Women In Business: Acorn & Leaf {Give Away!}

Today on the blog I am interviewing Linda

of Acorn and Leaf! 

I first heard about Acorn and Leaf when I 

was browsing the local children's boutique

and saw her bibs on display.

The first thing I noticed was the adorable fabrics,

and that they were smaller than the average gigantic bibs I've often seen.

When I picked one up, I felt the soft fabric on the underside 

and noticed the two snaps on the back.

I loved that it was 'one size fits all'

and that she used snaps instead of Velcro.

Babies just rip Velcro bibs off! 

(Photo belongs to Modern Nest. Do not copy.) 

My second experience with Acorn and Leaf

was with Ali of Bella Photo.

She used my then 6 month old daughter

for a photo shoot for some product;

One of the products being Acorn and Leaf! 

The bright, vibrant bib looked amazing.

I now have Acorn and Leaf bibs for my girls, 

and I don't hesitate to tell people about how awesome they are.

When Jane wears them, people notice.

(Photos belong to Bellaphoto. Do not copy.)

You can buy Acorn and Leaf bibs at a number of retailers.

Click here to find a list of their stockists.

You can also shop online! 

Just An Ordinary Family: Acorn and Leaf, love that name. How did you come up with the name for your company?
Acorn & Leaf: Acorn & Leaf came to me very organically. Living in Calgary, Alberta and always having a love for the outdoors and anything nature, I wanted that to be my inspiration. I loved how it sounded and went with it. 

JAOF: How did Acorn and Leaf come to be? 

A&L: When my first wee man began to drool I was in need of bibs. At the time there was nothing on the market that I liked. We were given so many gorgeous outfits and every bib that we had over powered it or took over. I wanted something simple, functional and trendy. So I began to sew my own. Soon I had so many mums asking me to make their wee babes bibs and it took off from there. 

JAOF: Do you make the product yourself? 

A&L: I started off making our bibs all by myself. I became so busy I was literally buying fabric, washing it, cutting, sewing, packaging and shipping at every spare moment I had. This began to impact my time with my family (with a toddler and a baby on the way) I knew something had to change. I didn't want to give up a business that I loved, and didn't want to sacrifice anymore family time. At this time we were also selling our bibs in retail stores across Canada, as well as online. This had me sewing the majority of my day. My mom would come down on occasion to help me out, but it wasn't enough. 

     My husband suggested that we get the sewing outsourced as I could no longer keep up with the demand. We found a company here in North America to do this for us and built a wonderful working relationship with the sewers directly. This was the answer as I could now focus on my family, run a business and maintain our quality, customer service, and of course shop for more amazing prints and design new products!

JAOF: Do you work from home, or have a studio/office space? How does this work for you?

A&L: I do all of my work from home. We built a home office where everything is run out of. It is great as I can work from our home office packaging, emailing and even ship directly from during nap time and at my kids bedtime.

JAOF: At what point did Acorn and Leaf become your full time job?

A&L:  Acorn & Leaf became a full time job pretty much from the get go. I never would have thought that our little bib business would do so well. We are so grateful for all of the support our customers and independent retailers have shown us. It is amazing! We are truly blessed by the support and I am always overcome with emotion when I think about it. It was always a dream of mine to be a stay at home mom and yet use my creative side to do so. Without my husbands support and push I would have given up when it became too much. However he was the one to think outside the box and navigate the change for us. 

JAOF: Tell me about Changing the Face of Beauty campaign and how you got involved. 

A&L: It is a unique story actually. One day I had a random Facebook message from a wonderful woman named Krista. She simply asked, "Is Acorn & Leaf ready to change the face of beauty and be one of 15 companies to do so?" I asked to her to call me so we could chat. During that phone conversation I met a beautiful mom who's daughter Adele has down syndrome. I was so excited when she told me about the campaign and their drive to support inclusion. 

