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

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

Each year, around the winter holiday season, I try to update both my Ultimate Green Dollhouse Guide and my Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide.

Also each year I get a ton of questions regarding which dollhouses and play kitchens are actually 100% plywood-free, lead-free and overall non-toxic. That said, this year I’m going to attempt to update these gift guides so that they only include safe products, made without plywood or with greener formaldehyde-free MDF or other eco-materials.

One safe play kitchen option

Before I get started, I figured I’d offer some information on what the problems are with some of the most commonly used materials in play kitchens and dollhouses.

Materials to be aware of in play kitchens and dollhouses:

*NOTE – I’ll be adding links below asap – you may want to bookmark this post so you can come back to it later as I add more material info.

• Plywood and other fake wood products
• Lead
• Paint
• Plastic
• Ethically sourced wood

What I’ll be looking for this year – safe dollhouse and play kitchen criteria:

Real wood: I suggest you look for real wood play kitchens and dollhouses over plastic or composite woods.

The chain of best woods: In my opinion, eco-sourced wood is best, but I also think that a real wood play kitchen or dollhouse made locally (even if the wood is not from a sustainable source) is still seriously better than a plastic or composite wood dollhouse or kitchen set.

Finishes: This year I’ll be looking for play kitchens and dollhouses that are made with child-safe less-toxic, low-voc finishes.

Lead: I’ll be choosing only lead-free or low-lead products that meet the newer lower CPSIA lead levels.

My little disclaimer – Obviously I’m not perfect. I research a lot, but sometimes companies give me the run-around. Plus, if you buy a dollhouse or play kitchen for your child, it’s your responsibility to also research the product to make sure it’s safe and fits your own green criteria.

Camden Rose is a collective of designers, artists, teachers, musicians, craftspeople and parents who design and sell awesome products for children. From non-toxic rattles to wooden musical instruments to old-fashioned games and blocks, Camden Rose has almost everything you need to outfit a super playroom, including some 100% amazing play kitchen sets.

Camden Rose kitchen play sets cost more than other play kitchens, but it’s because these are high-quality, creatively designed, non-toxic toys that will last for generations. Plus, this company has many green and ethical practices in place.

Currently, Camden Rose sells three different play kitchen products:

Camden’s Play Kitchen – Flat Pack Kitchen: This wonderful eco-friendly play kitchen is crafted from solid ash wood, collected from the thousands of trees infected with the Emerald Ash Borer. Instead of burning or chipping this wood into mulch, Camden Rose saved it and created toys that will last generations.

This kitchen is made in the USA without any plywood, press board, or soft pine. It includes creative accessories such as functional knobs and doors, a swivel faucet and removable high-gage stainless steel sink. Parents will adore the flat-packed shipping to save on space and packaging, along with easy 5-minute snap together assembly.

• $249.99 Camden’s Play Kitchen – Flat Pack Kitchen

A Simple Hearth Play Kitchen with Hutch: This non-toxic play kitchen is recommended for children ages 3 and up and is made entirely of real cherry and walnut wood in the USA.  Designed for multi-generational play, A Simple Hearth is made with zero plywood, particleboard/press board or soft pine. The stove, burner and faucet knobs work flawlessly and smoothly without the use of any metal hardware. The brushed metal sink bowl is made from real heavy gage stainless steel and can be removed for easy cleaning.

Everything about this play kitchen is made for realistic imaginative play. There’s a sliding cutting board that really pulls out 12 inches to allow access for more children. Oven and sink doors operate on self-closing hinges and a partition divides the oven from the sink compartment. The back of the kitchen hutch is open, meaning, this play kitchen may be positioned against a wall or in the middle of a room.

The kitchen is shipped partially assembled so it’s easy for parents. Builders simply slide on the hutch and screw on the walnut handles and assemble the hutch (8 screws and 8 hole plugs) then it’s all ready for your child to cook.

This kitchen is also available as A Beautiful Hearth - same kitchen, minus the top hutch.

• $349.99 A Simple Hearth Play Kitchen with Hutch
• $289.99 A Beautiful Hearth play kitchen without hutch

A Simple Fridge – Play Refrigerator: This fridge is hand-made in the USA with real Cherry, Ash and Walnut wood. Ventilation openings are built in the back of the Simple Fridge and slow self-closing metal hinges are featured on the doors. The fridge arrive at your home fully assembled right out of the box. All parents need do is attach the door handles with the four provided screws (instructions included). This is a perfect add-on to either of the kitchens above.

