Meet Natruba, a small family-owned Danish company that hand makes all of their bath toys & natural teething toys for babies from natural rubber from the hevea tree. 
Each toy is hand-sculpted, hand-cast & hand-painted in food-grade dyes for completely unique eco-friendly teething & sensory toys for babies that are natural, non-toxic & fully biodegradable. 
Designed & developed to stimulate all senses with different surfaces to encourage sensory play and the soft natural rubber to satisfy all stages of sore gums and a bell in the bottom to stimulate the sense of hearing, making them a perfect and safe choice for children to play with and babies to soothe and chew on.
Blue Brontide interviewed the designers & makers of these adorable teething toys - Kasper & Line to learn the story behind the brand . . .
The Q & A
Natruba
How did the idea for Natruba come about?
Becoming parents and experiencing our daughter’s need to chew on everything inspired us to make safe, natural, chemical-free toys - because we didn’t want to worry about toys!
Where is Natruba made?
Natruba is a Danish family-driven company, located on the small island of Bornholm.
Can you tell us a little more about your beautiful teething toys and how they are made?
All Natruba toys are hand-sketched, hand-sculpted, hand-cast & hand-painted natural rubber – a fantastic natural, non-toxic and safe material that is environmentally friendly & sustainable and at the same time highly hygienic and biodegradable and it is especially perfect for soothing sore gums.
An important point in our design philosophy is that all toys are designed with the precious little ones in mind. Little hands and minds are in focus every time a new product is designed. All Natruba toys are designed & developed with a focus on motor skills development, sensory development, cognitive development, emotional development, and last, but not least, development of the ability to play, learn and use of imagination – for both big and small. Therefore, you will find, among other things, that Natruba products are lightweight and easy for little hands to hold, to stimulate & practice movement, the eye-space coordination, and fine motor skills.
What sustainable materials do Natruba use and why did you choose them?
Natural rubber and all of our textiles are made of organic cotton. It comes very natural to us to choose natural materials. We are surrounded by Nature, living on a small island in the Baltic Sea, and privately we prefer, value and strive to eat organic, use less and recycle as much as possible. So it was very natural that our company should live by the same values.
We want to not only take care of Nature now but Nature of the future as well.
When selecting Natruba toys you do not only choose an eco-friendly toy but also, and most important, non-toxic, high-quality designs guaranteed free of PVC, BPA, Phthalates, and Nitrosamines. Making them a perfect and safe choice for children to play with and babies to soothe and chew on.
Natural rubber allows us to make fun, healthy and plastic & chemical-free toys that won’t leave damaging waste for generations to come.
What would you say the values & ethos is behind Natruba?
Natural playfulness.
How do you build ethical & sustainable values into your designs?
Hm. Does it translate directly into our designs? Probably not, but the natural rubber material is highly sustainable, in that it is sap from a tree. A tree from sustainable forestry, meaning that when it does not produce sap efficiently anymore it is cut down and the wood is used for other purposes and a new tree is planted.
Where do you find inspiration when designing your beautiful products?
No doubt Nature is a huge source of inspiration and children and their little hands. Our own kids, in particular. I draw a lot together with Alberte, our daughter (the reason of Natruba existing), and we inspire each other. She really enjoys drawing up products and she has such a wonderful imagination and the mind of children simply sees no limits. Often times I can take something like a detail or shape or something she said and transform it into a product or detail for a product. She was the one suggesting that the sensory balls should be decorated with leaves. And we do have a few designs of hers we are considering putting into production.
Why is sustainability important to you as a business & in your everyday life?
As mentioned earlier we strive to live sustainably, by eating organic, buying less, recycling more. Personally, I am, honestly, driven by fear I think. I fear not being able to show our children the world. I fear what the world might become, maybe I will not live to experience it, but my kids and their kids might. So as an individual and as a business we do what we can to at least be able to say we did the best we could to do our part.
If you could offer any advice to others seeking to create change, what would it be?
Even small changes matter. If we all take a step, no matter the size, we can walk miles together!
What's your hope for future generations?
I really wish they will have the opportunity to travel and see our beautiful planet Earth, thriving naturally in peaceful harmony, making them want to keep fighting for change and natural beauty.
Any quotes or wise words you want to share?
I am a 90’s childhood girl and real Disney fan. I really love these two quotes among others from Mr. Disney himself:
”All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
“The difference between winning and losing is most often not quitting.”
When my children are facing a challenge or find something to be difficult, I often tell them to repeat the following after me: “I can, I will, I shall, I’m doing it” – and most time it works, giving them faith, and prevents them from quitting. I truly believe in Disney’s winning vs. losing quote – and imprint this in my kids, by having them remember that even though you may not be the winner with a medal around your neck, you are a winner for not quitting.
