Moo and Flo - Another of our Winners of Show Us Ya Workstation Competition!

Dianne from Moo and Flo came 4th in our Show Us Ya Workstation Competition, and so will have advertising/shoutouts every Thursday for the Month of May. Congratulations Dianne!

Where are you located?
Laingholm, Auckland

Tell us about you and your family
Me (Dianne), Dan, and wee Monty.  Moo and Flo is named for my online gaming name (Flo) and Monty's nickname (Moo).  Dan is a software engineer but once made me a cushion by hand, such was the romance of courtship.

Tell us about your business

I make clothes for children up to the age of 6, trying to make things that are different to what is in the shops, and never making too many the same as I want to keep that feeling I had as a child of having something different to everyone else.

What made you want to become a WAHP?  

I wanted to create something rather than filling *all* of my down time gaming, so I figured this would be a fun and creative thing to do.  It allows me to still be a SAHM and work around Monty, which is brilliant.  And, of course, it means I can make things for him, too, which I love as myh mum used to make most of my clothes as a child and I loved having things that were unique.

What made you pick the type of business that you did?
Because I can sew :)  And because it is easy to make items in fits and starts if need be, to fit around being a mum.  It's also very satisfying seeing other children in things I've made - it gives me warm fuzzies and the oomph to go on and make more.

How do you balance work/family/you-time?

Jeepers, I'm not sure I *do* sometimes!  When the planets are with me, I just work in the evenings when Moo is asleep, or on the two days he is with his wonderful carer, Dawn.  When I started the business, Moo slept 2-3 hours every afternoon, but wouldn't you know he dropped the naps within 2 weeks of launching.  Kids, eh!  Still, I just do what I can, when I can, and focus on enjoying what I do.

Facebook page:http://www.facebook.com/MooAndFlo   

Blog page: http://mooandflo.blogspot.com/

Upper Cut Hair Design - Another of our competition winners!

Congratulations to Kelly from Upper Cut Hair Design, third place in our Show Us Ya Workstation competition.

Where are you based?
I am located in Papakura Auckland.

Tell us about your business and why you wanted to become a WAHM?
I wanted to set up a salon at home so I could still be a full time mum.  I only ever book one client at a time, you dont share the salon with anyone else, so can feel comfortable and relax, with your children doing what children do best (and I dont mind one bit!)  You can also relax with no children around too as you have the salon to your self, this also means im all yours! I am not rushing between clients and you will never feel like a number.  I wanted a modern salon that offered all the trimmings, good coffee, a great selection of mags and of course my 11 years of expertise make this possible :D
While my youngest is still at Kindy I work part time hours,  but when he starts school next year I will be stepping the salon up to the next level! I love hairdressing, its a wonderful thing to make some one feel beautiful, I have many sleep deprived mums cry in my arms when they leave, because they feel so good about themselves and have had a little "me" time (even if they have had to bring the children).  

How do you balance work/family/you-time?
I have been in business 18 months now, and have grown and learnt so much, the balance of family/business is great, my kids know upstairs is mummy's work, and only pop up on a late night for a kiss goodnight, they love knowing im just upstairs!
My husband and family have been a great support, my loyal clients are awesome, without them Upper Cut Hair Design wouldn't have worked, I am so blessed to have such a faithful backing!  To keep my clients feeling valued I run specials every month, and try to to giveaways when I can (always looking for business' that want to donate, in return for advertising..... *hint*)

Please see Upper Cut Hair Design's Website, www.uppercuthd.co.nz

And their Facebook Page, http://www.facebook.com/uppercuthairdesign

Minky Bots - 2nd Place in our Show Us Ya Workstation Competition!

A huge congratulations to Helena, our 2nd place winner in the Show Us Ya Workstation Competition, a placing made even more impressive by the fact that she only entered with a day or two to spare! Well done to you!

Where you are located?
Feilding, NZ

Tell us about you and your family
I am a stay at home mum to 2 gorgeous little boys under 3 years, who keep me super busy. And have #3 due in August.

What made you want to be a WAHM?
I decided to start Minky bots so that i had a way to earn money while staying home with my boys.

What is your business all about?
When I found out I was pregnant with my first son, I said to my partner that I wanted to use cloth nappies, his reaction to that was “no way”. So from that point on there was no turning back for me (because im so stubborn), and I can proudly say I have only ever bought 1 pack of disposables, and that was in the middle of winter with 2 boys in nappies.
Im not talking about all the flash pocket nappies, fitteds or AIO you can get, I started out using the old flat cloth nappies with pins and a waterproof cover!
Then I thought I would give it a go at making my own pocket nappies, which then turned into me designing my own pattern that suited my son perfectly in 4 different sizes. Newborn, Small, Medium and Large.
Minky Bots has just grown from there. I now offer a extra large nappy to order and am working on a one size fits all pattern.

How do you balance work, family and you-time?
Sometimes i find it really hard to do this with 2 little kids, but if i need to sew i try and do it while Tim is home so that he can watch the boys, otherwise i do little bits here and there when i can. I try to get in a few hours sewing a week though depending on how much i need to do.

