Sorry about the website problem y’day, I hope it is now fixed…thanks for all the emails…oh and yep the fridge is a working, second fridge…so that means it has champagne in it mostly…oh and of course, cold beer..
Now, BCer’s have I got a treat for you today…I have a little inside scoop on the very very hard-working lady behind furniture store Russell & Mackenna…the kinda grass roots success story I just lurve to hear…
Oh and best thing is there’s a $400 Giveaway from Russell & Mackennaattached to this post, as ever all ya gotta do is comment to enter…
So here’s my chat with Lauren…and a behind-the-scenes peek at her gorgeous beachy home…
I just love to hear a success story of a good family company built on hard work, craftmanship and all that comes with that…can you describe what it was like in the early days of Russell & Mackenna creating your goods in a one car garage? It reminds me of my garage full of vintage furniture..was it all a bit of a crazy?
It was crazy in the beginning, but fun crazy. We were only three months old when Coastal Living magazine featured our Wave Hall Table. I remember the editor asked if I was sure I wanted them to print my home phone number as contact information. (We didn’t have a toll free number at that point.) When that magazine hit the newsstand the rollercoaster took off. We took dozens of orders for that table, and back then there were just three of us and Kevin was the only one who could actually build furniture! That was a wild month. We had Wave Hall Tables all over our house. Kevin was building from dusk to dawn day after day. We recruited everyone we could to help us paint them. It was a blast, we were giddy the entire time and just so excited that people liked what we were making.
So to answer your question, yes, it was a bit crazy!
Goodness, how wonderful and manic….maybe I should be selling my treasures
How did it move on from that operation to the success that it is today and do you find that has been an amazing ride?
Russell & Mackenna is 6 years old now. We outgrew my one car garage quickly and then outgrew the next space we rented and then the next space. I don’t know that there was one magical ingredient you could say propelled our growth. But I would say the most important thing we have going for us is our team. Get three people together who believe with all there heart that they can do what seems impossible and watch out. I’m just an artist with an undergraduate degree, Russell & Mackenna has taught me how to take a passion for art and turn it into a viable business. We have really grown up into a real company that has Shareholders, a Board of Directors and an Executive Committee. I have a saying that the harder you work the luckier you get…it’s actually printed on the spine of our catalog. So yes, it has been am amazing ride and an emotional one too. I am currently working on our business plan for the next 5 years, so right now I am looking ahead and feel like the ride is just beginning.
Hey I love that saying…working hard makes you luckier…as Mr BC says there ain’t no such thing as luck huh?
As a busy mum of three, how do you keep everything ticking smoothly…that same old question about balance…there’s a joke ’round here that kiddos with busy mummy’s get tied to trees…
Kiddos tied to trees, hmmm, that’s not a bad idea! I am on what seems like an eternal quest for life balance. Finally, in my thirties, I have become pretty good at delegating and asking for help. Early on I tried to do it all myself because I felt like I needed to be Super Woman. The family nearly had to send me to the funny farm because of it.
wow! you nearly went to the same farm as me…unbelievable…;-)
Kevin and I also realized that we couldn’t both be trail blazers at Russell & Mackenna full time if we wanted the balance of a happy family! After trying a few different solutions, we landed on Kevin stepping out of the day-to-day business and being a full time dad. My girls obviously adore their Daddy and were thrilled with that decision.
goodness, kudos to you guys to have found a solution that works, ummmm with Mr BC recently starting his own business and being very busy working crazy crazy hours and the BC Store and book around the corner, oh and keeping up with it all…we are still tieing kids to trees...
Another thing I learned in the last few years…the importance of excercise and a healthy lifestyle. In the early days at I developed horrible eating habits to cope with the stressers of being such a busy mom and I put myself dead last on the priority list. After packing on a lot of weight..and I’m talking a whole lot..I woke up one day and knew I needed a serious change. My dear friend Lee Kriel (who also happens to be our photographer and is the gorgeous woman sitting on the back of the Hinkley Picnic Boat) knew I needed help in this area and encouraged me to do early morning bootcamp with her. Thank you Lee! I’ve been going that now for three years now. Simply encorporating the discipline of an excercise routine has changed my life. I have so much more energy to better handle the stress that comes along with being a working mom – not to mention all the weight I have lost. Putting my own well being higher on the priority list has made a big difference.
