Cute-ture is a conscious organisation that tries to minimize their footprint on the environment around them while offering a full line of luxurious, designer baby apparel and accessories. It is a company that was created after years of dreaming about the ideal business that I would want to work for.

I wanted to work in a place where my priorities mattered – my family, my faith and my friends.

Where dreaming and creativity is encouraged and where we could make a difference to the people, environment and animals around us.

I wanted a workplace that was so much fun, that I want to be there, and also serious about tackling things like recycling and reducing waste. Cute-ture is about children – and that means caring about the world they will one day be responsible for.

So what is Cute-ture exactly?

We are a wholesale and online retailer that finds luxurious products for babies and moms from around the world. We are the importers and distributors for delicious brands including Oobi Baby, FLATOUTbears, Alimrose Designs, Cocoon Couture, Mumentum and Minimink Australia.

Our range has a celebrity following (Sarah Jessica Parker, Hugh Jackman, Jennifer Garner, Milla Jovovich amongst many others) and we have been featured in magazines and television across the USA! See our PRAISE page for more information!

But we are also a conscious organisation that tries to minimize our footprint on the environment around us. We encourage our suppliers to have similar practices and celebrate with them when they make steps including launching truly organic lines or using natural dyes with their fabrics. Each small change combined makes a huge difference.

So our pledge as a business and mine as an EcoMom (great website you should check out as well www.ecomom.com) is below. Please take our lead and incorporate these steps into your life too!

1. Change a light. If every household in America changed out just 5 light bulbs to energy efficient CFL's it would be equivalent to taking 8 million cars off the road. We have now changed most of our bulbs at home and at our office and will continue to use the energy efficient bulbs!

2. Drive less. If we each drove just 10 mile less per week, it would save 20 billion pounds of CO2, and you'd find more time in your day. We recently became the proud owners of a Toyota Prius and our goal is to drive it as little as possible!

3. Shop local, fair trade and organic. Most food travels an average of 1,200 miles before it reaches your table, so by walking down to your local farmer's market, you'll not only reduce fossil fuel waste, you might also reduce your own waist. We buy all of our office food from local suppliers and choose organic.

4. Use non-toxic products for cleaning, bathing, even make-up and you'll protect the environment as well as reduce you and your family's risk of disease. We buy our cleaners products for our business and choose Method and Seventh Generation ranges!

5. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Cutting down on garbage by just 10% can save 1,200 pounds of CO2 and you'll have less junk around the house! Anyone can do this!! We now recycle our boxes – so if you order from us and it doesn’t come in a perfect box – then just know you helped the environment too. And if you recycle that box as well – then you continue to help. We recycle our paper where possible and make sure we don’t throw recyclables into the regular trash.

6. Turn off and unplug electronic devices and you'll reduce your exposure to electromagnetic radiation, and save on energy and CO2 emissions. You can also start having dinner by candlelight, which your kids, and your partner, will love! Yes we turn the lights out when we leave the home and office and unplug devices when they are not being used. I know we can be even better at this and implore you to be as well.

7. Re-think your laundry plan! Doing less, using cold water and line drying when possible you can save over 500 pounds of CO2 and over $600 per year. We share our machine at home with our neighbors and it has notes all over it about not using hot water and not using high heats for drying. If I weren’t on the top floor of the building, I would also reuse my water for the garden! It’s easier than you think.

8. Check your tires. By keeping your tires properly inflated, you can improve your gas mileage by over 3% and save 20 pounds of CO2 per gallon not used.

9. GIVE – whether its money, food, blankets, clothing or just your time. It really does rock to give to others in need.

10. Play more. We get so busy checking emails, running errands, taking our kids from school to soccer, or ballet, that we often forget to take the time to connect and play with the people we love . . . So do things that make you happy. It's all connected. Sustain your Self; Sustain Your Home and Sustain Your Planet. That's it.

And finally - to hear more about Cute-ture visit my blog: http://cute-ture.blogspot.com/

Tracey Vieira