FLOR baby area rug above - FLOR products are made with renewable and recycled content and are recyclable at the end of their life.

Skip the carpet: Carpet fibers trap in plenty of allergens. When I was building a house one of the flooring experts we talked to said you can never, ever get your carpets truly clean, no matter how powerful a cleaning machine you rent. A better choice is to choose a sustainable wood floor. If wood floors sound chilly, you can also get an area rug. Many are being made with postconsumer materials nowadays and you can clean these much easier than attached carpet.

Skip the wallpaper: Most wallpaper contains PVC. Your choices – go with a low to no VOC paint, choose some fun non-toxic wall decals, or head to MOD GREEN POD - one of the few companies making toxic free wallpaper.

Skip the plastic blinds: First of all if you’ve got another choice than plastic why not choose it? Secondly, I think plastic blinds look tacky. Better than plastic blind choices include certified organic textiles, hemp curtains, shades made from paper, reeds, bamboo and other grasses, and FSC-certified wooden blinds and shutters. Be sure to look for coverings made with non-toxic finishes and low impact inks as well. Read more about eco-friendly window coverings.

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The kit is pretty much a one-stop deal covering the planning stages of a green baby shower all the way up to the actual event with topics such as invites, location, food and drink ideas, party games, decorations, hosting supplies, and green gifts for mama, baby, and guests. Rounding out the guide is a nice eco-friendly birth & first year rituals section.

Below are a few examples of some of the many tips that the Tiny Footprints kit offers…

• Give sustainable party favors such as locally sourced goodies like organic beer, sustainable wine, honey, beeswax candles, vegetable soaps and so on.
• Baby and mama gifts should be sustainable and healthy for example, organic cotton clothing over conventional cotton and sustainable wooden toys over plastics.
• One eco baby shower activity suggested is to have guests decorate organic cotton unbleached baby onesies with non-toxic fabric paint and stamps.

Since the Tiny Footprints kit is Oregon based some of the location and gift ideas are specific to the area, but overall, this kit is packed with ideas that anyone, anywhere can use to green their baby shower. Plus, FREE is the best price ever for so much info. Visit the Tiny Footprints kit online.

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This week we’re looking at some Green Baby Shower Tips. Today some DIY baby shower ideas that are green and easy to pull off.

Cute cupcakes:

• Choose an organic cake flavor – personally, I think lavender or raspberry make nice baby shower cupcake flavors, but you can pick any old flavor.
• Use sustainable baking methods – i.e organic ingredients, reusable cupcake cups or pretty cake molds and so on.
• Decorate with pretty little candied lilacs or other edible flowers.

Pretty little organic roses:

You can buy organic cloth diapers, onesies, washcloths and more for the mama to be then roll them into sweet roses, lolly pops, or even bunnies. These double up as sustainable decor and gifts at a shower.

Wrap it right:

See 10 neat, natural, and eco-friendly gift wrapping ideas.

Lighten up:

I think that for an evening shower, twinkly LED lights strung around the room are pretty. However, you may also want to make some nature based candle arrangements. Candles are soothing – and every mama deserves a fun BUT relaxing baby shower.

Rock the party:

Rocks are the ultimate in natural party decor. It seems unlikely, but true. Rocks can be written on and used as plastic and paper-free baby bingo markers or dish markers (i.e. “Spring Salad”, “Dressing”). They can also be used to create homemade shower gifts – fill up recycled glass jars to the 3/4 mark with rocks; add soil, and a nice easy flowering plant.

Sea glass favors:

You can make cool favors with recycled sea glass beads – OR even have a necklace making event at the shower.

NEXT: More baby shower ideas coming up later this week, although if you want ideas stat, check out the book Celebrate Green. PLUS later today the second half of our look back at the best Tree Hugging Family Green videos (we already saw videos for the kiddos).

Do you have any DIY green baby shower ideas to share in the comments?

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If you’re expecting, you can have a green baby shower, which is a great way to set the mood for welcoming your baby into an eco-friendly world.

