Nature Calls

“Organic” wasn’t a household word in 1997 when Mary Fellows began Little Merry Fellows, a line of chemical-free, organic cotton bedding for babies. But after moving her workshop to the old Sandy Hook post office four years later, she opened a storefront now known as the Little Green Barn where the focus is on fun, eco-friendly goods. “The store is a collection of some of my favorite things,” says Fellows. “We bring in new things all the time from both local and national artists and new and exciting eco-organic products.” The shop is plush with organic cotton, bedding and pillows, as well as jewelry, toys, bags, soaps, herbs and books.

All products are either handmade organic or recycled fiber, including a blanket and pony set, LEFT, made from organic fleece and unbleached cotton. Fellows also makes poetry blankets in her workshop, with inspirational quotes stitched on soft velour terry.

“I’m always looking for interesting things—antique and vintage items are -recycling in its finest form,” says Fellows. At the store’s vintage-1970s claw game, shoppers can take turns grabbing small gifts with a mechanical arm, just like in a boardwalk arcade. “We throw any unsold items suitable for the crane in there. You can get some real bargains at 50 cents a play.” Fellows recently launched a website and mail-order business, and she also runs the Sandy Hook Organic Farmers Market across the street at St. John’s Church, open every Tuesday from the end of June through October.

>> For more information, call 203-270-1820 or visit www.littlemerryfellows.com.