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New York International Gift Fair January 2007: Growing Up Green The difference in the New York International Gift Fair (1/28/07-1/31/07) from previous New York-held gift exhibitions became obvious to me after ten minutes. The change was in the vendors' focus. Previously, when I'd walk into a booth I'd hear about the company's new design direction for that season: "We're really into refined vintage" or "We've hired a tattoo artist to create our T-shirt motifs." Now, the words I heard over and over were "organic," not organic as in something flowing smoothing, but organic as in nontoxic, environmentally friendly materials. "Sustainability," "low impact" and "sweatshop free" were mentioned too. In press releases, there was an emphasis on doing right for the earth as well as its citizens. Retailers who look for socially conscious labels, now have their choice of not only clean, modern, innovative wares but the peace of mind that comes in knowing no one was exploited to make the goods, and the natural resources are no worse - and sometimes better - than before. Among children's apparel and giftware vendors there appeared to be a backlash against anything too high-tech. Some of the designers featured below, kept their items free from extraneous detail while imbuing their creations with a strong sense of nostalgia. To provide a venue for all who wanted to participate, manufacturers spread out over the Metropolitan Pavilion (on 18th Street in Chelsea), across three floors of the Jacob Javits Center and in two spaces at the Manhattan Piers.
APPAREL ELEGANT BABY DESIGNER: The Elegant Baby design team Sizes: 6 to 12 months; Wholesale prices: $9-$23 For several years this company has been offering elegant baby gifts that belie their modest prices.
Outstanding pieces: The multi-piece Tropical Collection offers better retailers the couture look they crave at Target prices. Even the boxes the gifts are packaged in will become collectors' items. Tel: 800-417-2212 / 800-334-5321
FUNKTION DESIGNERS: Tara Lynch and David Scalese Sizes: 2T to 4T; Wholesale prices: $13-$21 The bright, flower-friendly prints of the fifties, sixties and seventies hold a strong appeal for many buyers. Lynch and Scalese use reproductions of those happy patterns to fashion kids' aprons, fun T-shirts and sundresses.
Outstanding pieces: The designers don't use prepackaged blanks for their tees. Instead, they do the cutting and sewing themselves, which yields an especially light, ultra soft garment.
Welcome to the seventies with these critter strewn hoodies. Tel: 310-621-1369 E-mail: funktionhome@hotmail.com
KIWI INDUSTRIES DESIGNER: Becky Grebosky Sizes: NB to 18 months; Wholesale prices: $24-$24.50 for tee and leggings, $17.50-$18 for hat and onesie Grebosky keeps expanding her collection of sportswear and knitwear to include more gift items.
Outstanding pieces: The onesies are printed with an animal in this season's hot yellow greens. The creature's name - in this case a deer - is written in three languages for global appeal. Tel: 505-332-9090 E-mail: becky@kiwiindustries.com
MYKLO DESIGNS DESIGNER: Heather Handler Sizes: NB to 18 months; Wholesale prices: $11 Artist, poet and world traveler, Handler channels her finds onto tees for infants and adults.
Outstanding pieces: Remember when a faux-horse stood in front of every supermarket ready to give a child a 10-cent ride? Handler immortalizes the amusement (and other vintage rides) on the front of her organic cotton onesies. Tel: 347-351-5776 E-mail: heather@myklodesigns.com
OEUF DESIGNERS: Sophie DeMenge and Michael Ryan Sizes: NB to 6 years; Wholesale prices: $14-$74 With successful collections of modern furniture and a recent launch that brought their clean-lined knit designs to the public, DeMenge and Ryan introduced a carefully coordinated group of wovens.
Outstanding pieces: Simple modern shapes with a few playful touches such as the stripe on the boy's top and the pretty gather along the smock's neckline, lend a playful note to the palette of subtle neutral tones. Tel: 845-229-0519 E-mail: celine@oeufnyc.com
PIXEL MODERN PIECES DESIGNER: Shannon Svensrud Sizes: NB to 18 months; Wholesale prices: $19.50 "By focusing on producing products that are either organic or reusable (i.e. sustainable) we are conducting business in a way that makes a difference to the people and environment around us. It is true that happy products are made by happy people," says Svensrud.
Outstanding pieces: Svensrud channels her respect for the environment into this new three-piece cotton set abloom with a flower.
She taps into boys' fantasies with the Alien Workshop threesome in elegant chocolate, aqua and cream. Tel: 213.291.3541 E-mail: Info@pixelpieces.com
WHIMSY DESIGNS DESIGNER: Jasmine Redfern Sizes: Tees: 3 to 24 months; Wholesale prices: Bibs and tees: $9; lamps and night lights: $12.50-$60 Love fifties' graphics? So does Redfern who adorns her onesies, tees, bibs and lamp designs with images from that era.
