A question I'm frequently asked is, 'What made you begin making dolls cots?'  Quite simply they came about as a culmination of thoughts, ideas, history and talents; it wasn't really planned - like the best ideas, it just sort of happened!

 

​When my daughter was 3 years old, I rescued my old doll's cot from the attic and set about refurbishing it.  A coat of paint and some pretty fabric gave it a glow-up that delighted my daughter and the cot took pride of place in her bedroom, as it had in mine.  She played with it all the time.  When she had finally outgrown playing with it, she asked if I could put it away for when she has children.  Inadvertently I had created an heirloom for future generations!  The cot was simple, naive and certainly wasn't up to today's stringent toy safety standards, but the seeds of an idea were sown: beautiful doll's cots handmade from reclaimed hardwoods and elaborately furnished, for endless play.

 

Of course, ideas often sit idling until something pushes them to the fore.  Unfortunately it was my Mum passing away, hearing the sad statistic that most people are forgotten within two generations and a personal growing awareness of the utter waste and disposability of today's toys that prompted me to start watering the seeds of my idea.  I knew, from my daughter and her friends, that the dolls cots had enduring appeal but it was imperative that our cots must be of the highest quality, have a sense of  history, be built for longevity and in their creation be environmentally conscious.

​

I approached Norman, a family friend and incredibly talented carpenter, to ask if he was interested in the project.  Norman set about developing a prototype from reclaimed furniture and I looked into the incredibly complex world of UK Toy Regulations and UKCA testing, as well as beginning to create the fabric elements that would make the cots' bedding set.  The cots took time to develop; multiple iterations of style and construction,  the research and sourcing of materials, testing and documenting, not to mention a good deal of patience! Our diligence was worth it as the resulting cot is an absolute delight.  The cots are truly enchanting, visually stunning and fantastic fun to play with - for young and old alike.   We might not be saving the world just yet, but we are certainly saving trees, preventing more landfill and creating new family toys that will be treasured heirlooms.

 

A toy created for longevity creates it's own history, it is important that future generations know the origins of the cot and who has owned it before.  With this in mind, each cot comes with a unique Certificate of Ownership.  The Certificate details when and where the cot was made, the former life of the reclaimed wood (table, worktop, sideboard - it really could be anything!), the chosen bedding set and, most importantly space to add the details of who has owned  it - from the first owner, to the next and the next and the next.