I can’t get enough of nostalgic children’s clothes that hark back to simpler, more innocent times and Waddler has Swallows and Amazons/Famous Five stamped all over it. The label is the brainchild of Philip and Marina who emigrated from London to South America when their son was one. It looks like an amazing place – I defy you not to be jealous when you look at the photos.
Don’t hold it against them though. All the clothes in their debut collection are made from the super-soft wool of alpacas, which are native to the region and, because of their soft feet, don’t cause soil erosion. Pieces are handmade by local Bolivian women under fair-trade conditions. As a veggie and all-round animal lover, I was initially concerned to see alpaca fur hats and slippers in the accessories section, but reassured that it comes from animals that die naturally during the foaling season.
Sizes range from newborn (how adorable would the surprisingly non-twee wolf suit be on a tiny?) to five years and, although most designs are unisex, there are a couple of distinctly 50s-looking knitted dresses. I love the retro colours, the fun feel of the collection and having checked out a hooded jumper on Alfie can vouch for the quality and the wool feels gorgeous. A also loves wearing it – always a bonus. The only potential pitfall is the ‘handwash only’ tag, but, then again, I tend to handwash all woollens as they last longer. Also, this sort of clothing comes at a price (£35 for the llama chaleco, £48 for the patch jumper and £65 for the wolf suit) but I can see them becoming heirloom pieces as they seem hard-wearing and the designs are timeless. Well worth the investment.
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