Celebrities



Harper Beckham in Caramel baby & Child AW12

How do you feel when you see celebrities wearing the same clothes that you own ?  Take the above outfit that Harper Beckham is wearing.  I very nearly bought this (way before she was pictured in this).  It was in the sale and was around £29, so a bargain considering the original price.  For reasons I forget I refrained from purchasing and boy am I glad.  I think people would just assume that I am copying some celebrity and that makes me feel very uncomfortable.  Don't get me wrong, I quite like Victoria Beckham.  Her clothes line is gorgeous and she has done well to reinvent herself.  Obviously she can dress her child in whatever she pleases and she clearly has good taste, but why oh why does it have to be my favourite - Caramel Baby & Child ? Boy does she love this designer.   I've been dressing my daughters in their clothes for six years.  I think it's time for me to seek out some new designers.  (sob)



Check Me Out

I do love checks, especially in dark colours.  Dress by Mon Marcel.

I Don't Get Out Of Bed For Less Than...

Zut alors! Fashion 'week' for children has arrived in London courtesy of  Alex and Alexa which sell childrens designerwear.  Esteemed names such as Chloe, Missoni and Jean Paul Gaultier to name but a few all staged a fashion show.  I'm somewhat ambivalent about it.  On the one hand I love fashion; it's creative, fun and provides escapism.  On the other hand the timing of this show seems a little out of step with the current economic climate. 

Scotch R'Belle

Missoni

Chloe

Paul Smith Junior

Jean Paul Gaultier

It Shouldn't Happen in March

Easter is almost here which usually means sunny days and warm weather.  Instead it is cold, grey and dull.  More of the same is forecast until AFTER Easter.  The shops are full of spring and summer outfits but depressingly, my most recent purchase wasn't a bikini or sundress, it was a coat.  Yes, you read that correctly, I have just purchased a winter coat for my youngest.  I had it so well planned, only the weather decided not to play ball.  She is 4 months old which should have meant that she could use her 0-3 month coat until the end of the winter, then swap it for a spring one.  Unfortunately as the winter has dragged on and is predicted to go on for at least another month I have had to buy another bigger one... in March. 
Finding a coat at this time of year is quite difficult.  The shops are full of summer clothes and most have put away anything to do with winter.  Luckily you can still find a few pieces online.  There isn't much choice but I was lucky enough to find this coat in the Caramel Baby & Child online sale.

Today she wore her new coat with this liberty print dress also from Caramel Baby, which is a hand me down from her big sister.

Bring Me Sunshine



Caramel Baby & Child

Here's my big girl rocking one of my favourite outfits.  She is wearing Caramel Baby & Child oatmeal cardigan and liberty print dress.  She has styled this with flower shaped sunglasses and sparkly stickers on the tights.  Fab!



Caramel Baby & Child jumper and liberty print dress AW collection

Tea Parties and Country Fairs

As soon as the packaging was undone, this was whipped away by my daughter.  It is not quite warm enough to wear yet but when has a little cold weather stopped a true fashionista ?

I'm usually a little 'whatever' about Boden's clothing, but you can usually find several gems amongst the applique and ubiquitous spots and stripes.  This particular dress reminds me of the English countryside and screams innocence which is not always easy to find on the British high street. 

Savvy Shopping

I seem to have a particular penchant for expensive clothing.  It's not snobbery because I do buy from the High Street.  What I love about designer clothing is the cut and attention to detail.  I blame my mother for this.  Out of necessity she used to make my clothes.  They would always be lined, have little pin tucks, hidden zips and all the other things that the High Street just can't do.  Now, whenever I pick up an item of clothing I'm always checking out how it has been made, what the fabric is, the buttons, the weight and so on.  What I can't always justify is the price, especially as children grow so fast.  Most of the clothes you'll see on here will have been purchased in the sales, which makes me feel a little less guilty. 
I have decided to get smart and purchase for the following year.  If I were really smart I'd get my mum to teach me to sew.

Here is a selection of some of my winter bargains.


