The Little Paper Planes Journal — Gift Guides
The Best Heirloom
Baby Gifts
Specific pieces we love, chosen because they will still be treasured twenty years from now.
There is a certain kind of baby gift that gets looked after rather than played with. Not because it is delicate — though some of these are — but because whoever chose it clearly meant something by the choosing. These are the gifts that get named, kept, photographed on first birthdays, and found years later in a box at the top of a wardrobe wrapped in the same tissue paper they arrived in. They are the gifts that become part of the story of a childhood.
At Little Paper Planes we have thought carefully about what belongs on this list. Not everything we stock qualifies. But the pieces below — from Maileg, Steiff, Ferm Living, Toverlux and Moulin Roty, with a few beloved supporting acts — are the ones our team reaches for when a new baby arrives in someone we love's life. Specific products, specific reasons. This is not a mood board. This is a guide.
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Maileg
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Maileg makes the kind of thing you don't just give to a baby — you give to a family. The baby grows into it. The parents fall in love with it. The grandparents buy additions at every Christmas. A Maileg gift for a newborn is the beginning of something that can grow for years, which is what makes it one of the most thoughtful choices on this list.
For a new arrival, we focus on two pieces specifically: the Rabbit Rattle Baby Gift Set, which is perfectly designed for the earliest weeks, and the Baby Mouse in Gown, which is the most considered and kept Maileg piece we stock.
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Maileg — From Birth Rabbit Rattle Baby Gift Set — Mint or Powder A soft plush rabbit rattle and a patterned cotton cloth, presented together in a beautifully illustrated Maileg gift box. The rabbit is perfectly sized for tiny hands — the rattle inside makes a gentle, soothing sound. Both pieces can be machine washed on a gentle cold cycle. It is ready to gift exactly as it arrives. Includes: soft rabbit rattle + cotton cloth + gift box · From birth · Machine washable · Available in Mint and Powder Shop Maileg |
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Maileg — Keepsake from Birth Baby Mouse in Gown — Mint or Powder Dressed in a delicate tulle gown with lace detail and a matching bonnet, this is the Maileg piece that gets kept. Made from quality cotton and linen, 11cm, beautiful enough to display in a nursery and tactile enough for gentle play. This is the beginning of a Maileg collection — everything that follows can be added to it. L11cm · Cotton and linen · Recommended for display; gentle play from birth · Available in Mint and Powder Shop Maileg |
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Maileg — Newborn Essential Maileg Baby Blanket A soft, cosy blanket with a knitted pattern on each side — generously sized at 75×95cm, which means it grows with the baby from swaddle to toddler blanket to treasured keepsake. This is the piece to pair with the Baby Mouse in Gown for a complete Maileg gift — both wrapped together make one of the most beautiful baby shower gifts we offer. 75 × 95cm · Soft knitted pattern both sides · Gentle on newborn skin · Pairs beautifully with the Baby Mouse in Gown Shop Maileg |
"A Maileg gift for a newborn is the beginning of something that can grow for years — not a single purchase but the start of a collection built birthday by birthday."
While we're thinking about new arrivals
Made by hand in small batches in Murrindindi Shire, Victoria — this is the balm we reach for when someone asks what to give alongside a beautiful toy. 100% natural, organic and plant-based. Organic cocoa butter, shea butter, tamanu oil, calendula-infused sunflower oil, rosehip oil. Palm oil free, paraben free, cruelty free, free from all essential oils. Safe on the most sensitive newborn skin. Works as a daily moisturiser and a nappy barrier cream. Parents who receive this tend to reorder it for years.
It also happens to come in a beautiful tin. And it fits perfectly in a gift basket alongside a Maileg mouse.
Shop Baby at Little Paper Planes|
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Steiff
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Steiff invented the teddy bear in 1902. Every genuine Steiff has carried the original button in the ear since 1904 — a mark of authenticity recognised around the world. To give a Steiff to a new baby is not a casual decision. It is a deliberate statement about what you think this child deserves: something real, made with exceptional craft, that will be with them as long as they choose to keep it.
Which, in our experience, is a very long time. Steiff bears get named on the first morning. They live in the corner of the cot. They go everywhere. And thirty years later they are still in the bedroom, sitting on a shelf, wearing whatever softness decades of love has given them.
What to Choose from Steiff for a Newborn
The Steiff Soft Cuddly Friends range is specifically designed for the earliest weeks — extra-soft materials, generous proportions, machine washable. These are not collector's display pieces. They are companions made to be held. The Steiff Hoppie Rabbit and classic plush bears in the newborn range are our most-gifted Steiff pieces for new babies.
