There’s no reason to spend a lot of money on stocking stuffers, even if you want to go green this holiday season. There are plenty of delightful green stocking stuffers for teens and younger kids that are $10 or less.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR BABIES

• Dandelion Soft Shaker Bear Toy - This cute rattle is stuffed with fluffy natural corn fibers and made with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified bamboo velour.

• Miyim Simply Organic Petite Plush Toy Ben Frog or Annabelle Lamb - adorable little organic miYim dolls, made from all natural materials including organic cotton and plant and mineral dyes.

• Small Play Silk - Babies love play silks for peek-a-boo and other games, plus these silks are smaller (baby-sized) and beautiful. Available in 22″ or 35″ squares in a variety of colors, or sets of all six pastel or vibrant rainbows hues. Hand dyed in the USA made with China silk by a woman-owned company.

• Under the Nile Organic Veggie & Fruit Toys - Perfect baby teething toys that look like yummy veggies and fruits and are made with 100% organic cotton.

• Odd Ducks – Fun galore in the tub and BPA and toxin free. Plus if you buy them in a four pack they’re just around $6 each – great if you have more than one kid.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR TODDLERS

• Wooden Top - A sweet top made with different wooden pieces of different colors, carved into a smooth shape. This product is Fair Trade, made by HSSS, a non-profit organization that works for the uplifting and development of underprivileged artisans.

• Cosmic Spinner - Dazzling birch wood spinning tops that are easy to spin and make cool patterns. Each spinner is laser cut in a different pattern. Made in the USA .

• Organic Velour Finger Puppet – Made with organic cotton these tiny puppets are cute and interactive.

• Plan Toys Mushroom Kaleidoscope in Green or festive Red – Made of natural, chemical free recycled rubberwood and finished with non-toxic water based dye.

• Triangular Crayons Extra Jumbo (12 colors) - Made with non-toxic, proprietary materials that color beautifully. These are also ergonomic shaped and won’t roll away from little hands. Bonus, no  messy paper wrapper waste.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR KIDS

• Itty Bitty Red and Green Holly Baby - Super sweet itty bitty red and green Holly Babies are small enough to accompany your child everywhere he or she goes. All natural fiber doll. Made by Evi in Brazil – Fair Trade.

• Grandpa’s Yo-Yo - Beautifully colored natural yo-yo toys with zero plastic pieces, lights or sounds. Made in the USA by the enchanting and ethical Camden Rose.

• Green Toys Recycled Jump Rope - A great healthy stocking stuffer by Green Toys. Made with 100% cotton and 100% recycled plastic handles in the USA.

• Magic Wands- An essential small toy for any up-and-coming princess, fairy, magician, or wizard. Made from hardwood and non-toxic paint and finishes in the USA. Color choices: Pink, Purple, or Yellow.

• Keeki Pure and Simple - Keeki Pure and Simple uses as many organic raw materials as possible in their products and their nail colors are free from parabens, phthalates and other toxic ingredients. Nail polishes are also gluten-free, toluene-free, vegan, made in the USA and never tested on animals. Many festive holiday color choices available and one of the best priced polishes for tots too.

• JJ’s wooden knife kits - A unique introduction to the craft of woodworking, this kit features genuine spring action, unsharpened blades with rounded corners. Easy instructions. Made in the USA with Cherry, Maple or Walnut wood.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR TEENS

• Eco Hackysack/Juggling Ball - A fun tie-dyed, eight-panel footbag/juggling ball. Great for a round of hackey-sack, to display your juggling prowess, or for a game of catch. Made in Romania from 100% eco-hemp canvas and is fully biodegradable.

• All The Better To Kiss You Lip Gloss - Yummy eco USDA certified organic lip balm that comes in a vintage tin. Available in Lavender Vanilla, Pepperminty, Pomegranate or Chai Mandarin – also comes in a set. 100% natural, paraben free, cruelty-free. Made in USA and the company plants a tree with every purchase.

• Priti Mini Flowers - Adorable little bottles of nail color that are safe for your teen. Completely non-toxic and free from the big bad three – toluene, formaldehyde and DBP’s. A wide color range is available.

• No Enemy tri-fold wallet – This No Enemy tri-fold wallet is made of 100% hemp and is a more eco-friendly way for your teen to carry his cash.

