New to You: Upstarts at the January ENK Show
Is living well the best revenge? Newcomers who exhibited their collections at the ENK's Children's Club show, held from January 12-14 at the Jacob Javits Center, seem to think so. Undaunted by the current recession, these gutsy new upstarts showed lines sophisticated enough to rival anything out of Europe; a few, like Babygags, whose "who me worry," attitude was evident with t-shirts sporting off-color slogans like "I'm boob man."
THE SUBLIME….
BUDDHABEAR
Designer: Angela Britzman
Want to tickle the next Rockabilly generation? Give the funky, Elvis-inspired cowboy shirt in black and gray or red trimmed in black.
Outstanding Pieces: The simply tailored, butter-soft, real suede shirts in deep chocolate, black, rust and white. Perfect for the baby born with a platinum Visa card in its mouth.
40 Great Jones Street, 4th Floor, NYC, NY 10012; Tel: (917)-603-5979 or (212)-473-9019 e-mail: abritzman@nyc.rr.com
LITTLE E.D.A.
DESIGNER: Eda Topur
Designer Eda Topur concentrates on doing one thing well: designing baby booties. The outside of each suede bootie is as soft as a baby's cheek and its real shearling lining keeps the baby's feet dry and cozy.
Outstanding Piece: All the booties are adorable, but there's something about the slate blue pair with the white stitching and deep brown fur that made me smile.
121 Lakeside Avenue, Suite 201, Seattle, WA 98122; Tel: (206)-860-3100 Fax: (413)-375-7574 e-mail: littleeda@attbi.com; www.littleeda.com
PAULINA QUINTANA
DESIGNER: Paulina Quintana
If the thought of yet one more t-shirt line causes you to roll your eyes, take a moment to peruse Paulina Quintana's collection. What makes her t-shirts special? In a word: color. No baby pastels here, just rich tones of pea green edged in black, cocoa with red trim, and a bright yellow trimmed in scarlet, to name just a few.
Outstanding Pieces: The three-piece apron, bib and diaper cover similar to the set shown on the January Small World Magazine cover. It's blue with deep brown bamboo. How hip is that?
2528 Panorama Terrace, Los Angeles, CA 90035; Tel: (323)-668-9255 Fax: (775)-831-1756 or contact Natalie & Friends (212)-947-2995, www.paulinaquintana.com, Email: paulirob@earthlink.net
JANA BANANA
DESIGNER: Jana Buehning
There's something a little rumpled and lived in about Jana Buehning's collection of t-shirts and cotton one-pieces. Each garment is dyed an offbeat, not baby-sweet color, and her motifs have a hand-stamped feeling.
Outstanding Piece: The gray one-piece with the black motorcycle. The white stitching and buttons give the piece vintage appeal; the motorcycle makes a great replacement for the ubiquitous baseball.
P.O. Box 775, Millbrook, NY 12545; Tel/Fax: (845)-677-8727 e-mail: yoyojana@aol.com
BEES & DRAGONS
DESIGNER: Sophie Maarek
More cotton knits? You won't complain when you see Sophie Maarek's line of beautiful cotton sweaters, t-shirts and one-pieces for baby. Her one-pieces printed with toile-like cabbage roses in red on white, or purple on white make unusual layette gifts and her two-piece, funky, ikat-like striped tops with coordinating cuffed leggings in pea, orange, red and yellow or pink, lilac and rose, are cute without being precious.
Outstanding Pieces: The yellow t-shirt and diaper covers trimmed in bright aqua, and the black one-piece trimmed in white. Both styles are embroidered with the word Brooklyn. Perfect for your outer-borough friends.
117 West 9th Street, #815, Los Angeles, CA 90015; Tel: (213)-489-3050 Fax: (213)-489-3085; www.beesanddragons.com; Email: info@beesanddragons.com
...TO THE RIDICULOUS
BABYGAGS
DESIGNERS: Shelley Foster and John Spolyar
How can you not love a collection whose brochure contains this question: "If a baby talks trash in the crib, and no one is there to hear, did the baby really talk trash?" Foster and Spolyar let their t-shirts do the trash talking with sayings like "I am boob man!" "Sex hugs & rock n' roll" and "I suck, therefore I am." This collection isn't going to make it in Peoria, but at city baby showers a Babygag's t-shirt will be the "must have" gift for fall.
Outstanding Piece: The red t-shirt with white letters that spell "Benevolent Dictator." Oh, how true!
1517 North Point #472, San Francisco, CA 94123, Tel: (415)-615-0397 or contact Natalie & Friends at (212)-947-2995; Email: info@babygags.com; www.babygags.com
Tina Barry
has been involved in many facets of the fashion world. She
has traveled domestically and to Europe to research color
and design trends. For many years she styled textiles for
the apparel and home furnishing industries. After designing
her own line of children's wear she now freelances as a
children's wear buyer and private label designer. This year,
Tina begins teaching a marketing course at The Fashion
Institute of Technology in New York City.