The Fashionable Bambino

Angel Baby’s Toy Bag

Theresa Gould — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 17:00:51 +0000

Fashionable Media Review Policy: The featured product for this review was provided to me, at no cost, by the manufacturer or representing PR agency for the sole purpose of product testing. Opinions expressed are my own and are not influenced by monetary compensation.

This is a cute toy bag from Angel Baby Bedding. It comes as an optional piece to the Baby Carriage set. It is 16.6″ x 11.8″ and is on sale for $36.00. It is made out of soft Egyptian cotton, which is known for its durability and is machine washable.

To be honest, I have not had a chance to use it to it’s fullest potential because we do not have a crib set up and since it is winter still we haven’t been using our stroller much either. I haven’t decided if I would give it to a friend who just had a baby girl or keep to use on our stroller. It simply ties on and will hold a small diaper bag full of toys and books. It would be handy for short outings or walks when a full diaper bag isn’t necessary.

This toy bag would accessorize a baby’s nursery, if it was tied to the crib rails to hold things you didn’t want baby to sleep with. Or as I stated it could be tied to the back of a stroller or even a rocking chair should someone choose that as a place to hang it. I was thinking of a convenient place to store books and toys for a toddler while nursing a baby. Depending upon the rocking chair, it might not be the most practical. Just a thought off the top of my head here as the night draws to a close at my house and I finish my posts for the evening.

For more information and pricing on bedding sets, please visit, www.ababybedding.com

Feeding Penny Pig

Theresa Gould — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 12:00:58 +0000

As parents we all know how important money management is in life. We are also aware that most public school curriculum does not include instruction on how to manage money. Feeding Penny the Pig is a children’s book written to help parents begin teaching their children about money, how to be responsible with it and their chores.

Feeding Penny the Pig is a well written book and a whimsical children’s story. Our younger ones enjoyed it. It was a bit childish for our older ones, but that is to be expected from a book geared towards kids 4-8 years old. We all thought it was a cute story to help teach small children about money. There are so few money books on the market that it definitely fills a void.

This book was written by Jeannine Fox, who is a Certified Public Accountant and a grandmother who is concerned with the future of her grandkids. She says, “Our country is paying the price now for overspending, credit abuse and other irresponsible money management. If we teach kids at a young age to save money, we can prevent these problems from happening again.”

Are we doing our part to prepare our children for the future?

Mrs. Fox’s website is www.mimisfunhouse.com and her book is available at major bookstores for about $14.95.

Celebrity Mom Shares Her Secrets for Getting Kids to Love Their Veggies

Theresa Gould — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:00:24 +0000

We all know that some children struggle more than others in eating their vegetables. Yesterday celebrity Mom, Jennie Garth, was a part of an event called Veggie Central, which is a special event geared towards getting children to do what seems impossible to parents at times – To eat veggies. This celebrity mom has partnered with the makers of Hidden Valley® Salad Dressing and the Love Your Veggies campaign to share her love and secrets for getting kids to love their veggies. As a mom of three daughters, Jennie knows how hard it can be to get kids to the foods that are good for them.

Veggie Central was held at Grand Central Station in Manhattan. During the event, Jennie Garth interacted with school aged children as they dug their hands into dirt to plant seeds, demonstrated a recipe for them, as well as other activities planned for the day. These activities included many veggie-focused activities, including veggie trivia, ranch fountains, a veggie forest and plenty of fresh vegetables to snack on.

Each month Jennie Garth hosts webepisodes of the “Garden Party” on Hidden Valley’s website. I think this is such a great campaign and am sure many parents will appreciate these tips and ideas to help them get their children to eat more healthy!

