Just a quick post to let you all know what’s happening in Bamboletta land. I feel weird writing that- I’m sure everyone is just dying to know what I’ve been up to this week- just joking!! I was lamenting to Berrie about blogging and how my life is so uneventful I was actually going to […]
Monthly Archives: October 2008
I just recieved my digital issue of Mothering Magazine and was sooo excited to see one of my Bamboletta’s in the Best of 2008 Toy issue! Wow! What a total bit of serendipity that was! This is the second year that I have […]
Yeah! Congrats for making it to the top the second year in a row! Well-deserved – for all of you! 🙂 I’d love to get my hands on a copy. You wouldn’t perhaps know if it’s available in the Netherlands, by any chance? 🙂 Or maybe I can just order one through their website. I’ll go have a look. Have a nice weekend!
Many many congrats!!! How cool, and it will send many more customers your way of course. Well done, you little Elf! 😉
Meike, I believe Mothering does allow international subscriptions. I have (American) friends who get it here. I should check it out myself too. 🙂
Christine
Very cool! Congratulations! :0)
YAY! Christina for year number two! I knew you would be in there. Thanks so much for giving me a sneak peak at my doll. So cool. I hope all is well.
Congratulations to all! That’s fantastic to have such a large BC contingent in Mothering.
hey c! how awesome – and my rabbit rattle is in there too! check out number 6 on your first page – holy smokers, that is cool.
Way to go! My kids have a lot of these toys and they’re beautiful – we’re so lucky to have you fabulous crafty mamas here in our own backyard. =)
WOW! That is so awesome! Congrats!
Way to go Christina- congratulations!
yee-hah!
What a great spread to be featured in, everything looks gorgeous and fun! Congratulations!!!
thanks gals!! it’s really an honor to be in there with such great company!
Wow congrats! So many beautiful natural toys, too!
You will be swamped with orders now after being soo famous, for not one but two years in a row. Congratulations !!!
Just went to Chapters to pick up the magazine but zutalors it’s not out yet!
Did you ever get that “Keep Calm and Carry On” print?
Yay! What great news. I always look forward to the Mothering toy reviews, and it’s great to see so many Canadians making the lists! Congratulations!
In my last post I mentioned that John had quit his job.. many of you have congratulated us on our working togetherness. John did quit his job, a 14 hour a day management job that gave my husband too much stress but , alas, the dolls can’t pay the mortgage… yet. John is now working […]
This is very exciting for you! And for us watching on too. It’s so good of you to share your experiences as you take this new path, as I’m sure it’ll help all of us.
And how lucky you are to have found such a supportive partner! It must be good to have someone to take charge of all of those tedious admin tasks too!
~Holly
Two Cheese Please
I bet all the changes happening in your life are for the best and for your happiness.
Good luck to your husband in his new job! 🙂
Kisses from Brazil!
This is so cool to watch…I love that the two of you are making this a go! And I hear ya on the time thing! I never realized how much time I would spend emailing with a customer, or prepping for shipping….it’s simply amazing! Though, I must admit, your packaging (down to the baby clothespin) has inspired me. 😉 Opening Emma’s doll was a thrill for me…almost as much as it was for her.
So…Is John going to start blogging here too? 😉
Good for you guys!!!
Changes are always a bit scary, but if you don’t make them you will always ask yourself later, “I wonder what would have happend if I’d made the change”
I’m sure you do great !
You are not a chicken (the both of you aren’t!), but smart and responsible about your life as a family with financial obligations and two young children. There’s a goal and a plan to get there and I think it’s very inspiring and admirable how you and John do this.
Christine
yay for you guys – yes, change is good! though sometimes tricky in the short term.
sweet pic of your men!
xx e.
The practical side of things can be such a drag! I’m thankful my husband balances me in that way, too!
It’s so true. Everyone underestimates the time consumption of administrating even the smallest businesses. It eats up hours and hours and hours. Like you, we have phenomenal customers and give a lot of latitude in terms of trust – I still fundamentally believe that karma makes the world go around and you reap what you sew – two cliches, but we really do have the most wonderful group of families!
It’s so hard to know what the ‘right’ direction is, particularly when your kids are small. I want to grow the business, but not at the expense of my children, and vice versa. It you find the balance, please let me know!