• $299.00 A Simple Fridge – Play Refrigerator

Camden Rose eco-friendly and ethical standards:

• All Camden Rose products are meticulously hand-constructed by craftspeople, not mass-produced.
• High quality materials, all certified non-toxic, such as stainless steel, wood, pure wool, silk and more are used.
• Almost all Camden Rose products are made in the United States. They also employ Fair Trade workers from a women-owned cooporative near Lima, Peru.
• Products are finished in natural, non-toxic beeswax.
• Each item produced is self-tested for lead content and other harmful chemicals. All products contain levels of lead content far lower or non-existent than the minimum allowed. Also, each and every product is free from materials known to produce phthalates, namely PVC (found in soft plastic or vinyl).
• Camden Rose uses red recyclable plastic netting for many of their retail products.
• All products meet CPSIA requirements.

We were just looking at eco-friendly grilling here the other day, and then today (strangely) I came across this totally cute play BBQ set for the kiddos.

This looks like a really fun summer toy for the younger set. This realistic-looking My Backyard BBQ Set comes with a hood that really opens so chefs can check and recheck if their food is grilled to perfection. Also included are two flat burners, a grill surface and an upper rack for indirect roasting. Four knobs allow the grill master to control the temperature over the grill surfaces. A collapsible side table and wheels are added bonus features, while under grill storage allows for you to store all your supplies while not in use.

This wooden BBQ set is shipped flat for low emission travel, and is completely non-toxic with child-friendly paints and finishes. Some adult assembly required and this toy is intended for children 3 years and up.

Right now this BBQ set is pretty affordable at $119.99, but before you buy I’d check the Oompa home page because they often run sales, like 10% off all orders and such.

+ My Backyard BBQ Set

If your little one is a pretend food fan, you might also want to check out…

• Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide
• Eco-friendly Play Kitchen Food
• Nine DIY play kitchen options
• Eco-friendly play kitchen dishes & accessories

For the last post in our eco-friendly play kitchen guide we’re going to look at eco-friendly dishes, pots & pans, and a few other cool extras for a play kitchen. However, before you spend money on items for your child’s play kitchen, you should know that you can make many of these items yourself in an eco-friendly manner for practically free. Read DIY Play Kitchen Food & Dishes for ideas.

If you missed the other play kitchen posts you can catch up now…

• Green Holiday Gift – Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide
• Eco-friendly Play Kitchen Food
• Nine DIY play kitchen options

If you are going to buy play dishes and other accessories; following are some cute green choices.

DISHES:

1. Pottery Doll Dish Set
2. Green Toys Cookware and Dining Set
3. Plan Toy Tableware Set
4. Utensil Set

POTS & PANS:

1. White Wooden Pots & Pans Set
2. Non-stick Child’s Bakeware – 3 Piece
3. Green Toys Chef Set
4. Plan Toy Cooking Utensils
5. Cooking Pot

FUN COOKING EXTRAS:

1. Plan Toy Toaster
2. Cloth Napkins
3. Kids’ Kitchen & Grocery: Kids Wooden Toy Stir Fry Set
4. Kid’s Kitchen Toys: Kids Wooden Tea Kettle and Bags Toy Play Set

1. Wooden Kitchen Appliances
2. Kid’s Kitchen Toys: Kids Wooden Baking Mixer Toy Play Set
3. Felt Cupcake & Muffin Bake Set
4. Baking Utensils from Plan Toys

If a green play kitchen set is on your child’s wish list this holiday season it’s smart to snag some super cool play kitchen food to go along with it. If you missed the kitchen play set posts you can read the following:

• Green Holiday Gift – Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide
• Nine DIY play kitchen options

Before you buy items for your child’s play kitchen, you should see which items you can make yourself – a greener, less expensive option. Read DIY Play Kitchen Food & Dishes for more ideas.

If however, you decide to buy some play food, following are some excellent ideas that can help round out a great kitchen play set. Starting with the pyramid food groups. All of the following play foods are made with eco-friendly, non-toxic, chemical and lead free materials. For a nice gift presentation, grab some nice kid-sized wooden crates and fill them with an assortment of goodies.

GRAINS:

1. Felt Bread
2. Biofino Toast
3. Bread Set
4. Ravioli Tin
5. Felt Pancakes

VEGGIES:

1. Kids Pretend Felt Vegetables
2. Potato
3. Knit Salad
4. Garlic Bundle
5. Vegetable Basket
6. Mushrooms in a Tin
7. Eggplant
8. Mashed Potatoes
9. Pumpkin
10. Vegetable Set
11. Veggie Cutting Set

FRUIT:

1. Slice of Kiwi
2. Lemon
3. Kids Pretend Felt Fruit
4. Felt Fruit Salad
5. Green Grapes
6. Pear
7. Cherries
8. Plum
9. Knit Watermelon

DAIRY:

1. Milk Carton
2. Biofino Store Sliced Cheese
3. Butter in a Tin

PROTEIN:

1. Biofino Grill Set
2. Egg Sunny Side Up
3. Biofino Grilled Chicken
4. Knitted Sushi Assortment
5. Wooden Eggs

SWEETS:

