​Since becoming a mum, I’ve discovered there’s a whole world of new things out there, but one thing I hadn’t known about – the world that lives behind Instagram, Insta-stores! 

Most people who know me know that I’m not really one for following fashion, and live in jeans and a sweater. But when it comes to Lily, there are some things I just can’t resist buying her!

I don’t know whether these Instagram shops have a particular name, but I’ve completely fallen in love. I’ve no idea how I’d hold down a job, look after Lily, and run a shop with hundreds/thousands of followers, but that’s just what these mums do. They spend their ‘free time’ making baby/toddler clothes, crafts, decorations, nursery pictures, toys, and anything else they are talented at, and share them through the world of Instagram. It’s at this stage I wish I wasn’t living off maternity money as I’d dress Lily in these clothes every day, partly due to helping support these amazing mums with their independent shops, and partly because the clothing is pretty damn cute! Most of Lily’s clothes come from supermarkets (unless bought for her by lovely friends/family!), but with a few gorgeous items from some of these lovely Insta-stores, I struggle to decide what to put her in each day!

There are cheaper ways of getting your hands on some of these amazing clothes, as alot of the stores run market nights, flash sales, sample sales, raffles, and often loop competitions with other stores.

You can also become a brand rep (BR) or brand enthusiast (BE) for the stores, often lasting for 3 months before they refresh their team, and end up with clothing discounts and freebies for your favourite brands on exchange for some online photo spamming. Lily was lucky enough to land on the Trendy Tots Threads team for 3 months and it meant alot to us because her eye tumour at the time was still only just shrinking, and people were still asking questions, so it meant alot that a brand would love her as much as we do… plus we absolutely love every TTT fabric going! And it was another excuse for even more baby-spamming (Sorry, again I know I claimed I’d never do that!)! 

Which leads us on to a little lowdown on some of our favourite clothing stores out there. Please check them out if you get a chance as you’re supporting hardworking mums, dads and families directly, rather than big corporations!

TRENDY TOTS THREADS

This was the brand that started it all for us. I mean how could you not fall in love with a store that had leggings with unicorns and sharks on them?! From then on I knew this was a brand to follow and quickly we were honoured to be on their team alongside some other fantastic families. Now, Lily’s leggings drawer is 98% TTT, and I wouldn’t change it for the world… and I know many other mummies who are as dedicated fans as we are! What’s more, the absolutely lovely Diane is mummy to the gorgeously named girls Nola (age 2 and a half) and Ezra (18 months), plus has a ‘normal’ job, and runs TTT in her ‘free time’. How she does it I don’t know but if you want some amazing fabrics in leggings, shorts and rompers, super soft for the baby’s skin, at decent prices, from a truly genuinely lovely lady, and not have to wait a month for them to arrive (as some stores your little one has outgrown them before you receive them!), you’re never going to be disappointed with TTT. @trendytotsthreads

MAEBAES

Once again, it was two specific fabrics we fell in love with that drove us to Maebaes – llamas and dinosaurs! We’ve now landed a lovely romper with llamas and are waiting on some lovely unisex dinosaur leggings to come our way! Laura is another lady I’ve had a few chats with, and as a mummy (to the beautifully named Arya) who runs this fantastic clothing company on the side, I’ve again no idea how she manages it. It also helps that we share a passion for the mountains and have reminisced about the good-days of past winter seasons! She’s a truly genuine lady, with a passion for what she does, and for that reason she has a fantastic following of dedicated clothing fanatics. @maebeesuk 

MARY’S MACHINE

It was the rainbows that first drew me to Mary’s Machine. I love rainbows. And to have come across a fabric of stars and rainbows, it would’ve been stupid not to get Lily into it! With just a limited amount of fabric left, she whipped together some ideas for me to ensure Lily had a beautiful pink and rainbow stars romper to her name. It was so soft and comfy that we soon got our hands on another romper… with bears and constellations. Such unique fabrics really sets this brand aside. And extra love goes to her for running a market night at the same time as looking after a very poorly baby earlier this month! @marysmachine 

CRIBSTAR 

Cribstar has a pretty heavy following, particularly for the unique slogan rompers that you truly can’t find anywhere else. But we really love the dribble bibs, and after a bank holiday sale, we ended up with 8 of them! The designs and prints are gorgeous (from strawberries and blueberries to rubber ducks, sweeties and Tetris shapes!), and are printed in very high quality. We love the size of the bibs as many bibs we find are small so don’t last long, but these are bigger, and the quality is high, with a very soft, felt fabric which is kind to Lily’s skin. @cribstar_official