Yeah,they BETTER rethink that! Hademade toys and children’s clothing will not go away

I don't see how manufacturing in the USA will prevent lead from ending up in these toys...

because in the USA we keep a better eye on things. In the USA we don't put Melamine in baby formula to make it look like the protein level is higher. We don't put melamine in pet food either here in the good ole USA.

What scares the hell out of me is medicines. NO medicines are made in the US anymore. Who's to say evey pill you take isn't full of some kind of poison, such as melamine.

I have one that doesn't seem to be working right. It's one that you just can't stop taking and sometimes I feel weird withdraw symptoms, it's like the pills don't contain what they are supposed to contain or something.

Grow Tech you're correct.. just manufacturing in the U.S. will not insure there is no lead in the toys.. as I stated earlier from the research, 35% of toys tested that were MADE IN THE U.S. also had lead content.
"Of the 17 toys made in the United States that were tested, 35% had detectable levels of lead. "
http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/03/news/companies/toxic_toys/


The cosumer base needs to wake up and become informed, plain and simple..

And sorry.. there's no proof that we don't put melomine in our products.. After the huge melamine scare in China tests we done here on the formula, small amounts of melamine WERE found. The FDA then made some magic number up yet again as to what are "safe levels" allowed in food, absolutely 0 research to back up this parts per million number- funny, they get caught with this shyt in the formula here then the FDA jumps in to say it's a "safe amount".. as usual..
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j7SAbhJj3By_isZUoRAgTOPHzwkQD95JTR4O0

To go even further, there are advocacy groups who are trying to get products tested for melamine- guess what? NO LABS IN THE COUNTRY will test for melamine content of products under the parts per million that the FDA decided was a "safe amount"..

Seriously people need to wake up, do some research, and become informed instead of just saying what they think is going on.

Here's another article on the topic of food from the other day that some may find interesting on counterfit food in the U.S...
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-01-19-fake-foods_N.htm

And further more.. yes. There is a big problem with counterfit medications on the market as well.. just from the other day..
http://www.huntingtonnews.net/columns/090124-kouri-columnscounterfeitmedication.html

Hey, you know what kids really need to have fun?A cardboard box.An imagination.Pencils, crayons, construction paper.Teach them to amuse themselves.New toys are nice, but they're not always necessary.I remember my mom used to make me dolls with her sewing machine.I loved those things so much.I wish I was good at sewing so I could make the same for my kids.

Stoney you are dead on.. we follow Waldorf education prinicples here.. no plastic toys, all natural, simple, open ended toys to foster creativity. Plain waldorf doll I made, wool felt stuffed animals, wooden toys daddy made, natural beeswax crayons, etc.. There is a TON of research to show how all those plastic loud electronic toys hinder children.. but of course, no one reads these days. LOL.

Stoney there are tons of resources to learn how to make children's toys, and they never have to be perfect- that's the beauty of handmade. When your kid sees how much love and effort you put into something for them, believe me, that matters more than all the silly mistakes us adults see... Seriously, my daughters eyes light up in amazement as I turn pieces of fabric and wool stuffing into toys for her..

Did you know, you can also stuff those toys with dryer lint?It's clean,and soft.And it's better than just going out and buying stuffing. Sometimes I draw pics for my kids,and we play with baking soda clay together.My little one tends to like toys that fit in her hands, little figures that she plays with,and the big one loves her ds, but she still likes to do things like frog hunting and things like that.Maybe I should just pony up and get a sewing machine.Speaking of that dryer lint, that's another tip I can put in my money saver thread....

HotNSexyMILF said:

Stoney you are dead on.. we follow Waldorf education prinicples here.. no plastic toys, all natural, simple, open ended toys to foster creativity. Plain waldorf doll I made, wool felt stuffed animals, wooden toys daddy made, natural beeswax crayons, etc.. There is a TON of research to show how all those plastic loud electronic toys hinder children.. but of course, no one reads these days. LOL.

Stoney there are tons of resources to learn how to make children's toys, and they never have to be perfect- that's the beauty of handmade. When your kid sees how much love and effort you put into something for them, believe me, that matters more than all the silly mistakes us adults see... Seriously, my daughters eyes light up in amazement as I turn pieces of fabric and wool stuffing into toys for her..

Click to expand...

LOL. I've actually heard of the dyer lint thing, good idea- cept we don't use a dryer here, or a washer for that matter. LOL. But for me personally, the wool batting is important, more expensive than cotton and the crap polyfill- but it's naturally antibacterial and retains body heat- so for example, in dolls, when they are cuddled the dolls actually warm up and feel alive. May seem silly to some, but it's something I wanted in my toys. LOL.. Plus I couldn't deny my little one's trip to the sheep farm.. LOL..

I couldn't live without my sewing machine and serger. LOL. But that's just me and my crazy hobbies.. lol , to each their own.

I wish I could sew, I've tried to learn and I just can't do it.

At least I can cook and grow stuff.

Some of the newer sewing machines can do amazing shit.My mom had one of the old singer foot pedal ones.Eventually she got an electric.

