& Other Stories Unisex Stuffed Animals: The Stylish, Gender-Neutral Toy Every Child (and Adult) Will Love
There’s something quietly revolutionary happening in the world of soft toys. For years, plush animals were sorted neatly into pink and blue aisles, princess bears on one side and superhero wolves on the other. But the tide has shifted, and one brand has stepped into that space with exactly the kind of understated confidence you’d expect from a Scandinavian-rooted fashion label: & Other Stories.
Yes, the same & Other Stories that built a loyal following for its minimalist skincare, its architectural jewelry, and its effortlessly cool ready-to-wear collections has extended that aesthetic sensibility into the world of stuffed animals. The result is a line of plush toys that feels genuinely different — soft, considered, and completely free of the rigid gender coding that has dominated the toy market for decades.
Whether you’re shopping for a baby shower gift, a birthday present for a child who doesn’t fit neatly into the “dinosaurs or dolls” binary, or even a whimsical addition to your own living room shelf, & Other Stories unisex stuffed animals are worth knowing about. This guide covers everything: the design philosophy, the quality, the best picks, how to style them in a home, and why the gender-neutral toy movement matters far beyond aesthetics.
What Makes a Stuffed Animal Truly Unisex?
Before diving into the specifics of & Other Stories’ offering, it’s worth pausing on what “unisex” actually means when we’re talking about plush toys. It’s not simply a matter of avoiding pink. A truly unisex stuffed animal is designed without the assumption that the child receiving it identifies with a particular gender, enjoys particular types of play, or fits a particular consumer profile.
This means a few things in practice. The color palette tends to lean toward neutrals — oatmeal, sand, rust, forest green, soft gray — or uses colors in ways that aren’t socially coded as belonging to one gender. The characters themselves are animals rather than human figures, which removes a whole layer of gender projection. The overall aesthetic is calm and open-ended, inviting imaginative play rather than scripting a specific narrative for the child.
& Other Stories hits all of these marks. Their stuffed animals look like something you’d find in a thoughtfully curated Scandinavian children’s shop: simple in form, generous in texture, warm in palette, and completely neutral in the messaging they send about who should own them.
The & Other Stories Aesthetic: Brought to Life in Plush
If you know & Other Stories as a fashion brand, you already have a strong intuition for what their stuffed animals look like. The brand has always been guided by a kind of refined simplicity — pieces that feel special without being loud, that communicate taste without shouting about it.
That sensibility translates beautifully into soft toys. Where many mass-market plush animals are over-engineered with synthetic eyelashes, embroidered slogans, or garish color blocking, & Other Stories stuffed animals tend to strip all of that away. What remains is the animal itself: the shape, the texture, the weight of it in your hands.
Many of their plush pieces feature muted tones and natural-feeling fabrics. You’ll find animals that look less like merchandise and more like heirlooms — the kind of thing you can imagine a child carrying through childhood and then packing carefully into a box to save for later. That’s not an accident. The brand’s approach to design has always favored longevity over trend-chasing, and their plush line is no different.
Why Gender-Neutral Toys Matter
It might seem like a small thing — choosing a stuffed rabbit in oatmeal rather than pink. But the research consistently suggests that the toys children play with shape their development in meaningful ways, influencing everything from fine motor skills and spatial reasoning to empathy and social behavior.
When toys are aggressively gendered, children receive early messages about what interests are “for them” and what interests belong to someone else. Girls who are steered toward nurturing toys and boys who are steered toward construction toys aren’t just receiving different playthings — they’re receiving different invitations to explore different parts of themselves.
Gender-neutral toys disrupt this sorting. A stuffed animal that doesn’t belong to a particular gender belongs to every child equally. It doesn’t tell a little boy that caring for something soft and small is not for him. It doesn’t tell a little girl that she must mother every toy she owns. It simply offers the animal itself — the weight of it, the softness, the opportunity to invent a relationship from scratch.
