{Feature Friday} Jeffrey & Hilda

I met Beth through my blog...this is the beauty of blogs and facebook... you get to meet fabulous people in places all around the world without having to leave your house!! So here is a little about Beth... she is the lovely lady behind the label Jeffrey & Hilda.

Now before you ask.... Geoffrey is her Grandfather's name on her mums' side... and you guessed it... Hilda is her Grandmother's middle name! Beth chose her grandparents names for her business as they have personal meaning to her and also an old-fashioned timeless feel, which Beth feels reflects her style. Personally I love her logo too... the little silhouette of the boy and girl captures that timeless innocent feeling of childhood.

So how did Beth get into designing? Now... this made me chuckle a little as I feel my life has been on fast forward since I had kids!! Don't know how I leave the house with matching shoes some days...  Beth has always been into art and design and once she had her daughter, to fill in time she would make her daughter little singlets. Then when she went out, people would ask where she got them from and she would say she made them! So she pursued her talent and Jeffrey & Hilda was born.

If you have a look at her work, you can see she puts a lot of heart and soul into her designs. They are all original designs from her sketches and ideas. You can see she loves vintage and cute things... how adorable is that owl? Not to mention that giraffe... Have a look more on her facebook page! I asked Beth where she gets her inspiration from and Beth says her mum and her sister inspire her. She also mentioned Shannon from Cuckoo from Coco as someone she admires and takes inspiration from.

So Beth's advice for us? If you are going to succeed, you must be willing to fail. And then when you fail, instead of giving up, take it as a learning curve because failure is when we learn. That's true on so many different levels. But there is a little more to the story behind Beth's advice. When she was 15, Beth was left in a wheelchair, unable to walk after a serious car accident. Beth believes it was her attitude and support from her family that helped her walk again, and even now when she has to overcome ongoing health issues, her attitude and determination help her through. Beth tries to apply this to other parts of her life such as relationships and her business.

I don't know about you, but I love Jeffrey&Hilda, and am particularly fond of Beth... there is something in her spirit that comes through her emails, facebook and blog. Which reminds me.... you must head over to her blog and show some love by leaving a comment! Pop onto her facebook page too and say hi!
Happy Feature Friday everyone!

Personalised cupcake toppers

New to Jamosie Sweet's shop!!!! 

(those are my two babies on the cupcake topper)

Personalise your cupcakes with hand-made paper toppers. Don't waste money on buying punches, cutters and papers you will only use once, just send us a picture and we will do the hard work for you! 

1. Choose your style: scalloped edges, circles, rectangles, squares, scalloped rectangles

2. Choose your background: patterns, plain colours, pearlised papers, textured papers... it's endless.

3. Add your pictures and messages... whatever you can imagine. Need inspiration? Ask me. 

Why not put together a series of pictures from across the ages for an anniversary.... from when they met when they were young, marriage, kids... all the big events in their lives.... to where they are now. 

Remind each other of your special day with photos from your wedding....

Engagements.... photos of you through the times... or from a special engagement shoot...

Baby showers.... ultra scans and 3d scans make original toppers!

Birthdays.... 1 picture from each year... to create a little timeline....

We can stick little embellishments on top like numbers for anniversaries and ages, or letters for couples and names.... and butterflies, hearts, pearls,.... whatever we can find! 

Ideas are endless. Every order is original as everyone is unique with different ideas. We make sets of 12 for 10$. Postage $2- $5 depending on amount of toppers ordered. No extra charges for personalisation. Orders need to be placed at least 2 weeks before event. 

Feature Friday: Em & Femme

The thing I really love about Feature Friday , is meeting the people behind all these fabulous businesses on Face book.  There are so many interesting stories to tell! So without further ado, meet Ilja, the creative designer behind Em & Femme Designs. These dresses are gorgeous...  particularly these little Kimono style dresses.

For some reason, the name Em & Femme caught my attention. It's catchy but not corny, and sounds original so I knew there must have been a reason for the name. So I asked Ilja to explain. It turns out Ilja has two daughters, Emma and Femke (means peaceful little girl) and frequently calls them Em-and-Fem, all in one word...I thought it nice she could shorten their names like that... I just get confused and call the each of my children by the wrong name...which never goes down to well. So Ilja officially decided on Em &Femme, with the spelling of Femme doubling as a French twist as femme means women in French.

So how did Ilja get to where she is now? Ilja originally came to Australia to study, met her knight in shining armour, who whisked her back to Europe to live a life luxury in castles with snow at Christmas, gorgeous cheeses and fresh crusty bread baked in stone ovens.

Ok ok, so I made that last bit up but the first bit was true. Ilja and her husband moved back from Europe to Australia and out of the city and soon Ilja got bored in the bush as she is a city girl at heart. So she started sewing. She made her little girls dresses for a birthday party and everyone kept asking her where she got them.... the rest is history.

Being a mum is a full time job and trying to combine it with any work outside the house is twice as demanding. Many of us try working from home, and quite frankly I don't know how most women do it! Ilja too finds it hard sometimes, getting that balance between being 'at work' and 'off work'. The lines can be blurred when you are physically at home. I struggle to get myself and the kids dressed let alone sit down and make beautiful dresses!

