Tag Archives: Children’s Clothes

Apr 10 2015

Melijoe Boys SS15: Beach looks for toddlers

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Choosing beachwear for the little man in your household can be tricky. The high street is packed out with neon slogan tees and cotton shorts which can look a little like pyjamas and aren’t very breathable under the glare of the sun. Equally, if a tee gets grubby, mixing another with bright shorts often looks uncoordinated.

The trick to getting toddler style right, is choosing miniature outfits that dad would wear. Jean or canvas bermuda shorts that stop below the knee will protect against the sun and are more hardwearing than a cotton mix - wear them long in the cooler evenings, and roll them up in the afternoon heat. They also look seriously cool with just about any tee making mixing and matching much easier. A few good quality pairs will see you through the entire summer so it’s worth making the investment now the weather is picking up.

Here are my favourite boys Bermudas from Melijoe, (Europe’s leading online designer emporium for children’s wear):

Left to right: Armani Junior white linen £74.03 / Burberry stone-washed blue stretch denim £74.79 / Timberland striped denim £52.13 / Scotch & Soda chino twill £52.88 / American Outfitters stone-washed denim £54.39 / Timberland twill £44.57 / Paul Smiith Junior electric blue cotton twill £60.44 / Replay&Sons stone-washed denim £56.66 / Pepe Jeans stone-washed blue £45.00 / Moschino yellow cotton and lyocell twill £77.06 / Petrol chino bermudas with elasticated braces £33.24 / American Outfitters beige Stretch cotton twill £50.62 / Tommy Hilfiger cotton £48.35 / Ralph Lauren Striped seersucker £41.55 / Aston Martin stone-washed blue £52.88 / Boss poplin bermudas £49.10

Teaming these with polo tops will ensure a classic look suitable for both day and night. Keeping logos and insignia small won’t irritate your little one when they’re on the move, and will ensure you can cross-match brands. Bright colours also mean you can better spot your little tearaway on a packed out beach, and will better reflect the sun. Ralph Lauren get it so right when it comes to polos but this little lot from the Melijoe Boys SS15 collection are equally cool for chilling out on the beach:

Left to right: 3 Pommes cotton piqué polo £22.66 / Moshino cotton piqué polo (yellow) £55.15 / Hackett cotton piqué polo £45.33 / Lacoste cotton piqué polo £46.08 / Ralph Lauren cotton piqué polo (green) £49.10 / Tommy Hilfiger cotton piqué polo £37.02 / Ralph Lauren cotton piqué polo (yellow) £49.10 / Hackett cotton piqué polo £58.17 / Armani Junior cotton piqué polo £50.62

For those of you who prefer a smart casual look, you won’t go far wrong with a loose cotton shirt. This is the best possible way of ensuring the air can still circulate around your little guy’s chest, and has the added bonus you can simply undo the buttons if they’re sweating too profusely, or even pop on a cheap white tee underneath for a more grown-up look.

Left to right: Petrol stone-washed oxford cotton shirt £26.59 / Tommy Hilfiger short-sleeved shirt (turquoise and red checks) £38.68 / Levi’s printed cotton poplin shirt (dark blue) £45.33 / Tommy Hilfiger short-sleeved shirt (navy and turquoise checks) £38.68 / John Galliano Kids light denim shirt £94.43 / Pepe Jeans striped poplin shirt £42.00 / Burberry denim shirt £86.88 / Guess blue and red checked shirt £32.03 / Scotch & Soda fancy poplin shirt £39.28

Finally you can add a healthy dose of your child’s own personality through their choice of accessories. Let your child choose and you’re bound to end up with a bright, vibrant and irrevocably fun hat or pair of sunnies to make their outfits pop. Caps are fab for active and style-conscious kids, whilst panama hats teamed with shirts works every time and shelter delicate skin from the harmful rays.

Left to right: Archimede sunglasses £7.55 / Souris Mini panama hat £16.62 / Ralph Lauren cotton twill cap (orange) £22.66 / Stella McCartney printed cap £30.00 / Petrol bi-material cap £9.07 / Tommy Hilfiger yellow gabardine cap £14.00 / John Galliano Kids bi-material cap £39.00 / Scotch & Soda raffia panama hat £35.00 / Little Eleven stone-washed blue cap £18.00 / DSquared2 military style camouflage cap £46.00 / Boss cotton twill cap £29.46 / Petrol cotton twill cap £9.07 / DSquared2 panama hat £70.00 / Lacoste cotton twill cap (green) £27.20 / GF Ferre cotton twill cap £31.73 / Archimede sunglasses (red) £7.55

To check out Melijoe Boys SS15 collection for yourself, head to melijoe.com/uk where you’ll find children’s wear from 0-16 years from all Europe’s top fashion houses. With clothes, shoes, swimwear and accessories you’re bound to find the perfect outfit for your little dude. Also on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

 

Feb 3 2015

Heidi’s OOTD from Box Upon a Time: Workhouse Chic

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I’m loving this workhouse chic outfit handpicked for Heidi by Box Upon a Time.

It’s a hessian-like woolen dress, brown tights and cardie from Dadati, a Spanish clothing brand which makes elegant and classic collections for babies and children. Made from comfortable and natural fabrics, they wash like a dream and are a really practical option for mini explorers.

The entire outfit is really durable, perfect for this cold snap we’re currently experiencing and the dress is a great length for covering her bobbing bum as it skirts across the lounge floor. I love the button up back for ease of dressing her, and there’s a fab silk lining to prevent any chaffing where the wool comes into contact with her skin.

