News
Smoochie Baby's 15th Anniversary!
Event Details
Smoochie Baby is turning 15! Yes, you heard that right! On Saturday, May 4th we are gearing up to celebrate 15 wonderful years at 110 Berry Street. Please stop by the store from 10am - 7pm for a sip and shop event with freebies from Molo, Bobo Choses, & OMY, a raffle to win a $50 Smoochie Baby Gift Card, & 15% off storewide! Enjoy live music with Kyle Tigges, face-painting by Nicole, & a coloring station from 2pm - 4pm! This event is not to miss!
Celebrating Community
In light of this amazing milestone at our boutique, we would like to thank the community that has made our existence possible… Williamsburg, Brooklyn has been our home for the last 15 years. As you all know, this neighborhood is filled with wonderful small businesses from doggy daycares, to kids clothing stores, bakeries, and everything in between. This reason in particular has made having a storefront in this area so special. Shopping locally is one of our core values here at Smoochie Baby and for our 15th birthday, we want nothing more than to share with you the benefits of supporting local as we reflect on 15 amazing years in Williamsburg.
Sustainability
Smoochie Baby has always had a mission of being as sustainable a business as possible. This is done in many ways such as encouraging the use of tote bags for shoppers instead of single-use bags and carrying brands that have a mutual understanding of sustainability (like Candy Lab, Flap Happy, and Pepita & Me). When shopping with local businesses like ours, you can feel better about your carbon footprint when making purchases. Fast fashion brands are some of the largest polluters on earth with the UNEP even stating that fast fashion brands make up 8% of global carbon emissions. Here at Smoochie Baby we aim to leave our planet better than we found it for our next generation. With a storefront outside of urban sprawl, we encourage walking from store to store in the neighborhood to lessen pollutants and explore other small businesses that can be found here!
Promoting the Economy
Small businesses are a great way to stimulate the economy! Independently run and owned small businesses, such as ours, make up an extremely important sector of the economy. Local businesses encourage entrepreneurship on a local level and also open up jobs within the community. According to the Small Business Administration, “The 2019 Small Businesses Profiles show that small businesses added 1.8 million net new jobs in the United States.” Wow, that is a lot of jobs and those numbers only represent one country! Imagine what could be done on a global scale if local businesses were supported as much as your local chain store.
Variety is the Spice of Life
Finally, local businesses add variety and diversity to a community! It would be boring to shop at the same few stores every week with the same products. At Smoochie Baby we aim to bring creative, fun, and unique products to the families in our area and beyond. Whether this is through supporting other small local brands (like PiccoliNY) or importing them from around the world (such as Tiny Tribe), we are on a mission to bring as much personality and character to your children’s lives and wardrobe as possible…
In conclusion, we would like to thank everyone in our community for making the last 15 years possible! We wouldn't have been able to make it without the support of our customers, vendors, and neighbors. We look forward to this next chapter at Smoochie Baby and cannot wait to see what the future holds. We hope to see you all at our anniversary event on May 4! Come sip and celebrate another year in Williamsburg with us!
A Packing List for Midwinter Recess
Midwinter recess is almost upon us! With one week to go until vacation hits, we have compiled a list of our Smoochie Baby must-haves for your packing lists. From adorable swimwear to clothing and shoes, we have a host of new styles here at Smoochie Baby that are perfect for different age ranges and styles. Whether you are looking for trendy and funky bikinis or comfortable and durable water shoes, we have you covered. Take a look below at some of our highlights!
Swimwear
Midwinter recess gets us excited for one thing in particular, and that is hitting the beach or the pool! While swimming and splashing is a fun activity for kids and parents alike, it's important to stay protected with the correct swimwear and gear for your children. You can do this while rocking the season’s cutest trends with Molo's new line of swim. We already loved Molo, but they have truly outdone themselves this time! We particularly love the Molo Nalani Apricot Swimsuit for baby girls with its tropical fruit pattern that reminds us of beach vacations in sunny places. If you would like more sun protection instead, Rylee and Cru also has a great variety of choices. For baby girl they have come out with a great Rash Guard Swimsuit. It features an adorable mint and cream checkered pattern with ruffles at the bottom and a zipper down the front for easy dressing and undressing.
For boys, we also have some adorable swim trunks and shirts available! Shade Critters always hits it out of the park with their amazing patterns on their swimwear that contain UPF50+ Sun Protection Fabrics. They have made looking cute and staying safe in the sun about as easy as it gets! This season we are loving the SC Octopus Waves Trunk, perfect for swimming with sea creatures in the ocean. This suit comes as small as 6-12 months and ranges all the way up to 10, making it a great option for all of your favorite boys! Appaman has released some adorable swimwear this season as well. The Appaman Rash Guard and Appaman Stripe Swim Trunks go perfectly together and the colors are bright so you are sure never to lose your child while they run with their friends in the sand! Wear the trunks by themselves or pair them with the rash guard for more protection from the sun. There are no rules when it comes to style!
