The Playpen

Hmmmm…..what to post today. Let me think about it. Hang on a minute….no, never mind. Wait! I think I just had an idea….

You read it right. Half off everything in our online baby store, RedSparks, today only. And we’re online, so you don’t have to camp overnight, get in fistfights or shove belligerent moms out of the aisle and into the toilet paper display at Wal-Mart. Score.

-Matt

What better way to kick off the holiday weekend than announcing the annual Labor Day sale at our online baby store, RedSparks?  Gratuitous?  Yes.  Poor form?  No way.  Because I have a little code here that gets all Playpen readers 15% off everything in our store, including some brand new merchandise from Tea Collection, for this weekend only.  Its like a little gift, no?  Here are a couple of the really cute Tea items.  You know, in case you were curious.

Shibori Wrap Dress

Named for the ancient art of Japanese tie-dye. Printed dress in our classic wrap style. pair up with jeans or organic purity leggings. Imported. 100% cotton, machine washable.

Purity Organic Legging

A great layering piece, for a versatile wardrobe. pair up with shibori print wrap dress or with t-shirt for every day playtime. imported. 100% cotton, machine washable.

Koinobori Graphic Tee

Named for the kites commemorating Children’s Day in Japan. Layered sleeves and contrast indigo trim. Pair with Kei pant from Tea Collection. Imported. 100% cotton, machine washable.

Kei Yarn Dye Pant

Named for a textile gallery in Kyoto. Washed canvas for soft, rugged look. Pull on style, with elastic waistband and reinforced knees. Two back pockets. Pair with Koinobori graphic Tee. Imported. 100% cotton, machine washable.

Takayama Plaid Top

Named for a mountain village of Takayama known for traditional architecture and crafts, this sophisticated pull-on style has contrast knit collar and sleeves. Pair with our Tea collection denim. Imported. 100% cotton, machine washable.

So there you go.  Cute huh?  We think so too.  Now down to business.  From the moment this post hits the stands and throughout the entire weekend, you get 15% off the styles listed above.  Wait. There’s more.  If you act now, you can use your 15% off code to take 15% off anything in the RedSparks shop.  Just type in ‘laborday15′ at checkout, click ‘redeem’ and you’re off and running.  Simple as that.  And you know what?  Since we’re feeling generous, if you’re really interested in picking something up on the cheap, send us an email or drop a comment here before you buy and let us know.  If you catch us at just the right moment, we may feel like throwing in some free shipping, too.  Maybe.

Thanks to everyone for your continued support, and here’s wishing you all a happy and healthy Labor Day weekend!

-Aline & Matt

Los Angeles, CA, July 2, 2009 – RedSparks, a Los Angeles based online boutique specializing in modern apparel for preemie, infant and toddler, is pleased to announce the addition of the Kicky Pants line of organic children’s clothing their online children’s retail store.

“Adding Kicky Pants apparel to our online boutique was an easy decision for us,” noted owner Aline Pfingsten. “We are thrilled to offer this amazing line of green clothing for children that is not only earth-friendly but also of exceptional quality and beautiful design.” In addition to other organic preemie and toddler clothing carried by RedSparks, they are currently offering a selection of seven different designs by Kicky Pants, all of which are eco-friendly outfits for children made from bamboo. Kicky Pants clothing is made from a sustainable, renewable bamboo, which is naturally antibacterial, antistatic and antifungal and also 3-4 times more absorbent than cotton, making it an excellent choice for both baby and earth.  Take a look at some of the adorable Kicky Pants styles now available at RedSparks.com.

Bamboo Moss Coverall

Boys eco-friendly moss coverall by Kicky Pants. 95% bamboo and 5% lycra, very gentle and smooth next to baby’s sensitive skin. No synthetic or chemical processing. snaps down the front. Machine Washable. 24.00

Girl Dot Ruffle Dress

Beautiful dot eco-friendly layered dress by Kicky Pants. 95% bamboo and 5% lycra, very gentle and smooth next to baby’s sensitive skin. No synthetic or chemical processing. Layers add a feminine touch for your sweet little girl! Machine washable. 50.00

Bamboo Striped Polo

Modern stripe bamboo polo by Kicky Pants. 95% bamboo and 5% lycra, very gentle and smooth next to baby’s sensitive skin. No synthetic or chemical processing. Two front buttons and detailed stitching. Machine washable. 24.00

Ruffle Romper

Beautiful wavy design eco-friendly romper by Kicky Pants. 95% bamboo and 5% lycra, very gentle and smooth next to baby’s sensitive skin. No synthetic or chemical processing. snaps at the bottoms with ruffles on the butt. Machine Washable. 28.00.

