Kids' Party Favors on Etsy

These are the wands we gave out as party favors.
Sadly, they are no longer available.

Climate Crusader's excellent suggestions for goodie bag alternatives reminded me of an Etsy treasury list I started a couple of years ago when searching for party favors for my children's joint birthday party. First I'll say that I think the whole goodie bag business is completely superfluous, but oh well. I still feel obligated to give out something. But I try hard to only give out something I would want my own children to receive. A couple of years ago that something was a Hot Wheel for the boys and an Etsy flower wand for the girls (no points for gender neutrality).

While spending too much time searching Etsy for affordable kids' party favors, I found many additional possibilities depending on your price range (items below range from about $1 to $5 each). I've also pinned all these on my Kids' Party Favors from Etsy board.

Click here to continue reading on The Green Phone Booth


What have you found on Etsy lately?

Would you like more ideas and tips about Going Green Gradually? Sign up for my free email subscription to get each of my posts delivered to your inbox (I usually post one or two times a week). You can also follow me on Facebook, Google Plus, Pinterest, Twitter, or with your favorite RSS Reader. I hope to see you again soon!

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Green Sisterhood Etsy Handmade Giveaway

2013 has been a great year for Eco-novice and to help show my appreciation to all of you readers, followers, and fans, I am excited to be able to co-host this incredible handmade giveaway from the Green Sisterhood. Loyal Eco-novice readers know that I am a big Etsy fan, and I am thrilled to be able to introduce you to these eco-friendly sellers and their fabulous handmade products. One person will win all of these items, a total retail value of over $200!

Thank you again for being part of this community. Good luck!

Note to email subscribers: You will need to visit the post to enter the giveaway. Click here to go to the post and enter.

Green Sisterhood's Eco-Friendly Holiday Handmade Giveaway!

1) Herban Lifestyle - Man's Grooming Set $40 

2) zJayne - Set of 3 Lavender Dryer Sachet $15 

3) House of Metalworks - Yoga Hamsa Necklace $23 

4) Happy Earth Tea - Organic Immune Boosting Tea $12 

5) Crunchy Betty - Exquisite Cleansing Oil $15.50 

6) HerbanLuxe - Vegan Mascara $11.75 

7) Reiter8 - Clutch made from boat sail $23 

8) ecokaren - Eco Fabric Modal Scarf $30 

9) Snackaby - Food Safe Reusable Snack Bags $23 

10) Juniper Mercantile - Organic Unbleached Cotton Towels $15

And to improve your chances of winning, check out these participating bloggers. You can use the rafflecopter widgets on their blogs to gain additional entries.

Green-Talk 

ecokaren 

Almost All the Truth 

Condo Blues 

Conscientious Confusion 

Creative Green Living 

Eco-Mothering 

Healthful Mama 

Healthy Home Magazine

Glue and Glitter

Green-4-U

Growing Slower

Jen and Joey Go Green

Mindfully Frugal Mom

Nature Moms Blog

Non-Toxic Kids

O'Boy Organics

The Greening of Westford

The Green Divas

The Soft Landing

Here is how to enter. If you can't see the widget below, CLICK HERE TO SEE the FORM AND ENTER a Rafflecopter giveaway

NOTE: The giveaway is for US and Canada residents only and ends on Monday at 11:59PM EST, December 16, 2013. Please read the Terms and Conditions at the end of the Rafflecopter widget before entering. By entering, you are agreeing to subscribe to Green Sisterhood's email newsletter.

Are you interested in Going Green Gradually? Sign up for my free email subscription to get each of my posts delivered to your inbox (I usually post one or two times a week). You can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, or with your favorite RSS Reader. I hope to see you again soon!

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Looking for a Wooden Monster Truck?

Dog Wood by Dave's Monster Truck is 10 inches long, 6 inches tall,
weighs nearly a pound and a half, comes in several colors,
and costs $15.95 (plus $12.95 US shipping).

Look no further. I found one for you on Etsy. This truck is made by Dog Wood by Dave and it made the perfect birthday gift for my 5yo.

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Wooden Toy Helicopter by treewoodworks

My daughter loves helicopters. Airplanes too, but helicopters even more. How do you think she felt when this toy arrived in the mail?

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Wood Keys by Etsy Shop Mama Made Them

My 8-month-old with wooden keys by Mama Made Them.

