sights and sounds at Smiling Tree come to life

With a home-based business run primarily online, we don't often get the chance to personally interact with our customers.  Sure we have some great chats via e-mail, and we love getting to 'virtually' know the families who are making Smiling Tree Toys a part of their homes.  But we're a sociable, happy-go-lucky couple and we love to meet new people. So not getting to meet you face-to-face is disappointing for us.

We dream of some day turning our picturesque red barn into the new home of Smiling Tree Toys, complete with an inviting, attached side room for displaying and selling our toys, hosting visitors, getting to know people like you over cups of hot tea or lemonade.

We're confident that day will come.  But in the mean time, we're excited to offer you the chance to get to know us just a little better.  You've seen lots of photos of our toys, our home, and our family.  But seeing and hearing us in action is an even better way to connect with the artisans behind your organic, heirloom wooden toys.

Thanks to a Minneapolis TV station that recently featuring our family business, we can share a short clip with you about Smiling Tree and our homegrown organic camelina oil finish.  (More about Omega Maiden, our family farm's camelina oil business, in a later post.)

Check it out!  (And sorry about the 10-second ad at the beginning...)

doing our small part: Smiling Tree and Camp GLOW in Zambia

You know that little blurb you see in our Etsy shop and on our packaging that says "circling the earth with smiles: we donate to worldwide youth development projects for every toy sold"?   Well here's your chance to learn more about the good things that your Smiling Tree purchases support!  We're excited to share some pictures and details of Camp GLOW - the Peace Corps project in Zambia, east Africa that we supported during 2011.  The following was written by the Peace Corps Volunteer who coordinated the project:

In August 2011, twenty female students and ten teachers met in the eastern region of Zambia to partake in a five day training camp focusing on promoting gender awareness and female empowerment. Called Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World), the participating girls and teachers traveled from various rural communities throughout the east. The goal of the camp was to provide the knowledge and tools necessary for participants to address gender obstacles with their home communities.

In Zambia, these obstacles include high rates of early marriage, early pregnancy, unsafe and often forced sexual experiences, elevated school dropout rates, discouragement of female leadership, and a general subjugation of females within the community. This camp provided the opportunity for girls to share experiences with one another and arm themselves with skills such as self-esteem, resisting peer pressure, identifying sexual assault, goal setting, awareness of rights, leadership and communication skills.



Camp participants and their teacher brainstorm ideas on how to bring the GLOW club back to their school and community. The girls and teachers are the ones who will lead the GLOW clubs back in their communities.

Girls and their teachers talk about HIV, healthy relationships, self confidence and girls rights.  These are all important topics that affect gender equality in Zambia.  

This debate was about the positive and negative impacts of early marriage on young females.

Peace Corps Volunteers acted as facilitators and educators throughout Camp GLOW. After taking part in the camp, female students and their teacher counterparts returned to their respective communities to share their knowledge and start local GLOW clubs, encouraging the integration of gender equality and awareness into school curriculum and various communities activities, followed up by the PCV in the participating community.

The ultimate goal of Camp GLOW was to encourage the next generation of Zambian female leaders by connecting them with the role models, knowledge, skills, and peer support networks necessary to make sustainable advances in gender equity in Zambia.

This is the 'Sugar Daddy' Game. Girls stand in a circle and practice saying "no!" to one of the volunteers who's pretending to be a sugar daddy. This game promotes self confidence and also encourages girls to stand up for each other.

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And lastly, here's a hand-signed thank you that we received from one of the girls who took part in the camp:

Something about being able to see and touch that letter with its carefully penned signature was the most meaningful part for me; more than seeing the women and girls in the pictures, and more than hearing the Peace Corps Volunteer's description of the event.  Deliwe and her emerald green marker remind me that for her, our modest donation to the Camp GLOW project really did make a positive difference.  It brings back visions of the pearly white, bright smiles of girls who lived around us in our Nigerien village when we were Peace Corps Volunteers.   

We learned very quickly that we couldn't fix everyone's problems while we were there, but we did our absolute best, gave it our all, and were able to make the lives of many in our little village in Niger, West Africa just a little brighter.  And it's really all about the small, intangible things in life, isn't it?

a new tradition for the holidays

I'm the first to admit, I usually skip over or delete forwarded email messages.  I'm not too worried about seven years of bad luck if I don't forward it on to twelve of my closest friends.  Not to be Debbie-downer or anything, but my inbox is overflowing the way it is. So when a friend e-mailed this message to me the other day, luckily the title caught my eye just before I hit delete. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. 

We always buy local, organic, handmade, and American-made whenever we're able.  But this year for the holidays, we're taking our pledge very seriously: no big-box retailers, no made in China.  None.  Sure that might mean being a bit more creative for the special ones on our list, but that just makes it all the more meaningful and fun!

So read on and get inspired! (And don't forget about shopping to support Small Business Saturday on November 26th.)

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 As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods -- merchandise that has been produced at the expense of American labor. This year will be different. This year Americans will give the gift of genuine concern for other Americans. There is no longer an excuse that, come gift-giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands. It's just not true!
 
So it's time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?

*Everyone gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates from your local American hair salon or barber?

*Gym membership? It's appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some health improvement.