In addition to providing a variety of stunning, well-made apparel and accessories specifically for preemies and toddlers, RedSparks.com actively participates in the community of families facing the challenges of premature births. Through community out-reach, and with hopes of future partnerships with local charities and non-profit groups that help support pre-term children with special needs and their families as their small business grows, Matt and Aline Pfingsten strive to be a stronghold in their community.

To read the full RedSparks press release, click here.

-RedSparks

Genius [jeen•yuh•s]-noun: The act of displaying unparalleled levels of intelligence by posting a giveaway for product from one’s business during the exact week when absolutely no one will see it.

Not a day goes by when I don’t say a little prayer begging the powers at be to prevent my daughter from becoming a successful lawyer, dentist or accountant. I want her to be an artist. In my opinion, artists shape the world we live in and define who we are as a species. They inspire us and provide nourishment for our souls. Granted, artists come in many different varieties, but one way or another they are necessary to our survival.

Until recently, I have been secretly disappointed with my daughter’s artwork. I know, she’s only four. But still. To me it just seemed like she should be farther along by now. Her Nana was an art teacher for decades, still painting professionally and her grandfather is an architect and a painter. But whenever she would come racing down the hallway and thrust her latest work into my hands proudly, waiting intently for my reaction, I would gaze at the dilapidated piece of construction paper covered in Elmer’s Glue, googly eyes and some dog eared purple feather she had found, there was little I could do to conceal my disdain for the work.

Then, yesterday, my whole world changed. As I walked into the kitchen she led me to the laundry room and showed me this.

Look at it! It’s fantastic! Proof, my friends, that there is true brilliance in her after all. After asking my wife “did she really do this?” about 14 times, I snatched the paper off the pantry door where she had taped it and began to dissect it. In addition to the perfect proportion, realism and color-sense she displays, something else…something HUGE…caught my eye. The smile. Look at how its drawn. Teetering perfectly on the edge of whimsical and solemn, the grin almost gives you the feeling that her subject knows something we don’t. As if it has it’s own little secret. I know you are all thinking exactly what I was thinking.

Yes. We know where we have seen that smile before.

You see, my daughter doesn’t even know who da Vinci IS yet. She managed to recreate at four what it took that man a lifetime to arrive at. Clearly, she is gifted and I can sleep at night.

In celebration of this new discovery, I have decided to run a little contest. Its been a while since I’ve given away something from RedSparks, our online baby store, so I think I’ll give it another shot.

Here’s the way its gonna go down:

First, the easy way. Just drop a comment here about anything you like by Friday, July 31, and you’ll be entered into a random drawing to win a $25.00 Gift Certificate to RedSparks.

Secondly, the Grand Prize. Below, I have included my daughter’s piece into some of my favorite works of art (personally, I think it improves all of them). In your comment, if you’re so inclined, provide the name AND the artist of the five original works shown. If you’re the first to do so, I’ll send you this cool Sweetleaf Reed Diffuser (perfect for nurseries and kid’s rooms) absolutely FREE!

That all you have to do. Pretty darn easy, right? Best of luck. Note: Images below are just thumbnails. Click each one for a larger pic!

Thanks for playing!
-Matt

Do you know about Dicovering Dad? It’s a website dedicated to what it means to be a good dad, and the site’s editor and founder, Jeremy, has put in a ton of hard work to build it into a terrific resource, filled with valuable insights for dads, by dads. I’m a contributing writer over there, and even though I post so infrequently that I think Jer may want to give me the boot, I did manage to get this one to him. Check it out, Discovering Dad is just cool.

As I was browsing through his site for a while, checking out all the comments and all the posts, I was once again reminded of how lowly and small a blogger I am. An old art teacher once told me that “the very worst response once can receive to one’s work is indifference,” and I sometimes feel that may in fact be the case with The Playpen. Until now. All of my blog heroes get completely trashed in their comments on a regular basis. I mean, people just rip them up one side and down the other all day long. Its awesome. The few readers I am fortunate enough to have around here, by contrast, are all so nice. I have been secretly longing for the day when someone, anyone, will take offense with something I have written and flame me, thus signaling that I have, indeed, truly arrived. Yesterday, Danielle (scroll down to the fourth comment) made my dreams come true, and I love her for that. I’d like to personally thank her for taking the time to get to know us before commenting, and also for blasting our business, RedSparks, that we have worked so hard on in order for us to be able to realize our dream of kicking some of our profits back to neonatal care research and charities that benefit pre-term infants with special needs. Today, my friends, Matt has become a man. He has become….a Blogger.