Clothing
During Midwinter Recess the last thing you want to do is plan out complicated outfits for your kids. In this section we will highlight some options for casual and comfy looks that are easy to put together while on holiday! For baby girl, Mayoral has some adorable options for easy dresses to slip on over bathing suits. The Mayoral Baby Embroidered Dress comes in a beautiful hot pink and is made of 100% cotton. The short sleeves also offer some protection from the sun which is essential on vacation! Rock Your Baby also offers some great choices when it comes to easy and cute looks for your sunny vacation. Their RYB Haight Ashbury Romper features a boho flower pattern that feels straight out of the 60's. This one-piece is made of 100% woven cotton and comes from sizes 2-10!
For boys we also have some adorable beach-ready sets for all ages! Molo has come out with some great matching two pieces this season including their Bleach Sun Set. We love the vibrant green and yellow stripes with the small snail and ladybug on the shirt. This could also work as a unisex set and is the pinnacle of cozy and cute. Another option for your favorite boy is the Mish Palm Enzyme Hoodie Set! This heather gray set comes in a variety of sizes from baby to big boy and consists of drawstring shorts and a comfortable hoodie with a lovely palm tree print in black. Feel free to mix and match the pieces as well to mix things up a bit!
Shoes
To complete our mid-winter recess looks, some adorable shoes are necessary! Sandals for big kids and babies have arrived from our favorite brands including new Natives in two colors and a fun pair of Ipanema shoes. Natives are perfect for our big boys and girls as they come in sizes 11-J3. The new Chase Sandals come in a sand, orange, and blue color that is easy to pair with so many outfits! These comfortable, water-proof shoes feature adjustable straps that are great for the warm seasons and are the perfect shoes to bring on vacation. They also come in a green, brown, and yellow model, making both styles great unisex options. For baby and toddler girls, we have the adorable new Ipanema Follow Sandals that come in a vibrant fuchsia color! as well as a glitter lilac color. They feature velcro straps on the top of the foot as well as the heel that make them extremely easy to slip on and off, perfect for little feet. They are also sustainably made in Brazil.
Whether you are preparing for the warm months ahead in NYC or getting ready to jet to warmer parts of the world for the Midwinter Recess, we hope that you have found something you love on this packing list! Make sure to check out our website for other options not included in this blog post. We wish you and your family a pleasant vacation and we hope to see you all at Smoochie Baby soon!
Happy Valentine's Day!
Happy Valentine's Day!
At Smoochie Baby the approach of February means one thing, Valentine's Day! This is the perfect time of year to show how much you care for your loved ones, but also a great time to get creative with your kids. Making valentines is a great way to spend a fun afternoon with your smoochers, and we have a couple tips and tricks on how to make them easy and sustainable! Make them and pass them out to family, friends, and teachers! It is an easy and lovely way to tell the people in your smoochers lives that you care.
A way to make sustainable and adorable valentines is by making them edible! To create these easy valentines from local mom and influecer @brooklynfarmgirl, you only need a few supplies: red and pink jolly ranchers, popsicle sticks or fun straws, cute sprinkles, and parchment paper. Simply line a baking sheet with the parchment paper and place three jolly ranchers next to each other on the sheet (try mixing pink and red candies to achieve a marbled effect). Make sure to leave a few inches between the jolly ranchers as they will spread when they melt. Pop the lined baking sheet in the oven and watch them closely until they are melted. Immediately add a popsicle stick to each lollipop. Now this is the fun part! Get together your various sprinkles and decorations and allow your kids to get creative! You can even get eye sprinkles and make silly faces on each lollipop. Bundle two or three together with some ribbon and pass out these adorable lollipops to your friends and family! Find the orignal recipe here: https://brooklynfarmgirl.com/valentine-monster-lollipops-jolly-rancher-lollipops/
Get Personal - DIY Valentines
Valentines are always the most special when they are personalized for your special someone. With this amazing hack, every valentine you give out will remind your loved ones that your smoocher is thinking of them! First, start by taking a cute picture of your child holding their hand out to look like they are holding something. Once you get a shot you like, use a photo editing app (Snapseed is a good one) to add your desired text. Print as many copies of the photo as you want (the photos will be your valentine card)! Then, carefully cut two incisions with scissors or an X-Acto knife, on the top and bottom of the fist. Slide a lollipop through (perhaps the DIY ones you made above) to look like your child is handing it to their valentine. Finally, hand out these creative and delicious valentines that everyone is sure to love! Step by step reel by @tablefor5please here.
Let Love Grow - DIY Plant Pots
Another fun project to do with your kids for Valentine's Day is to let love grow through potted plants! To make these simple and sustainable valentines all you need to do is head to your local plant shop with your kids and have them pick out a couple of plants they like (we like mini succulents as they are adorable and easy to care for). Make sure to buy a pack of clay pots and some potting soil as well. Bring your supplies home and set them aside. Assemble some materials like paints, markers, and heart stickers to decorate the pots. Customize them by adding the name of your individual valentine you are making it for! Once done with decorating, have the kids place some soil in each pot, add the plant and water them individually! It’s as easy as that! This is the perfect project to do with your kids and a great addition to any home.
Here at Smoochie Baby we would like to wish you all a fabulous Valentine's Day filled with lots of sweets and hugs! Make sure to stop by the store for Valentine's Day clothing, accessories, and gifts (so much good stuff here) for your little valentines! If you get a chance to make any of the valentines we listed above make sure to post a photo on Instagram and tag us @smoochiebaby so we can see your beautiful creations! Happy crafting!
Halloween at Smoochie Baby!
