I am in awe of the many incredible Mum’s out there, doing a fab job of running their own successful businesses whilst simultaneously holding down the fort at home. I’m fortunate enough to have ‘met’ many of these ladies online and can’t wait to introduce you to some new …
My. Skin. Is. Ageing. Like me. And that is awesome – I LOVE this season of my life. Every year post 30 has gotten better and better but it does require a slightly different view on my daily skincare routine. I tried various cream …
Our dining room table was not a pretty guy and was really letting down the overall ambience of the dining room. I joke! I would never use the word ambience and mean it, I promise.
Our table was a hand-me-down from Mum and Dad and was still in awesomely solid condition, but the original varnish on the top was thin and the finish had suffered over the years (standard nail polish remover accidents etc). My initial inclination was to just go out and buy a brand new table, but dang, those suckers are expensive! It was decided that we would refinish our dining room table ourselves.
I knew I wanted the top finished in bright, high gloss, hard wearing white enamel. The opposite of the dipped leg that is trending right now but I had Dave had exactly zero interest in sanding down all of those fiddly little side bits! And so we began;
Step 1. Strip the existing finish. Dave used a 30 grit disk on an orbital sander. This took him probably 5 minutes! Absolutely no indicator of how long and arduous this project was to become! (I have neglected to mention that we undertook this project in the middle of one of the hottest summers I can ever remember – the worst possible time for oil based enamel paint to harden).
Step 2. Buy premium rollers. I began with cheap ones and paid the price of having to apply more coats than I otherwise would have.
Step 3. Apply two coats of Dulux Prepcoat Oil Based Primer with a light sand using 220 grit in between. I didn’t listen to Dave and only applied one coat! You will probably have to hand sand the edges and sides as it is easy to strip these right back to the wood – over and over again. Sigh.
Step 4. Take careful note of drying times and stick to these religiously. After a light sand begin top coats. I used Dulux Super Enamel Oil Based High Gloss in white. Paint the small edges first and roll longways down the table. Light sand between each coat. With proper prep and good rollers you should only need 3 coats max. I did SEVEN. fml.
Step 5. Do not listen to your neighbor when he suggests you top coat your hours of work with polyurethane. At any cost.
Step 6. You will hate your table by this point, but now you must wait for the enamel to harden. Give it at least two days before returning it to use. It will probably take weeks to harden, especially if you have applied seven coats of oil based paint!
However painful the process was, I swoon over the new finish every time I sit at the table. It is so, so glossy and hard wearing. Nixie’s crayon scrawls come right off and cleaning up after mealtimes is bliss compared to the previously worn varnish. A labour of love that has given this fab table many more years to endure the abuse of my children!
Dining chairs, wall art and copper basket from Freedom Furniture
I snapped this photo four days ago. Just looking at it makes me shiver under my woollen jumper, full length tights, fuzzy socks and nana blanket. Dave has started prepping a section of our yard for a wee makeover. It’s going to require a digger …
Of all the cookbooks I own, the most thumbed, the most flour coated, the one with the most pages stuck together with icing is The Edmonds Cookery Book. It’s to this veritable kiwi institution that Dave and I turn for every tried and true family favorite. …
I am in awe of the many incredible Mum’s out there, doing a fab job of running their own successful businesses whilst simultaneously holding down the fort at home. I’m fortunate enough to have ‘met’ into many of these ladies online and can’t wait to introduce you to some new faces and their awesome entrepreneurial endeavours. If you would like to get involved and have your business featured, please say hello! melissa@thebestnest.co.nz
Our very, very first Say hello! feature spotlights one of my favourite online stores – and they lived green. Misha Yardley, mama of 3yo twin girls (!) lives with her husband in Auckland and manages to balance working on her carefully curated webstore between precious naptimes and enjoying her young family. and they lived green ticks all the boxes for those who are passionate about ethical shopping. Every item Misha stocks adheres to at least one of these values;
Organic | Fair Trade | Recycled | Ethically Made | Sustainable
I discovered and they lived green on Instagram and immediately ordered a set of Re-Play plates. I lOVE these recycled wonders! Introducing a divided plate (made from BPA free recycled milk bottles!) has made mealtimes so much easier and allowed Nix to master using a fork and spoon without the frustration of pushing food all over his plate. As you can see we now have quite a collection …………. moving on!
