Affirmative action for young men
Clothes shopping is probably the only place where being a woman has its advantages, even from a very early age. More choice, more styles, more colours. If you are a mother of a boy I’m sure you have experienced some frustration when shopping for your son. Typically in shops, there is much more devoted to little girl’s clothes.
Maria Cristina, owner of ‘Lunamora Boy’ here in Milan, had a boy after 3 girls and when shopping for the little one she realised she was not as happy with the choice available as when she was shopping for the girls. That’s why she decided to open a shop where she would sell only boy’s clothes. This tiny boutique at the end of Via Solferino, in the Brera neighbourhood, is heaven for stylish little men – from newborn up to 12 years. She stocks mostly Italian brands, like Amelia, Kangra, Grifoni, Brooksfield, Gant, Sun68. (more…)
Queen’s Day
Today is queen’s day in the Netherlands!!! It’s a national holiday, and probably the most fun one of the year.
We are celebrating the queen’s birthday, and we do that by taking the day off, dressing up in orange (the name of the Dutch royal family is ‘The House of Orange’) and celebrating!
The evening before Queen’s Day is called Queen’s Night, and special events are organized around all the Dutch towns. It’s a good night to go out (if you can find a sitter)!
The real Queen’s Day, however, is fun for the entire family.
Baby Dance
A couple of years ago our great friends from Brussels gave my daughter the DVD, The Dance Show
A nice and thoughtful gift, we thought, but the DVD didn’t work at all! Our friends had bought it in the States and thus it was labelled ‘Region 1′, which means it works fine in North-American or in multi-region DVD players, but absolutely NOT in European ones (and this has nothing to do with us Europeans being slow, or anything)! I was determined to make our computer accept the alien DVD though…
It involved downloading an initially dodgy looking VLC media player that ended up being much less scary than I imagined it to be – and I succeeded! ‘The Dance Show’ has since become THE absolute favourite DVD in our house (after the ‘Sex and the City’ series, naturallemente). (more…)
Mother’s Day is coming up!
A friend of mine had a brilliant idea for Mother’s Day. She organised a family event to Plaisir D’Arts, a little studio in the 3rd here in Paris, where you can decorate ceramics, paint on wooden objects and do lots of different arts and crafts.
The cherry on the cake was that we moms went off for a coffee and a chat while we left the children and the dads in the studio to make our presents! They had a ball. The end result may not be Picasso’s, but maybe with a little bit of training we might get the kids there.
Jsign
In Italy — the land of prince collars and pastel colours — somebody is finally making funky clothes for babies. Jsign is a small company from Naples, with a shop selling loads of beautiful things for the home and for babies. Once their shop was up and running, they devoted themselves to the preparation of a small line of baby and kids clothes that had to be different from everything available on the market.
They organised a contest for young designers, with the theme “Mathematics and Geometry- forms, lines, patterns and numbers”. The winner and runner-up would get their project printed on t-shirts and onesies and a big cardboard tag with their resumé stringed to every item. I think the results are brilliant — you can see them in their Etsy shop! They use thick and super soft cotton, so the quality is great.
They are happy to give a 10% discount until the 15th of May if you mention babyccino when ordering.
-Michela
(Not just) Weekender Bags
Our first year in London (before children) we travelled everywhere. We were literally away almost every weekend making the most of our proximity to the rest of Europe. It seemed like we were always unpacking our suitcases only to pack them up again!
Travelling like that is obviously a luxury, but it gets a bit annoying to pack and unpack your cosmetic bag over and over again, making sure not to forget any little beauty or medical item you just might need while away.
I decided that what I needed was a cosmetic bag that would keep all my essentials in it at all times, travelling or not! The solution? The ZPM Weekender Bag. It’s big enough to hold everything, folds down small enough to fit into my suitcase or my bathroom cupboard, and when unfolded can hang from a hook with everything on display. (more…)
The dummy dilemma
Before my first child was born, I was sort of religiously anti-dummy. I thought the concept of a fake nipple in a child’s mouth was appalling. One of our friends gave us a really cute dummy chain after my daughter was born, and I remember thinking that maybe I could use it as a toy chain or something, as I was surely never going to give my baby a dummy!
