Dottie’s Kraft Korner: Online Fabric Store Round Up

Dottie's Kraft Korner, , , ,

As a little mental health break in the middle of a super stressy day at work, I like to take an online stroll through the aisles of my favorite fabric stores with visions of sweet and easy sundresses for my little Peach.

Earlier this week I made my usual first stop is my tried and true favorite, ReproDepot only to see this sign:

SAY WHA???

Well, after weeping into my keyboard for a few minutes, I remembered that there are other wonderful online fabric stores out there. Don’t get me wrong–I love me a stroll through Joann’s and Beverly’s but sometimes I want to spread my wings and look at those harder to find fabrics by amazing designers that you can usually find in smaller independent boutique stores like the wonderous Purl in Soho or Bolt in Portland.  Here are my top online fabric stores:

Alewives Fabrics is a wonderful gem of a store that I would be my first stop on my road trip through Maine (next stop: to get a lobster roll on the way.)

Make sure to check out the Alewives favorites.  I particularly love their fat quarter selections–great combos that would be so utterly divine as a little dress or pair of pants.

This is one bar I never mind bellying up to! The Fabric Bar!

Beautifully curated fabric and some amazingly clever DIY kits such as this You Sew Sassy Tessa Dress in Olivia. Damn, that’s genius.  And she has some brilliant and very hard to find designer fabrics as well as a swell selection of fabulous twills that would just pop even a store-bought outfit up to eleven. And pssst… there’s even a sales section that is chockablock with good sales right now. Sweet!

Sew Mama Sew is one of my favorites, just for the name alone.

But the site also offers some brilliant patterns and much needed tutorials such as this one focusing on what all those different feet for your sewing machine are for.

And blessings of blessings–they even have an online forum of like minded sewing ladies getting help on some of the most popular patterns around.

When I’m craving Japanese (fabric that is) I head over straight to Superbuzzy.

Oh, this site kills me.

It has seven different matryoshka doll patterned fabrics. Seven! Unbelievable. You come for the fabric but stay for all the other goodies like the Zakka & gifts section. like the ecrulat sewing kit. Bookmark this page for stocking stuffers–you’ll thank me later.

(BTW: According to Wikipedia, Zakka is a fashion and design phenomenon that has spread from Japan throughout Asia. The term refers to everything and anything that improves your home, life and appearance. It is often based on household items from the West that are regarded as kitsch in their countries of origin, but it can also be Japanese goods, mainly from the fifties, sixties, and seventies.)

My last recommendation should come as no surprise to anyone–Etsy. Etsy has too many amazing fabric sellers, but right now I’m crushing on a Fabric Outlet, who I believe has the last half yard of Anna Maria Horner oilcloth.  Oh the baby goodies I could make with that!  And this seller also has a quite snazzy selection of fat quarter bundles for you to run your e-hands all over.

And what are yours? Let’s share!

OH! Pssst…. We are going to extend our wonderful Mini-Me Paper Doll giveaway a bit longer–you have until tonight at midnight to enter. And remember you can enter again if you tweet it or mention it on Facebook. Saweet!

Pretty Little Mobiles

Etsy Love, Widdle Wednesdays

Oh Wednesday, I love you so because it’s time for:

And let’s spend some time in the nursery today, shall we?  What is a nursery without a sweet little mobile for baby to stare up at in wonder? And there are soooo many good ones out there that you can find the perfect one to match your nursery decor.  And did you know that mobiles are good for your baby? Not only can they helplittle ones’ eyes to focus, but it keeps them on their backs, which is believed to help prevent SIDS. See—design can save lives!

So, let’s take a look at some of the mobile marvels out there today!

You just can’t help but love a good modern mobile. It’s a great investment that extends past the toddler years to college and beyond. Especially if it is a gorg as this wooden one of abstract birds from Bookhou.

The Peach is obsessed with kitties. But wouldn’t any baby be if they had this glorious kitty cat mobile made by Modern Kiddo fav klt:works? Nuff said. Actually I have more to say. I love how Kristien (the K of klt:works) uses her sewing machine stitching as cat whiskers. It’s purrfect! (Sorry, I couldn’t help mahself!)