Here is a list of products i make
Nappies – Newborn, small, medium and large
Extra Large to Order
Nappies with Snap-On Clothing and accessories (© Minky Bots, 2010 Patent Pending)
Inserts – Small, Medium, Large
Taggy Balls
Taggy Cubes
Taggy Blankets
Microfleece liners (10 Pack)
Cloth Wipes (5 Pack)
Minky Bibs (3 layers backed in towelling OR PUL)
Minky Snuggly Blanket
Minky Changemat
Minky Wetbag

Contact Details



EMAIL - info@minkybots.co.nz
WEBSITE - http://www.minkybots.co.nz/
FACEBOOK - http://www.facebook.com/MinkybotsNappies
TWITTER @MinkyBots
BLOG - http://minkybots.blogspot.com/
TRADEME LISTINGS - http://www.trademe.co.nz/Members/Listings.aspx?member=3464258
LITTLE KIWI'S NEST SHOP - http://littlekiwisnest.co.nz/store/Minky+Bots

MumMa - Winners of the Show us ya workstation competition!

MumMa were the winners of our "Show us ya workstation" competition, and so have won a whole bunch of free advertising on the NZWAHP's site and Facebook Page. Congratulations to you, and I hope that this helps you get more interest in your business.

Where are you located? MumMa is located in Linwood, Christchurch-Earthquake Central (lol) Tell us about you and your family We are sisters from Christchurch who have 5 children between us and a passion for fashion so what better way to combine the two!  Malia: I have three girls, Madeline 7yrs, Felicity 6yrs and Daisy 1yr Mareta: I have two boys, Samuel 5yrs & Sonny 3yrs What made you want to be a Work at Home Parent? Malia: With two school aged children and a toddler, that in itself is a Full time job! Working away from home either Full time or Part time wasn't an option for us. So being able to do something that I love and have an eager interest in from home is a blessing. What is your business all about? Quality unique original children's clothing in additon offering accessories for the home, mums and kids!! What made you pick the kind of business that you did?   Interest in fashion, but incorporating this with being a full time mum with 3 children I was able to have a creative outlet but also include the girls in the business. The girls contribute to modelling and helping as much as they can with the MumMa business. How do you balance your work/family/you-time?  As best we can! Being countries apart (Malia in Christchurch & Mareta in Sydney) is very hard to co-ordinate time and also brainstorm ideas. So thankful for technology - we communicate regularly via Skype and also Facebook! Social Media has been a fantastic avenue in marketing and advertising. Working around the kids has always been hard but have managed and thankful for the support of our parents who help look after the girls when hunting for material or when busy sewing :) Email: mummaltd@yahoo.co.nz Website:http://www.wix.com/mummaltd/mumma Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/#!/MadLissyDays (our Facebook page has a different address as it was originally called Mad-Lissy-Days instead of MumMa)

Congratulations to our 4 winners!

I would just like to say a huge congratulations to the 4 winners of our first competition. The entrants had to email in a photo of their home workstation, and generate "likes" on their photo, via our Facebook Page. The 4 with the most votes win. And here they are:

MumMa came first - View their website here

Minky Bots came second - View their website here

Upper Cut Hair Design came third - View their website here

Moo and Flo came fourth - View their Facebook Page here


So what happens now?


Well how I described the competition initially was that the 4 winners would each receive a week of advertising all about them - so a more in depth business profile, lots of photos, shoutouts to their Facebook Pages etc. Basically a whole lot of free advertising to help them build their businesses.


What I have also suggested to the winners as they are contacting me is instead of one solid week, they each get 1 day a week, say a Monday, and every Monday of May they will get lots of additional advertising instead. I will let everyone know what they come back with, am going on a majority rule for this, as they are the winners and should be allowed to decide on this one.


I hope this helps them to generate more interest in their pages. As I am not currently a business, just a SAHM who wants to help others get their brands known, free advertising is a great tool that although not a PHYSICAL prize, it should help them long term.


I am away for a week now, on a much needed family holiday. I won't be online very much, but please stay tuned for more fun and games when I come back!


Happy Easter,
Nikki

Announcing our first "competition" - Show us ya workstation

My temporary work space while I set up my "real" one

Well, it wouldn't be a real Facebook Page if we didn't have competitions now would it?

As this isn't currently an actual "business" (Although I am hoping to one day soon make it that way), I can't give away any prizes etc. However what I can offer, is more in depth, free advertising in the Facebook and Blog world. So what I propose is this.

I go away for my first family holiday, for a week (to Wellington, yay!) from Easter, so entries need to be in by Good Friday so I can draw it before I go. Email me in a photo of your home workstation. I will load all entries into an album on the Facebook Page. Get all your friends and families to "like" your entry. The 4 top votes (yes, 4, aren't I generous?) will each get a chance to have a whole lot of free promotion. Thats one winner for each full week in May, from Monday to Sunday. So each week I will be promoting a different winner. My only request is that we hit 150 "Likers" on Facebook by then. We have gone from 0-111 in less than a week, so it should be easy!

There will be:
A special article posted, dedicated to you and your business. (I will email you through the questions, plus whatever else you want to have in it).
A photo album, either new for new members, or we will add more photos to your existing one, if you already have one with the Facebook Page. This will also link up to your Facebook Page.
Links to your Facebook Page and/or Website daily for the week that you are being promoted, to enhance your traffic and, ultimately, your business.

Don't even ask. I am in the process of sorting and moving into my "real" space!

To get things started, here is a completely embarrassing photo of what my "work station" was like a week or so ago. I am in the process of setting up a whole new area where my craft supplies, writing supples and computer are all in the same (tidy) place. But just to show what I was working with (through my own fault of course) this is my ex-workstation. Complete with half dressed, vegemite covered child. There is a bed and a desk under all that mess by the way.

So there you have it. Email me your work station photos, get everyone to "like" the photos, and once we hit 150 Likers, the top 4 will win more free advertising. What do you think?

Nikki

P.S in the case of a draw, we will go to a "sudden death" to see who can get the most likers in a pre-determined space of time.