I am so excited to share our latest collection with you, just in time for summer adventures. As some of you may know, I’m from Denver, so naturally the mountains have a huge influence on my style. For this collection in particular, I imagined my girls on hikes through evergreen forests, running through fields, and climbing trees. All of the colors and patterns are inspired by nature—from multi-colored posy flowers to ochre fields to the deep greens found in the forest.
When I design every collection, I like to think about what it means to be a Free Babe (Wunderkindred)—the free spirited little girl I dreamt up when I created this small business of mine. She’s the kind of girl who has spirit in every inch of her soul. She runs through open fields with wild, wind-blown hair, a bit of dirt on her nose, and that look of adventure in her eyes.
TOP -"THE ADELAIDE" LIBERTY OF LONDON BOW; BOTTOM - "HONEY" HAND-TIED PIGTAIL SET
My dream for Free Babes (Wunderkin Co.) is to create a community of adventurous, free-spirited babes, while making high-quality, beautiful bows. All of our bows are handmade by seamstresses around the U.S, from the prettiest, softest, and crispest cotton that I could find. With the summer collection, we are continuing our “classic” colors and introducing 14 brand new colors. I hope you love each and every one of them.
TOP - SCHOOLGIRL BOWS; BOTTOM - SAILOR BOWS
The color block bows are a new style for us that I’m super excited about. I was talking with Erin, of Candy Kirby Designs, about mixing things up and not getting too comfortable with current styles and colors. A lot of kids fashion trends right now are muted and neutral, but Erin inspired me to take some risks with color and do some unexpected matches. I’m so happy with how bright and fun they turned out, while still maintaining a classic look.
LEFT - "THE ADELAIDE" LIBERTY OF LONDON BOW; RIGHT - "ORCHID" HAND-TIED BOW
I think the summer collection goes perfectly with playful, adventurous looks like criss-cross strapped rompers, saltwater sandals, and pigtail buns with schoolgirl bows. I love solid color basics paired with a Liberty of London floral bow, and stripes, dots or a cute print paired with the solid colored schoolgirl bow. For my girls’ clothes, I adore Mabo and Soor Ploom because they make simple and classic pieces in beautiful fabrics like linen and chambray that don’t detract from the girls’ natural beauty. I’ve designed my bows to never take too much attention, but be a perfect compliment to the natural beauty of a child.
THE "ROBIN" LIBERTY OF LONDON BOW
I hope this collection follows you and your Free Babes on many adventures this summer! Personally, I am SO excited to do some serious hiking up in Rocky Mountain National Park. I’m also trying to convince my husband to load up our 2003 Safari van and do a road trip to Southern California and spend a week or two driving up the Pacific Coast Highway and up to Portland and Seattle. I also always spend a summer month in Indiana (where I’m from) and LOVE muggy midwestern nights surrounded by fireflies at dusk. So here’s to that, and here’s to whatever fun summer adventures you have.
Be Brave, Hillary
Photos by Simply Suzy Photography