Go Green Baby
2015
BABY NECESSITIES & FURNISHINGS
Go Green Baby Natural Nurturing By Tonya Lambert Photos Lauren Kaufmann
B
ecoming a parent is a lifechanging experience. You and your wonderful little companion are embarking on a new adventure filled with great joy and excitement, coupled with some anxiety and concerns. New parents often have many questions about feeding, diapering, sleeping and much more. This was certainly true for Natalie and Jamin George when their first child was born seven years ago. Frustrated at being unable to find basic environmentally friendly baby care
supplies anywhere locally and wanting to connect with other new parents, Natalie came up with the idea of opening her own baby products store. Starting as a small enterprise in the family’s garage, Go Green Baby has expanded into a community of families who exchange stories, swap advice and seek ecofriendly infant products — such as cloth diapers — at the store now located at 293 Division Street.
atmosphere, both in the store and on Facebook, so they can learn from each other’s experiences and share in each other’s joy and challenges. It creates connections between people and with the environment, connections which will sustain them now and in the future. Go Green Baby helps families build better futures through community connections, environmental awareness and sustainable living.
coMMunity buildinG Go Green Baby is all about community building. It brings people together in a supportive
At the heart of this ‘Natural Parenting Shop & Community’ is the George family. Owned and operated by the husband
and wife team of Jamin and Natalie and inspired by their own growing family – Kohen (7), Ryann (5), Scarlett (3) and baby Sadie – Go Green Baby is a work of love, commitment and hope. Natalie does most of the daily running of the store, while Jamin is responsible for designing and maintaining it. Jamin is also the man behind the store’s Re-wood Toys product line made from locally-sourced, recycled hardwood. In addition, Natalie’s mother is a regular helper at the store and does the books. “Suppor ting families, creating community, building relationships, sharing experiences, changing lives,” lists Natalie, “these are our core values, the reasons why we wake up each morning, and why we do what we do each and every day. We do what we do for you, your family, our earth and our future together!”
A Supportive Space “At Go Green Baby, we want new parents to feel welcome, supported and comfortable,” says Natalie. As part of providing a supportive space for new parents, Go Green Baby offers workshops, events and drop-in sessions on a variety of topics. They offer weekly drop-in sessions for breastfeeding mothers that are attended by a lactation consultant. Mothers can also come into the shop at any time to receive peer-to-peer support and encouragement from the staff. A wide range of breastfeeding support supplies, such as nursing bras, tank tops, milk teas and breastfeeding pillows are also available to help improve mothers’ breastfeeding experiences. Attend one of their tutorials to learn about different types of baby carriers. Then, borrow your two favourite carriers for one week to try it out at home. If you
choose to purchase one of the carriers, the cost of the tutorial will be deducted from your purchase price. For those seeking additional support after the birth of a baby, post-partum doula and professional organizer services are available. They also offer both instore classes and private in-home consultations on cloth diapering and baby wearing. “I love the interactions I have with people. I like talking to them and getting them to think about sustainable living,” explains Natalie, a former elementary school teacher. “Most of what we do at Go Green Baby is educate families about living a sustainable lifestyle.” A Sustainable Lifestyle Embrace healthy, day-to-day habits for you and your family at Go Green Baby. “We stock carefully selected natural,
organic and earth-friendly products, selling only items which we ourselves would use with our children,” explains Natalie. At Go Green Baby, you can find teething aids, cloth diapers, baby carriers, parenting books and so much more. When it comes to choosing products, Go Green Baby sources products locally whenever possible. About half their products have been manufactured by Canadian companies, including organic baby clothes by Pure Colour Baby, bonnets by Patouche, dolls by Little Plum Tree and baby body care products by Shiva’s Delight. Go Green Baby is proud to carry Clek Car Seats. Made in Toronto, these car seats are free from harmful flame retardant chemicals and have a unique honeycomb shock absorbent system to keep your baby safe. Go Green Baby also has organic mattresses manufactured by Sleeptek of Ottawa; the wool used to
make these mattresses is a natural flame retardant. “For me, it’s super exciting that there are all these companies in Canada making great, high quality, sustainable products,” exclaims Natalie. Go Green Baby has recently introduced three furniture lines to the store, two of which – Monty Design and Natart – are manufactured here in Canada. Monty Design creates beautiful nursing chairs from recycled steel frames and wood from sustainably-harvested forests while Natart uses sustainably-harvested hardwoods in the manufacture of its attractive cribs, dressers, change tables and highchairs. Leander is a Green Guard-certified Danish company which builds stylish baby furniture. NaturChild Go Green Baby is primarily focused on infants ages 0-2, but they also carry some products for older
ABOVE L–R BACK ROWN L–R Kohen, Scarlett, Jamin FRONT ROW baby Sadie, Natalie and Ryann George
children (e.g. art supplies, imaginative play toys, dolls, board games and lunch supplies). However, soon all items for children ages 2 and up will be handled by its sister company, NaturChild. Launched May 20th, NaturChild is an online store carrying natural, ecofriendly products for children. From environmentally friendly art supplies to organic clothing, the store will be adding many more products in the coming months, a limited number of which will
be on display at Go Green Baby. Go Green Baby...building communities and sustaining families the natural way! Go Green Baby 293 Division Street Kingston 613.344.0390 [email protected] go-greenbaby.ca
BABY NECESSITIES & FURNISHINGS
Go Green Baby Natural Nurturing By Tonya Lambert Photos Lauren Kaufmann
B
ecoming a parent is a lifechanging experience. You and your wonderful little companion are embarking on a new adventure filled with great joy and excitement, coupled with some anxiety and concerns. New parents often have many questions about feeding, diapering, sleeping and much more. This was certainly true for Natalie and Jamin George when their first child was born seven years ago. Frustrated at being unable to find basic environmentally friendly baby care
supplies anywhere locally and wanting to connect with other new parents, Natalie came up with the idea of opening her own baby products store. Starting as a small enterprise in the family’s garage, Go Green Baby has expanded into a community of families who exchange stories, swap advice and seek ecofriendly infant products — such as cloth diapers — at the store now located at 293 Division Street.