For those wanting something with more provenance — a limited edition, a classic bear with the button in the ear, a christening or naming day gift — the collector range offers pieces that will genuinely appreciate in meaning over time. We can advise on specific pieces in store or by email if you want guidance on the right choice for the occasion.
A Steiff is not a toy purchase. It is a decision to give a child their first real thing — something with a name, a history behind the making of it, and a place in the family story for as long as they choose to keep it.
Shop Steiff for a new baby
Steiff at Little Paper Planes
One of Australia's few authorised Steiff online stockists. Gift wrapped and shipped nationally from Mount Martha.
- Soft Cuddly Friends — newborn range
- Classic bears — from birth
- Steiff bunnies & plush animals
- Christening & naming day bears
- Limited & collector editions
- Steiff gift wrapping available
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Ferm Living
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Ferm Living is one of Denmark's most celebrated contemporary design studios, and their children's and baby collection brings exactly the same rigorous design thinking to the nursery that their adult range brings to the rest of the home. The result is pieces that are genuinely beautiful, completely functional, and designed to last far beyond the baby years.
Two pieces stand out for a new baby: the Star Music Mobile, which belongs in every beautifully considered nursery, and the Wooden Age Blocks, which are one of the most quietly clever baby gifts we stock.
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Ferm Living — From Birth Star Music Mobile — Mustard or Rose A star-shaped music mobile in GOTS-certified organic cotton with recycled polyester padding. Bobbing gently above the changing table or cot, it plays Brahms' Lullaby — the pull-cord is easy to activate. Simple and beautiful in equal measure, it is the kind of object that makes a nursery feel considered rather than assembled. H14 × W10 × D5cm · 100% GOTS organic cotton · Recycled polyester fill · Beechwood frame · Plays Brahms' Lullaby · Available in Mustard and Rose Shop Ferm Living |
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Ferm Living — From Birth Wooden Age Blocks Four solid beech wood blocks with the numbers 0–9 in a modern, graphic style — delivered in a soft cotton bag. These blocks track every day, week, month and year of childhood in photographs. Parents who receive these as a gift are photographing their baby with them at one week, one month, one year, and every birthday after that. They are a record of time passing, made beautiful. H5.8 × D11.5 × W17.5cm · 100% solid beech wood · CE tested · Suitable from birth · Delivered in cotton bag Shop Ferm Living |
Shop Ferm Living for a new baby
Ferm Living at Little Paper Planes
Authorised Australian Ferm Living stockist. Scandinavian design for modern family spaces. Ships nationally from Mount Martha.
- Star Music Mobile — Mustard or Rose
- Wooden Age Blocks
- Ferm Living children's textiles
- Nursery décor & accessories
- Ferm Living soft toys
- Gift wrapping available
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Toverlux
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A Toverlux Magic Lamp arrives as one beautiful thing: a smooth birch wood base, a warm LED glow, a simple touch dimmer. It works as a nightlight from the first night home from hospital. And then the silhouettes begin — interchangeable illustrated scenes that slide into the top of the lamp, each one casting a different story on the wall in warm light.
This is what makes Toverlux the longest-lasting gift on this list. The lamp itself is bought once. The silhouettes — fairy tales, seasonal scenes, forest creatures, stories from beloved illustrators around the world — can be given at every birthday and Christmas for the next ten years. A baby who receives a Toverlux lamp in 2026 will still be discovering new silhouettes to slide into it in 2036.
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Toverlux — From Birth (nightlight from day one) Toverlux Magic Lamp Handcrafted from smooth birch wood with a warm LED light that dims and brightens with a single touch. Silhouettes by world-famous illustrators slide in and out of the top — each one tells a different story in the warm light it casts. Sits on a table or mounts on a wall. USB powered. The lamp is bought once; the silhouettes become the ongoing gift. 23 × 22 × 10cm · Birch wood · Warm LED · Touch dimmer · USB powered · Wall or table · Silhouettes sold separately Shop Toverlux |
✦ How to Gift a Toverlux
- Give the Magic Lamp base with one starter silhouette set — the "Around the Year" set of 12 is a wonderful beginning.
- The lamp works as a nightlight from birth, making it immediately practical before it becomes a story lamp.
- Include a note: "The lamp is yours. The stories come every birthday and Christmas after this." Silhouettes become the gift that keeps arriving.
- Little Paper Planes is one of Australia's only authorised Toverlux stockists. This is not something that can be found at most toy stores.
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Moulin Roty
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Moulin Roty has been making beautiful French children's toys since 1972, and their baby range — the sensory pieces designed for the very first weeks of life — are among the most considered we stock. The La Foret Mawa collection is their newest nursery range for 2026, and the Trois Petits Lapins Activity Turtle is a piece that has been a beloved baby gift for years.
