Greenward

Love the selection at this eco-​friendly shop. Great place to pick up essentials for the house or for gift giving ideas.
My only gripe would be the hours. It’s sometimes hard to get there before closing.

As an «Eco-​store,» you might be worried this place would only have 99% post-​consumer waste toilet paper and low-​flow shower heads (important stuff maybe, but borrrring!) However, you needn’t worry — this place is full of fun, awesome stuff. Adorable onesies with things like slow lorises on them in organic cotton! Stackable stainless steel lunch kits from India! Jewelry made out of old bike chains! You get the point. A great place to get a gift EVEN for friends that don’t compost (gasp!) Or, to get a gift for yourself…

I love browsing in this shop. It is a shame that I often forget that it is here, until I’ve gone back home. I have to remember to walk a little farther down the strip on Mass Avenue to go here. They have some great eco household items and it’s a good place to shop for gifts. The staff is friendly and helpful. They have a bulletin board and you can pick up a farm share there.

I love Greenward. They walk the walk and provide us with good things to buy that don’t harm the environment or other people.

I’d like to give a 4.5 really– but since that isn’t an option 5 works.
Love the concept of the store. They have so many great, nifty items– useful and whimsical.
The staff is always super friendly and nice.
I pick up my farm share there– so love that they work with local farms to provide that service– and that is actually the reason I first went in there.
Only qualm is that it is a bit pricey– which I know, the stuff they sell isn’t generally the cheapest, but I wish eco friendly fare was more affordable.

Funky store! Earth-​conscious products. Really friendly girl working there!
I am a fan!

I bought the Unilocal deal after checking out their website, and finally got over to the store, as I live many towns away. I had a field day there, and easily found almost a hundred bucks worth of really useful things.
The bamboo kitchen collection they have is really great, from serving to cooking items very reasonably priced. Nice selection of baby and kid items. Cool, though kind of higher priced, bike accessories, and just too much cool and useful stuff to name. But 2 additional items need naming:
1. nice, healthy tillandsia (air plants) very reasonably priced
2. guitar picks, in all the standard stiffnesses, made from wheat. Yup,
wheat. I got the heavy to try with my acoustic and it seems cool.
Oh yeah — they’re only 35 cents each. lol.
So I’ll go back when I can — very pleased, and glad they offered the Unilocal deal or I’d never have known about them.

Quality products, great prices, and you can walk away feeling good about your place on the planet. What else could you ask for in a store?
I had been in here before, but was excited to go back when I saw the recent Unilocal deal. Though I had to work a little bit to spend the full $ 60, I got some great stuff. Store highlights include:
— bamboo serving spoons, etc. that won’t scratch your nonstick pans
— fun ways to pack your lunch (invest and save money AND the planet later! win-​win!)
— stationary, from boxed cards to postcards
— cleaning supplies that won’t make you faint from fumes (unless you’re swooning because they smell so good)
— a great selection of reusable bags for all purposes
My only regret — I wish this store was bigger! It’s good at what it does, but that scope it a little limited, and it could be even more artsy/​craftsy or incorporate clothing/​shoes/​recipes and cooking supplies/​etc.

Stopped in today thanks to the Unilocal Deal.
I love the store and it’s mission overall.
One reviewer from ⁴⁄₁₀ mentioned the «sterile» feel in here and I wholeheartedly concur.
There could be much more (soy-​based or otherwise earth-​friendly) color and overall spunk to the inventory. Almost all items are very subdued and plain/(hence the minus one star).
I also wish there was just more of everything. For example, there is baby/​toddler clothing but no clothing for adults.
It is also my opinion that some items were perfectly well priced, and others gave me sticker shock (I understand we may be paying more for an all-​natural or handmade process but woah! for example, 2 small drink glasses were 31 $$$$). just sayin’
That being said, what they DO have is pretty neat and useful such as biodegradable cleaning and household products. I hope they add to the variety and colors included in their wares, and I hope they are and remain successful.

Great eco-​friendly and recycled items — including funky picture frames made from bike chains, earrings made from cobalt wine glasses and stationary that rocks.
I have bought a ton of gifts here– and highly recommend shopping here for a unique gift. Not to mention, the staff are super helpful!

I’m not really sure how to describe this place. It’s the store you walk in and want to buy practically everything, even though you don’t need any of it…
What to do with Greenward? Well, inevitably you’ll end up buying a little something for yourself there – who can resist all of the beautiful eco-​friendly products, but I’d say it’s a great place to buy gifts. I actually ended up buying a gorgeous card there. There was a range of prices on cards, from about $ 3 – 6 for artsy cards.
Also in the store: bike gear, baby clothes, dog accessories, kitchen accessories, magazines/​books.

I really like Greenward, and I’ve bought things here, namely wooden postcards, flower seeds (gifts) and a water bottle… but I had a hard time finding anything else in my price range. I did lust after most of the stuff out of my price range, though, like messenger bags, kitchen supplies, and a sunlight-​charged bike light. I just agree with Jess L., in saying that there’s so much else that’s «green» that ought to be sold in this store. Where are all the green cosmetics, clothes, shoes, recycled, etc. items out there?