atmosphere, both in the store and on Facebook, so they can learn from each other’s experiences and share in each other’s joy and challenges. It creates connections between people and with the environment, connections which will sustain them now and in the future. Go Green Baby helps families build better futures through community connections, environmental awareness and sustainable living.
coMMunity buildinG Go Green Baby is all about community building. It brings people together in a supportive
At the heart of this ‘Natural Parenting Shop & Community’ is the George family. Owned and operated by the husband
and wife team of Jamin and Natalie and inspired by their own growing family – Kohen (7), Ryann (5), Scarlett (3) and baby Sadie – Go Green Baby is a work of love, commitment and hope. Natalie does most of the daily running of the store, while Jamin is responsible for designing and maintaining it. Jamin is also the man behind the store’s Re-wood Toys product line made from locally-sourced, recycled hardwood. In addition, Natalie’s mother is a regular helper at the store and does the books. “Suppor ting families, creating community, building relationships, sharing experiences, changing lives,” lists Natalie, “these are our core values, the reasons why we wake up each morning, and why we do what we do each and every day. We do what we do for you, your family, our earth and our future together!”
A Supportive Space “At Go Green Baby, we want new parents to feel welcome, supported and comfortable,” says Natalie. As part of providing a supportive space for new parents, Go Green Baby offers workshops, events and drop-in sessions on a variety of topics. They offer weekly drop-in sessions for breastfeeding mothers that are attended by a lactation consultant. Mothers can also come into the shop at any time to receive peer-to-peer support and encouragement from the staff. A wide range of breastfeeding support supplies, such as nursing bras, tank tops, milk teas and breastfeeding pillows are also available to help improve mothers’ breastfeeding experiences. Attend one of their tutorials to learn about different types of baby carriers. Then, borrow your two favourite carriers for one week to try it out at home. If you
choose to purchase one of the carriers, the cost of the tutorial will be deducted from your purchase price. For those seeking additional support after the birth of a baby, post-partum doula and professional organizer services are available. They also offer both instore classes and private in-home consultations on cloth diapering and baby wearing. “I love the interactions I have with people. I like talking to them and getting them to think about sustainable living,” explains Natalie, a former elementary school teacher. “Most of what we do at Go Green Baby is educate families about living a sustainable lifestyle.” A Sustainable Lifestyle Embrace healthy, day-to-day habits for you and your family at Go Green Baby. “We stock carefully selected natural,
organic and earth-friendly products, selling only items which we ourselves would use with our children,” explains Natalie. At Go Green Baby, you can find teething aids, cloth diapers, baby carriers, parenting books and so much more. When it comes to choosing products, Go Green Baby sources products locally whenever possible. About half their products have been manufactured by Canadian companies, including organic baby clothes by Pure Colour Baby, bonnets by Patouche, dolls by Little Plum Tree and baby body care products by Shiva’s Delight. Go Green Baby is proud to carry Clek Car Seats. Made in Toronto, these car seats are free from harmful flame retardant chemicals and have a unique honeycomb shock absorbent system to keep your baby safe. Go Green Baby also has organic mattresses manufactured by Sleeptek of Ottawa; the wool used to
make these mattresses is a natural flame retardant. “For me, it’s super exciting that there are all these companies in Canada making great, high quality, sustainable products,” exclaims Natalie. Go Green Baby has recently introduced three furniture lines to the store, two of which – Monty Design and Natart – are manufactured here in Canada. Monty Design creates beautiful nursing chairs from recycled steel frames and wood from sustainably-harvested forests while Natart uses sustainably-harvested hardwoods in the manufacture of its attractive cribs, dressers, change tables and highchairs. Leander is a Green Guard-certified Danish company which builds stylish baby furniture. NaturChild Go Green Baby is primarily focused on infants ages 0-2, but they also carry some products for older
ABOVE L–R BACK ROWN L–R Kohen, Scarlett, Jamin FRONT ROW baby Sadie, Natalie and Ryann George
children (e.g. art supplies, imaginative play toys, dolls, board games and lunch supplies). However, soon all items for children ages 2 and up will be handled by its sister company, NaturChild. Launched May 20th, NaturChild is an online store carrying natural, ecofriendly products for children. From environmentally friendly art supplies to organic clothing, the store will be adding many more products in the coming months, a limited number of which will
be on display at Go Green Baby. Go Green Baby...building communities and sustaining families the natural way! Go Green Baby 293 Division Street Kingston 613.344.0390 [email protected] go-greenbaby.ca
