KidStyleFile

Today’s post written by Angela

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Looking for Leander, Stokke, Storksak, Silver Cross, Baby Bjorn Active Carrier, Bugaboo, Mamas & Papas, Grobag, Mountain Buggy or Phil & Teds on the cheap?  Look no further!

Minimee – www.minimee.com.au – do below rrp prices on top-brand prams, furniture, baby bags, feeding and eating related products, cots, bedding, gifts, homewares and toys every day of the week, so it’s always worth shopping there, but right now it’s practically obligatory: you can save 15%-50% on *everything* in store!!!

Clap your eyes on some of the best baby and kids brands in the land, and save a nice wad of cash on Angelcare baby monitors, Baby Bjorn baby carriers, BabyLove car seats, Bebe Jou baths, Brainy Baby CDs & DVDs, Bugaboo prams & strollers, Bugaboo Accessories, Combi prams & strollers, Emmaljunga prams, Eurotrike kids bikes, Grotime cots, cradles & change tables, Grobag baby sleeping bags, Infantino toys, K’s Kids dolls, Kaloo plush toys, Kate Finn dolls, Kids Line linen, Kinderkot travel cot, KingParrot cots, bassinets change tables, Levi’s Kids clothing, Lamaze toys, Leander cost and bassinets, mamas&papas plush toys, Merino Kids sleeping bags, Mountain Buggy prams & strollers, Oi Oi baby nappy bags, Peg Perego prams & strollers, Stokke prams, cots & high chairs, phil&teds prams and strollers, Quinny prams & strollers, Seed Organic bassinet, Silver Cross prams & strollers, Storksak baby nappy bags, and Valco prams & strollers.

Don’t hang around, make your move now!

Minimee ship for very reasonable charges. Read the full details here.

Today’s post written by Miki

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There comes a time for every parent – often when the baby has reached about six months old – when they realise that their gorgeous but heavy pram is just too unwiedly to lug in and out of the car five times a day.

Now that the baby no longer needs to lie flat all the time it’s a great chance to invest in a good quality lightweight stroller.

I keep my lightweight stroller (a Quinny Zapp, see below) in the back of my car where it’s brilliant for quick trips in and out of shops.  My son can happily spend up to a couple of hours in it and there’s room underneath for plenty of shopping.  My ‘big’ pram now lives at home where we still use it daily for our walks on the beach, which means I can get it as sandy as I like without having to worry about putting it in the car.

Below are some of my picks for the best lightweight strollers on the market (and a couple which are soon to be released).

Mountain Buggy Swift

Mountain Buggy – www.mountainbuggy.com.au – is a hugely popular pram brand, and deservedly so.  A New Zealand brand, their prams are rugged enough for bush-bashing and walks on the beach while still managing to be good looking enough for the city high street.

Mountain Buggy’s new lighter-weight ’stroller’ is the Swift.  In essence, the Swift is a smaller, lighter version of the Mountain Buggy Urban, with a few key differences.

First of all, it doesn’t have the option to attach a carrycot or car seat as the Urban does, although it does lay back flat so it’s fine for a newborn. The front wheel doesn’t lock into a fixed position so it may not be as good on rough terrain.  The swivelling wheel is brilliant for maneuverability though, so you’ll be fine on surfaces as long as they’re not too rough.

The Swift is 4.5cm narrower (64cms) across the back axle than the Urban and 1.5kgs lighter at 9.5kgs, which doesn’t sound significant.  I had a play with one a couple of days ago though, and although it doesn’t look much different from the Urban when it’s in the upright position, once it was folded it was quite a bit smaller.  So for those of you who don’t have much boot space or use public transport a lot, this could be the ideal stroller/pram for you.

It has already been released in New Zealand and should be released in Australia within the next month or two.

See Mountain Buggy stockists here.

Bugaboo Bee

Bugaboo prams – www.bugaboo.com – are at the top of the market in Australia, and for good reason: as far as quality goes, you absolutely can’t go past them. Currently Bugaboo have two products on the market: their pram, the Cameleon and their lightweight stroller, the Bee which is due for Australian release in March 2009.

The Bugaboo Bee is what I’m really, really coveting. It has many of the features of the Cameleon but is considerably smaller and lighter, and has a much smaller fold too.  The unique suspension swivel wheel system means it’s incredibly easy to drive and best of all, the seat can be reversed meaning that the baby and you can face each other.