• Pop In The Bath Bubble Bar by LUSH - Solid bubble bath without packaging waste. There are also Lush soaps that will appeal to teen boys as well, such as  Demon In The Dark Soap.

• Guitar String Bracelet - Handmade in the U.S. with recycled guitar string, lead-free nickel and brass. Designed by Hannah Garrision & Steve Bernstein.

• String Dolls - Cute fun that everyone loves. Fair Trade and awesome.

STOCKING STUFFERS FOR CRAFTY KIDS

• Clementine Art Natural Modeling Dough – 3 Pack of Lemon, Lime and Strawberry - Soft, crumble-free non-toxic dough. All natural and washable. Colored with turmeric, carmine and spinach, and scented with strawberry, lemon and lime.

• Build and Decorate your own Dinosaur or Steamer - Tiny toys that kids will love to build and decorate. All pieces are already pre-punched on stable, white cardboard and can be put together without glue and scissors. Creative, fun and fully recyclable.

• Crazy Crayons Eco Stars (100% Recycled Crayons) - Non-toxic and recycled crayons in a fun holiday shape.

• Stockmar Modelling Beeswax Bars - This festive holiday set comes with 2 red bars and 2 green bars. Non-toxic, creative and kid-safe.

• 8 Holiday Crayon Rocks - Crayons rocks are one of the best small stocking stuffers. Very sturdy (i.e.. won’t break in a stocking) plus fun for little hands and non-toxic.

Kamibashi is just about the cutest shop ever, and eco-friendly to boot. I especially love their String Doll Gang.

The String Doll Gang is a band of awesome fun character keyrings, handmade with Fair Trade practices in Thailand. Each String Doll has his or her own special flavor and a power that is positive and helpful, making them a great gift for every member of your family. Every String Doll comes with a double-sided fabric tag explaining their character and a lobster claw keyring. These are safe for kids over eight (some have tiny parts).

Bonus, each sweet little doll is just $10 a pop, so these are perfect as eco-friendly stocking stuffers, but cool enough for a stand-alone gift too. Also, the company service is great. They got me my dolls super speed fast and actually sent me an email thanks you last year after I order some of these for the holidays.

AstroNeil, Ollie & E-Moe String Dolls

Last year for the holidays I gave my son Cedar the adorable AstroNeil. I got two other folks Ollie and E-Moe. This year, if you’re looking for a sweet, small gift, you have to check out their new adorable Gingerbread Man String Doll!

Gingerbread Man String Doll

This new little doll is super cute for Christmas, but if you’re not totally in love with Gingerbread Man, there are other winter holiday String Dolls to choose from too – see the gallery below.

• Christmas DreamTeam – Two String Dolls – Santy & Rudy for a special low price! You can also buy them separately.
• Snowy
• Shredder Girl & Boy
• Elfy
• Snowflake
• Gigi the Panda – not holiday minded, but just in case your kids are panda obsessed.

With dozens of choices, there really is a String Doll out there to suit every personality. Which means you can shop here for all your office mates, extended family and so fourth, for just $10 each and be done with your shopping early! That’s a good gift for you and your friends.

+ String Doll Gang $10 each

The best and greenest way to go when it comes to holiday greeting cards is to skip the store-bought paper cards and send e-cards or make homemade cards with recycled paper and other art supplies you already have on hand. However, since the holidays are quickly approaching, and since some people do green store-bought cards, here are some eco-friendly holiday greeting card ideas…

• Greener Peace Wreath

   

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• Snowy Reindeer

   

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• Traditional Wonder

   

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• Three Wishes

   

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• Stylish Birds

   

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• Sheer Collage

   

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• Night Owl Paper Goods Holiday Cards 2011

   

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• Night Owl Paper Goods Holiday Cards 2011

   

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• Night Owl Paper Goods Holiday Cards 2011

   

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• Night Owl Paper Goods Holiday Cards 2011

   

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• Night Owl Paper Goods Holiday Cards 2011

   

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• Colored Snowflakes

   

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• Little Frosty

   

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• Golden Shimmer Handmade Paper Ornament

   

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• Peace Love & Joy boxed letterpress folded cards

   

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• Igloo boxed letterpress folded cards

   

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• Snowflake single greeted offset folded card

   

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• Grow-A-Note Snow Birds

   

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• Grow-A-Note Hibiscus Turtle

   

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• Exhilarate the spirit!

