The best seat in the house

I love our Svan chairs! Plain and simple. After the Bean outgrew her high chair, we needed to find a seat that she could comfortably sit in at our dinner table. I wasn’t happy with the plastic booster seats — they would topple and were ultimately uncomfortable. The Bean would have been happier eating off the floor. Thankfully, after some research, I found the Svan chair and the rest is history. The Bean has had her Svan for the last 3 years and continues to grow with it. The story doesn’t end here because we bought a second one for our infant, whom I’ll nickname the Mini for now. The minute Mini was tall enough to peek over the tray, we popped her in.

The fantastic thing about the Svan is it’s compact size. We’ve got a narrow kitchen and I can tuck the Svan in a corner without the fridge door bumping into it. I only mention this because our big Graco high chair was like an elephant in the corner. It was a daily battle between the fridge and the high chair.

Let me make this easy and list out the Svan’s pros and cons:

Pros:
- The seat and footrest are easily adjustable using the supplied Allen key
- Very space conscious design
- The design blends well with modern or traditional decor
- Several different wood stains to choose from
- Several different colored seat cushions to choose from
- The seat cushions are machine washable!
- The baby tray can be purchased as an extra option
- Plastic tray cover that easily snaps on and off for washing
- Lightweight and easy to drag around

Cons:
- No wheels, so dragging could scratch floor (I added felt pads to mine)
- A little pricier than most high chairs but, think about it, you will use it for years. My 5.5 year old is still using hers
- I’m out of cons. It’s a great chair!

Trish Grantham

Trish Grantham is having an online art sale today. Unfortunately, at the moment, she’s having technical problems but the images should be up by today sometime. Keep checking back…

Lighting

I am a huge lighting fanatic. When creating a comfortable and inviting room, so much of the onus is on lighting. In my opinion, it can make or break a room. When we bought our house, the contractor had placed cheap Home Depot lights in every room. You can bet the first thing I did was scour the earth for lighting that would ultimately give each room personality and warmth. So, I thought I would focus on a handful of suitable lights for a child’s room. Unfortunately, most of them are quite girly (sorry boys). Please let me know if you’ve got any fantastic lights that would be suitable for our little guys…

Jonathan Adler’s Giraffe Lamp is an absolute classic and one that I couldn’t ignore. He’s the master of creating beautiful and whimsical pottery pieces. I salivate over this lamp and dream of putting it in my daughter’s room someday but I shudder to think that an airborne object could knock it over. Ah heck, it’s worth it though! Don’t you think?

Not new to the decor scene but a nice look nevertheless, West Elm’s Capiz circles pendant lamp comes in 2 sizes. It’s a subtle, classic design that quietly enhances a room. I actually have this light in one of my rooms and I love it’s simplicity. I must mention that one of it’s features, that took a little getting used to, was the soft chiming sound it makes when a breeze flows through. I’ve come to realize that the chime of capiz shells sure beats a CD of pre-recorded nature sounds…

Then there’s Anthropologie’s Hanging Garden Globe light that’s so delicate and girly. I don’t know about you but I would have felt like a princess if I’d had this light hanging above my head as a little girl. Can you imagine?

Chandeliers tend to be pretty consistent classics, so I set out to find a couple of worthwhile finds. The Five Arm Multi Leaf And Flower Chandelier is definitely on the punchier side whereas the Ivory Leaf and Flower chandelier is simple and pretty darn charming, I think.

I debated posting these Rose Lights because I’ve already gone overboard with girly, flowery lighting; however, because they’re string lights, I thought they were a nice twist on accent lighting. I’ll bet they make a lovely glow at night for the little girl that needs to keep a light on.

Chauney Peck

Chauney Peck is a local Seattle artist whose work is very fresh and fascinating — and perfect for a child’s room. She creates plywood cutout pieces and then stains them. Her current work focuses on how global warming is impacting our environment and small villages, particularly in Alaska. I recently visited Chauney’s studio and after hearing the inspiration behind “The house that fell into the ocean of Shishmaref” — I had to have it. Shishmaref is a village in North Alaska that is facing evacuation due to rising temperatures and melting the sea ice along the coast. Apprarently, entire village homes have fallen into the ocean, which is what this piece depicts. When I went to Chauney’s studio, I also brought the Bean so she could help me choose a piece of art — she really liked this one as well, so we took it home. Eventually, I’m going to put it in Bean’s room but I need to do some shuffling. So, in the meantime, it hangs in my tiny entry way on a dark brown wall — which really makes it pop.

Crochet!

I love to peruse Etsy every so often but have yet to buy anything; however, I’ve got plenty of items saved in my Favorites area. I’m always amazed at the creativity out there! I discovered these little crocheted hats by pdxbeanies about a month ago and have been thinking about them ever since. They also make adorable Mary Janes, also adorned with that sweet flower! And a LOT of different colors to choose from. Guess what I’m going to buy for my youngest daughter, CV, today…finally?

Toy recalls

With the news of Mattel recalling 9 million toys including Barbie and Polly Pockets — I can’t help but feel disturbed and even more disenchanted with cheaply manufactured toys. I’m tempted to throw a slew of toys and plastic figurines away that clutter my daughter’s room but I know the reprocussions of such a hasty act.

I’ve always been a big fan of wooden toys made by artisans. My mom is from Austria, so I grew up with unique toys and dolls that were hand made in Germany and surrounding countries. So, on the heels of the unfortunate recall, I thought I’d focus on some of the smaller artisans that make great toys that will undoubtedly stand the test of time and could eventually become a cherished heirloom for generations (well, I like to be optimistic at least).

