Whew! I can’t believe 2009 is about to come to a close. 2009 was filled with a lot of happy occasions along with some challenging times–I don’t know too many people who weren’t affected by the down economy. I myself fell “victim” to company layoffs. Without faith and the support of family and friends, I don’t know how I could have coped with all the stress. But I do believe that things happen for a reason, and it opened my eyes to opportunities that I might not given much thought to before.

They say necessity is the mother of invention, and I would have to agree with that sentiment. I remember vividly one day back in May 2009 when Cathy and I took the kids on one of their first official playdates, and the idea to start a business together came about. In one way, it would help occupy our time as we were both out of work. It could even potentially bring in some income for us while we searched for that elusive job. But the best thing of all was that it allowed us to put our passion for creativity to work. And I’m not just talking about making cute, knitted and sewn baby items, but also the whole entrepreneurial aspect as well – Web site building, promotions, sales, marketing, and more! And so embe was born on July 15, 2009!

These past five months since the launch of our online shop has been very fulfilling. We learned a lot, met some great folks, and developed some partnerships along the way. We continually seek new ideas and are in constant amazement by the community of handmade crafters!

Looking ahead to 2010, we will continue to create, inspire and share our stories as we reach new milestones of motherhood. We look forward to introducing our “Spring” catalog in the coming months and welcome your ideas for what you would like to see. Stay tuned for sneak peeks and additional details…

We wish each and everyone a prosperous 2010 filled with love, joy and creative inspiration!

-Mary & Cathy

mary@embeshop.com, cathy@embeshop.com

Since my daughter started sitting unassisted we setup a play area up against our bed for her and proped up a few pillows so that she doesn’t hit her head on the frame. The pillows were grabbed from the couch and looked to grown up for her space. I decided to give them some new covers to make them more kid friendly (ie. washable!) and to give her something interesting to look at.

We found this great animal print that matches her bed set and picked up a few extra yards of yellow and blue as accents. I wanted to do something different for each pillow and created different stripes and blocks of color. The backs are overlaps (similar to our own embe pillow covers!) so that they can be removed and washed if soiled.

I also wanted to add a personal touch and created a “birth pillow” (you can see it peeking out behind in the photo). I was inspired by some of the posters I saw on ohdeeoh.com. I used inDesign to layout the words with her name, birth day, time, and weight. Then I printed it on iron-on transfer paper in order to place it on the pillow.

My daughter really finds it interesting to look at and enjoys touching it… which has made the iron on transfer start to peel. Hehe. I guess it’s going to be more for decoration then use!

We’ve only been using them for a few days but I think they really help define her play area (not that the toys don’t already do that!) and help keep her safe.

Cathy and I would like to thank everyone for your overwhelming show of support for our business venture! We’ve received the most wonderful emails and comments from friends, family and even a new customer! We also received some great suggestions and product ideas so please keep them coming!

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If your child is like mine, he receives many gifts that–I’ll be honest with you–don’t get a lot of mileage. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the thought and the gift itself, but at the end of the day, he loses interest in it. And then it takes up space and starts to collect dust. (Hmmm, I hope I didn’t just talk Isaac out of some presents come Christmas time!).

When I create things, not only do I go for aesthetics, I think about its usefulness. “Will the recipient get a lot of use out of this?” is what I’m constantly asking myself. I find inspiration in its purpose. Can it do more and last longer than a toy off the shelf? More importantly, will he/she (and the parents) really enjoy it months (and even years) afterwards?

Just because something is practical doesn’t mean it can’t also be pretty. I like to create things for my customers that I would be proud to have displayed in my own home. For instance, we have Isaac’s growth chart hanging in the kitchen. He’s too young to understand what it is right now, but I can tell that he is attracted by the colors and textures. The colors are nice and bright but not tacky . It’s like a work of art, if I say so myself!

So in a world full of gadgets and gizmos, I like to create pretty and practical gifts while preserving the art of handmade goods that can be enjoyed without having to buy batteries for it.

Cathy and I are very excited to unveil embe, our online shop offering unique, handmade gifts for babies and tots! I remember one day back in May when we took the kids on their first official playdate, the idea came up to start something together. At first, I thought “it’s just an idea” but after giving it some thought, I realized that there was something there. During our first meeting, we both shared our ideas for what we could call our shop, and we both came up with embe on our own. Now, talk about coincidence!

The months leading up to our launch can be described as exciting, filled with late nights, inspiring, a learning experience, fun, and fulfilling. Starting a business is a lot of hard work but so rewarding in the process. We are both passionate about being mothers and being creative. embe allows us to combine both passions, and we hope that you join us on our creative and parenting journeys by reading our blogs and enjoying our creations for the little ones in your life!