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Handmade Kids: Eco-Friendly Gear for Toddler Boys


Story by cloud9designstudio Published on July 15, 2008 in Craftivism	Photo by cloud9designstudio

When we started brainstorming ideas for the Handmade Kids Series, there were two ideas that came through loud and clear: eco-friendly items and finds for little boys. There is so much cute stuff for girls, so we decided to share the love! cloud9designstudio, an Etsy seller with an eco-mission and a lil' boy of her own, stepped up to the plate.

The eco-movement, with regards to clothing, is a conscious effort to shift the public's thought process from buying at mainstream big box stores toward buying local, organic and earth friendly items. This effort to save our planet is important because it helps reduce our carbon footprint, brings awareness to global warming and helps us tread a little lighter on this earth. The future is in our hands. What will the world be like for our children if we don't start making greener choices?

From Organic Consumers:

"Just 2.4% of the world's arable land is planted with cotton, yet it accounts for 24% of the world's insecticide market and 11% of sale of global pesticides, making it the most pesticide-intensive crop grown on the planet. $2.6 Billion worth of pesticides are used on cotton worldwide each year."

The health of our planet has also been adversely affected by pesticides. The pesticides and synthetic fertilizers used on cotton routinely contaminate groundwater, surface water and pollute the water we drink. Fish, birds and other wildlife are also affected by the movement of these chemicals through the ecosystem. Many of these problems have been documented by the Pesticide Action Network North America.

[Cotton ball photographed by that owl]

Here's how you can get involved in the eco movement: You can support local farmers and workers and cut down on pollution caused by shipping, support fair wage labor practices (fair trade), and buy recycled or upcycled items.

Here’s what to look for:
1) Organic or fair trade clothing
2) USA made, local or sweatshop free clothing
3) Recycled, upcycled, thrifted or reused clothing

As a mom to a 2 and a 1/2 year old toddler boy, I know how hard it is to find cute clothes for little boys, much less eco-friendly clothes. So I scoured Etsy to bring you the very best eco-gear for boys. I found some cool handmade items sure to look hip on your eco-tot while he's out there huggin' trees!

This tie from redpajamas is adorable.

Like this hand dyed block printed and appliquéd Owl long sleeve shirt from 1girl1boy.

Or these darling upcycled wide leg pants from earthbabyee that are made from a man’s dress shirt.

How cute is this lightening bolt appliqued shirt from trustysidekick.

And MaryZoom has a cute art smock made from a repurposed 100% cotton shirt.

This upcycled shirt from SarahBird is so colorful.

This organic hoodie by SweetMemoriesQuilts is too sweet.

Here’s a bright blue organic dragonfly shirt from inkyspider.

An organic “strong” tee from littlegorganics.

Sandcookies has this precious set.

And this “I’m like totally organic” tee from ninaandtom says it all.

For More Info on Being an Eco-Friendly Parent...

Healthy Child
Simple Steps
Green Mom Finds
Organic Consumers
Sustainable Cotton
Environmental Working Group's Advice for Parents
Treehugger
Green Living Online
Green Mom
Green Hour
Organic Cotton Association
Friends of the Earth
Climate Crisis
Stop Global Warming
Team EcoEtsy
Team EtsyKids
Team EtsyMoms
Trailer for Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth

For more information on being a friend of the environment, check out the Storque's Earth Tones series. For more child related content, continue reading the Handmade Kids series!

Handmade Kids Series | Special Kids Showcase | Baby Gift Guide | Children Gift Guide