly, or dive bomb – a big bet lots of laughter will abound at this session!
S.E.A.T – The Stool That Could: 23-24 July: In this hands on workshop, Primary School aged students will learn about sustainability, design and positive social change. Kids will have a ball building and decorating their own SEAT, whilst learning about SEATS great social initiatives that are being conducted across Australia.
Junk Puppets: 30 July: Pop on down to the Polygot Theatre at the Heide Museum of Modern Art to learn all about puppet design, manipulation and construction techniques. Using common household waste products, your child can create their own puppet and then perform as a puppeteer – great Melbourne winter day activity.
Most events are free, however pre-registration is required and some have limited spaces – So get involved NOW. Of course the hardest part of the State of Design Festival is choosing which event to attend - Have Fun!
Posted in eco baby + child, Eco Events, Uncategorized
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Pull out your diary: State of Design festival 2011 starts soon!
The State of Design Festival kicks off in just two weeks. If you are planning on attending, I suggest you get out your diary toute suite as it is jam packed full of fab design events for people of ALL ages and interests. There are design talks, dancing exhibitions, dinners, workshops, walking (& running!) tours, book readings, open house tours … it’s offering up a smorgosboard of fun fun fun!
Some of our faves include the following:
SOWS EAR DESIGN CHALLENGE: As part of the Design Made Trade show, designers have been challenged to transform industrial waste products – in this instance hoop pine offcuts – into a practical design object.
THE REPAIR WORKSHOPS: Emma Grace of The Treasury & Leyla Acoraglu of Eco Innovators are teaming together to explore the value and concept of repair – setting up shop in the basement of Donkey Wheel House.
MAKEUP: We sung out about this Workshop a little while ago (see here), but here’s an absolutely friendly reminder to get involved! All sorts of incredible local design talent will be running special workshops at the Harvest Workroom exploring the principles of re-using and upcycling materials – Some really great design projects on offer here!
LIGHTCYCLE: Did you know Australia was the first country to ban incandescent light bulbs? Lightcycle will exhibit the creations of designers who have a passion for light, sustainability and new technology. Each designer has been given using a plug, cable and LED lamp to create something beautiful – Some of the entries will become a permanent installation at Donkey Wheel House – very cool.
ECO BUILDING, FOOD & FORESTRY: A little off the beaten track over in Violet Town, permaculture designer and teacher David Arnold is running tours showcasing the local efforts made to make their community more sustainable – you even get to chow down on local produce for lunch – sounds like a great day out!
The events above do not even shave the tip off an iceberg, so I suggest you crack open your diary, grab a cuppa and head on over to State of Design to markdown the events you will attend! Keep a look out Monday morning for our post on State of Design for Kids (and big kids too!).
Posted in eco baby + child, eco design, Eco Events
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