GreenFest Seattle

The Green Festival in Seattle was last weekend and I thought I would give you a little post on how it went and a few things that caught my eye.

It seemed a little smaller this year, but it could have been how they set everything up.

There was A LOT of clothing this year. I don't remember it having so many articles of clothing, but it was like organic clothing in every piece of clothing imaginable. Nothing really made me want to buy it though. A lot of the clothing was all the same colors and styles. maybe I'm just an organic snob, but I'd rather buy used clothes right now because I about fall over at the sticker shock at some of the organic clothing lines. But I'm a tightwad so any time I see a shirt over $20 I tend to gasp a little.

BUT there were a few choice things I liked, didn't buy, but liked.

First one that caught my eye aside from all the yummy food there was Baby Chaleco. Baby Chaleco has the NEATEST bibs of all time. They are for babies that tend to drool a lot and to wear over clothing, but they look like a shirt. And the fabrics! OH they were wonderful and waterproof. And SO SO cute. I don't have a baby nor did I have anyone to buy it for, but I would and more then likely will in the future because they are also made right here in WA. Not to mention its just a great idea in the first place. Noah was a drooler and I could have saved myself a lot of hassle with stupid bids that were just too thin or too much of a hassle. Go check out her site and take it from me---while they might be pricey they are very nicely made and with a 100% guarantee on all items.

Then there was this little booth that had a yoga mat that caught my eye as well. The company is called Jade and they make environmentally friendly mats from natural rubber which is a renewable resource. Their brochure says this, "Unlike other mats, Jade mats are made in the USA in compliance with all US environmental and labor laws. " Jade also plants a tree for every mat purchased. While I won't be buying a mat anytime soon because I just bought one recently to try out Yoga (hot yoga to be exact) I thought they were worth mentioning because the lady said that the people behind Jade used to run a natural carpet pad company and then moved into doing this instead.

Another great option if you are looking for more fair trade items and you want local in Seattle check out Giraffe on Vashon Island. They had a TON of very cool fair trade items and best of all is my buddy Annie's Aunt owns it. While I don't get out to Vashon much its still a great little store if you do make it over there. Just don't miss the ferry, BUT if you do she has a little room for rent above the shop!

The Green Festival doesn't disappoint every year, but at the same time its almost like you see the same thing over and over again. Which was good this year because it just showed that there are many options while it hasn't always been this way. More options and more companies with the same choice means better prices as they stay competitive. That is for sure a plus for everyone!

There was one item we considered buying but they said it was made in China and while I know that to have items be made cheaply and quickly--China is your best bet. However, for us and this small family near us we turned and left. It just felt like we were going against some of the things we are fighting against if we had spent our dollars there. Sure, I've bought and do buy things from China, but if I have a choice I need to try harder to say no. So no cool razor for us.

It was good to go and I'll probably go every year until I can't find free tickets. The parking alone is like $10 for a couple hours! So its really not free at all.

if you want to see if the Green Festival is coming to your town or a town near you check out their site here: http://www.greenfestivals.org/