My parents never kept any of my baby toys or clothes.  This never mattered to me until I had a child and now I really wish they had.  My father was in a job where he moved countries every 3 to 4 years so when the time came for us all to up and go, big clear outs were inevitable.  And besides I think my mother is a bit of a divester.  She’s never been one to hoard her possessions and loves getting rid of clutter.  But she did keep one adorable little vintage chair that was used by her and her sister when they were babies, then by my brother and me and now it’s Anya’s.  Anya loves being told stories about her mama using the chair.  That’s the wonderful thing about good vintage furniture and toys… they can be passed down from generation to generation and they gather so many wonderful memories along the way.

I love the thought of passing down furniture and toys but if you don’t have your own, the next best thing is finding a good vintage shop.  And today I wanted to share my latest find – Roger Bontemps.  It’s a new French vintage shop that looks super promising.  Their online doors aren’t even open yet but should be opening in the next week.  They will be selling vintage kids furniture, toys and more but they have also created their own small line of vintage inspired clothes, bed linen and accessories.  I couldn’t find too many pictures but I liked what I did see especially that rattan crib and the bed linen in it.  Can’t wait to see more…

Yesterday my daughter had a play date with another little girl and they got hooked on the colour green.  The two girls kept saying ‘green’ louder and louder and then bursting in to fits of laughter.  They then started adding an extra word and coming up with things like ‘green toast’, ‘green dog’… the idea being to pair it with something that most definitely isn’t green.  This produced more laughter and eventually the inevitable bathroom humour ensued followed by the loudest giggles ever!  I don’t know how 4 year old minds work but I do know this little game tickled them pink!  While I didn’t take part in the game, it did get me thinking of the colour green and I realised I’d never done a green post.  I always think that green isn’t a colour I’m naturally drawn to but then again there are so many shades of it that there really is a green for everyone (my personal favourite is mint green) and so I thought it would be fun to look for a few things in different shades of green and here’s what I found:

1.  green linen sunsuit by wolfechild…  2.  minty green toddler duvet set by garbo & friends…  3.  forest green firs pillowcase by fine little day…  4.   shades of green bird poster by silke bonde…  5.  ice-cream green playhouse by lucky boy sunday…  6. dark green book called Grandpa Green by Lane Smith.

Happy weekend all and see you next week!

Last week I was at my favourite magazine shop* in London which stocks magazines from across the globe and also has very limited edition ones that are hard to find.  Seriously, the choice they offer is staggering and this place definitely qualifies as a magazine lovers paradise.  So naturally while I was there I indulged in a few magazines – some that I hadn’t read before and some old favourites like Milk.  While flicking through Milk yesterday a cute puppy like object caught my eye and I had a better look.  I discovered Pana Objects started by a group of friends who wanted to add a little fun and beauty to everyday things.  Based in Thailand, their sweet little objects are all crafted from wood and designed with love.  I adore those little Apple charger caps… what a cute idea!  And those coat hooks are simple and stylish for any space while that puppy dog lamp is perfect for a kids room.  Sweet!

*In case you’re interested, I don’t know the name of the magazine shop but you’ll find it at 66 Charlotte St.

Circus themed kids things have been around for ages and aren’t going anywhere in a hurry.  While some of them can be cute, it’s the circus inspired harlequin pattern that I love best of all.  It’s such a simple geometric pattern that has loads of style without any of the fuss.  I love that you can play with many different colours on any harlequin adorned object or you can go for a more minimalistic 2 colour look.  I was reminded of how much I love this pattern when I spotted that circus bunny on pinterest so I went looking for a few more things and here’s what I found:

1.  Decorative bunny…  2.  Harlequin cushions…  3.  Porcelain bowl…  4.  Animal shorts   5.  Circus poster

Lately I’ve been obsessing over black and white interiors but every once in a while I see bold and bright kids rooms popping with colour and I change my mind.  Today is one of those times… when I saw these rooms I fell in love with colour all over again.  We all know that kids adore colour.  Have you ever seen a child colour in a picture in one or two or even just three colours?  Neither have I!  These rooms work especially well for me because they’ve all used white or very light backgrounds and then added the brightest accents in a range of colours. 

