CLB ♥ burp! boutique: Q&A and discount!

 Indikidual's Wombles Wind Cheater, £37

burp! boutique is an online shop selling an original selection of clothes and home accessories for boys and girls. You won't find frilly pink things here - refreshingly, everything stocked is bold, bright and gender neutral. Learn how it all began below and enjoy 15 percent off (quote CLB15 at check out). 

burp! boutique owner, Kate Hayden-Ellis with daughter, Evie

Five questions with... 
burp! boutique's Kate Hayden-Ellis

What do you sell?
We choose unique clothes, books, toys & posters.

When and why did it all begin?
It started after the birth of our daughter, Evie, in 2010. We were shocked at what was generally available on the high street for baby girls. Pink anyone? So we decided to collate a super cool collection of kids stuff. Our online shop launched in April 2011.

Biggest challenges?
Juggling! It's easier now that Evie is going to preschool a couple of days a week, but trying to create a successful business whilst still having quality time with my daughter can sometimes be a little bit tricky.

Greatest discoveries?
That I can actually achieve a lot by myself.

What makes Burp Boutique unique?
We don't pick anything twiddly or flouncy, our shop is bright, bold and beautiful and I think our products reflect that. We support individualism and promote more gender neutral items and clothing. We're not fans of everything being pink for girls and blue for boys.

What is your motto?
Ooh good question! Don't worry, be happy.

www.burpboutique.com Quote CLB15 for your exclusive discount.

Kate's five favourite pieces from the current collection:

1. Indikidual's Wombles Wind Cheater (above)

2. Mr Penguin Balloon poster, £38.99

3. Tootsa MacGinty's Puppet Bear Sweater, £39

4. UK Weather Map by Corby Tindersticks, £30

5. Bizzy Bears Pirate Adventures by Nosy Crow is such a wonderful interactive board book, £4.99

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Chic Mum: Jools Oliver

English rose, Jools Oliver, stays in shape with yoga and boot camp

Jools Oliver, 38, designer, wife to Jamie and mother to Poppy, Daisy Boo, Petal and Buddy, reveals her style tips and beauty tricks exclusively to CLB


Greatest style challenge since having kids?
My hips and weight keep changing so clothes that use to fit don’t now – or they look wrong because my body shape has altered.

How long do you allow yourself to get ready?
Twenty minutes for shower and running gear on, but I give myself an hour if I’m going out in the evening.

Quick beauty tips and tricks?
I use a lot of organic skincare, but I swear by drinking lots of water.

Your off-duty outfit for when it's just you and the kids?
Gym gear, it’s comfy and I don’t have to think about it.

Beauty product you could not live without?
Cover up for under the eyes by Chantecaille.

Who is your hairdresser?
I go to my local hairdresser in Primrose Hill.

Health regime?
I exercise four times a week, eat healthily and drink lots of fresh juices. I save the treats for the weekend.

Favourite fitness/yoga instructors?
Nadia Narain for yoga, Brett James Eleftheriou for boxing and Barry’s Boot Camp for pain and hell!

Health tip?
Once a month I do a week of juicing, it’s really hard but good to give your body a break.

Favourite designers?
ASOS, American Apparel and for treats I like Stella McCartney and Chloe.

Where do you hunt for fashion bargains?
There are great vintage shops in Cambridge and I have worn some lovely dresses from my local Oxfam to big occasions.

Favourite secret shop/website?
www.babyccino.com/blog

Your ultimate style icon?
Emmanuelle Alt (editor of French Elle) and Jean Shrimpton.

Desert island fashion item?
A cosy set of PJ’s for night time!

Jools Oliver designs the Little Bird range for Mothercare www.mothercare.com



Jools surrounded by models in her Little Bird range for Mothercare

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Offer: money off at Sistersguild

Hucklebones' latest collection, now available at Sistersguild

Sistersguild has been a CLB favourite since it launched in 2010  - we love the inspiring labels for boys and girls including Little Duckling, Bobo Chose, I Love Gorgeous and Dandy Star. Carla de Reyes Mezbur and Bekka McCarthy, the creative sisters behind the brand, have an eye for original finds for boys and fairytale-pretty clothes for girls. They are offering CLB readers 15% off clothing collections. Just quote CLBAW13 at check out. www.sistersguild.co.uk

Be sure to check out our other brilliant offers which we'll be adding too each week!