   

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• Gift-a-Tree Card Seasons

   

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Greener Peace Wreath: This simple, yet sweet card is designed by Hello Little One for Tiny Prints. It’s meant for businesses, but could be customized for anyone. Tiny Prints uses 30% post consumer content paper for both their Signature Recycled Matte and their Textured White & Textured Ecru paper cards. Their Studio Basics Smooth Matte designs are printed on FSC-certified paper. See other fun Tiny Print holiday cards below.

• Snowy Reindeer
• Traditional Wonder
• Three Wishes  (designed by the delightful Night Owl Paper Goods!)
• Stylish Birds
• Sheer Collage

Night Owl Paper Goods is one of my favorite unique green shops. Not only are their holiday cards 100% adorable, but they make their cards with sustainable birch wood or 100% reclaimed & recycled cotton from the garment industry and use eco-friendly processes. You can also get personalized family holiday cards.

Paper Culture holiday cards are modern and eco friendly – featuring exclusive designs, premium quality and 100% recycled paper. They have a lot of cute cards to choose from, but this year two of my faves are Colored Snowflakes and Little Frosty.

Twisted Limb Paperworks has many wonderful holiday cards and this company is super green. They make 100% recycled paper using combinations of recycled office paper, junk mail and used grocery bags. Water used in the paper making process is recycled from the company’s dehumidifiers and air conditioner whenever possible and no extra fake colors are added to the paper. Envelopes, reply cards, and cardstock invitations are 100% recycled. Check out the Golden Shimmer Handmade Paper Ornament which doubles as a card and resembles an antique glass ball decoration (an awesome deal too – 8 cards + frost envelopes for under $23!)

Smock makes some of the most beautiful holiday cards on the planet and uses eco-friendly materials and practices, such as bamboo paper, bamboo envelopes, 50% post-consumer polyester boxes and sustainable offsetting. They also use only vegetable-oil based and low-Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) inks and plant trees for the planet, among many other eco-practices. See their lovely designs below.

• Peace Love & Joy boxed letterpress folded cards
• Igloo boxed letterpress folded cards
• Snowflake single greeted offset folded card

Green Field Paper Company offers both handmade paper and machine made hemp paper along with seed embedded paper (embedded with wildflower seeds). This year, their holiday collection has expanded and is totally adorable. I like their Grow-A-Note Snow Birds and Grow-A-Note Hibiscus Turtle.

All Positively Green cards are “green manufactured” to leave the lightest possible environmental footprint. Plus, 10% of the profits are donated to organizations that protect our environment and fight global warming. They have many holiday cards to choose from, but I like Exhilarate the spirit! holiday package set

The National Wildlife Federation offers many wildlife inspired holiday cards that help support the environment. For example, their Gift-a-Tree Card Seasons cards plant trees for friends and family.

PlanToys is an entirely eco-friendly and ethical company who offers some amazing green dollhouses. All of PlanToys dollhouses, from very affordable, to more expensive sets are made without heavy metals or lead, with natural rubberwood from rubber trees which no longer produce latex. None of the wood is chemically treated. Zero fertilizer is added to the rubberwood soil and PlanToys uses a special chemical-free kiln drying process. For colored products, a water-based, non-toxic finish is used and toys are assembled with certified E-Zero,  non-formaldehyde glue in place of traditional toxic wood glue.

• Read my PlanToys company review.

If your child wants a dollhouse this holiday season (or anytime) PlanToys is one of the best places to start your search. Not only is this company hyper green, but they offer dollhouses in seriously every price range, so any family can afford one. Following are your PlanToys dollhouse options…

PlanToys Eco Home

$51.80 PlanToys Eco Home - This is the dollhouse of the future for young children. Comes with wind turbine, solar panels, a living roof and an electric scooter instead of a car! This set includes the house, two dolls, an electric scooter, and furniture for two rooms. Like all Plan Toys, crafted from recycled, natural rubber wood, dyed with vegetable and soy dyes, and assembled with an earth-friendly process.

