August 11th 2011

Bootyland began in 1995, It has been a hub for creative families. Given that Bootyland has been around for 16 years, you would assume that we would have had a launch party sooner. Yet, with the babies being born, the buying out of the other business owner that Ellie had originally bought the  company with and the tides rolling in, we just haven’t gotten around to the celebration of the wonderful success of Bootyland. Bootyland has been a part of my life, long before I started working here.

I remember the days when I was pregnant and I was super scared (cause I had no idea what I was getting myself into), I would come into Bootyland and sit in the rocking chair reading up on the joys and woes of parenting. I remember I bought my first  parenting book “Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn” and wooden teething ring from Allison! She happens to be the Manager and has worked at the Land of Booty for about 1o years. It’s funny the little things we remember, like the people whom eased  us into parenthood. The nurse whom told us it only gets easier and all the friends whom, literally rolled over with laughter when told that you want them present at the birth.

Throughout all the people that have made my life as parent easier, BOOTYLAND has been the bestfriend, staying up with you when your son spikes a fever, telling you what they recommend you to do to decrease his fever. Or when he gets hives from eating oyster sauce, or his first ear infection, or how the hell do I wrap these f-in diaper covers. BOOTYLAND has been the beacon of all beacons for going through parenting with style as well as ease knowing that whatever you get from Bootyland is safe for the wee babies we cherish from the moment we meet them. AS well as safe for the environment that we live in. So, hats off to bootyland and to all the customers that have made this neighborhood shop,  my and your new family!  So come on down on Thursday, August 11th at 3pm and join in on the festivities as we give a big shout out to all the wonderful customers that have made BOOTYLAND  a success.

Please come celebrate our 11th anniversary with us at our Eleven Party this Thursday, Aug 11th at 3:00. We will have a fashion show, face painting, a DJ, and more. We look forward to seeing you all there for a great time!

“I am so happy to have had a business on capitol Hill for the last 11

years. As the visual landscape shifts we still see inspiring neighbors and

families come through the doors.During the last eleven years I have been able to meet and know so many

inspiring people and and families. From all of the customers, co -crew,
local artists and small businesses. Our memories are flooded with faces
and stories.  After 11 years we still find ourselves saying we are have
the most awesome customers and have had pleasure to see such inspiring
families grow.A few years ago I read an article in the new york times the discussed
how local shops provide more that just goods and services. The small
businesses in an urban environment create places for people to connect. It
is a place where you meet your neighbors or those with common ideals. It
reflects the richness of the culture.”- Ellie Cassidy

SALE!!!!

Thank goodness the day has turned bright! It has been very unfortunate that the weather is the way it is. About a week ago we had a sidewalk sale. Unfortunately we had a rain out, so we brought the sidewalk sale inside. The sale is still going on. So, if your looking for some sustainable urban fashion, roll through. We have a sleuth of Toddler clothing on sale.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boutique Sale Saturday

This weekend we are participating in a boutique sale in MadisonValley @ 2719 East Madison from 11am-5pm! What an epic time it will be! There will be music at 12noon from Moorea Malatt who’s CD, Whip it out: Songs for Breastfeeding we sell in the store. We will be showcasing new shorts for summer, along with amazing new items for summer. Joining us at the sale will be:  Spoiled by Nana , Tottini , and Sugar Lump.  If you can’t make it to the Boutique Sale then stop on into the Store! We recently got in some new rainbow skirts that are available on the website as well as in the store,  to welcome in pride, which is also happening this weekend. Check out a music video by Moorea Malatt below.

Happy Thursday!

Sustainable Urban Fasion: Eco-Friendly Goods for City Living

The sign outside our shop says  Bootyland: Sustainable Urban Fashion, and we’ve been using that as a tagline in our advertisements for years. But what exactly do we mean by “sustainable urban fashion”?

Sustainability has been the guiding principle of everything we do here at Bootyland for over ten years now.  This is the definition we use:

Sustainable: A resource that meets present needs without compromising those of future generations.

Which is great – but we want you all to know how we translate this idea into action.  One major way we practice sustainability is in our vendor and merchandise selection. We made this pie chart to illustrate how our current vendors fit into Bootyland’s sustainability categories.