    Previous to becoming a mom I worked with individuals with varying abilities as a Residential Coordinator here in Calgary. I worked in the field for almost 8 years in various positions. The best part of my role was to advocate for inclusion. When I left my position there to stay at home with our first born, I knew I wanted to stay involved. When I started Acorn & Leaf, I knew there would be an avenue here to pursue.So it was simply magical when Krista emailed me. I was so excited that the opportunity found me.

JAOF: Tell us about the creative process of making bibs, choosing the best fabrics for absorbency and fabric pattern choices. 

A&L: This is my favorite part! Picking prints, and choosing styles is all done in my dreams. I long for nothing more then finding great prints and touching fabrics. I know this must sound silly, but it is true. When new prints come out I am like a kid in the candy store. I pick prints that I love really. And prints that are trendy and would look delightful on wee babes.

JAOF: What are some pros and cons of owning your own business? 

A&L: I love having our own business. I am constantly meeting people, building relationships and getting to work with the most inspiring people I know. I have built lasting relationships with the best independent retailers across Canada and couldn't be happier. Honestly, they're the reason why we are here today. We have learned so much from these relationships and are amazed at their willingness to support and teach other. I really can't think of any cons. It is great getting to stay at home with the wee ones and run our little company from home as well. 

JAOF: What advice would you give to someone who has a product they would like to make and sell? Then ultimately hoping to make the leap of creating a business from it? 

A&L: My advice is to give it a 110%. It will be tough at times, and it will not be a smooth ride. However, focus and surround yourself with positive people who believe in you. I couldn't have done it without my husband,family and friends.

(The above two photos belong to Modern Nest. Do not copy.)

Thanks, Linda, for sharing all about your business.

It is so great to hear about women who are 

able to take their passions and turn them into a career.

I especially love how you are able to incorporate

your past career and mold it together with your new business

through Changing the Face of Beauty. 

Trust me,

you're going to want to keep in touch with

Acorn & Leaf and keep updated on all their 

newest styles and patterns! 

To do so,

check out their website, 

like their Facebook page

 and follow them on Instagram.

Linda would like to gift one lucky reader 

a pack of 3 bibs! 

All you have to do is comment on this 

blog post or the Instagram photo,

telling us which bib is your favourite!

One comment per person.

If you leave a comment on the blog post,

please be sure to include 

the email address you wish to be contacted through.

Contest closes on Friday, September 18th at 9:00 AM PST.

Contest is open to anyone who is 18 and older,

and open to all residents of Canada and the United States.

This is in no way sponsored or affiliated with
Blogger, Facebook or Instagram. 

Also, 

please check out Changing the Face of Beauty 

and read what they're all about. 

Their are plenty of ways to be involved! 

website: changingthefaceofbeauty.org

Instagram: @5boysand1girlmake6

Twitter: @5boysand1girl6

Women In Business: Whitney Dyck, stylist

Here at Just An Ordinary Family

we want to highlight and celebrate

women who have made something for themselves.

Today's lady boss is someone very dear to me,

which makes this post extra special.

Whitney and I have been friends for a long time.

We met through my husband and I immediately wanted to be her friend.

Whitney has been styling my hair for about 8 years

and I completely trust her with every hair on my head.

A cut and style for our Claire Bear

Whitney has many talents;

she can sing like an angel,

she is hilarious and quick-witted.

She has impeccable style,

is a great wife and mother

and is constantly pushing me and encouraging me in my roles

as a wife and a mother.

Short styles (photo credit for the first photo: Stephanie Glasgow) 

On top of that all she is a hair stylist. 

She has always been able to balance owning her own hair business

and holding a full time job.

Once she had her son things changed, naturally.

She wanted to find a way to be with him 

as much as possible.

I am so proud of her for taking a step of faith

and launching her hair business.

It has allowed her to be at home 

for the majority of the time, 

and also allowed her to

work and be creative in her salon.

Hair and make up style

Read on below to hear 

how she manages to balance all of her roles,

who inspires her in her work

and what her favourite trends are right now!