And since she took offense at my plug and the prices of some of our items, I thought I’d throw her a bone. Check out some of our marked down merchandise at RedSparks. We have a huge sale going on and, regardless of what Danielle might think, we still consider most of what we carry to be pretty adorable.

-Matt

If I’ve done anything right at all, you probably already know that my wife, Aline, and I run an online baby boutique called RedSparks. We have been open for just a tad over a year and, considering what happened to our economy last year, we are enjoying a decent amount of success (babies are clearly a recession-proof profit center!)

One of the “improvements” we made to our site last year was switching from the use of stock photography to actual child models that we photographed in RedSparks clothing. The most successful example of this, and the image set that piqued the most interest, was the daughter of none other than Mr. Lady who, for geographic reasons, shot the photos of her daughter in an outfit we provided herself, rather than us doing a formal photo shoot. They turned out absolutely stunning, and we would like to continue this trend.

That being said, we would like to invite anyone who has a daughter or a son, size preemie through 4T, to participate in the site. The details are very simple:

1. Send either of us an email with a picture of your child or children.
2. Sign a basic model release.
3. Take a few photos of your child in RedSparks clothing, which we provide to you (you get to keep the clothes in exchange for the use of your child’s image)
4. Send the images back to us.
5. Sit back and dream of your child walking the red carpet and rubbing elbows with Brad and Angelina.

Of course, we understand that this type of thing is not for everyone. We take every necessary step to protect the child’s identity and anonymity, but completely respect that many parents do not wish for their children to be pasted all over the web. We have found that, by having the parents shoot photos of their own child, it not only makes things easier on us, but ensures that the parents feel comfortable and in control of how the child is represented. It’s a win win.

For anyone interested in sending their kid down the road to stardom, please drop us a comment or email us at matt@redsparks.com or aline@redsparks.com.

And just in case you’re interested in knowing, Mr Lady’s daughter was contacted a day after her pictures went live by Cameron Crowe, and she will be starring as the adorable daughter of Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger in the upcoming Jerry Maguire II, with plans for a sitcom pilot on FOX and a book deal after that. Mr Lady has bought a second home in the Hamptons and spends most of her days lounging in front of the TV watching ChiPs reruns, sipping Chardonnay and eating Hershey’s Treasures.**

Thanks for your consideration and assistance!

-Matt

**Total lie. She did, however, end up with a really cute hat and top!

In case you missed it, JustMiss nailed the “hidden danger” contest in my previous post and is now the proud owner of a $25 RedSparks gift certificate! I DO have to give an honorable mention to Jessie for making me look like a complete horse’s rear end and pointing out that there was a tiny electrical outlet in the background that was not covered with a plastic thingy. It must have fallen out right before I shot the photo. Really.

So The Playpen has been up and running for a year now. I have learned a lot, and have made a LOT of mistakes (sorry to anyone who’s blog I stalked in the early months. How was I supposed to know there were stats?)

I have also learned that, once in a while, its OK to pay yourself off for all your hard work and writing with a little good natured self-promotion. And, with the current state of economic affairs, what time would be better than now?

For anyone who doesn’t know The Story, my wife Aline and I decided to start our online baby clothing boutique, RedSparks, after our daughter was born prematurely (there wasn’t a lot of cool preemie clothing available at that time). We have been open for just over a year and I can honestly say that things are going fairly well. We carry preemie clothes for tiny little boys and girls. We also go all the way up to 4T with infant and toddler merchandise as well. We carry books, toys, accessories and bath and body; everything stylish and hip for babies. Stop by some time and check us out, that’s all I ask…no pressure.

What’s that you ask? Why, yes, we ARE running a sale right now! Everything on the entire site is marked down 20% (you can even take an additional 20% off sale merchandise) through December 25, 2008. Go to the homepage or just redeem the code “holidaysale” at checkout and start saving money. You almost can’t afford NOT to do it, am I right?

There. That wasn’t so bad was it?

Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Matt

Thanks to everyone who commented in our recent Bright Baby Activity Box Giveaway!

The random number generator picked Lucky commenter #7, Elizabeth M., who said “I think there’s oodles of great finds at RedSparks. Some of my favorites are the black/white art cards, the zoo friends bath set, the busy bee activity toy and the happy feet gift set. I’d love to see art prints for nursery walls and other decorative items. That would be great! ”

Thanks, Elizabeth! Email us at matt@redsparks.com with your address and we’ll send your prize right out!

Matt & Aline
The RedSparks Summer Sale is coming to an end. Don’t miss out! Receive up to 60% off on today’s hottest fashion and accessories for preemies, infants and toddlers!

