Written by Anna and Domenica with images by Angela and Edwina
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KidStyleFile was the official show partner of Kids Instyle Melbourne 2012 and with four members of our team – Angela, Anna, Edwina and Domenica – were present to cover the show. The Kids Instyle is always a joy to attend because the calibre of exhibitors is so high. The products are exceptionally creative, high quality and well designed making it a visual feast to behold. The theme for this show was ‘Tickled Pink’ and this set the scene for a brightly coloured and exuberant event. Colour was evident across the board and there was a distinct celebratory feel. It looked and felt like a big party!
For us the true joy is in meeting and chatting to all the talented designers, brands and distributors. It is them, their passion, style and flair, and their persistence and dedication to excellence, that makes the show, and we thought you’d love to meet them too. Here is a small showcase of who we met, with more to come soon on their beautiful new collections.
Click here to read Part 2, Hot Products & Why We Love Them.
1. Little Chipipi - Samantha Peters Little Chipipi is fun and playful, and owner Sam is just the same! We loved the new 100% organic cotton bedding designs due out in September, especially the fun new Foxy design for boys. Little Chipipi quilts will also soon come packaged in self-print carry bags making them easy to tote and store.
2. Cocoome Organic – Amanda Evans Cocoome Organic 100% cotton sleepwear is beautifully soft and we have a soft spot for it’s designer and creator Amanda. This gorgeous young mum now resides in Tasmania and because we have a few KidStyleFile staff also living on the apple isle, we just have so much to talk about! We loved seeing what’s on the horizon for Cocoome and while you wait you can check out what’s currently available here.
3. Furious Kingston – Cherry Rockette Exhibiting for the first time at Kids Instyle, meeting Cherry Rockette the creator of Furious Kingston was a lovely highlight for the KidStyleFile team. Between us we have lots of strapping young sons, so it is always wonderful to see a designer dedicated to creating stylish and funky clothes for boys. You can see a little more of Furious Kingston on KSF here, from when they first burst onto the scene. Cherry was dressed to impress and we have no doubt her infectious, fun-loving spirit will keep her label on the front foot.
4. Monstar Kids – Fiona Roy Though you can’t see her beautiful face, you can see pictured Fiona’s dedication to her lovely label. Monstar Kids remains a favourite here at KidStyleFile and we can’t see this changing any time soon. Fiona has some truly gorgeous lines ready for summer and the more we looked, the more we loved!
5. Almond Tree Designs - Angeline O’Day-Almond Angeline and her team make the frames and handcut all the paper art themselves. It’s impressive work! We’re loving their new circular canvases based on cross stitch hoops.
6. Little Tinkers – Paris Stanley We adore Paris – she’s one gorgeous and clever cookie: she’s just released stylist favourite, the fabulous ‘Living Like Lulu’ range nesting apple storage baskets in fab new colourways: red/white, blue/white and pink/white. Now I have an excuse to get more for my collection…
7. Incy Interiors – Kristy Withers Kristy is as bright and sunny as a ray of sunshine and it shows in her team and their passion for what they do. The new Incy Interiors Little Egg and Rocking Egg chairs are beautifully made and super comfy and the metal children’s beds (which were also used as props by a number of other exhibitors at the show) in new gelato bright colour ways are truly stunning. We recently interviewed Kristy: get to know her more here.
8. Milestone Press – Annabel Cornfoot We were most taken with Annabel’s latest creation: an aluminium plaque that can be affixed to the spine of the updated ‘A Book About Me’ baby record book. The plaque is personally hand-stamped with your child’s name and/or date of birth – now that is cool. The Milestone Press diaries redux sees them available in a rainbow array of colours. Happy days!
9. Bower & Beyond – Sophie Gilder Bower & Beyond’s multifunctional product Rokii has already picked up a 2012 Australian International Design Award, and we predict the pattern to continue internationally. The Rokii is a truly innovative product that functions in four discrete ways: as a newborn and infant rocker; a concave high density plastic half egg fitted with a 5 point harness comes attached to the bamboo timber base and can be adjusted from flat to upright position to suit the age of the child. The rocker bottom on the base provides a gentle rocking motion to calm and stimulate as needed. Once your child has grown you can fit Rokii’s body on to the top of the half egg, click it into place and your child can use it as a contemporary rocking horse. Once your child is on the move you can remove Rokii’s body and click in the 360 degree castor wheels for wheely ride on fun. The combined functionality and aesthetic of Rokii make it one clever package, and we absolutely love it. The Rokii wins our vote for best new product at the show. Rokii will be available for purchase soon in red or white from Bower & Beyond for $599.00.
10. The World Of Good – Crecy den Hollander Crecy’s passion is for eco-friendly products. While she gave the inside scoop on a few new eco-ranges, we especially loved Re-Play. This environmentally friendly range of cups and plates are made from recycled milk bottles; plus the soft pastel palette is so pretty.
11. Rock Your Baby – Joh (pictured with Julie, the proprietor of Cradle Rock, and daughter, Eva) Rock Your Baby’s stand was chock-a-block full with people throughout the day, reflecting their huge popularity with buyers and consumers. RYB presented their trademark vintage- meets-rockstar fashion pieces for boys and girls, and a new range of cushions to complement the range. You can see more of the new collection created by Joh and her talented sister Caroline in the sneak peak of their spring/summer collection we published here.
12. Jimmy Cricket – Amanda Newton The Jimmy Cricket stand was thronged with buyers as they flocked to the vibrant spectacle of Blafre products which include colourful and quirky tin suitcases, drink bottles, wall stickers and bedlinen. Amanda negotiated with Norwegian-based Blafre for 6 months before securing the Australian distribution rights to their amazing products. Want to be a stockist? Contact Amanda here.
13. hide & SEEK – Petah Handley hide & SEEK (formerly Boohoo?) showed their SS12/13 collection, their best yet, a mix of blues, yellows, orange, red and grey with finely hand screenprinted fabrics that retain their pattern and a mix of elegant, classic styles against some ruffles and tulle for a bit of fun. The collection really took our eye because of the quality of the fabrics, the make and the fact that all pieces work back with each other so perfectly. Great price points, too: hide & SEEK will be every mother’s friend this summer.
14. Axis Trading – Mary Biggs Do you remember Canadian Doodle Rolls from the 1970′s? They’re back! Mary tells us that she can corroborate that there is over 60 hours of colouring-in for each Doodle roll poster because she tested it out with her own family. We all think it makes a fab work of art to frame as a keepsake. Mary is pictured here with the new Trudi Duet Puppets which flip inside out to reveal another plush friend. The cat will truly never find the mouse – unless it looks inside itself.
15. Minyaka Designs – Jamie & Michelle Minyaka comes from the Aboriginal word meaning tomorrow – such an appropriate name for the fashion forward designs of this relatively new brand. Jamie and Michelle met at university where they both studied in design disciplines, Jamie from Interior Architecture and Michelle from Fashion Design. There was a distinct and sophisticated architectural element to the designs which gave them an artful and unique edge. We love these statement pieces.
16. Huckleberry Lane - Eliza Karak Is there anything sweeter than a sleeping child? Yes, a sleeping child in a beautiful pair of 100% cotton pyjamas. We think you’ll love Eliza’s latest addition to the label; new overnight bags due out this October. Plus, look out for the gorgeous dressing gowns that are due to arrive in stores around February 2013.
Please visit individual stores for stock availability, pricing and delivery to your destination.
