Who says there are no cool clothes for boys around? I know, typically boys don’t wear dresses and skirts (my son Pim being the exception to the rule — on occasions he loves to dress up as a full-on princess), which does limit the choices quite a bit, but there ARE good choices around. Like these cool jumpers by Brindille and Twig. I love how the seams turn out with those raw edges! And the colours are gorgeous. It might be interesting to know that the collection is made from organic cotton and soy fabrics which are locally sourced in the USA, and that it’s hand-sewn and hand-dyed with a non-toxic, colour-fast dye by Melissa from Brindille and Twig herself. And yes, they’re cool for girls too…
Available from the Brindille and Twig Etsy shop.

xxx Esther

The only time this has not worked out for me, is the other day when I was picking up my girls from school. I suddenly realised, watching the kids pour out of the school, that every boy between 5-15 was wearing the exact same coat as me, which I had picked up at GAP Kids in the boys department! Obviously their mothers and I have the same taste…

- Emilie

Wow! Two trade shows in one weekend! We have seen so many great children’s brands, our heads are spinning! Here are some highlights from yesterday at Bubble London:

• The new designs at Poppy feature a little girl riding around on a giraffe through a beautifully illustrated London town, and we can’t get enough. Absolutely fabulous designs and colours in the A/W collection. Much to look forward to!
• Olive Loves Alfie is launching a new range of interiors paint and their display was awesome! So many great colours.
• We were ultra impressed with the fantastic, happy collection at Tootsa Macginty. And apparently we weren’t the only ones — her stand was buzzing the entire day long! (And we loved the new haircut of Kate!)
• As always, the Hucklebones collection was stunning. And the creators, Dan and Zoe, couldn’t be more lovely.
• Seeing the hand-crafted pillows from Lettie Belle in person made us love them even more!
• Really like the sweet prints and fresh colours in the Old Rectory collection. And excited about their new baby pyjamas.
• The ilovegorgeous stand rocked our world. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!
• Loved meeting Joanna from Babatude and seeing her luxuriously soft cashmere creations.
• The Spotty Otter outerwear collection is both functional and fun, and we think this is a brand on the rise (it’s already hugely popular at our kids’ schools!).
• With beautiful textiles from India, the entire Bouton collection really, really impressed us.
• It was really great to meet Helen from Helen Gordon and to see all her pieces in one place. We are big fans of her scrumptiously soft pyjamas and love her new circus print!
• The Aden & Anais collection is, as always, super impressive. So cool to see all their swaddle blankets hanging in one big row!

• Just listening to Yanina from Aravore discuss each piece in her collection makes you appreciate just how much thought and love went into each piece. Such a gem of a brand (and a lady!).
• The bright colours and happy messages in the Boys & Girls collection put a smile on our faces! That’s what childhood is all about!
• The NYC-based brand, Ode, which we first discovered at Playtime NYC last summer, featured a stunning collection and a new knitwear line. Such pretty textiles and loads of details!
• So nice to see the Dutch brand Kidscase both at Bubble and at Playtime. As always, it’s a can’t-go-wrong collection!
• We discovered the new label Beau Loves, and with their Zorro mask prints and playful designs, we think this is going to become a new favourite brand.
• We also discovered the new UK brand, Marmalade & Mash which made their debut at Bubble. This is a brand to watch for sure!
• We met the lovely Amynta from Tulip and Nettle who wowed us with her luxurious collection and beautiful photography.
• And finally, the Spanish brand Nadadelazos is super fun and funky, and we were already fans… but even more so now!

xx Courtney and Esther

]]> http://babyccinokids.com/blog/2012/01/31/bubble-london-recap/feed/ 2 http://babyccinokids.com/blog/2012/01/30/le-gilet-de-berger-from-citronille/ http://babyccinokids.com/blog/2012/01/30/le-gilet-de-berger-from-citronille/#comments Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:00:33 +0000 Esther in Amsterdam http://babyccinokids.com/blog/?p=27105
Proud mama speaking: my first real knitting project is finished!!! (I’m not counting the scarf I knitted last year — we’re talking about following a pattern here.) The pattern for Ava’s little vest above is from Citronille, and called ‘Le Gilet de Berger‘. It was really easy, and I’m loving the results!! The same pattern can be used for boys or girls, and you can play with a cute wooden button or a little bow for the front closure. The yarn is also from Citronille and is a wool/alpaca mix called ‘Pôle‘. So — did I inspire you??

xxx Esther

PS The dress is from ‘Nils & Happy to see you‘ — the ready-to-wear line by Astrid le Provost (the same owner as ‘Citronille’), which we adore!!

PPS Astrid will include an English translation when you purchase a ‘Gilet de Berger’ pattern, which we made when we were in Antwerp last year.

Some of our favourite new discoveries at the show were:

Cotton and Milk, a UK-based brand with the most exquisite knitwear and cool branding (see the animals wearing glasses below!).
Grey Area, the new maternity line from Ada Ada which can be worn before pregnancy, during and after.
Quenotte, a new French label. We really liked the jackets!
Noé & Zoë, with loads of bright neon colours (and we love their collaboration with Tannhäuser!).
Lilly Marthe Ebener, with their gorgeously soft hand-knitted pieces all in stunning colours.
Hase Weiss, with the cool modular doll houses and sweet music boxes situated right next to the wonderful Gabriela Pardo and her funky plush guitars.
Goatmilk, a cool underwear label from NYC.

