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I have several newsflashes about green products that I have recently discovered:
Nicole by OPI nail color: This new line of fast-drying nail lacquer is DBP, Toluene and Formaldehyde free. It is not tested on animals, and the packaging is recyclable. Thirty-six shades available, although Wal-Mart (where I found mine) currently carries about 15 or so. Also available is Nic's Sticks, which is handy, portable pen-sized nail lacquer. Available in 24 shades. I paid about $7.00 for one bottle, which is more than I usually pay for nail polish (which isn't saying much...I usually just pick up whatever is cute in the $1.00 range!) But I love this nail color, and it is great to know that there is something safe my daughter can wear when she becomes interested in such things.
Clorox Green Works: I have converted most of my cleaning supplies to Melaleuca, but I really enjoyed the Green Work bathroom cleaner, dilutable all-purpose cleaner, and toilet cleaner. Reasonable price, pleasant smell, and best of all, no gagging on rogue Comet particles!
Palmolive Eco Dishwasher Detergent: I love this stuff! It is phosphate-free, and it works great! I'm currently using the Melaleuca dish detergent. Its okay, but once I ran the dishes on Friday, left for the weekend, opened the dishwasher on Sunday night, and was greeted with a horrific smell. Apparently the Melaleuca detergent is not meant to be sealed in for very long. Hmm. Palmolive Eco is available at Wal-Mart.
Elemental fragrance jars: I have two guinea pigs, a turtle and a baby, all of which can be stinky in their own special ways. These organic and earth-friendly fragrance jars are a good alternative to candles or spray air fresheners. Of course, keep them well out of reach of aforementioned pets and babies. Available at Wal-Mart.
Gerber prefolds: That's right, folks! Gerber now carries prefold diapers! Previously, if you were going to buy diapers from a store, you would have to settle for the flat, fold-it-yourself type. Not anymore! These prefolds are great. They are a lot thinner than the kind you buy from a cloth diapering site, but that means that they aren't as bulky, so baby doesn't have a ghetto-booty. That also means that you can pack a lot more of them in your diaper bag. They are made from the birdseye fabric, so they rinse out nicely to boot. And best of all, they are conveniently located at Wal-Mart or Target for at least half the price of buying diapers online. I would still recommend using a thicker diaper for naptime and night, but the Gerber prefolds are great for waketime. Gerber also carries pull-on diaper covers, but since these are made from vinyl and contain phthalates, I hesitate to recommend them. Still, I do use them from time to time, and they are very pretty and fit baby nicely.
Cloth diapering station: I don't know about you, but I simply don't have room for a changing table in Alice's nursery. But I really needed a handy place to store Alice's diapers and diapering paraphernalia. So I came up with this little cloth diapering cart. You can buy this four-shelf wire cart (from Wal-Mart...guess where I shop a lot) for about $10.00. There is a place for your wipe warmer, aloe vera, diaper rash ointment, and such on top. Your diaper covers, doublers, etc can fit on the bottom. That leaves two shelves for prefolds, which is usually plenty. I use a changing pad placed in Alice's crib as a changing surface. 
Quilt Skirts: Perhaps you have the urge to make yourself something pretty, but you're running low on cash. Consider making a quilted skirt, apron or other garment. I made a quilted skirt from bits and pieces of old pajamas and fabric scraps. Then I just used a skirt pattern as usual. I keep all my decent-sized fabric scraps, because they really come in handy for various crafts, especially now that I'm trying my hand at making dolls and other toys for Alice. It's a fun way to recycle!
It is very exciting to go to the grocery and see so many wonderful new products. Kroger has a whole section of nothing but green/natural/organic products for your home, tummy, and body. Green is really getting popular!
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