& Other Stories, by virtue of its brand identity and its customer base, was always likely to approach this territory thoughtfully. The brand attracts customers who think carefully about what they buy and why, and those customers tend to apply that same thoughtfulness to the gifts they give children.
Standout Pieces from the & Other Stories Stuffed Animal Collection
While the specific inventory changes seasonally — as you’d expect from a fashion-adjacent brand — there are certain characteristics that define the & Other Stories plush lineup consistently.
Bears with a minimal edge. The classic teddy bear gets a quietly modern reinterpretation in & Other Stories’ hands. These aren’t the syrupy-faced bears of a conventional toy aisle. They tend to have simpler features, more sculptural shapes, and color palettes that sit closer to clay and stone than to candy. They feel at home in a design-conscious nursery as much as in a child’s arms.
Rabbits that belong in every season. Rabbits are perennial favorites in the gender-neutral toy space, and & Other Stories understands why. There’s something inherently calm and open-ended about a plush rabbit. Their versions often feature elongated ears, soft body proportions, and neutral or earthy tones that make them genuinely versatile as both a toy and a decorative object.
Animals with tactile variety. One thing & Other Stories does particularly well is vary the texture across their plush lineup. You might find one animal in a smooth velvet-adjacent fabric, another in a looser, shaggier pile, and another in something that mimics the feel of a worn-in blanket. This tactile thoughtfulness is meaningful for young children, for whom texture is one of the primary ways they engage with and make sense of the world.
Limited edition and collaboration pieces. Because & Other Stories operates as a fashion brand at heart, they occasionally release stuffed animals in limited quantities or as part of broader seasonal campaigns. These pieces often feel even more considered than the core lineup, and they tend to sell out quickly among customers who recognize their gift-giving potential.
Who Are & Other Stories Stuffed Animals For?
The honest answer is: almost anyone. But let’s be more specific, because the brand has a particular sweet spot.
They’re ideal for gift-giving situations where you want to choose thoughtfully without making assumptions. A unisex stuffed animal from & Other Stories is a gift that works beautifully for a baby shower when you don’t know the baby’s gender, or when you’d rather not contribute to the pink-blue binary regardless. It works for a first birthday, a holiday gift, or even a “just because” present for a child you love.
They’re also genuinely appealing to adults. The rise of the “kidult” market — adults who collect, display, or emotionally connect with soft toys — has been well-documented in recent years. & Other Stories stuffed animals sit comfortably in this space. Their design sensibility makes them legitimate home décor objects, not just toys. A carefully chosen plush bear on a bookshelf, a rabbit tucked against a pile of linen cushions — these are not out of place in a grown-up, design-conscious home.
Parents who care about the aesthetics of their child’s room will also appreciate the & Other Stories approach. When every toy in a child’s space is aggressively colored and branded, it creates visual noise that many parents find exhausting. A soft, neutral stuffed animal from & Other Stories offers a reprieve from that noise — something that contributes to the room’s overall calm rather than disrupting it.
How to Style & Other Stories Stuffed Animals in Your Home
One of the quieter pleasures of the & Other Stories plush line is how naturally they fit into a variety of interior settings. Here are a few ways people incorporate them beyond the obvious (a child’s bedroom).
In a nursery with a Scandinavian-inspired palette, neutral stuffed animals serve as soft focal points. Grouped on a shelf with a few wooden toys and a small plant, they create a sense of warmth without clutter. The key is restraint: one or two well-chosen plush pieces make more visual impact than a pile of twenty.
In a living room, a single stuffed animal placed on a sofa or armchair adds a touch of softness and personality without feeling juvenile. This works especially well if the animal shares tones with the surrounding textiles — a sandy bear against a linen sofa, a forest-green rabbit near a velvet cushion.
In a home office or creative workspace, a small plush animal on a desk can serve as a quiet mood-lifter. There’s growing recognition that keeping something soft and comforting in a workspace can reduce stress and encourage the kind of relaxed focus that creativity requires.
On a bookshelf styled with plants, ceramics, and books, a well-designed stuffed animal holds its own as an object of interest. This is especially true of & Other Stories’ more sculptural pieces, which read almost as decorative objects in their own right.
