Lambs & Ivy is a well-recognized and respected designer and manufacturer of baby crib bedding and accessories, available at national chains and baby specialty stores throughout the United States and at a wide assortment of internet retailers. Sweet as a Daisy is one of their most popular collections and a long-time favorite for new mothers searching for crib bedding for their new baby girl. Sweet as a Daisy appears to strike a reasonable balance between quality and price, representing a good value at between $165 and $200 for a six-piece crib set. Sweet as a Daisy is sold as a six-piece crib set including a quilt, bumper, fitted sheet, crib skirt, valance, and diaper stacker. The fitted sheet and valance are also available for separate purchase. The Sweet as a Daisy collection is made from 100% cotton and is machine washable - a very practical advantage. The typical assortment of coordinating accessories are available to fill out the nursery: musical mobile, wall border, wall decorations, pillows, blankets, lamp and shade, hamper, and rug. An interesting accessory, not available with many other crib bedding collections, is a child sized upholstered rocking chair, a nice touch to make an older sibling feel a part of the new nursery. The centerpiece of any crib bedding collection is the quilt. I was pleased to see that the quilt features a genuine patchwork design, in which the individual patches are sewn together to create the pattern. While the stitching that was done after the quilt filler was added oftentimes strays from the boundaries where two fabric patches meet, I do not feel that this detracts from the quality or look of the merchandise. The primary fabrics used in the collection are: a printed green striped fabric; a printed lavender with white dots; a daisy print; and an interesting lavender eyelet fabric. While all printed, not woven, the fabrics appear of reasonable quality. The highlight of the set is clearly the embroidered and appliqud daisies, butterflies, and ladybugs on the quilt.. This embroidery seems very well done and gives an intricate yet orderly appearance to the quilt. The bumper is 9.5" tall with ties on both the top and bottom. A minor drawback of the bumper is the fact that it comes as one continuous piece, as opposed to two, three, or four pieces. The inward facing bumper has a purple polka-dot trim dividing the green striped fabric and the white patterned fabric. The dust ruffle has a 9.5" drop to complete the look of the set. The fitted sheet is white with purple script stating "Sweet as a daisy" and daisies. Due to the fact that the sheet is a printed fabric, I would caution a buyer to be aware that the pattern could fade or wear more quickly than would be the case with a higher quality woven fabric; I would recommend that consumers purchase separate solid colored sheets for every day use (white or pale purple should work just fine), and reserve the Sweet as a Daisy sheet for when you want to show off your nursery to visitors. The valance measures 14" by 70" and comes in the rod style. The diaper stacker can hold up to three dozen diapers. Because Sweet as a Daisy merchandise is assembled in the United States, it can be particularly appealing for Canadian customers purchasing from a US retailer. It can be shipped to Canada duty-free, thereby avoiding charges of 17% or more of the purchase price that apply to bedding manufactured in China or India. Due to the popularity of the Floral theme in nursery bedding, it would be impractical to list the alternatives that are available. See Floral Theme Bedding for more examples. There are endless possibilities within this theme. |