Holding my hands up to ya, good for you…dunno if you’ve heard about the BC walks and 350′s…certainly my therapy and boy do we all know when Mrs BC aint been a-walkin…..what an amazing story, I love how you say exercise has changed your life…all jokin’ aside I feel the same…just sooooo important for us women to get movin’…
So I hear you are the creative one at your place…where’d you get your inspiration and how do you translate that to your wares?
Yup, I am the creative one here…well let me rephrase that. I was the first creative one here and I lead the creative direction but now I have 2 designers who give lots of input too. At this point we design product (wooden furniture, accessories, upholstered furniture and fabrics) as well as catalogs and a website not to mention the interior spaces we create for our clients all over the country.
So the great thing about my job is working in so many mediums, both 2 and 3-dimensional to tell a cohesive coastal lifestyle story that is continually evolving but needs always to stay fresh and uplifting. Inspiration comes from all of the things I’m exposed to in my own life…the magazines and blogs I read, the people I meet, the homes visit and places I travel. My brain sucks it all up like a sponge.
And I have to tell you that your blog has been on my radar for quite awhile. I love the way you live and the simplicity of your style…that inspires me.
Really ! Oh!
Blushing here Lauren, thanks for saying you love my style….too kind!
Hmmm how funny that you’ve been reading my blog…fancy our tatty old beach cottage has inspired you..
oh yeah I’m pretty free for styling & a little trip Stateside in the next few months I am particularly good at sitting on the back of boats, with beer and rolled-up jeans and flags…and taking photographs…
Ok what about day-to-day…what’s a day in your life like?
Alarm goes off at 4:15. I have coffee a bannana and check my email and the Russell & Mackenna sales and web analytics for the previous day. Go to bootcamp at 5:30 where I endure verbal abuse from a trainer for one hour (love you BGood)… running, push-ups, squats and sit ups.
errrm, hold it right there! You get up at 4.15, you mean like a.m.?? Phew. This is one impressed BCer! Tho’ I am quite fancying the sound of endurance…sometimes one needs a bit o’ verbal to get one pumping…
Go back home, carrot juice for me and breakfast for my girls. I talk to them about what they have planned for their day. I like to give them all one thing to try and accomplish in a given day. Sometimes it is simply brush your teeth (I like to keep it very basic for my 3 year old) and other times it’s much more ambitious like make a scrapbook today. I do this for two reasons. I think kids need purpose and praise. So I set them off with a task I think they can successfully handle then when we regroup at the end of the day I can praise them if it was done. I want my girls to feel accomplished and proud. But now I am digressing…back to my day. After a chat with them then it is off to the shower and work. I carpool with my father every morning at 8:30. He lives just down the street and we use the 30 minute drive to talk about business stuff..mostly brainstorming. Then my days tend to be filled with various vendor, client and employee meetings all revolving around brand strategy and design work. Occasionally I’ll have a fantastical day that stands out from all the others…for instance if a celebrity calls to place an order, or we sign a big contract with a Hotel chain. I love days like that, although those are sadly few and far between. I usually get back home around 7 PM just in time for dinner with everyone (hubby does all the shopping and cooking) before we wind down and get ready for bed. About once a week I make a point to leave work at 5 so that I can get home early enough to walk down to our community beach with the girls, grill out or go shopping…generally just some sort of QT with family. Right now, my husband is training for a marathon, so he tends to run while we eat dinner. I sort of miss him lately but I’m so dang proud of him that I am being supportive.
Well you girlie have one busy old life heh? Sounds like fun for sure. Though not the carrot juice. Your hubby…do you rent him out?
Gosh, now that I think about it, it probably sounds pretty boring. But really it’s not. The people I interact with every day (family included here) are so creative, colorful and fun that it makes the days fly by. The challenges we set for ourselves, the accomplishments we achieve and all the laughing along the way are what make my life and job so wonderful.
And when everything is done at the end of the day what do you do to kick back and relax?