Just An Ordinary Family: Being a wife, mom and owning your business is a lot to juggle. How do you manage all three roles?
Whitney Dyck: Sometimes I don't do it well!  I wish I was a better juggler, but ultimately I try and place things in the right order: Wife & Mom first, Stylist second. I have a great husband who tackles our home life and parenting duties right alongside me, and I work part-time - quite a nice change from what I am used to!

JAOF: You don't work out of a conventional hair salon; how does your space work for you?
Whitney: I have an in-home studio that works really well for what I need. We renovated a functional salon-type space last summer and it has been perfect for my business. Unlike a typical salon, there aren't several others having their hair done simultaneously, so it's pretty peaceful - and the garden view helps with that!
JAOF: Who inspires you in your work most? Is there a mentor or particular stylist that you follow?
Whitney: I follow several stylists via social media, but I suppose my favourites would be Leonardo ReDavid, Vancouver based stylist and creator of ReDavid Styling products (my favourite line to use in my studio!) and Ted Gibson, celebrity stylist and former What Not To Wear stylist.  

JAOF: What was it that encouraged you to take the leap to doing hair full time?
Whitney: The main reason I decided to go into business on my own was my strong desire to stay at home with my son as much as possible while he was still so young. My family and friends were instrumental in encouraging me to 'take the leap' and without their support and shameless promotion I wouldn't have been able to make it work!  

JAOF: What kinds of things do you do to keep on top of the newest trends in hair?
Whitney: I find Pinterest to be an endless source of creative ideas! I also enjoy online tutorials and finding inspiration from other stylists. 

JAOF: Having all of the roles you do, how do you make time for yourself? What kinds of things do you do just for you?
Whitney: I'm aware that my load is relatively light compared to lots of working moms out there. I have one son I get to care for and a job I love to do - not to mention a great support system! Ideally, time for myself includes a glass of wine, a good book and a bubble bath...pretty please! 

JAOF: What 3 pieces of advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own business?
Whitney: 1) Be realistic about your abilities, expectations and commitment.
  - What can you offer? Is it worth what you're asking? Are you willing to see it through?
2) Under Promise, Over Deliver
- Clients need to feel that they are getting more than they expected!
3) Social Media is your friend.
- Use your online network to grow your business and offer incentives to those referring you. Be worthy of other's promoting you and make sure your existing clients feel appreciated for their business and referrals.

JAOF: Where would you like to see your business in 5 years?
Whitney: I would like to expand my business enough to work with an esthetician partner and offer more salon services. I enjoy the wedding and special event side to my business and would love to see that grow further - I have 5 weddings booked this summer and hope that could double next year! 

Nice, subtle ombre 

Whitney has been kind enough to offer
Just An Ordinary Family readers
$10.00 of any colour service for the  months of May and June!
Simply mention this post when you book your appointment.
Whitney's full list of services is available on her Facebook page.

To book your appointment
you can reach Whitney
by email at
dyck.whitney@gmail.com,
calling or texting her at
604 838 8610.
You can also send her a private message on
Facebook.

Don't forget to Like her page for updates, future promotions and new styles!

Women In Business: Mary Ann Burrows

Here at Just An Ordinary Family

we like to celebrate 

women who have ventured out 

on their own and become their own bosses. This looks different in various fields

and today we are excited to share with you

a local artist Marry Ann Burrows.

Mary Ann used to own a local

kitchen and garden gift ware company

 called Mudler & Co. Marketing Inc.

After a number of years, Mary Ann

decided to change courses and pursue her passion for painting.

She now has a studio called the Sandiacre.

Mary Ann won second place 

in the Neward National contest 

for her encaustic painting titled 'Vancouver',

pictured below.

Photo courtesy of Sean Hitrac 

Not only did Mary Ann 

pursue her passion in painting,

she also is the founder of a non-profit

organization called Artists in the Village.

Mary Ann felt that there was something missing within the core of this amazing little village. 

She wanted an opportunity for visual artists to connect, share, support each other and grow, 

that included all forms of visual artists; the younger generation as well as the working and established ones.   

She wanted a place where we could all learn from each other.