*Who wouldn't appreciate getting their car detailed? Small, American-owned detail shops and car washes would love to sell you a gift certificate or a book of gift certificates.

*Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plonking down the Benjamins on a Chinese made flat-screen? Perhaps that grateful gift receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, a driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.

*Think handmade. Talented artists and crafts people are everywhere and they're selling their wares online - they create beautiful and unique jewelry, wooden items, scarves, toys, pottery, paintings, clothes, and so much more.  (Hint, hint: time to check out Smiling Tree Toys and all the other amazing shops on Etsy.)

*There are so many family-owned and operated restaurants -- all offering gift certificates.  If your intended isn't the fancy eatery sort, what about a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint. Remember, folks this isn't about big national chains -- this is about helping your home town Americans with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open.

*How many people couldn't use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?


*Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? She'd love the services of a local cleaning lady for a day.

*My computer could use a tune-up, and I know I can find some young, talented person who is struggling to get his/her repair business up and running.

Honestly, do you really need to buy another ten thousand Chinese lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of light, about fifty cents stays in the community. If you have those kinds of bucks to burn, how about leaving the mailman, trash guy, or babysitter a nice big tip?

You see, Christmas is not about draining American pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is about caring  for our neighbors, and encouraging American small businesses to keep following their dreams.  When we care about other Americans, we're caring for our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn't imagine.

This is the new American holiday tradition.

Keeping it close to home: our new homegrown, organic wood finish

We're so lucky.  We're doing what we love (handcrafting eco-friendly wooden toys) in a place we love (the peaceful Minnesota prairie), surrounded by people we love (family, friends, and a tight-knit community).  Does it get any better than that?!  I don't think so....

So what's the reason for my state of sheer bliss on this fine autumn morning?  We've just made another giant leap towards being a truly earth friendly, locally sourced business with the tiniest of eco-footprints.

We're super-duper proud to announce that:

** we now finish our toys with our very own blend of

organic camelina oil and beeswax  

both fresh off our family's organic farm **

So the obvious first question that comes to mind is What in the world is camelina?  Why thanks for asking!  Camelina is an oilseed native to areas of Europe and Asia.  It's a close relative of flax and is known by other names such as wild flax, gold of pleasure, and Siberian oilseed.  (Check out Wikipedia to learn a bit more.)


camelina flowers in full bloom (Batalden Farm, June 2011)

Our family recently began growing a small plot of camelina.  The oil from the seeds is wonderfully nutritous and flavorful.  Like flaxseed oil, camelina oil is loaded with heart healthy Omega 3 fatty acids.  The kicker, though, is that camelina has lots more Vitamin E antioxidants than flax.  This means it doesn't go rancid quickly like flax does.  The Omega 3's, antioxidants, and other nutrients in camelina oil reach you in a much fresher and more beneficial state than those in flaxseed oil.  And that means good things for your health.

When we pressed our first batch of camelina seeds last spring, we were also just starting up Smiling Tree Toys.  And when that gorgeous, golden oil came trickling out of the press, we knew it was the perfect finish for our toys.  Serendipitous, indeed.



freshly harvested camelina seeds - so tiny!

And it gets even better.  We add our very own organic beeswax to the camelina oil to make Smiling Tree's wood finish. 

Yep, our family's land is also home to a very happy and healthy family of honey bees.  We were thrilled to find a local beekeeper who uses our organic farmland as a seasonal home for his bees in exchange for delicious raw honey and beeswax.

You've probably heard how dangerously low the world's honey bee populations have declined in recent years.  It's quite alarming.  Have you seen the new documentary film Queen of the Sun: What are the Bees Telling Us?  I've heard great things, but haven't seen it yet.  (That'll be evening entertainment for this winter.)  You can also get your kiddos interested in the disappearance of honey bees with this article from National Geographic for Kids.

our beehives in their primo location - completely organic and pesticide free

Why do we finish our toys with this eco-homegrown goodness?  The camelina oil does a few things: it brings out the beautiful color and grain patterns in the wood, makes the different kinds of hardwoods that we use (maple, walnut, and cherry) contrast wonderfully with one another, and offers protection from dirt, little fingerprints, and other stains.  The beeswax gives a light waterproof protection to the oiled wood.  When they need a little rejuvenating, you can wash our toys with warm, soapy water.  That won't hurt them.  But don't let them sit in water for very long; keep them out of the bath tub and out of the rain and they'll be much happier! After washing, just sand them with a fine grit sandpaper before re-oiling them with any food-grade oil in your kitchen. 

Here's a jar of our camelina-beeswax blend.  The oil by itself is liquid, but adding the beeswax gives it a creamy consistency.  Just perfect for coating wood.



Smiling Tree's very own organic, homegrown wood finish

 And finally, for the full effect, here's our Smiling Moon Balancer before we oil it:



unfinished



 and after we add our organic camelina-beeswax blend:



 finished Smiling Moon Balancer





Quite an incredible transformation, isn't it?  And all thanks to just a few things from Mother Nature, all in their purest and most natural forms.  When you're fortunate enough to be doing something that you love...and when that something is organic, sustainable, and gentle on the earth...it just feels good.  Plain and simple.