Haus Theory. Photos: Chris Emeott
Shopping small has never felt so good.
Last summer, I stopped buying bread. It was a small change to push myself to explore new recipes and improve as a baker. I quickly learned how to make biscuits, pita, sandwich bread, sourdough loaves, tortillas and more. The choice was also a symptom of my broader mindset as a consumer—to reduce single-use plastic purchases, buy second-hand goods and recycle well.
I’m privileged to have the capacity to pursue sustainability on many levels, and, while I’m aware my impact on the world is small, taking these steps gives me hope and brings me joy.
It felt fitting for my Editor’s Picks this year to focus on sustainable businesses in the White Bear Lake area. These stores provide the community with an alternative way to use our purchasing power, allowing people to choose both local and sustainable options.
Growing up in California, it didn’t take long for Paula Carrillo to fall in love with vintage. Drawn to the colorful ’60s and ’70s garments tucked in thrift store racks, Carrillo dressed in vintage (from her hair to her shoes) six to seven days a week after graduating high school. “That’s how the collection started, and then it just got kind of out of control,” Carrillo says.
Bad Little Woman Vintage
In 2004, she started selling vintage clothes online. Nearly 20 years later, in 2023, Carrillo opened Bad Little Woman Vintage at Avalon Mall in downtown White Bear Lake. The racks and shelves are filled to the brim with treasures that rotate with the seasons. Her approach to sustainability is entwined with family lessons on resourcefulness and gratitude. Stains and tears don’t hold Carrillo back from resurrecting an item of clothing. “I’d like to give everything a second life,” Carrillo says. She also thrifts all her display items. Even extra cardboard is used to make price tags, which often include a note on the item’s backstory.
Though Carrillo does get help from employees on days she’s sourcing goods, she loves being at the store, helping customers find the perfect item. “She comes home excited,” says Gorge Rodriquez, Carrillo’s partner. “And not about how much she sold, but … the impact she made on the people that came in.” 2179 Fourth St. Suite 1D; 507.400.1132; blwvintage.com
Bamboo Switch
Alexander and Jordan Akens met as high school students in 2007 when Alexander was here on exchange from Germany. Eighteen years on (and now a family of four), the Akens founded a thriving zero-waste brand. Bamboo Switch supplies sustainable and eco-friendly home goods to thousands of shops and boutiques around the country.
The brand launched in 2018 when the couple decided to focus on providing alternatives to common plastic essentials—starting with toothbrushes—and find a way to make the eco-friendly concept less luxurious. They found a solution in bamboo, the fastest-growing plant on Earth. The company now sells more than 300 products with most filling a need in the bathroom and kitchen.
Bamboo Switch pursues sustainability on all levels, ensuring that workers abroad and at home are paid a fair living wage. In White Bear Lake, the company employs seven full-time workers, using natural packaging and reusing boxes from area businesses whenever possible. You won’t find plastic in the company’s Third Street shop, either. It’s all part of a mission to spread the word on green living. “I want to be able to meet people where they are, at any point,” Jordan says. “The more people that see that this is possible, that they can afford it and that there are other alternatives, the better for the mission of the planet.” 2208 Third St.; 612.495.9272; bambooswitch.com
Haus Theory
Stepping into Haus Theory feels like entering a cozy home filled with treasures. The Third Street home goods shop has a sustainable mission of encouraging thoughtful homemaking by rehoming vintage furnishings and goods. “There’s so much stuff that exists in the world that there’s plenty for everybody already. So, finding ways to incorporate the things that speak to you is possible already,” co-owner Amanda Evans says. “There’s a way to feel good in your home, knowing that you’re doing something that isn’t harmful or wasteful.”
Amanda and her husband, co-owner Dan Evans, spend each week sourcing, repairing, curating and peddling these special items. “All of our furniture is vintage, and then we focus on the really quality stuff and repairing and restoring—making sure things are still viable and can live another entire lifetime,” Amanda says.
Any new product at Haus Theory has been intentionally chosen with its creation and end life in mind and is made with natural or recyclable materials. “If we bring in a new thing, it’s because it’s really well-designed and useful,” Amanda says. The shop also has a sustainable approach to utilities and operations; it relies on wind-powered electricity and uses only recycled packaging materials with carbon offset shipping. “The way we shop matters, so having choices and knowing that it’s a choice is important,” Amanda says. 2182 Third St.; 651.429.0963; haustheory.com
Oldies & Goodies
Engaging in sustainable shopping practices is often a matter of balance. At Oldies & Goodies, this concept shines clear as day. Along with a collection of vintage and second-hand clothing, owners Emily Blake and Amber Puschinsky have curated a selection of products and creations from area artists. Previously operating as two neighboring businesses, Blake and Puschinsky joined forces in 2023 when they moved to a vibrant, welcoming 2,600-square-foot space on Clark Avenue in downtown White Bear Lake.
Blake’s passion lies in bringing creatives together. The shop currently features work from 73 artists and often holds art classes in subjects like painting and woodworking. Puschinsky tackles the vintage side, which includes both homeware and ’80s–’90s casual vintage. Choosing vintage and second-hand clothing isn’t just a matter of look or quality, it’s about reducing the amount of clothing headed for landfills. “I just see the waste because I’m always out there looking for things,” she says. “That’s really a big reason why it’s important to me.” The upside of her work is learning the stories of vintage items, especially those that are donated to the shop by community members. A beloved lace tablecloth, a unique purse—even a table made from a bowling lane—have come from one home to be treasured in another, all through Oldies & Goodies. “We’ll keep it safe until we can pass it on to the next person,” Puschinsky says. 4717 Clark Ave.; 612.888.4520; oldiesandgoodiesmn.com
Park + Coop
Mahtomedi’s Carmen Olsen spends a lot of time in the kitchen with her three daughters, who all love to cook and bake. As her youngest grew out of her toddler apron, Olsen sought a sustainable, functional alternative. “I ended up not finding a product I liked,” she says. After learning that nearly 11 million tons of textile waste head to U.S. landfills each year, she enlisted her sister’s help to design an apron using upcycled denim in 2022. Three years later, Park + Coop has saved a half-ton of fabric from landfills and expanded from upcycled denim utility aprons to napkins, bags and more.
Operating out of a White Bear Lake workshop, the company pursues unique community initiatives to support nonprofits and promote sustainability, including Denim Drives where organizations are paid per pound of collected denim.
It also offers Memory Products, where customers can supply a special textile to be upcycled. “It’s important to me—if I’m truly keeping textiles out of landfills—that I’m making things that last,” Olsen says. “Each of the pieces is intended to be a heritage piece where it can be passed on and reused again and again.”
All of the decisions Olsen makes, from sourcing hardware to recycling and reusing shipping materials, are anchored in a sustainable mission. “I understand that not every consumer can buy 100 percent of their items sustainable in today’s world, but they can make the difference with each and every purchase and with their support of small and sustainable businesses,” Olsen says. general@parkandcoop.com; parkandcoop.com