Outstanding pieces: Tie one on with this soft Terry cloth bib appliquéd with a man's tie motif (tie comes in three funky prints). Tel: 845-255-5465 E-mail: whimsydesigns@aol.com
WRY BABY DESIGNERS: Kelly and David Sopp Sizes: NB to 12 months; Wholesale prices: T-shirts: $10-$11 The Sopp's are always tuned into the country's climate. It's no surprise then, that politics should play a part in their latest gift items.
Outstanding pieces: You can't call the Sopps partisan when they offer tees printed with "Teeny Democrat," "Teeny Republican," and "Totally Non-Partisan." Tel: 704-660-6955 E-mail: wholesale@wrybaby.com
APRONS MIMI THE SARDINE DESIGNER: Pia Andersson Sizes: 2 to 6 years; Wholesale prices: $6.75-$23 This collection of acrylic coated aprons is well known throughout Europe. The company's products meet the Oeko-Tex 100 Standard, an ecological certification focused on testing textiles for over 100 harmful substances. The aprons can be wiped clean or machine-washed.
Outstanding pieces: All the prints are brightly colored and patterned with cheerful designs. Just what kids love. Tel: 866-234-6464 E-mail: pia@mimithesardine.com
ACCESSORIES/DIAPER BAGS BO HOME DESIGNER: Patritcia Mastrodonati Wholesale prices: $18-$25 Bo Home is a home furnishing collective that specializes in designers who employ industrial materials in novel and unexpected ways.
Outstanding pieces: Mastrodonati's backpacks and messenger bags are made of 100 percent rayon felt, are lined and contain several zippered compartments. The pets are housebroken, too. Tel: 732-744-9111 E-mail: information@bohome.com
BUMBLE BAGS DESIGNER: Jennie Lynn Johanson Wholesale prices: $24-$64 Johanson designs practical bags for moms who want something pretty to carry - not a hard-edged design.
Outstanding pieces: The Changing Kit is the ideal bag for those times when all you need to tote are the essentials. The lightweight item opens into a large changing pad. Along the bottom are plenty of pockets for keys, wipes and diapers. Best yet, the practical kit can be handheld and has an adjustable strap so it can hang from the shoulder or from a stroller. Tel: 617-945-2522 E-mail: info@bumblebags.com
LITTLE PACKRATS DESIGNER: Cathy Berse-Hurley Wholesale prices: $20-$22.50 Unique, clean-lined and playful, Berse-Hurley continues to delight retailers with her unique tote bags and backpacks.
Outstanding pieces: Prick up your ears. Berse-Hurley has added a new small-sized backpack with a modern horse motif. Atop the bag are her trademark animal ears. To accommodate buyers who want a tote roomy enough to hold folders, she's added a larger triangular pack with a similar horse design (no ears though). Retailers who carry adult lines will love her new CBH group of bags for women. Tel: 978-449-0222 E-mail: info@littlepackrats.com
PETUNIA PICKLE BOTTOM DESIGNERS: DeNai Jones Wholesale prices: contact manufacturer Practical or chic, Petunia Pickle Bottom's bags are "must-haves" for moms and gift-givers.
Outstanding pieces: This bag is really the icing on the collection's cake. The Cake bag, in three richly colored felted brocades, doesn't look like a diaper carrier but it holds everything you need for a day out with baby - and more! Tel: 805-643-6697 E-mail: Morgan@petuniapicklebottom.com
SAN DIEGO HAT COMPANY DESIGNER: Linda Day Sizes: NB to 6X; Wholesale price: $10 Hand-crocheted cotton keeps heads cool in the sun while all manner of land and sea creatures brighten a little one's day.
Outstanding pieces: All the hats in the Daylee Designs collection are garden fresh. Tel: 888-868-0588 E-mail: iwa@sandiegohat.com
YO MY BOOTIES DESIGNER: Kris Pettit Sizes: 12 months and 18 months; Wholesale prices: $23 There are cute booties in the kids' market but none as hip as these.
Outstanding pieces: One important trend at the recent Pitti Bimbo exhibition in Florence was metallic leather and suede. With her new slipper socks, Pettit dips into the look and goes one - make that two - better. She's edged the cozy footwear with silver metallic stitching and added a fluff of soft angora and baby alpaca wool for full frontal luxury. (They're available in six neutral and bright tones.) Tel: 310 717-4912 E-mail: info@yomybooties.com
TOYS EN GRY & SIF DESIGNERS: The En Gry & Sif design studio Wholesale prices: $21 to $38 These felt animals from En Gry & Sif are just one of the charming gift and clothing collections imported by Danish Bohemia Distribution.