My First Dollhouse

$90.94 – PlanToys My First Dollhouse – The dollhouse is perfect for young children, being easily accessible from all sides and consists of a balcony, sliding doors and 4 rooms which can be furnished as a bedroom, bathroom, living room, kitchen or dining room with the different accessories. The rooms feature a springtime floral wallpaper design.

Chalet Dollhouse

$133.16 PlanToys Chalet Dollhouse – This dollhouse is made up of 2 units which can be arranged and rearranged in various ways to create a larger play area and to encourage creative thinking. The dollhouse has huge skylight in the roof and 2 movable staircases.

$183.14 Plan Toy Chalet Dollhouse with Furniture – This set is just the same as the regular Chalet, but comes with 5 sets of furniture, including Living Room, Bathroom, Kitchen, Children’s Bedroom and Master Bedroom.

Green Dollhouse

$145.30 – PlanToys Green Dollhouse – I LOVE the Green Dollhouse, as it encourages sustainable thinking among kids. The dollhouse’s energy efficient design includes a wind turbine, a solar cell panel and electric inverter for generating electricity, a rain barrel for collecting rain, a biofacade, which uses the natural cycle of plant growth to provide shading, and a blind that can adjust the amount of sunlight and air circulation. Also, recycling bins are included in the set.

$179.99 – PlanToys Green Dollhouse with Furniture – The Green Dollhouse with furniture is a super deal, coming with enough goodies to outfit five rooms: Living room, kitchen, bathroom, children’s bedroom and master bedroom.

Terrace Dollhouse

$148.39 – PlanToys Terrace Dollhouse – This Dollhouse features a cool movable terrace, partitions, windows, door, and staircase. There is a large upper floor terrace and attic space under the roof.

Victorian Dollhouse

$238.71 – PlanToys Victorian Dollhouse – This dollhouse is the bling dollhouse available at PlanToys, featuring 3 spacious floors including an attic. Each floor is accessible with panels and realistic sashes that slide open and shut. Additional attic space can also be made into any room your child desires.

Also see – DIY dollhouse ideas.

miYim always has the sweetest toys for tots, but this holiday season they’ve outdone themselves with an organic plush Disney character collection that’s too cute for words.

*Note – stay tuned to Growing a Green Family if you’d like to win one of these beautiful organic plush toys. A cool giveaway is coming up soon!

Perfect for the upcoming holiday season, miYim has brought in some familiar and friendly Disney faces, only in pure 100% certified organic cotton. Now Disney friends are more than cute, they’re safe and non-toxic for your child.

Micky and Minnie Mouse, plus most of the Winnie the Pooh gang are all here. I’m sure your child will fall in love with any one of these sweet plush dolls this holiday season.  Keep reading to learn about the eco-friendly features of these cute toys.

My favorite new toy is the plush Eeyore above! I had my own Eeyore stuffed toy as a child, and I carted him everywhere, but I wasn’t lucky enough to have him in organic form. Your child now does have the organic option available.

Each cuddly plush toy in this new My Natural Disney collection is super soft, made with all-natural, unprocessed certified 100% organic cotton. Every character features beautiful safe and natural muted colors made exclusively with non-toxic, low eco-impact dyes that contain zero heavy metals. Each doll features zero pull off parts and embroidered details, so they’re safe for even young green babies.

miYim has other green practices in place beyond using organic cotton, such as they use eco-friendly manufacturing processes, that reduce waste by using less heat, energy and water.

Coolest of all, this is an organic toy you can afford. Each of these Disney characters are under $30, meaning every family can afford a beautiful and safe organic stuffed toy this holiday season.

Seriously, have you seen anything cuter?!

Every year I update my Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide for the holidays. This year readers have noted that they aren’t interested in seeing any kitchens containing ply-wood, even if the outer wood is solid. That said, the offerings are more limited this year. This is for a few reasons:

• Companies lie (or exaggerate) and say their kitchen is made of “real wood” but when I dig a little deeper, I find out that their definition of real wood is plywood. It’s not a total lie I suppose, but since readers don’t want that, I deleted every conventional-plywood containing kitchen from the list.

• Secondly, many companies I’ve contacted haven’t gotten back to me. I’m guessing they don’t make real wood kitchens or they just have lousy customer service. Either way, if I’m not assured by the company that a kitchen is made of real wood or at least eco-ply, I deleted it from the list.