Caramel Baby & Child dress in micro berry check with aubergine cardigan

Caramel Baby & Child Churchill romper with Bonton cardigan



Bonpoint blouse, Bonton cardigan and big sisters old Monsoon trousers



Bonpoint wool dress



Bonpoint winter dress

Booties by Pepe



So Soft

It's still wintry here, which isn't entirely a bad thing as it means I get to eek out a little more wear from Pumpkins winter wardrobe.  Today she is dressed in a Bonnie Baby cashmere dress.  I'm aware that this is starting to look as though Baby girl only wears luxury clothing but I actually picked this little number up from Cocosa for half price.  Bargain!

The Dark Side

Who decided that baby wear in the UK has to be blue for boys and pink for girls ?  Now, I am talking about the High street, British children's wear designers are far more adventurous with their colour palette.  Unfortunately most designers are out of reach for the average Briton and as a result our babies look like large Baby Bjorn dolls.  Don't get me wrong, I like a little pink, but I'd like variety.  Come on High Street!  Show a little adventure and give us some of this. Girls (or their mummies) we salute you.



Purple, faded colours and grey. 




Black



Black and white

Let's Go Dotty

Poor baby had to endure yet another vaccination today.  There are so many in the first year that I do feel sorry for the wee babies.  However, she was easily distracted by the toys on offer, so maybe it wasn't that bad.  To make her feel better (well me really) I overdressed her for the occassion in an old favourite from Caramel Baby & Child.  It actually belonged to my older daughter so is really a vintage piece - does being five years old qualify ? 

Yves Klein Blue

I am so happy that my littlest is finally big enough to wear this.  It is another dress from Caramel Baby & Child which I bought from their winter AW12 sale.  She looks like a proper little girl in this.  This is probably my favourite shade of blue.  A great colour to wear at any time of the year it always cheers me up.  Today she teamed it with a pair of navy tights and light blue cardigan from Mini Boden.

Baby It's Cold Outside

Brrrrr.  Winter has returned with a vengence.  Just when we thought spring had arrived, we are treated to snow, gale force winds and freezing temperatures.  A little bit of this would not go amiss.  The pool is the perfect shade of blue.

Anyway, back to reality.  Freezing temperatures or not, the school run still has to be tackled.  Luckily I chanced upon a sample sale at Igloo Kids back in October.  Heavily pregnant I had to queue to get in but it was worth it.  I came away with Petit Bateau vests for £2 for a pack of 3 and this gorgeous Tartine et Chocolat snowsuit for the bargain price of £23 !  The original price was in excess of £120.  One of my best buys ever.



Tartine et Chocolat snowsuit in mink

Underneath she wore her baby pink Bonnie Baby cashmere all in one.  I would normally never go for this particular shade of pink.  Although pretty it is so ubiqutous in the UK, but once again I was able to get myself a bargain, this time courtesy of Cocosa.  Cashmere booties by Les Tricots de Margot





Moan of the Day

Tights.
I hate to moan so early on in this blog, but am I the only parent who finds it difficult, no impossible to find a pair of tights that fit a baby ?  They all seem to have ridiculous sizing.  Take 0-6 months.  Since when is a newborn the size of a 6 month old ?  These tights then always sag and give my the little one a Nora Batty look.  Then you have designer tights.  I have no idea if these fit any better because I refuse to part with the best part of £20 for a pair of tights that will last a couple of months at best.  Actually, they'll probably bobble way before that.  So, if anyone knows of any great tights that fit, don't bobble and are cheap, please let me know.  Ok, rant over. 

Hi World

This is my first post charting what my youngest will be wearing. This little brown outfit is the 'Churchill' romper from Caramel Baby & Child. Probably my favourite childrens shop (many more postings featuring them to come). This little outfit is made from fine baby cord and is so very soft. It was picked up in the winter online sale which recently ended, for about half price. Unfortunately Caramel Baby are expensive but their sales are fantastic with up to 60% off. I love romper suits. They are so old fashioned and innocent looking and go some way to bridging sleepsuits and proper clothes, so babies still look like babies but a bit smarter, yet still comfortable. Here she is wearing the romper with tights from JoJo Maman Bebe.