Franklin Goose Amazing Eco-Friendly Items for Babies and Children {Way Basics Review & $25 Gift Certificate Giveaway}

{This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to those who entered!}

A few nights ago, my husband took Big Sister E and went to the store to buy some birthday presents for his sister and her husband. When they got home, my husband was laughing and telling me about a couple that they saw who were aimlessly wandering around trying to select items for their baby registry. Who can't relate to that?

Can you really blame parents and soon-to-be parents for being a little bewildered these days when it comes to making decisions about what to choose to have around their children? Not only are store shelves stocked with a huge variety of a single item, I feel like every other day there is a new major recall alert and all of a sudden everyone has to check their strollers or cribs or toys or sippy cups to make sure they aren't risking their child's health or safety.

Wouldn't it be so much easier to find a place to shop from that has done all of the research for you already? Somewhere that sells natural, organic, eco-conscious products that are not only gorgeous and amazing but good for the planet and your family as well?


Franklin Goose takes their commitment to not exposing your family to unnecessary chemicals or ingredients seriously, while still managing to carry a huge variety of incredible products for children, adults and the home. Diapers, high chairs, adorable clothing, potty seats, luxury strollers and toys galore? That's just the tiniest tip of the iceberg.

Each time I clicked to a new category or the next page, I found even more items that I loved at Franklin Goose. With their $5 flat rate shipping (for items under 25 pounds) I could see myself filling up my cart with so many things...


A true testament to how much Franklin Goose cares about the environment, right now they are spotlighting the furniture designed by an amazing company, Way Basics. More than a typical furniture company, Way Basics provides recycled and recyclable products out of something so simple - paper. Sustainably made, water resistant and just plain cool to look at, they have found a way to make it easy and fun to build furniture while improving the planet at the same time.

And when Way Basics cares about people and the planet, they really care. They donate 5% of their profits, work with furniture banks to provide help for families in need, promote environmentally friendly practices and offset their company carbon emissions by planting trees at the Red River National Wildlife Refuge. Is it any wonder that Franklin Goose is proud of carrying their line?

Building off of one simple Cube, Way Basics offers a variety of shelving options (and one really cute Modular Table) that come in your choice of a multitude of great colors. Even though their products are half the weight of particle board, pressed wood or plywood furniture this unique line is still be just as strong. Go ahead, use a cube as a footstool, it'll hold!

I wasn't sure what to expect when the box containing our Way Basics Spin Cube - Three Cube (in pink!) arrived because, after all, how sturdy could a shelf made out of recycled paper really be? What I found as I pulled the pieces out was that I couldn't stop examining each one, as I was amazed that they weren't pressed wood because they definitely felt just as durable and heavy-duty.

I've constructed furniture in the past that claimed to be fast and easy, only to find that keeping track of which size screw went where and whether or not I was supposed to use a screwdriver or that tiny L-shaped thing seemed to mean that their idea of fast was an hour or two. But with Way Basics, when they say "Peel, Stick, Done!" they aren't kidding! Simply peel and stick the cubes together and your furniture is instantly complete.

In minutes, we had turned a small pile of pieces into something REALLY fantastic.


Way Basics didn't just stack three of their cubes to make a standard shelving unit, they include two revolving plates so that the top cubes smoothly glide around in a full circle. Just over three feet tall, this shelf can be used for so many things and will easily be moved around in our house for years to come. For now, it seems to be alternating between being a spinning grocery store or pantry for Big Sister E's endless fascination with her play food. Who knows what it will be next?

As well as being a wonderful site to browse and shop, Franklin Goose also makes it incredibly easy to sign up for a baby registry or wishlist (standard or birthday) so that you can rest assured that gifts for your child will be natural, organic or eco-friendly. Why not start now in supporting Franklin Goose's mission to help us all raise our children with better toys, clothing and gear?

After having made a purchase, be sure to upload pictures of your little one enjoying their new products to Franklin Goose's Flickr accounts (People and Photos) and who knows, you may even end up on their website! You'll also want to become a fan of Franklin Goose on Facebook because they really have a wonderful community going on there filled with information, tips and special events.

Edited 2/17 to add: I mentioned the other fun things that Franklin Goose has going on, now here's one more... they're giving away a 32GB iPod Touch! Entering couldn't be easier - all you have to do is send one tweet! Read the full details here on their blog but hurry, this fun bonus giveaway ends on 2/28/10.

So, ready to do some shopping? I hope you don't have somewhere to be, because I guarantee you're going to want to stay and browse all of the products available at Franklin Goose for quite a while. Thanks to their generosity, one person will get to do a little shopping courtesy of the folks at Franklin Goose because...

One lucky person will win a $25 gift certificate to Franklin Goose!

To enter to win a $25 gift certificate to Franklin Goose: Head over to Franklin Goose and browse their amazing selection of items. It's going to be hard to narrow down your favorites, but tell me one which one(s) you love most. Do me the favor of leaving an email address or making absolutely sure it is visible in your profile, I have to have a way to contact the winner.

Extra Entries (available after the mandatory entry above is completed; please leave a separate comment for each entry in order for them to be counted. For example, if you subscribe, leave one comment saying "I subscribe #1" and a separate comment saying "I subscribe #2")

1 Extra Entry (per method) if you follow Franklin Goose on Twitter and/or subscribe to the RSS feed for the Franklin Goose blog.
1 Extra Entry (per giveaway entered) - Enter any (or all) of the giveaways running on Thanks, Mail Carrier for the duration of this giveaway.
1 Extra Entry if you follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway by copying and pasting the tweet below and leaving me the link. Tweet daily for an extra entry every day!

Win a $25 gift certificate to Franklin Goose! SO MANY amazing items @franklingoose! @thxmailcarrier http://bit.ly/cPpCMk #win #giveaway

2 Extra Entries (per follow method) if you follow me with Google Friend Connect, subscribe to my RSS feed or subscribe to Thanks, Mail Carrier by email.
3 Extra Entries if you put my cute button up on your blog. I've moved! Please update your button code! Please leave an address where it can be found.
3 Extra Entries if you blog about this giveaway linking back to Thanks, Mail Carrier and Franklin Goose. Please leave an address where it can be found.
5 Extra Entries if you make a purchase from Franklin Goose before this giveaway ends. Let me know which adorable item(s) you chose!


Giveaway will end on February 18th at 11:59pm CST. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here as well as emailed. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me or respond to notification or a new winner will be chosen. Giveaway open to U.S. residents only.

A huge thank you to Franklin Goose for providing a Way Basics Spin Cube - Three Cube for me to review as well as a $25 gift certificate for one lucky giveaway winner. Natural, organic and eco-friendly - Franklin Goose is amazing! The opinions shared are my own and if you really need to see more, click here to see how I roll.