Jessi Cruickshank picks awesome kids' clothes by the coolest companies — Canadian and female-run!
Jessi’s favourite things. It’s just like Oprah’s. But… for babies.
I love my twin boys unconditionally. I love them more when they're wearing cute clothes.
I figure I only have a finite amount of time to dress them how I want to before they insist on wearing Ninja Turtles sweatpants with Paw Patrol crocs. That's why I have taken full advantage of playing dress up with my living dolls. Yes — they occasionally look like circus performers, Olsen twins or elderly European men and yes, I DO have a soft spot for VERY short shorts, but I birthed them, it's my god-given right.
In my shallow quest to find adorable garments, I've made a profound discovery. Most of my favourite tiny clothes are made by tiny Canadian companies started by incredible Canadian moms. These are women who have birthed babies as well as businesses, then continued to run their companies while raising their families. And I thought I had accomplished a lot because I washed my hair today.
So while my babies are napping, allow me to tell you a little bit about some of my favourite kids clothing companies and the inspiring moms who run them.
(For the record, I am not getting paid to endorse any of these companies. If I was, I'd be writing this poolside, sipping a Margarita while a fleet of nannies raised my children.)
Danielle Wutzke has four kids, works as a registered nurse by day and runs her company Posh & Cozy at night. I can't even stay up through an entire episode of The Bachelorette at night. Along with her sister Brett, Danielle built her business in Alberta to create "cute comfortable clothes for kids" that are made with sustainable, ethical fabrics.
While I don't usually endorse a graphic tee on a baby, particularly the kind that says "I'M A BREAST MAN" or "LET'S GET TIT-FACED"… Posh & Cozy does graphic tees right. I adore their "City Crewnecks" which can be customized with your city's airport code. We wore our YYZ sweatshirts up the CN Tower. Because we're 6 Gods, obviously... and Danielle is a kids clothes goddess.
Jas Ogar was a pianist and music teacher before she dropped everything four years ago to pursue her "childhood passion of creating and designing clothes". Her children's line, PlümKids is 100% handmade in St. Albert, Alberta with a "focus on sustainability, fair trade, environment and charity." I should also mention, it is REALLY FREAKING CUTE.
When I put my boys in the "Tangerine Joggers" people don't stop me on the street to marvel at my identical twins, they stop me on the street to marvel at my identical twins' pants. Not to mention their "Pineapple Swimwear" which is so tiny, I'm pretty sure it's illegal in some countries. All I know is that I love dressing my sons in these clothes and I look forward to humiliating them with these pictures.
Amanda Penner and her husband Jeff have two boys and co-own Minimoc, a baby shoe company they started "accidentally" after Amanda found herself hand-making shoes as gifts for all of her friend's newborns. Now Minimoc is a bonafide family business, with relatives working alongside Amanda and Jeff in the factory they built in their hometown of Abbotsford, BC.
I had 8 pairs of Minimocs before my babies were even born. In fact, my babies have more cute shoes than I do and THEY CAN'T EVEN WALK. Which is fine with me — less chasing babies around the house, more perfectly un-scuffed little moccasins. (and perfectly styled Property Brothers costumes...)
Tulin Sallabank worked in Real Estate and PR, and when she adopted her daughter, she couldn't find a diaper bag that would take her from the office to the playground. Instead of shoving diapers in her briefcase, Tulin decided to design her own bag and Ooobaby was born. It's the baby bag that doesn't look like a baby bag. Hallelujah.
I have The Urban Bag in black and it's the only thing my husband and I will both happily carry. I think it makes me look like a high-powered business executive headed to an important meeting, even if I am just a twin mom headed to change an explosive poop in a public washroom.
When Alyssa Kerbel had her daughter 10 years ago, she found it "really hard to find nice, simple, high-quality basics — especially in gender neutral colours". So she decided to make her own. Six months later, Alyssa was shipping her first orders for 'mini mioche' and now the company has two stores in Toronto and does online sales around the world.
I fell in love with mini mioche when a friend gave me black and blue "Biker Rompers" for my boys. Suddenly my preemie babies looked like little badasses… as badass as you can be when you weigh 5 lbs. I have since become obsessed with all of mini mioche's Toronto-made, organic cotton basics, and I now buy Biker Rompers for every little badass newborn I know.
Sheena Steinbrenner was a high school science teacher in Vancouver. When she had her first baby she wanted to dress him in clothes that wouldn't be harmful to his sensitive skin. So, in between science-teaching and child-rearing, she started sewing! Now she is a former-science teacher with two kids and a burgeoning business called North Kinder. She says she "tries her best to balance being a full-time mama during the day and mompreneur in the evenings and during nap time." Um… I can barely finish this paragraph during nap time.
While I was never great at science, I was always good at outfits — and my boys' striped "Short Rompers" with black shorts might just be my favourite. I also love wearing my ultra-soft "mama" and "baby" sweatshirts — because let's face it, with my youthful glow, sometimes people aren't sure who is who.
So there you have it, my favourite Canadian twins wearing some of my favourite Canadian brands. I've always been passionate about supporting Canadian fashion and now I'm even more passionate about supporting Canadian moms. These women are living proof that you can have it all — a successful business, a loving family and kids in REALLY REALLY cute clothes. What more could you ask for?