These adorably bright and glossy toys from BRIO are a bebe favourite. Sized perfectly for little hands, they stimulate the child through play whilst developing grasping, hand-eye coordination and sequencing skills. The current collection includes educational sorting box, stacking toys, pull along toys, glossy building sets as well as the affectionately named “Toddler Wobbler” walker.

With their simple designs and vibrant colours, BRIO wooden toys make for great kids gifts for modern parents. Even if you outgrow playing with them (is that even possible?), they’ll make for a very cool décor feature. BRIO toys are lovingly designed in Sweden, made in China under BRIO’s direct supervision, and finished with completely non-toxic, child-friendly substances. Check out the BRIO toy range here.

New bebe reviews feature - tell us your thoughts & win!

We are excited to launch our brand new reviews feature, built so that bebe may continue to choose smart, stylish products that make your life as a parent easier.

We would love for you to share your opinions with us and the rest of the bebe community, so that everyone may benefit from first hand feedback on our products.

To reward you for your input we are giving away a great prize every month for the most useful review. This month’s prize is a bebe bestseller, the Jooki Talissa Leather Bag in Moonbeam, valued at $379.95. This bag has great flexibility – it can be used as a baby bag and also a stylish handbag for many years – pre and post baby.

To review a product, simply go the listing of the product you wish to review, and scroll down to the bottom of the page to the review icon. The winner will be notified via email on the first of every month, and with the winner’s permission, announced here on bebe blog.

As modern parents we’re drawn to the values of timelessness, simplicity and an overall less is more approach to design. Traditional events such as weddings and christenings often prove tricky to style our little ones for as most items available on the market assume frills, puffs and an abundance of taffeta are expected in order to maintain a “sense of tradition”.

Eeni Meeni Miini Moh clearly recognised a gap in the market when they designed their contemporary Christening gown/Kimono. Suiting either gender the gown is available in sizes 0-6mths and 6-18mths, made from 100% woven linen, is minimal, clean lined and timeless. My favourite part of all – its frill- free. Check out the Eeni Meeni Miini Moh Christening Gown here.

In such a multicultural society as Australia, there aren’t many little ones that don’t have at least one immediate relative living abroad. The Hug-a-planet enables us to show our children the world – both to connect with these distant loved ones but also to improve global awareness and geographic literacy.

The Hug-a-planet has won over 25 toy awards which is no surprise given its powerful message and educational ability.   The smaller size shows the 7 continents of the world while the large shows over 600 places.

Watching toddlers innocently cuddle this globe in-store is a lovely reminder that everyone can relate to our planet Earth and the power of a loving hug. It is this combination that makes this toy so special.  Find out more or purchase the Hug-a-planet here.

The Leander High Chair finally hit our shores on Friday after much anticipation and numerous delays. The chair got the thumbs up on the weekend in-store for its clean, modern design and degree of longevity. The aesthetics of a high chair are particularly important to the modern parent, especially given that it is housed in such a “public zone” as the kitchen/dining room or for many of us in an open plan environment where all rooms are part of one large space.

One of the most common comparisons made is its similarity to the Tripp Trapp High chair. While it’s natural  to draw comparisons on the point of functionality, I believe the two are quite different in overall line and appearance.  When comparing the aesthetics alone of contemporary wooden high chairs, I would think the average punter (not just furniture geeks like me) would either prefer the square lines of a Tripp Trapp, or the curved lines of the Leander or Svan High Chair.  Either way it is clear all three Scandinavian designers have got it right in the increasingly competitive wooden high chair segment.

The Leander High Chair is available in black, natural and whitewash – read more about it and purchase on line here.

Many mums & dads have trouble coming up with creative ideas to entertain our little ones, no matter what their age.  I recall after my son was first born  I found the “play” phase of the “feed-play-sleep” routine surprisingly challenging.  It seemed at age 27 I hadn’t had to “play” in some time and had to an extent lost touch with how to play.  In the early days these cards provided fast, developmentally appropriate ideas of basic things I could do to stimulate my baby.  Years later they now serve as the basis for play ideas ideas for him & his little mates after pre-school.

Pal Toys Playtime activity cards make planning activities for all ages a “no-brainer” – just pick a card, gather materials found around the house and play.   The cards are created from the concept that it doesn’t take high tech toys or elaborate set-ups for creative, educational play.  Packs include 52 cards and are packaged/sold according to age group – 0-1 yrs, 1-2 yrs, 2-3 yrs, 3-4 yrs.

I’m the first to admit to Ugg-Boot Snobbery – you’re either an Ugg Boot Girl, or you’re not, right? (no, you wouldn’t have seen me in moccasins in the ‘80’s either). When it comes to around-the-house footwear, comfort should be king, and there’s no doubt that Ugg ticked this box with their ingenious invention.  The stiff boot factor of the Ugg make them a little too masculine for my liking, and I only wish Robeez would give in and respond to my relentless pleads to produce me a pair of soft soled Robeez Booties.

I long for the day I may experience that elusive “cushion in every step” that little ones experience in these booties - with their teddy bear plush lining and soft flexible soles. My colour of choice? Classic Cream.

We have been drooling over the award winning Nest Bassinet for sometime now, and waiting patiently for any formal announcements on availability. The Nest Collection has moved from Ooba to Offi & Company, which is a natural fit given its clean simple design, natural plywood elegance and quality materials and production. Pricing and availability to be confirmed, we do not expect this to be available until late 2008. Keep an eye out for more new Offi products coming soon to bebe.

We’ve been patiently waiting for years for Svan to extend their furniture range, and were happy to see they have introduced the Svan Cot, Change Table and Toddler Bed last week at ICCF IN New York.  The Svan Cot has curved ply ends, which come apart to become footboards for a toddler bed, and the seatback of a little bench. The range conversion options include a changing table/bassinet and an ottoman and  five possible configurations all using the same core components.  Given this is not yet released in the European market, bebe will be unlikely to bring this in until at lest 2009. In the meantime, check out the rest of our Svan range.

I vividly recall there being so much hype around the Bloom Baby stand at Kind & Jugend trade fair last year that getting up close to Blooms prototype Luxo Sleep Cot was virtually impossible. While the Bloom hype is still abundant, it seems our friends at Bloom Baby wisely gave themselves a little more space on their stand at ICFF last week.  Whilst it could be compared in appearance to the Leander Cot (with its curved ends), the Luxo Cot differs very much in the elements of structure and assembly. It also converts to a toddler bed and designed to last until a child requires a single bed.  Bebe will confirm pricing and availability as soon as this comes to hand.