Writing for Cool Mom Picks has completely changed my outlook on shopping. Previously,I’d hit the local mall or big box store in the hopes of finding the perfect one-of-a-kind gift. But now that I’ve seen all the fabulous artisan and mom-made products available, I’m more picky about my purchases. And much more likely to give another mom my own hard-earned cash.
Needless to say I was thrilled to hear about Hyena Cart, an online community where moms can sell their handmade wares–and the rest of us, luckily, can buy them.
Founder Karen Fegelman established the site to sell knit wool diaper covers, and expanded it as she found other mamas passionate about earth-friendly baby items. Now there’s more than 750 sellers each with her own microsite, and the virtual window shopping is a real pleasure.
In just over an hour I picked out some sweet handmade wooden cars (shown here), tie-dyed t-shirts in amazing color combinations (what’s an eco-site without tie-dye, right?), wonderful Waldorf dolls, and rock-and-roll inspired onesies for just 10 bucks each. Try accomplishing all that in an hour offline; I’d hardly have loaded my kids into the car.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, of course. You could spend all day on the site. And speaking of icebergs: I I’m guessing that hell will actually have to freeze over before I ever buy another gift from a big box store. –Nancy
Like the Best Flea Market Ever, and No Tube Socks