• Overall, what I’ve found is that VERY few companies make actual, full on wood play kitchens.

Then I thought, hey, maybe I should look on Etsy. I’m fairly Etsy obsessed anyhow, and I was hoping they might have some crafters selling real wood kitchens. Here’s what I found.

• Kulu Wooden Toys play kitchen

   

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• Heartwood Natural Toys play kitchen

   

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• Rewood Toys Mini Wooden Play Kitchen Set

   

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• Hammer & Nails play kitchen

   

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• Sweetie Pies and Monkeys folding fabric kitchen

   

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• Mama Made Them table top play kitchen

   

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Kulu Wooden Toys – My favorite kitchen was the surreal Kulu toy kitchen made with solid Oak with Cherry and Maple highlights and a beeswax finish. Not only is this imaginative kitchen beautifully, and uniquely designed, but it’s affordable and packed with awesome features, such as folding leaf and pull out drawer. I LOVE this kitchen so much – great curvy lines. Also see their cute compact play kitchen.

Heartwood Natural Toys – This adorable little chef’s dream kitchen is heirloom-quality, made from solid pine with paduak burners. The faucet shown is made from beautiful black walnut; also available in poplar. All kitchens are available with the option of a blue enamel or stainless sink. According to the seller, “All of my items are entirely non-toxic, including the glue and finish. I counter sink every screw and plug all screw holes with pine buttons or oak plugs. All corners are rounded over and sanded. All knobs and faucet turn & move for realistic play and are attached with bolts and lock nuts so they will not come loose. NO paint, NO MDF, NO plastic, NO plywood.”

Rewood Toys – I think their Mini Wooden Play Kitchen Set is 100% adorable. Plus, for once it’s a kitchen made for younger tots. Perfect for little babies and or small spaces. All knobs and faucet are moveable and function like a real stove and sink. Made with Canadian woods (mostly pine, cherry and maple). The bowl is made of stainless steel. Bonus – it comes fully assembled and ready to use.

Hammer & Nails – sadly, this shop isn’t taking any more holiday orders, but you could get this kitchen set in the new year. Handmade from solid, local Oregon pine with rounded, child-safe corners. All items are sanded and finished with a non toxic, all natural beeswax wood finish.

Sweetie Pies and Monkeys – this unique fabric kitchen isn’t wood, but it comes in pattern form, so you can make it out of sustainable organic cotton if you like, or reuse fabric. It’s a cute folding fabric kitchen that won’t take up all your space. The completed kitchen measures approximately 50 inches tall and 25 inches wide when all set up, but can be collapsed down and stored because it folds to approximately 25 x 14 x 2 1/2 inches. Perfect for sliding under the bed or placed in a box with all the play kitchen pots and pans and food.

Mama Made Them – the Little Kitchen is simply adorable and handmade with solid real wood and beeswax finish. It also comes with features galore for such a little thing. Such as rare oven, not usually found in a table top kitchen, four burners, made from solid red oak, a stainless steel, removable sink bowl and a handle for easy portability.

PlanToys is an entirely eco-friendly and ethical company, and bonus, they make some amazingly cute and green play kitchen sets. All of PlanToys kitchen play sets are made without heavy metals or lead, with natural rubberwood from rubber trees which no longer produce latex. None of the wood is chemically treated. Zero fertilizer is added to the rubberwood soil and PlanToys uses a special chemical-free kiln drying process. For colored products, a water-based, non-toxic finish is used and toys are assembled with certified E-Zero,  non-formaldehyde glue in place of traditional toxic wood glue.

• Read my PlanToys company review.

One of the best things about PlanToys play kitchen sets is that there’s a configuration in every green family’s price range. From bling sets to more affordable sets, you can manage a fun play kitchen for the holidays or a birthday gift. Below are some PlanToys play kitchen configurations I’ve created…

$550.00 Ultimate PlanToys Kitchen Play Set

BLING PLAY KITCHEN SET

If money is no object, than a hyper cool, full play kitchen set would include the following:

• $236.24 - PlanToys Kitchen Center
• $176.55 - PlanToys Refrigerator
• $137.61 - PlanToys Washing Machine Yellow

This fully stocked set allows for massive creative play at a decent price for what you get. However, you also need to factor in play food and dishes. It’s too pricey for most families though, so let’s look at some more affordable options below.

