Babesta blog

Sale Extravaganza at Babesta

We’re heading into Memorial Day weekend, and to ensure that those wardrobes are up to snuff, we’re offering 30% off some of the best brands at Babesta.  Mini Rodini, La Miniatura, Anais & I and Munster Kids are all on sale, so you can be sure your little one will rock the beaches this season!

To take advantage of this, just click on the links for the brands, add to cart, and enter the code SPRING2012 when checking out. Got confused? Just give us a ring at 646 290 5508 and we’ll get it done for you! 

Shop La Miniatura

Shop Mini Rodini

Shop Anais &  I 

Shop Munster Kids

Jeffrey Sebelia's La Miniatura Now At Babesta!

We welcome La Miniatura Kids to Babesta's curated selection of kids' fashion. We're super stoked, as the designs are so funky and cool for boys - and we all know that boys need more great designers to shake up the closets! Who better than Jeffrey Sebelia, uber-designer & Project Runway bad boy. www.babesta.com/La-Miniatura/

Skools In! If you're in the Bay Area Check Out Art Exhibit "Small Pieces of the City" by New Skool Designer Nate1

One of our favorite kids' designers is exhibiting his art in his home town of San Francisco this Friday, April 6th, and if you're in the area, definitely go! Nate1 (the guy behind New Skool to any Babesta fans) has taken off his headphones and picked up his paintbrush (truth be told, he probably left the headphones on!) and come out of a fine arts hiatus. The exhibit will also feature artists Heather Robinson, Colleen Mauer Designs and Geoffrey Campen. It will be at Secession Art & Design, 3361 Mission Street, SF CA. www.secessionsf.com. If you want to check out Nate's awesome kids' designs, go to New Skool at Babesta

Five Questions for Anais & I Designer, Jane D'Haene

I'm crazy about Anais & I's super-fun balloon animal theme this season and wanted to get to the bottom of what inspired it! I was lucky to catch designer Jane D'Haene this morning to get the scoop. 

What's your favorite balloon animal & why?  

Hmmmmm.  This is difficult questions... My personal favorite will be

elephant.  I just really like the color choice and I really like elephant.

If you ask my Anais, she likes poodle, Lucas likes Dinosaur and Nicholas

likes Elephant too.:)

Why did you decide to do balloon animals// & do you know (this is a

tribeca question) Raggidy Supreme (the balloon animal maker who entertains

at Cirque Rouge? (just wondering!)

No. I didn't know about it.  Balloon Animal serious idea came from my dear

friend, our illustrator, Maia Larkin.  She gave me one sketch and I thought

it was brilliant and that weekend we went to Tribeca Film festival.  I saw

so many children lining up to get balloons and thought this is just perfect.

I ended up taking crazy amount of pictures of every children's balloons.  

Why did you decide to go into home goods/pillows, etc.?

As you know, I have an interior/architecture background.  Home goods are the

area I always wanted to get into.  I also would love to design furniture for

children's room.  I made one stuffed animal chair for my son and I would

love to continue developing this area.

 

What are you most looking forward to this season (in general - a trip,

event, etc.) 

Right now, I am looking forward to our family trip next week.  I've been

working so hard I feel I could use little break to get inspiration for my

next collection.  But most of I miss being silly with my children.  I just

want to stay in bed, cuddle, kiss my children as long as I can.  I want them

more than anything.  They are my inspirations.

 

What do you like best about springtime? What do you like best about

designing a spring collection.

I'm definitely a spring/summer person.  It makes me happier.  Being in New

York, I really enjoy four seasons but I like Spring and summer most.  Love

seeing more people on the street, love seeing trees, flowers and just more

energies everywhere.

Spring/summer collection is in some ways more challenging because I prefer

to design much simpler body.  And I pay much more attention to comfort.  My

children's wears my design.  I have to make sure they are comfortable and

looks great.  Spring/Summer is about lighter fabric, lighter colors, simpler

design.  

 

Check out the new Anais & I collection here and be sure to send us your feedback! We hope you love it as much as we do!!!

