Ali's "A" List

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March 18, 2010

An “A” List Interview: Lorena Siminovich

This week, I’m talking to Lorena Siminovich of Petit Collage, the artist behind our Safari Friends room décor and illustrator of one of our favorite lines of board books (among other things!). I love Lorena’s modern-meets-vintage style, and apparently lots of other people do, too, as evidenced by the wide array of products with her designs. Lorena’s work is definitely on my “A” List, so I’m excited to find out what’s on her mind.

Ali Wing: What is your motto?
Lorena Siminovich: Since becoming a mother, my motto is “Take one day at a time!”

Siminovich and her baby daughter.

AW: What inspires you?
LS: Mid-century design, children books, and blogs!

AW: What color are you loving right now?
LS: Yellow

AW: What are you currently reading?
LS: Milk magazine and The E-Myth

AW: What’s your favorite city/location/ destination?
LS: London and New York for inspiration, Spain and Mexico for relaxing, and Buenos Aires for friends and family!

AW: Who is your favorite composer, or what is your favorite music genre?
LS: Ella Fitzgerald

AW: Of the baby gifts you received, what was your favorite?
LS: A handmade doll and a handmade pillow two dear friends made.

AW: What is the baby product(s) you can’t/couldn’t live without?
LS: Kangaroo sling, Natursutten pacifier

AW: What makes you laugh?
LS: My 1-year-old daughter throwing kisses to random people in restaurants makes me laugh.

AW: What’s your proudest moment in parenting?
LS: Flying back from Buenos Aires for 20 hours alone with my then 10-month-old daughter — and no meltdowns!

Mom and daughter.

March 11, 2010

An “A” List Interview: Alex Marshall

I love the balance of unique asymmetry and clean lines in every Alex Marshall piece – something refreshingly uncommon in the world of baby products. Maybe it’s her “New York City meets California” that translates to such beautiful practicality. I, for one, am an Alex Marshall fan, and am thrilled to share my “A” list interview with you for a behind-the-scenes with the artist herself.

Ali Wing: What inspires you?
Alex Marshall: I’m inspired by everything. From living and working on an olive orchard in northern California to interacting with my 2-year-old daughter. From watching my 2-year-old play with others, to talking and working with my husband/business partner and talking with store owners, buyers, friends and family. If you listen, people will tell you what they need and my inspiration comes from trying to fill those needs with a functional item that literally fulfills a function, preferably multiple functions while adding an artistic element to people’s lives.

AW: What color are you loving right now?
AM: Orange. I’ve been trying to develop an orange glaze for our baby & kids’ line for awhile now and it’s proving more difficult than I had hoped so I notice orange in everything. Every orange I see I say, maybe I can create an orange glaze similar to that or maybe similar to that or I really like that orange, maybe that one! It’s become a preoccupation but I’m starting to feel I’m heading in the right direction.

AW: What’s your favorite city/location/destination?
AM: New York City. I grew up 30 minutes outside NYC in New Jersey and lived in NYC for many years but have lived in California for 15 years so I’m considered a Californian by pretty much everyone. Every time I step into Manhattan though it feels like coming home. It’s a city that changes constantly but yet still manages to stay the same.

Marshall's daughter's nursery.

AW: Of the baby gifts you received, what was your favorite?
AM: Our crib, the Oeuf classic crib. My sister bought us our nursery furniture and we still absolutely love our crib. It was so easy to put together and adjust the height as our daughter grew. It is also really easy to put our daughter in because it is so low and easy to lean over the side. And not to mention it is really simple and beautiful.

AW: What makes you laugh?
AM: When my daughter makes her “mean face”. It takes her some time to put it together, she starts with getting her eyebrows furrowed just right then makes a funny smirk, and then says “mean face”.

AW: What’s your proudest moment in parenting?
AM: We enrolled our daughter in daycare/preschool when she was 17 months old and on her second day she walked into her classroom turned and said, “bye, bye, mommy” and sat on her teacher’s lap.

Designing | Parenting | Partners | giggle Grab Bag

March 8, 2010

Toobydoo Does it Again

Cool and classic styling at a great price defines one of my “under 5″ apparel lines of choice, Toobydoo. And these latest wave dresses with creative colors, simple lines and asymmetrical cuts have me asking “do they come in ladies sizes too?” Toobydoo … how do you do it?!