  She also saw the missed opportunity and potential  

for our little town to create this wonderful artistic identity.

 Mary Ann found some amazingly creative people like Megan Anderson (of the Upstart Crow), 

and other local artists that felt the same way,

 and on September 25, 2014, Artists in the Village was formed.

One of them you may remember from a

recent post we did about Ali from Bella Photography.

You can follow Mary Ann Burrows

through her website and blog.

You can also connect with her through Facebook

or contact her by email or phone. 

batch.food. : Give Away

Today we at 

Just An Ordinary Family

are so proud to introduce you to

Batch Food!

Joanne is the founder and creator 

of Batch Foods and is a mommy from the same town I live in.

Naturally, that makes me feel extra excited to 

share with you a local business woman!

In honour of Mother's Day coming up

Batch Food is giving away not just one,

but two prizes!

"Mom's Night Off"

will include a lunch and dinner to be made for you!

You can nominate a friend and you will both win 

a Mom's Night Off! 

Our family has enjoyed 

Joanne's delicious creations.

Her assortment of meals is impressive.

Varying from classic comfort food like Chicken Pot Pie

to a more exotic dish like Butter Chicken and Ginger Beef.

Her dishes are not only taste good,
they are also easy to prepare and healthy too.

You can choose to pick them up

at their Richmond, BC location 

or have them delivered if you live in one of their 

15 delivery locations.

Is there anything better than waking up

and having that weeks meals already prepared and waiting

in a cooler by your door?

It was so convenient to have my fridge and freezer stocked

with ready made meals. 

Each dish we tried was pleasing to the palate.

We tried an assortment of dishes 

such as the winter squash soup,

the macaroni au gratin and the breakfast bowl.

My all time favourite dish was the Roasted Cauliflower Salad with a Curry dressing.

Mmm mmm!

Recently, my best friend's grandma had a fall

and was unable to prepare meals for herself.

Right away I went online and ordered a few meals that would

be simple to prepare and they were delivered to her door.

She said that they tasted delicious and were so helpful!

Read on below to see how Joanna got her start with Batch Food,

her previous culinary experience and of course 

how you can win a Mom's Night Off for yourself and a friend!

Just An Ordinary Family: The concept of Batch Food is genius! How did you come up with the idea?

Batch Food: When my kids were young and my husband and I both worked full time as chefs, I would batch cook meals and freeze so on busy nights or if I was to just to exhausted to make something fresh, I could pull out something homemade. We always talked about how great it was, and that we should start a business doing it. 

JAOF: What pushed you to take the leap to create Batch Food and have it as your full time job?

BF: We started out very small. First we just sold to our friends, then they told there friends and it grew from word of mouth. We set a weekly sales goal, when we reached that, I could focus on building batch full time. Everything kind of fell into place, we hit our goal we found a kitchen space to lease. 

JAOF: What did you do before you began Batch Food?

BF: I always worked in the culinary field as a chef. Then I focused on baking and became the Pastry Chef at the River Rock Resort. My last position was in the test kitchen at the Original Cakerie, working on new products and reformulating existing recipes. 

JAOF: Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently to make the transition from your former job to opening Batch Food?

BF: No, don't get me wrong, it wasn't easy to launch a new business, but I always felt like everything somehow kept falling into place for me. 

JAOF: What do you like best about running your own business? What do you like least?

BF: I like being able to create my own menus supporting local farmers and markets and working with other local businesses. 

My least favorite part is having to take care of things that aren't my area of expertise. If a delivery driver is sick, I have to make deliveries or if the printer doesn't work, I have to figure out how to fix it. There is no maintenance or IT department to call when there is a problem. 

JAOF: How do you manage your time as an entrepreneur, wife and mother?

BF: It can be pretty tough to balance everything, some days are full of family and some days are full of work. Batch is a family business so my husband and kids spend some time helping out doing what they can, but I am way more available for them then if I had a regular job. 

JAOF: What three pieces of advice would you give to someone who is wanting to leave their current employment situation and become their own boss?

BF: Stick to your passion, trust you instincts, set preliminary goals. 

