Non-toxic Nursery and baby items
Bringing a baby into the world...the best thing ever! With that comes the thoughts of “how will I ever feel ready or prepared?!”, you probably won’t feel that way and that's okay! What you can do to feel slightly more prepared is to start building a holistic, non-toxic nursery and baby products! This can feel overwhelming and seem expensive, however, knowing that the products will last and not cause harm to your baby is worth it! I think any new parents would say they would do anything for the health and wellbeing of their baby. I was actually surprised with how inexpensive you can find these products without throwing away your savings account! We have hardly had any irritated skin or other skin issues, which I think it can be related to the products we are using on her.
*You don’t have to get everything on your registry or gifts from others as non-toxic but we tried our best to be conscious about what we chose to buy*
Where to start?!
I know, I felt somewhat overwhelmed thinking, how will I know everything that myself and the baby will need? I started researching, reading blogs and watching (too many) YouTube mom bloggers for baby items and added a little non-toxic swap if I could! Some of the things I was trying to avoid for my baby were: plastics made with harmful toxins/chemicals and flame retardants. Why? Flame retardants have been known for numerous health concerns such as behavior problems, fertility issues, hormonal problems, cancer and immune dysfunction. Plastics that are made with harmful chemicals/toxins have been known to negatively impact skin, can be correlated to increased chance of cancer, endocrine disrupting, cause birth defects, hyperactivity, asthma and the list continues. When looking for nursery items, a place to start is looking for the GREENGUARD Gold seal. This seal certifies that furniture has been independently tested and verified to meet standards for chemical emissions and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as formaldehyde or phthalates (which include the harmful plastics and toxins I listed above). To me it is infuriating that companies are adding such harmful chemicals to their products sold for children!
Books:
https://amzn.to/3ibMpnb - Mama Natural - Loved reading this week by week book
https://amzn.to/2NoHQdC - We loved using this book early on for tummy time!
Nursery
When it comes to nursery items, One of the first things you think about is the crib and mattress. This is something I think you should splurge and make the choice of organic mattress and sheets. Why? Because baby will be spending LOTS of time sleeping in their crib! Things to look for, Organic, Non-toxic, GreenGuard certifications.
Examples of crib options:
Examples of crib mattress:
Example of mattress cover pad:
Example of crib sheets:
Next thing that comes to mind, a rocking chair! Again, you will be spending lots of precious moments in this chair rocking your sweet one to sleep. So we looked for one with the GreenGuard certification.
Examples of rocking chairs:
https://amzn.to/2KBl4yd (this was the one we got! Pictured below)
Examples of changing pads:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001AV40Z4?colid=CE78SZEBSZ0L&coliid=I3VBOBZJP6YPVC&ref=br_ADD_TO_CART_title_link&th=1 (this is the one we have!)
Changing pad covers:
Something definitely worth getting - a stainless steel diaper pail that blocks odors!
Example of a diaper trash bins:
https://amzn.to/3mR6wHC (we got the Ubbi in white, small enough to fit in tiny spaces yet can hold a lot of diapers and no smell!)
Dressers and Rugs:
These options can become expensive, if you can’t find a non-toxic, chemical free rug or dresser, try to get them early enough before the baby comes to let them ‘air out’ in a garage or outside if applicable. For dressers and furniture, try to look for solid wood choices when available.
Baby wash/balm/lotions:
An important area to consider prioritizing organic as the skin is one of your largest organs and soaks in the most toxins on a daily basis! Look for products that are organic, made without harmful chemicals or toxins (Think Parabens, phthalates, formaldehyde, sulfates, synthetic colors, fragrance, lead, PEG, etc.)
https://amzn.to/3qaXPKj - love this diaper balm! Smells great too
https://amzn.to/35pmIKE - more for mom, but was great to use during those first couple of weeks for breastfeeding!
https://amzn.to/38wneZi - lotion
https://amzn.to/3q3o9pV - Eczema Cream
https://amzn.to/3bDrIPN - moisturizing lotion
https://amzn.to/39gB4hr - body wash
https://amzn.to/3qjMrw7 - body wash/shampoo
https://amzn.to/3sdn0h9 - body wash/shampoo
Tub option for new borns:
https://amzn.to/3oyYeWC - Puj Tub- Foldable soft baby tub for when bathing newborns in the sink
Kitchen Items:
High chairs:
https://amzn.to/2KZB7We - Stokke high chair
https://meetlalo.com/products/the-chair - Lalo highchair- This is the one we have in black! Love the modern look and how it can convert into a chair once she is older.
