heat’s editor in chief Lucie Cave had her first baby 10 months ago and here she shares her son Ridley’s sartorial finds...
(he didn't really find them himself, he's not quite that advanced...)
These days when you want tips on how to wear Gucci’s fuchsia tulle skirt and blouse combo you don't look to the catwalk, you turn to Beyonce and Jay Z’s four year old daughter Blue Ivy (who, FYI, styles it out with a pair of classic black Ray-Ban Wayfarer Juniors and just the right ratio of cool to precocious).
Of course in reality, if most normal parents used their kid as a style muse they’d end up wearing a saucepan hat and a pair of tights covering their face. And while we can’t all afford to spend Gucci proportions of cash on our offspring - especially when it has a high chance of ending up covered in vomit - we still want them to dress to impress (aka we want our friends to coo over their clobber and tell us how chic our children are).
And while there’s nothing wrong with a bit of Mothercare or H&M there are some brilliant little boutique finds online that will make your chap or chappess look like they could easily hang out with one of the Z’s or Kardashian-West’s of this world.
In my search to find my son Ridley something more interesting to wear than a prop from my old hen ‘do, I’ve come across some hidden wardrobe wonders for the little people in your life.
1. Head over heels
By far one of my best finds (and Ridley’s biggest source of compliments) has been the genius knitted hats from boutique brand Attic Textiles.Set up by a small group of freelance knitters and crafters sharing a passion for handmade products. Using high quality organic fabrics, they knit everything from hats that look like your baby is wearing headphones a la Craig David to Viking hats, mouse ears and a crown to rival Prince George.
2. The new kid on the block
Unisex accessory label Littlehotdogwatson.com launched in May this year with eight hat adventurous hat options for 0-5 year olds and has quickly found success with parents who warmed to the brand (because not everyone wants their kid to look like Peppa Pig). Fashion combined with function means all sunhats are UPF50+, mosquito repellent and made with special fabric developed with astronauts in mind, keeping heads at the perfect temperature. Oh and they recently also won Best New Brand at Dot to Dot, London.
3. For the born performers
Launched in 2011, the people behind AlexandAlexa Noe & Zoe Berlincome with a background in costume and film, ensuring theatre and dress-up designs just right or those little show offs.
4. By the mamas for the mamas
Scout&cokids.com is an award-winning kids' lifestyle boutique launched by three mums with six kids between them. They sell a curated collection of design-led products from cool clothes, creative toys, stylish Scandi decor, imaginative presents and beautiful books, plus a growing selection of gifts for grown-ups, too.
5. Wizards of Oz
Antipodean kids website tui-b.com pride themselves on being exclusive stockists of some of the quirkiest kid brands from New Zealand and Australia. Comfy and cool is the focus for your little fellas.
6. Small but perfectly formed
Online fashion store Smallable.com brings all the unusual kiddy gems together in one fashion and design concept store. Their buyers search the globe for those special, hard-to-find items from clothes, furniture, decoration or games with two boxes to tick: creativity and practicality.
It features brand like the charming and chilled out Emile et Ida – for the casual chic kid on the block – and Danish brand Soft Gallery with distinctive artistic prints created by two friends - a fashion photographer and designer.
The designer mum
Marmalade Sky began as a capsule collection made by Womenswear designer Sarah Ives from Sheffield for her son Arthur. She was fed up of cheesy logos and stereotypical boy prints but says her intention was never anything more than dressing him. But after countless compliments and numerous requests from other mums she realised there was a gap in market and the brand was born.
But obviously if you just want to give your kid a little makeover there’s hours of fun to be had with a Snapchat filter…
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