Naming Ceremony inspiration :)

When we were planning Ché Phoenix's naming day we knew we wanted to keep it simple. We wanted it to be fun, personal and beautiful. We ended up taking inspiration from our favourite of Ché Phoenix's toys - our new ones from The Little Woodlanders.

Our awesome cupcakes! Decorated like his favourite toys! and spelling out his name :)

A good friend of mine Naomi and her mum run a little cake making business in our local area and they made us a beautiful selection of cupcakes decorated like his beautiful wooden toys! Everyone loved them and I couldn't believe how awesome they looked and tasted! The wee cake Factory ladies are super talented and can make practically anything into cake art!

Little Woodlanders are having a christmas in july sale now until 17th July. There is 15% off everything, no need for a discount code - everything is on sale - have a wee nosey around, your bound to see something you like!

EVERGROWING GIVEAWAY!!!

This is the second of three awesome giveaways I'm hosting then I'll be back to regular blogging so make the most of it this week and make sure you enter them!

Melissa is the creative mind behind EverGrowing on Etsy, some of you might know her better as Bee Girl from Sky Mided and Ever Growing but either way she's a very talented and interesting person who is fast becoming my favourite 'cyber pal' :) The quotes are from her etsy shop,

"I am learning how to enjoy all of the stumbles on this beautiful journey of mine! By profession, I happily work for a youth serving non-profit, doing my best to be part of the change I wish to see in the world."

"I believe that we are all ever growing and changing and I am so glad to be right where I am in this moment." 

She set up her online shop back in 2011 and it has developed into a beautiful extension of her personality, she sells (gorgeous) baby blankets and mug warmers that she crochets herself as well as 3D and 2D paintings.

"Given that I love all things handmade and have a variety of interests, my shop reflects that truth in that it doesn't have just one specific theme. For now, there are a variety of paintings, pendants and crocheted items to be found in this space..." 

But my favourite and her most popular items have to be her unique pendants, I have one and LOVE it so much!

The story behind how these 3D trees came to life, I think, adds an extra special dimension to them. I love to know the story behind something handcrafted, because everything handcrafted has a story :)

"A few years ago, I participated in a 14 hour silent meditation retreat at the Upaya Zen Center. During my meditation, I kept seeing images of three dimensional trees on canvas. Not knowing where the image came form, or what to do with it, I wound up doing nothing with the idea for almost a year. One day, I had an "a-ha" moment in which I remembered my dad's joint compound sitting in my garage waiting to be returned to him. I pulled it out and began experimenting with it on canvas. And so was born the 3D trees on canvas I had seen in my meditations!

Beautiful hey? Well one lucky reader will win one of their very own! To enter the draw just visit her shop, have a look around and leave a comment below saying which one you'd like to win!

For additional entries you can also -

•  like EverGrowing on Facebook 
•  follow Melissa on Twitter 
•  follow Melissa on Pinterest 
•  follow Melissa on Instagram
•  subscribe to the Sky Minded and Ever Growing Blog (via email or Google Friend Connect) 

You'll need to leave a separate comment below for each of your additional entries to be included. The winner will be announced Saturday the 18th May (along with the Smiling Tree Toys winner, see last post!) GOOD LUCK :)

SMILING TREE TOYS GIVEAWAY!!!

Smiling tree toys have been kind enough to participate in a giveaway! How great is that?! I found their business last year when I was looking for some natural toys for our baby to give to Al on his birthday. I loved them so much we used them in my pregnancy shoot too :)

There is so much I want to tell you about this company but lets start with the toys!

The toys are so special, each one is handcrafted with love and care in the family workshop.

"The woodshop hums all day long with the happy sounds of toy making, reggae music, and a laughing little girl." 

Their family own an organic farm and they use the camelina oil they produce to finish the toys, they use all local materials and keep the environmental impact of their business as low as possible.

"From sustainably harvested American hardwoods, to our homegrown organic camelina oil/beeswax finish, to natural cotton drawstring bags made-in-the-USA, we ensure every aspect of Smiling Tree Toys is respectful of and gentle on mother earth. We wouldn’t have it any other way."

That means the toys are safe for your babies too, let them suck and chew away with no need to worry about what chemicals they have been in contact with. The finish is 100% organic, food grade and homegrown.

Now about the people behind the business, Justin and Kathleen are an inspiration, they spent two years volunteering in the peace corps in Niger (wow) and they donate money from each toy sold to Peace corps youth projects. Just when I was wondering if this couple could get any cooler I saw this - 

so yes, they can! This is their gorgeous daughter Amana, she helps out with the mail run and I'm sure she's a great muse and toy tester! Lucky girl :)

So now that you're in love with the companies ethos, the products, the process and the whole family head on over and support a small business!

Now for my giveaway, you could win a natural wooden teether of your choice! Plus have it personalised! And delivered anywhere in the world! If you don't have a teething babe of your own I'm sure you know of someone who would love it as a gift for theirs.

Here's how you can enter -

Check out this link and tell me in the comments section below which shape teether you'd like to win. Easy!

For additional entries you can also -

•  like Smiling Tree Toys on Facebook 
•  follow Smiling Tree Toys on Twitter 
•  follow Smiling Tree Toys on Pinterest 
•  subscribe to the Smiling Tree Toys Blog (via email or Google Friend Connect) 

You'll need to leave a separate comment below for each of your additional entries to be included. The winner will be announced Saturday the 18th May :) GOOD LUCK :)

Small business love :)

I'd like to introduce a lovely little cottage industry business that I'm very proud to be sponsored by. Some of you may know Wean already from weans frugal world where she blogs about money saving, craft tutorials, frugal cooking and the antics of her furry feline friends!

Her new business is Raggy World, where she sells beautifully handcrafted, unique and 100% upcycled items. Wean sources all her fabrics ethically - vintage or secondhand. She makes a wide range of items from cat beds (these have my personal recommendation - Cara loves hers) to funky place mats (I have some of these too, they're awesome!). She sells some cool retro fabric in lengths also for the crafty/sewing amongst you!

I really love supporting small businesses like Wean's. I like to know that the item I've bought was made with love and care, it just makes it seem all the more special. The fact that all weans products are made with recycled material is just such a bonus!

But thats enough of me blabbering on, have a look around her shop for yourself, you'll see! Heres my picks, I'm all about blue at the moment!

Cat or small dog bed 

the 'hands free' kit - very handy for walking

pot rests

vintage placemats

Don't forget to keep her in mind too for any upcoming birthday/housewarming gifts and of course christmas :) 

A new addition to a journey to a dream

You may have noticed a few changes to the layout of 'a journey to a dream' this is because I'm making space for sponsorship! This is a really exciting step for me :)

I considered going with google ads but decided a select few blogs or businesses that I love and genuinely endorse would be a better option for me. And for you readers too, you'll get a bit of info about the people behind the blogs/businesses and maybe some special offers or giveaways too!

For the first few months as a sort of introductory offer I'd be very interested in doing trades. If your crafty you could pay in products from your shop or link swaps if you offer sponsorship on your blog. This would give you an idea on the traffic you'd get and also how you feel about spreading your brand if you don't already do so.

I'd love to hear what you think and if your interested have a look at my new sponsorship info page :)