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CLB Monthly Recipe: apple and blackberry cake

Gooey apple and blackberry cake is a hit with the little ones

The nights are drawing in, there are apples on the trees. Time for some autumnal comfort food. I have already made this cake a few times this year and it's been a huge hit with family and friends - the girls love it. It's a great way of using up apples from the garden and couldn't be easier. It's also a great cake to take to a loved one and works as a dessert (it goes really well with an expensive creamy organic vanilla ice-cream). So, here you go...


Ingredients

130g butter, softened
120g caster sugar
3 large eggs, beaten
75g ground almonds
100g self-raising flour
3 large ripe apples of your choice, peeled and each cut into 10 segments
100g blackberries

Method

1. Heat the over to 160c. Butter a 20cm (ish) cake tin.

2. Make a fluffy paste by beating the caster sugar and butter.

3. Pour in the eggs, adding a little flour here and there.

4. Add the ground almonds.

5. Add the rest of the flour and stir everything together.

6. Fold in the apples and blackberries to the cake mixture

7. Put the mixture into the tin, sprinkle with some butter shavings.

8. Bake for just under an hour - until a skewer comes out clean and it's golden brown on the outside.

9. Ta-dah! Your cake is ready.

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CLB ♥ Lottie Nottie's back to school hair bows

Miss E has recently started school and one of the joys is being able to do her hair up in various styles (her preference being Pippi Longstocking-style plaits of course). Evie always insists on her signature Alice band to finish off the look. One of our favourite websites for hair accessories is Lottie Nottie. The brand was launched in 2011 by mum-of-three Charlotte Notcutt, who had been making non-girlie bows for her tomboy daughter, Lucy. Friends began asking her to make them for their own children and Lottie Nottie was born. As well the tasteful grosgrain styles in school colours, there are plenty of fun animal, flower and button designs that will appeal to mummy and daughter equally. We are looking forward to indulging in new Christmas range later in the year. A new CLB favourite.

From £3.50 at www.lottienottie.com

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Ruff and Huddle boyswear launches at Selfridges

Check out the Zakee Shariff-print sweat pants!

Not long ago James Suckling and Lucy Brice spotted a hole in the children's wear market – cool, contemporary boys' clothes with cheeky hints from dad's wardrobe. Cue the mini-me varsity jackets, parkas and logo tees that make up Ruff & Huddle's latest collection. The pair started the London-based label just last year selling T-shirts at Spitalifields Market. Since then they have enlisted the talented print designer Zakee Shariff to create whimsical star prints (above) and renowned tattooist Josh Shutterly to created embroidered patches. We are sure boys everywhere will love the label's rebellious streety vibe.

From £18-£65. at Selfridges www.selfridges.com

Flight jacket with tattoo-inspired embroidered patches

A two-tone hoody with red Indian print T-shirts

The London parka

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NEW BOOK! CLARA BUTTON’S INDIAN WEDDING

Clara Button is back in the second V&A book by author and fashion academic Amy de lay Haye. The series is based on a little girl called Clara, with talent for design, who lives with her mum and brother Ollie. In the first story 'Clara and the Magical Hat Day' Clara discovers the delights of the V&A, and endeavors to get her favourite hat ­- a floppy straw design belonging to her late grandma - repaired. The second story takes takes us on Clara's creative journey in as she sets about making an outfit after being invited to an Indian wedding. Sutton's illustrations are packed with beautiful detail – your eyes linger on the page long after reading the words. Evie, a massive fan of Clara, enjoyed poring over the tiny deatils on every spread and was thrilled by Clara’s slightly disastrous, yet ultimately triumphant outfit. Her only criticism? ‘It’s too short.’

