Featured Vendor - StormSister

I am so excited to have another featured vendor this week! StormSister is a online beauty boutique that sells skin and body care lotions. There are so many awesome products, so definitely check out StormSister!

Here are a few of my favorites:

Rose A Saigo

Fleur's Voile De Sultane Mineral Iridescent Powder


Erbaviva Childrens Sunscreen

Q&A with Becky:

What motivated you to start StormSister?

After spending 20+ years in the salon and spa industry doing hair, skin and nails, and having a passion for retail, I wanted to focus on the online retail aspect of the beauty industry.

What exactly does StormSister entail?
It is an online beauty shopping experience. I carry high quality brands that are not found in every salon/spa in the industry. Having spent many years in the business, I am well versed on what beauty products really work and which are just hype and packaging.

What advice do you give to other entrepreneurs?

If you eat, sleep and breathe it, you can be successful at it.

What are 3 things people don't know about you?

I MUST have a pedicure every 5 weeks.
I have to give a compliment to one person each day, preferably a stranger.
I love to put potato chips on ANY sandwich, even pb&j.

Thank you so much Becky!

http://www.stormsister.biz

Featured Vendor - The Lucky Elephant

I stumbled upon The Lucky Elephant on twitter and instantly fell in love with their products. They sell handcrafted GOOD LUCK ELEPHANT bracelets! I plan to purchase one soon to maybe bring me some extra lucky having Baby L. Each design is unique and colorful!

Here are some of my favorites:

Q&A with Jutta of The Lucky Elephant:

What motivated you to start The Lucky Elephant?

The launch of the lucky elephant was one of those things that, in hindsight, feels like it was meant to be. I had just started making jewelry again, was playing around with wrap bracelets and accidentally stumbled upon a cute elephant button one day. I bought the little silver friend, brought him home with me and "the lucky elephant" was born the very next day...


What exactly does The Lucky Elephant entail?

An elephant with it’s trunk being raised up is considered to bring good luck and an excellent fortune and to have the magical power to take away troubles.
THE LUCKY ELEPHANT creates Good Luck Elephant leather wrap bracelets with antique silver elephant button, fine silver or vermeil gold elephant charm - trunk up, of course, for tons of good fortune - will make sure you stay on the lucky side of life while being stylishly accessorized. There’s an everyday collection and a Wedding line, which is completely customizable to match virtually any color palette.

For a few years, I have been involved with Urban Initiatives (www.urbaninitiatives.org), a Chicago based nonprofit organization that runs a health and education soccer program in public schools in Chicago’s most underserved neighborhoods. Very early on I decided that I wanted to continue to support their tremendous work with my business too. 10% of all my proceeds go to Urban Initiatives.


What advice do you give to other female entrepreneurs?

Mmmm, still looking for advice myself constantly, especially in terms of how to balance it all, but let’s see...

1. Make sure your office has a door that you can close
a) when you’re in it - to keep everyone out and
b) when you leave - so you don’t constantly have to be reminded of the work that needs to be finished... and
c) to hide the creative chaos you produce without having to clean up all the time...


2. Get huge jars of anti-wrinkle cream & concealer. Chances are you will need both sooner or later - between filling orders, creating, twittering, blogging, facebooking, emailing, etc. there’s not much time left for sleep, which brings us back to the search for balance... ;)

3. Let your family hide your electronic devices once in a while (especially when on vacation), so you’re not tempted to “quickly check”...

4. Enjoy the ride and be proud of yourself!


What are 3 things people don't know about you?

Mmm that’s a tough one. Can only think of 2 right now:

1. I love licorice and gummy bears.
2. I read the book “The School of Essential Ingredients” 3 times.

Thanks so much!! Definitely check out The Lucky Elephant :)

http://www.etsy.com/shop/theluckyelephant

Featured Vendor - D and J Auto

In honor of Father's Day, I thought my featured vendor this week will be my dad's auto service business D and J Auto! My dad is probably one of the HARDEST working people I know. I credit him to the excellent work ethic I have adapted over the years.

