One of our favorite “Must Have” gifts are the adorable piggy banks from Mud Pie.  They are the perfect baby shower gift, birthday gift or Big Brother/Sister gift.  Decorated in sports themes or all dressed up in ribbons and bows.  We were able to chat with one of the designers from Mud Pie, Lauren McHenry.  Lauren has been designing with Mud Pie since 2006 and now a product manager and designer for all of the everything baby collections.

1. What inspires you when you are creating adorable gifts for baby and child?

I look for new sewing techniques and trims as well as unique patterns and color combinations when I am designing for the baby line.

2. What 3 words best describe Mud Pie?

Chiffon, Ruffles and Bows

3. At Bellini, we love your Piggy Banks, are you working on new designs or themes?

We are currently working on a new addition to the Tres Jolie line, it’s a very girly black and white piggy bank.

4. Do you have any future plans you would like to share, any new products being added to the Mud Pie gift collection?

We are working on adding craft smocks, aprons, backpacks, lunch bags, and new plush pieces to our gift collection. We are adding new themes as well such as a fun Safari, Water baby and Jewel baby.  so, lots to come from Mud Pie!

We are excited to see the new collections from Mud Pie, make sure you check with your Bellini store for all the latest gifts from Mud Pie!

It is that time of year again, believe it or not, when the kids need to unwind from summer fun and get ready to go back to school! Why not surprise them with a party to gear them up for the beginning of another fun year! Look at all the great ideas in this picture from thetomcatstudio.com. She even has printables which you can find on her site. Super Adorable!!!

Here is another talented woman from Australia named JUST CALL ME MARTHA.

I love this table setting including the cutiest hats ever!

And these milk bottles with the polka dotted straws are so clever!

Now time to put your party ideas together, invite the kids and have a great time!

Whenever I come across pictures of vintage dresses, I find myself staring at them and trying to imagine the women who wore them.  I will even make up stories in my head about what their lives were like. Were they married….did they have children…..did they have the life of a June Cleaver… the perfect housewife and mother…

Or I wonder if these women who wore these dresses were having thoughts of wanting more from life as women are able to have now.

Were these women allowed to have an opinion or were they able to predict the rest of their lives as just someones wife and mother….

All of these dressed are very classy and these women I believe were all smart enough to know that someday their daughters and granddaughters would be able to do things they could only dream of.

Make a to do list and try to accomplish as many things as you can. Let the kids have a turn at picking what they would like to do from the list. Make it an earned privilege. If they complete their chores,do their summer reading etc., they get to pick. Create small and large things on the list such as getting ice cream  or more involved like family camping out for a night.

Just have fun!!! The summer is so short and it is the best time to get outside and create happy summer family memories…..

Boogie baby blankets are one of Bellini’s favorite blankets.  Not only are they the yummiest blanket but their designs are to cute for words.  They make the perfect gift and are a “must have” for every nursery. We wanted to know a little more about Boogie Baby blankets, so we were able to chat with founder and owner Ellie Giller.

1. What inspired you to create the yummiest blanket on the market?

My entire life I’ve had a passion for kids and creativity, which is why I started my career as an elementary school art teacher.  I later turned that passion into my own clothing line for children.  As I continued to look for new and innovative products to design, I dreamed up Boogie Baby as a way to allow people to customize a blanket more unique and special than anything you could find on a store shelf.  I continue to be very inspired by kids – especially my own grand kids!

2. If you could pick three of your favorite designs, what would they be and why?

That’s a tough question – I love so many!  But I have a special place in my heart for dogs, especially sheep dogs!  My own sheep dogs were the inspiration for the Good Puppy design.  But I particularly love all of the animal designs!  They’re so whimsical and fun – and that’s what our blankets are really about.

3. How would you describe Boogie Baby in 3 words?

Uniquely customized comfort

4.Do you have any future plans you would like to share, maybe new designs or any new products added to Boogie Baby collection?

Several times each year we introduce new designs into our collection.  This spring it was our new cowboy and cowgirl blankets and a really fun new fairy design.  This fall, who knows? My 2- and 4-year-old granddaughters are really into pirates at the moment, and they’re pretty much the boss of me. So we’ll see!

In the meantime, we’re constantly looking for ways to bring the very best aspects of our blankets – the plushness and the whimsical designs – into other aspects of baby’s and kid’s lives, which is why we introduced our hooded towels last year.

Seeing this recent picture of Rachel Zoe and her special edition Missoni Bugaboo got me to thinking. How many other celebs have bought the special editions of various stroller brands? Here are a few.

Salma Hayek and the Juicy Maclaren Quest.

Alyson Hannigan and the Beatles Yellow Submarine Maclaren Quest.

Robin Thicke and the all black Bugaboo Cameleon.

Helena Bonham Carter and the Lulu Guinness Maclaren Quest.

Gwen Stefani and the Marc Jacobs Bugaboo Cameleon.

Gwen Stefani and her very own Bugaboo Camelon that she designed.

Quinny Buzz stroller in pink

The 4Moms Mamaroo in pink and brown

Serena and Lily’s Take Me Home Gift Set in punch

Orbit’s G2 travel system

Gift set from Bonpoint

Hoppop bath in pink

Melissa and Doug Giraffe

Timi and Leslie Dawn diaper bag

Bloom Fresco highchair in pink

Little Giraffe Luxe Blanket in pink

Paige Lauren dress in watermelon

Dying to know what everyone else is naming their baby? The Social Security Administration just released its list of the most popular baby names for 2010, and it’s a lot like last year’s list — with Jacob and Isabella leading the pack.  Just two new names made the top 10: Aiden and Anthony for boys. (The girls’ top 10 is exactly the same as 2009, just in a different order.) Here’s the list:

Boys:
1) Jacob

2) Ethan

3) Michael

4) Jayden

5) William

6) Alexander

7) Noah

Daniel

9) Aiden

10) Anthony

Girls:

1) Isabella

2) Sophia

3) Emma

4) Olivia

5) Ava

6) Emily

7) Abigail

Madison

9) Chloe

10) Mia

I think a name of a real life princess will be re born Katie~

Okay, so we’re not totally surprised by this list. Want to know what other names are getting trendy? Well, luckily our friends over at the SSA also track popularity changes. They found that Bentley, Kellan and Knox had the biggest jumps in rank for boys, and Maci, Giuliana and Tiana are becoming more common for girls.  So, did your baby’s name make the list?

nava writz of nava’s designs

Nava’s Designs will offer Bellini end users promo prices on the Whisper’s collections.
4 pc sets will be 1150.00
3 pc sets will be 800.00

all colors are available for the month of may~

check out your local Bellini store