Monday, April 8, 2013

Why to get a crib on top of a baby bed?

INDEED this is not obvious to decide before welcoming baby if we would need a crib or not...  On top of offering a sleeping place as cosy as your warm belly used to be, it depends also on your willingness to have your baby in the "parental" bedroom for few weeks. You will be the only one to feel what is best for you. Reassuring and practical to get baby close (especially if you breast-feed), or more convenient for your beauty sleep and independance (as a sleeping baby can be really noisy).
 
Should you decide to get one, here is a selection of design and smart cribs.
 
 
Quax proposes the Marie crib with storage units below.
 
 
Moulin Roty proposes a  rocking crib, Ardoise, ideal to help baby fall asleep.
 
 
Mobile cribs are well-designed. Bloom understands well parents living in cities with tiny apartments. Alma mini is a tiny crib which can be foldaway. Its wheels are smart: you will experience situations in which you want to remain close to your baby (or the other way around) while you might need to move from one room to the other in your flat.
 
 
Ecological cribs, such as cardboard cribs proposed by Kids Gallery, are easy to install and super light. Another plus: It is as high as your bed.
 
Hanging cribs, such as the Leander one, help rock baby slightly. It also enables to keep space on the floor, should you hang it directly on the ceiling or on its framework.
 
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Which baby rocker to choose?

THIS is the piece of furniture that you absolutely need when you are back from nursery. Why? Your little baby might request a permanent presence, might need to be slightly rocked to fall asleep and lying down position could not be possible if his/her stomach is sensitive. Unless your crib has wheels so that your baby can stay close to you in every room of the house, unless your arms have been trained for Baby Olympics, you will need a baby rocker.

Some key things to remember before choosing a baby rocker: Can the chair welcome new born? Can you actually rock the baby with the chair? Are the fabrics washable? Is it heavy? Are there some straps to hold baby? Is the colour compatible with inevitable stains? Can baby sleep and play in it? and finally is this really comfortable for a baby to stay hours for years?

Among the trendy baby rockers, my favourite is the Bamboo model from Bombol and designed by Frederic Gooris. All the criteria mentioned above are smartly addressed. Design lovers will be tempted by many of the colours proposed: yellow, beige or grey (cf hereafter).
Bamboo baby rocker, Bombol

Another proposition is the Coco rocker from Bloom Baby. The lines will easily merge into your living room. 2 woods are available: wenge or birch, and several colours for the fabrics (white, black, blue, etc).

Coco baby rocker, Bloom baby



You can buy them both on Les Enfants du Design website (www.lesenfantsdudesign.com).


Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.


Monday, March 18, 2013

Couture dolls

KARL, but also Chantal, Jean-Paul, Albert and Sonia.  French designers now have their couture doll thanks to My Name is Simone. Dolls are not only portraying designers but also "normal" everyday people, or historical icons, such as Josephine.

We were waiting for these dolls, trendy and not cheesy! And kids will love these dolls too as they are full of colours and easy to grab. :-)

They also have a collection of fun cushions, tote bags and drawstring pouches. Have a look at the website.


Mister K, My Name is Simone

Jean-Paul, Sonia and Chantal, My Name is Simone





Josephine, Doll and cushion, My Name is Simone


www.mynameissimone.com






Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Which baby changing-table for me?

BABY changing-table. Again, an important piece of furniture that we are not quite sure about.
 
Indeed, they are rarely beautiful (practical, yes, but not enough!), they are rarely small (and we have to recognize that they are actually BIG), we always wonder how long would we use them and more importantly what are we going to do with this piece of furniture once baby does not need it anymore. But we have to admit that we will feel being bad parents if for the sake of design we will skip this object. Good news: no need anymore (phew!).
 
Here is a non exhaustive selection of changing-tables which are NOT a compromise between practicality, safety and aestheticism. Their creators just designed them with a different mindset.
 
The second function
 
The dresser
 
 
 
Surprise dresser (Buffet surprise), Laurette
The changing-table transforms into a dresser. cf previous article "Surprise"
9 colours to pick for the external side; idem of the internal parts
 
The desk

 
Changing table, Leander
It transforms into a desk.
 
 
The limited space on the floor:
 
On the wall
 

 
Wall mounted diaper changing station "Nathi", Bybo Design.
3 colours: birch, walnut and white100% safety: max load weight 50kg
 
 
On the chest drawer
 
Joy drawer chest, Quax
 
 
Several other models and brands also propose modern baby changing-tables. This is now your turn to decide the kind that will fit best your lifestyle...
 
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

 

Thursday, March 14, 2013

How to choose a baby bed?

HERE it comes. The 1st important thing to buy for the baby. The bed! It will give the tone of the room, it will be there for several years and thus, we hesitate... quite a long time. Here are some tips for you to keep in mind while choosing THE bed.


Marie-Sofie baby bed
 
#1: EVOLVE with the kid
1st thing you need to know is that the bed will need to evolve with your child or you will need to replace it after 2 years. You might hesitate looking at price twice as high as other beds, but you might be happy to have the possibility to propose smooth transition to your child while growing up, up to 5 or 6 years old. All about evolutive functionality!




Leander evolutive bed, 5 positions, from birth to 7 years old.