Image credits: 1. petit vanou…   2. decorators notebook…   3.  kids room…  4.  skona hem…

P.S. Have you entered our giveaway?

I love yellow!  It’s such a happy colour, don’t you think?  It’s probably my favourite colour especially for kids and babies.  And since the sun has graced us with it’s presence after months, I thought it was time to do a yellow post.  Here’s what I currently love for a happy, sunny summer:

1. Bird drawing book…  2. Patent leather dolly shoe…  3. Handmade lion soft toy…  4. Lemon tote bag or storage sack…  5. Harper sunsuit with triangle design…  6.  Modern striped citrine rug…  7. Printed rabbit patch baby quilt.

Lately I’ve been feeling the need to brighten up my wardrobe not just with colour but with bold prints and patterns.  I often wear solid blocks of colour but I don’t tend to wear many prints.  Now I’ve got the urge to go out and buy striking patterns and prints in bold and bright colours and mix and match them without any rules.  Whether I’ll be brave enough to do this is a completely different matter but when I saw this styling for kids spaces it reminded me that you can make contrasting patterns and colours work together.  These gorgeous spaces are created by interior stylist Linda Ahman.  You’ve got graphic patterns against floral ones, hot pinks with orange, stripes with polka dots and it all comes together so seamlessly.  Would you try something like this in your kids room or even in your wardrobe?  Seeing these images I’m now dreaming of having patterns and prints everywhere!

I remember when I was around 13, there was a girl in my school who only ever wore black.  Occasionally she would wear little hints of white or grey but the dominating colour from head to toe was always black.  I seriously thought she was the coolest kid I’d ever seen!  I’ve always loved black and even several years on this obsession with black has never waned.  When I see a piece of clothing in a shop, it can come in every colour under the sun and I will always be drawn to the black one.  Over the years I’ve taught myself to have more colour in my wardrobe especially for Spring and Summer but in Winter it’s back to black!  Now this black obsession is creeping in to my decorating ideas and I’m thinking of re-doing my daughters room in black and white.  So I’ve been looking around for kids room decorations that are not only black and white but are also simple, unfussy and uncluttered in their design.  These were my top picks:

1.  Heart poster… 2. Polka dot wall stickers… 3. Sheep mobile… 4. Striped blanket… 5. Striped cloud cushion… 6. Tica chair… 7. Mickey Mouse pillow.

Hope you all have a great weekend!  See you next week…

Oeuf NYC is a firm favourite on this blog and I’ve been meaning to share their latest cot offering – The Rhea Crib.  I loved it when I saw it especially in the darker walnut colour.  It’s modern style, clean lines and dark splendour got me at first sight.

While admiring the Rhea crib I also came across Oeuf’s new Spring/Summer 2013 campaign which shows lots of fun and colourful nurseries and kids rooms.  I’m completely loving their choice of wallpapers especially the black floral one which is so impactful.  And that neon dotted wall is another lovely touch.  I love finding and sharing cool kids rooms and Oeuf’s new catalogue is full of playful and pretty ideas.

I think I have a bit of an obsession with the colour gold.  I love wearing gold jewellery and having gold accents in my home.  It’s a colour that’s rich and warm and works best when used sparingly.  I particularly love that there are so many different tones and shades to gold so you can chose to bling it up or tone it down.  It’s not a colour you would immediately associate with a nursery or toddler’s room but I love the idea of adding gold accessories and accents in a kids space especially when paired with lots of white.  I went looking for some gold nursery decorations and here’s what I loved:

1. Black and gold cloud mobile…  2. Mexican inspired Concha chair…  3. Mr Mustache print…  4. Straw storage baskets with gold sequins…  5. Toadstool night light from smallable.com…  6. Set of raindrop cushions…  7.  Organic stars duvet set.