Quality and Sustainability Considerations
When you’re buying a stuffed animal from a fashion brand, it’s reasonable to ask: is this actually well-made, or is it trading on aesthetic rather than substance?
In the case of & Other Stories, the quality tends to hold up. The fabrics feel considered rather than cheap, the seams are generally neat, and the overall construction reflects the brand’s broader commitment to products that last. These are not toys designed to be discarded after a season.
On the sustainability front, & Other Stories — as part of the H&M Group — has made public commitments to more responsible sourcing and manufacturing. The brand has increasingly moved toward using organic and recycled materials across its product lines, and their stuffed animals reflect this in part. It’s worth checking the specific materials for any piece you’re considering, but in general the brand’s direction is toward greater environmental responsibility.
For parents and gift-givers who care about the provenance of what they buy for children, this matters. A stuffed animal that is made from organic cotton, filled with recycled materials, and designed to last for years is a genuinely different kind of purchase than a cheap plush toy imported with no transparency about its origins.
The Gift-Giving Case for & Other Stories Stuffed Animals
Let’s bring this back to the practical. You’re standing in front of a computer or walking through a store, trying to find a gift for a child in your life. Why should you choose an & Other Stories stuffed animal over the alternatives?
A few reasons stand out. First, distinctiveness. The & Other Stories plush line doesn’t look like everything else on the market. The child you’re buying for is unlikely to already have something that looks or feels quite like it, which matters more than we often admit in a world where many children are overwhelmed with toys.
Second, longevity. A well-made stuffed animal with a calm aesthetic has staying power. It doesn’t go out of style, it doesn’t require batteries, and it doesn’t need an app to work. It ages gracefully, becoming softer and more beloved with use rather than looking tired and dated.
Third, inclusivity. A truly gender-neutral stuffed animal is a gift that says: I see you as a whole person, not as a demographic. That message, delivered through a soft toy, is a small but real act of respect toward the child receiving it.
Fourth, design. In a gift-giving landscape saturated with options, something that is simply beautiful — that has been designed with care and intention — stands apart. The & Other Stories stuffed animal communicates that you thought about what you were giving, and that kind of thoughtfulness tends to be felt even by very young recipients.
Where to Buy & Other Stories Stuffed Animals
& Other Stories operates both physical stores in major cities across Europe, the United States, and beyond, as well as a comprehensive online shop. Their stuffed animal selection tends to live in the gift or accessories section of the site rather than in a dedicated toy category — a reflection of the brand’s positioning of these items as lifestyle objects as much as traditional toys.
Stock rotates seasonally, so if you spot a piece you love, it’s worth acting on it. The brand’s limited runs and seasonal restocking mean that a particular stuffed animal that’s available today may not be available in three months. Email notifications and wish lists are useful tools if you’re waiting for a specific piece to return.
Prices sit above the mass market but below what you’d pay for a comparable piece from a boutique toy brand. This feels about right: these are considered objects made with better-than-average materials and design, and the price reflects that without being inaccessible.
Final Thoughts
The & Other Stories unisex stuffed animal is not just a toy. It’s a small statement about the kind of world you want children to grow up in — one where play is open-ended, where softness is available to everyone, and where the things we give children communicate respect rather than assumption.
The brand has always understood that design is not superficial. The objects we choose to surround ourselves with, and the objects we put into children’s hands, carry meaning. A stuffed animal that is calm, beautiful, gender-neutral, and well-made is not a trivial choice. It’s a considered one.
Whether you’re a parent building a nursery, a friend searching for the perfect baby shower gift, a collector of beautiful things, or simply someone who believes that the toys children play with matter — & Other Stories stuffed animals are worth your attention. They’re soft enough to sleep with, beautiful enough to display, and thoughtful enough to give with confidence.
In a market full of noise, they offer something quieter and more lasting: a plush animal that belongs to no one in particular, and therefore fully belongs to whoever is lucky enough to hold it.
