Matt, child-free, but child-friendly friend, just sent this to me, it was in the Nov. 16, 1957 issue of the New Yorker. It's an ad for a kind of awesome-looking form=function bassinet called the Cherub Crib, which is basically a square-ish hammock suspended from four giant, X-shaped brackets, one on each side. They were from Playhouse, an outfit in Jackson, TN.
Here's the ad copy:
Designed in Italy for the modern American baby. Twice area of old-fashioned baskets...27" x 29"...use months longer. Safe, strong, can't tip over. Ball-bearing casters. Folds completely, converts into car bed for traveling. [!] Light-weight. Soft, cloth sides in wonderfully bright colors. Washable. Complete with durable masonite bottom...cushiony, wetproof pad. Only $19.99 (Ppd US) Check or Money Order.Obviously, this isn't going to be used in the car any time soon; but given that the Cariboo and the Seimi bassinet that's sold through the Netto Collection are both thin, folding, wooden structures with cloth-sided beds suspended from them, it makes me wonder how much the modern American baby's needs have changed in 50 years. Or maybe it's just taken that long for design trends in NZ and FI to catch up to the US. heh.
The Complete New Yorker on 8 DVD's costs about 3x as much as the Cherub Crib advertised in it [amazon]
Semi-Off Topic:
Check out the new Sur La Table mailer: Collapsible European Market Tote.
Looks like a Bugaboo for your groceries - perhaps they even come in matching colors. Or, with a little work, it might help the Mini-Bugaboo thing that you were working on.
[dude, that's the same thing I used. It's by Riesenthel, and it's started turning up all over: The Container Store, SLT, etc. I expect to be seeing playgrounds FULL of DIY Miniboos by Spring... -ed.]
It is a bit strange! You can see something similar here
[you mean at birdland.com, the most exclusive "quality baby products & bird houses" site on the internet? -ed.]
re:birdland.com...
What the?!? I'm finally starting to not understand the internet...
Check out the latest "Dwell". In their baby section, they've got not one but TWO cool modern baby-shopping-bag-steam-bent bassinets featured.
[If I remember, one is the Seimi/Netto; and I'm just finishing a post on the other, the Ooba. Stay tuned. -ed.]