Safe, Earth-Friendly, Lead-Free Toys

Wedge Worldwide carries a wide selection of fun, non-toxic toys. Recently, we have brought in even more heirloom quality toys with finishes that are safe for little ones; like our beautifully hand-made Five Piece Train Set. The locomotive, passenger car, cargo car, tank car and caboose can all be taken apart and reconnected in a variety of configurations that will provide hours of creative play. Another great new item is the super cute Little Rollie Vehicle Set. These smooth rolling, durably designed toys are well-suited for active play. Both the Train Set and the Vehicle Set come in all natural wood tones that are finished with a food-grade, non-toxic, natural oil. Our vendor tries to use reclaimed wood whenever possible, and 100 percent of the electricity that runs their shop comes from wind and/or solar energy!

Other new playthings at Wedge Worldwide include the colorful and mesmerizing Domino Race game by the German Toy company HABA. This game comes with a wide assortment of bright dominoes, animal-shaped dominoes, domino bridges and even a little bell that rings when dominoes under it are knocked over. We have to admit that the adults in our office here were very tempted to play with this! Also from HABA, we carry the Ball Track Construction Set, an elaborate block set that allows you to build your own tracks for marbles to wind their way through, and the Colored Peg Set, a small, travel-ready game that encourages the development of fine motor skills in a playful way.

HABA products meet the strict requirements of the European Safety-Standard for toys. Their toys are regularly tested, and the company must continually pass European certification guidelines that guarantee their toys are of high quality, meet safety standards and fulfill environmental guidelines. HABA is the first toy producer in Germany to have passed the audit for ecological friendliness, and they are deeply committed to actively pursuing further environmental protection throughout every stage of production. All HABA items offered through Wedge Worldwide are produced in Germany using first class non-toxic varnishes and colored stains that never chip or peel. The materials they use for colored surface treatment of toys and their clear varnishes are fundamentally water-based and therefore, do not contain any harmful solvents.

We're proud to be your online source for eco-friendly, fairly made, safe toys!

Hot Off the Presses: Cookbook That Supports Flood Relief for Local Organic Farmers

Wedge Worldwide has recently added to its selection an excellent new cookbook that was put out by one of our favorite local organic farms. Tastes from Valley to Bluff: The Featherstone Valley Cookbook by Mi Ae Lipe, offers a collection of recipes that beautifully captures the flavors of Featherstone Farm while offering practical info on storing and preparing fresh organic vegetables.

Arranged by season, Tastes contains nearly 300 delicious ethnic and traditional recipes, two-thirds of which are vegetarian or vegan. Far more than just a cookbook, Tastes also features fun trivia, witty quotations, beautiful illustrations and many informative, thought-provoking articles about farm life, crop-specific topics and the environmental and nutritional advantages of growing and eating organically. Whether you are a CSA (community supported agriculture) subscriber, a farmers market denizen or simply a home cook curious about what to do with fresh produce, you will truly enjoy and constantly use this book.

Part of a good cause, a portion of the cookbook's proceeds will go toward the Sow the Seeds Fund. In August 2007, many farms in southeast Minnesota, northeast Iowa and southwest Wisconsin, including Featherstone, were in ruins after storms and heavy flooding devestated the area. Shortly thereafter, a relief fund was started to help natural foods farmers rebuild. The Sow the Seeds Fund was able to raise and distribute over $385,000 for flood relief, providing assistance to more than 30 farms that applied to the fund. Further, your purchase will do even more to help organic farmers because the Wedge will also donate all profits from the cookbook.

Check out a review of the book on our brick and mortar store's website: www.wedge.coop

Post Holiday R & R

Wedge Worldwide hopes that you had a wonderful holiday season and that the year ahead will be an outstanding one! Now that the excitement and busyness are winding down are you feeling like you could use a little pampering and well earned rest? Allow us to recommend a few all natural products that will sooth your senses and calm your mind.

A hot, fragrant foot bath is a wonderful winter treat. This is an ideal activity to preform right before bed as it will deeply relax you and promote a great nights sleep. Simply fill up a large bowl with hot water and put a few pumps of one of our Dr. Hauschka Aromatherapy Baths in the bowl and stir. The bowl should be deep enough so that the water will cover your ankles. Sit back in a chair with a blanket as you soak and listen to soothing music. This is a great time to do some deep breathing and let your mind settle. Hauschka's Lavender Bath is the perfect choice for sweet dreams and easing anxiety and stress. The smell is amazing too! Or for those who are feeling chilled Rosemary Bath is excellent for cold weather as it is warming and stimulates circulation.

