The BecoThings Blog

New to our range is eco-friendly pet beds. Available in four colours and four sizes, our BecoBeds features removable washable covers made from a mix of natural cotton and hemp. Inside they’re filled with our eco-stuffing made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. Each bed’s stuffing is made of between 25 to 35 bottles resulting in a durable material, that has excellent insulating and wicking properties and can be washed and dried. What’s more we’ve designed the bed to have an unique and innovative shape that suits both “sprawlers” and “snugglers”.

Find our more here

The kind people over at mummypages.co.uk have written a great review of our baby products.

Check it out here: http://www.mummypages.co.uk/becothings-eco-friendly-products-for-babies-toddlers.

Well what a year 2012 has been! From the London Olympics to the likes of the Jubilee its been a cracking year to be in London. Its been an exciting year for us at BecoThings too. We’ve introduced lots of new products including pet toys and our popular BecoPockets (and there’s more to come in 2013), we’ve moved the BecoOffice and we’ve had a number of great additions to our team. Bring on 2013!

Just before we sign off on 2012, a minor “house cleaning” notice: Unfortunately the “BecoElves” that man our website’s online shop store have been requisitioned by Santa to Lapland for a short period. As a result we will not be able to dispatch any online orders made between 22nd December 2012 and 1st January 2013 until the Elves return on 2nd January 2013. Apologies for any delay this may cause you.

A very merry Christmas and a happy New Year from us all!

The BecoThings Team.

Hurray, it is finally here! The long awaited spike in temperature has arrived in full force, paving the path towards avid trips to great spaces of green and splash sessions in paddling pools.
Many parents choose this season of the year (especially when it makes a commitment to stay with us), to potty train their little ones as it is warm enough for a toddler to be nude and comfortable, plus it doesn’t amount to a rapid increase in the laundry hamper pile.
Even if you choose to follow the strip down instead of the strip off toddler potty training routine, fewer layers offers the opportunity to avoid little accidents and to introduce pull ups or underwear which can help the process along at a swifter pace.
However, does the presence of the sun really mean it is the best time to change our habits and routines? Will potty training be a greater success in a heat wave or is this just an excuse to put it off forever (if you live in the UK)? There are definitely two sides to this debate.
Some parents suggest that during the colder months of the year you spend more time indoors, and this gives parents an opportunity to create a schedule for a potty visits after meals. Therefore the art is mastered swiftly and in a structured fashion. Oh we can dream!
However and whenever you choose to grab your BecoPotty and potty train, don’t forget to have fun with it as they will all learn eventually but some added enthusiasm and encouragement will definitely go a long way.

Whilst there are the Loews Coronado Bay Dog Surf Competition, Crufts, and plenty of other events for our BecoPets throughout the year it dawned on us at BecoThings this morning that there is no animal Olympics.

Danny Boyle’s intention of using live animals in the Olympics opening ceremony to create his vision of our ‘green and pleasant land’ was unsurprisingly met with hostility from animal rights activists, earlier this year.

Including chicken, horses, sheep and cows (to name but a few) many worry of the safety of these animals and the resulting trauma they face. Yet, whilst it may seem a bizarre proposition, Boyle is only adding to the already strange history of animals at the Olympics.

Below we have summed up a brief history of animals at the Olympics, the good and the bad…

Of course in Ancient Greece, chariot racing was one of the events at the ancient Olympic games, the horses got off lightly, as their bovine friends were sacrificed on great pyres to the gods, the remaining meat fed to the spectators.

At  the games of 1900, pigeon shooting was introduced as a sport. The only sport of this kind ever to be hosted at an Olympic games, and was quickly removed from the line up. The event was terribly messy and was perhaps more ethically replaced by the clays used today.

Equestrian sport continues to be a popular attraction for Olympic spectators, with jumping originally dominated by the military. As the military became more mechanised civilians were able to take part. Dressage events also form part of the paralympic games.

This year’s mascots are somewhat unusual, if not unidentifiable, and out of keeping with the former animal tradition, where countries usually choose an animal symbol of their nation as a mascot. For example, the Moscow mascot was a bear, whilst the Sydney games used a platypus, an echidna and a kookaburra.

Since the uproar Boyle continues to use animals in his show, stating that they will be looked after better than the human acts in the show.

Rumour has it the animals demands are already somewhat steeper than the more celebrated acts, with livestock requesting udder massages, and kilos of fresh Salisbury grass. BecoThings patiently awaits its order of designer BecoToys and eco friendly Becobowls..

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Just a quick post to show you a couple of snaps of the prototypes and samples of our pet products that will be available to buy soon.

First up we’ve got our new range of dog toys that include bones, hoops, rope toys and balls. Our new BecoBalls have been specially profiled to roll erratically and make it extra challenging for you dog to grab them. All have a lovely soft tactile rubbery finish while still being made with our usual bamboo and rice husk materials and tested to survive the rough and tumble your dogs are likely to put them through! They will be available in a wide range of colours very soon. Please contact our sales team to find out more.

Our new BecoPockets proved extremely popular at Pats 2012 at Sandown last week. The eco-friendly and non-toxic bag holder clips to your lead and belt. With an attractive design and bio-degradable material, the BecoPocket is an exciting addition to our range. Please contact our sales team to find out more.

