Availability: Available online and in select offline outlets
Average Cost: $169.99 -300
Product Link: Flight of Fantasy 9pc Layette
Rating:

I happened upon Fidgy Bridgy Layettes completely by accident and immediately fell in love with the layette design that adorns the homepage. I followed the link to the products page, expecting the layettes to be in the $500 range that seems to be common to designer layettes with fewer pieces than this one offers, and was shocked to see that it sells for $300 and that it’s currently on sale for $169.99. This is hands-down the most affordable and most beautiful layette I’ve seen. After going through the entire site and loving each layette more than the last, I decided that my favorite was the “Flight of Fantasy” set.

The 9 piece layette includes a warm crib quilt, fitted crib sheet, crib skirt, wrap-around bumper pads, a diaper stacker, a toy bag, a decorative pillow, and two window valances. All of these items are embroidered with the cutest little dragon flies (with the exception of the crib skirt and sheet.)

DESIGN

The whimsical dragonflies that adorn this layette have a great “handmade” quality to their design, and were in fact designed by the layette’s creator Bridgette Liedorff. The dragonflies aren’t the only adornment on this layette, either. Fluffy white chenille borders the pillow, quilt, and bumper giving your baby something to snuggle up to. The colors work wonderfully together and are very soothing.

The aesthetic of all of FidgyBridgy’s layettes is simple, whimsical, and modern. The elegance of design is something that is sorely missing in most of today’s licensed character kid’s bedding.

FUNCTIONALITY

The diaper stacker is generously sized and holds a full bag of 7th Generation size 5 diapers, and then some. A welcome change over my old diaper stacker where I could only fit half the bag in at a time. The diapers can easily be removed without untying the bow on the front- which keeps the diapers firmly in place.

The window valance loops are generously sized and easy to use. I’d love it if they had snap-tabs for attaching them to windows with curtain rods that don’t remove easily, but that’s just a personal nitpick.

The toy bag is perfectly sized for small stuffed animals, however I found that attaching it to the changing table and using it for a handy repository for baby care items and pacifiers suited my needs much better. Maybe when my daughter is a little bit older it will become a toy bag, but in the meantime it’s serving a very utilitarian use and holding up wonderfully to the heavier items that I have used it to store. The pockets also fit the “SweetPea3″ children’s MP3 player perfectly and it has found a permanent home in one of the pockets. I use it to play bedtime lullabies.

The decorative pillow is cutely made and I’ve actually found a function for it beyond decoration. It’s great for cushioning my baby’s head against bumps against the arm rests of my rocking chair when we’re rocking late at night. The soft fuzzy chenille border is soothing for her to stroke as well.

The crib skirt slides easily into place under the crib mattress. It is slit at the corners to allow it to fall down around all four sides. In cribs that have one or more sides that don’t open up at the bottom, the skirt can be folded up. It is of a great length for my taller crib and does a wonderful job of covering up the under-crib storage area.

The bumper is wonderfully soft and ties securely at the top and bottom in multiple locations. It should be removed once your baby starts to move around too much, but in the meantime it’s a truly beautiful and comfy looking piece. One thing to note is that, like all bumpers, it requires that the corners of your crib be accessible to tie a bumper to. Some crib designs do not allow for bumpers to be attached.

The crib sheet has elastic along the corners to hold it in place. It works best with standard-sized crib mattresses although it will stretch to accommodate an extra thick mattress- I’m just paranoid about it ripping. I’d buy this layette even without the crib sheet, though, just for its design. So having a thicker crib mattress is no reason to shy away from this layette.

The ties on the diaper stacker, toy bag, and bumper are thick enough and of good enough quality fabric to easily tie into a double knot for security and still be able to easily un-tie when you want to wash it or pack it up for storage for the next baby. A welcome change from some ties which almost had me cutting them off out of annoyance.

QUALITY

All of the items in this set are well made with the exception of the crib sheet which appears to be of only average quality. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just not at the same quality level as the other items in the set.

SAFETY

The bumper ties, and the ties for the toy bag do not exceed 6″ in length which is an improvement over the absurdly long ties in some other layettes. FidgyBridgy clearly identifies the pillow as a decorative item. The quilt should only be used with older babies or if it’s really cold it can be used by following the “place baby’s feet up against the bottom of the crib, tuck blanket in securely around bottom and sides of crib and have blanket only extend to the baby’s armpits” method of tucking your little one in. The quilt is well made and does not drape heavily on your child so when properly used it doesn’t seem to pose much of a suffocation hazard.

SOME NOTES

• The crib sheet does not accommodate a thicker crib mattress easily. It fits, but it’s a squeeze. This has been an issue for me with most crib sheets, so I can’t hold it against this layette. It’s just something to mention.
• The layette is hand-wash or delicate wash only to preserve the embroidery and possibly the softness of the chenille. It stands up to rougher treatment surprisingly well considering the recommendations of Fidgy Bridgy, but I love this layette so much that hand-washing it isn’t a big deal.
• The layette ships in a reusable plastic storage bag, it’s amazing how small the entire layette can compress and how unwrinkled it is when it comes out. Any slight wrinkles can be gotten rid of by a quick steam (tip: hanging the pieces in the bathroom and running the shower on hot for 5 minutes to steam the room up works as well.)

CONCLUSION

This layette won me over with its cute dragonfly design, fluffy chenille edging, and the toy bag. Its low price is the icing on the cake and makes it a wonderful gift for a new mom who wants something pretty with a “handmade” feeling to dress up the nursery.