Looking for a little something to make your mornings special and give you some gentle get up and go? How about starting the day off with a warm cup of delectable, special tea? Wedge Worldwide offers a variety of organic and Fair Trade teas that are sure to please. Personally I love our Organic White Peony Tea. This tea has a subtle and beautifully refined taste. It sweetly stimulates my senses without the jittery caffine side effects. Or bring some olfactory fun to your shower with Pangea's fresh scented body wash with Canadian pine and white sage which is packed with organic ingredients and pure essential oils. Or try one of our customer's all time favorites, Stinky Hippie Patchouli Body Wash.

Be sure to check back with us throughout the new year as we continue to add more wonderful new products to our site. Happy New Year!

Celebrate the Holidays With Eco-Friendly Gifts

The final countdown towards the holidays has begun! Are you still looking for a huge variety of beautiful eco-friendly gifts to choose from? Then surf on in; Wedge Worldwide has some truly wonderful ideas for you!

Organic gourmet food treats make a great gift option for anyone. Try our brand new Fair Trade chocolate bars and tea in pretty tea tins from Equal Exchange. We brought in the their yummy hot chocolate too!

Sure to please a variety of folks on your list are the gorgeously scented Juniper Ridge Wild Herb Sachets made from ethically wild-harvested plant trimmings. The wonderful Christmas-tree-smell of the Christmas Fir Sachet is perfect for the holidays. We also highly recommend Juniper Ridge's amazing smelling soap and delicious wild-harvested teas.

In search of just the right thing for the ultra-cool hipster in your life? Check out our new Urban Messenger Bag made from organic cotton and hemp. A chic and eco-conscious choice for stylish women is our Street Purse, available in an assortment of vibrant colors and of course, black. By the way, we think the Anthology Cardigan, made from organic cotton and bamboo, looks great with the Street Purse.

Not sure what to get for Mom? How about a fun Fair Trade ring like the one that states, “If you can dream it you can do it!” Or take a peak at our entire Fair Trade jewelry selection for other fabulous options. Mom might also like something from our natural body care section like the refreshing Lemon Body Wash by Dr. Hauschka, or perhaps something from our popular kitchen and dining area like the colorful, extra large salad bowls made from organic bamboo. These bowls are great for serving large tossed salads, and you can even get a sleek pair of bamboo salad servers to go with it.

Or how about some fantastic organic bulk tea? It's the gift that keeps on giving, by providing the recipient with warming, fragrant cups of tea long after the holidays are over. Wedge Worldwide also carries a expansive assortment of teaware and tea accessories. We have everything from the perfect brew baskets for loose-leaf tea to imaginative tea cups and tea pots. A few favorites are our Green Leaf Tea Cups and the Calligraphy Tea Pot Set.

Happy Holidays!

New E-Gift Certificates Available at Wedge Worldwide

We are so excited to announce that Wedge Worldwide now offers e-gift certificates! Would you love to give gifts this holiday season that support Fair Trade and tread lightly on the earth but aren't quite sure what to get for that special someone? Now it's possible to complete your holiday shopping in minutes while getting everyone on your list the perfect gift.

Visit us at wedgeworldwide.coop and click the e-gift certificate link on our front page. Here you can view the few easy steps you can take to quickly and easily buy a Wedge Worldwide e-gift certificate for your friends and loved ones. With just a couple clicks of the mouse a colorful gift certificate email will be sent to the lucky recipient.

E-gift certificates are available in amounts from ten to two hundred dollars so you can select an amount that supports any level of shopping; from a gourmet treat to natural body care products to the luxurious experience of selecting a variety of products.

At Wedge Wordlwide, we have carefully selected only the finest eco-friendly and Fair Trade products available. We also support businesses that are socially responsible. Many of the companies and artists we work with share a portion of their profits with their communities and give aid to worthy causes such as the environment. Anyone on your list is sure to be delighted by shopping our diverse, fun and visually appealing web site where they can feel good about the causes their purchases support. Socially conscious holiday shopping has never been easier this year on Wedge Worldwide!