Outstanding pieces: After seasons of handcrafted crocheted toys, these engaging felt creatures, designed in Denmark and produced by a women's collective in Nepal, add a fresh look to boutique shelves. Danish Bohemia Distribution Tel: 651-222-8383 E-mail: info@danishbohemia.com
I GOLFINI DELLA NONNA DESIGNERS: Francesca Basilico, Mariapia Basilico Wholesale prices: contact manufacturer For years, this company produced heirloom quality sweaters. Now they're using their needles for fabulous knit toys. The results are just as compelling.
Outstanding pieces: This woolly hedgehog will be a welcome addition to every child's menagerie. Tel: 213-593-1075 E-mail: info@golfini.com
JACK RABBIT CREATIONS DESIGNER: Jim Lancaster Wholesale price: $14 Jack Rabbit Creations offers retailers a wide range of classic toys updated with original art and packaging.
Outstanding pieces: Remember how much fun you had winding up a Jack in the Box? Turn the handle on these brightly illustrated boxes to hear classics like "Pop goes the Weasel," "Little Dog Gone" and "Alouette." Tel: 404-876-4225 E-mail: jack_rabbit@mindspring.com
LA-LE KIDS' IMPORTS DESIGNER: La-le Kids' designer: Hadas Hall. Pastel Toys' designers: Kishorit organization Wholesale prices: La-le Kids: $20-$35. Pastel Toys: $12.50-$90 Hila Kostinsky imports two lines from Israel. Both the vintage style stuffed animals and the handcrafted wooden toys are a far cry from the electronic gadgets that pass for playthings these days.
Outstanding pieces: Before toy making was considered an art form, women used scraps from clothes and quilt making to fashion dolls like those created by Hadas Hall.
Kishorit, a nonprofit organization in Israel, founded the Pastel Toys' village and workshops for special needs' adults. The hand-crafted wooden animals on wheels, trains and trucks, designed and produced in their carpentry shops, possess a soft-to-the-touch, hand-smoothed finish and old world appeal. Tel: 847-572-9401 E-mail: lalekids@sbcglobal.net
MERRYMAKERS DESIGNERS: Christine O'Connor and Lisa Costa Wholesale prices: $5-$60 Merrymakers takes a character from a child's favorite book and recreates it in doll form.
Outstanding pieces: Here's Ella from Steven and Carmela D'Amico's "Ella and the Elegant Elephant," and Junie B. Jones dressed in her school outfit. Junie B. Jones is inspired by Barbara Park's best-selling series. The dolls make charming gifts with or without the book. Tel: 888 989-0454 E-mail: merrymakers@merrymakersinc.com
WONDER WORKS DESIGNER: Wonder Works design team Wholesale prices: $6.75-$8.75 Wonder Works specializes in handcrafted wooden toys. They're ideal in a vintage style nursery.
Outstanding pieces: The Pudgy Animals are great unisex toys for those early years when toddlers are developing hand/eye coordination. Holztiger Tel: 800-275-3906 E-mail: wwtoys@aol.com
CARRIAGE COVERS 7 A.M. ENFANT DESIGNER: Rebecca Campora Wholesale prices: Contact manufacturer Beautifully constructed, long-lasting and designed with the urban child in mind, Campora's designs have become sought after, stay warm covers for city - and country - babes.
Outstanding pieces: The 212 Evolution. Open it and you've got a blanket. Closed it's the warmest, chicest carriage cover on the market. Tel: 212 302-0888 E-mail: info@7amenfant.com
ROOM DÉCOR AIMEEJ KEEPSAKE ALBUMS DESIGNER: Aimee Jacobson Size: 7" x 7"; Wholesale prices: $8.50-$30 Jacobson manages to blend elegant design with a dusty pastel palette. Not everyone can pull that off.
Outstanding pieces: The First frames in either soft pink or pale blue suede sport a simple party hat, duck or footprint motif on top and say "First Birthday," "First Bath" or "First Step" beneath the infant's picture. They're sweet without being cloying. Tel: 913-897-0449 E-mail: sales@aimeej.com
TREE BY KERRI LEE DESIGNER: Kerri Lee Wholesale prices: $30 You can see the sensitive designer behind every item Kerri Lee designs.