Look, we made a chart!

As you can see, the majority of the companies we buy from use either Organic Fabrics (like cotton, bamboo and hemp) or other Eco-Friendly Materials (like sustainably harvested wood, natural rubber and non-toxic paints).

We are also committed to supporting local artisans and local economies. 12% of our vendors are local designers, crafters and artists who are producing their merchandise right here in the Pacific Northwest. We feel lucky to be able to showcase so many beautiful, handmade items in our store.

Recycled and Upcycled content is a growing part of our business – 9% of our current vendors are using recycled and upcycled materials.

Flood Hat - made from upcycled materials!

Upcycling is a kind of recycling – designers take gently-used garments apart and use the materials to create something new. Flood Hats and Ricicli Clothing are two examples of designers using upcycled materials.

The final category is small but important. Living in Seattle means needing rain gear, but most raincoats and pants are made from vinyl (PVC).

Vinyl off-gasses toxic fumes, contains endocrine-disrupting chemicals, and is difficult to recycle, so we are excited to be able to offer PVC-free rain coats, pants, hats and mitts that are certified to be free of over 100 harmful chemicals. And they’re comfortable and cute! Our rainboots are also PVC-free and fully recyclable.

The Bootyland Crew scours the world looking for great products that fit our criteria. And we look at the manufacturing process as well as the materials, only purchasing from companies who treat their workers fairly.  We practice sustainability in other ways too – all of the paper products we use are recycled, we use soy based inks in our printing,  eco-friendly lighting in the store and we even clean up with green cleaning products. We want you to have an awesome time while you’re here, and be able to leave with a clear conscience.

So now you know what we mean by Sustainable. In my next post, I’ll talk about “urban fashion” and how you don’t have to sacrifice style to be eco-friendly.

Non-Toxic Eco-Friendly Nail Polish for Kids

Get your fingers and toes ready for Spring!

My daughter loves to paint her nails (and mine too) – but I hate the smell of nail polish. That chemical-solvent smell is unpleasant enough on its own, and more often than not it also brings on an epic headache.

So I was super stoked when I heard about Piggy Paint. Piggy Paint is a new nail polish for kids that is non-toxic – it’s free of formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates, Bisphenol A, ethyl acetate and acetone – and it doesn’t stink. No chemicals and no fumes means headache-free manicures for everyone, yay!

Piggy Paint comes in a variety of cool colors. There’s the classic pinks and reds, of course, but there’s also greens, blues and yellows for the more adventurous. The polish dries to a hard finish and has some staying power, but it is still easier to remove than traditional nail polish – it comes off easily with Piggy Paint’s acetone-free polish remover.

Piggy paint is  biodegradable, vegan,  cruelty free & made in the USA.

online gift registry @ bootyland

When I was pregnant, it seemed like everyone I knew wanted me to register for baby gifts.  My out-of-town family especially wanted to be able to go online and pick a gift, pay for it, and have it sent to me.

Of course, this was eight years ago and online registries weren’t quite what they are today. I resigned myself  to registering at Target and Babies-R-Us…which are ok for some things, but they didn’t have the stuff I really wanted.

Now there are online registries that allow you to pick and choose items from any store and add them to your list with ease. I like MyRegistry.com; the site is easy to use and has some cool features, and of course you can use it to add gifts from Bootylandkids.com to your registry.

The screenshot above (click to enlarge)  shows a picture of a sample gift registry I made. It took about five minutes to register for the service and get started. Once you’re registered, you add a button to your bookmarks toolbar that allows you to add items from any website directly to your registry. You can also sign up for a cash gift option, announce your registry by email, link your MyRegistry.com account to other online registries and opt to have a text message sent when a gift is bought off your list.

If you’re setting up a baby-gift registry, I’d definitely recommend checking out this option. Why settle for registering with the big chain-stores if you don’t have too?

PVC-Free Rain Gear @ Bootyland

It’s that time of year again in Seattle – rainy season. The weather is turning colder and the clouds are back, but the kids still need to go outside and play. We’ve got great options to keep your little ones safe and dry while they have fun splashing in the puddles.