When I was growing up, my dad worked for other businesses and used to work until all hours of the night. He would work his day job then worked out of the garage. He did everything in his power to give my siblings and I the best life possible. Now and then my mom had to sneak clothes in the house for us, but that was just because my dad was always worried about saving money.


One day he realized he had built such a clientele out of the house, that he should open his own business. This was a big step for someone who had 3 kids in school. He worked hard to build up his business. My brother started working for him, so it truly was a family run business and continues to be this day! I give my dad and brother a TON of credit for all their hard work. All those 95 degree days they are sweating it out at the shop or the 15 degree days they are shoveling snow.

My dad has always been a true inspiration in my life, which is why his business is so successful and his clients truly believe in him as their mechanic. Love you dad!!!


By the way, the "D" stands for Don and the "J" stands for his wonderful wife and my amazing mom Janet!!

If you live in the Wilmington, DE area, definitely check out D and J Auto!

www.dandjautoservice.com

~Adrienne xoxo

Chic Royalty

Well Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince William are looking very chic in their first few outings since the Royal Wedding! The Duchess is even driving a blue Jaguar!!

And YES I am still loving the Royals!!!




~Adrienne xoxo

Featured Vendor - Twirlie Whirlies

Another AMAZING vendor to feature this week! Twirlie Whirlies is a handmade paper party accessories business but extends to much more than that!!

Here are some of my favorites:

Bridal Party Set


Everyday Fun Pinwheels


Playful Pink Cupcake Wraps


12 Days of Christmas Gift Tags

Interview with Shannon of Twirlie Whirles:

What motivated you to start Twirlie Whirlies?

Twirlie Whirlies” started by accident when my son was just one and we were preparing to convert his nursery into a “big boy” room. I had difficulty finding fabrics in the colours I wanted to use but ended up finding them in a collection Martha Stewart scrapbook papers instead. So, everything I had intended on making from fabric was created from paper, including buntings and pinwheels. Hence, the start of my obsession!

What exactly does Twirlie Whirlies entail?

Twirlie Whirlies is home to handmade paper party accessories including, but not limited to, pinwheel cupcake toppers and handheld favours, bunting, flags, tags, party hats, and candy cones. Most of our business does tend to be custom work. My customers come up with some amazing (yet sometimes challenging) colour combinations so we have recently started offering a custom printed paper option using digital paper designs. I usually source and support other Etsy shops for these designs.

I also quietly launched a sister shop,“Twirlie Whirlies, too”, last year. This shop is devoted to the 3 R's - reduce, reuse, and recycle, and is intended to be a solution to my growing mountain of paper leftovers from pinwheels past. Unfortunately, Twirlie Whirlies has kept me so busy this year, I haven’t had time to transform those scraps (and the mountain continues to grow….)

I’ve also been playing around with invitations and play date cards recently for friends and family so maybe someday they will appear in the shop as well.

What advice do you give to other female entrepreneurs?

Lol – I’m still waiting for someone to give ME that great piece of advice that will magically make everything balance and work. My husband is also self-employed and maintains a home office so between the two of us, and a 3 ½ year old that doesn’t yet go to school full time, our home/work environment is chaotic! It has its challenges but also has helped me learn to “expect the unexpected” and be more flexible. No day is ever the same (and never boring).

What are 3 things people don't know about you?

Hmmm – this is a tough one. I am pretty much an open book.

But, here are a few tidbits I normally just keep to myself:

1. I am a horror film junkie. The scarier the better. The word “torso” makes me run for the hills!

2. I’m afraid of flying. Maybe the reason I hardly ever take a holiday.

3. I have a degree in Architectural Technology.

http://twirliewhirlies.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/twirliewhirlies

Thank you so much Shannon!!!!! xoxo