Clara Button and the Wedding Day Surprise, £11.99, V&A Publishing is out in Oct and available at the V&A shop (www.vandashop.com).

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Chic Mum: Holly von Bock

Holly von Bock does festival style at Feastival with Aurora and Oscar in tow

The 29 year old fashion blogger lives in the Cotswolds with her husband and two children Oscar, 5, and Aurora, 2.


Greatest style challenge since having kids?
After having your first child your frame of mind, sense of style and image gets really muddled. You've gone from being your 'normal' size to huge to back to kind-of-normal in the space of just over a year. Then of course you are sleep deprived and coming to terms with your new role in life – being a mum. All of those thoughts ran through my head after having Oscar. I wanted to dress 'appropriately' as his mummy but didn't want to lose a sense of my identity. I think over this year I really have just settled into a happy, relaxed sense of style.

How long do you allow yourself to get ready?
I've become a pro at getting ready quickly. I find that if I am given the gift of having 'time' it confuses me as it allows me to spend time second guessing my choices. But if I know I have just 10 minutes, I go with my gut instinct and that is that!

Quick beauty tips and tricks?
I swear by Elizabeth Arden's 'Eight Hour Cream' which I use twice a week overnight as a 'mask'. I also use the perfect shade of NARS Lip Pencil (the fat ones which you use as a lipstick) for the school run – it's adds a bit of warmth, stays on and usually brightens my face up, most of the time anyway!

You off-duty outfit for when it's just you and the kids?
Always skinny jeans, trainers (in the summer I was loving the Birkenstock craze as they're so comfy & I feel relatively cool) and a blazer of some sort. And I always have a crossbody bag - so if I ever spot a nice quality crossbody bag I know its worth investing in as its the easiest handbag to use with little children & not worry about leaving it anywhere.

Beauty product you could not live without?
My Kerastase Elixlir oil. I have really thick hair & it has changed my life!

Who is your hairdresser?
Dean Brindley at Cream in Cheltenham. I've been going to him for about two years now and I can hands down say he is the best hairdresser I've ever had. I always send friends to him – he is really creative, enthusiastic and just lovely to sit and chat too (which I all I want when I go to get my hair done!)

Favourite designers?
COS & my new favourite Cheap Monday for high street, COS for basics and clean tailoring and Cheap Monday for jeans. Designer, hmmm that's hard as it changes regularly, at the moment I'd say Celine.

Favourite kids' labels?
I love No Added Sugar for Aurora, and for Oscar I love the kids collection in COS.

Where do you hunt for fashion bargains?
There's an amazing antique market in my town on a Friday which is where I hunt for vintage hats, gloves, bags & jewellery. If I've been inspired by an era (I'm still on the 1920s after watching The Great Gatsby) it's perfect for finding accessories.

Favourite secret shop/website?
Vestiaire Collective. I look on their site at least two or three times a day, I'm addicted. It's such a clever idea. It's French so the bulk of their stuff comes from Paris so you constantly get vintage Chanel, Celine, Isabel Marant, you name it. And it's better then eBay as it gets checked once you have bought it (so you know you are not buying a fake) and then it gets sent to you. I bought a leather vintage YSL bag the other day for £35.

Desert island fashion item?
My red Illesteva glasses.

Visit Holly's fashion blog www.champersandwellies.com

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CLB ♥ KAREN BROST LONDON BABY

Every now and then a new label launches that has CLB’s tummy doing mini somersaults. Cue the new range of illustrated babygros by US-born, London-based designer, Karen Brost. Better known for her super-glam red-carpet frocks worn by Gwyneth Paltrow, Sharon Stone and Melanie Griffith, Brost has turned her fairytale-meets-rock aesthetic to baby wear. HOORAY! The result is these striking, distinctively illustrated one-pieces which we are sure will become arty heirlooms. Featuring stylised flamingo motifs, mini beefeater regalia and electric guitars. Launching in Liberty in mid-September, we are sure no chic little babe worth their Aden + Anais muslin will be seen without one.