Puddlegear by Abeko is made of a soft, light, tear-resistant fabric called Atek. Atek is a polyurethane-coated stretch fabric that is wind and watertight. It is PVC free and is certified by Oxo-Tex to be free of 100 harmful chemicals. It is light, comfortable and flexible so it’s great for active kids, and it’s easy to launder which is nice for parents.

Why PVC Free?

Lots of kids’ rain gear is made from PVC, so what’s the big deal?

According to the Center for Health Environment and Justice,

PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastic, commonly referred to as vinyl, is one of the most hazardous consumer products ever created.  PVC is dangerous to human health and the environment throughout its entire life cycle, at the factory, in our homes, and in the trash.

Our bodies are contaminated with poisonous chemicals released during the PVC lifecycle, such as mercury, dioxins, and phthalates, which may pose irreversible life-long health threats.  When produced or burned, PVC plastic releases dioxins, a group of the most potent synthetic chemicals ever tested, which can cause cancer and harm the immune and reproductive systems.

PVC is also full of toxic additives that off-gas or leach out of products. These additives are harmful to our health and they also make it nearly impossible to recycle most PVC products.

Puddlegear by Abeko is a safe alternative to raincoats and pants made from PVC. We have raincoats and pants available now in select colors and sizes, and we are able to special order other colors, sizes and styles as well.

Adorable Alpaca Hand Puppets

If you’ve ever been in Bootyland, you’re probably familiar with the rack of sweet little alpaca wool finger puppets that lives near the cash register. These puppets are so cute and so soft – they’re practically irresistible. Our customers love to play with them while we ring up their purchases…and I’m not talking about the kids.

Now finger puppets are great fun, but sometimes you just gotta have a hand puppet for your puppetry needs. So I’m excited to tell you that we now have four different hand puppets available in the same soft alpaca wool.

Just like the finger puppets, these hand puppets are hand knit by women in the Andes of Peru in an artisan workshop that follows fair trade practices. The yarn is hand spun from organic raw alpaca and is machine washable.

The four hand puppets available are:  Zebra, Dog, Giraffe and Rabbit and they retail for $20.00. They meet or exceed ASTM safety regulations and are for ages 2 and up.

Natural Rubber Baby Teether – Sophie the Giraffe

Sophie the Giraffe

Good news for Seattle’s cranky babies; Bootyland just got in a shipment of Sophie the Giraffe baby teethers.

Sophie is made of 100% natural rubber and colored with food paint, so she is completely safe for babies to chew. She’s soft, light and pliable and shaped just right for little hands to grab – and she gives a cute little squeak when you squeeze her head or belly. Her horns and ears provide the perfect texture to soothe sore, teething gums. Plus, she’s so adorable that she’s sure to be a favorite toy.

French toy company Vulli has been producing Sophie the Giraffe for 46 years. She is made of rubber from the Hevea Tree and is free of BPA and phthalates. Sophie is safe for newborns and older, and is available at Bootyland or on our website: Bootylandkids.com

organic kids clothing for back to school

We have been searching for hip, eco and organic kids fashions (as always) and we recently found a company that makes eco-friendly clothing for boys and girls, sizes 2-12, manufactured in the USA.

It has become common to buy local and
organic produce; we are also trying to bring that focus into other areas. Many people have not considered the clothing industry as an area where we can be more eco-friendly, but we can by choosing organic cotton, hemp, soy or bamboo clothing made with low-impact dyes.

Conventional cotton is one of the most chemically-dependent crops, sucking up 10 percent of all agricultural chemicals and 25 percent of insecticides.  This is hard on the enviornment as well as on anyone who works with the fiber or the thread or the eventual fabric and garments themsleves.
With all of that in mind we are happy to have found a great line that brings in organic, green spun, and upcycled fabrics. They do it with style and have kids clothes from 2 to 12. So your eco- conscious family can find a hip urban style that is ethically produced and made in the USA.  Sustainable Kids donates $1.50 of every purchase to the Hands and Feet Project’s Children’s Village in Haiti. The company also supplies a box with prepaid shipping to Haiti, for kids and parents to fill with small donations, teaching the value of community support.