Australian label Munster have excelled themselves this season with  a collection which exudes cool. This is what little boys REALLY want to wear, This is Phat fashion.

For the girls, Missie Munster is gaining ground with each collection strengthening the brands reputation with her everyday style.

Mr Wolf Sweater DressFrosty Long Sleeve Top by Munster

The accepted behaviour of a pale cloud is to drift softly across the summer sky, without effort or cause, disturbing no-one. Not so, this Pale Cloud, the stunning label, created by husband and wife team Ian and Marion Renolds, which has virtually stormed the trade shows in the early part of this year, with their sophisticated, yet simple first collection.

Well documented at the time, in no small part due to it’s charm and grace, not to mention the silks, shearlings and wools we were smitten and are waiting in anticipation to take delivery of an edited collection as soon as it becomes available. In case you missed the press or the hype passed you by, here are a few of the beautiful lifestyle images with a taste of things to come.

Beyond the pastel wearing baby stage and bold and colourful graphics demanded by the discerning toddler, the early school years require some careful consideration where wardrobe style and functionality is concerned. Enter, Finger In The Nose. Their Rock n Roll attitude, combined with authenticity and a slice of practicality succesfully unites the look of an adult garment with the need for a child’s comfort.

Exceptionally high quality garments with graphics depicting the things which are pertinent to the 5-10 year kids clothes age group. All tops, long and short sleeve, are made from 100% cotton. As for their denims, they leave nothing to chance. 9oz – 11oz European denim is utilised, with 3% lycra included for comfort. Each pair of denims, regardless of fit is reinforced with nickel free rivets, high quality metal zips, flattened French seams, belt adjustment system, and endless attention to detail.

Scratchy sweaters? No way! Finger In The Nose believe in softness using only Merino and Angora in their sweaters. What better way to reconcile a child with the jumper? Add quirky details such as a thumb hole and we bet that Junior will even ASK to wear a sweater!

Each piece in every collection is studied and controlled to give your child the best quality that they deserve.

Available at Mash n Gravy early 2010.
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Last season we hinted at some of the new brands which will be joining us here at Mash “N” Gravy. One of the first this season will be Scotch R’Belle, the little sister of Scotch Shrunk.

After the launch of Maison Scotch – the woman’s collection, last year – the demand for a girls collection, became even stronger. In January 2011 Scotch & Soda will proudly introduce the first girl’s collection – Scotch R’Belle.

‘Rock star diaries of Mademoiselle R’belle’ is delicate and cool at the same time. Think, the LA laidback vibe, sorbet factory pastels, admiral stripes, urban safari, adorable t-shirts and little details that make each garment special.

Scotch R’belle will definitely have the same feel as the Scotch Shrunk boy’s line but with sophistication and femininity. To Scotch & Soda, life is not a competition. It’s not about being the biggest or boldest, but all the same, watch out, Brother!

Since 1985, Amsterdam based fashion brand Scotch and Soda has been expanding steadily. Their clothing, for both adults and children, is the definition of fusion fashion, mixing vintage and varsity to create a unique line of well made clothing.

The brand began, over 20 yeras ago, with a casual line of menswear, before adding their first children’s line, Scotch Shrunk, for boys aged 4-12 years.

The Scotch Shrunk line for boys follows the same principles as the adult brand – no frills, no fuss – and is an exact replica of the menswear line. The only difference is, it is sized for children instead of adults, hence its nick name: ‘Shrunk in Amsterdam‘!

Looking ever forward, Scotch and Soda have introduced an additional kidswear collection, Scotch R’Belle, their first girl’s line, which we have just purchased for Mash n Gravy for season Spring/Summer 2011. The collection shares the same laidback vibe as the boys line, but with much more sophistication and femininity.

The company partakes in minimal traditional marketing, saying “the clothes do the talking”. Scotch and Soda want kids to love their clothes and have fun wearing them, nothing more, nothing less.

Their laidback motto matches their laidback style, with everything from tropical prints, florals and mechanic style shirts, to posh striped jumpers, cardigans and preppy varsity tops.

Universal and timeless this label produces premium quality, cool kids clothing. We have begun to upload a selection in store and there is plenty more to follow.