Hi Holly- I am sooo lucky that he loves tedious. I kind of get overwhelmed by it and just end up reading everyone’s blog. LOVE that martha blooper clip on your blog BTW..so funny! If any of you haven’t seen it, check out Holly’s blog and scroll down a bit- it’s a good thing.
Thalita- thank you for your lovely words..
Monica, John has mentioned wanting to blog. He wants to do a Sunday night recap of what happened that week in English Soccer. Really.
Thanks Sue!
Hey Christine! That’s one thing I try to be is financially responsible. We may be poor now, but I’d never take a gamble with our home or something like that. It will grow and I believe that opportunities will present themselves naturally. This thought process has served me very well so far, I’m just going with the flow..
Hi Erin! thanks 🙂 Have a good weekend and we’ll see you next week.
CanCan, we are fortunate ladies! If it were up to me we’d be living in South India 😉
April, It TOTALLY works both ways. I’ve always been really trustful and it’s almost never backfired- I truly treat and think of my customers as friends. It sounds like a cliche but I feel such an honour to make their childrens dolls, like I’m allowed into their lives. Maybe I need to get out more 🙂 I think we try to balance day by day.
Oh my goodness, look at your handsome boys!
My Jasper is finally starting to walk. Time is going so quickly…
this is wonderful news Christina! ohh i so can relate to you. my husband is married to his work. conference calls in the middle of the night, on weekends, you name it. but he too is stressed and he knows he doesn’t enjoy what he does. however, he isn’t quit ready to forget his ego. so we keep on going. but i think it will be soon when he realizes what he really needs. i’m just here to support. congrats on the thriving business as well. you deserve it!
beautiful boys! btw my son samuel loves his comfort doll. good luck and warm wishes as you make your lifestyle adjustments.
Christina, this is so fantastic. i’m so proud of you and your family.
ok – you are a truely gifted woman. I am in love with the dolls. I have not seen one that I would not adopt. I think that I seceretly want a doll for me. Sally is adorable and would make a great friend for Anna.
Many Blessings!
I just found you through the Junior Society post, entered your contest, signed up for your newsletter, and now I’m scrolling through previous blog posts when I should be working but. . .
I wanted to congratulate you on this huge step! Six years ago, when my daughter was born, my husband quit his job to stay at home and work on being a writer. It was really tough financially but it was the best thing we ever did. Now he just had his third book come out and I recently quit my high-pressure/lots of travel corporate job to take a part time job at a wonderful place just three miles from our house and work on my own craft business. The finances are going to be tight again for a while, but nothing beats spending time with your family and doing what you love. Congratulations on all your success!
Doll has nothing to do with this post. I just like posts with pictures better. ‘Rose’ is on her way home tomorrow..sniff, sniff! I really need to have a girl. I’m happy to announce that I will have a few of my gals over at Sprouts in Victoria, BC. I’m a bit picky about […]
That’s a big step – congratulations to you both!! I’m 100% certain you two will make it work. 🙂
I so love your dolls… 🙂
And I’m sure everything will be fine for your husband.
You will work it out together, and be really happy!
Kisses from Brazil!
I knew it!! 🙂 That is so exciting!!! Congrats you guys, on this new chapter in life!! And how right you are, about enjoying life and choosing from the heart. I’m sure you’ll make it work.
Thanks for the link to my blog, actually husband and I talked about our budget and choosing time over money again just this weekend. I’ll make time this week to do another post about budgets and frugality.
Christine
PS: when you first started, how did you know what you made was good enough for people to really love it and buy it too?
Wow, that is amazing! Congratulations to both of you, working together to make your dreams a reality…
Wish I could help with the Betsey Bag!
SO pleased for you.. you are going to fulfill what others sometimes can t do …You are going to work as a team and have quality time with your kids … finger cross for you both.
The pictures of the doll going to her home is sooooooooooo lovely… please, make sure to have some of her cousins made like her…
Here is winter and sickness… My Number 1 is in bed with pneumonia… starting well isnt it ;.. and baby 2 vomiting and stomach aching… what is going to be the rest of the winter after that… anyway, take care… I must go back to story telling…( not sure if i can say that..!!) bye for now
Pascaline/france
I am so happy for you guys. We have also embraced frugality (is that a word?) and so we can lust after extravagant things together. If only I could felt you a Betsey bag… hmmm.
Congratulations to you both! I’m so jealous, but then I actually spend some time imagining my husband home everyday and I realize working is good for him. (I’d kill him the first week).
