The top 8 finalists for the 2010 Green Halloween ChicoBag design contest have been chosen!

Congratulations to every child who entered (over 500 kids this year!).

Click here for how YOU can help choose the winning design, which will be featured on a 2011 ChicoBag trick-or-treat bag, sold online and in stores all across the U.S.

Which design do you think best captures the “Spirit of a Green Halloween“? Vote by November 17th!

10% of the sale of Halloween ChicoBag™s support Green Halloween®! Thank you so much, ChicoBag for your support of our initiative! To purchase the 2010 Green Halloween ChicoBag, click here.

Last year, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics released a report stating that 10 of 10 face paints tested contained lead (a powerful neurotoxin) and other heavy metals. These findings fuel mounting concerns over the safety of numerous chemical fragrances, artificial colors, preservatives and other ingredients in body products (for children and adults).

But kids wear face paint, they don’t eat it, right?

Wrong. What’s applied to the skin is absorbed into the body. Think of body products (face paint, included) as skin food.

So what’s a parent to do?

Make you own, as we did today with New Day Northwests host, Margaret Larson. It’s super easy (and FUN!) and can be made with ingredients you likely already own and trust.

(Not sure if you do trust the products you own like diaper rash cream, or lotion, the base ingredient in our face paint recipe? Be sure to check out www.CosmeticDataBase.com).

Not the DIY type?

Purchase mineral-based makeup from EcoMom.com or TerraFirmaCosmetics.com.

Segment links:

Non-toxic nail polish:

www.hopscotchkids.com

Safe Face Paints (pre-made):

www.ecomom.com

www.terrafirmacosmetics.com

All-natural food coloring:

www.wholefoods.com

Non-toxic diaper rash cream:

www.weleda.com

Get the {eco} Look: Corey’s dress from Issaquah-based sustainable-designer, Lizzie Parker. Lynn’s artisan-designed, reclaimed felt necklace from Digs.com.

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Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

National Costume Swap Day was featured on Q13 (FOX) in Seattle!

Thanks so much to Macaroni Kid (Snoqualamie Valley) and friends for helping us to get up this “mock swap” for the shoot. Watch the video above, and click here for the whole story.

Have photos or video from your costume swap? Send them to us via e-mail and we just might feature you on GreenHalloween.org!

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Green Halloween® is a nationwide non-profit initiative started by mother-daughter team Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell. In 2010, Green Halloween became a program of EcoMom® Alliance and has events in cities across the U.S.

Holli Dunn, our amazing photographer friend has done it again with her awesome photos from the Whole Foods Market (Bellevue) Green Halloween day, last month.

Click here to see the whole bunch.

Thank you, Holli for your generous support of Green Halloween!