It does’t take much. I really like wearing flip flops and sunglasses and just hanging out at our beach with hubby, a pitcher of Malibu and pinapple and a pound of steamed shrimp. I am all about keeping it ultra simple. I live in a small community of cottages north of Annapolis, Maryland just off the Chesapeke Bay. Our neighborhood beach has a great big grassy area where all the neighborhood kids play made up games. There is a beautifiul pier and sailboats everywhere. Like you, I am so fortunate to live near the water. I just love it. Attached a photo of my oldest singing a song at the talent show put on by our community’s co-opperative summer beach camp. So cute.
Oh yeah, digging the cute! Hey, do you need a house guest to share a Malibu and pineapple with you? I’m good at steaming shrimp…
And last, but not least, Lauren, how did we get all the way to the end of this girl-chat, talking about the beach, talking about furniture, talking about carrot juice and bootcamps and not mention….your big brother????…hmm….
Grab yourself then a Malibu, put your feet up & go head for a little bit of ice-cream colour, seaside inspiration at Lauren’s place Russell & Mackenna …I’m lovin the hutch here, this fabric makes my heart skip a skippity beat, oh & yep I could just rock it with this hall table…
That’s all folks
…leave a comment to win…tell me how you kick back and relax, or keep it all together as a mummy or you could p’haps just comment on Lauren’s big brother…so very easy
hit that button people to enter for a
BEACH COTTAGE/ RUSSEL MACKENNA
FOUR HUNDRED DOLLAR GIFTCARD
See you drunken sailors layta
*giveaway open til close of play 10/09/10, tweet/facebook to double up*
I savored every word of this post ….wow! I love it all! ….and the feeling conveyed is so comfy and soothing. (The man , not so much ….) Thanks for the entry into this wonderful giveaway!
Wow I am in LOVE with that window on the wall! What an awesome idea! Love the story! Especially the quote about working hard and luck! Never heard it before… but it’s so true… I should probably start working harder then!
It depends on what time of day that I need to chillax.
Mornings are beach walks, evenings a glass of wine and a chatting with Captain Valentine.
Weekends [ = my favourite] hammock time!
x Felicity
Loved this refreshing,inspiring and beautiful post highlighting how extraordinary,
the ordinary can be and become when we accept the real and everyday
whilst embracing the good and moving forward to the better.
Great post Sarah and so lovely to ‘meet’ other beautiful people.
HHmmm boot camp, what a good idea…… is it extra to have them toss you out of bed, in order to get to boot camp????
The dreaded creep of ‘no longer young’..
Looove visiting your blog. Inspiring.
I really loved reading such a fantastic family success story. It certainly is hard work juggling a full time job in your own business & keeping a balanced family life. Im sure you know Sarah that when the business is your own your mind NEVER switches off. Lovely interview!!!
Oooh, yes please! I could really use a little house love right now, and that gift card sure would help! L-U-R-V your pompoms in the next post, btw… And your stinking teenager and husband sound just like my hubby when it comes to my obsessions… erm, crafts.
Thank you so much for doing this interview!! I loved reading, and like you, I LOVE a good success story!!!
To unwind, I like to read or do crafts. I love to make cards and other paper crafts, and I recently started painting. I’m loving all things crafty right now, and it relaxed me.
what gorgeous photos and lovely style, thanks for sharing! I love to relax with friends….good food, wine and gossip tends to be all I need to recharge.
Hi Sarah,
Thank you for the interview and a giveaway too? So nice to know there are small business owners that are making American Made Furniture in America. Living in North Carolina and privilaged to have a bi-annual furniture Furniture Market in our area has provided me the opportunity to see and know first hand how the industry has changed over the years. Local (NC and VA) companies have either gone Out of business or if they have been fortunate to stay in business have had to send the jobs over seas. This has meant a loss of jobs for families that made furniture for years and were very proud of their work. North Carolina has been severly affected by the loss of the furniture industry. It has also effected the manufacturing of textiles, materials and hardware companies in our region. All of the materials needed to make furniture were made in and around NC. SO, if a family can survive and make beautiful furniture and keep other people working and being creative in their community I say kudos for them.
Quality products are worth what you pay for them! It is each persons individual choice how and where they want to spend their $.