Hello there, got here from SouleMama site. Love your dolls and totally inspired me to make one for my daughter. No pattern, no help, no clue, but lots of faith in what I was doing. I think it came allright, but having gone through it now I can totally appreciate all the hard work and effort you put in your dolls. To me, every stitch was doubled and so much worth it, because it was for my daughter and hopefully one day my grandkids will play with it…I know where you come from when you’re being “picky” about where your dolls go. Congratulations on having a business that makes a difference to you and so many, and for choosing a new road and many more adventures.
This is phenomenal. Although this probably wouldn’t work for us, I share your dream of living in a nice rural area with a barn and an alpaca, the kids, flowing white dresses and bare feet…Taking life into your own hands is a scary thing, I remember agonizing over leaving my Engineering career to start my own business, and although my salary is only a fraction of what it used to be (and for a long time I went without), I have more flexibility and time with my kids, and I’m SO much happier!
Congratulations to you and John. I wish you all the best and hope that Bambolettas will join Nurtured on the East Coast come spring!
I read your blog often but don’t usually comment… I’m so happy for you! You are such an inspiration and I’m sure you’ll have lots of success! Your dolls are the best out there. By far. Congrats on being at Sprout. You’re a wise businesswoman whether or not you see yourself that way. I would love to own one of your dolls someday. Carmen’s post was so sweet!!
*whew* sooooo glad I got my order in early!
Good luck with the employment shift! I hope it blesses your family tremendously!
garden furniture sale…
[…]bamboletta: natural, handcrafted companions for little ones – » Blog Archive » another retail locale[…]…
I love to share a good find. I’m sure most of you are familiar with Fabricworm, but I have to spread the word to those who haven’t found her fabric-y goodness. This makes me salivate.. OMG, the possibilities.. This is quite possibly the sweetest fabric I have ever seen. The whole series by Alexander Henry […]
Oh. My. Goodness. I *need* that fabric! Never mind I can’t sew anything besides dolls for the life of me! I’ll find someone who can. It is gorgeous!!
This is adorable! Note to self: must birth female child one day!
That fabric is so beautiful!! I must check it out, I didn’t know Fabricworm, silly me. 🙂
Good luck with all your hard work too!
Christine
beautiful fabrics you are right i wish I could sew for myself… lucky you…
It’s absolutely adorable! Nin’s room is due for decoration (or rather we’re having a big shift around and she’s going into the box room which will need decorating) and she’d absolutely love that!
What’s the name of the series?
Wow. I need a big twirly skirt in that fabric for me, Roo, and her Bamboletta friend… she keeps changing the dolls name, but it is usually a variation on flower-sunshine-rainbow, which is so hilarious to me. (Of course, she wanted to name Jasper “onion” so obviously names aren’t really her forte yet!)
waouh… busy time for you then… it is a really good idea to add the possibility to buy just the clothes… for litthe girls or boys wanted to change their dolls…
I love the dolls you sent… really lovely…
thanks for you lovely blog which make me dream of having one doll of my own sooner or later even with two boys..
Well, I was almost starting to get worried about you, but I’m glad you’re “just” busy. Sounds like so much fun, a good busy that is. And I really like the idea of selling the clothing separate! It’s part of what makes Bamboletta so special I think, the clothes. I’ve seen somewhat similar faces on dolls, but never the same style of clothing or use of colors. And I love colors, so I like yours the best. 🙂
Happy Halloween!
Christine
Pascaline, my friend brought her 5 year old daughter over for a visit the other day. She’d had never seen the doll workshop before- it was so much fun to see her reaction to the dolls and all the clothing. I gave her 3 dolls to dress, she had so much fun. My boys have little interest in the dolls aside from their own. I often long for a daughter to share the dolls and this process with but I think we are ‘done’ …for now!
Christine- Thanks so much 🙂 It will be fun to offer the clothing and the amazing things that Constance comes up with! Have a great weekend everyone 🙂
I know what you’re getting me for Christmas!
Anyway, when I was in Toronto I phoned you in front of this store because I knew that you would’ve loved it. I didn’t go in because I don’t share the fabric love and it was a little intimidating, but here is the website so you can see it http://www.theworkroom.ca I imagine one day your workspace will look like that.
Also, I think you will enjoy the new TV on the Radio album, it’s called Dear Science.