When my first child was a baby, I used to sometimes give him my car keys to play with while buckling him in the car seat. But one day after buckling him in, I walked over to my car door and just before opening it heard the familiar "beep" of the car alarm. I had accidentally left the car keys in the hands of my baby and my baby had locked me out of the car. Before total panic could set it, my baby pushed another button and unlocked the doors. Needless to say, after that experience, I never again let him play with my car keys.

Even if you are no where near your car, you should avoid letting small children play with your keys because household keys often contain lead and little kids love to put keys in their mouths.

But recently I was thinking about how my current baby is always trying to grab my keys out of my hand. And why not? Keys are fun. That's why there are about 100 varieties of plastic toy keys for sale. I once owned a set of colorful #5 plastic toy keys, but I have long since purged all plastic infant toys from my house. And so I thought, I should get her some wood keys.

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10 Places to Use Your Toy Roll Up

Toy organizer travel roll-up ($15)

The toy organizer travel roll up ($15) by Kidsstore features seven pockets of various sizes that can hold crayons, paper, and small toys such as a deck of cards, Hot Wheels, or little play figures. The roll has a fold over flap and attached elastic closure (thick hair band) to hold everything inside once it's rolled up. It rolls up quite compactly and could easily fit in a purse or small bag. I've already used our toy roll ups at church and at a restaurant.  These are perfect for anytime you need your child to stay put and play quietly for a period of time. The fun of simply taking out and putting back the objects into their pockets should not be underestimated. Here are 10 places where I believe a toy roll up would come in particularly handy.

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Blessed Not Blind Designs (Cloth Gift Bags Giveaway!)

My bloggy friend Kelly of miskellany has opened an Etsy shop!  A little about Kelly and her newly opened shop Blessed Not Blind Designs in her own words:

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Handmade Gifts for Kids from Etsy shop Kidsstore: Giveaway and Review

Toy organizer travel roll-up ($15)

I am excited to share with you two quality handmade items from the Etsy shop Kidsstore. Both of these items  would make a fun yet practical gift for a toddler or young child.

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Green Phone Booth: Etsy Favorites

Last month a large portion of my shopping budget was devoted to purchasing more of several Etsy products that have helped me to reduce my plastic consumption.  This week on The Green Phone Booth I wrote about these Etsy favorites:  Celeste Blake Designs (just got some new gallon-size bags), Kidsstore (just got some additional 100% cotton bibs), The Mulled Mind (just got some more steel straws), and Green Store (my first foray into shampoo bars).

Read my post A Little Etsy Love and then share your Etsy favorites -- especially those that have helped you go green -- in the comments.

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Baby-to-Child Flannel Blanket: Giveaway and Review

43" square 100% cotton flannel blanket in Pink ABC print by kidsstore ($28  +  $4 shipping).

Baby items often have a very limited period of usefulness: newborn hats, 3-6 month onesies, tiny washcloths, soft rattles, crib mobiles, Baby Bjorn, receiving blankets.  Looking back, I wish I had purchased and received fewer items with such limited usefulness and sought out alternatives that would grow with my child.  For example, instead of having 15 receiving blankets, I wish I had just a handful of larger blankets.  Receiving blankets truly are useful for a time, but after a few months, they are just too small.

So when kidsstore (who also makes the Best Bib Ever, which I reviewed just last month) asked if I would like to try one of her baby-to-child flannel blankets, of course I said, Yes!  My 2-year-old and 4-year-old have been helping me test it out for a few months now, and I'm pleased to share with you our findings.

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Best Bib Ever: Giveaway and Review

Best Bib Ever from kidsstore ($19.95 + $3.00 shipping)

My nearly 2-year-old loves to feed herself but has not always been fond of wearing a bib.  About 9 months ago, she started tearing off her bib 0.5 seconds after I got the Velcro done up at her neck every single time I put it on.  I did try once seeing if I could wear her down by putting on the bib over and over again each time she tore it off, but, in the end, she won that battle of the wills.  I tried various solutions.  The most effective was putting a too-big shirt I didn't care about over her clothes.  But she hated this and it was annoying to put on and take off.  So mostly, for the last many months, she has worn no bib. In addition to staining her every shirt, this has also meant that rice, couscous, and quinoa ended up in every nook and cranny of her body as well as her booster seat.

