Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Natural Vs. Organic

Okay, so Wee Can Too is not the ONLY company that offers naturally safe art supplies. Since 2007, Wee Can Too has been growing, expanding internationaly, creating new products...but what makes us different from our competitors? For instance, Crayon Rocks (www.crayonrocks.net) have been around for a very long time and are wonderful art mediums for the wee artist! Wee love Crayon Rocks! They are vibrant and beautiful. But we created veggie crayons for a different reason. Wee Can Too wants momma's to feel confident in using products that babies and toddlers can not only put in their mouths, but absorb into their bodies.

So I am writing this column to explain the difference. When I started making these crayons, I learned so much about dyes, food coloring, mineral and other facts that moms should now about their art products. For instance, many crayons, paints and play dough are offered with plant-based dyes or natural colorings. We are one of them. Do you know the difference? I didn't!

Mineral dyes are made from plants, stones and roots, pigments that come from nature. They might be harmless and natural but not necessarily great for our bodies. When I started making finger paints it was an easy target. Water soluble colorful fruits and veggies. Through trial and error, I have finally perfected crayons and chalk using ALL edible fruits and vegetable coloring. You feel rest assured they don't taste great, when your child puts that piece of chalk or crayon or paint in their mouth, they might not eat more, but if they did eat some- it's okay! Isn't that what this is all about?