No kidding with the couture!

Kidology brings together designs of Malini Ramani, Gaurav Gupta, Gauri & Nainika and Ritu Kumar for very demanding clientele – children

A child wearing Malini Ramani's creation at Kidology at DLF Promenade, Vasant Kunj in New Delhi. Photo: S. Subramanium

Designing for children must be both easy and difficult. There's lesser fabric to work upon, but care is to be taken that clothes are comfortable in material and construction and, to be worn by today's kids, fashionable. (Ever seen a four-year-old in front of a trial room mirror?) While the casual knitted variety is aplenty, children's occasion wear, especially, is a rarity. Kidology aims to address this gap.

The newly-launched store in DLF Promenade in Vasant Kunj brings together the designs of the likes of Malini Ramani, Gauri & Nainika, Gaurav Gupta and Ritu Kumar especially designed for Kidology. Besides children's wear by these designers, there's also a section for expectant mothers. German designer Maya Nocon is the in-house designer.

Karina Rajpal, Neha Sachar Mittal and Ankur Mittal are the people behind the store.

“The concept is simple. We let the designers do what they do best – designing. We take up the headache of the other stuff, like production, marketing and retail,” says Neha Sachar Mittal, managing director, Kidology.

“The designers make the first sample. We make the counter sample and after the required changes it is sent to production,” she elaborates.

Gaurav Gupta's is a fun collection. Cats, beetles and owls feature in different ways on pinafore dresses and jumpsuits. There's plaid on one side, ruffles in neon green and red on another, and comfy anti-fit knits in reds and fuchsia in yet another.

Gauri & Nainika again play girly and elegant, using georgettes and duchess satins in mauve, maroon and red and embellished with bows and satin roses.

Hooded and yoked frocks with light appliqué on jersey characterise Malini Ramani's line, while Ritu Kumar does traditional and fusion.

While the DLF Promenade store is Kidology's first, expansion is close. “We plan to expand at many levels. While we're looking at shop-in-shops and branches in other cities, we also plan to increase the sizes. Sizes 0 to 7 are available now, but we're planning to take it to 10. We also plan to add a new designer every season,” says Neha. For Spring/ Summer 2010, Namrata Joshipura will be joining them.

There are accessories too, in the shape of matching headbands and bags, the latter by Bhavna Bhardwaj. Also, furniture in the form of ship-shaped beds, cots and cute cabinets, by Karina Rajpal and Mallika Vadhera.