Wave-Dress Soho-Stripe-Dress

Designing | Products | Trends | giggle Grab Bag

February 16, 2010

What’s New in Strollers: the Orbit G2

Sometimes a product comes along that we just can’t do justice to in our product copy, and the Orbit G2 is one of them. There’s a lot to love about this upgraded, next generation stroller and/or travel system (which is a car seat and stroller that work together). So I just wanted to take a minute to talk about its innovative design.

Like all travel systems, the big advantage is that there’s an infant seat that goes from car seat to stroller and back again without you ever having to wake your sleeping baby. But the big plus with the Orbit is that the seat swivels at 360 degrees. First of all, that means you can dock it into the car seat base from almost any angle. Which means it’s a lot easier to wrangle it into place without having to have it perfectly perpendicular to your body. (That’s bound to save a lot of headaches, not to mention backaches!)

Secondly, once it’s docked, you can also swivel the seat with your child in it, which opens up all sorts of possibilities for interacting with your child. Anyone who’s ever been in a crowded Starbucks has seen those moms with their strollers wedged in to whatever sliver of floor space they can find. And that often means the mom or dad can’t actually see their child, since there’s never enough room to position the stroller facing them. But with the Orbit G2, you can swivel the seat so that the baby is facing you, no matter how the stroller base is positioned.

The swiveling seat is why we loved the original Orbit to start with, but the newly upgraded G2 edition is packed with features, making it even better. In addition to swiveling, the seat also reclines when it’s on its stroller base, all in one easy motion. Plus, the fabrics and foams are safe, hypoallergenic, and certified Oeko-Tex Standard 100. (A healthy car seat? Who knew?) Plus it’s got things like four-wheel suspension that make this stroller a great choice for anyone who wants a fully loaded ride.

Products | Trends

February 8, 2010

A Smart Plug

A couple of weeks ago, my husband attended a Martha Stewart show for Dads featuring Super Bowl food and entertaining ideas. Consistent with what appears to be today’s talk show standard, each audience member walked away with some amazing freebies. Aside from continuing to be perplexed about how companies can afford to underwrite these large giveaways (they are expensive!) and despite the fact that in my house my husband rules the kitchen, as any good consumer products businesswoman would do, I still checked out the design details of each of the giveaways.

One in particular earned my design-awe — a Breville sandwich/panini maker called “The Smart Grill“. Or more specifically, its amazingly cool outlet plug! How many of you have suffered broken nails, squeezed fingers or just gotten darn frustrated trying to remove appliance plugs? Check out what an absolutely cool idea Breville employed in its already above-the-top fabulous sandwich/panini-maker — a finger hole right below the outlet plug, for easy removal. Brilliant.

I’ve always been a huge fan of great design that is as much about practicality and function as it is about beauty. Breville’s Smart Grill delivers on every level of my “A-list”. Hats off Breville! And yes, we enjoyed awesome panini’s courtesy of my Martha Stewart-trained husband yesterday watching the Saints beat the Colts among well-fed friends.

Celebrities | Designing | Events & Event Planning | Products | giggle Grab Bag

January 28, 2010

My “A” List Weekend Uniform

Like a lot of moms, weekends around my house are family time. That means that Saturdays and Sundays are not days to be fussing with my appearance. I’d rather just get out the door and get to the park or the farmers’ market than spend a lot of time in front of a mirror. So in honor of weekend time, I wanted to mention what I consider my survival kit that lets me focus on what’s really important.

You know those days when you really don’t want to bother with makeup? You can save yourself the time and effort with a great cover-up. Those are days when I just throw on my ColeHaan Aviator sunglasses (above) in lieu of mascara. I love them so much I even wore them for my picture for my profile in Cookie Magazine (although I didn’t actually skip the makeup that day).

Another great shortcut that I swear by is my Kiehl’s Tinted Lip Gloss. Not only is it great for moisturizing dry lips in winter, but it has a little color so you can forego the lipstick, too.

And of course, if you’re trying to get out of the house, you don’t necessarily want to stop and do your hair. My solution? A quick ponytail with my Nike baseball cap and I’m out the door! (Mine is black, which is currently out of stock, but here’s a cute purple one.)

Use the comments section below to share your shortcuts!

