If you’ve been following me recently you’ll know that we went to The Baby and Toddler Show at Eventcity in Manchester last Friday.  As there were so many brands, stands of innovative products and workshops, I decided to split my round up into two posts (Part 1 is right here)  They’re both image (and word!) heavy so if you love long posts this mini blog series is for you!

* Our tickets were provided free in return for review

So, after spending some time at the Lidl stand and using their fab changing facilities, then getting kitted out with our Izmi baby carrier, we had so many more stands to go and have a nosey around.

Mam was a particular brand I was keen to check out at the show since Reuben is just obsessed with their dummies (or rather, their ‘soothers’).  We’ve tried just about every other dummy going but he only likes the funky button Mam dummies.  And dummies there were!  Tons of new designs, with the hedgehog and fox prints being my favourite ones.  There was also a fair few decent discounts on the Mam stand, with £15 for 4 items across the soother, feeding and teething range (minus the cute rubber teethers) however, considering I’ve just this evening paid £3.75 for a pack of two Mam dummies from Tesco, I’m glad I figured the deal wasn’t that great to jump into.  Anyway, there was the free bottle with soother for everyone which was good.  I’d pre-registered for it on their website but I needn’t have really because the reps were just handing them out.

There were some adorable clothing stands about, mainly for newborns, some featuring frills, bling and a touch of personalisation.  But it was the Hazelbou stand that caught my eye.  Neatly displaying hangered sleepsuits and outfits in a child’s bedroom setting, this stylish and earth conscious baby fashion brand epitomises classic style with a contemporary flavour.  Fabrics were organic cotton or bamboo that felt so thick and substantial and had a super soft touch.  The modern print designs were really funky; the zebra print was particularly adorable and I loved the rompers featuring turn over foot muffs for the option to go barefoot or covered like a standard babygrow.

The Red Cross had a stand where they were running a taster first aid course.  You needed to book in as the talks were hugely popular but by chance we were approached by a lady from the stand who asked if we’d like to join in.  Topics briefly touched on febral seizure, burns and CPR and every person there took away a very handy full pack of kids plasters and an information pack with a discount against a full Red Cross first aid course.  This is actually something I’m seriously wanting to do; I don’t feel all that confident I’d know what to do in case of an emergency situation with Reuben.  It was strange performing CPR on a plastic baby doll (though a proper first aid one, I may add) but it was strangely confidence boosting, convincing me I’d feel more able to take action should the need arose.

Childs Farm were there selling their full range of organic baby and toddler skincare products.  Personally I love how they use natural fragrances that make the shampoos and bubble bath smell so divine.  The baby range is mostly fragrance free but there is an organic tangerine scent that’s just beautiful and ideal for a refreshing wash in the morning.  We were given some samples of the fragrance free bubble bath, shampoo and baby moisturiser so we’ve got those lined up to try next.

There were so many pushchairs, prams and car seats on display by every brand you could imagine. The Cosatto stand stood out to me with their bright and eye catching designs.  If you find travel systems can all end up looking the same, you’ll likely pull to Cosatto’s funky aesthetic.  Reuben’s highchair is a Cosatto 360 Spin and it’s amazing quality (although we’ve replaced the seat liner) so I’d imagine their whole catalogue would be decent.  I saw a really cute print that consisted of character stars that had little faces, and then there was a gorgeously vibrant budgie print that I’d totally use myself.

Shortly before closing we came to the intriguing Easytots stand where brightly coloured dinner mats were positioned onto highchair trays and dining tables.  Much like a school dinner tray but without the rigidity, the flexible ‘Easymats’ have sectioned pockets for a variety of food to offer baby.  There were two types of mats, a mini travel size with a rounded shape and protective cover and a larger one that’s squared off, both featuring super strong suction cups to stick firmly to a table.  The silicone Easymats are such a clever design I just had to try them out with Reuben, so we’ll be reviewing those shortly.

And so…

We enjoyed a really packed, full on day down at Eventcity.  I couldn’t believe there was so much to see and do that we’d stayed right to the end, and I left wishing I could just return for another run the following day!

I do feel there’s a few things I’d improve the show on though, starting with the show goody bag which wasn’t what I was expecting.  It was just the Emma’s Diary ‘Bump to Baby’ bag which any new mum using their app will already have claimed, so it was nothing new to me.  It would be more exciting to receive little samples and offers from some of the stands in case you’d missed them, and maybe the baby food that was being offered to all babies could have been put in.  I was gutted Reuben never got to eat his free Babease dinner which was honestly one of the missed highlights for me, and the addition of some floor staff to ask questions and help direct around the show would have been helpful.

But it was a worthwhile trip that I’ve come away with renewed inspiration.  There’s lots of brands I want to look up and check out further, especially thanks to the brands who provided samples to try and freebies to test at home.

If you like your baby shopping under one roof with the added benefit of discounted prices and exclusive offers then I’d thoroughly recommend you pop along to your next nearest show.

Look out for my Baby and Toddler Show video arriving at the Becky’s Boudoir Youtube channel very soon!  

Read Part 1 of this show review

Have you ever been to the Baby and Toddler Show or one similar?  How did you find the experience?  And what do you typically like to see and do at these shows?