Cool Kids in the CLE

The author's daughter, Louisiana, models her cape from Finley Handmade

Before I had my son Catcher in 2005 I had a strict mantra when it came to fashion. Spend the big money on shoes and handbags; spend the little money on everything else. Alongside my handbag and shoe collection, my wardrobe consisted mainly of ripped jeans, rock T-shirts; boyfriends' dress shirts, and poorly named wife beaters. I always believed that a good shoe or bag could pull any outfit together. And then I had kids.  

My handbag collection suddenly disappeared, and as soon as my kids were out of the womb my passion for fashion found me dressing my children. It was easy at first: We still lived in Brooklyn, which had exploded into hip kid-designer central. However, when we packed up and headed back to our hometown of Cleveland, I found that my kids' wardrobe selections had been largely culled from chain stores. It took me a while to get my bearings on the kids clothing scene in northeast Ohio, but eventually I did, and along the way I found some great local children’s clothing designers.  

Early on in my search for gnarly children’s clothes, I discovered Room Service, a boutique located in the Detroit Shoreway. I met the owner, Danielle DeBoe, and told her about my two children, Catcher and Louisiana.  She immediately showed my her kids section (at the time, very small) and I instantly bought an adorable knitted hat for my baby girl. From that moment, I actively sought clothing made locally, not only at Room Service, but also at stores like Revive, Banyan Tree, as well on Etsy, the online resource for all things handmade.

In my search I have found quite a few local children’s designers that I depend on heavily for the coolest kids gear in Cleveland. The first, Finley Handmade, has the honor of being the creator of the coolest article of clothing in my daughter’s tiny closet (pictured above). I sat down with owner Stephanie Sheldon to talk clothes, and I am happy to report that her personality is a perfect fit with the clothing she designs.  

She finds inspiration all around her, but “I always try to create items with personality, thoughtful details, and typically a unique and modern sensibility," says Sheldon, who is also an architect. "Materials, patterns, and colors provide so much inspiration. Vintage children’s stories also provide some good fairy-tale inspiration. Children are also my inspiration, they are so quirky. We should help them express that!”

Another one of my favorite kids' designers funkifies winter hats for the kids. Casey McClurg, owner of  CaseyBot, stole my heart when I bought one of her hats for my son Catcher. CaseyBot began as a plush designer and recently added a line of hats including the unicorn, the monster, the dinosaur and my personal favorite, the Yeti. CaseyBot hats can be found around Cleveland at Room Service, DeBoe's seasonal Made in the 216 shop, and Bazaar Bizarre. McClurg also hopes to establish relationships with additional shops in 2010.

I may no longer fill my own closets with handbags and shoes, however, I am proud to say that because of all the great local designers and boutiques, my children’s closets don't suffer for not being based in New York City. My kids look cool and mama’s a happy girl.