Here is a link to a couple of clips from the Veggie Central event:

www.MultiMmediaNewsCenter.com/hiddenvalley/veggie-central

Other Resources:

http://www.loveyourveggies.com/

http://www.hiddenvalley.com/

Ionic Bulb Review

Theresa Gould — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:00:15 +0000

The Ionic Bulb is an energy saving light bulb that has a built-in air purifier. Here is what their website says:

Unlike ordinary bulbs, the Ionic Bulb removes airborne pollutants and odors, making stale indoor air as fresh and healthy as outdoor air. A single bulb works in a 100 square foot area eliminating:
•Dust
•Odors
•Allergens
•Pollen
•Pet Dander
•Smoke

I received an Ionic Bulb and was excited to try it out. After using it for the past 2-3 weeks, I have to say that we haven’t noticed any significant results. We don’t smoke or have any posts, so it isn’t like it would clean the air of those toxins. However, we do have a problem with moisture collecting on and around our windows. We were hoping that between running our diffuser with essential oils and the Ionic Bulb we would notice a difference in our air quality. Unfortunately, as I stated we didn’t see any difference. I’m hoping for long term results over time.

The Ionic Bulb may be purchased at www.NewIonicBulb.com

Baby Wearing, Co-Sleeping and Attachment Parenting

The Fashionable Housewife — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:36:58 +0000

Courtesy of www.inhabitots.com

It turns out attachment parenting isn’t scandalous at all, though some still consider it to be. In my opinion, it’s the healthiest form of parenting for a child and it’s how I am raising my second son, Daniel. But, I have still received criticism from friends and even some family members for my choice.

Consider the history of attachment parenting…

During World War Two when Americans were stationed in Okinawa, they discovered a very curious phenomenon. At the time, the people of Okinawa had no known incidence of mental health problems. Depression and anxiety disorders were unknown. This was a very happy culture, indeed. Americans took a closer look at how children were being raised, and they observed that babies were worn by mothers, and slept in mother’s beds, and were always with siblings or older family members. No one was ever alone and affection was liberally given to all children of all ages.

This observation coincided with a study by the WHO. In 1950, the World Health Organization sponsored a study called “Maternal Care and Mental Health”. This is the study which promoted the now-famous Harry Harlow to experiment with Rhesus monkeys in finding out the effects of maternal separation on infants.

The experiment went as follows:

“In Harlow’s classic experiment, two groups of baby rhesus monkeys were removed from their mothers. In the first group, a terrycloth mother provided no food, while a wire mother did, in the form of an attached baby bottle containing milk. In the second group, a terrycloth mother provided food; the wire mother did not. It was found that the young monkeys clung to the terrycloth mother whether or not it provided them with food, and that the young monkeys chose the wire surrogate only when it provided food. Whenever a frightening stimulus was brought into the cage, the monkeys ran to the cloth mother for protection and comfort, no matter which mother provided them with food.” (1)

The study continued:

“When the monkeys were placed in an unfamiliar room with their cloth surrogate, they clung to it until they felt secure enough to explore. Once they began to explore, they occasionally returned to the cloth mother for comfort. Monkeys placed in an unfamiliar room without their cloth mothers acted very differently. They froze in fear and cried, crouched down, or sucked their thumbs. Some even ran from object to object, apparently searching for the cloth mother, as they cried and screamed. Monkeys placed in this situation with their wire mothers exhibited the same behavior as the monkeys with no mother.” (1)

One of the most important findings of this study was that it contradicted the traditional advice of child-reading at the time, which was to limit physical contact with the mother. It was believed that too much physical contact between infant and mother would result in spoiled and needy children who would never find independence as autonomous beings.

It was also thought at the time that feeding was the most important factor in mother-child bonding, not physical affection. And this was also a time when formula companies were pressing mothers to formula feed and not even consider breast-feeding their infants. Breast feeding was considered vulgar by upwardly mobile society and formula was considered as the logical advance in feeding and it was also considered to be more nutritious than mother’s milk.

[Article by Sarah Polyakov]

Recycled Picture Frame from five ACCESSORIES

Theresa Gould — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:00:57 +0000

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I received the wood bracelet from five ACCESSORIES from someone for work I did for them, plus I also received a couple of recycled picture frames. These are native to Chicago – handmade by a StreetWise (a Chicago organization) vendor out of recycled street rubbish. The vendor, Glenn Hughes, uses a plain pine frame and attaches the old ticket stubs with glue to create this unique picture frame. I like mine. I have one on my desk with a photo of our children in it.

Photos compliments of Theresa Gould.