1. Felt Ice Cream Cone
2. Knitted Cupcake Assortment
3. Sugar Cube in a Tin
4. Christmas Cookies
5. Felt Cake Decorating Set
6. Soft Petit Fours
7. Gummi Bears

DRINKS AND CONDIMENTS:

1. Kids Wooden Toy Spice Rack
2. Salt and Pepper Shakers
3. Ketchup Bottle
4. Tea Time Tin
5. Food and Beverage Set
6. Kids Wooden Juice Carton Toy Play Set
7. Kids Wooden Jam Jar Toy Play Set

MIXED DISHES:

1. Turkey Holiday Dinner
2. Biofino: Bon Appetit Pizza
3. Doner Kebab from Haba
4. My PB&J
5. Plan Toy Breakfast Menu

Lately we’ve been looking at play kitchens as an ultimate holiday kid gift. They’re perfect for boys and girls, can be very eco-friendly, and are loads of fun. So far we’ve looked at…

• Green Holiday Gift – Ultimate Eco-Friendly Play Kitchen Guide
• Nine DIY play kitchen options

Now, if you’re giving a child a play kitchen, you’ll need some play food, dishes, and accessories to go along with it. You can buy all of these items, make some of them, or even make all of them. If you make play food and dishes, it’ll keep your costs down, plus it’s fun to be creative.

Pretend food holders for a play kitchen:

• If you’re going to make and gather play food, you will need a place to store it. Really any container will work but I’d stay clear of plastic. If you shouldn’t use it in your own kitchen, why have it in your child’s play kitchen? Any small wooden boxes, cardboard boxes, or even thrift store jewelry boxes will work.
• Get some cool dry goods holders (shown above) for a play kitchen – not too expensive and super cute. Glue a cute handmade or computer made food label on the outside of the jar.
• Gather old small canning jars, clean mayo and jelly jars, and so on.
• Make some small and inexpensive reusable cloth baggies with scrap fabric. You can even write on the baggie with a fabric pen. I.e. “Flour, beans, etc.”
• If you’re making some larger pretend food items you can put them in some small child-sized wooden crates.
• Cleaned out spice jars.

Great play kitchen food ideas that cost less:

Real food is actually the least expensive. It won’t work for all food items like eggs or fruit, but it does work for an amazing amount of dry goods. Head to your local grocer, hit the bulk section and look for…

• Nuts
• Dry pasta – get a thick shape that hold up, like pasta shells
• Hearty dry cereal that won’t crumble all at once
• Oats
• Dried beans of all colors
• Popcorn kernels
• Colorful spices – you’ll want to put these in tiny spice jars with the lid glued on tight. They’re for fun and pretend, don’t let your little one shake spices all over of course
• Dried peas

Kids love this kind of stuff. I’m sure you can think of lots more. Just be sure to use common sense. If you have a little one, don’t buy any small choking hazard items and stay away from anything too messy. Remember to also save stuff like old egg cartons and smaller cereal boxes – both look great in play kitchens.

Pretend food you and your kids can make:

Clay is an excellent play food medium because you can make detailed food that lasts a long time, in any color you like, and you can get non-toxic organic play dough or make some natural play dough yourself so it’s green and safe. In fact, even if you don’t make baked clay foods, it’s smart to keep some soft dough in your child’s play kitchen anyhow, then your little one can make any food item. Some good long-lasting clay food ideas include…

Easy ideas include  – small green peas, grapes, an apple, eggs, cookies (use cookie cutters), pancakes, and pretzels. For harder ideas, or to gather more inspiration visit The Clay Store. They have a ton of tutorials on making clay miniatures – many great looking realistic food items. Just make them bigger using your clay. Pizza, chicken, hot cocoa, sub sandwiches and more!

Felt is another excellent eco-friendly medium with which you can make every food item under the sun. It can be overwhelming to get started, so you can browse some pattern shops for ideas, or just gather inspiration to create your own food items. Good links for ideas include…

• Tea Set Felt Food PDF Pattern- Tray, Teapot, Teacup, Saucers, Sugar Cubes, Lemon Slices, Tea Bag, Napkins. PLUS a huge array of other felt food pattern goodies.
• Lots o’ felt food patterns – many are very unique.

Visit my pal Marye at Planet Green for more excellent ideas – Make Your Little Chef Homemade Play Food.

Dishes and extras:

• It’s less expensive to get real dishes than toy kitchen dishes. Go to the thrift store and look around. You can probably find all the small plates, cups, pots, bowls, wooden spoons, cookie cutters, rolling pins and silverware a play kitchen will need. Usually for under $20. Plus it’s green to go used.
• You can also use your clay again and make some simple dishes and pots or simply raid your own cupboards for extra dishes you have.
• Make some inexpensive tiny cloth napkins with scrap fabric.

Later we’ll see some eco-friendly food and dishes you can buy for your child’s play kitchen, but it’s so easy, fun and less expensive to DIY, that I like to share these ideas first.