JAOF: Where do you see Batch Food in 5 years?

BF: I would like Batch to be sold in the smaller gourmet groceries. 

Thanks for sharing with us Joanne.
It is so great to see that you were able to
use your skills to adapt to your family dynamics.
Even including them in your business.

Want to learn how to win a Mom's Night Off?
There are a few ways to do this!

1 - Leave a comment on this post with your name and email address.
Nominate a deserving friend and tell us why you think she deserves a day off from cooking.

2. You can also enter on Facebook and Instagram.
To do enter you must 'like' both Just An Ordinary Family and Batch Food.
Comment on the photo about the giveaway
and tag a deserving friend and tell us why she deserves a day off from cooking.

The winners must be able to pick up their meals from the Richmond location,
or live in one of the cities Batch Food delivers too.

Good luck!

Women In Business: Designers Collective

Here at Just An Ordinary Family 

we love to highlight some extraordinary 

Women In Business.

Today's ladies are no exception.

Tina and Brooke

are the founders of Designers Collective.

With backgrounds in architecture and interior design

they have all skills needed to help you with

your designing needs.

I had the pleasure of chatting with 

Tina and Brooke about what

brought them to opening their own business

and combining forces into one dynamic duo.

Read on below to find out more about them individually,

as a team and what drives them to be the unstoppable force they are!

Just An Ordinary Family: Tina and Brooke, share with us how it is that you two came together to start your company. How did you meet?

Designers Collective

Brooke:  Tina and I met many years ago (17!) when our kids swam together. She and her husband  were the architects on our large renovation we did about 15 years ago.  About 18 months ago Tina reconnected with me and asked if I would like to share office space with her and 2 other women.  We had all been working independently from home and were ready to have an office outside of the home.  As  events evolved the other two women were not quite ready to take the plunge and yet Tina and I still were.  BUT again as events evolved, we decided to join forces and create Designers Collective. We have been actively working on our new business for about a year.

Tina: We were both in the right place and at the right time in our lives to try something new.

JAOF: What inspired you to take your passions and make them into a business?

DC Brooke: Tina and I have a very similar design aesthetic and as our conversations expanded we realized we wanted to work together.  Through discussion we found we were having a similar experience where people were asking for advice or consults but really wanted to do the projects on their own.  We found there are a lot of DIYers who want to do their own projects but get stuck while going through the process.  So we thought it would be a good idea to offer design and lifestyle classes to the general public to give them the tools to help them with their projects.  We also offer full design service but our main idea is to make design accessible to everyone so by offering design classes we feel it opens up design to the general public.  

Tina: Designers Collective's  Design and Lifestyle workshops were created to immerse one in the tools and language of design. We hope our workshops will give DIYers the ability to filter the design information out there and give them the confidence to transform their homes like a professional. The idea is that we want everyone to thrive in their own life. 

JAOF: What did you used to do for work? How did this lead into your new business?

DC Brooke: I was a pediatric nurse until we did our house renovation 15 years ago. I liked the process so much that I went back to school for Interior Design and started my own company in 2007. We both needed a change of pace and wanted to work out of our home offices. The original idea was just to share office space but it grew into so much more. 

Tina: I am a registered architect in British Columbia and I have a degree in Urban Planning. My dual degrees have allowed me to navigate from large urban design issues to detailed interior planning with ease.

In my previous job in Campus Planning I worked directly with academic divisions compromised of professors, researchers and administrators. That work involved taking complex, and sometimes even contradictory, program information and translating it into actual physical form via plans and consult coordination. This was done within a university environment that typically used re-purposed or left over spaces such that a high level of imaginative, inventive problem solving was needed to find the right spatial and aesthetic solutions. I find that the ability to work effectively with a highly intelligent yet demanding clientele has been a great help in my current business because I find myself facing complex programmatic, spatial problems requiring a nimble, creative thinking on the fly. 