You all are familiar with the wonderful Bla bla plushies like the owl, the mermaid or even the little kitty.  Well, take a gander at this bit of Blabla awesomeness: the Blabla Grand Chicken mobile. This is just so deliciously cozy and yummy and oh, I love it!

It’s just too much. One chicken has a scarf on.  Another a little hat. Hey wait, is that chicken wearing a headscarf? Be still my heart. Would it be wrong to buy this for myself and hang it in my office at work?

Petit collage mobiles are hugely popular especially the owl one. But check out this wonderful folk farm friends mobile by our friends at Petit Collage. I particularly love the Swedish horse.

Let your little ones have dreams of little bunny Foo Foo hopping through the forest with this dear bunny mobile. The different grays are just wonderful and add a little bit of the abstract into something so sweet.

That bunny mobile is a Flensted, a Danish brand that has been around for 50 plus years and is considered by many to be the grand dame of mobiles (after Calder, natch!) Check out these popular Flensted mobiles. The fish is a classic that would look great anywhere in your house as well as in the nursery.  I love the chicken one too.  You can purchase these Flensted mobiles at BabyGeared.

I love Plan Toys and was delighted to hear that the company has a great wooden mobile that continues the company’s goal of creating beautiful toys made of  natural, chemical free recycled rubberwood and finished with non-toxic water based dye.  And the primary colors are just the ticket to keep your little one staring up.

Portland artist, Heather Frasier makes these floaty bits of goodness using cut shapes that are strung on clear, sturdy string and hang from a thin, clear acrylic disc so they just float over the baby’s head. You can find these  Heather Frasier mobiles here.

As you know we love Etsy something fierce here at Modern Kiddo—and they didn’t disappoint when I went mobile hunting. Like this great bird mobile that uses real branches for the wee cloth birds to sit on.

Tissue pom pom mobiles are wonderful above the crib. They add this great otherworldly feeling and are a good choice for nervous mamas that don’t like to hang anything remotely heavy over their little one’s cribs.

I love this mod trees mobile.  The Etsy seller, Molly Anne Make also created a matching set of goodies that could extend the cuteness of the mod trees throughout the nursery.

But of course this is the tip of the iceberg for mobiles.  I used a vintage Irmi one and it broke my heart when I found the Peach standing in her crib manhandling the heck out of it. Naughty girl!  Sigh. I still might hang it over her bed because I love it so.

Vintage Tuesday Toy Time: The Dreamy World of Dakin.

Best of Alix, Vintage Toys + Fun Stuff, ,

Hurray for vintage tuesday! Hey, how about those crazy toddler road map pants Dottie found?? I love ’em for a summer vacation car trip, that’s for sure. So today I thought it would be fun to take a look at one of my favorite vintage toys—the Dakin Dream Pet. Dream Pets are wee little stuffed animals that are like cuddly cartoon characters. They all have amazing personalities and great little details—like hats, handerchiefs and more. These little suckers are super cute and make for adorable little room accents, but they have an equally interesting history too!


image: Kitsch and Curious.

Back in 1957, R. Dakin & Company began importing electric toy trains from Japan. As they unpacked the trains, they made the unusual discovery that the boxes were packed with several small, quirky stuffed animals—apparently the Japanese workers had handcrafted these whimsical little animals from scraps of velveteen and used them as padding to protect the trains on their long trip. Unexpectedly, these sawdust-filled little critters became more popular than the trains themselves! The workers called them “Dream Pets” because they said they could make any kind of animal they could dream up and the name stuck. The people at Dakin weren’t fools and quickly realized that they should be producing these sweet animals instead of trains! Let’s check some of ’em out:





Images: The awesome Susie and Heidi from Make Something Happy. (Check their Blog out. It rocks!)
Image: PinkyJane
Image: KitschCafe
Image: Lollygomez

Images: Tiramisue
Image: Nascar Trophy Wife

These little guys are so full of personality! The best part is, they can still be found very affordably (we’re talking $5-7 a pop, perhaps a little more for rarer ones). They would look adorable on a book shelf,  or even a display shelf. You can also try hanging them on a little framed shadow box on the wall! Yup….these little cuties are certainly dreamy.

