Happy Holiday Season

We are off... Merry Christmas! Enjoy the Holiday Season. We will be back in January.

Aussie story

Australian brand Three little trees had a lot of success at the last edition of Bubble London. They are back on 31 January & 1 February with their boys and girls collection. The line is available at Butterfly Kisses in Glasgow, Calini in Northern Ireland, Little Sunflowers in East Sussex, Mambolona in Madrid and many more. For wholesale inquiries, contact Domino Baby.

B-LAV launching at White Kids

After Lapo and his gorgeous menswear line Italia Independent, it's the turn of another member of the Fiat clan to make an entry in the fashion world. Lavinia Borromeo, the elegant wife of John Elkann, launched this year her children's line B-LAV. The second collection will be showcased at White Kids, the first show dedicated to kids’s fashion in Milan, on January 24-26.

Support Kids Company Christmas!

Each year, London based charity Kids Company who supports vulnerable children and young people, produces Christmas cards with all profits going to fund their Christmas Day celebration.
If you still haven’t sent your cards already, do your bit for charity and head to their online shop www.kidsco.org.uk.

There will not be a March 2010 edition of Bubble New York. A number of circumstances were jeopardizing the success of the March 2010 show and founders Florence Rolando and Vanessa Boz did not want to do things half way. As of today, all exhibitors have been fully reimbursed.
The first Bubble trade show took place in March 2006 with about 50 exhibitors, half of them coming from overseas. The show then grew up to nearly 150 exhibitors, keeping a good mix of international and national brands as well as a full range of products from clothing to accessories, home decor, toys, jewelry, beauty care, etc.
More information about an August show will be posted on www.bubbletradeshows.com later. Meanwhile things continue to rock for Bubble London which will be held on January 31& February 1 at the Business Design Centre in Islington.

Sparkle this holiday..and then Spin!

Who doesn't need a little sparkle these days...Sparkle&Spin has just the perfect holiday top for any little girl in the mood for a sweet spin. From Danish designer Holly's, a regular at Bubble London, here comes the perfect sequin top for the season.

American children's designer brands were hardly seen in Europe in the days of a strong dollar. They are finally getting more attention and it is well deserved. Orfeo, a London based online store launched in 2007, is a great window for beautiful US brands such as Wovenplay, mor mor rita, Atsuyo et Akiko, Marilyn Tov, Oeuf, Shirin Kids, Tamar Mogendorf, etc. The web boutique carries high end clothes and gifts for children 0-6, mainly from up-and-coming independent designers with an understated, contemporary, poetic, natural, imaginative style. Photo 1.Wovenplay, 2.Apolline.

Dino e Lucia at the White House

How often do we get to see an independent clothing brand dressing up the presidential children at the White House for a Vanity Fair shoot by Annie Leibovitz?! Kuddos to Sasha and Malia Obama for their audacious choices! Dino e Lucia brands itself as the "naughty designer for well-behaved children". This must have seduced Michelle O. With a store in St Germain des Pres and in St Tropez, an exclusive concession at Harvey Nichols in London, and a steady and carefully controlled growth in wholesale, Dino e Lucia is surely a brand to keep an eye on.

A worthy cause

Beautiful brand of the moment Let Them Eat Cake is collaborating with the Environmental Justice Foundation to create a tee shirt whose proceeds will go directly to the charity and its cotton campaign. EJF is well known at Bubble as we initiated a collaboration, at the launch of the show in London, between them and Caramel Baby & Child. A beautiful tee shirt came out of the collaboration. We have no doubt that the same will be true again this time with Let Them Eat Cake. Felicity has chosen three exciting artists for the project. The tee shirts will be on sale as of January, just on time for the good resolutions, buy ethic, buy for the good cause. We can't wait to see them.

Eco-friendly Christmas tree

A couple of years ago, Kids On Roof met a great success with their blue doll houses. The company has since developed an outstanding range of eco friendly items, including the totem collection of imaginative 3D products to build before using as a house decoration. The Xmas tree is made of 150 recycled and biodegradable cardboard pieces printed with an angel, deer, peace doves, candles, ornaments and a big gleaming star. Available at Brooklyn store Sweet William

Eco-friendly Xmas tree

A couple of years ago, Kids On Roof met a great success with their blue doll houses. The company has since developed an outstanding range of eco friendly items, including the totem collection of imaginative 3D products to build before using as a house decoration. The Xmas tree is made of 150 recycled and biodegradable cardboard pieces printed with an angel, deer, peace doves, candles, ornaments and a big gleaming star. Available at Brooklyn store Sweet William

African story

The Butter Man just won the 2009 Children's Africana Book Award. We are particularly happy to relay this news as the illustrator is Julie Klear Essakalli from Zid zid Kids, a founding exhibitor at Bubble Trade Shows. Julie lives and works in Marrakech where she designs and creates textile art and furnishings with her husband Moulay. Julie was recently asked by the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art to donate an illustration from the book for their collection.The Butter Man, by Elizabeth and Ali Alalouis available on Amazon.com.

Northern e-store

Finns Finds is a 6 months old online boutique focusing on simple designs, unique details, quality fabrics and construction. Finns Finds features designers from around the world (Denmark, Holland, Australia, France) and also brings a fair amount of eco-friendly brands into the mix. We love the selection of unusual toys. Photos 1.Milibe Copenhagen 2.Talc Paris 3.Vilac, France

Straight from Tibet

Catherine Anderson launched the label Kokonor in 2005 when she and her Tibetan husband started a workshop, employing and training talented Tibetan tailors living as refugees in the inspiring surrounds of the Indian Himalaya. A whole range of lifestyle items are hand-crafted under the label Kokonor including childrenswear, but the Tibetan workshop also acts as an ethical production unit for independent labels attracted by a shared loyalty to fair-trade principles, unstinting commitment to quality, and low minimum orders. For more information, contact Catherine at mail@kokonor.co.uk, tel +44(0)1361 883042.