The palette isn’t one we’d typically plump for but she looks lovely and we’ve had tons of comments from friends. With the Peter Pan collar, ribbing on the tights, and herringbone fabric, she looks as though she’s walked out from the pages of a Dickens novel!

Heidi was also sent this adorable romper from luxury French brand Popecha. Made from organic cotton, raw silk and cashmere it’s made in Popecha’s own workshop and hand-stitched. Sized 12-18 months it is slightly too long for Heidi in the leg at the moment, but she’s so comfy in it that she’s napped in it on a few occasions already. The wild rose palette just looks beautiful against her pale skin and I love all the ruffling around the collar.

The RRP for everything shown above is £112, but Box Upon a Time popped the entire set together for £69.

Who are Box Upon a Time?

A unique concept, it’s a monthly children’s clothes subscription service catering for children aged 0-10. The products within each box are handpicked by a design team and customers will see a significant saving against RRP.

You can order pretty much anything you like in subscription form nowadays; from food, to juices, to books, to make-up, so it seems a natural progression to add kids clothes into the mix, but I can also see it being fraught with problems. With children coming in all different shapes and sizes, and mums and dads having complete ownership of their child’s style, there’s plenty of room for error.

Box Upon a Time aim to resolve this problem by sending parents a quiz that addresses everything from favourite colours and patterns to style preferences and practical expectations of their child’s clothes.

Box Upon a Time work with a number of designer brands from around the world to deliver you something unique and tailored to your child. This gives you great opportunity to discover new designers you might not have previously heard of. There are 3 different packages available, from £29 with up to 70% discount off RRP. If something doesn’t fit, exchanges can be made with no extra charges.

Over 25 designer childrenswear brands are currently available including Their Nibs, Mini a Ture, Louis + Louise, Diesel and Marie Chantal.

What we thought…

The surprise element is the major selling point here. The excitement of delving into the tissue paper and finding something beautiful that you know other children at nursery won’t be wearing. The fact everything is current season also means your child will be bang-on-trend.

Sizing is an issue, but it always will be. Even when you go on a shopping spree in H&M you’ll find tees and jeans in your child’s size that are way too big for their mini waists and shoulders. Not being able to to wear some of the products straight away shouldn’t be an issue, and will be the same for tons of clothes received as gifts - just pop them in the drawer and fatten your child up with chocolate until they can wear them!

To check them out yourself head to boxuponatime.co.uk or find out more on Pinterest, Facebook and Facebook. It would make a cute birthday or christening present as it allows you to gift something truly unique that you might not have otherwise afforded. There are various subscriptions on offer to suit the more modest budget and you can cancel at any time. It’s an excellent concept and one I’d be very happy to buy again.

 

Oct 10 2012

One to watch: Koot Kidz

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This is a bit of a personal one for me. Everyone knows what a massive supporter of UK businesses I am. I also have massive respect (and a small bit of envy!) for any parent who sets up their own business in a bid to give their children a better quality of life. This is exactly what Pam & Craig have done over at Koot Kidz.

I can completely empathise with their reasons for setting up the online shop. Upon finding out they were expecting their first child (a boy) they did what any expectant parent does and went shopping. So underwhelmed with the choice of clothes for baby boys - they decided to source and sell some funky items for our little men and women.

I stumbled upon their site as via Twitter. I was doing my ‘usual’ and begging for tip off’s about online shops for toys, nursery items and clothing. Craig sent me a link and the rest is history. I now consider myself to be a personal friend to this lovely couple, and I’m a self-proclaimed ambassador of their business. I waited patiently for news of their long-overdue little one and I’m pleased to announce baby Cayden’s safe and well and absolutely gorgeous.

Dex has a dribble bib from Koot Kidz and it’s majorly cute (how highschool did that just sound?). This was his first big-boy bib and he looks adorable in it. It’s all in-the-design with Koot Kidz; what sets them apart is their hand-chosen fabrics. Right now there’s a selection of bibs and shoes but there are new items imminent with an Autumn / Winter selection available to buy any second now. Given Craig and Pam have their hands full with baby, perhaps the best way to stay informed is to follow them on Twitter to check for announcements.

It’s this friendly and sweet personal touch that underpins everything they do. I placed a small order and received regular tracking tweets about my item. This is what the high street simply can’t offer you. As Koot Kidz is ultimately Craig’s baby - here’s what he had to say about the project:

 

Koot Kidz is a family run business specialising in individual baby items such as Funky Bandana Style Dribble Bibs. The bibs are one size fits all and feature different designs from Football/Sporty theme to Doggy Paw Prints. The baby shoes come in 2 different pirate designs and are available in sizes 6-9, 9-12 & 12-15 months.

A further 33 lines of stock are being added to the website this week (week commencing 8/10/12) and feature a wide variety of funky baby items, from duffle coats to growbags, and will also feature an extensive range of Christmas themed products.

The main aim of the business is to offer the customer the best possible customer service from the initial order through to delivery.

All items are available through the Koot Kidz website on http://www.kootkidz.co.uk or Contact Craig Molloy on 07522423332 or email kootkidz@gmail.com

 

I, for one, will be a regular visitor to their site and can’t wait to snap Dexie in some of their new offerings in the foreseeable future.

 

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pixel One to watch: Koot Kidz