Vintage Kiddo: Retro Round-Up

Kiddo Style: Vintage

Thanks everyone for letting us gush about Nate Berkus. He’s so dreamy and that design–hoo boy!  But you know we couldn’t NOT do a vintage kiddo round up this week! Because there were way too many goodies out there not to one.

What with Father’s Day so close, I had to start the vintage kiddo fashion show with this Daddy’s boy shirt. Imagine your little one wearing this while carrying a trade of homemade waffles. Mmm… Waffles. I love the little white belt detailing–mimicking Daddy’s leisure suit, natch!

As a nod to Alix’s dirdnl chic refernce on Friday’s wonderful kiddo, we have this darling vest and shoe combo featuring some stunning embroidery. I know those shoes will turn into one lucky little one’s  favorite holiday slippers.

You know I can never get enough of vintage prep–for myself or a kiddo. This wonderful whale t-shirt will certainly inspire your kiddo’s inner Buffy.  Matching Bermuda bag not included.

Forget what Barnum and Bailey said–clowns and kids aren’t the best pairing normally.  The exaggerated make up comes across to many kiddos as more scary than jolly. Or for one kid, perhaps the fear came from wearing this  scary clown romper.  The X’s for eyes. And sneaking around the side to scare you like that? Not cool, Bozo. Not cool at all. But fashion-wise–AWESOME.

With summer bringing the blazing sunshine (seriously bringing it–like I got a sunburn just sitting in the window for 45 minutes) this little matching gingham pinafore and bloomers is perfect for running through the sprinkler in.  There is nothing better than baby bottom, but cover it in some bloomers and I just might faint.

I think it’s time for saddle shoes to come back–shouldn’t they if they are as cute as these blue and tan saddle shoes? I would love a pair in my size.

Now this little summer shirt is charming as they get, but then you see the wonderful applique of a brave little duckie manning quite the sassy schooner.  With a sailor hat. Followed by a seal/whale/yellow fish thing that can walk on water. I love the idea of using blue ric-rac for water. Genius.

Who doesn’t love a good pair of pajamas–and let’s just up the cuteness level by putting cowboys on ’em.  And bonus points for the fringe print because I’m thinking real  fringe would be a bit uncomfy on pajamas. Don’t you?

You know I love a good pattern. So check out this great map fabric shirt and pants combo.  Wouldn’t that top look adorable over a long sleeved shirt with jeans on your little one?  Truly, it’s the perfect outfit to wear on a road trip!  Lost? Just look at the shirt!

I know most of our vintage pieces are are for the toddler set, so we get very excited when we find a nice piece in a larger size–like this snazzy size 10 Olympic Sports Jacket.  Oh Canada! I know your glory will live on in this  jacket.

These little knitted one pieces are so great for winter-time.  And this camel knitted one piece is particularly yummy.  Camels and pyramids aren’t your normal fair for baby fashion, but they certainly work here!  Let your little one crawl like and Egyptian in this one. Sorry I couldn’t help myself on that one…

And of course, stay tuned for more vintage goodness thanks to our friend the lovely and talented Miss Alix around noonish or so!

We Interrupt this Vintage Monday— for NATE the GREAT.

Kiddo Rooms, Things We Like, , ,


So listen. I know we usually post our favorite vintage goodies on Monday…but today we have something a little different for you. Hello cutie pie, it’s NATE BERKUS DAY!  I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned this, but I loooove me some Oprah. I tape it religiously and watch it every night. The ever-adorable Nate has always been one of my top favorite Oprah “pals.” Just in case you’ve been under a rock, he is one of Lady O’s friends (she always calls him Mr. Cutie Pie) and is a fabulous interior designer. He also loves doggies, seems incredibly sweet and has the best guy hair on TV. Just sayin’. A few weeks ago he had a tearful farewell on the show as Oprah sent him off to start his own show—The Nate Berkus Show, which will be premiering September 13th. The ladies over at Moggit (a hysterical blog, kinda like the Fug Girls but for home interiors) approached The Nate Show via Twitter and said, “Hey, you should do a show where the entire audience is filled with bloggers!” And thus, NATE BERKUS DAY was born!

