Every now and then duplicates of Laurel’s play clothes make their way to our laundry (a classmate’s clothing, sent home accidentally from school), and I let out a collective sigh for the convenience and commonplaceness that the mass clothing market provides.

Achieving individuality is not a problem at Nixie Clothing, where designer Nicole Frobusch has created a line of mostly one-off, boho chic children’s clothing (ages 1-8) made from 100% recycled wools and vintage cottons. The butterfly dresses (wool with vintage scarf sleeves) and leg warmers (knits and lace) make for an especially unique presentation (shown).
Check out Nixie’s online store, which is currently running an end of season sale; and be sure to visit again once their vibrant, whimsical spring/summer line launches in March. Note: prices are in British pounds but the shopping cart operates through Paypal; alternatively, stateside, Craftsbury Kids offers a small collection of Nixie items.

Coping with soiled diapers and clothing is the bread and butter of early parenting, and eco-minded parents will be happy to have Diaper Baggies in their arsenal. These disposable zip lock bags are made of recycled plastic, take up virtually no space in the diaper bag (especially compared to wads of leftover grocery bags), and offer an environmentally conscious, odor-trapping means of discarding dirty disposable diapers, or transporting soiled cloth diapers or infant clothing.

Available at HappiBaby.com, each package includes 40 Diaper Baggies ($5.49, 8 x 8", they’re currently offering a buy 2 get 1 free special); giraffe and flower designs are available and additional designs are in production.

While I love trundling around little boutiques on foot, sometimes one stop shopping is the way to go. Boston area mama Jeniphir Taylor-McIntire, a sales consultant for Natural Family Boutique, recently pointed me to her online store.

Natural Family Boutique offers eco-friendly products to support families from conception to weaning. The site offers Haba toys (my favorite toy line, period!) and apparel for babes, indulgent jewelry, spa, and home items for mamas, and lots of products for new parents (breastfeeding, baby care, and cloth diapering supplies, pregnancy, birth and postpartum products, books & CDs, slings). The site also offers resource material on breastfeeding, pregnancy and birth, nutrition, parenting, natural living, and activism.

Host a mama’s night out NFB party with Jenipher and get discounts and freebies along the way. Send Jenipher an email to find out more.

UPDATE 8/15/07: Sadly, Natural Family Boutique has closed its virtual doors. Please visit our category links to the left for more fabulous toy, gear, and pregnancy resources.