Ha-ha. How naive can one be. The day that I gave my daughter her first dummy was when I was in a London double-decker bus, top floor, left window seat (my favourite place), with a screaming baby in her BabyBjorn. She was about 6 weeks old – it was the 7th of July 2005. I remember that date specifically as it was exactly the time that a couple of *%$#^@s planted bombs on 3 London underground trains and blew up a double-decker bus on Tavistock Square, not far at all from where my bus was driving around in circles (I didn’t know why at that time, until the driver pulled over and asked his passengers to check for suspected bags under the seats)! (more…)
Hooded youths
Yes, I know that in the UK wearing a hoody means that you are going to get a court order for anti-social behaviour and that most hoody-wearing kids are banned from shopping centres… but hooded sweatshirts happen to be one of my favourite items of clothing for my two girls. They are warm, have a hood that can not be lost, and look cool and casual with a pair of jeans. What else could a mom want?
A week in Milan
Monday:
Take it easy on Monday morning, as so many things are closed! Go to a nice bar and have the typical Italian breakfast: cappuccino and cornetto (the italian croissant) and get a babyccino for your kids. To get the full experience you should have it quickly and while standing up, but that may not be ideal with children in tow.
Wherever you are you should not be too far from a stop of the 29/30 tram line: it’s a line that does a complete loop around Milan following the (now inexistent) Spanish walls. The trams in service on this line are very old, similar to San Francisco’s cable cars, and children love them! Wait until rush hour is over and board one, tickets are 1 euro and kids below 10 go free.
Get off in Corso Vercelli, one of the nicest shopping streets in Milan. Corso Vercelli, together with its continuation Via Belfiore and Via Marghera is probably one of the best places for shoes, kid’s shops and jewellery (together with everything else). Take a break and have a gelato at Grom, undoubtedly the best ice cream in the world! Reboard the tram and complete your tour. (more…)
The Illustration Cupboard
The other day I learned about The Illustration Cupboard – a gallery here in London specializing in the exhibition and sale of contemporary book illustration artwork. And then I learned about the current exhibition: Booktrust’s top 10 best new Illustrators. And finally, I learned that the very talented Oliver Jeffers is (of course) one of the top 10 illustrators.
Brilliant! I had to see it. (You know how I’m obsessed with Oliver Jeffers). So I gathered up my troops (even my very interested husband) and paid a little visit.
It’s really cool, especially if you’re familiar with the illustrators and their books: Alexis Deacon and original artwork from Slow Loris
A bit of colour
Now that the sun finally decided to show her face a bit more often here in Amsterdam, I would like to do the same, but without that fluorescent winter-white, thank you very much.
I can, for this purpose, really recommend the Guerlain Terracotta Bronzing Powder. It’s really easy to apply, doesn’t feel dry on the face and gives your skin an instant healthy-looking tan. I’ve been using it since I was twenty…
Guerlain created the Terracotta powder in 1984 and it was an instant hit; apparently every 30 seconds all over the world a Terracotta is sold! Crazy! Especially since one box of the powder lasts me about 2 years. But I must say I only like to use it in the summer; for winters I prefer the Shiseido Tinted Moisturizer, as I wrote earlier…
Whatever it takes!!!
xxx Esther
16 animals
Now, if there is a toy that stays in your living room and maybe even makes the coffee table this must be it!
These 16 animals are part of a wooden puzzle designed by Enzo Mari in 1957 and produced by Danese. The set is solid oak and comes in a serigraphed box. They are simple, carved animal shapes that join together to form a rectangle.
The puzzle is quite intricate — even challenging for older children — and the animals look great by themselves outside the box. It will appeal to everybody at home.
The price is definitely not low, but you have to see it as buying an everlasting piece of art rather than a good-looking toy!
-Michela
Scandinavian success
Marimekko is synonymous with ’60s design: big bold patterns and bright colours. I have always loved their designs… though being great Scandinavian quality, it does not come cheap.