Being from Seattle, I was thrilled to find a local company run by two inspiring moms. They started Nico & Zoe Toys in 2006 and their website is a hub of “uncommon and artisan made toys”.

Check out these adorable toys! I know Bean would love this sweet Wren Purse Sewing Kit. Handmade: Sparrowkids / London, UK

These sturdy wooden trucks called My Little Scoots, made in Vermont with non-toxic paints, are a sign of the times. Check out the recycling truck!

Then there’s the knit Socktopi! Handcrafted by Blackbird Fashions in Anacortes, Wa. My 1 year old could chew on Socktopi without me second guessing it’s safety. How great are those stripes!?

I find it comforting to know that there are fantastic toy artisans passionately crafting toys for our wee ones.

The Bean’s Room

What better way to officially kick off my Kids design blog than to feature my daughter’s bedroom. Bean’s room was a blank canvas when I started. I mulled over several ideas for months and months, yet as she got older, I realized she had already outgrown many of those ideas. I didn’t realize how quickly babies grow out of the baby stage and right into toddler stage and then onto little girl stage! I highly recommend thinking of a scaleable design — something that will grow with the child and can be flexible enough for change.

Art is one of my biggest weaknesses. My dad was a painter, so I got a taste of art as a child — our walls were filled with original paintings which I was aware of as a child but learned to appreciate as an adult. I want my children to appreciate the beauty of art and, who knows, they may even choose it as a career. So, I like to put whimsical pieces of original art in their room to inspire. I keep one wall open for their own pieces of original work that we rotate; although i need to do a better job at displaying it — using frames or art rails or…something other than what I’m currently doing (scotch tape).

I knew I wanted a wall that popped so i chose pink! Not too bubble gum, not too pastel…it’s salmony pink. It’s actually pretty comforting. who knew!? The framed pieces are original silk screened posters that I couldn’t resist. I never get tired of looking at them. We’ve also got the token fish…Sammy Rainbow.

These little clay figurines are about 2.5″ tall. They’re made by a local Seattle artist, Sean Beasley. Our dear friend, Rich, gave them to our girls as a Christmas gift. They’re so adorable, aren’t they? Bean loves her yellow guy. She occasionally asks me to take him down from his perch so she can play with him.

This is my girls’ art gallery wall. I painted the cherry blossom branch on a whim one afternoon while my husband was watching football. I never got around to embellishing with more blossoms which i illustrated in Adobe Illustrator and printed on sticky-back cloth paper. I simply printed, cut and stuck them to the wall. I need more flowers but haven’t found the spare time. Instead, I decorate the wall with my daughter’s art (cat mask shown). To the right of the picture is local Seattle artist, Amy Hevron’s, paintings. We’ve got several of her little works of art scattered about the house.

Close-up of “Fox” by Amy Hevron

This is a mini art wall above my daughter’s bed. The piece to the left is an etching my husband drew as a child. His mom miraculously kept it and I framed it because it’s so adorable! Next to that are 2 pieces by the talented Portland artist, Trish Grantham. The two teeny pieces (panda and bee) are hers as well. The framed piece above them is by an unknown artist that I received as a gift.

This is the window bench that I hired a crafty carpenter to build. The drawers are filled with toys that I can quickly stash when it’s time to clean up. The cushion is a simple slab of foam from a local source and I went to Seattle’s fabulous Great Jones Home store and purchased the striped fabric and stapled it over the foam. It was a mini DIY project that didn’t take long at all.

You’ll notice two black rectangles on my drawers. Those are pieces of fiber board that i had my dad cut to size because while drilling holes for the drawer handles, I completely mis-drilled and had to cover my mistake. I painted the fiber board pieces in chalkboard paint; however, my daughter never uses them to draw on. Someday I’ll get those drawers fixed! (at least I keep telling myself).

Always room to grow

I’ve mulled over a career change for the past several years. The complicated part to all of this is that I have a good paying job, insurance benefits and it’s in a creative field (UI Design). I’m doing what I went to school for, so I shouldn’t have anything to complain about, right? Well, if only I didn’t feel like I’ve sold a part of my soul to the corporate world over the years. I’ve become restless and have noticed my right brain wandering — trying to unearth the original roots of where my creative fervor began. I’ve dreamed of designing furniture, room accents, you name it! but having a job and children will hinder the amount of time left in a day. One needs to get a good nights sleep! (Although I’m finding that blogging doesn’t get me to bed any earlier).

So, this is where my story begins and why I’ve decided to write a blog…

When I became pregnant with my first daughter, whom I’ll affectionately refer to as The Bean, I became instantly obsessed over finding interesting and modern furniture, art, toys, sheets, curtains, etc. to create the ultimate child’s surroundings. I couldn’t bear to shop at the standard Babies’r'Us for the crib, highchair, stroller, etc. but really had little choice in the matter because, at the time (5.5 years ago), there weren’t many options out there. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one thinking this because shortly thereafter, modern kids furniture began sprouting up all over the web. It was nearly an overnight explosion. I expressed to my husband, over and over again, that I was compelled to open a modern kids furniture store, partially knowing that there wasn’t a chance in hell that I was going to lead a life in retail. Instead, I left it up to the gutsy entrepreneurs out there to pave the way . Now, I simply obsess, research and aspire to have a thoughtfully functional, simple, modern and beautiful surrounding for my daughters. I’ve partially succeeded but there’s plenty of work to be done! Any parent knows that it’s a constant evolution. So, onward, I will research and pool together the glorious goods that exist in our world today that can enhance a child’s surroundings. I can only hope that my aspirations for creating an inspiring and beautiful environment will fuel the creative minds of my children and instill happy memories…afterall, isn’t that what it’s all about?