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Louise Karakaya is a young designer whom I had the pleasure of meeting this past weekend. Although she has no website as of yet, she definitely will soon. Until then, if you would like her contact information, please let me know. Say hello to Bob : a rotationally moulded plastic sled, Husky : a felt dog, and Bundle : soft storage made from industrial quality felt.
Heading to France, England, Italy, Scotland, Spain, Wales, or Portugal with the your mini? Look to Baby-Friendly Boltholes to give you the latest in baby-friendly hotels and their offerings. You can search for places that offer baby-sitting, baby equipment, playgrounds, spas, meal delivery, toys/books, creche, pools, and even farm animals. (the last one is a bit out there but some kids love petting zoos).
I have been a fan of the kid's collection over at Thorsten Van Elten for quite sometime. It was nice to see some of their offerings in person. A few of those highlights were the Little Genius storage box and table, Kids-Rock chair by Alexander Taylor, van Amburgh seat by Sam Johnson, and Brush Beauty by Gavin Coultrip.
Kapla planks are made from 100% renewable forests, natural and non-toxic. The flat shape and lightweight wood enhances confidence, curiosity, and determination.
I received a lovely email from the good people at Nine to Nine today and there were a few press items that did not make it to the Kids.Modern show so I thought I would share. I really enjoy this collection. I look forward to what's next. Below is Piglet Cube bedside table and Mouse table. Visit them here.
I was very nice to see this child's chair and bedside table in person at the show. It is part of the beautiful Bridge collection by Lion Witch Wardrobe.
It was a pleasure to have been introduced to Places and Spaces design shop on Sunday. The have a very nice selection of modern goods for the mini. I managed to snap a few pics of the Kant child's desk, the Orca stool that turns into 2 chairs, the Alex Macdonald child's chair in blue and birch and table, a collection of Kay Bojesen toys and cutlery, Loop the Loop shelving, and Terry Elephants in mutiple colors.
NIC has a nice selection of ride-on toys.
Do your kids feel like the old school sun dials are seriously dated? Well then try this Digital Sundial.
This Bird Box Light is quite cute. It comes in orange/white or white/white.
One thing that really caught my eye this past weekend was the PUNCH'N'CUDDLE. It comes in two sizes : big and small. It's a cross between a bean bag and punching bag. The look is really nice and the concept is even better. Watch the video below to get the full picture!
Does your child go see rock shows, accompany dad to the shooting range or just around extremely noisy environments? Well then may I introduce the Peltor Kid Headphones.
Another piece at the Kids.Modern show from John Denis O'Leary was the Joshua bookcase for the mini.
This and the bench from Allan McIntyre are part of the sustainable furniture solutions startup called bluegreen&co
Head on over to Craftsbury Kids and get your child's silhouette pendant necklace by Whitney Phippen. All you need is a 4x5 photo of your little nugget and $48 bucks!
The modular Cloud bookcase by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for Cappellini would make a fine bookcase for your little nugget's library. I would not sugget going too high as this could double as a jungle gym when you are not looking.
This weekend was filled with great design. The Kids.Modern show was on sunday and I had all day on saturday to tool around London. I strolled the TATE Modern, felt at home in the Design Musuem, and took some well needed time for myself.....and yes, I was only there just over 48 hours.
In the TATE Modern store, I thumbed through several Hervé Tullet books, scored my daughter an Alice Melvin ABC tote, and bought the latest issues of Anorak and OKIDO. From there I took a walk through the Borough Market where my love for food grew three times larger. Just a few more blocks and I was entering the Design Museum. Here, I was honored to see the radical, functional and inspiring work of the French designer and engineer Jean Prouvé. Also showing was the Brit Insurance annual exploration of the most innovative, interesting and forward looking new work in design of all kinds. See one of the designs here.
So on to the show. Nestled in Dulwich College, it seemed more of a market than a trade show or fair. There were puppet shows, grilled goodies, and several hands-on-create-art kid areas. With only about 50 vendors present, it seemed a bit tight at times but overall, a very well selected group. Everyone there, vendors and consumer, all had an appreciation for children's design. I have a ton of great new finds that I will be posting throughout this week. So before the posting gets overwhelming, I thought I would recap the posts thus far. Enjoy.
Nine to Nine : cribs, changing table, shelf, and bench
The Bugge Table: modular imagination piece
Nadia Sparham : kid drawings made into dishes
Allan McIntyre :Children's Bench and Cabinet for Life
John Denis O'Leary : Animal Form series seesaw and bench
Also showing this weekend was John Denis O'Leary's Animal Form series. On display was this table and seesaw.
This is the name given by designer Allan McIntyre (whom I now love and am so happy to see in person this past weekend in London at the Kids.Modern show) for this cabinet. With tons of nooks, sleek design, and numerous different types of wood usage, this is sure to becme a modern day classic.
Allan McIntyre came up with a lovely coat rack/bench for kids.
The winner of the 2007 Red Dot Award for Life science and medicine / AID went to the Mex-x folding children's wheelchair designed by Realo Design. I was lucky enough to see this in person at the Design Museum in London this past weekend and was impressed with its sleek and useful design. Kids can choose from a huge selection of creative spoke guards for their Mex-x here. It's so nice to see great design making its way to very important children.
Nadia Sparham wants to take your children's artwork and make it into useful art. The kind of art that you can drink and eat out of. Quite ingenious if you ask me. Take a drawing or picture that your mini has made and really make it into an everyday masterpiece. It's easy. Do it on her website.