From £45 at www.liberty.co.uk from Sept 19.

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CLB ♥ WHAT MOTHER MADE

Any child of the ‘70s, with a mother who was nifty with the sewing machine, will instantly feel a pang of nostalgia looking at the delightful offerings from What Mother Made. This East London-based kids' label, aimed at 0-8 year olds, is full of whimsical, offbeat pieces such as ankle-brushing smock dresses with Peter Pan collars, floral dungarees, high-waisted cords and gingham pantaloons (coo). Headed by designer Charlotte Denn, the team also offer a made-to-order service - you can commission your very own piece of on-off loveliness. These clothes are exactly the opposite to Gap Kids; individual, full of character and playfully eccentric. We adore them.

From £20 for a bonnet at www.whatmothermade.com. Also at In With the Old, 57 Amwell St, London EC1R 1UR; Broadway market, London E8 on Saturdays 11am-5pm, Abney Hall, Stoke Newington, London N16 on Sundays 11am-5pm.

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JUST LAUNCHED: MAYA ORGANIC WOODEN TOYS

The toy market is flooded with landfill-clogging plastic monstrosities (kids love ‘em, parents loathe ‘em) but there is always room for a new brand that delivers beautiful hand-crafted wooden toys. Maya Organic Wooden Toys include charming pull-along trains, spinning tops and rattles made from sustainable Hale wood trees which are not felled so they are able to grow back. How lovely is that? Produced in Channapatna, India, using traditional handicraft techniques and natural dyes such as turmeric and indigo, these toys are the kind you’ll be wanting to keep in the family for generations.

From £14 at Bob and Blossom, Igloo Kids and Kidsen.

www.mayaorganic.com

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JUST LAUNCHED: UNIQLO KIDS

If you look in the right places, stylish and affordable kidswear can be found on the high street – CLB’s current favourites include COS, Zara and H&M (it’s always handy when you can nip to the kids’ department after shopping for yourself don’t you find?). When we heard one of our best-loved grown-up brands, Uniqlo, was doing kidswear, we were pretty ecstatic. Glossy images aside, is it any good? As you might expect from Uniqlo, the shapes are simple and non-fussy and the prices easy on the wallet: unisex light down jackets in a selection of colours are £19.90, leggings with subtle prints and good shapes £5.90 and Heattech round-neck T-shirts from £5.90. In other words, a great place to stock up on your little tykes’ winter wardrobe essentials.

Uniqlo Kids is available now in store and online www.uniqlo.com.

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NEW RANGE! LIBERTY KIDS RANGE

We can’t quite believe it’s taken Liberty until now to launch its own range of Liberty-print kidswear. Other brands have been using the 1875-established store's glorious floral fabrics for years but now you can finally get in-house children's designs. The seventy-strong piece range for 0-8 year-olds includes dreamy rose-print frocks, £60, pretty scallop blouses, £45, and luscious Liberty print shirt for the boys, from £40. CLB’s personal favourite? A super-cool Yoshi-print jumper dress for £80. Little Lola has her eye on it...

Available at www.liberty.co.uk

 

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Play Room: Laura Marsden

Scarlett and Isla's inspiring play room

The textile designer and founder of Lettie Belle, Laura Anne Marsden, is mum to Scarlett Isabelle, 4, and Isla Rose, 1, and lives in St Albans. Here she reveals her secrets to creating the perfect play room.

What's the theme?
There isn’t a specific theme, I just wanted to create a fun, relaxing and stimulating environment for Scarlett  and Isla to play, read and be themselves. It was important to me that the room is easy to tidy up, and that they can help! I created many of the decorative details, which I think adds a unique feel to the room.

Did you have a starting point?
The starting point really was the fact we could have a play room in our new house, so I began by making fun pieces like the giant pompoms. The giant abacus and rainbow rocker inspired a very colourful feel. I love the Hello Dodo dinosaur prints, which are colourful and simple in design and are a favourite of Scarlett.

