Piechart Patchwork and Giant Turtles- NEW kids products

 Just finished installing a little room set at the kids trade show Bubble London, where we are showing a couple of our new products for the first time... available in September so here's a sneak preview!

This is one of my favourite things... it's a piechart patchwork quilt, made of lovely soft lambswool knitted sections, and each one is a one off!

 not very easy to see, but there is a knitted fruit mobile hanging infront of the leaves.

little knitted booties at the end of the bed

 and our GIANT TURTLE floor cushion has a mind of his own

Hope you like the new additions, we'll be launching more new products in September.

Bubble Kids trade show

This weekend we're doing an installation in the entrance of the kids trade show- Bubble. Please stop by and say hello!
Opening times Sunday 16th and Monday 17th June- 9.30 till 6 pm

Wiggly Jigglers for under 2's

Today I had a good day,  I've been struggling a bit recently trying to juggle work and baby, something I'm told will never get easier! ......but I'm not going to moan about that, instead I'm going to tell you about wiggly jigglers which is a drop in 'event' at the Rich mix cinema on Bethnal green road every second Monday.   It looks a bit like you have stepped inside a magicians dream, as there are chiffon scarves-( which are a real hit with every baby!) silver balls, bright lights, music, and crash mats everywhere, so much stimuli for babies and toddlers alike. I found it very good to get out of the house and meet other nice mums.

A lovely lady called Jasmine Pasch a movement practitioner comes round and talks to you about how your child is progressing with his or her crawling etc.  and the best thing about it is it's only £3.00!

 find out more here http://www.richmix.org.uk/whats-on/event/wiggly-jigglers-copy260911/

Out and about with baby- Light show at Hayward

Yesterday my friend got us tickets for the light show at the Hayward, Southbank London.  It's been extended till the 6th of May, so hurry before it finishes. You need to book tickets online, and I think it's pretty busy so you might be in an online queue! Eli (now nearly 5 months old) really loved it, and I felt like I was going to this show for him as well as myself!  There were a series of beautiful light sculptures by different artists.

 Ok, strictly no photography allowed but I managed to take a few sneaky pics to show you all! He LOVED watching this one which was like a waterfall of lights!

 we took these weird photos in an amazing installation. It was a series of white rooms with bright coloured lights filling the whole space with a wash of a beautiful hue- getting more intense the longer you spend int he room.

Eli, exhausted in the red room!

May Day Holiday - Land of Kids in Dalston

If your anything like me you will have nothing planned for the May day bank holiday- I always leave it to the last minute then regret not organizing something.  Well this year will be different! as a friend has told me about this fantastic kids even in the outdoor spaces of Ashwin street E8 on Monday May the 6th.

Organized by the Land of Kids (http://landofkids.co.uk) who are the people behind the annual, multi-venue music and arts showcase Land of Kings. There will be loads going on for kids aged between 2 and 12 from dancing, face painting, balloon adventures and creative cakes!Once inside, everything except food & drink is free of charge. 

• Land of Kids is suitable for children between the ages 2 – 12 and their very kind folks

• All activity is ticket only access

• Please note some of the programme will be subject to limited availability

• This is a wristband-ticketed event

• Box Office will be at Arcola theatre, 24 Ashwin Street E8 3DL

• Date: Monday 6^th May 2013

• Time: 12:00 – 19:00

• Address: Various venues, Dalston, London E8

• Ticketing info: Tickets on sale at www.landofkids.co.uk

£19.50 pp / Limited Family Tickets (4 people) £60. Under 2s go free.Land of Kids is suitable for children between the ages 2 – 12 and their kind folks.All activity is ticket only access. Once inside, everything except food & drink is free of charge.Please note some of the programme will be subject to limited availability   

                                             Line-up*:                
Aldene Johnson
Anorak http://anorakmagazine.com/Bouncy CastleCurly Locks & Party Frocks http://www.curlylocksandpartyfrocks.co.uk/Cut-A-Shine Ceilidh www.cutashine.co.ukDisco Loco https://www.facebook.com/discolocohackneyHackney Children’s Theatre http://www.facebook.com/hackneychildrenstheatreHouse of Hackney http://www.houseofhackney.com/House of Hot Breath http://www.thehouseofhotbreath.com/Indikidual http://indikidual.tumblr.com/

out and about with baby

I had to share this photo of Eli in his buggy in front of a wall in Shoreditch. I'm really trying to get out and about with Eli now, as I find I go a bit nuts if I don't leave the house for a whole day! I remember the first day I pushed him in the buggy, my partner dropped me off outside a restaurant in the car, as I wanted to see my girls from work before Christmas- Eli was 10 days old.  I had to push him up a few steps into the restaurant and along to the table and it felt so strange...It wasn't me at all! I felt like I was some sort of impostor pretending I had a baby!!
I struggled to get in through the door with one hand.
Anyway we had our lunch and Eli slept all the way through, and woke just as we were leaving- I was terrified of breast feeding him in public (thankfully I've gotten over that fear now) so I practically ran home with him screaming. v. stressful. 
Looking back now I feel I have come a long way- I'm not so terrified and Eli is used to my rather erratic driving! 
This buggy was gifted to us by Mamas and papas- it's the Urbo and we're still using it with a car seat which means it's super neat and compact, and very robust so can handle a few bumps!

what Eli wore- stamp your name here

I've been waiting until little mr Eli Almond was big enough to fit into his special bespoke vest, and all of a sudden he's grown into it!  A lovely gift from Davina who has a fantastic blog called The making home. She is a very creative mum and does loads of crafty projects for and with her little girl Elfie! here's how she made the vest. http://themakinghome.com/blog/using-rubber-stamps-to-make-christmas-gifts-for
Hope I can do lots of these projects with Eli when he's a little older!