The Bee weighs 7.7kgs so nice and light, and the seat reclines right back which makes it ideal for a newborn or an older toddler who sleeps in the pram.  The shopping basket is nice and big and the hood is even bigger, affording excellent weather protection.

The Bee is due for a March 2009 release in Australia.

See Bugaboo stockists here.

Maclaren Strollers

While British brand Maclaren – www.maclarenbaby.com – do make very good prams (my friend Mel is extremely happy with her Maclaren MX3), they really come into their own with light-weight strollers.

Popular models include the Quest and the Techno (both are available as doubles too) and feature very light weight (around the 5.2kg mark, depending on the model!), easy albeit quite long fold, generous shopping baskets, good reclines and even better looks.

Maclaren often teams up with renown international designers including Kate Spade, Lulu Guiness, Juicy Couture, Philippe Starck, Lacoste and Burberry – and that’s by no means a full list!  The result is a huge range of strollers which look fabulous, in a range of designs to suit both boys and girls.

As there are so many gorgeous Maclaren strollers I won’t even attempt to tell you about them – but do check out the Maclaren website if you want more information about any particular model.

Quinny Zapp

Now we come to my stroller – the Quinny Zapp – www.quinny.com.  There are loads of things I love about my Zapp, but I’ll try to keep my gushing fairly concise.

First of all, it’s brilliant to drive.  Everyone who pushes it comments on how lovely it is, and I never get tired of it.  I can literally drive it with one finger (while the other nine try to control the rampaging toddler).

The Zapp has one of the smallest folds in the market, measuring only 69×29x30cms. For my money, this combined with it’s light weight of 6kg makes it an excellent stroller to keep in the car boot for quick trips and for travelling.

It comes with some accessories, namely a rain cover (pictured), travel bag and sun hood.  A shopping basket is sold separately.

The one downside of the Zapp is that it doesn’t recline at all so it’s not suitable for newborns.  Once a baby is sitting up confidently on its own then the Zapp is perfect though – after about 6 months in most cases.

Please see individual sites for stockists, pricing and delievery information.

This weekend, Miki brings you a fine selection of prams of strollers to drool over. The form of these baby-movers is just stunning, and their functionality is optimal. Just what every busy Mum needs in her life

Next weekend: Pram Accessories (including Bags!! Yay!)

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Silver Cross Dazzle

*The* name in prams is, and has always been, Silver Cross – www.silvercross.com.au. If it’s good enough for several generations of the British Royal family then it’s likely good enough for your precious bub!

Silver Cross have really updated in the last few years. Their latest model, the lightweight Dazzle stroller, is an iconic design – fresh, stark and simply beautiful. This is a stroller that really will become a modern classic.

I’m not lucky enough to have one of these (although I’d dearly love one!) but I’m told by people who do own a Dazzle that the build quality is second to none, and they love all the extra little features that come with it: the big viewing window in the hood which is held in place with magnets, the seat that lies almost flat so even the youngest baby can lie in it comfortably (there is also an optional carrycot), the hidden shopping basket, the suspension and foam-filled wheels giving the lucky kid inside a smooth ride, it’s light weight (only 7kgs), the five spectacular colours it’s available in… I’d better stop before I start dribbling.

The Dazzle comes with a ventilated rain cover too – that’s the last time you’ll have to take your raincoat off so the child doesn’t get wet!

The best price for the Dazzle that I’ve found online is from Nought 2 Five – www.nought2five.com. They have the Dazzle stroller for $395 in all colours, or $599 for the stroller and carrycot set. Have a browse around Nought 2 Five while you’re there, it’s gorgeous!

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Stokke Xplory

Another modern classic: the Stokke Xplory – www.stokke.com/en%2Dau/.

This pram made such a splash when it was launched in 2003! The world had never seen anything like it, and they still haven’t because the Xplory is simply in a class of its own. Designed for modern, urban parents, the Xplory motto is ‘higher is better’, and when you look at the pram you can see why.

The central ‘spine’ allows for height adjustability and for the seat to face forwards or back towards you. The extra height means that when walking you are closer to the baby in the seat, which aids eye contact and interaction between parent and child.

And the battle to get a highchair in a crowded cafe? Never again – the Xplory’s height means it can be wheeled right up to the table just as it is.

As you’d expect from Stokke, the quality is extraordinary; in fact, the aluminium and polymer structure is built to the same standards as automobiles and aircraft!