The insert of the frame has not only five’s logo, but a photo of Glenn and a little bio about him. It gives the product a personal touch and truly makes one want to support a socially conscious business like five ACCESSORIES because of all the good they are doing in a world that is hurting during this economic downturn.

From five’s website:

A unique Chicago find that makes a perfect green gift. Made from refuse collected from the streets of Chicago, cleaned and handmade by the vendors of StreetWise. Each item comes with the picture and story of the individual who made it. Holds a 4x 6 picture. 15% of sales goes back to StreetWise as a fundraiser. Picture by Neal Neo. $15
This picture frame is a part of five's newly added line called Off The Street. For more information, please visit five’s Giving Back page and StreetWise.

Wood Bracelets from five ACCESSORIES
40% Off Cristina V. Jewelry for Limited Time!
Eco Friendly Designer Handbags from five ACCESSORIES
Episencial Skincare for Babies and Children and the Very Hungry Caterpillar Collection
PLAYATHON for Haiti – Let Kids Give Back

Exquisite New Furnishings & Bedding From Oilo

Theresa Gould — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:00:29 +0000

I love hearing about new products and checking out new websites as I have the time. If you are newly pregnant and are looking for ideas for your nursery, Oilo might just have some for you. I’ve only had a baby nursery once and that was nearly 14 years ago, so you know the options available, as well as styles have changed so much! The items you will find at Oilo are bright, modern, but yet I thought some of Oilo has an old fashioned look to it too, but maybe that’s just me, since I’ve been around a while . Either way it is fun to share this info with you. Hope all you expectant mamas can glean from it. Without further adieu, here’s the new info just in about Oilo, all the red lettering are links taking you to the appropriate page on Oilo’s website:

Collection Offers Custom Designed Look and Quality Without Designer Price

Oilo™, a manufacturer of designer inspired contemporary nursery décor and home furnishings products, makes its debut with two bedding collections, faux leather gliders and a range of coordinated lighting and pillows.

Founded by Annalisa Thomas, a former art director and graphic designer and her mother, Dorte Anderson, a former interior designer with more than 25 years of custom interior design expertise, Oilo offers the modern mom a fresh new approach to style-setting nursery décor. The Oilo collection includes chic baby bedding and designer home furnishings. Thomas founded the company while looking for the perfect baby bedding for her first child after discovering a void in the category for high quality designer level modern baby décor without the designer price tag.

OILO INFANT BEDDING

Two sets make their debut in Oilo’s infant bedding collection:

Wheels features clean, circular mod designs. Made from 100 percent fine woven cotton. The bedding set includes a zippered side bumper cover (foam filled for standing durability), tailored skirt and fitted cotton percale crib sheet. Wheels will be available in Cobalt. Recommended Retail three-piece crib set $399.

Modern Berries blends style and softness for a chic, sophisticated look for baby’s room.

Made from 100 percent fine woven cotton. The bedding set includes a zippered side cover bumper cover (foam filled for standing durability), tailored skirt and fitted cotton percale crib sheet. Modern Berries will be available in Spring Green and Tree Trunk Brown (note: Tree Trunk Brown will debut Spring 2010). Recommended retail three-piece crib set $399.

Individual items in each bedding set are also available for purchase separately.

Two additional bedding set offerings, Raindrops (Aqua) and Cobblestone (Taupe) will make their debut in Spring 2010.

OILO GLIDER COLLECTION

Oilo’s faux leather glider collection is a beautiful and comfortable seating choice for the nursery or any other room in the home. Features include a unique parallel rocking motion and tall back for maximum comfort. Coordinating plush pouf footrests are available as well. Three leather glider styles are offered: Gus, Penelope and Cohen. Available in Spring Green or White. Recommended retail $1,299 (White), $1,599 (Spring Green).

OILO LIGHTING

Brighten up baby’s nursery and any room in a home with a perfect light from Oilo’s lighting collection. Lampshades can be customized from Oilo’s pattern and color palette to perfectly match a room’s décor. The lights feature a sheet of white acrylic which encloses and diffuses the light to cast a soft glow. Two lighting styles are offered, Double Decker and Cylinder. Recommended retail Double Decker $199, Cylinder $149.

