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Matchy matchy

T-shirts £18 and £28 available from Tease + Totes

Ok I’m not suggesting you head down to your local Sainsbo’s in an adult baby-grow, but I’m noticing a growing trend for Mum’s and their little ones in coordinating outfits and I’m liking it. We had a taster last winter when Dolce & Gabbana sent their models down the runway with a matching mini-me in tow and others have since followed suit. Tease + Totes have their brilliantly empowering ‘Girl Power’ tees (above), where proceeds go towards Worldreader, a non-profit mission to get digital to books to all children.

Now there’s ways of doing this, and doing it well as it could go very wrong indeed. Keep it simple, don’t go matching head to toe, a top or jumper works best. Like these sweatshirts; now I love a sweatshirt, I love a grey sweatshirt, I love a grey sweatshirt with a slogan on it (still with me?), so this little combo from Bob & Blossom is tres bon in my view…

Sweatshirts £38 and £24, available from Bob & Blossom

And it’s not just apparel either, Sophia Webster jumped on the twinning is winning bandwagon with her Mini collection. The ‘Chiara’ style below is very sweet in teeny sizes. I’m not sure I’ll be rocking the heels round Peckham Rye Common pushing the Bugaboo but then again you never know…

£294 and £95, Sophia Webster

If in doubt, keep it simple. These monochrome tee’s from Threaded Tees are a winner, just add a flash of red lipstick (on you, not the baby), your well-loved jeans and you’re good to go.

Threaded Tees £21.41, available from Etsy

This post isn’t complete without a special shout out to Selfish Mother. Any cool mama in the know has a ‘Mother’ sweatshirt in their wardrobe (or in their clothes mountain, or on the bedroom floor). The brain child is founder Molly Gunn and her clothes are a hit with celeb Mum’s such as Fearne Cotton and Myleene Klass. I live in mine and am contemplating getting a t-shirt for the summer. For those who aren’t familiar, Selfish Mother don’t just make quality cool clothes, they do a lot of good for the world at the same time. They’ve raised over £50K for charities including Women for Women International, The Refugee Council UK, KIDS, and Help Refugees UK so buying one of their pieces goes a long way. Do it.

£45 Selfish Mother

£13 Selfish Mother

Click on brand for stockists:

Bags of Style

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Hurrah! Changing bags finally got cool. If you didn’t already know, Tiba + Marl is the place to go for a changing bag with a difference, offering trend inspired bags for parents with style. All the bags from the collection have a fashion led focus to this practical bit of parenting kit. The brains behind the mastermind are Mum’s Anna Tizard and Lydia Barron and with a career history of designing for Kurt Geiger and Sigerson Morrison and a buyer for Topshop and Urban Outfitters, the girls certainly know their stuff.

Delphine Bum Bag £45

When I was choosing a bag I remember thinking, does it really need to be a ‘changing’ bag, what’s wrong with a normal bag?! And no, of course it doesn’t have to be, but the well thought out design and crafty compartments certainly make life easier; especially if you’re using bottles.

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The thing I love most about Tiba + Marl is the street style look. Given that 80% of your time as a new mum is spent pram pushing, whether it be on your way to a NCT cake scoffing session, shopping for nappies or laps of the park willing your baby to sleep, the cool designs will fit into not only your style but your life too.

Elwood Backpack £120

Mabel Tote £115

James Satchel £

My personal favourite is the black Elwood backpack, its the ideal unisex choice so saves fashion conscious Dad’s from the embarrassment of carrying a girlie bag to change the baby. It has a padded changing mat included, an insulated bottle holder (yes, insulated – genius!) and the best bit? There’s extra padding in the lower back area because if like me, having a baby seems to go hand in hand with back ache.

To see the full Tiba + Marl range click here

Molly & The Wolf

£30 Fox Print

I stumbled across Molly & The Wolf when I was compiling a page of childrenswear for one of the Sunday supplements. I was pregnant at the time and didn’t know what I was having but found myself compelled to buy something…you know, as you do. I settled on the Fantastic Fox Jumper and to this day, I bring it out the wardrobe and try it on Florence only to find it’s still too big. Most days I find myself wishing she’d stop growing up so quickly, apart from this; I want her in that Fox jumper!

£55 BEAR CUSHION

£75 Fancynulle Rabbit

£36 BEAR BOOTIES

£47.75 Cotton Cashmere Playsuit

£35 Gold Crown

£29.95 Animal Nesting Dolls

£24.95 Elephant Push Toy

£30 Rat Jumper

Molly & The Wolf have nailed the quirky, cool and individual market. Whether you’re a Mum, a Dad, Godparent, colleague or friend buying a present for a little person, there’s endless gifts to choose from. Some such as the Balsa Wood Plane or Kaleidoscopes will send you on a trip down memory lane whereas the shark tail or Lobster bonnet & mittens are fun and unique in their own right.

Head over to the website now and grab a bargain in their amazing sale. Also you lucky MOTHERSHOP readers can enjoy a exclusive discount on all full priced items. Just enter ‘Mshop20’ at the checkout for 20% off.

As for me, I’m off to try the Fox Jumper on Florence one more time…

Mama Owl knows best

OEUF NYC Alpaca Sheep Hat £40

If you’re little ones are feeling the cold (I know I am), then look no further than MamaOwl for all your wooly needs this winter. The London based company sells the most gorgeous organic and natural wool clothes for little ones.

Organic merino wool dungarees £35

Alpaca dots sweater £68

Organic wool / cotton tights £12

Merino sweater £40

From sweaters to scarves, blankets to booties; MamaOwl has all your knitted needs covered. These Alpaca bonnets in hard-to-chose tones are going straight to the top of Florence’s Christmas wish-list.

Alpaca bonnets £24 each

And with sizing ranging from newborn to 8 years, MamaOwl will no doubt see a regular spree from me. For now though, I picked these little grey Booties for Florence which when delivered, came wrapped up with a little wooden horse!

Organic Fine Knitted Merino Booties £15

Click here to view the whole MamaOwl collection.

Nosey Parkas

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Pic Credit: Elleuk.com

If there’s one thing you can rely on in this country, it’s the unpredictable weather. And for that reason, the trusty Parka is here to stay. Roberto Cavalli and Phillip Lim kept the coveted cover-up going strong for AW15.

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Pic Credits: Pintrest

And now thanks to the clever peeps at JoJo Maman Bébé, you can now own the Parka of all Parkas. With maximum value for money, the coat can be worn before, during and after pregnancy. It has a cleverly designed middle panel that is removable depending on the stage of your pregnancy and a drawstring detail fits the coat to the size of your bump. What’s more, with the panel zipped in place, the coat fits snuggly over your baby when its blissfully snoozing away in a sling on your front (…here’s hoping!)

JoJo Maman Bébé- 2-in-1 parka coat

Coat £79 JoJo Maman Bébé