Likewise, the need to need to overcome spatial limitations has been great training for my current job where I often need to improvise using imperfect resources to achieve the best outcomes. My strengths are in problem solving, making connections and working and helping people. These traits lend themselves nicely for the work Designers Collective offers. 

JAOF: Do you work from home or an office space? How does this work for you?

DC Brooke: We both work from home and an office. We joined a collaborative office space so sometimes we work at the office and sometimes we work from home. As our business grows we know exactly the kind of office we would want to have. We each have a strong image of this in our minds and so look forward to making that dream a reality!

JAOF: Being a mom, wife and working is a hard balance! How do you do it?

BC Brooke: Our kids are all older now. All of them are on the brink of or in the midst of university careers. Some are still at home and some are fully or partially launched. Having said that, a work day does not go by when one of our phones doesn't go off with one of our kids needing to discuss something or inquire about dinner or use of the car etc. (It never really ends you know!) Finding the balance with older kids can be tricky and stressful at times but so far it seems to be working. But, I will confess, we each belly ache about trying to fit in grocery shopping and cooking! 

Tina: Even though our kids are older we still play the balancing game - we juggle kids, significant others, dinner, parents, bills, all the while trying to push Designers Collective to the next level. We formulate our goals and agenda on Friday for the following week, and we try to meet everyday to ensure we are on track. We have found this has really worked for us. 

JAOF: Being your own boss how do you manage your time? How do you make time for yourself? 

DC Brooke: Tina goes to fitness most mornings and I go for a run with my dog. We meet up after we've each done our morning workout. We meet most afternoons and divide up the work to be done, then each of us does work behind the scenes for our next meeting together.  We do tend to text and email each other a lot, even from one day to the next.

JAOF: We believe that featuring women in business is important. What would you like to say about women being entrepreneurs and who is wanting to make the leap to work for themselves?

DC Brooke: My advice is "take the leap and the bridge will follow". I read this quote about two years ago and have been living by it ever since. The day I received the email came in from Tina inviting me to share office space was a true moment where I stopped and said to myself, "This is the leap!" It continues to stretch me daily as I meet new people and tackle new situations (ie: social media) but the bridge is there and holding me up along the way. 

Tina: As women we are really good at multi-tasking and keeping numerous balls in the air. We can do anything we set our minds to. Two years ago I wouldn't have had the confidence to take the leap, but now that I have I can't imagine it any other way. I have never felt so inspired, excited and happy as I do right now. Sometimes I get a little overwhelmed and I have to remind myself that I am living the dream and this is what I have always wanted. 

_______________________________________________________________________

"...but the bridge is there and holding me up along the way." - Brooke

"I have never felt so inspired, excited and happy as I do right now." - Tina

_______________________________________________________________________

JAOF: Describe your dreams for your business. Where do you see Designers Collective in 5 years?

DC Brooke: We both want to have an office and employees! We want to be an influence in the industry and we want to make enough money that we and our employees are comfortable. We have many ideas of how to get there!

Tina: Yes we want to be an influence and want to be known as the go-tos for all design and lifestyle information. We want our workshops to be known for offering an experience to our participants, where they can meet interesting people, have interesting conversations and get in touch with their creativity. 

What we also offer is the ability to meet and speak with a real architect and interior designer whom you can ask advice from and trust their answers. We want to build trust with our customers. Based on our own personal experiences and work with our suppliers. In effect, we are a filter for design information and will pass on relevant, useful and affordable. 

Thank you so much Brooke and Tina of Designers Collective.

Your interview was so inspiring to me and I hope that when other women

read your answers they will feel empowered and encouraged.

We at Just An Ordinary Family wish the two 

of you and your business all the best and many successes. 

We are excited to see and hear about what you are doing in the Vancouver area!

To keep up to date with what Designers Collective are doing

you can check out their website filled with amazing information, tips and videos.

You can also follow them on

Facebook

Instagram  @designerscollective_

Twitter @designers411

Pinterest  @designers411

YouTube

If you wish to inquire about your own design needs or have any questions,

you can contact Brooke or Tina at

info@designerscollective.ca 

604-771-4184