Examples of silicone reusable bibs:
https://amzn.to/3rH1nWy - Mushie silicon bib - we have this and have loved how easy it is to clean! (pictured below)
Examples of utensils and plates:
These are important to choose chemical free if possible as they go directly into their mouths!
https://amzn.to/3rwW77K spoon and fork
https://amzn.to/3hlLfES plate
https://amzn.to/37U9qHH plate
https://amzn.to/3mMboOs spoons and forks
Pacifiers and Pacifier clips (they recommend getting a few different nipple options as baby will have a preference!):
https://amzn.to/3ryeOYM - mushie pacifer clip (we have this one)
https://amzn.to/3nSgjP3 - Bibs pacifier (Eloise likes this one the best)
https://amzn.to/34MZ7TI - Cutie Pat Pacifier and teether
Playroom/Living room items:
Loungers and seats:
https://amzn.to/2WUH1dX Snuggle Me Organic - well worth the investment! Especially for those newborn days where they snooze on the couch or you just need to put them down for a couple minutes
https://amzn.to/2Xu1Yg4 Baby Bjorn bouncer - again, well worth the investment. We started putting her in this when she was still young while we would cook and make dinner and she loved it.
Playmat:
https://amzn.to/3aTatt0 Love Every playmat - We got this for Christmas and LOVE IT! It is big, which is great for the stage she is in where she is rolling everywhere and comes with a handbook of developmental stages and ways to engage with your baby.
https://www.finnandemma.com/products/play-gym-macrame-natural - another play gym option
Toys:
When it comes to toys, I was focused on Montessori type toys because they are usually made from wood and are created to enhance brain development, learning at different stages, encourage independent children and are more functional and task oriented versus just having kids watch something light up. Not saying there is anything bad with common types of toys, but I can see them being more of a short-term I’m-already-bored-of-this-toy-and-it’s-been-5-minutes type of situation.
I searched on amazon and found other people share some of these toys:
https://amzn.to/2JmSrEi - shape and size sorting
https://amzn.to/3ryd5CM Melissa & Doug is a popular Montessori brand for toys!
https://amzn.to/3rwIFRd - coin box
https://amzn.to/2M2SkyC - stacking cups
https://amzn.to/3sTyiI0 - stacker
Clothing:
This one is obviously a big category, but I can provide some organic cotton and bamboo clothing stores that I’ve heard of and that we love! I told Nick I wanted organic/bamboo baby clothes, especially pajamas, and he said “I doubt you will be able to tell the difference’. I put her in some organic pajamas for the first time and he held her and said ‘WOW! These are so soft and nice, where are they from?’ and the rest is history! But for real, everything she owns isn’t organic, but you definitely can tell a difference. A way to save money is buying neutral colors/clothing so they can last through multiple kids/genders (if that’s your goal!).
Kate Quinn
Finn & Emma
Quincy Mae
Mini Mioche
L'oved Baby
Lucy Lue Organics
Colored Organics
Buck and Baa
Aster & Oak
Stroller and Car Seats:
Examples of strollers without flame retardants:
https://amzn.to/2Xs29sk - Uppababy Vista or V2 is the newer model - we have this and LOVE it!! Highly recommend. Yes it is more expensive, but we have friends who bought another stroller and already had to upgrade (They bought an uppababy and love it!) This also is a 2-child stroller and comes with both a bassinet and a toddler seat.
https://amzn.to/3i5gfth - Uppababy Cruz - fits one child
https://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/nuna-demi-grow-stroller-with-sibling-seat/?pkey=cnuna - nuna is another great brand!
Eloise in the Uppababy Vista bassinet !
Examples of car seats:
https://amzn.to/39kcSuE - Uppababy car seat which can go into the Uppababy stroller
https://amzn.to/3saNqQS - Stokke Pipa Nuna car seat
https://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/nuna-pipa-fr-free-infant-car-seat/?pkey=cnuna - We have this one! We got this one because it is light, and can be put into a car without needing a base in case of an emergency! We bought this adapter to be able to be placed on our Uppababy Vista stroller: https://strolleria.com/products/nuna_uppababy-_adaptor?variant=17017985921&gclid=Cj0KCQiA6Or_BRC_ARIsAPzuer-DygRUUb9EjLPkeA2nGk0IVgQR7j07y4BQVz2GA-MNBIAL2TEQXcgaAkRJEALw_wcB
Diapers:
This is another big area and people have their preferences for either disposable or cloth diapering. We use primarily Honest brand, Seventh Generation or Bamboo Nature brands.
Thank you for taking time to check out this blog! I had a lot of fun putting it together and hope it helps get you started on some needed items for a baby! This definitely isn’t everything you could want or need, but a good list to get you some ideas to think of and do research on what is best for you and your family! Comment below with any additional questions or requests for other item ideas