Happy Labor Day Weekend Everyone!

The Playpen has been a fantastic experience for us. We’ve met a lot of terrific people and have learned a lot from our readers. It almost seems *hint hint* that our little baby blog here has become more successful than our actual business. Hmm. How did that happen?

A few posts ago, we featured some of our favorite products from our online baby boutique, RedSparks. As you can read in Our Story, we started our shop when our daughter, Frankie, was born prematurely. We just weren’t able to find preemie clothes that were hip and cool enough for any daughter of ours! Throw my wife, Aline’s, keen eye for fashion and a love of shopping into the mix, and we ended up with a line of baby clothing and accessories (micro-preemie through 4T) that we are very proud of. Business has been picking up which, in today’s economy, we hope means we are doing something right. Note: this could also just mean that people are out of money, so they are just staying home and making more babies, If you know what I mean. Either way, we love it.

Now we’d like to ask for our readers’ help in growing our business the right way. To thank you for your comments, we are giving away one of our coolest baby gifts, the Bright Baby First Learning Box!

This activity box is a fantastic, fun and interactive learning tool for your wee one. Packed full of developmental and sensory objects, the Bright Baby Box is sure to quickly become one of Baby’s favorites.

Box includes:

Shaker teether
Baby animals book (touch and feel)
First words board book
123 flash cards
Bathtime bath book
Colors cloth book

All we ask is that you take a quick tour through RedSparks and leave a comment telling us what your favorite products from the line are and, more importantly, what you would like to see more of. Be honest…marketers all over the world pay millions of dollars every day to sit in focus groups to get this kind of information…we are grateful to be able to get it for free! (Well, sort of).

We’ll pick a winner at random on Saturday, September 6th…ALL comments will be entered into the drawing, so if you think of something else after you have already commented, its cool. Comment again!

We would like to sincerely thank you for your honest opinions and comments. Its not easy getting a business off the ground these days, and your help in making RedSparks a success is truly appreciated. Now stop reading and go shop!

Matt & Aline
The RedSparks Summer Sale is coming to an end. Don’t miss out! Receive up to 60% off on today’s hottest fashion and accessories for preemies, infants and toddlers!

Well, I think its about time we started doing some product reviews. I know what you’re asking yourself…”Who’s product is exciting, fashionable and awesome enough for Aline to even consider reviewing it?” You guessed it, ours! That’s right, we are smack dab in the middle of the RedSparks Summer Sale! The Fall stuff is coming, and we are clearing out the inventory at prices of up to 60% off. In case you’re not familiar with RedSparks, you can always check out our story. Also, I thought I’d showcase a few of my favorite products i.e.-the ones that are the hardest to let go of at a discount!

For baby girls, I love the Ghana Batik Dress. The print is inspired by an artisinal batik that found in Accra, Ghana, and it is, of course, machine washable.

Regular Price $69.00 Our Price $34.50

This is totally and completely cute, no matter how you slice it. The Bow Top from Stella Industries is adorable, and pairs perfectly with the tiered tutu skirt (shown below).




Regular Price $29.00 Our Price $17.40

See? The Tiered Tutu Skirt makes the outfit…she’s all ready for the ball!




Regular Price $46.00 Our Price $27.60

Got a cute little baby boy who needs some new threads? Check out this rockin’ n rollin’ Play Forever T from Recco S. Its got a cool kangaroo pocket in the front!




Regular Price $38.00 Our Price $26.60

If you need to dress him up a little more, he’ll look dashing in this Mulai Dip Dye Vest. Match it up with a crisp new T-shirt and our Tereli Yarn Dyed Pant (shown below). He’ll be fighting the ladies off with a stick!




Regular Price $41.00 Our Price $19.50

Check out the coordinating Tereli Yarn Dye Pant! Leave the bottoms rolled or unbutton them for a clean, classy look.





Regular Price $45.00 Our Price $26.50


Of course, not everyone has children, but everyone knows someone who has kids. RedSparks also carries a wide range of baby bath and body, shoes, gifts, books and toys. What would make a better gift for the new mommy than this Zoo Friends Bath Set? Soft and oversized, towel is 100% cotton terry and comes with matching washing mit and a rubber ducky!




Regular Price $37.00 Our Price $29.99

To check out all the fun, fashionable and stylish items on sale now at RedSparks, click the banner in the sidebar to the right, or click here.

Don’t forget, we carry a complete line of clothing for preemie girls and preemie boys too! Help us spread the word!

Aline
To stay informed with updates about new products and the addition of our fall line, set up a free account with RedSparks!