Imps&Elfs originated in 1997 as ‘a modest children’s label without frills and fancies, which concentrates on the shape of the child. Fons Cohen is the owner and founder and Jaqueline Streng is the designer. Based in South Amsterdam their Baby (Sleep) and Toddler (Walk) collections have transcended borders and are sold widely all over the world.

Here at Mash n Gravy, we are delighted to showcase the ‘Talk’ collection ( 3 years to 7 years in our store) which concentrates on a capsule collection of every day items of exceptional quality and superior fit.

Jaqueline Streng considers children to be ‘the most precious gift on earth‘ and this is evident in her choice of delightfully soft, light as a feather fabrics for this seasons tops and tees.

Imps&Elfs works with MADE-BY, a subsiduary of the Dutch Solidaridad fair trade organization, to clean up the production process.

MADE-By is an umbrella label used by about twenty fashion brands to show consumers that their clothes are produced in a sustainable manner. Brands affiliated to MADE-BY use biological cotton and work together with sewing factories which have a social code of conduct, thereby focusing on environmental and working conditions throughout the entire production chain.

We feel that Imps& Elfs Talk Collection fits the Mash n Gravy profile as it has style, a sense of humour, subtle colour schemes punctuated by unexpected shots of colour, not to mention it’s green credentials. We have been so blown away by this first delivery that we’ve had to vocalise our excitement in the form of this post before we’ve had the garments photographed. Keep your eyes peeled, as the collection will be available to purchase soon. In the mean time, please enjoy these styling shots – a taste of what will soon be on offer.

In our relentless quest to bring you the freshest trends, we are delighted to introduce Angels’ Face to our store.

We have just taken delivery of their frothy Pettiskirts and HQ has become a riot of colour with frills and ribbon spilling out everywhere.

If you are an avid on line shopper or, indeed a serial browser with self restraint (I take my hat off to you madam!) you cannot have failed to notice the presence of the fuller skirt for little girls, with even the more traditional labels such as Mini A Ture including tulle skirts in their forthcoming collection. Set to be a big trend, not just for the coming season, but for the foreseeable future, voluminous pettiskirts are back. Made wit hover forty yards of soft frills these were just made for twirling.

Perfect as a present Angel’s Face have also designed a stylish hat box which doubles, not only as beautiful presentation, but also as practical storage for the shirt when not being worn.

Little girls across the land who are lucky enough to own one of these will want to wear it to parties, weddings, ballet, dressing up and even with wellingtons in the rain. I know I would if they made them in my size!

Now how are we going to get all of these back in their boxes…?

Another awesome new arrival at Mash N Gravy

Dandy Star pride themselves on not doing the ‘fashion thing,’ although it is quite evident that they cannot escape their own heritage.

Because they care about what they make, from sourcing the best of soft cotton, to designs that may cause the odd argument over a cup of tea, the outcome is ranges that don’t have a shelf life or sell-by date.
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On a sales trip to NYC in 1955 Abbot Pederson decided to pop into a local bar prior to catching his return flight to Minneapolis. Stumbling out some time later in an attempt to find a taxi he took a wrong turning and found himself outside a taxidermists shop, staring at a row of stuffed penguins. Before you could say ‘flightless bird’, Pederson had bought one of the penguins, named him Pete and was sipping cocktails with him on the flight home.

At some point on the flight Pederson accidently knocked the head off the bird, and worse for wear was assisted by a stewardess who removed his tie and placed it round Pete’s neck. She joked that such a dapper fellow deserved to be immortalised, perhaps on a shirt similar to the one Pederson was wearing.
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Let Them Eat Cake has joined forces with 2 talented British artists, Annie Kevans and Stella Vine in order to create T-Shirts for ‘The Environmental Justice Foundation Charity’ (EJF campaigns internationally on the issues their grassroots partners attempt to work locally to solve including, cotton production, pirate fishing, shrimp farming, pesticides,wildlife and climate refugees.)

The T-Shirt designs feature iconic images, including John Lennon and Yoko Ono and a young Britney Spears and complement the vintage style of Let Them Eat Cake. The designs are printed on the best quality and ethical T-Shirts by American Apparel and are all hand printed in Bath.