An excellent family-friendly, green-friendly company with almost zero cons.
Coming up I’ll be posting specific reviews of a few Artterro art kits. Before I do that though, let’s take a look at the company basics.
BASICS: Artterro was founded by Forrest & Jen who note that after searching high and low for “Eco-friendly, open-ended art projects with beautiful materials” they were disappointed. The solution – start their own eco-minded kids’ art company. The main company goal, according to Artterro is, “We want to make it easier for people to bring art into their lives. Artterro kits are for kids, families, seasoned artists and novices alike. We’ve done the sourcing and shopping, helping busy people bring a creative, meaningful activity home to their families.”
ABOUT THE ART KITS:
- Arterro art kits come in many flavors; enough to suit just about any crafty kid out there. From felted wool art kits, to jewelry making kits, to collage kits, to wire and bead kits, to unique bubble wand kits and more, there are seriously kits that will work for everyone.
- Each art kit is unique and filled with its own assortment of materials, colors and patterns.
- Materials used in each art kit are high quality and gorgeous. Plus, materials are non-toxic and safe for kids. Even their artist quality paints are non-toxic.
- I liked the included instruction booklets. They didn’t overly explain, for example, they didn’t say, “You MUST make this sort of project,” and yet they were useful enough when necessary. I like how the instructions left plenty of room for kid creativity. I can’t stand when art instructions tell kids 100% what to do and what to make.
COMPANY SUSTAINABILITY PERKS:
- Materials used in Arterro art kits are high-quality natural materials such as 100% wool felt, 100% post-consumer waste decorative handmade paper, glass and wooden beads, cotton thread, hand batiked cotton fabric, and copper wire.
- Non-excessive packaging. This company uses minimal kit packaging made with 100% post-consumer waste recycled paper and reusable bags instead.
- The company partners with Green Solutions Printing, a small family-owned business in Eugene, OR, where all their packaging inserts and marketing materials are printed on 100% post-consumer waste recycled paper using vegetable based inks and renewable energy.
- Arterro retail display units are made from 100% renewable bamboo.
- Shipping is light – I don’t know for sure how all products are shipped but the samples I received were in the smallest possible packaging that could still do the job.
OTHER PERKS:
- Artterro kits are assembled at and shipped from Goodwill Industries in Milwaukee, WI, a non-profit organization that provides jobs to people in need.
- The company has donated kits to Project Kids in Cambodia, an art program serving orphanages in Cambodia, and are looking to partner with other like-minded organizations.
- The website was user-friendly with zero glitches. Although, I would suggest updating their blog more often.
FAMILY-FRIENDLY PRICES:
I would say these kits are very well-priced. They run about $15-17 (sometimes a little more or less) a pop, so even if you have more than one child, you can afford individual art kits for each child.
If you look up similar art kits, even non-eco kits, you’ll see that Arterro kits are extremely similar in cost, which I liked. For once a company who doesn’t smack the term “eco” on something then hike the price. Nice right!?
If you wanted to buy a bunch of this stuff separately and make your own eco-art kits, I’d guess that it would cost much more. Additionally, although inexpensive, these kits look really cool (they’re well designed and put together) so for a birthday or event gift they look amazing and will get kids excited, but for less $ than most eco-toys items.
COMPANY CONS:
- No dedicated online shop. However, the links they posted on their where-to-shop page were seemingly up to date, so products were not overly difficult to find. waldorfsupplies.com seemed to have the most selection.
- No Fair Trade statement regarding material sourcing. The company does state, “We are committed to forming partnerships with great supplier companies we believe in” so I’m hoping that means they’re checking all their material sources out, but again, no statement about this that I saw.
OVERALL SCORE:
5 out of 5 little trees. I tried to find more cons about this company, frankly, because they seem a little too perfect. Green products, great prices, seemingly killer ethics? There has to be a glitch right? Maybe I’ve become too skeptical of green. In any case, after hunting around and finding nothing bad about them, other than the two minimal cons above, I’ve decided to give them all 5 trees – an excellent score.
This is a company who really seems to know what will attract kids when it comes to an art kit (as you’ll see in my reviews coming up) and you cannot beat their prices. Artterro art kits are truly a family-friendly, eco product you’ll feel great about giving your kids.
Coming up, I’ll be posting specific Artterro art kit reviews by me and the kiddos, so stay tuned.
LEARN MORE:
See my green product rating system and green product rating criteria or read more green product reviews.
{ 0 comments… add one now }