I can barely find the time to shower once a day but Misha is obviously much better at time management than myself and sat down recently to answer a few questions for me;
Which came first, the babes or the business?
I had the business idea a few years before I had the babies but it wasn’t until after we had the girls that the idea became fully formed and I started to strategise ways to make it happen.
You seem to have a really clear, strong vision of what your business stands for and regarding the brands you represent, does an ethical standpoint make it harder or easier to stay on track as a mumpreneur?
I do have a strong vision for the business and it can work both ways in terms of finding the right brands. In some ways it’s easier because I have set criteria and products either meet them or they don’t. But it can be difficult because there are a lot of amazing products out there which are so tempting! But also because some products ride the line between some of our values – they are great sustainable or organic products but don’t necessarily have a transparent manufacturing process. I tend to err on the side of caution when selecting products as I want people to be able to buy with confidence when shopping with us.
How on earth do you manage to balance young twins with life as a business owner?
That is probably the biggest challenge! I try to do most of my work while they nap, are at homecare or in the evenings. I’m conscious of being on my phone or the computer too much when I’m around them, so I try and break the day into ‘mum’ hours and ‘work’ hours. It’s a grand theory but it doesn’t always work!
Social media is changing the way businesses tell their stories and reach out to customers, how do you incorporate SM in your business plan and is it hard to keep your personal stories separate?
Social media plays a huge part in our marketing and it’s also our direct link to our customers. I love being able to engage with them and hear their feedback. It is definitely hard to keep personal stories separate. I wasn’t a huge user of social media before this so I have had to adjust a little. I like sharing parts of our lives as I feel like it creates a relationship between us and the customers, but also as a consumer myself I love seeing this from businesses and blogs that I follow. I try not to overshare, and I have some rules about what is ok to share regarding the girls. I still worry sometimes about sharing anything about them at all, but it’s pretty hard to share my life without them in it! They are my 24/7 job so most things revolve around them haha!
What are your favourite products in stock right now?
Oooh that’s a hard one! Something I use almost every day is the Little Bairn Sleepy Time Nursery Spray – it is divine! We use it as a nappy change spray, as a room deoderiser after a nappy change, and also as a room freshener especially in our bedrooms. It has organic lavender French oil so has a beautiful scent, and is like a gorgeous sleepy-dust spray come bedtime.
We of course use our Re-Play products everyday too. Their whole range is amazing, but I am obsessed with their spill proof cups because they are actually spill proof! I am always sceptical when something claims to be no-leak etc, but these are actually fantastic. They are the only drink bottles I will have in the nappy bag, car seats or bedroom!
I am also REALLY excited about the new Huxbaby range which has just arrived – this season is so beautiful and I can’t wait to see our customers style it!
What’s ahead for And They Lived Green?
We have a busy year of markets ahead of us at this point. You can find us at most Mary’s Markets, and we are really excited about the Hatch’d Boutique Baby Fair coming up in May.
I’m always on the lookout for new and amazing products, and I have a few things in the works already so keep an eye out for those. Basically bigger and better is the goal this year!
Each set contains one divided plate, one bowl, one tumbler, one no-spill sippy cup, a fork and spoon and a single snack stack pod with lid. Everything your toddler could need at home or on the go! Available in aqua, pink, yellow or purple.
I’m so glad I had scheduled this review for today, I totally needed a wee pick-me-up and after the second time using these amazing masks I am now convinced that the perfect mummy boost comes in a box, costs only $9.99 and you can buy …
Realising we’ve all been scammed by this Easter/school holiday combo deal. Listening to consecutive tantrums and headbanging on the concrete floors. What the f*ck child? Needing to sleep for at least 4 days straight. Enjoyed a lie-in this morning until 7.06am at which time …
Almost two years on I still love this wee nursery. I was laughing with some girlfriends the other night about the state of it though. What you don’t see in this image is the gnawed, beaver tracks on the cot rails – Nixon is THAT child in every possible way! It will be time for a makeover soon though, as we move on from changing tables etc and make way for some more Big Boy furniture. That gorgeous, snuggly bear blanket? Kmart $7. What the?! I know, I couldn’t leave the store without it.
Good Friday indeed! Family 5.5k, gardening, lawn-mowing, ticking off to-do lists………and this babe x “Dwawing”. Also, welcome back DSLR! I feel a massive influx of photo inspired posts coming on #sorrynotsorry