Looking for an inflatable trampoline? Well...look no further
Do you think 4 is to young to introduce the Modern Home - Idea Journal & Coloring Book or the Creative Interiors Coloring Book?
Just fresh out of school designers Katrine Vestal, Ingse Galtung Dosvig, and Caroline Harstad came out with the Bugge Table. This is a modular table for children. it's a structure that is build-able, stackable and gives way to ones imagination. The product becomes a boat, a rocking horse, a table, a chair, bunk beds, cottages and so on. So with that, I leave you with a fun establishment. Enjoy. (it's so new they have not a website as of yet)
Nine to Nine believes that the smallest members of the family should grow up surrounded by contemporary, original, and high quality design. I could not agree more after seeing it in person this weekend at the Kids.Modern show. All the pieces are very well considered and highly designed to suit the modern mini.
I'm off to the Kids.Modern show in London. Be sure to check back next week for all my juicy updates from the show. Cheers.
One of my favorite shops in Brooklyn is Romp. As i was walking to a "girls night dinner" last night, I purposely wanted to walk by and look in the window. To my surprise, they have closed up shop and are moving to the country. But never fear, the web-store will be continuing on. Apparently, they are making big changes and perhaps offering grown-up stuff as well. As a thank you to all the Brooklyn customers, Romp is offering free shipping and 15% off everything until Sept 30, 2008. All you need is a Brooklyn ship-to address and this code at checkout : BKLYN.
The four new items from Plan Toys that caught my eye at the Toy Fair were the Woodpecker walker, a real sized kids table and chair set, washing machine, and tree house.
Head over to DK kids website and let your little nugget take an Interactive Drawing Lesson.
Selecta has got a cute little bird called Cuculo that measures your child's growth. It's mectric but still would look great on the wall. They also came out with these coat hooks as well.
Meet the Shrunks. They have come out with Fright Bust'r Tools for your child to help them fight the fright of monsters under the bed and in the closet. Use the Blow'r whistle to alert those around you. Use the Mist'r lavender spray to create a calm barrier. Try the See'r flashlight to look under the pillow or the Yell'r blowhorn to call out for help. (this one is actually just a megaphone!). I got to look at the prototypes at the NY International Toy Fair earlier this week and I was very impressed with the design. They also carry a line of Ududolls, a Fear Bust'r Tool Kit, a Guard dog, and an Airbed for toddlers. (Sorry for the out of focus images. Their website is not up yet so all I could do was scan the brochure!)
HaPe just came out with the E-racers. They are eco-friendly cars made from bamboo, water based paints and renewable materials.
Takao Yoguchi created the book Circus back in 2005 for Naef. Using a series of magic film, the clown juggles and the band plays on while this moving picture book comes to life.
Does your kid insist on helping you with your projects around the house? Well, I suggest letting them try this Smart Guide drill by Bongkun Shin.
So the founder of Bugaboo, Eduard Zanen, is launching a new game for kids called SWINXS. I got a nice intro at the NY Gift Show and it definitely made me pay attention. It's a console that talks , cheers and explains games. It is great for the beach, park, garden, playroom or at grandmas. It comes with XS tags, wristbands with microchips that communicate with the console. The interesting thing is that you can download new games for free from the website that are based on age and category. Here is the promo video that goes more in-depth:
Look for it's launch sometime in 2008.
Eco Decor in Japan came out with this Table Manner Kit for kids. It teaches them with icons as to which utensil is used for what. I think the design is quite lovely.
Bram Boo is a Belgian designer whose philosophy is to focus on functionality and flexibility for space and the objects he creates. I think these peices could go very well in a child's playspace or bedroom. They could even blend in nicely into your living room.
The "Evolutionary chair and Low hygiene table" is designed by Frank & Stanimira Rafaschieri and debuted last july in Paris. A wonderful example of necessary adaptability for children's gear. I'll just let the pictures do the talking on this one!
After much feedback and amazing suggestions, the look and feel of minor details has been updated. There is a swell little banner ripe with a new logo and you will see bigger images from here on out! Enjoy.
While strolling through the NY International Toy Fair today, I noticed a booth that looked very similar to Kid O in the city. Upon a closer look, I realized that it was in fact the store that I was thinking of and to my pleasant surprise, discovered that they are making a child's product line. All the products are made from 100% sustainable grown woods and all paper and packaging are produced from 100% recycled materials. The range of products include puzzles and building blocks. Look for the new website May 2008.
I am a huge fan of Sleeping Forest Studios. The make handcrafted wooden objects for the mini. Take a look at the spin top and pull toy selections. (some of the pull toys are sold-out but they might just make more!)
(discovered by mod eco kids)
Hotel FOX is located in Copenhagen, Denmark. Dubbed the world's most exciting and creative lifestyle hotel, they took 61 rooms, 21 artists, and 1,000 ideas to create this amazing hotel. From fantastic street art and Japanese Manga to simply spaced out fantasies. You will find flowers, fairytales, friendly monsters, dreaming creatures, secrets vaults and… an amazing place to take the family! They have four room sizes to choose from that range from $320-$160 night. I wanted to show the more kid-fun rooms but no worries, there are more sophisticated rooms for the grown ups.
Finally, someone got the gusto to re-make classic Eames chairs for children. Well done!