The seat and carrycot are interchangeable which makes this pram perfect from the earliest days of infancy right through toddler-dom.

Stokke are currently running a competition to win a Stokke Xplory: enter here.

The best online price that I can find in Australia is at Bebe Online www.bebeonline.com.au – it’s retailing there for $1499.00, with the bassinet as optional retailing for $439.00. Orders over $100.00 are delivered free! Otherwise if you want the pram-and-bassinet package, the best price is $1899.00 at Babies Galore – www.babiesgalore.com.au.

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Phil & Teds Classic, Sport, Dash and Vibe buggies

LOVE my Phil & Teds – www.philandteds.com – Sport Buggy. It was a present from my beloved aunty when my little boy arrived, and so far it’s taken everything I’ve thrown at it without batting an eyelash. It’s rugged enough for walking all over the grandparents’ country property, it walks daily along the beach with no signs of wear despite all the salt and sand. It’s lightweight enough (11kgs) to throw in the boot for quick shopping trips and it even looks good enough for promenading up and down the city high street!

It has a whole swag of cool features (the big shopping basket, the adjustable handle, the nifty pouch in the canopy (I keep my phone and my shopping list in there), the great colours available. And then there’s the ingenious doubles kit, available for all P&T single prams, which quickly and cheaply converts your single pram into one which can take a toddler and a baby or two toddlers! There just isn’t another pram around which can match the P&T for flexibility, particularly if you have two kids or think you might at some point.

I’m not the only one who loves it – I’m in great company with Holly Hunter and Brooke Shields, to name but a couple of my fellow P&T fans

Earlier this year P&T released three new models: the Classic, the Dash and the Vibe. These are already proving to be just as popular as the Sport buggy!

Clockwise from left:
Sport Buggy, $699.95 $595.95
Vibe buggy, $1130.00 $899.95
Dash buggy, $859.95 $749.95
Classic buggy – currently sold out in Australia, shows you how popular it is! But I’m sure it will be back soon.

2 Cute 4 Kids - www.2cute4kids.com.au – have the best prices on the P&Ts that I’ve seen in Australia and what’s more, they make these prices even more attractive by including a FREE doubles kit – or if you don’t want the doubles kit, take a further $50 off the price!

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But wait, there’s more!

If none of the prams I’ve shown so far has rocked your boat, then you’d better go and have a look around at 
Minimee – www.minimee.com.au.

These guys carry some of the top names in prams – Mountain Buggy, Emmaljunga and Bugaboo, among others – at fantastic discounted prices.

These are my picks:

Clockwise from top left:
Emmaljunga Duo Combi – Edge $1299.95 $1202.45
Mountain Buggy Urban Elite Single $869.95 $804.70
Bugaboo Cameleon $1599 $1499
Mountain Buggy Urban Double, $1199.95 $1109.95 (Angela had one of these for her girls and loved it!)

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As a final note, if you’re looking for more info about prams & strollers then go to www.strollersandprams.com.

There are reviews on every pram you’ve ever heard of (and plenty you haven’t), and if you still can’t the answers to your questions then join the S&P forums. As I’ve discovered while researching this week, the members are friendly and helpful and if there’s anything they don’t know about prams (which I doubt) then it’s not worth knowing!

Just reprising my Jan 10 post on the Bebe – www.bebeonline.com.au – sale.

Bebe still have some great bargains currently on offer, with 50% off sale on summer Eeeni Meeni Miini Moh (up to size 3, boys and girls), 30% off Svan bouncers and good discounts on Mountain Buggy accessories, selected Mamas & Papas toys and the irresistible Pooki & Co. softies out of France.

We received our two ‘Lolas’ (which have both been renamed to ‘Tallulah’!!!) and they are such a hit I am contemplating getting the ‘Mina’ and large ‘Pooki’….unashamedly for me this time

The service was great too; we received our parcel the day after I placed the order. Gotta love that!

Bebe charge $5 for shipping, and orders over $100 are FREE.

Just a quickie to let you know that Bebe – www.bebeonline.com.au – currently has a 50% off sale on current season’s Eeeni Meeni Miini Moh (up to size 3, boys and girls). They also are offering 30% off Svan bouncers and good discounts on Mountain Buggy accessories, selected Mamas & Papas toys and the irresistable Pooki & Co. softies out of France (2 are currently in transit thisaway )

Bebe charge $5.00 for postage Australia wide.

Happy shopping!