Some general tips:

Register green: Register for green gifts (ideas coming up later this week), and if you have enough gear, consider having folks donate to an eco-organization in your family’s name.

Green your invites: Email baby shower invitations are your greenest bet, but after that recycled cards are good too. Make sure you pick up some recycled thank you cards as well.

Go organic: Serve organic foods and drinks with a nature theme. Think flowers as cake decor.

Go non-disposable: Use real dishes or biodegradable dishes. Use cloth napkins or recycled napkins. Ask friends to wrap all gifts in plain brown recycled bags or other recycled papers and tissue. Tell guests to be creative with their recycled wrapping and maybe have a contest for best recycled gift wrap.

Give favors that matter: Go with favors that aren’t disposable after one use; for example small jewelry boxes, candle holder, organic flower seeds and so on.

Green your decor: Make your own decor from recycled items, or purchase eco-friendly decorations.

Later this month we’ll look at some specific ideas and plans related to all of the above. By the end of March, we’ll have an entire collection of green baby shower ideas to gather together so that for your next baby (or a pals) you can plan the perfect green baby shower.

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Amazon has come a long way in terms of green toys and baby/child gear in the last year or so. One of the lines they carry; Summer Infant, has tons of adorable organic toys available, like the Summer Infant Nature’s Purest Activity Blocks above. Bonus, these items clock in at excellent prices. Far better prices than say, most of the organic toy companies. If you’re looking for a good baby shower gift, first birthday present, or just a safe non-toxic toy for any old occasion, I’d check out this line.

Some options…

Summer Infant Nature’s Purest My First Toy Giraffe or Summer infant Nature’s Purest Sleepy Safari Soft Toy

Summer Infant Nature’s Purest Safari Stack

The Summer Infant toy line is made with 100% naturally colored organic cotton and no dyes, chemicals, or pesticides.

[images via Amazon]

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In any case, One Book Two Book is having a great Happy Green Bee giveaway right now. I really like Happy Green Bee. They offer super bright organics for babies and toddlers. Personally I prefer natural colors, BUT almost all eco-baby companies produce natural colored baby items, when many parents do like bright shades, so I think it’s nice that Happy Green Bee caters to this demographic.

You can win three gifts in one; an organic cotton knit receiving blanket, a 4 oz. bottle of eco-friendly laundry soap and a re-usable zipper tote (perfect fit for bottles and extra diapers). I’m a little leery of the plastic case, because plastic; not so green. However, it is reusable, and hopefully recyclable – their organic cloth and eco-laundry soap are both green choices.

This is a great green mama-baby prize – there are three ways to win; visit One Book Two Book to learn how to enter.

[Images via One Book Two Book]

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It simply does not get any cuter, or more indulgent than the adorable All-Natural Flavors onesie. Printed on a chocolate brown 100% organic onesie, sweatshop-free, and silk screened with low-impact inks. Just perfect for that delicious baby in your world.

$24 – All-Natural Flavors onesie

+ Green with Whimsy

November current events at Tree Hugging Family – themes, reviews, news, and more…

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The entire set comes gift-ready in a sweet box with space for a personal message inside. There’s also a three-piece option. Best of all, these sets are available at an amazingly low price. Visit Kiddymania to learn more.

[Gift image via Kiddymania]

Click here to learn about all the current contests, themes, and green challenges going on at Tree Hugging Family in September 2008

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When it comes to paint, you’ll want to look for low-VOC paint. VOCs are “volatile organic compounds” and the Environmental Protection Agency EPA reports that using low-VOC or no-VOC paints will improve indoor air quality and obviously eliminate toxins, which results in cleaner, healthier indoor air for your baby.

Following are some good greener nursery wall paint choices…

• Aglaia Natural Paints
• Yolo Paint
• Anna Sova
• Paint collection from Green Fusion Design
• The Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co

Other green nursery wall options:

Decorate with fume free decals instead of paint, such as this adorable Branching Out Tree Stick On from Land of Nod.

Healthy wallpaper for the nursery

Other nursery wall decals – no paint fumes at all.

[Yolo paint image via Yolo Colorhouse products page]

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