Sometimes, what I appreciate most in an online retailer is their edit.  I’m a busy girl – scrolling through pages and pages of stuff is time-consuming, and if I can reliably count on a retailer to do the work for me…I’m so appreciative.  One of those retailers whose kid-edit I especially appreciate is Bloomingdale’s.

Bloomingdale’s is, hands-down, my favorite place to buy backpacks for kids.  I found the Sprayground brand last year for Raines, and we were blown away by how good these backpacks are.  They have a real laptop sleeve (so it’ll grow with him), and, despite the fact that he had to haul all of his books to/from school on the daily last year….the seams are still perfectly finished.  No straps are falling off, no threads coming loose.  Periodically I would find mashed bananas or – worse – yogurt crusted in the pockets of his pack, and I’m happy to report that the Sprayground backpacks wash up nicely in the washing machine.

Besides, the designs are so freaking cool.

So when Bloomingdale’s reached out, asking if I wanted to collaborate on a back-to-school article, I knew exactly what I wanted to cover.  We almost shot this with Raines’ old Sprayground backpack (just to prove how good it still looks, a year later), but this year’s designs are too cool not to show off.  (I’ll throw a photo of the old backpack on IG when we get home from our trip.)

We love these Sprayground backpacks so much that the boys brought them with us to Europe this summer.  We did learn, however, that the size of these packs are a bit big for Pax.  He’s obsessed with the video-game design of his pack, however, so he’s wearing it happily most of the time….but there were a few meltdowns due to heaviness/size/jetlag.  For reference, Pax is going into second grade, Raines is going into fifth (sob!).  In hindsight, the State brand of backpacks may have been a better choice for little Pax (they’re a bit smaller, and the designs are just as cool – but have a vastly different vibe).  See my favs from both brands, below.

Lastly, I’d be remiss if I didn’t also mention that Bloomingdale’s also has a really well-edited kids’ clothing section – both boys and girls.  I appreciate the cool toppers (lightweight jackets, hoodies, etc), and a good selection of Hudson jeans – the only ones my boys will happily wear.  If you’ve never shopped at Bloomingdales.com before, you can get free shipping by joining their loyalist program (free to join – basically just an email newsletter situation) and you have up to a year to return anything you don’t like.  Here are the pieces my boys’ chose for their back-to-school shopping this year (as well as a photo-journal of their usual shenanigans, omg).

Outfit Details

Raines (the older brother):  jacket | jeans | sneakers | backpack

Pax (the little brother): sweatshirt | jeans | sneakers | backpack

Back-To-School Favorites From Bloomingdale’s

Just a quick sample of our favorite pieces from Bloomingdale’s, to give you a better idea of just how good their kids’ edit actually is.  True to form, I’ve pulled in pieces from both the boys’ and girls’ sections. (Why limit yourself when both have such cool, unisex pieces?)

Our Favorite Kid Backpacks

Our Favorite Hoodies, Sweatshirts, and Jackets

The Coolest Sneakers

Hard to believe – as I type this in Athens, Greece – that we’re talking about Back-to-School already.  Wow.  Hope you are enjoying your last bit of summer….

xo,

S

A huge thank-you to Bloomingdale’s for sponsoring this post!  I love you guys.  Thanks for making it so easy to find seriously chic pieces for kids (and I also appreciate how many truly unisex pieces you carry).  As always, all thoughts, opinions, and product choices are my own (or my boys’ own, as the case may be).  And readers, thank you for your continued support.  It doesn’t go unnoticed, and is so very much appreciated!