Newest editions to my Library

I've mentioned before my love of design books and especially of late, children's design. While so many retailers and show rooms continue to show pastels, circus, and baby animal themed nurseries or children's spaces... let me not forget dreaded primary colours and plastic! It's very refreshing to see sophisticated, fun, lived in and organic spaces for children. As you probably already know last year saw the fold of two of my favorite magazines, Cookie and Domino. It's tragic really as they housed a major source of inspiration for me. Luckily there are still many other sources for great design for children. Like milk mag and Jeu de paumes.

To temporarily satisfy my demand for kiddie room eye candy, I recently purchased some new titles to add to my collection. I've blogged before about Milk magazine and I especially love their Deco spreads. You needn't speak french to appreciate their inspiring images. Not quite sure how I missed this but they apparently produce a special interiors inspiration edition once yearly. I'm still kicking myself for missing the first two (sadly out of stock everywhere...) but at least I've got the third! I purchased my copy here. This is really more like a book and it's full of gorgeous and eclectic family spaces from around the world.

I also purchased the missing Jeu de Paumes Children's titles to complete my set, Children's rooms London and Children's rooms Stockholm. As usual these spaces are ever inspiring, I notice new details in their delectable photos every time I flip through them!

Children's rooms London

Children's rooms Stockholm

Milk Deco No3

Seems the more I get the more I want! but alas ces't la vie! non?

Jeu de Paumes

Last week Design Momma celebrated her 26th birthday....geesh! I'm getting old! and received the most amazing gift from my dear hubby. For years now I've requested design books as gifts for birthdays, anniversaries or any other occasion of which someone might decide to shower me with gifts! Books are definitely my favorite splurge but can be pricey and many titles wait patiently on my various wish lists for months sometimes years. Last year I spotted some Japanese Interior Design books over at Yvestown and instantly fell in love, I knew I just had to have them!

The series is published by Japanese publisher Jeu de Paumes and are written entirely in Japanese. While fully bi-lingual plus a nice amount of French I definitely can't read, write or speak a word of Japanese! that fact doesn't take away from the experience in the least! If a picture is worth a thousand words? well, these books will be "talking" to me for years to come. Their are currently four titles of Children's spaces. Children's rooms Copenhagen, Chambres d'enfant a Paris, Children's room London, and Children's rooms Stockholm. I received Copenhagen and Paris from dear Hubby.


When I first saw that little table and chairs my first reaction was "what the devil?!" they stole my Ikea hack! Upon closer inspection I realized that while similar this isn't the Latt set, and I sat back to take in the amazing Scandinavian wooden floors and pale green tones.

This is just a sampling of the eye candy that awaits you inside the Copenhagen edition. The book comes complete with a city guide and list of cool stores for sourcing some awesome euro treasures!

The allure of that amazing staircase pulls you in to one breathtaking photo after another! but seriously how Parisian is that pink! J'adore!

I'm very much in love with this green room, from the colour to the fairy lights to the dollhouse... I'm swooning!

The books pay homage to the occupant or occupants of each space and the first and last pages of the books are dedicated to artwork by the little sweethearts.

The pages of each book are filled with fun and whimsy. I think the eclecticism relied on during the formation of these amazing spaces is a uniquely European approach, I love the mix of old and new, bright, bold and many unexpected colour combinations. Coming from North America with an overriding tide of matchy matchy, pink or blue and brand new everything this approach is a breath of fresh air. Children are collectors by nature and all the rooms are brimming with collections of every sort imaginable. The spaces are beautiful, definitely juvenile yet sophisticated and with out a doubt lived in. They make me nostalgic about my own childhood but mainly inspire me to create such a dreamy space for my own daughter to cherish forever.

The books are available through their site, amazon.jp.. if your brave enough to tackle the ordering process or at the Yvestown blog. Dear Hubby contacted them via their site and reported that Sakai was especially pleasant and helpful, so they've got our two thumbs up! The books were wrapped sweetly and arrived within just a matter of days. Paumes has a huge line of books covering apartments, kitchens, studios etc. and the list is always growing. I feel that for me this is the start of a major addiction! so here's wishing me many many more birthdays!

Booksource - The Book Depository.co.uk

Any Anglo living abroad I'm sure can relate. You want to raise your child speaking your mother tongue and feel it's important to instill that language as their own mother tongue. Children love books and imaginative storytelling, what better way to share some quality time than sharing a good story? Books are hands down the most excellent means to vocabulary, grammar, and comprehension of any language. While living in Israel has many advantages it does make coming by English toddler/children's books rather difficult. You're faced with several options, buying books on sites like amazon and paying ludicrous shipping fees, and then some import taxes just because, begging friends and relatives to bring some over , or making due with children's books in hebrew.