Ilja is a true creative spirit, getting inspiration from everyday things around her. She loves colour, as you can see in her designs and is passionate about making her designs loud and proud....full of colour, patterns and embellishments. She can sit for hours with her fabric, mixing and matching.... I'm sure there are many fabric addicts who can relate to that!

I asked Ilja if she had any advice for us, and the part of her reply that struck me was 'don't be afraid when good things fall apart, so better things can fall together'. That has personal meaning for me... and I think very relevant for people starting out in business.... you think you're on it, and you're not. But you take it in your stride and make it better and then it works, and then you look back and you can see where some good things had to go, to make way for the better things! Just to think, if Ilja didn't move to the bush and get bored, we may never have been blessed with her gorgeous dresses.

You must follow Ilja on facebook and take a peek at more of her gorgeous designs. You can also purchase her dresses through her website http://www.emandfemme.com.au

Happy Friday everyone!

All photos are courtesy of Ilja @ Em&Femme Designs.

Feature Friday: Belle Bazaar

Feature Friday time!! Meet the lovely Jess from the Belle Bazaar Blogzine! I asked her a few questions so I could write a little article about her, and found myself thinking... how fabulous... she does everything she loves!

Jess is a mum to a little boy and like many of us, has experienced change with the beginning of motherhood. Jess has always loved to write, acting out her own scripts for neighbours. After the birth of her baby boy, she found herself spending a lot of time on face book, and soon realised she could start her own blog! And so, the Belle Bazaar Blogzine was born! Full of all the things she loves of course.

Jess takes her inspiration from all the things going on around her. When her friend got married she wrote about weddings, and when her other friend moved house she wrote about home wares. You must check out her blog, it really is full of beautiful things.

Jess also dabbled in a little craft but soon realised she was better at organising than crafting and so the Twilight markets at Mt Gravatt were born!

Like her blog, the markets will be full of beautiful things... not just baby stuff.. but beautiful food, home wares, gifts... all those fabulous things that make for a fabulous shopping experience!

Jess is also about to open her shop in Mt Gravatt, in line with the beautiful theme of the markets and will stock quirky and beautiful things.  Her shop will also feature a little play area for the kiddies to play in while mum looks around without having to worry if baby is pulling down that rack of ear rings, or knocking over those porcelain vases (don't we know THAT feeling).

Jess's advice to us women? Give it a go! Stop talking about it, and wondering if it will work or not, or what people will think. Jess says she has tried lots of things and all have them have mattered, leading her to where she is today, doing exactly what she loves. It's not about making money, it's about being happy, and if you love something so much that you push yourself a little further, you just never know where you might end up!

Feature Friday: Madd Lola!

This weeks 'Feature Friday' spotlight is on April Styles and her fabulous accessory store, Madd Lola.

April (pictured below) is the beautiful and creative genius behind these gorgeous designs, a Canadian-born Aussie, living in Port Macquarie.  Like many of us women behind these facebook business pages, April started her own business Madd Lola after her babies came along, inspired by the desire to stay at home with her babies AND work: a combination we all know is not easy. But, our children seem to give us the energy and vision to go that extra mile in making their life better. 

If you've chatted with April, you will feel her vibe... she is sweet, friendly and energetic... passionate about her babies and her business. Her accessories are absolutely gorgeous, you can see her personality and passion in her work.  April takes her accessory styling inspiration from unforgettable glamorous women with her 2nd collection based on Marie Antoinette. You must check out her gorgeous designs. They are absolutely stunning! I ♥ all the colours.

Before motherhood, April managed a gym, but motherhood can be a life changing experience, opening your heart and mind to all sorts of things you never would have dreamed of. April's advice for other women out there? Follow your heart and what you feel is right for you. And it's so true. We are always happiest when we are doing what we love, no matter what it is. 

You can order Madd Lola accessories from April's website.
Go and 'like' Madd Lola on facebook! Check out her beautiful pictures and stay tuned for her fabulous competitions. I can't wait to see her 3rd collection!

Etsy Treasury: Mushrooms

'enchanted polka dot mushroom garden' by JamosieSweet

Love love love mushrooms, red and white polka dots and enchanted gardens... here are some gorgeous finds!

Cheery Red Toadstools i... Pseudooctopus $10.00	Woodland Mushroom-clay ... indigotwin $8.00	Forest Mushrooms Silk L... BagNoir $58.00
Red Mushroom 1 inch Mag... 2birds1stone $2.00	Small clutch / Coin pur... gracefulcrafts $18.00	Woodland Mushrooms Grap... CritterJitters $18.00
Needle Felted Mushroom ... JaniceCordeiro $25.00	Hiding From the Rain - ... pipodoll $18.00	Mushroom Gnome Home Pil... ClearwaterArts $18.00
Chocolate Filled Toadst... andiespecialty... $64.00	Ceramic Mushroom, Bunny... ArtTileMosaics $	Toadstools v.2 - hand s... LittleMissQuar... $8.50
Toadstool Tushie Pants damestarbaby $35.00	Red Mushroom Green Moss... stitchuation $9.00	ViNTaGe WHiMSy MuSHRooM... LandofEnchantm... $4.39

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.