Luckily enough Marimekko have designed an exclusive range for H&M which is available in shops now. The baby collection is small but it is also super cute: little sixties baby doll dresses with matching bloomers, hats for girls, and little shorts and tees in bold colours for boys.
It’s always great to find design quality at high street prices…..
- Emilie
DIY birthday decorations
My ‘baby’ turned one this week, so I’m in a festive mood!
I decided to have a go at making some cute birthday decorations…
I brought out my collection of tissue paper, cut out little tear-drop shapes, and stuck them all to a long piece of string.
Cute, don’t you think? I might even leave them up for a while!
-Courtney
The pregnant Ministra
I was reading the International Herald Tribune the other day and the photo on the front page really struck me. It was the photo of Carme Charcon, the new Spanish Defense Minister, inspecting her troops. That in itself is not really that remarkable, but what is remarkable is that she is 7 months pregnant!
Iggy Peck, Architect
Courtney called me last week to say that she sent a present for my nearly-3-year-old-daughter but that I, as an architect, was definitely going to be interested in the content! She nearly had me sitting next to the post-box until the postman showed up!
The present ended up to be the delightful book Iggy Peck, Architect
Iggy is a little boy who is absolutely obsessed by buildings. His parents are quite proud of their genius son, who can build a tower from dirty nappies, a great Sphinx out of dirt, and churches and chapels from peaches and apples. I mean, what parents wouldn’t be swollen with pride?
His teacher in second grade, Miss Lila Greer, is unfortunately less enthusiastic about little Iggy’s obsession… She had a traumatic experience as a 7-year old child when she got lost in a skyscraper and ended up stuck in an elevator with a strange bunch of French people! Can you imagine? After that, she wants nothing to do with buildings or building-lovers, and if you think about it, you can’t really blame her! (more…)
Paisley Baby
Aren’t these booties adorable? My daughter has been wearing them for the past couple weeks! They come from Paisley Baby, a Canadian family firm, where everything is made with great attention to detail. Dianne (the mother) has 50 years of sewing experience, Maria (the daughter) has a passion for fabric with cute patterns and Arlene (the cousin) is very good at knitting.
They make very stylish bibs, hooded towels, changing pads and loads of other fabric accessories for babies. But you can also find handbags, totes and market bags. (more…)
Capture those cute faces
Are you having a difficult time getting a photo of your two little ones where both of them look cute? Or how about trying to get the perfect family photo where you all look good? It’s difficult, I know.
Well, I’ve just found the solution. How about handing your photos over to Lisa Golightly at Kiki and Polly? She’ll create an acrylic painting that incorporates your child’s face(s) in a truly unique light. The colors are beautiful and the portraits are fun, without being silly. It’s the perfect way to capture those cute little faces (without their dinner smudged across their cheeks)! (more…)
Comfortable seats
I live in a city where there seems to be a little shop for everything. In my neighbourhood we have: a shop which only sells billiard cues, a shop only selling musical porcelain boxes, a shop selling only chocolate sculptures (a pair of high heels made out of dark chocolate, anyone??), and my favourite, a shop selling only vintage and designer children’s chairs. It might be a bit of a niche market, but I love it!
Balouga is a lovely little shop in the northern part of the Marais, and whatever children’s vintage and designer chair you might want, you will find there!
And I was also exaggerating a bit; they also sell cute toys and cushions and some vintage furniture pieces like trunks, desks and beds! It is a design-parent’s Aladdin’s cave.
-Emilie
Kice Kice
It’s a given that mothers find their own daughter’s look cute, as they are (usually) the ones who created it. But when strangers start complimenting your daughter’s clothes, it is safe to say that the outfit is cute. Period.
Yesterday, my daughter wore her Kice Kice dress (similar to the one in the picture) and she got one compliment after the other. Even the co-owner of one of the cutest kid’s shops in Amsterdam, Keet in Huis, wrote the name down (not of my daughter, but of Kice Kice)!
Kice Kice is created by two twin sisters living in LA, and I really love their dresses. They are super simple, with beautiful colours and detailing, like coloured stitching and exposed serging. (more…)