OILO PILLOW COLLECTION

The perfect accessory to add a soft decorative touch to your glider, nursery and any room featuring Oilo’s distinctive designs. Oilo’s 100 percent woven cotton pillows are available in a full range of the company’s signature patterns and colors. Available in three sizes: 20” x 20”, 16” x 16” and 13” x 17”. Recommended retail: $39-$49.

Though not an actual word, Oilo’s name is derived from a combination of Hawaiian words, “lio” (small sprout) and “ho’oilo” (the cool, rainy season). The Oilo name personifies the image of relaxing and enjoying the serenity of life.

The Oilo Collection will be available at retailers nationwide, select online retailers and online at www.oilostudiocom. Special order items (including gliders and poufs) will have a 6-8 week lead time for production plus 7 days shipping. Custom lighting orders have a 2 week lead time. All other items will ship immediately. Oilo products can be customized as long as they are requested within the company’s offered fabric options. All items in the Oilo Collection are made in the USA.

About Oilo

Alpine, UT-based Oilo, LLC was founded in 2009 by mother and daughter team Annalisa Thomas and Dorte Anderson. The Oilo Collection includes style-setting high quality designer inspired nursery décor, baby bedding and home furnishings. For more information visit www.oilostudio.com.

Wood Bracelets from five ACCESSORIES

Theresa Gould — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:00:12 +0000

I recently just received a Triangular Solid Wood Bracelet from five ACCESSORIES. It wasn’t in exchange for a review. It was sent to me for some work that I did for someone.

The Triangular Solid Wood Bracelet is larger than I am use to, but it fits perfectly and is comfortable to wear (wearing mine right now!). It is well made with elastic cording and appears that it would fit most wrist sizes.

Here is the description from five’s website:

One of our newest solid wood bracelets from Bali. This 1 1/2 inch wide bracelet is made of triangular shaped solid wood bamboo pieces. Perfect for the tribeca look!! On SALE from $15 to $10.

It would be a great little thank you gift or a gift for teens, moms etc. I know my daughters really like it too!

Photos compliments of Theresa Gould

five ACCESSORIES is an eco friendly company whose mission is to establish income generating programs to create jobs for people, to donate a portion of their sales to charitable causes, and to foster the use of sustainable materials in fashion. They donate $5.00 from the sale of every handbag back to the country it originated from, which goes to support local school children or the artisans that made the handbag. 15% of the sales of accessories is given back as well.

You may be interested in checking out five ACCESSORIES on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about their charitable work and donations.

Clever Spring Cleaning Tips

Theresa Gould — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:00:48 +0000

Clever Spring Cleaning Tips
Karen Eschebach, Clever Container co-founder
www.CleverContainer.com

1. Out with the Cold in with the Hues! It’s time to clean out our closets and get ready for spring and summer. Get yourself into a mindset that you are setting up a boutique just for you. The clothes in your closet should be the clothes you wear and love. They also should be the clothes that fit you. If you’re hanging clothes that are too large or too small, box them up for now and see where you are size wise next year. If the clothes are still too large or too small, don’t peek inside the boxes, just donate them and take the tax write off. Try putting outfits together and taking digital pictures of them. Make sure you include accessories such as jewelry, shoes, purses, belts and scarves. Print off the digital photos; hole-punch each one and slide an “o-ring” through them. Hang the “o-ring” from a hook or hanger and you’ll always have ideas on how to get out of the house quickly and stylish.

2. Go Vertical! Many people forget to use wall, closet, and door space. We’re so used to binning everything that sometimes it makes sense to just hang it up. For instance, hang pegs and hooks up to hang coats, backpacks, totes, leashes, and purses. If used in a family room, these same hooks could hang your lightweight blankets your family cozies up to or in the bathroom your everyday towels. Also, using vertical storage in any closet whether hanging from a hanger or attached to a wall will keep things nice and tidy and out of sight.

3. In the kitchen do some clever clustering. Cluster all the tools necessary to make lunches each day or cluster all the accessories required to do baking such as bowels, mixers, measuring cups and baking soda. This will save you time by not having to walk across the kitchen or open up numerous cabinets and drawers.