Unisex kids clothes finds- mini rodini

I've decided I'm going to make it my job to find very nice UNISEX kids clothes for you. The reason being, I have an aversion to stereo typical baby pink for girls and pastel blue for boys.. why do we still think like this?

Also I like to think If I ever have a girl, she will wear the hand me downs of my son Eli, so I sort of bare this in mind when buying things for him !

So here's a few things picked out from Mini Rodini's new spring summer collection. I love the super bright colours, all organic cotton.

if you don't know mini rodini, check them out, they are a Scaninavian brand.

http://www.minirodini.com

here are a couple of my favs!

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what Eli wore- Bon ton

 Can't help showing you photos of Eli, as I just think he's the cutest little babe on earth. Sorry it's a bit indulgent of me!This is a quick post about Bon Ton, I love French baby clothes, they are so simple and sophisticated and these are most definitely unisex. www.bonton.nl

love this bright turquoise cardi - goes so nicely with his little knitted boots by http://www.lillymarthe-ebener.com/ 

 and this little gillet was a prezzie from Aude- Bon Ton 

Knitted leggins by Ouf

http://www.oeufnyc.com

they have a nice blog too http://blog.bonton.fr

other yummy suff from Bon ton :) 

play mat time

Eli loves lying flat on his back and gets so excited when you speak to him and kicks his legs and arms like mad! so it's nice to put him on his play mat so he can stretch out. This mat was kindly given to us from Mamas and papas, and it's great as it's got lots of lights that flash and soothing pan pipe type music! so not as irritating as some , also the music changes and the lights flash at a different temp if Eli happens to hit one of the tabs with his feet as he is kicking around, so that seems to keep him entertained for longer! 

 It's got lots of black and white bits which I think he likes- and it's called stargaze http://www.mamasandpapas.com/product-magic-stargaze-playmat-stripe/759482710/type-i/

 and here's a patch work, that our seamstress Eva made from some of our scraps of lambswool 

I think we're going to make some more patch works and I'd love to make some black and white play mats for babies.

creative day out - painting ceramics

 The other week, Eli and I met up with our NCT friends and went ceramic painting.  One of the girls found a place near Victoria Park called http://www.wonderlandceramics.com where you can choose a blank, paint it with your baby or child and then collect it once it's fired.  I loved it, as not only was it a chance to be creative again (not done much work since Eli was born) but we could eat crepes and drink tea while we all chatted about our babies. The lady at Wonderland was very nice and helped some of us print our babies feet and hands onto the ceramics. I think there are lots of these kind of places around the country and I thoroughly recommend it!

some of the forms you can choose from to paint 

nice wipe clean shiny red tables with lots of colours available!

 Eli wasn't too keen on getting his foot covered in blue paint!

 But he looked quite the artist once he's finished!

our masterpieces waiting to be collected once the have been fired and glazed

Eli's feet at 10 weeks hanging on our kitchen wall!

What Eli wore- ooh la la! Sophie la girafe.

 Look at my petit Eli in his french outfit! I love this hand knitted Beret by Kate's mum. It makes him look artistic! the rest of his out fit are hand me downs! and we were given a Sophie la girafe by Angie and Jim- Sophie is very tactile, and chewy, and it says on the box was born in 1961.  It's made from natural rubber -which smells really nice, and has a squeaky thing inside, so a perfect chewing toy for babe (not dog!) Eli is a little young for his, but I think once he starts teething he'll love chewing on her.

Sophies key features taken from her website!http://sophielagirafe.co.uk
• Made from 100% natural rubber derived from the sap of the Hevea tree 
• Natural Rubber is soft, safe & non-toxic for baby to teethe & chew. 
• Lightweight & easy to grasp for tiny hands. 
• Painted with non-toxic, food-grade paints. 
• Stimulating to baby’s senses with her soft colours & gentle squeak. 
• Bumpy head helps soothe sore, teething gums. 
• Sophie makes an amusing squeak when squeezed - such fun for a baby! 
• Slender, flexible & soft - babies love manipulating & teething Sophie. 
• Sophie the Giraffe is Phthalate-Free with No Vinyl (no-PVC)! 
• Born in France in 1961, Sophie the Giraffe is a classic! 
• 18cm tall 
• Suitable from birth +

Eli's first valentine card

Eli got his first valentines card today, it was addressed to him personally, I think the first piece of mail he has ever got!

and I think I know who it's from....

 The lovely Erin McIntyre (also our Studio manager at work) she does brilliant line drawings, and undertakes commissions! http://erinmcintyre.blogspot.co.uk

Changing nappies, tea towels and mobiles!

Eli's changing area is a changing mat on top of a chest of drawers at the moment. We don't have much space, but it's all you really need when they are really little. (will have to change this arrangement when he stars to move around!)  But I wanted to make it more interesting for him, and he is starting to look around now and take notice. You can see his eyes open wide and try to focus on things.

 Babies only see strong contrasts, so I think these bold tea towels are really interesting for him to look at... and I love having them on the wall too!

they are from Norwegian designers Darling Clementine.  The 3D paper mobile is great too, it's bold and graphic and Eli seems to love looking at it. It's from Artechnica  http://www.artecnicainc.com

the have some new designs below on their site.see below:

http://darlingclementine.bigcartel.com/product/harvest-tea-towels

Wipe-able changing mat in  blue whale design www.mamasandpapas.com which is in their sale now.