If you live in a small space, and have a bump, you’ll want/need/lust for this.

Basically, it’s a crib slash changing table slash chest of drawers all under one roof. Literally: theres a roof.

Compact, beautiful, on roll about wheels – this is really the most perfect small space solution I have ever seen. Who needs an actual nursery with this thing to roll about?!

Honestly, is this not just the sweetest solution ever?!

I don’t know if it’s green – but I do know that these things tend to be custom built – so you could most likely choose your non-toxic paints and finishes.

Nina’s House is designed by David Keune, who I never heard of until today – but who I hope gets into the baby design business for good.

(Why are all those Vikings such good designers? It’s so strange….)

Een mooie dag verder!

For those of you who cringe at the Pottery Barn catalogue look, vintage whatnots are the way forward.  Not only are they “recycled”, with a carbon footprint that faded before the Carter administration, vintage pieces tend to have a bit of soul and story – perfect for a nursery.

Three Potato Four is a fabulous resource for vintage signs, toys (careful of lead paint), furniture and general curiosities.  For example, how fabulous is this life preserver to make a traditional nautical nursery more interesting…

And this authentic 60′s child chair is a must have for any Eames loving parents…

And why use boring, seen them a thousand times before storage bins, when you can have these….

And wouldn’t these old science charts be “gee whiz wow” framed on juniors’ wall…

Basically, vintage pieces (after a lead test) are greener, groovier and often less spendy than new “art” or furniture that may bore your child to tears.

Happy shopping!

It just keeps getting easier to be a green mum….

The most important piece of furniture your baby will have is his crib. His home away from you needs to be the safest thing in the room – as it can easily become the most dangerous. (Sign up for a recall alert service to always ensure that your crib is safe structure wise.) Sadly, many mums don’t realize that their cribs contain a whole Love Canals’ worth of chemicals – which is why we are loving Romina.

Romina makes beautiful, save for the grandchildren baby furniture that does not contain lead, phthalates, VOC’s or that dastardly formaldehyde. And, as you may have guessed, the finishes are all uber non-toxic as well.

Most importantly, these pieces don’t look “green”, modern or carved by women who wear calico and bonnets. (Not that thats a bad thing.) They just look classic, elegant and well made.

The company harvests the wood responsibly as well – but, quite frankly, I don’t care. I only care about the toxins.

If you are in Chicago, you can get Romina furniture at Lazar’s, where you can also pick up an organic mattress to pop in the crib. Lazar’s also carries the modern Stokki cribs for excruciatingly hip among you. It’s a bit of a schlep – but totally worth the drive.

Happy Weekend!

Though still unable to crawl, eventually my son will be playing in our family room, which still has baby hostile furniture in it.  One of the most insidious pieces of furniture that we have (aside from the foam cushioned sofas that I can’t wait to get rid of), is a glass topped table with saber like sharp edges. As it’s from Goa, I don’t even want to think of what toxic finish it’s covered in.

So,I’ve been searching for a safe ottoman that I can hide his toys in.

I think I may have found it.

W&C makes eco-certified furniture that uses FSC approved wood, no formaldehyde and Oeko Tex 100 standard fabrics – eliminating the dreaded toxic off gassing that I live in perpetual fear of.

It ain’t cheap (healthier furniture is still a bit spendy), but neither would be my son’s allergist bills if I bought traditional furniture which fumes he would be breathing.

(Contact me if you like furniture from Goa…I have a lovely coffee table that I’ll sell you cheap….)

Though decidedly modern, this nursery line from Kalon Studios isn’t the ubiquitous Oeuf, and it seems that you could paint or stencil it with any color you liked.

Made of 100% sustainable and non-toxic materials, Kalon studios has a gorgeous suite of nursery furniture that doesn’t look like it was designed by a Finnish guy with one name who wears $1000 tortice (real) shell glasses.

I actually like this crib. It’s eccentric and cheeky somehow.

And these “nesting blocks” are begging for blankets to hide under.

This delightful Kalon Studios line can be found at Branch, which has loads of other green nursery items for the hippest among you.

As I have written about before, most furniture, from companies like Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel, The Land of Nod, etc., have toxins in their pressed woods, glues and finishes that I did not want to have in my nursery.  That these KNOWN carcinogens and neurotoxins are in the furniture is all legal - so these companies do meet or exceed all Federal regulations – but it is still dangerous – and does contribute to the poor air quality described by the EPA that contributes to allergies, asthma and, it is believed, SIDS.

As just an example of what is in most “traditional”, even expensive nursery furniture, this test by the State of California is illuminating:

” What did Environment California do? It took baby furniture purchased from major retailers such as Target and put the furniture in an enclosed environmental chamber. An independent laboratory measured the formaldehyde emissions from each piece of furniture. Then, the emission rate from the furniture was extrapolated to determine how much the products contributed to the indoor air concentrations of formaldehyde in a typical house.