 
 
#2:SECURITY is a no-miss
You could think about bargain hunting, looking for vintage baby beds in antique fairs, or use your own baby bed? Not recommended. You have to remember that they would not be compliant with current safety norms (European norms for baby beds: NF EN 176). Stability up to the toughest conditions, non-toxic lacquers, space between bars between 4.5cm and 6.5cm so that your baby cannot get stuck and mandatory round angles. When safety and design put an end to "prison style" beds.



Roulotte, evolutive bed, Laurette. Available in 9 colours.
Baby can safely be rocked thanks to wheels equipped with brakes.
 
#3: RESPECT for the environement
When it comes to pass down our own values to the next generation, it also starts with the choice we have made in selecting food, clothes and furniture. Here it is more a personal choice and there is no requirement to strictly follow a rule. Just good to know that some manufacturers made a real commitment to offer natural, recyclable or renewable materials, while ensuring an eco-friendly manufacturing process to ensure sustainability. Another way to avoid waste is to consider getting a recent second-hand baby beds: there are a lot of specialized boutiques proposing just-like new baby objects.
 
The selection of beds presented will help you sharpen your choice. These are IT beds, all reconciling evolutivity, respect for baby safety and environement while offering unique trendy design.
 

 
Rhea crib, Oeuf NYC (2 wood types, birch/white or walnut/white)
 
 
 
Other examples:
 
 


 
 
 Joli môme, evolutive bed, Laurette. Also available in 9 colours.
 
Vogue bed, Zinezoe
 


Kalon Studios bed
 
 
 
You thought that the hardest part of the journey was behind you? You now have to decide shape, wood type and colours. Good luck parents-to-be! :-)


Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Birds on the wall

ONCE the walls are painted and the furniture are in place, kid's bedroom might sometimes look a bit like a design catalogue. Should you want to add personality and poetic charm, do not hesitate to put Mimi'Lou's wall sticker. You will appreciate the fine drawing and the refined colours which will just match the other accessories you previously chose. These assets are also available for cushions. You now have to choose which one will better fit into your kid's room...
Mimi'Lou
Sticker frieze pearls and birds


 Mimi'Lou
Cushion birds
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

I LOVE TM

POETIC atmosphere is one of several Tamar Mogendorff's recognizable assets. This New-Yorker always strikes just right with her unique hand-made creations. In the Brooklyn workshop she assembles refined fabrics, delicate liberty pattern with the right design. Among her fabulous classics, the white swan, nest boxes, animal trophies, giant mushrooms and more recently a white peacock. Enjoy!







The Swan, a new nest box, deer torphy, mushroom and new white peacock, by Tamar Mogendorff



Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.



Wild Nursery

WALL decoration often needs a compromise between parent's taste and child's world. Sharon Montrose and her animal photographs bring them both back together. There are many types of animals: farm, wild life, birds, reptiles, hoof, primates, etc... You will either fall for a collection of baby animal's portraits or for a huge frame with a rare specimen.

 
 

 
 
 
Baby animals print by Sharon Montrose.
ww.theanimalprintshop.com
 
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Scandinavian library

TIDYING can be as easy as putting square peg in round hole. Muuto, the Scandinavian design company, has given new perspectives to the usage of libraries putting the objects at the centre. Oto storage system has been designed for our new modern nomad lives. Each piece of the library can be separated and re-assembled very easily in the formations you like best. It becomes a frame for your kid's treasure, or for favourite books and cuddly toys.


Oto storage system, Muuto


Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Feline lamp

THE ultimate desk accessory is the reading lamp. Not always easy to find a light whose design is useful, fun and appealing to kids. Olivier Kuntzel and Florence Deygas created the collection of Micha lamps with cat-like graphic lines. Streamlined design, precise animal curves and 6 backlighting whiskers: no doubt, a cat sits on the desk and watches the homework progress. The biggest doubt you will get would be to choose among the 4 different postures: walking, sit, arched back or clumsy kitten sit.
 
 
 
 
 
Micha Lamps, Kuntzel & Deygas
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.


Kids' secret hut

SMALL apartments know well happy kids sharing the same bedroom. The dream twin bed exists! Perludi, Austrian designer, created the loftbed, Amber in the sky. All proportions are right: height is just tall enough to host 2 children, while being not too tall and enabling parents to tell stories. Materials are chosen for their high quality: birch ply covered in loden fabric. The design crush continues with the large choice of colours (i.e. sand, grey, red, brown or orange) for a high design impact in your kid's room. And if you only have 1 child, the bottom bed will transform into as a cosy hut to welcome best friends and share secrets.
 
 
 

 
 
Loftbed, Amber in the sky - Perludi
 
 
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Surprise

LAURETTE Meuble is my favourite kid designer. Laure Bailleux created in 2004 in France her first furniture made for kids and since then it has continued successfully. Kid desk, baby bed or small wardrobe, all her creations have an original "retro design" look. This unique style is reinforced by the variety of colours that Laurette proposes (more than 9 colours) for the inside and outside of the piece of furniture. You customize and you get an exceptional result! I will share with you my other favourite pieces of furniture from Laurette soon...
 
For instance, the baby-changing table called "Surprising buffet" transforms into a buffet once the baby does not need the table anymore. Very practical AND beautiful! See below.
 

 
Surprising buffet, Laurette Meuble
 
 
Design & Kids - Inspirations on trendy decoration and style for kids, by Louise every week.