Outstanding pieces: Her latest additions to the collection are Lee's Musical Jewelry Boxes and coordinating Hand Mirrors. The box, available in three dusty pastel tones, opens to a simple wooden motif that turns slowly as the tunes play. On the back of the inside cover you'll find the words "treasure," "love" or "bloom." Tel: 845-887-6165 E-mail: info@treebykerrilee.com
ZOOKI DOOKI Company: Fashion Angels Ent. (The Bead Shop/Enchanted Moments, Inc.) DESIGNER: Fashion Angels design team Wholesale prices: $7-$12 This company creates and manufactures the kind of carefully designed, clean-lined pieces one finds in museum gift shops.
Outstanding pieces: Piggy bank as art? Art as piggy bank? These ceramic pieces work for the junior collector and penny saver, too. Enchanted Moments, Inc. Tel: 203-254-7925 E-mail: kennisenchanted@aol.com
PARTY ACCESSORIES TRUMPETTE DESIGNER: Trumpette design team Wholesale prices: $3.50 Party designers watch out! Trumpette has added event accessories to their collection of shoe/socks.
Outstanding pieces: These wild, glittery hats would be right at home at the Mad Hatter's tea party. Tel: 888-894-7770 E-mail: info@trumpette.com
STATIONERY EEBOO CORPORATION DESIGNER: The eeBoo design team Wholesale prices: Books: $3.50 The collection of beautifully patterned and illustrated books, games and stationery harkens back to a time when kids sent letters to one another - not text messages - and wrote in dairies instead of posting every feeling on a blog.
Outstanding pieces: The "Thoughtful Books." The books are covered in old fashioned designs that look like vintage wallpaper. Sections are divided into lined sheets for "thoughts and observations"; an address book in the back; and pages that tear out for letter writing. There are even decorative stickers to jazz up the mailings. Tel: 212-222-0823 E-mail: eeboo@nyc.rr.com
FURNITURE CELERY DESIGNER: Dan Harding Wholesale prices: $55-$697.50 Unassembled, pieces of Celery furniture resemble simple puzzle pieces. Put together, the items are elegant and playful with not a screw or nail in sight. To support a healthy environment this new company employs bamboo and nontoxic adhesives and paint.
Outstanding pieces: The Lullaboo Cradle and Lullaboo Crib. The lines are sophisticated; the surfaces are warm thanks to golden toned bamboo and soft pastel toned painted surfaces. Mortise and tenon joinery make each piece easy to assemble and lends a note of playfulness. Tel: 888-556-7165 E-mail: kristin@celeryfurniture.com
NEST DESIGNERS: Laura and Will Wear Wholesale prices: $18-$159 "Modern, sustainable, organic, fun furnishings for parents and their young," that's the motto of this young company.
Outstanding pieces: The Jax chair is a glamorous lounger for the 12-and-under set. Tel: 413-467-2086 E-mail: Laura@nestplease.com
BATH AND BEAUTY PRODUCTS ERBAVIVA ORIGINATORS: Robin Brown and Anna Cirronis Wholesale prices: Contact manufacturer For 10 years, Brown and Cirronis have produced upscale products completely free of harsh detergents, chemical fragrances and other unhealthy additives. The company helps to fund the Pwo Karen hill tribe of Northern Thailand and Burma. The project runs a health clinic for children and helps teach villagers agricultural practices for creating permanent, sustainable farms.
Outstanding pieces: The Erbaviva Baby and Erbaviva Mommy lines contain ingredients such as organic mandarin and chamomile, pure milk, honey and essential oils of lavender. Even if the Stretch Mark Oil doesn't fade the scars, rose, sandalwood, lavender and mandarin will leave mom's stomach smelling great. Tel: 877-372-2848 E-mail: info@erbaviva.com
NURTURING FORCE REFRESHMENT FOR YOUR FACE ORIGINATOR: Linda R. Rothstein-Sosnick Here's a great product for teens. Nurturing Force is a soft-to-the-touch blotting paper made of natural spring water plus a blend of plant fibers and tree pulp. The sheets, which can be purchased without fragrance or in aromatherapy scents of lavender or rose, are dabbed on the face to remove surface oils and perspiration without marring makeup or leaving lint on the skin. This practical item is packaged in a small, clear plastic roll that's available in four colors: pink, lavender, blue and black. They make an attractive counter display. B A KID, INC. Tel: 800-495-5626 E-mail: info@nurturingforce.com
MISCELLANEOUS FUN FRIENDS ORIGINATOR: Charles Larson Wholesale prices: $3.50 For the kid who has everything.
Outstanding pieces: Sis and junior have cell phones. With Fun Friends they now have something to dress them in. And you thought a phone was just fine au naturel. How silly. Tel: 877-203-7185 E-mail: charles@funfriends.com
Originally published February 15, 2007
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