Celebrate Earth Day with Urba Baby!
Written by John Accrocco
Plant a tree folks because it’s Earth Day! Here at Urba Baby we try to sell products not only at a great price but that are also environmentally sustainable. We try to make a habit of recycling all of our often over-packaged products and all of our paper, plastics and glass.
A growing trend in clothing is bamboo fabric. Bamboo is super soft and cozy and also a much more renewable resource. Bamboo grows much faster than cotton and needs less water and virtually requires no pesticides. This durable fabric is becoming a hot commodity among the baby market because of its natural anti-bacterial qualities in addition its cashmere texture.
We are proud to carry three different lines of bamboo baby and maternity clothes. West Coast Baby is an all-bamboo line of brightly colored solids and patterns. Unique designs like baby-sized kimonos as well as mom-sized kimonos make this Canadian company a great fit for Urba Baby. Another fantastic line of bamboo is the ever-popular Kicky Pants. Stretchy and vibrant, this adorable collection of patterns and solid pajamas range from newborn to 24 months and make a very desirable gift. Purebelly is a great maternity product for anybody concerned about keeping their lotions of their clothes. This belly wrap is bamboo and helps to keep your clothes clean and reduce the appearance of stretch marks.
Whether you’re washing your baby’s toys or wiping down surfaces, everyone should be concerned with what chemicals we’re coming in contact with and putting out in the world. We carry Dapple brand cleaners and detergents because they’re all natural and entirely non-toxic. According to the back of the bottles, these food-based cleaners aren’t iced-tea but accidental consumption will not hurt you or your baby. Now, of course you’ll be skeptical about how well they work so we use them in our store for cleaning and we can attest to how great they clean and how wonderfully they smell. Dapple comes in surface cleaner, dish soap, laundry detergent and wipes that are good for your home and great for the ecosystem.
Green Sprouts is an amazingly affordable line of basic baby products from cleaning to feeding to playtime. If you’ve ever thought about what your baby’s toys may be made with, have no fear with this company. All the products produced by Green Sprouts are made from all non-petroleum based natural resources and are especially biodegradable.
Some of our customers have brought to our attention that many schools are going “trash-free,” which means that no child may bring their lunches in disposable packaging. Do you ever wonder what becomes of all those Zip-lock bags and containers? Well rest-assured and get Itzy-Ritzy reusable snack bags! These quirky, vinyl-lined, cloth baggies are an invaluable resource for parents as well as anyone trying to reduce waste. The inner lining doesn’t absorb icky smells and is easy to wipe out and toss in the washing machine.
It’s easy to forget about environmentalism between being up all night and spread thin, but here are a few helpful tips to making your household greener and getting your kids into recycling at an early age. Never toss baby food empties in the garbage, almost all baby food comes in glass containers that can be repurposed or thrown in the blue recycling bin. In fact, all plastics should go in the blue bin too! Just finish a box of wipes? Blue bin! Over your baby bottles? Blue bin! Instead of throwing away clothes that don’t fit anymore, try taking them to a Gaia Box, these green boxes are located all over Chicago and are just as easy to use as the blue bin! For more recycling methods and ways to educate your family on green living, visit http://www.chicagorecycling.org/. Set a good example and reduce, reuse and recycle this and every year. Happy Earth Day 2012!