Your friend has a baby. You go and visit friend and said baby. And husband who helped make the baby. Being raised properly, you know you cannot just show up at their house, where you’ll be staying for two days, empty-​handed.
Enter Greenward. What parents wouldn’t appreciate adorable, all organic cotton jumpers, hats and booties? Yes, I bought all three and yes, they all matched. I felt good about bringing something for the munckin that would meet mom and dad’s approval and not make me look like the ill-​informed, non-​procreating gal that I am.
Before choosing the parent-​pleasing presents, I took some time to browse and quickly realized I could spend a LOT of money in here. All natural cleaning products, wooden mixing bowls and even earrings made from recycled materials. In addition to the buying of baby items, I picked up a thank-​you card for my boyfriend’s mother. Made from recycled paper with a super elegant flower design on the front and a blank inside. It says thank you without brown-​nosing, and indicates my concern for the environment while reinforcing my good taste and genuine thoughtfulness.
In summary, Greenward has earth-​friendly stuff for you, for you friends, for you friend’s kids and for your boyfriend’s mom. Rare when you can find all that stuff in one store and still feel good about it.

Checked this place out on a whim. Great products and selection. A really fresh, eco feel inside the store. Really unique products inside, too. Of course since it’s eco, some of it is expensive… but if you can reuse so much of it, a lot of these items are a steal.
There weren’t as many «green» cleaning, bath products as there might be at, say, a Whole Foods. Still, some really useful stuff!

Finally a fully eco-​friendly shop in Cambridge! Def worth a visit if you have gifts to give or feel like treating yourself. For Christmas I got my boyfriend a platter made from a vinyl record and we just love it. Some of the items are on the pricier side, as green goods often are, but there are some hidden gems here for sure.
The owners seem super friendly & well versed in the products they carry… and genuinely committed to the tradition of eco-​friendly wares… they even have cork floors and other equally environmentally friendly measures throughout the store. I’m looking forward to another visit to see what new things they have gotten in!

What a gem in Porter Square, although hard to find if you don’t know where to look. Located in the basement under Rosie’s Bakery. I love Greenward, whenever I need a birthday gift or a card for an occassion its my favorite stop. As many other reviews have said, lots of eco friendly stuff. I purchased cards that were made of recycled paper and had seeds in them so you can tear up the card and plant an herb garden which I gave to my mother and grandmother on Mother’s Day.
The staff are super friendly, a husband and wife team who always ask how you are doing and even say hello when out and about in Cambridge. Not many shops remember their customers even months later!
I send everyone I know here because there isn’t any other place like it. Lots of places have some of the products they carry, but a whole store that specializes in eco friendly, about time!

I really really like Greenward. They have some fantastic environmentally friendly items, and surprisingly enough they are quite affordable. Greenward can be easy to miss, since it’s in the basement, but the bright pink awning helps them out.
They also sell a lot of bike accessories. I wanted to get a collapsible side basket for my bike, since the milk crate I’m using right now sits right up against my butt and makes me slide down the seat (sorry Erica!). I also grabbed a nylon cord mesh thing to go around my bike rack. I really wanted to get one of the awesome handlebar baskets as well and some of the coolly decorated bike bells, but I stopped myself.
When paying I chatted with the owner (?) and he informed me that he really liked the purchases that I was making, and that he has it also for his bike. I told him I might grab a second collapsible basket some other time, and he told me that he has one collapsible and one regular mesh basket that he only brings with him if he needs it. I thought that was a great idea and I’m definitely going to go back and grab one!
Oh! They also participate in Bicycle Benefits, you can buy a sticker there and you also get 10% off your purchase of $ 25 or more!

It’s hard to walk the tightrope of environmental responsibility and consumerism. One of the best things you can do for the Earth is to HAVE LESS STUFF.
That said, there’s stuff in life that you need. Basic stuff for shopping — messenger or shopping bags, carrying racks for your bike, water bottles.
Then there’s stuff that you don’t. Tchotchkes, baskets, ornaments, thingiedingies.
But if you’re going to get anything from either category, it might as well be as low-​impact and well-​made as possible. And Greenward probably has it.
I’m generally a practical shopper, so I want things like a Reisenthal shopping bag and a Sigg bottle. Instead of buying these things online (boo!), I got them here (yay!)
Major kudos for giving discounts for bikers and Zip car drivers!

Zero stars for service. I walked out of here thinking «What did I do?». I wasn’t greeted when I came in or helped when I was looking around and despite flashing my dimpled smile on the way out, I was barely acknowledged. «They hate chu,» my friend whispered. I’m sorry, Greenward. Was my outfit not biodegradable enough?
But I won’t hold the Earth responsible for the people working here. haha I think this is definitely a great shop. They have «green» stuff from A to Z. From gifts to household products, this place is also reasonably priced. I really dig their cards and I’d definitely come in again, but maybe after I’ve fashioned myself a dress out of leaves and moss.
4 stars for the store, but unfortunately a couple knocked off for the service.

Ok I’m going to be the big jerk here. I totally understand the «green» idea, and leaving the smallest ecological footprint that one can. I mean, we (being my husband and I, not the royal we) have those horrid energy saving lightbulbs, only eat organic, bring our own bags shopping with us. But for me, the whole green idea also means consuming as much as you need to, and not a ton more. So that is where my main complaint with Greenward falls.
It’s a neat store, everything is recycled, or as Jessica M. noted, low impact, but the vast majority of it is really random stuff you kinda don’t need. I mean, sure I was staring longingly at the recycled Public Enemy record snack dish… but do I need it? No. Is it really damn awesome? Yes.
They do offer more sensible things like shopping bags, some camping gear, a good magazine selection on greener living, and some locally produced chocolates that looked good even to this non-​chocoholic.
Essentially, what I’m saying is this: I am giving them 4 stars because I think that it is awesome that there is a store out there selling items that are about as green as one can get, but for me, being green means consuming less stuff — not more ecologically friendly stuff.
That said, of course I’d encourage anyone to do their card, random trinket, hipstery friend gift shopping there. They have a lot of really neat stuff… it’s just too much of it was decorative tchotchke type for me.