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Celeste Blake Designs Gallon-size Reusable Bag Giveaway & Review

Reusable gallon-size bag from Celeste Blake Designs,
$13.95 (incl. shipping)

About 7 months ago, I ran out of quart-size and sandwich-size bag disposable plastic bags simultaneously. As I pulled the last one or two baggies out of the box, I resolved to stop buying disposable baggies and find reusable alternatives to replace them. Since then, I have tried and reviewed numerous reusable food bags, and I am proud to say that I have not purchased any more disposable plastic bags since then.

But. . . I am still using disposable gallon-size bags. Until recently, I didn’t know of a suitable reusable alternative.

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Stainless Steel Drinking Straws by The Mulled Mind (Giveaway and Review)

Image from The Mulled Mind

Etsy discovery #5,044: stainless steel straws. Can you imagine? There is a person who makes stainless steel straws by hand from home. This is the joy of Etsy.

There is just one Etsy store that makes stainless steel straws, and it is The Mulled Mind.  The Mulled Mind is owned by Heather Melling of Massachusetts, a mechanical engineer who is using her skills to help you kick your disposable plastic straw habit.

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Reusable Food Bags - Variety Is Best

I've been test-driving a variety of reusable food baggies for a few months now.  Which is my favorite?  I personally have found it useful to own a variety of food bags.  Different designs have different advantages.  Horizontal Velcro is more secure but more difficult for little (and big) fingers to open.  Plastic-free bags keep your food away from plastic, but synthetically-lined bags keep food fresher (especially in the fridge or freezer) and use less water/energy/time to clean.  Sometimes you want a bag, and other times a wrap that turns into a placement is best.  You might want a kid-friendly fabric as a gift for your nephew but a vintage fabric for your stylish co-worker.  All of the products I reviewed are well-designed and expertly crafted.  I would be proud to own or give any as a gift.

What features are you looking for in a reusable food bag?

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Etsy Reusable Sandwich Bags Giveaway and Review (12 Stores, 6 Winners)

After reading this post, you will never have to buy Ziploc bags again. 

Since I gave up disposable baggies, I have reviewed a few commercially- made reusable food bags and wraps.  But as a devoted Etsy fan, I decided I also should feature some Etsy products.  Go on Etsy’s website and search for sandwich or snack bags and you quickly discover that there are A LOT of Etsy stores selling reusable food bags.   All those sellers, all those materials and fabrics, all those designs and prices – it can be overwhelming! 

Lucky for you, I have spent hours browsing these stores and now present to you some of my favorites.  I have personally tested bags from each of the stores (each store sent me at least one bag free for review).  These stores were selected for their competitive prices, awesome features, and lovely fabrics.  I also deliberately included stores that would demonstrate the variety of designs available.  If you don't have an Etsy account, you might want to make one now, so you can add some or all of the stores below to your "favorites."

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Eco-novice's Green Gift Guide

Still looking for the perfect green gift for that special someone?  Here are a few ideas.

1. Disposable to reusable.   Such as water bottles, reusable food baggies, cloth napkins and so on.  These are gifts that keep on giving while reducing consumption.  Reuseit.com has gift ideas for everyone on your list (use the index in the left sidebar).  If the recipient isn't so into green things, make sure to give something extra stylish that anyone would want to use.

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My 10 Favorite Etsy Wood Toy Stores {GIVEAWAY}

Note to readers (April 2013): Some of these Etsy stores are now closed or not selling products at this time. If the item you are interested in is unavailable, try searching Etsy. Their search engine is pretty good.

Whenever the grandparents give me some cash to buy gifts for my kids, I visit Etsy.  Now you are about to be the beneficiary of my many hours spent browsing the world of Etsy for the coolest wood toys.  You can read all about the reasons why I love buying toys on Etsy HERE.  If you don't have an Etsy account, you might want to make one now, so you can add these stores to your "favorites."  I have purchased toys from the last two sellers listed.  All the others are on my Etsy wish list. 

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Why I Love Shopping for Toys on Etsy

Made in the USA.  Most Etsy sellers are based in the US (some are in Canada, Europe or elsewhere).  All of my toy purchases have supported a local artisan and the U.S. economy.  My child's toy was not created with questionable materials under sketchy conditions and then shipped half-way around the world.

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