Fair Trade Holiday Gift Ideas

What better way is there to share the good will of the holiday season than by giving a Fair Trade gift? Here at Wedge Worldwide we make a concerted effort to locate and offer a wide variety of high quality Fair Trade items. Two important aspects of Fair Trade are that workers and artisans who make a product are paid a living wage for their craft and work under safe conditions. So this year you can enjoy gift giving even more knowing that your purchase is supporting and helping the workers who made it.

Allow us to offer a few fun Fair Trade holiday gift suggestions!

We love these colorful and highly durable Messenger Bags made from recycled rice and feed bags. Each hand-crafted piece is unique! These bags provide a sustainable living to Cambodian weavers and producers, many of whom are female heads of households, disabled due to polio or landmine injury or young women pulled from brothels and taught a trade.

Or peruse our all time customer favorite products from Wedge Worldwide, our extensive Fair Trade Jewelry collection. We offer a variety of gorgeous and unique jewelry from across the globe, and also stunning hand-made pieces by local artist, Robin Rifé.

Our Fair Trade Silk and Velvet Scarves are great items for moms and the women in your life. Wedge Worldwide also offers a variety of lovely products made with pure silk like scarves, sumptuous silk throws and velvet jackets.

We have a variety of lead-free, safe and ecologically sound toys for kids. Take a gander at some of our newer Fair Trade Wooden Play Sets and Puzzles made from reclaimed rubber wood.


A few distinctive items that would fit perfectly in any natural home setting are our Fair Trade Salt Crystal Lamps that give off a soothing warm glow while releasing healthy negative ions. Our Salt Lamps are available in a variety of sizes. We also carry the Planet Lamp, a polished, symmetrical salt crystal.

These are just a few of the Fair Trade items that we carry. Stop by and start planning for your holiday shopping today. Let us wrap your presents with pretty, recycled materials and ship them directly to that special person on your list. And another exciting option is coming soon, look for Wedge Worldwide egift certificates this November!

Great New Products For Combination and Sensitive Skin

We are happy to announce that we have brought in yet another exceptional, extremely pure and natural facial care line at Wedge Worldwide. Allow us to introduce you to Suki Naturals, a collection of ultra-pure, facial care items that will make your skin sing.

Suki was started by Suki Kramer who grew up with severe eczema. Having difficulty finding facial and body care products that would help her troubled, delicate skin, Suki experimented with making her own herbal preparations and skin formulas. Her blends improved with each batch and eventually, her skin radically improved. Suki's holistic, effective and gentle formulas resulted in Suki Naturals, products made for all skin conditions, but with sensitive types like her in mind. Suki Natural's skin and body care line are truly natural products with pure botanical ingredients preserved with essential oils, and contain no synthetic ingredients. Extracts of the most potent parts of healing plants are used to maximize the effectiveness and strength of Suki's unique products. Standardized botanicals perform specific functions such as cell regeneration, anti-inflammation, anti-bacterial, detoxification and antiseptic action.

As always, we have tried and tested these products ourselves here at Wedge Worldwide and have a few favorites that we would love to recommend to you. Personally, I have combination skin, which means that my face tends to be both oily and normal or oily and dry, depending on the season. Naturally, I was pleased to come across products from Suki that were perfect for my skin type.

Let's start off with Suki's Exfoliating Lemongrass Cleanser with chamomile and vitamin C. First of all I love the all-natural scent of this cleanser! It brings to mind fresh lemon aid or delicious lemon curd. The gently exfoliating granules are made from grains of organic sugar and gently melt as you massage them into your skin. My face feels smooth and clean after using this cleanser, not harshly stripped of it's natural oils. Suki says that their Lemongrass Cleanser increases cell turnover & unlike damaging glycolics, utilizes natural, safe AHA's & BHA's, awakening a fresh, new layer of skin safely and gently. I found that with continued use of this product my skin tone looked more even, my skin remained hydrated and the T-zone area of my face that tends towards oiliness was more balanced and less prone to break outs.

Another thing that we appreciate about Suki Naturals is their commitment to causing the least impact on the earth in all of their business practices. They are also leaders in the personal care industry and have set standards for purity in personal care that equal our food standards. Neither Suki Naturals, nor their suppliers, test on animals. And, our vegetarian and vegan friends will be happy to know that many of Suki's products are vegan!