Flashy + stripy

Founded in 2003 by Mille Milt and Maria Rabenhe, Danish children’s wear brand Milibe uses vibrant stripes, soft pointelle patterns and complimentary full color garments to deliver true Scandinavian wardrobe classics with simplicity and fantastic quality. Their initial collection was based on a single long sleeved t-shirt but the range now includes underwear, leggings, t- shirts, simple dresses and knitwear. Milibe only use eco-tex approved colors in their production (no harmful substances are used) as well as premium quality cotton and all garments are manufactured in Europe. Milibe will be showing at Bubble London this January.

Christmas shopping

It's a real pleasure to go from magazines to websites and to see so many creative and rich Christmas shopping guides. The one on Australian magazine LMNOP specifically caught our eye with its crisp layout and awesome selection of objects. Click on the link http://www.lmnop.com.au/signin/ to download the magazine pages. You'll have to sign up and it will take 2 minutes of your time but it's really worth it!

Atsuyo et Akiko just a click away!

Great news for fans of the famous Je t'aime bags and tees brand : Atsuyo et Akiko just launched their online shop a couple of days ago. Children's clothing, home decor, accessories, jewelry for all ages can now all be directly ordered online. The angel wings necklace and baby kimono onesi are among our favorites. A mix of Japan, poetry and dreamland. www.atsuyoetakiko.com/store/

Papier Mache online magazine

Papier Mache is not yet again another online magazine on children's. It is a beautiful newcomer from Australia (issue 2 just came out) very focused on visuals and inspiration, and easy to navigate. Produced twice a year, it balances with a lot of elegance news on products, mood boards, and fashion stories with an edge. More importantly, it reminds us that the children's market is what it is thanks to the children that surround us. They are the inspiration. Papier Mache is also a testimony to the fact that the children's market keeps on burgeoning with a subtle mix of retro and forward-looking brands.

Sneak Peek

Started in 1991, Christina Rohde was a pioneer in providing great style and quality clothes for children. Over the years, the Danish brand has stayed true to its roots with practical and fashionable designs mixing unusual patterns and fabrics. Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect for Spring/Summer 2010. Christina Rohde will exclusively exhibit at Bubble London 31 January & 1 February 2010.

Life in color

Spring 2010 is a very rich season for Swedish brand Monamici, with colors such as red, pink, indigo, purple mixed with Liberty classics and Hawaiian pattern. The collection - all in certified organic - includes lovely dresses, tunics, skirts, pants and tops. The feeling is uplifting, fresh and beautiful. To buy Monamici products, visit the brand's own e-store. In the US, the line is carried by Field NY in Larchmont or at Petit bebe in Charlottesville.

Flying to London

You have probably seen the enchanting birds of Abigail Brown already. They often rest, anonymous, in the cages of Tamar Morgendorff. This month, they will take a stop at Liberty of London. A good occasion to admire the delightful robins, goldcrests, greenfinchs, swallows, blue tits and little owls and to buy one before they fly to warmer lands!

Online newcomer, with style

Umberleaf is a new e-store with a selection of stylish childrens clothing and accessories, as well as play items. We like the clean design and also the selection of products which includes one of our favorite lines, Atsuyo et Akiko. The store will keep adding great founds for modern and earth conscious parents. We recommend you add it to your favorites!

Gap + Stella : secound round

The yearly result for Gap was published last week: 25% profit jump. The brand announced today plans for a second collection created by Stella McCartney. It's no surprise to whom has tried to get some products from this first collaboration. On November 16th, I had put an alarm on my Blackberry to go get a wonderful tutu in subtle pink tones. I arrived at 10am to witness empty racks. There were one size 10y and one size 12y left, and the store had been opened for only two hours. I got it : next season, I'll get on line at dawn!

When technology brings fun in the closet

Stone Island, the casual yet beautiful men's line from Italy is launching Stone Island Junior, for boys 2 to 16. Keeping in line with the brand's ethos of reworking materials, functionality and contemporary designs, they're adding a fun touch thanks to technology and research. There's a heat reactive coating that changes color at high temperatures. From 27 degrees celsius upwards, the garments transform from shades of green to bright yellow or grass green. There's also a night vision element with light-sensitive prints. In the closet, we knew that girls just wanna fun...boys' turn now!

Made in USA

With the euro so strong and the dollar so weak, it's not an easy time for stores who carry mainly high end European brands. Estella's owners Chike Chukwulozi and Jean Polsky were looking for innovative ways to offer fashionable, practical kid's clothes to their customers at a reasonable price. They thought it was the right moment to develop their own line. Well, their gorgeous, functional and locally produced pieces are a success : they don't break the bank while offering the quality and style that Estella customers expect. The basic line of leggings and lap tees is amazingly popular with a range of 8 different colors, for children 3 months to 6 years. The fashion pieces (dresses, tops, denim pieces, overalls, etc) and knit toys bring a chic lifestyle complement to the range. Estella, 493 Sixth Avenue
New York. +1 212-255-3553

Ismodern

We are happy to announce that Ismodern will be back at Bubble in March 2010. The line was not shown at the last August edition as Tami Nguyen Rael had to move her family from LA to the East Cost. Her new collection feels like a good mix of eastern and western influences with clean shapes, tight fits and bright colors. Modern and nomad.