I’m loving these bold and beautiful prints by Mina Perhonen.  This brand is the creation of a Japanese designer who has a love for Finnish culture.  The name ‘Mina Perhonen’ is Finnish for ‘I butterfly’ reflecting the designers desire to create clothes as beautiful as butterflies.  All the prints are first sketched and then created in to original fabrics which are used to make their unique creations.  While the dress styles are simple, it’s the fabrics designs that are the real show stoppers for me.  

I’m totally loving the bird print especially the brown birds on the blue/grey background.  Even the translucent apple print is very cool and perfect for Spring.  Mina Perhonen also makes some funky women’s clothes and some cute baby stuff too.  I haven’t seen much of it available in the UK or Europe but you can get a few kids pieces at Couverture.

This morning I came across a photo of some kids from the 1970′s which I promptly shared on my facebook page.  I’m a child of the 70′s and this photo brought back lots of memories of hairstyles, flairs, big cuffs and all that was so distinctive about the style of that decade.  I can still picture my mother wearing the flair-iest jeans I’ve ever seen paired with a heavily patterned floral shirt!  It’s such fun browsing images of that time and marveling at the styles with equal amounts of humour and appreciation.  All these thoughts and memories reminded me of Petite Vintage Boutique which has one of the best selections of vintage clothes for kids that I’ve ever seen.  The clothes here aren’t re-creations but are actual clothes from the 60′s and 70′s that have been used.  Dominique, the owner hunts down the best pieces always keeping quality in mind, so most of her pieces are in tip-top condition.  As they’re all original pieces, they are truly one of a kind so when they’re gone, they’re gone.  While I wouldn’t dress Anya in vintage on a daily basis, I’d love to add a few pieces like these to her wardrobe.  What fun!

This week’s picks for mama & baby… let mama decorate with this gorgeous tulle adorned Liv light while baby wears that pretty mint green tutu.

Last month while I was in India I went to see my cousin’s baby who is just 6 months old.  She was absolutely adorable with her huge eyes and cheeky little grin.  While I was there she was taken in for a bath and came out wearing a simple striped bodysuit looking all fresh and smelling of that wonderful ‘just bathed baby smell’.  I don’t often get broody but that special baby smell did it to me!  I realised that it’s been a while since I’ve featured something purely for the tiniest little ones and so I went looking and couldn’t resist these delicious onesies and booties.  Simple stripes and polka dots in the freshest colours make for lovely Spring essentials.  They’re made by Nature Baby exclusively for J. Crew and are made of organic cotton and 100% chemical free materials so are perfect for a babies delicate skin.  If only I had seen these before I think I would have been unable to resist the the bright yellow polka dot booties and matching onesie.

I don’t know about you but I am beyond ready for Spring.  So far I haven’t bought anything for this elusive season but yesterday I saw a gorgeous coral top in a sheer fabric and I couldn’t resist.  I convinced myself that if I bought it, Spring would come sooner.  I know I’m getting desperate and even more so when I see all the wonderful colours, fabrics and prints on offer at the moment.  One collection that’s really caught my eye is Soft Gallery’s new Spring/Summer 2013 line for kids.  This isn’t the first time I’ve fallen for Soft Gallery and I suspect it won’t be the last. 

Soft Gallery’s Spring/Summer 2013 collection called ‘PURE’ is dreamy and playful.  Some of the clothes are in pale solid colours while others are embellished with butterflies, rabbits and other animals illustrated by artists from around the world.  The colors are soft, the drawings are bold and the overall feeling is one of a playful adventure.  I love the Audrey Hare dress which has a bubble like shape and a beautiful peachy-pink illustration of a rabbit.  I also love the tennis playing, wolf like creature on the grey tee for a boy.  Now, if only Spring would show it’s face we could all indulge in some delightful Spring fashion like this.

This week’s picks for mama & baby… let mama carry this vintage inspired leather backpack while baby wears those tan leather sandals.

Today I want to introduce you to my newest sponsor Little Goodall.  Little Goodall was started by a stay at home mama who found her 2 year old son refusing to wear the hood on his coat.  I totally get this problem because it’s one I still face with my daughter Anya.  It takes inventive trickery, bribery and a lot of persuasion to get her to put on her hood and even then the hood only stays on for minutes.  I get frustrated and give up but Molly didn’t.  Being a designer and an artist Molly decided to get creative and made a lion coat for her son.  Not only did he love wearing his hood (which kid wouldn’t) but she also got a lot of interest from others and Little Goodall was born.

Molly has since expanded her range to include a variety of animal coats including a fox coat, a dinosaur coat and a koala coat.  It’s the details in each coat that really make them super sweet and most of all great fun for kids to wear.  I love the bushy tail on the fox coat, the prickles on the dinosaur coat and the little claw detail on many of them but of all the coats my absolute favourite is the bunny one.  The design is probably the simplest but it’s the colours and those long floppy ears that make this coat adorable.  Animal clothing isn’t normally my thing but these are not your average animal clothes as they are sweet, fun and not cutesy in any way.  And besides I can’t imagine any kid turning down a chance to wear one of these.  If my daughter had one, I know she would never want to take hers off!  Visit Little Goodall to see more.

One of my favourite things to do at this time of year is to discover and drool over all the new Spring/Summer collections that start trickling in to the shops.  Not only are they a joy to look at but it also helps me believe that Summer can’t be that far away.  Some of the coolest and prettiest lines I discover each year come from France.  So I went to have a look at what new stuff my sponsors French Blossom have as they hand pick collections from some of the best French designers.  One of the first new collections I found and completely fell for was Emile et Ida.

This new Spring Summer 2013 collection is one that you can’t help but fall in love with.  When I first found out about Emile et Ida I assumed their brand name came from their children’s names as with so many kids brands these days.  But not in this case… instead, it is the first names of the creator’s parents.   This sentiment of loving the past and what it represents is reflected throughout their designs.  The girls clothes are inspired by a love of all things vintage while the boys collections are influenced by the spirit of rock n’ roll of days gone by.  For the girls you’ll find pretty skirts and tops in rich colours complimented with dusty shades and often dotted with flecks of gold.  For the boys there are graphic tees and bright jeans on offer which are all very cool but that mustache tee has got to be my favourite.  The appeal of Emile et Ida lies in it’s effortless, wearable designs that are so chic.  Visit French Blossom to see more of the collection and I know they’re getting a few more pieces this week. 

Photo’s courtesy of Emile et Ida.

This week’s picks for mama & baby… let mama wear these stylish cap toe ballet flats while baby wears that adorable lemon bodysuit.

I recently came across this new collection of kids clothes from Poland and I fell for their tutu’s.  Little girls and tutu’s are a match made in heaven especially when they’re paired with something casual and unfussy like this cloud jersey top.  And besides, which little girl doesn’t like a tutu?  My daughter is a huge fan and would wear hers everyday if she was allowed.

Kids on the Moon make tutu’s in the most beautiful colours from soft pastels to the darkest shades.  Their tutu’s look like they’re soft and have loads of movement giving them such a carefree feel which I’m loving.  They also make other really cute stuff for both boys and girls like stripey mustache tee’s, cat sweatshirts and more. 

Kids on the Moon haven’t yet opened their online shop but it’s coming soon and I can’t wait!  Even if you’ve only got boys, do check out their collection as you won’t be disappointed with the cool sweats and tees on offer.