Products | Trends | giggle Grab Bag

January 11, 2010

Puj Sink Tub – Where Were You When…?!

Infant tubs are great for cradling slippery babies during bath time, especially for nervous new parent hands! But for a lot of people, storing the sink tub that will only last you a few months is a pain. The new Puj Sink Tub for babies is a brilliant solution. It contours to the shape of any standard bathroom sink (pedestals included), but hangs and stores flat!

But the real reason I love this tub is for its warm, soft foam surface. Have you ever felt the standard sink tubs? Even with warm water, don’t they just seem uninviting for a bare naked body? Let alone a bare naked newborn body?! That’s why a lot of people put a foam pad on top of them. The problem with those is that they slip, and can become a source of bacteria given the frequent dampness.

At last enters the Puj. Warm and soft in a cuddly sort of way and anti-fungal, hypoallergenic and anti-bacterial – not to mention made of non-toxic PVC- and BPA-free foam. The bonus is that when it’s not in use, it also hangs flat – and hey, is really sort of cute!

puj_alt

Parenting | Products | giggle Grab Bag

January 1, 2010

Required Reading

Alphabet books and counting books are nothing new. And since they’re usually geared towards a baby’s taste (and attention span) they’ve never been much of a treat for the parents — until now.

Finally, someone has given those staples of the baby library an exciting new look using bold illustrations by beloved artist Charley Harper. Whether or not you recognize the name, you’ve likely seen his work. Charley Harper was an American Modernist who created stylized wildlife prints in a style he described as “minimal realism.”

These simple books full of beautiful colorful illustrations are a great way to help kids learn their ABCs and 123s. There’s even a classic game where your kids can match 36 pairs of cards graced with his beautiful birds, ladybugs, and nature scenes.

We love these classics that parents will enjoy looking at just as much as their baby does. Who knew basic building blocks could look so good?

Child Development | Parenting | Products | giggle Grab Bag

December 15, 2009

Better Basics’ Better Storage

Okay, I’ll admit it: adding anything from giggle Better Basics to my A-List might seem a little biased, since it is part of our store’s collection of baby essentials. But I really do think this line of storage products is just dreamy.

In a nutshell, they’re classically simple and well constructed, and they come in exactly the right shapes and sizes. They’re also unbelievably well priced.

I’ve put every one of these products to use (okay, well, except the diaper caddy, since we’re all done with diaper duty) both in my office and at home.

I recently bought the Small Storage Boxes for my office, and I adore both their function and fashion. My office is a robin’s egg blue and decorated with an ensemble of vintage and antique furniture (the centerpiece of which is my most prized personal possession – my father’s antique desk). My office is an eclectic mixture of colors and styles, but these cubbies are smart and simple enough to blend right in, not to mention provide organization in my busy office.

For my 6-year-old Lego-maniac, the Large Storage Bins allowed me to lose some of the blue plastic containers and swap them for something that looks great. The best part? They’re simple, basic, and functional enough that they didn’t even get any objections from my son, who often challenges my “fashion vs. function” suggestions in his room.

As for the hamper? I added that to my guest house bathroom – and love that it looks like I spent a lot more than I did for this great utility solution.

These storage solutions were created due to customer demand from parents who wanted a way to keep their kids’ rooms in control. But I’ve found one more thing they’re great for: their low price and great quality make them an easy and responsible replacement for gift-wrapping! They make a great container for building a gift basket or bundling baby gifts, and that’s a multi-tasking value I adore.

Designing | Products

December 10, 2009

Mariano Gil Extraordinaire

I attended the 22nd Annual Mount Sinai Ob/Gyn Fashion Show & Luncheon to benefit the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Services of The Mount Sinai Medical Center earlier this week. In addition to enjoying a great lunch with people dedicated to their so-called mission of “making grandparents” (what a great mission!), I also had the fortune to become introduced to a great artist named Mariano Gil.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina where he graduated as a medical doctor, Mariano moved to Boston on a scholarship to study music. Now a well-known children’s illustrator & artist & musician, Mariano lives in Brooklyn. Doctor, artist, musician - & a fabulous “A-list” addition! Not to mention another example of my favorite loves of living in New York City…being surrounded by talent that never ceases to inspire.

To enjoy more of Mariano’s work, check out http://www.marianogil.net/index.html

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