$413.00 - PlanToys Kitchen Center and Fridge

MORE AFFORDABLE PLAY KITCHEN SET

Eliminating the yellow PlanToys washing machine, which let’s fact it, not all kids need, will save you some cash. Because the PlanToys Kitchen Center is two sided and includes a sink and stove area, there’s still plenty of imaginative playtime included with this configuration. Together, these two items offer big fun and a somewhat lower price tag. Still, at $400+ it’s still more than some families will want to spend.

• $236.24 - PlanToys Kitchen Center
• $176.55 - PlanToys Refrigerator

$431.00 PlanToys Basic Natural Kitchen Play Set - Stove, Fridge and Sink

BASIC NATURAL & AFFORDABLE PLAY KITCHEN SET

I actually like the natural PlanToys kitchen set pieces. I think they look charming uncolored. These pieces are smaller than the colored pieces, but still great for pretend play. If you’ve got the money, $431 will buy you three whole play kitchen pieces, the stove, fridge and sink, allowing for lots of fun at an affordable price. If you’ve got more to spend, there’s also a dishwasher and washing machine you might consider (shown below).

• $129.99 - PlanToys Kitchen Set (stove) Natural
• $149.99 - PlanToys Sink Natural
• $150.99 - PlanToys Refrigerator Natural

PlanToys Play Kitchen Add-Ons

If you have less to spend, I’d go with the stove and fridge only or stove and sink only which will run you a very affordable $280.00. That’s a great price for a well-made, eco-friendly kitchen play set.

• $129.99 - PlanToys Dishwasher Natural
• $129.99 – PlanToys Washing Machine Natural

$409.00 Colorful PlanToys Small Kitchen Set

COLORFUL, SMALL, WELL-PRICED KITCHEN SET

If you choose some of the smaller PlanToys’ kitchen items, you can build a set for less money. The set above is still $400, but you get three colorful, well-made pieces. Knock off the sink and the stove and fridge will run you $270.00. I think a fridge is cooler than a sink, in terms of pretend play, but some kids like sinks better. In this case, if you went with the sink and stove only, your play kitchen costs would be cut to just $262.00.

• $123.01 - PlanToys Kitchen Set (Red)
• $139.31 - PlanToys Sink Yellow
• $146.72 -PlanToys Refrigerator Green

$300.00 Colorful & Affordable Play Kitchen Set

COLORFUL & AFFORDABLE PLAY KITCHEN SET

The basic, no hutch PlanToys Kitchen Set in red is less expensive than PlanToys’ larger kitchen center, but still very cute. Add the fridge and your child can have a colorful play kitchen configuration that leaves cash left over for play food and dishes.

• $123.01 - PlanToys Kitchen Set (Red)
• $176.55 - PlanToys Refrigerator

$40.00 - $100.00 PlanToys Tabletop Stove

TABLETOP FUN & SUPER AFFORDABILITY

PlanToys also makes some sweet tabletop stoves, made for fun and your budget. These kitchen sets are more basic, but still cool enough to offer plenty of pretend play opportunities. Plus, you can’t beat the price. There’s a very cool pink set right now, available with a full set of pots and pans, for just $100.00. The pot-free version is even less at $40.00. At these prices you can afford to add a fridge or sink component and lots of play food and dishes, and still keep costs well under $300.00-$350.00.

• $99.99 – PlanToys Tabletop Stove and Cookware Kitchen Set
• $40.00 – PlanToys Kitchen Stove Red

$178.00 PlanToys Dish Washer Set

THE LAST ADD-ON

The PlanToys Dishwasher didn’t really fit nicely into any of the configurations above, but it’s an add-in or exchange option, if you child is dying for a pretend dishwasher. I think it’s a little costly, especially since the sink is available in other sets, but I did want to mention it.

• $177.99 - PlanToys Dish Washer Set

If cost is not an issue, one, you’re lucky and two, you have to see this amazing kitchen play set. This gorgeous kitchen play set features moving knobs, a towel and apron rack, a removable sink for easy clean up and inside the oven is a sliding tray for serving or baking.

