Mandy Sutcliffe

Belle, Boo & the 1" Horseman

Muddy Morning

Our gorgeous new prints from British illustrator Mandy Sutcliffe have just arrived and they are absolutely adorable. Her classic style is a perfect fit for our store and we're delighted to have two of her prints in our collection. Mandy studied illustration at Leeds Metropolitan University, during which time she went on a university exchange trip to France. It was here that Mandy's love for illustrating children truly blossomed as she spent many an hour in the Parisian parks drawing the beautiful French children. The two prints we are carrying are Belle, Boo and the 1" Horseman and Muddy Morning. Each print is signed by Mandy and mounted ready to go into a 10" x 12" frame.

A ribbon in time

It was so much fun unpacking our latest delivery of hair accessories the other day. So many delightful new bow clips and hairbands, some that mum can wear too! We've also added a new category to accessories called the school collection (inspired by oscar blue) which includes lots of lovely bits and bobs that should add a bit of pizzazz to a uniform without a summons to the principal's office.

Man On The Moon

Image from amazon.com

Johnny Joe's Time Travel Colouring Book

Man On The Moon

This fact really tickles the fancy of my national pride...did you know 40 years ago today when man walked on the moon for the first time - "that's one small step for one, one giant leap forward for mankind" - only Australians watched the landing live. The rest of the world watched a six second delayed NASA broadcast. Love it.

For all things lunar, check out the humourous children's book Man On The Moon and the fun Johnny Joe's Time Travel Colouring Book. There is also a fantastic series, From The Earth To The Moon, currently screening every Sunday night (from July 5 to August 23) at 7:30pm on the History Channel. Presented by Tom Hanks it covers the dramatic story of the Apollo missions, the heroic astronauts, John F. Kennedy's historic speech, the first manned expeditions into space and to the final defining moment of the space program - putting man on the moon. Or, if you're after something a bit lighter, how about renting The Dish.

5 little ducks went out one day...

Images from Artish on etsy

I was meandering through a friend's etsy store this evening...and came across this darling ducky set. It is made up of a little hat and some leg or arm warmers. Winter is far from over down here (someone told me it was -1 last week, ridiculous!) so still plenty of time for your little miss to make the most of them. The beanie is knitted in the round, which means there are no annoying seams. It features a little duckish 'tuft' on top, a yellow, crocheted beak, and black, hand-stitched eyes. The arm/leg warmers are also knitted in the round in matching white and yellow.

Pea green please

Images from LaLaShoes

If these aren't the sweetest little shoes you've ever seen?! Made by LaLaShoes they are 100% linen, with two different greens and natural colour linen for the undersole. They are fastened with a simple and elegant front bow and all the seams are closed so there is nothing to irritate little feet. Absolutely adorable.

Bake it pretty

Images from Bake It Pretty

The growing number of little people in our life has made celebrations more fun than ever. Nothing quite like a two year old bopping to the strains of the Happy Birthday chorus to make your heart skip a beat. Consequently I am always on the look out for cute bits and bobs to pretty up the party table. Imagine my delight when I stumbled across Bake It Pretty in the US. Imagine my ecstasy when I realised they ship to Australia! I love the little mushroom toppers and the sweet spotty baking cups come in mini size too.

Baby Shower

Image from Enchanted Envelope

Before my darling niece came along almost 7 weeks ago now, we naturally threw her mother, our youngest sister Tilly, a baby shower. The shower started with these too too cute Sarah LeClare invites from my favourite invitation shop, Enchanted Envelope. Here are just a few pics from the day - I just love the nappy cake - a big thankyou to the Euro Patisserie who did a fine job as always!

Eloise

Image via media.timeoutnewyork.com

"I am Eloise. I am six. I am a city child. I live at the Plaza", and so we are introduced to Kay Thompson's well loved story of Eloise, a garrulous incorrigible little girl living in New York City's most famous hotel. Cheeky and always funny this is a delightful read for both the children listening and the adults reading to them. Rumoured to be based on Kay Thompson's goddaughter Liza Minnelli, who lived for awhile in The Plaza with her famous mother Judy Garland.

This gorgeous hardback book is 32 pages long and is of course available here at The Princess & The Pea.

Catherine Martin Wallpaper

Images from Porters Paints

Each time I come across a picture of Catherine Martin's wonderful wallpaper I remind myself to share. I adore stripes at the best times but am loving the striped paper juxtaposed with the Circus Silhouette pattern. It is just lovely! You can purchase this beautiful wallpaper at Porters Paints. Wouldn't it be a magnificent backdrop for a playroom.