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hen you have a baby, you personally feel any pain, discomfort, or fear your child experiences. You share tears as he cries for hours and you shed a different set of tears when your baby is in pain and you can’t heal him. So what do you do then when every baby wipe on the market hurts your child and causes irritation and rashes? Marcie Weinstein-Smith decided she wasn’t going to stay frustrated with the wipes that were harming her child. Instead, she would take action—she would make a new product! After working 18 years in the high-tech industry, in sales and marketing, and having to travel a lot—Marcie left her job to start a family. But there was a part of her that felt someday she would be an entrepreneur. She had a sneaking suspicion; she just didn’t know what it would be. The hunch was right. In 2009, Marcie created Lovey’s, a line of all-natural personal care products. Lovey’s evolved out of the need to find a solution for her child, to finally rid her son of the rashes he constantly had from every baby wipe she used, including the wipes claiming to be natural. After looking more closely she discovered they actually weren’t all-natural at all and found synthetic chemicals in the wipes and ingredients that hadn’t been fully studied to be sure of their effects. As a child, she loved to create and experiment. Even someone who knew Marcie as a child recently said, “I remember Marcie liked to make potions.” She’s still at it! Through experimenting and carefully choosing ingredients, Marcie created a spray solution. As an alternate to wet wipes, Marcie put the solution in a spray bottle, sprayed it on a washcloth and wipe her son’s bottom. “When I went out, parents would ask me where I got it from and tell me how their child had
sensitive skin, too,” says Marcie. Soon after, Lovey’s Tushi Wash was formed! As Lovey’s grew and sold across Canada, Marcie started developing a new product. Knowing how frustrating it is to get rash creams under your fingernails and on your hands, Marcie felt there had to be a better way. So she created Lovey’s Tushi Stick, the only diaper ointment in Canada in a stick applicator. Lovey’s personal care products now include Tushi Wash, Tushi Stick, biodegradable bamboo wipes and bamboo washcloths. As parents, we make choices every day and every minute to ensure the safety and well-being of our children, whether it’s eating organic food, reducing the amount of junk food we eat, or using non-toxic products to clean our house. Marcie has transformed her family’s lifestyle to be healthier, more eco-friendly and spends a great deal of time doing research. She uses caution about what her child is exposed to and consumes, and chooses products that have less packaging and recycles every thing she can. Many parents make an impact on the health and development of their own children, but it’s not often it affects other children as well. “With Lovey’s, I really feel I’m doing my part in diminishing the amount of chemicals babies and children are unnecessarily exposed to.” What a way to get going every day. To wake up and say, “Today, I’m going to make and sell products that are safer and more effective for thousands of children.” Since we’re on the topic of diapers, we just had to ask Marcie: what was the most disgusting diaper experience she has ever had with her son? “We were starting to potty train our son,” says Marcie. “In his curiosity, he put his hands down the back of his pants and diaper, threw out his hands, and came straight towards me to show me!” For more information on Lovey’s baby care products, visit www.loveys.ca
marcie’s
green tip If you can’t afford to always buy organic clothing — the first time you wash your clothing, wash it in hot water. This will wash away some of the pesticides that may have been used to make the clothing.
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