The kitchen set was designed by Natural Pod and made on Vancouver Island, British Columbia with a combination of environmentally responsible FSC certified Maple Europly, Pure Bond, Oak and Fir and finished in natural beeswax. Europly is a ply wood, but an eco-ply made a urea-formaldehyde adhesive that meets the U.S. HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development) emmissions standard of 0.3 ppm or less.

I love this kitchen and the beautiful attention to detail. Although it’s a more costly option it will last years.

• CAD $630.00 – Natural Pod Chef’s Kitchen
• Natural Pod

I’ve been celebrating Buy Nothing Day for years. This year, I’m even more encouraged to celebrate, because Buy Nothing Day falls on November 25th, my birthday. Buy Nothing Day was originally launched by the folks at Adbusters, and it’s pretty simple to participate. Buy Nothing Day encourages people to skip the Black Friday madness and choose other, better alternative activities instead.

Below is the awesome Buy Nothing Day video – it was made back in 2005, but it’s still relevant. By the way, when it first appeared, many media networks like MTV and ABC banned this commercial, deeming it too hard-core for American consumers.  Lame.

Most people know about Black Friday. It happens every year, the Friday after Thanksgiving. Stores hold massive sales and people head out in droves to shop. There are some huge issues with a holiday that celebrates massive consumerism though, such as…

• Black Friday is a huge time waster. You could spend the day with your family instead of spending it in a stressful, crowded store check-out line. It’s a holiday weekend for pete’s sake, don’t you have better stuff to do?

• Black Friday encourages the gigantic “Buy more, buy bigger” mindset that’s already in place in this country.

• Black Friday is not eco-friendly, because it’s a day focused on buying as much stuff as possible – not healthy for people or the earth. Plus, most retailers who participate in the Black Friday shenanigans don’t carry safe, green, non-toxic products, and because it occurs all on one day, you don’t have time to research before you buy.

• Black Friday sets a terrible example for your kids. Kids are bombarded with consumer issues every single day. The last thing kids need is a holiday telling them how cool it is to buy, buy, buy.

• Black Friday doesn’t help you make smart consumer choices because it happens so quickly. There’s no time to think through purchases. You have to buy right now.

• Black Friday make people do incredibly greedy, money-minded and lame things. Seriously – read this.

• Black Friday is not peaceful. No argument on earth will convince me that consumerism, mixed with long lines, mixed with stress, mixed with fighting over products and other nonsense connected with Black Friday is a healthy way to live. A peaceful living mindset is tied intrinsically to eco-living. When you buy less, live healthier and make positive choices, a certain sense of calm begins to take over your life , which can lead to a greener lifestyle as well. Less clutter, less competition, more peace, and more green.

People who are healthy and happy, and not stressed over stuff can stay more balanced and have more time to figure out how to invest in a greener world. You don’t have to shop, shop, shop on November 25th. You could make a statement by not shopping at all.

• Stuff to do on Black Friday that in no way involves shopping.

Instead of shopping, use Black Friday as a day to go on a hike, play board games, hold a gathering for friends you missed over Thanksgiving, or whatever you like. If you REALLY must participate, consider a buy something responsible day instead.

You can purchase a fabulous wooden play kitchen for your child, and odds are your child will love it. However, some kids are merely play kitchen dabblers. You know, kids who move from activity to activity without much pause. For kids like this, a simpler, less heirloom quality play kitchen set will do, such as the Recycled Cocorico Cooker by Kidsonroof.

Created for Kidsonroof by Elisabeth Vidal, this sweet little cooker, although not wooden, is still eco-friendly, made with recycled cardboard. Perfect for little box enthusiasts and young cooks alike, this cooker features wonderful details, like an adorable fishbowl, tiny clock and little stove knobs.

Additionally, this recycled play kitchen set is extremely mobile, small and lightweight, while still big enough to offer plenty of room for hours of pretend kitchen play. Best of all, if you’re not sure your child will LOVE a play kitchen, this is a totally affordable way to find out. If your child does love pretend kitchen play, you can always upgrade to a more sturdy play kitchen later on or build your own DIY play kitchen set.

$25.99 – Recycled Cocorico Cooker