The results? Of the products tested, the highest emitter, the Child-Craft Oak Crib (purchased at Target), would result in an indoor air concentration of formaldehyde at 20 ppb if it was the only source in the house. Since an elevated risk of asthma has been found in children exposed to indoor air concentrations of formaldehyde at 50 ppb, this is significant. Most homes have many formaldehyde sources, from cabinets to other furniture. Other high formaldehyde emitters were the Bridget 4 in 1 Crib by Delta (Wal Mart), Kayla II Changing Table by Storkcraft (Babies R Us), Berkely Changing Table by Jardine Enterprises (Babies R Us), Country Style Changing Table by South Shore Furniture (Target) and Rochester Cognac Crib by Storkcraft (Target).”   SOURCE

Right.

So, I had found a non-toxic crib and changing table – but what to do about books and toys? What would I store them in?  All the furniture at The Land of Nod, (except for their Ecotots collection) and the other companies had these chemicals in them that I just couldn’t bear in my wee mans playroom. And the non-toxic furniture that I did find, was far too modern for my taste.

Now what?

My best friend to the rescue . My bestie is from Michigan, and went to college with a girl who’s father (are you following all of this?), has a woodworking business. Whew.  All I had to do, she assured me, was email her friend with all of my specs – and voila!  I would have whatever I wanted, as pure as as a tree whittled by magic elves.

So. I sent Stacy, at the Tannery Creek, the measurements for a cubby storage system that I lifted from a catalogue that you most likely have on your coffee table, with instructions to use non-toxic glues, Natura paint, and pure, untreated hardwood.  The beautiful result – that was actually CHEAPER than a certain system from a certain Barn, is above, and below.

Needless to say, I am THRILLED with the result, knowing that, once again, and by what feels to be the skin of my teeth, I have avoided polluting my baby’s air and body with just a tiny bit of effort and planning.

What else do they make at Tannery Creek in Michigan?  Why, just everything!  Basically, you can just send them your images and measurements for anything you have seen somewhere else – and they can make it for you. Without toxins.  Needless to say, I will be using Tannery Creek in the future to make more furniture for my son as he grows.

Just look at these stunning cribs that they make, which can be painted in any no VOC paint, without harmful glues or finishes:

And could this heirloom rocking horse BE anymore adorable?

If you are here, in the Midwest, I hope that you will consider Tannery Creek for your non-toxic nursery, and if you aren’t – ask around!  There is sure to be a woodworking shop near enough that your child can have beautiful and SAFE furniture to grow up with.

And, aren’t they worth it?

The Venetian

 If you miss the English, French or Italian countryside, ever dated a man named “Paolo”, or have, at any time in your life, worn Laura Ashley – most organic cribs will not be to your taste.  This was my most tedious search as all of the “organic” cribs, though not made of vile particleboard, fiberboard, or plywood, (all, among other chemicals, contain urea-formaldehyde glues), were made by either the Amish, or Scandinavian designers with umlauted names and impossibly small tortoise shell glasses.  I wanted a crib that wasn’t treated with polyurethanes, formaldehyde, benzene, toluene, VOC paint or any other toxic “finishes” – but not one that looked like it was made in a prison workshop or had come from a planet far, far away. Basically, I wanted a crib that was classic enough to have been found in an attic at Chatsworth, and beautiful enough that my future daughter-in-law would want it for our grandchildren. Is that too much to ask?

I must of contacted (annoyed) at least 8 manufacturer’s, requesting their Material Safety Data Sheets, as well as asking them very pointed questions about how their wood was “cured”, where it came from (only yank wood, please), what glues and finishes did they use, etc….. To their credit, not one company (unlike when I called about carpets, a story for another day), was anything but very helpful. But…I was still no closer to the crib of my dreams, as most did use woods, glues or finishes that I just didn’t feel comfortable with when my son and heir would sleep in it for an average of 16 hours a day.

(Hint: DO call manufacturers, as half of them were willing, for an upcharge, to use the paint that you request.)

And then it dawned on me: Iron. Iron isn’t treated with any of the chemicals that I can’t pronounce, it doesn’t off gas and pollute the air, and it can be easily painted in a non-toxic paint! E voila! Within a day I had found the Venetian Crib by Bratt Decor, which we love, love, love.  (If you find a proper antique iron crib, just make sure that you have someone use non-toxic paint remover on it first, before you repaint it. Seriously. Old paint is lead paint.)

Now, iron cribs aren’t for everyone, especially if you have stairs (the thing weighs as much as I did pre-baby), or hate Austen novels – in which case  the Oeuf may be a better choice for you.

Another non-toxic, far too cool for me crib is the Stokke. This is for people who count “High Fidelity” as a favourite book and have at least one Fellini film on DVD.

If you aren’t uber cool or sloppily romantic you may be a Virgo, and more likely to appreciate the practical Amish cribs. It can always be recycled as firewood.

Which ever crib you do choose, just make sure that it, at the very least, is finished in a safe paint. And please buy an organic mattress for it, which I have discussed in an earlier post.

Lesson #4: MOST cribs DO contain unsafe chemicals. Call or write the manufacturer and at least know what your child will be sleeping in for the first, most vulnerable years of his life.

Price points for above cribs: $500-$1500