As a BecoFriend, I’m sure you’re all fairly big animal lovers, and like everyone in the office here absolutely loved the Frozen Planet series that has kept us all in front of the TV when we should probably be out and about! Well don’t worry that it’s nearly all over as there’s more of the same type of stuff to be seen at the National History Museum.  From 21st October 2011 until 11th March 2012, the museum is holding the 2011 Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition. We’ve all been to see it and it truly is amazing! It provides a spotlight on the rarely seen wonders of the natural world, and is definitely a must see…

This year’s exhibition wanted to highlight the important impact of humans on wildlife.  This year’s competition winner is Daniel Beltrá who wanted to challenge people to reconsider their relationship with nature.  His photo Still Life in Oil (above) is a shot taken during the infamous BP and Gulf oil spillages which caused mind boggling amounts of damage to bird and animal life.

We think this photo really helps to build awareness on the environmental impacts that companies cause in order to acquire raw materials. We are proud to say that we don’t have to dig to the bottoms of the earth to make BecoThings which are all made from sustainable sourced plant fibres, such as rice husks (the waste product of rice farming) and bamboo. We don’t want to blow our own trumpets but we, like many people are trying to do our bit for the environment and hopefully more companies will start to do the same… So enough of our preaching; make sure you get down to the exhibition as soon as possible, above all it’s a great thing to take the family to!

Wondering where to party this weekend? Hesitate no further and head to UK’s first eco nightclub. The world’s first eco club Surya, based in Islington was set up in 2008. An environmentally sustainable club that sees green as the new black; don’t stop dancing though or you’ll make the lights go out!

That’s right the dancers literally power the dance floor and it doesn’t stop there it’s a club so eco friendly that it will donate surplus electricity to its neighbours.  Property developer Andrew Charalambous aka Dr Earth (self named) claims :

“The club aims to stop preaching to people and use an inclusive philosophy to create the revolution needed to combat climate change.’

Surya is a Club4Climate project, which is London’s first taste of eco-friendly clubbing, making clubbers happy in the knowledge that their organic eco dance moves can generate 60% of the energy needed to run the club.

The venue’s most exciting innovation is the piezoelectric dancefloor, which uses quartz crystals and ceramics to turn clubbers’ movement into electricity! The venue has the latest air flush, waterless urinals and low flush toilets and sells drinks in polycarbon cups.

Entrance is £10 and there’s a rumour that customers will only be allowed in if they sign a pledge promising to work towards curbing climate change…Top Marks!

Forget the bright lights of Blackpool and Vegas and head down to Lyon and take a pre-Christmas trip to get you in the spirit and feast your eyes on the luminous and glittering Festival of Lights in Lyon.

The history of Fête des Lumières pays tribute to the Virgin Mary, who is said to have spared the city from the plague in 1643. So every year up to four million people swarm the city and join to commemorate and give thanks to the Virgin Mary.

The spectacular Lyon Festival of Lights is an annual event that promises to leave you nothing less than awestruck with up to 80 quirky animations and projections on the facades of historic buildings. Don’t be hasty and rush round to see everything, it’s a four day event. So you’ll have plenty of time to peruse the dazzling City of Lyon and you’ll surely want to come back again.

The Festival of Lights is not only a stunning sight, it highlights important environmental issues (and you know this is close to our hearts). You would assume that this four day lighting extravaganza would cost millions, but it surprisingly cost just a measly £3000. This year’s motto, “Light More but Consume Less” aims to get everybody thinking about their carbon footprint. By getting more people outside for the four day extravaganza it’s not only educational but also means fewer people are consuming electricity within their home!

One of the BecoTeam, Lizzy the Lizzard, was lucky enough to enjoy the festival. Have a look below, and watch my star pick spectacle of 2009’s Fête de Lumières.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JUnzhVAu2A …

I have begged George the Giraffe to take the BecoOffice for a business trip for next year!! I currently have everything crossed that he says ‘yes’. Early Christmas Present perhaps?

So don’t hesitate to book a last minute train down to Lyon!

The phenomenon of Mum and Dad blogging has taken online by storm. In the past decade, Mums and Dads across the UK have been jotting down the nitty-gritty stuff of parenting, giving those in need handy tips for keeping their kids entertained and providing an insight into the best products and brands out there. Many parents see blogging as an escape from the difficult yet rewarding adventure of having to raise their kids and the popularity of these online blogs shows the huge public interest in the highs and lows of parenting.

At BecoThings we’ve found so many parenting blogs inspiring and entertaining that we can’t mention them all, but here is a shortlist of some of our favourites:

1.) A Boy with Asperger’s: So inspirational! Claire does such a great job at raising awareness for Autism in such an uplifting way…

2.) The Mummy Whisperer: We were particularly fond of this blog because it talks about how to bring up your children in an eco friendly way, and you all know this very important for BecoThings!

3.) Bringing up Charlie: Let’s not give all the credit to mums, this blog shows that men aren’t completely useless when it comes to domesticated chores and bringing up children. Keep up the good work Tim…

4.) A Modern Mother: Set up by Susanna Scott the founder of Brit Mums and a well-known mumpreneur, this blog tackles some controversial issues and therefore always makes interesting reading!

BecoThings wants to give a round of applause to all those Mums and Dads blogging their socks off night and day whilst still trying to juggle the trials and tribulations of parenthood. Keep up the good work!