And here are some other highlights:

-We LOVED meeting the girls from Elfie, seeing their gorgeous display, eating the impressively decorated cookies, and of course meeting little Elfie herself.
-Seeing the charming Charlotte from the wonderful brand Deuz. We love their playmats!
-La Cerise Sur Le Gâteau — such cool graphics and fabrics.
-As always, the Bobo Choses collection was cool, colourful, playful and super original. We loved the poncho from Peru!
-Macarons — a brand on the brink of major stardom.
-Such a pleasure to meet Hana from Mole-Little Norway and see her gorgeous collection in full.
-The entire collection from Morley. Lovely!

-As always, we were won over by Wovenplay and were excited to see a glimpse of outerwear (such a cool bubble coat!).
-The always impressive and cosy collection at Waddler.
-We had such a fun chat with the trendy ladies from My Little Day.
-The new bedding collection and flags from Smiling Planet put a smile on our faces. We love their positivity and happy, peaceful messages.
-A really beautiful collection at Noro.
-Meeting the owner of Nui Organics who flew all the way over from Austin Texas with a cosy new collection to show.
-Meeting Marie from Miss Louise and her elegant mother who served the most delicious almond cookies ever!

-Justine from Une Sardine à Rio showed us how her clever pieces transfer from childhood to adulthood.
-Popupshop – So simple, yet so stylish!
-TeenyTini by JK Lange and her colourful crochet wonders.

Phew! And now a hot bath and a glass of red wine!

x Courtney & Esther

PS It was SUCH fun meeting and talking to you all!

• Green and white knitted jumper from Broer en Zus
• Green and white knitted doll from Dents de Loup
• Lucky Boy Sunday knitted tree from Thumbeline
• Green knitted teething ring from Unique Boutique

x Courtney

How cheerful and happy are these train pyjamas? I love the retro pattern, the snug fit and the soft & cosy material. What perfect PJs! They’re part of the vibrant byGraziela collection, a rebirth of Graziela Preiser’s award-winning brand from the 1970s.

Everything in the collection is as happy and innocent as childhood should be — defined by vibrant colours and iconic ’70s designs. (If you like the train print, you can get matching bedding, hooded towels, or this adorable crockery set!)

x Courtney

PS – Find these and other great pyjamas in this week’s Top Ten selection.

I think I have spent the past three months admiring these Bensimon hi-tops at Elias & Grace… and just this week I finally splurged and bought them for my daughter. Don’t you just love the blue suede with the purple laces? So fun! There’s also a low-top version with green laces which are equally cute.

x Courtney

The Macarons collection will be in stores after summer — and we can’t wait.

xxx Esther

xxx Esther

xxx Esther

xxx Esther

xxx Esther

Nils and Happy to see you is a quintessential French label which always stikes the right note between what moms want to see their daughter wearing and what kids want to wear themselves.

- Emilie

I’m hoping I have a few years yet before my daughter is interested in nail polish (out of curiosity, when does this happen?!)… but when the time comes, I’ll be buying her the Little BU non-toxic polishes. The nail polishes are water-based, odour-less, quick drying, completely non-toxic and free of all the nasty chemicals normally found in nail polish. They’re perfectly safe for little girls (and pregnant mamas!) and come in loads of great colours. You can buy them directly from the Little BU shop or from Harrods in London.

PS – Speaking of nail polish… don’t you just love this pair of peep-toe shoes, and that all her toenails are painted a different colour?! (Image found on the lovely Pinterest, which I have become completely obsessed about! You can find all of our pins here.)

-Courtney

I’ve been in touch with the lovely Dana from Tannhäuser for a few years now, and she’s kept me in the loop on the progress of building her brand, perfecting her cashmere collections (and the birth of her baby called Rosa!). It’s really interesting to hear how translating an interesting idea into a quality collection is not always easy, dealing with suppliers in Nepal, making sure the quality and fit of the collections are as perfect as you want them to be and that they arrive in time. But Dana succeeded and Tannhäuser has grown into an amazing brand with a beautiful collection which reflects Dana’s perfectionism in every aspect. The quality of the cashmere is outstanding, and the different shades of soft grey in combination with the colourful dots make the pieces ever so different and stylish. So cool! For stockists please check the website.

xxx Esther

A few years ago a guy called Jeremy realised that, while visiting his great aunt in her retirement home, a lot of the ladies there were bored and would love to earn a little bit of extra money on the side. The idea for Golden Hook was born! You choose a hat, a scarf or a snood and 15 days later you’ll receive a freshly made item, carefully hand-knitted. It’s kind if cool to know that your child’s hat has been made the old fashioned way, no?

- Emilie

I had no idea that these cosy little hats had an official name. Did you? They’re called balaclavas… and the place to find the most exquisite cashmere balaclavas in a wide range of colours is a lovely new site called Nilka.

The balaclavas are knitted and hand finished in the finest Scottish cashmere, making them cosy and soft. You can opt for the classic look in a variety of colours… or my favourite, the one with teddy bear ears. What I like about them is that they cover the ears and the neck, and you don’t have to worry about your child’s hat falling off or getting lost. Balaclava might be my new favourite word this winter…

xx Courtney

PS – That’s my daughter, Ivy, in the top photo looking awfully pleased with her new teddy bear hat!

xxx Esther

P.S. The dresses come in size 2, 3 or 4 years — might not be clear at first glance!

The minute I saw this dress on the Club Cinq website, I immediately took note! Isn’t this the most perfect little black dress? I love the flattering silhouette, the three-quarter sleeves, and the bow in the front. So beautiful! Plus, it’s great for all seasons — the lightweight fabric is perfect for the summertime paired with sandals… or you can pop it on over tights or leggings in the winter time and it works as well (see both options photographed on the Club Cinq site).

Club Cinq is a new label out of Switzerland offering stylish, classic children’s clothing ‘with a modern soul’. Many of the pieces are made by the designer herself and are available in limited quantities.

xx Courtney