{image1}Every other week, Bethany Paar transforms her Riverwest kitchen into a production site for her natural baby product business, Doodlebug.
"We order takeout while a batch of balm is cooking on the stove," says Paar, 25, who started her business about a year ago while pregnant with her son, Tully.
Doodlebug products include diaper spray, washable fleece wipes, baby balm (for diaper rash, cradle cap, dry skin or "owies"), massage oil, bug spray, aromatherapy air fresheners, recycled paper greeting cards, and laundry detergent packaged in reusable paint cans. Soon, the product line will include shampoo, bath bubbles, tooth powder and deodorant.
According to Paar, her products are safe, gentle and natural. "By buying natural, we all can do our little part to help the environment and be in control of what we use on our children," she says.
Paar claims her goal for Doodlebug is not financial; rather she sees the business as a way to connect with the earth, the community and other families. Eventually, she plans to donate all of the proceeds to Barefoot Builders, her non-profit organization providing sustainable materials to family homes.
After having Tully last summer, Paar, a native of West Bend who has lived in Riverwest for five years, decided not to return to her job as an early education teacher.
"My products worked so well on Tully and all of my friends and family that I wanted everyone to explore this option," she says.
Doodlebug products are available at Mia Putia in Riverwest, Sprout! in the Third Ward, Creme in Whitefish Bay, and SoHA/Take my Hand and Future Green in Bay View. She will also sell this summer at the Easttowne Farmer's Market.
For more information about Doodlebug natural baby products, call (414) 264-4313.
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