I've mentioned before our love of books and reading and am proud to see that my little girl is well on her way to being a little bookworm herself. We buy more books than any other toy or activity for our daughter and it is often her preferred pastime to snuggle up on our laps and listen to enthusiastic renditions of her favorite stories. But how to keep up with her developmental milestones and make things interesting by adding new books to our collection? all whilst residing at least two continents and an ocean away from your nearest Barnes and Noble?

I've previously tried all off the options I offered above, some with greater success than others none off them enough to satisfy our craving for more books. I've recently perused the web desperately searching for online bookstores that ship internationally and stock a wide selection of English board books for toddlers. Imagine my surprise and joy stumbling on to an online bookstore based in the U.K called The Book Depository they not only ship worldwide, shipping is FREE!! You heard me free! I'm kicking myself for not finding/hearing of them sooner.



We just put our first order through two weeks ago and all the books were at our house within 1 week. We've been enjoying some new stories and I'm already making wish lists for future orders. The books ship individually, they were well wrapped and each came with a cute little bookmark. According to their website their aim is too make all books available to all a goal I admire and appreciate. They've certainly one me over, I know where I'll be doing my book shopping from now on!

O.k so out of our newest acquisitions we got two Charles Fuge books, I've never encountered his books before but boy am I glad we did! Somtimes I like to curl up in a ball written by Vicki Churchill and illustrated by Fuge and I know a rhino written and illustrated by Fuge are my daughters new favorite books. Toddlers can really relate to the endearing little wombat and all his quirks and the sweet story of a little girl and her animal friends.

Looking for a gift for your own little bookworm? why not a P'kolino book buggee to help them pull around their favorite titles and other prized possessions?

Bookworms!

Last Week we enjoyed a couple of really nice sunny days.... sorry for the lull in posts, we were out enjoying the good weather. The weekend brought the winter back with it though, it's been pouring since Friday and we've been cooped up inside and doing a lot of reading....

I've been a reader my whole life, started when I was three and I've never looked back. As a child I was often caught reading under my covers with a flashlight in the wee hours of the night. Nothing thrills me more than a real page turner. Books are the foundation of language, culture, and an endless source of knowledge. Needless to say that I want my daughter to love books at least as much as I do! Lucky for me we seem to be on the right track. I started reading to her as early as 6 weeks old, and spend many a morning just reading book after book, I'm sure the very animated story telling has a little to do with it as I often don't just read the story rather perform it! Since her birth we've collected at least 60 board books many of them classics that I grew up with some of them forgotten until now. In her room we store the "sleepy" time books, and more lively books are on her shelves in the playroom, in the bathroom we even have a stack of bath books! Some days she likes some books more than others but there are many favorites. Here is our unofficial list of must have toddler books.

1. Good Night Moon - by Margaret wise Brown and Clement Hurd. It's probably on every must have list, but that's not the reason we love it so much.... repeating the story in a slow drawn out voice has often been enough to lull her to sleep.

2. Hug - by Jez Alborough Though short on words the feelings of this book definitely get across to the toddler set! A little monkey wanting a hug from his mommy is something I guess mine can relate too as the slightest mention of Bobo brings a huge smile to her face!


3. Goodnight Gorilla -by Peggy Rathmann also short on words, this book unfolds almost entirely through the illustrations, but is a permanent part of our bedtime routine.

4. Jamberry - by Bruce Degen. This infectious rhyming book about counting and berries definitely grows on you. Every time you read it there's more to discover in the illustrations. While almost ignored when we first got it this book is probably "the" all time favorite!


5. My First Body Board Book - by DK publishing A.K.A. Bibi! This board book has been read and reread hundreds of times sometimes repeatedly for an hour! Sometimes we read every page sometimes we just "skip" to the favorites either way this book is on the list to stay.


6. Dear Zoo - by Rod Campell this lift the flap book is always well received, my daughter loves lifting the flaps to discover the animal sent from the zoo and shouting out their names.

7. What's wrong little Pookie - by Sandra Boynton This one totally inspired my daughters nicknames; pookie, pookie pookster, pooks, pookiesaurus, pookiesauraus rex, etc... it brings a smile to my face everytime we read it! mothers know best...

8. Yummu Yucky - by Leslie Patricelli This was a recent aquisition and we haven't put it down since. It has a place of honour on our shelf. Everyday food and objects broken down into two groups toddlers can understand; Yummy v.s. Yucky! and the illustrations are great too!



9. Brown Bear Brown Bear What do you see - by Bill Martin and illustrated by Eric Carle I'll admit that I don't entirely "get" it's appeal, maybe it's the repetition.... either way my daughter loves! this book, it was probably her earliest favorite....


10. Are You My Mother - by P.D. Eastman The tale of a little bird looking for his mother and there sweet reunion when he finds her at last is great for snuggling story time.



The list could go on and on but I promised it would be my toddlers top 10!

What about you? what are your must haves?