Our Story | Why We Donated Everything & Relaunched Eartharia

In 2020, we packed up every product in our baby gift store and donated it — all of it — to a women’s shelter. No sale. No liquidation. Just gone. And somehow, that was the moment Eartharia truly began.

If you’re going to trust us with your family’s home, your children’s toys, and your hard-earned money, you deserve the real story. Here it is.

We’ve Always Been Thrifters — Long Before It Was a Business

My husband Justin and I live in an old farmhouse outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and we’ve been thrifting for years — not out of necessity, but out of genuine love for the hunt. Finding a handmade stoneware bowl tucked behind a shelf of plastic clutter, or pulling a barely-touched wooden puzzle from a bin knowing it has another decade of joy in it — that never gets old.

In 2019, I turned that love into a business. Eartharia launched as a curated, eco-focused baby gift store — the kind of place I wished had existed when our kids were small. Within three months, we were one of the top-performing stores in our niche.

Then the world shut down.

Why We Donated Our Entire Inventory During COVID-19

When the pandemic hit, the logical move was to warehouse the inventory and wait it out. Instead, Justin and I thought about the families in our community suddenly in crisis — job losses, domestic situations worsening, shelters stretched thin. We loaded everything up and donated it all.

“We didn’t plan it as a brand moment. We just did what felt right. But it clarified something: Eartharia was never just a store. It was always supposed to be about something bigger — making better choices.”

That pause gave us time to think harder about what we actually wanted to build. We researched circular economies, studied greenwashing, and asked ourselves what it truly means to be a sustainable business versus just claiming to be one.

What Makes Eartharia Different from Other Eco-Friendly Stores

The sustainable family products market is growing fast — but it’s harder than ever to find the real thing. Greenwashing is everywhere, and over half of consumers say they’re more skeptical of eco-claims than they were a year ago. We think that skepticism is healthy and earned.

So here’s what Eartharia actually offers:

• Certified eco-friendly products — brands with verifiable sustainability credentials: GOTS, OEKO-TEX, and FSC certifications, or long-standing reputations like Playmobil and Patagonia.

• Pre-loved and secondhand items — because the most sustainable product is often the one that already exists. We sell quality secondhand goods from brands built to last.

• Handmade artisan home décor — hand-poured candles, hand-thrown pottery, stained glass, and suncatchers. One-of-a-kind pieces from real makers, including items from Eartharia’s own small in-house studio.

Every supplier is vetted not just for materials, but for labor practices, business ethics, and whether their values align with ours. We’re not perfect — but we’re transparent, and we’ll always show our work.

What Shopping at Eartharia Looks Like

Our catalog brings together new organic and sustainably made products, pre-loved finds, and handcrafted goods — all in one place. We’ll introduce you to the makers behind the products: who poured your candle, who threw your pottery, and why we chose them.

It’s a slower, more intentional shopping experience. We think that’s exactly what a lot of families are looking for.

Justin is an Army veteran. I’ve spent my career in IT leadership and e-commerce. We’re a two-person small business who genuinely believe that the choices we make for our families ripple outward. That belief is what Eartharia is built on.

Be the First to Know When New Products Drop

We’re rebuilding from the ground up and we want you along for the ride. Sign up below for early access to new products, honest updates on what we’re learning, and subscriber-only discounts when the full store opens.

No spam. No data selling. Just Eartharia, showing up with intention.

Eartharia is a sustainable family store curating certified eco-friendly products, quality pre-loved finds, and handcrafted artisan goods. Founded by JoAnn and Justin Chisholm near Pittsburgh, PA.