How involved in the design was your little one?
Well, the room is filled with their favourite things: dinosaurs, butterflies, owls and pink (in moderation) all feature. Scarlett loves to rearrange the toys on shelves, and she will let me know if she doesn’t like an element of the design!

Most inspired piece?
I love the daybed. I think it fits the room perfectly, even my husband agrees, after initially calling it a ‘garden bench’. The girls play on it all the time, we read stories and snuggle up on it and it’s a cosy, welcoming place to be.

Best bargain?
The vintage kids’ chair. I picked it up in a local vintage shop for about a fiver, it gets a lot of use!

Five shops/websites you used in the process?
Habitat, Ikea, Verbaudet, Next and Debbie Cripps for felt and felt shapes.

What aspect of the room does your child most enjoy?
I think they really enjoy having a space which is just theirs. They love having friends over to play in it, and get everything out to play. The serving hatch is also ‘the café’, and is a really fun, if retro part of the room, encouraging hours of imaginative play and funny voices!

How did you balance style with practicality?
I kept the storage units very simple and the décor on the walls, or where the kids can’t reach anything. The cushions are easy to wash and surfaces wipeable. The nicer wooden toys are displayed, and double up as decorative pieces, the plastic ones are in the storage boxes in units!

Top tips?
Don’t stick too closely to a theme, I think it’s nice to bring different ideas together to make a more interesting room. Go shopping in vintage/charity shops, there are some great finds there. If you have time, try crafting something with your child for the room. Make sure you like the finished room too, it’s easy to create a pink palace which the children love, but you can't stand.

Check out Laura's delightful felt cushions and other home wares for children at www.lettiebelle.com

Nifty storage solutions. Spot the Lettie Belle cushion.

Isla modelling the day bed. Love the giant abacus

Vintage train sets add character adorning simple shelves

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Chic Mum: Jasmine Guinness

 

Jasmine Guinness with gorgeous Ruby

Model, heiress and toy shop owner, Jasmine Guinness, 36, has three children, Elwood, Otis and Ruby and lives between Notting Hill and Wales

Greatest style challenge since having kids?
Finding things that fit and don't show up baby sick/food/muddy hand prints.

How long do you allow yourself to get ready?
For going out about 20-30 minutes and I do my make up in the car on the way.

Quick beauty tips and tricks?
Moisturiser, concealer and powder is better than foundation for me.

Your off-duty outfit, for when it's just you and the kids?
Jeans, hoodie and trainers.

Beauty product you could not live without?
Moisturiser, am trying out Avon's new Anew at the moment, I have high hopes! Also L'Occitane's rose oil mist is delicious.

Who is your hairdresser?
A friend whose house I go round to - I don't like salons much.

Health tip?
Drink lots of water and sleep I'm afraid.

Favourite fashion labels?
H&M, COS and GAP. Designers are harder to choose because there are so many great ones. I love Moschino, Bella Freud, Vivienne Westwood, Roland Mouret, Tara Scarlet, Rick Owens, Louis Vuitton, Richard Nicoll and of course Giles Deacon. A very eclectic mix and I'm sure I have left off lots more favourites, don't even start me on shoes and bags!

Favourite kids' labels?
H&M, GAP and Little Fashion Gallery. For baby presents of course I love our brand new own label Honeyjam baby knitwear.

Where do you hunt for fashion bargains?
I love TKMaxx but never get the time to go. Portobello Market is still an amazing treasure trove of beauties and bargains.

Favourite secret shop/website?
Apart from Honeyjam of course, my favourite secret shop is Lutyens and Rubenstein book shop (21 Kensington Park Road, W11 2EU).

Your ultimate style icons?
Lauren Bacall, Dita von Teese and Katharine Hepburn.

Desert island fashion item?
A hoodie to sleep in so I could keep bugs away from my head…and a bikini?

Honeyjam, 2 Blenheim Crescent, London W11 1NN (www.honeyjam.co.uk/0207 243 0449) Ladbroke Grove tube.

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