HotNSexyMILF said:

LOL. I've actually heard of the dyer lint thing, good idea- cept we don't use a dryer here, or a washer for that matter. LOL. But for me personally, the wool batting is important, more expensive than cotton and the crap polyfill- but it's naturally antibacterial and retains body heat- so for example, in dolls, when they are cuddled the dolls actually warm up and feel alive. May seem silly to some, but it's something I wanted in my toys. LOL.. Plus I couldn't deny my little one's trip to the sheep farm.. LOL..

I couldn't live without my sewing machine and serger. LOL. But that's just me and my crazy hobbies.. lol , to each their own.

Click to expand...

Me, too.I can cook,and I can sew by hand, like patching clothes and stuff, but I'm a little intimidated by sewing machines.

misshestermoffitt said:

I wish I could sew, I've tried to learn and I just can't do it.

At least I can cook and grow stuff.

Click to expand...

I have 2 sewing machines that work and they kick my ass everytime. I really want to sew, but something inside me just won't permit it.

I can do a little hand stitching, sew on a button, stuff like that.

My mom can't get the hang of a sewing machine either, can sew by hand.. but not the machine. My father is actually the one who introduced me to the machine when I was younger- lol. Gosh, my first machine was like 5 by 7 inches when i was like 10. LOL. I still have that thing, it don't work for shyt, never really did, but I just can't get rid of it, it always gives me a chuckle. And now my daughter loves to pretend she's sewing on it when I'm making stuff. LOL.

The thing most people have a problem with is getting the tension right.. if the tension on the machine is off it'll never sew right, and for beginners it's very fustrating and intimidating- even though it isn't them. The sewing machine is really easy to use once you've got the tension right and it's threaded.. My serger on the other hand, gosh, that took me like a week just to get threading the damn machine right, with the 4 threads needing to be done a certain way in the right order. LOL.. but the end result is amazing.

Everyone is different though.. my mom can't use the machine and I can't crochet to save my life.. knitting I can do, crochet.. god I spent weeks trying- it just ain't happening. LOL. She'll just sit there crocheting away making it look simple.. ugh..

I can't knit, and my crocheting is crooked.I can draw ok if I'm in the mood though.I did these using the gimp, it's like mspaint.There's a smudger on it, I used that a lot.

HotNSexyMILF said:

My mom can't get the hang of a sewing machine either, can sew by hand.. but not the machine. My father is actually the one who introduced me to the machine when I was younger- lol. Gosh, my first machine was like 5 by 7 inches when i was like 10. LOL. I still have that thing, it don't work for shyt, never really did, but I just can't get rid of it, it always gives me a chuckle. And now my daughter loves to pretend she's sewing on it when I'm making stuff. LOL.

The thing most people have a problem with is getting the tension right.. if the tension on the machine is off it'll never sew right, and for beginners it's very fustrating and intimidating- even though it isn't them. The sewing machine is really easy to use once you've got the tension right and it's threaded.. My serger on the other hand, gosh, that took me like a week just to get threading the damn machine right, with the 4 threads needing to be done a certain way in the right order. LOL.. but the end result is amazing.

Everyone is different though.. my mom can't use the machine and I can't crochet to save my life.. knitting I can do, crochet.. god I spent weeks trying- it just ain't happening. LOL. She'll just sit there crocheting away making it look simple.. ugh..

Click to expand...

I can crochet, it turns out pretty decent. I like to make scarves for winter.

I wish I'd have had my grandma's teach me to sew when I was young. I'd love to be able to make my own curtains and all kinds of what nots. I'd really like to be able to make aprons. You just can't go and buy an apron anymore, I don't know what is up with that.

Aprons just aren't "in" anymore.. LOL.. Perhaps it's because people rarely cook these days- how sad right? Anyways, you can find all sorts of ones online though if you don't want to learn to sew them yourself.. but like I said, there's tons of tutorials online and videos to learn how to use the sewing machine, it really is a nifty talent to hone.

LOL.. when I get some time again after this 2nd child is a little older I want to get down to learning to make shoes. LOL. That would just be too cool. >_< Yes, I know I'm crazy. LOL.

Bah, I wish I had some type of drawing talent, my man and my mother both are amazing artists, my great grandfather was a painter for a living- got howto books and stuff published, up until 2 years ago gave seminars and stuff. Me? Yeah.. can't do that kinda stuff at all, I'll paint sometimes, but not like objects, just colors intermingling. LOL..

Your computer art is really beautiful Stoney.

I cook all the time, and I keep ruining some of my best t-shirts doing it. I keep trying to buy aprons and I always get strange looks. I should look online I guess. I just didn't think picking one up at a store would be such an issue.

I can't draw at all, even my stick people look like they need help. My daughter is really good at it though.

My talents seem to lie in the kitchen and the garden. I want to learn home canning. That's what I'm going to explore this summer I think. Here we go needing an apron again......

Canning is on my list of things to learn as well. I've got a dehydrator and just love that thing! LOL. Canning would be a nice addition to the dehydrator with the garden harvests for sure. =)

LOL. I hear you about the ruining of clothes, I'd always get my clothes filthy looking, usually was from flour. LOL.

Thanks.And I read about you guys learning about canning, I don't think it's that hard, my brother actually does it all the time.I actually have a pressure canner.I was gonna use it for mushroom spores and never got to it.http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/general.html

HotNSexyMILF said:

Your computer art is really beautiful Stoney.

Click to expand...