4. Set a timer while decluttering and do not accept any interruptions during this time. Let the phone go to voicemail, don’t answer the email that just came in, and avoid all distractions that don’t pertain to your decluttering effort.

5. Organizing a room full of stuff can be overwhelming to say the least. Break the job down into smaller pieces. I prefer to work in a clockwise manner. I enter the door and immediately break the room down into twelve sections representing one o’clock through 12 o’clock. I begin by organizing and cleaning just the 12 o’clock to 1 o’clock space. If I can’t move forward that day, I keep the area I already organized neat and tidy and I know exactly where I need to begin the next time I’m able to conquer this task.

6. Not only do we put away our winter clothes, but our coats, hats and mittens need to be stored as well. First off, make sure everything is washed or dry cleaned so that you are ready for next year. Sort through your coat closet and see if there is anything you can donate. I store all my hats, mittens and scarves in a clear, plastic 3-drawer container. Each person has their own drawer for this purpose. I either keep the drawer in the bottom of the coat closet or I store it in the basement. Coats can stay in the closet if there is room. Consider storing the coats in hanging storage bags to keep them fresh and out of the way. The quickest tip to making your coat closet appear organized is to have all the same hanger, not a hodge-podge.

7. Our automobiles could also benefit from a nice spring clean. Begin by gathering everything that is trash. Next remove all the items that don’t belong in the car and put them away. Wipe everything down on the inside of the car and vacuum the interior. Lastly, put everything back in the car that belongs there. There are so many wonderful products to help keep your car organized such as a cargo tote, a hanging office organizer, or media storage.

Image: Suat Eman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

8. Spring is also tax time. Decide which bills you want to keep on hand for historical purposes and box them up by year. Most credit card companies will send you an end of year statement which means you can shred each of the individual statements you have on hand. Many of your bank statements are also consolidated. If your cable, home phone, and internet bill are the same each month then there is no need to hold onto your statements. Only keep the changes such as increases so that you have bargaining power when you go to make changes. Purge as much as possible but be careful to shred anything with personal information on it.

9. Books, magazines and catalogs tend to gather heavily during the holidays and for those of you who do not go through and purge them regularly, now is the time. For books that you’ve read, but you’re not going to re-read, consider logging them onto to www.bookcrossing.com. It is a website dedicated to logging your book and leaving it in a public place for someone else to pick it up, read it, and journal online about it. It’s a great way to track where you’re books have been. Magazines should be purged monthly or as a new issue comes in. If you haven’t read the one April’s issue, odds are you probably won’t get to January’s. Same goes for catalogs. Many catalogs are outdated within two weeks. If you have a computer you’ll find more styles online as well as the opportunity for better pricing and potentially free shipping.

10. Spring is also time to spruce up the garage. Store away all the snow shovels, sleds, and snowmen kits. Do quick bike checks making sure the tires have air and they are ready to go. Take inventory of the fertilizer, plant food, and tools that you have on hand for the spring summer planting season. Utilize www.craigslist.com and www.freecycle.com for all the items you are ready to let go of.

FairyTales Can Come True – 50% Off Sale at Kushies

Theresa Gould — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:00:28 +0000

Kushies has some sweet outfits on sale! Talk about girly-girl clothes! From adorable little tops, capris, skirts and hats…Just take a look at some of these:

http://www.kushiesonline.com/Funky-Flowers-s/925.htm

The boys LilAviator clothing is just as cute! Gotta love the darker colors for active little boys who can’t stay away from the dirt with their little cars and trucks. Sorry, images at Kushies are copyrighted so I can only provide you with the links:

http://www.kushiesonline.com/Lil-Aviator-s/927.htm

Kushies has other items on sale too, so be sure to look around a bit more if you don’t find anything you like in the Funky Flowers and LilAviator collections. I discovered they have organic pack ‘n play sheets that I am interested in, but they are not on sale. They are only a little bit more expensive than regular pack ‘n pack. I have it on my mental list of things to buy before our new baby is born.