I couldn't wait to peruse the 78 pages of the premiere issue yesterday. But then I discovered something I wasn't too happy about. Green Child Magazine is actually an ezine, and I hate reading magazines online! Give me something solid to hold in my hands, flip through and highlight for goodness sake. So what did I do? I opted for the non-eco-friendly option and I printed it! All 78 pages. Of course, I set my Energy Star printer on its best ink-saving setting and printed in black ink only only both sides of the paper. Ahhh. Now I have something to hold, flip through and highlight!
Moving on from the negative, I would much rather expound upon the positive things about this magazine...of which there are many.
First of all, the design. This is a classy looking publication! It is professional, snazzy, attractive and, quite honestly, would rival any of the other parenting magazines that have been around for decades. It simply looks that good! And the babies and children are simply adorable!
Secondly, the product reviews, of which there are many! Between the short snippets artfully placed beside product images, there are also some nice full-sized ads from companies I had never heard of, with descriptions of some of their products. Products like Blissful Booty Cloth Diapers and Hip Mountain Mama have great graphics and copy. Good enough to make me want to visit their websites.
Two ads that caught my attention were the ones for Chubby Cheeks all-in-2 one size cloth diapers and LolliDoo Diapers. Chubby Cheeks claim to be guaranteed to fit even the chubbiest little legs and LolliDoo cloth diapers are made from recycled beverage bottles, organic cotton and recycled stainless steel (snaps). How green is that?!
From page 4 to 7, there is a nice variety of kid-friendly, earth-friendly products featured. There are some really unique products like ToothSoap, a non-toxic, gluten free dental product made from 100% sustainable ingredients and created by a SAHM! And then there is the old standard, Rockin Green Cloth Diaper and Laundry Detergent that I know so many of you swear by.
Finally, there are some solid articles on a variety of subjects. With Earth Day and Easter coming up in April, the magazine nicely addresses both with an article on natural egg dyes and ideas for celebrating Earth Day with your family. But they didn't forget this month's special day -- there are several pages dedicated to recipes in an article titled "Vegan Valentine's Day."
On the crafty side -- I loved the instructional article on how to make a marble roller coaster. I have an old wooden Amish marble thingy (I don't know what you would call it) that my granddaughter loves to play with. It could keep her happy for hours if the sound of marbles speeding down the tracks didn't drive me crazy after awhile! So I know she would love to make her own marble roller coaster. The one in Green Child is constructed from pizza boxes and paper towel rolls, among other things.
There is also an interview with Nancy Traversy, co-founder and CEO of Barefoot Books. Quite enlightening.
Other articles featured in this first issue include:
- Stop Poisoning your Home (complete with a handy comparison chart to help you find the right replacements for the toxic products you may still be using)
- Benefits of Cloth Diapering
- The Great Zoo Debate
- 5 Things You Can Do to Help Big
I did catch a couple of misspellings and/or typos, but as an editor I can't seem to help that! As a writer, I was looking for names to attribute the articles to and was disappointed not to find any. And as a consumer, I couldn't help looking through the ads wishing some of my favorite companies were featured there. Because, let me tell you, I believe Green Child Magazine is going to be around for quite some time and is going to develop a huge reader base. That's why I hope to see Leaf & Bud Naturals, Green Baby Clothing Company and Happy Baby Company ads gracing the pages of an upcoming issue!
Keeping it honest with reviews,
Hana
I really liked it! It wasn't too bad looking at it on the computer, the pictures are great so I wouldn't want to see them in black/white. I do wish it was a magazine that I could hold though.
ReplyDeleteI wish good luck to the new magazine. Sounds fantastic.
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