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Moulin Roty — La Foret Mawa — From Birth La Foret Mawa Animal Rattles A brand new nursery range for 2026 by Moulin Roty, illustrated by Elodie Coudray. Baboo the Tiger, Mamba the Lion and Taigo the Leopard — each a soft plush rattle with long, easy-to-grab legs and a gentle bell inside. Warm, natural tones. Perfectly sized for tiny hands from the very first days. The kind of French baby toy that gets kept alongside everything else. From birth · Soft plush with internal bell · Easy-grip legs · Three characters: Tiger, Lion, Leopard · Machine washable Shop Moulin Roty |
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Moulin Roty — Trois Petits Lapins — From Birth Large Activity Turtle A muslin and velour sensory turtle packed with discovery for tiny hands — bells, a colourful beaded ring, crinkly paper and a mirror hidden inside the soft shell. And tucked underneath for a surprise: a small hedgehog rattle hitching a ride. Suitable from birth, 38×20cm, machine washable. One of the most completely considered sensory baby toys we stock. 38 × 20cm · Muslin and velour · From birth · Bells, beaded ring, crinkle paper, mirror, hedgehog rattle · Machine washable at 30° Shop Moulin Roty |
Shop Moulin Roty for a new baby
Moulin Roty at Little Paper Planes
Authorised Australian Moulin Roty stockist. French craft for the earliest senses — sensory toys, soft rattles, plush and more. Ships nationally.
- La Foret Mawa Animal Rattles
- Trois Petits Lapins Activity Turtle
- Soft comforters & plush from birth
- Wooden ring rattles
- Musical soft toys
- Gift wrapping available
Designed right here on the Peninsula
Three mamas from the Mornington Peninsula who wanted children's clothing that was genuinely beautiful, made to last, and designed to be worn hard and washed often. Sunday Siblings pieces — the Sunday Knit, the Siblings Set in French terry cotton, the Lulu Jacket — are the kind of things that get passed down from sibling to sibling still holding their shape.
There is something quietly lovely about giving a baby born on the Peninsula a piece designed just down the road. Gift a Sunday Siblings knit alongside a Maileg mouse and you have covered something lasting and something wearable — two of the most important categories in new baby gifting.
Shop Sunday SiblingsHow to Choose the Right One
If you want to start a world — give Maileg. The Rabbit Rattle Set for the very first days, the Baby Mouse in Gown as the beginning of a collection, and the Baby Blanket to wrap them in. This is the gift family members add to for years.
If you want to give a companion — give Steiff. The bear that gets named on the first morning and doesn't leave their side for years. This is the gift with the longest emotional life of anything on this list.
If you want to give something beautiful and considered — give Ferm Living. The Star Music Mobile for the nursery, the Wooden Age Blocks for every birthday photograph for the next decade. This is the gift for parents who care about design.
If you want to give something that grows — give Toverlux. The lamp once, the silhouettes forever. This is the gift that becomes a family tradition, arriving every Christmas morning in a new story.
If you want to give something for the earliest senses — give Moulin Roty. The La Foret Mawa rattles or the Trois Petits Lapins Activity Turtle — both made for the very first weeks, both beautiful, both French, both the kind of thing that ends up kept long after the child has outgrown it.
"The best baby gifts are not the most expensive ones. They are the ones chosen with the most thought — the ones that say something true about what you wish for this child."
All five brands are available at Little Paper Planes, in store in Mount Martha and online with national shipping. Every order is packed with care and gift wrapping is available at checkout. If you'd like help choosing — for a specific budget, a specific occasion, or a specific baby — our team is always glad to hear from you. Come and find us on Watson Road, or get in touch by email.
✦ Practical Notes for Baby Gifting
- Maileg Rabbit Rattle Set: from birth, machine washable on gentle cold cycle. Baby Mouse in Gown: from birth, hand wash recommended. Baby Blanket: from birth, gentle wash.
- Steiff Soft Cuddly Friends: designed specifically for newborns. Always check individual age recommendations. Most collector bears are recommended from 3+ years for play, but are safe for display from birth.
- Ferm Living Star Music Mobile: from birth. Wooden Age Blocks: CE tested, suitable from birth for display and parental use.
- Toverlux Magic Lamp: safe in the nursery from birth as a nightlight. Silhouettes should be kept out of reach of children under 3 (small parts).
- Moulin Roty La Foret Mawa rattles: from birth. Activity Turtle: from birth, machine washable at 30°.
- Not sure? A Little Paper Planes gift card presented in our signature wrapping lets the parents choose exactly what speaks to them.