The Childhood Tale of M. Leon, an enchanting spring story by Bobo Choses

We've been enamoured with Bobo Choses since we laid our eyes on the line. Read their springtime tale and take in the whimsical line of tees, shorts, dresses, rompers, jackets and accessories. It will make your heart sing spring!

Bobo Choses will be at Babesta any minute. Check it out here!

 

Les Vacances de M.Leon 

 Monsieur Leon cycles around the campsite. 

It’s part of the summer, just like the heat, the mosquitoes, and the afternoon siesta. 

Monsieur Leon also has the habit of whistling contentedly. Indeed, he is so good at it  

that the larks prefer to listen to him, and the roosters refuse to  

greet the break of day because they cannot compete  

with Monsieur Leon’s dawn whistling. He starts on a low note, like a timid violin  

seeping in with the first sunbeams among the tents and the caravans,  

among the pine branches and the dew that the night drops before retiring… 

Bit by bit, Monsieur Leon’s whistling warms up and changes colour,  

enhanced by new notes of the voices of children just awakened from slumber. 

So begin the long happy summer days at the campsite,  

and so they go on, with no clocks to mark the hours passing by. 

 

When night falls once more, and Monsieur Leon thinks  

that everybody has gone to bed,  

he takes out his ukulele and there, on the steps of his caravan, 

plays songs that he learned from his grandmother, songs that are  

as old as this old world of ours. Or even older. 

And then all around him, in time with his beat, 

the crickets crick and the owls owl, and together they play 

the lullaby that sends us off to sleep   

and into a land of dreams as sweet 

as the salt of the sea in summertime, 

as the tickling of the grass under our bare feet… 

 

Tale by Felipe Cano 

© BOBO CHOSES 2012 

 

All Dolled Up - Meet the Fabulous Kouklitas

I am not a big doll person--That is I wasn't until I was introduced to avant-doll maker Andrew Yang and his collection of fabulous "rag dolls" called Kouklitas. These custom, couture dolls (a riff on koukla, the Greek word for doll), run $800 and upwards, but are divinely weird and wonderful.  I stumbled upon these on Hunger Pipi Langeweile, but they are being made right here in New York CIty.Here are a few of my faves. . . 

 

Pkolino Industriali launches, bringing the Playfully Smart brand into Schools

We've been carrying P'kolino for years and are exited to see their new line of furniture for schools, daycares and other educational facilities. A collaboration with Mobilferro, this sleek collection features furniture like carts, slides, tables, seating and play kitchens. Playfully smart indeed!

Add some Punch to Lunch with Skip Hop

We are seriously having trouble keeping Skip Hop's awesome lunch boxes and bibs in stock, as they are so darn cute and well priced that they are literally flying out the doors. With animals for everyone - from a fantastic fox and adorable mouse to a busy bee and loyal pup, they are crowdpleasers, even if the tunafish sandwich inside isn't. www.babesta.com/skiphop

 

On the Fringe: Icelandic brand Sunbird is a Rock Star

The 80s are back and so is the fringe. I've seen it on purses, boots (Isabel Marant has a pair of my faves), vests and pants. So it seems like a prime time for Icelandic brand Sunbird to take the U.S. by storm. We scoped this fringe happy brand about a year ago thanks to a client who was a fan of the brand abroad. As soon as we saw some pics, we know it was spot on for Babesta (especially the fringe-mohawk hoodie!). And in person, it's even better - we were thrilled with the high quality material and excellent fabrication. And it's not only about the fringe - we also love their tribal camo prints. Now, we've got it on the shelves at Threads and it's clear the kids are just as psyched as we are about the 80s inspired rock star line. Shop Sunbird Now.

 

Organize my life, Pleeeese

I was so excited to see the Inouis on coolhunting.com, one of my favorite (for the last million years) sources for cool stuff. It's a well-made, up-to-snuff insert for your handbag that can organize everything and (hooray!) easily be removed and plunked into another purse or diaper bag or whathaveyou. I am trying to urge them to make a kid-friendly insert (read bottle holders, wipes pockets, changing pads) as I think that would be a Babesta-crowdpleaser! Check the non-kiddie version out here. . . 

$350 in leather; $200 in textile.