We’re not a traditional Design Blog over here at Modern Kiddo, but we love chatting about cool kid’s rooms and giving ya’ll fun ideas for little spaces. We are super excited to be a part of Nate Day and we would looove to see more of Nate’s great ideas applied to cool rooms for kiddos. (As an aside, I’m also super impressed that Nate and his show’s producers are listening to bloggers!! Woot!)

One of the things I’ve always loved about Nate’s work was his eclectic mix of styles. His rooms are never too fussy or formal but warm, modern, chic and LIVEABLE. He also has a great appreciation for vintage and always throws in fun eclectic pieces to give his rooms a twist. Check out his own kitchen below and that rad vintage drafting table. I love it!

I think one of my favorite Nates designs was when he redid Katie Lee Joel’s townhouse. I saw it in Domino magazine and it was so sunny, hip and inviting. I looooved it:

But really, let’s just cut to the chase and talk about Katie Lee Joel’s bathroom. More specifically THE TUB and THAT chandelier! Hellllllllo glass of wine and quiet time for mama!!!

Gorgeous, huh. So Nate has a few simple rules when it comes to decorating and we thought it would be fun to take a look at some of our favorites and see how our kiddo rooms stack up!

NATE TIP #1: Hang something other than artwork on your walls, like antique objects or your favorite collectibles.

We love this tip! Hanging vintage dresses, aprons, record albums—even the records themselves!—is a great way to bring personality to your little one’s room.


See more of Georgia’s adorable room here.

NATE TIP #2: Live bold, but start small.

Another great piece of advice. Don’t be afraid to experiment, but try it out in small doses. Remember this amazing grey and green nursery from Virginie in Montreal? Who would have thought that grey would work for a baby nursery? Yet it does! And the big bold pops of color come in small doses, making this a totally warm, sweet but utterly modern space!

NATE TIP #3: Don’t be Afraid to Use the Good Stuff

While the original tip probably referred to things like grandma’s good china, we interpret it to mean, don’t be afraid to have grown up “nice” things in your child’s room. We’re not talkin’ your prized collection of razer sharp Japanese katana swords, of course, but we think grown up art or and even grown up furniture (like a mid-century dresser) can look dandy—and totally appropriate!



See more of Wolfie’s funky space here.

And finally, NATE TIP #4: Bookcases aren’t just for books anymore.

This is another super fave of ours. Books are such an important part of a child’s room (yay for storytime!) but I’m also a huge fan of displaying fun toys and mementos on shelves too. One of my All Time Favorite executions of this is Kristin’s incredible converted dollhouse changing table in her little boy Sayer’s room. Some of the shelves house books but many are home for fun items like vintage Fisher-Price toys and modern favorites. (Plus she has that awesomely clever book wall over there…)

If you never saw this post, do yourself a favor and check it out here!

So that’s our take on Nate the Great. We heart you Nate! Good luck with your new venture and HURRAY for recognizing design/style bloggers and giving us a shot at being in your audience! *MWUAH! from your fans in San Francisco!*

Be sure to tune in when The Nate Berkus Show airs September 13th, 2010 on ABC.


PS. Special thanks to Julieann of CreateGirl who dreamed up the idea for NATE DAY and got the attention of Mr. Berkus to begin with!

PPS. Vintage Monday is being pushed to tomorrow so look forward to a VINTAGE TUESDAY! We’ve got our usual Retro Round Up of fun vintage kiddo clothing as well as a Vintage Toy post that is not only fun but will give you some more cool decorating ideas for your sweet kiddo’s room!