Example: Choose your coffee; store brand, made at home, barista from a national not locally owned chain, or your locally owned coffee house (beans roasted on the premises) and your neighbor works their while their kids are in school. The choice is yours!
To answer the question, I relax by visiting the lovely blogs that creative people have written and are sharing apart of themselves with strangers.
I am a mom to 3 busy kids and I’m building my dream cottage in a beautiful town. I unwind and relax by taking a long walk with my dogs and am also known to pour myself a drink while making dinner : )
Yes, the brother is dreamy! Would definitely love a stroll along the beach with him… that would be very relaxing. Then retire to a beachy cottage with loads of dreamy, beachy furnishings and things inspired by my favorite websites and blogs… heavenly!
Lauren, you rock! And it is so much fun following Russell & MacKenna. What great furniture … and what a great brand.
As for favorite ways to relax? A good walk around the neighborhood with my two dogs always makes the stress of the work day disappear … followed by coming home and curling up in my Russell & MacKenna Libby back chair, with a good beer and book!
Thanks for sharing this wonderful story! I’m not sure whether It makes me feel motivated, or HOPELESS!!! 4:15 AM? Every morning? Boot camp? No wonder I can’t get out of my own way! I have so much admiration for women with this kind of drive and the things they accomplish. The furniture is beautiful, lovely to see a young family make a life from a business and product they create and love.
My therapy? Sunday afternoons with my family Grown children ages 26, 28, and 30, and their significant others. Depending on the season, it’s football games, beer, bocci on the lawn, afternoons at the ocean, barbques, , wine, fires in the mancave’s old woodstove, music, food, lots of cooking by everyone, dogs…everywhere, they all have one, we have one, four dogs in all, usually! Come to think of it, I usually need therapy AFTER Sundays with my family
G'day! I'm Sarah, I live in a tatty old cottage, near the sea in Australia with a battered old deck & a big old fig tree out the back...stripped wooden floors, old sash windows & a jumble of vintage furniture. [Read More …]
Beach Cottage ladies, we have some vintage linen and some wood/twig washed up on the beach today here in Beach Cottage Land….don’t say I don’t keep you entertained now will you . Come on in. So, yep I have posted about colanders on this blog, about things sourced from the side of the road, about [...]
G'day ladies, let's have a Too Easy Beach Cottage recipe yeah? The original place for Too Easy Recipes on the web ;-)
So, after my last salad went down a storm in my inbox, that's here if you missed it, I had to do this one seeing as I make it most weeks.
There is a problem with this salad and kiddos though...it looks, well, it looks, kinda yucky...but once they try it, they'll ask if and when they are next having it....at least that's what happens in this ratty old cottage...but I must interject here that my kiddos are 'good eaters'? ...they didn't get a choice in that ;-)
Now, stop, don't start running and hitting that next on your blog reading list, pulses are your best friend in the Too Easy Dump & Go kitchen for the busy mum, or busy anyone for that matter...that reminds me I must blog the garlic canneloni Go To for when you forgot to do dinner, feel like a bath but have three ravenous young Beach Cottage Kiddos on your hands...another day.
I am almost embarrassed to tell you how easy this is, we have it so much that I always have a couple, make that six, cans of lentils around and a jar of goat's cheese in the fridge...the great thing about this is that it's all too easy to get ready in just a few minutes, but it looks, tastes and seems like you did oh so very much more than that.
You can obviously too change it up a bit depending on what you have to hand in your kitchen, and I must say that is how I settled on this version...because one day when I made it I didn't have enough Parsley in the garden and so I chucked in some basil too, and liked the Summer feel it added.
I think of this as being a rather posh salad, not sure why, because it couldn't really be further from the truth...the great thing is that it works so well for an average run of the mill day, (when I did this for this blog post, it was a hot Sydney Sunday and I did it just simply to go with Rosemary & Garlic stuffed pork, you can see that pork here),
...but just as easily it works on a regular old Wednesday night when you have lost all enthusiasm for rustling up yet another meal, or indeed on Saturday night, when your friends are on their way over for dinner and you my friend, are in your new vintage inspired clawfoot bathtub (that's me in a few weeks time, k?) without any clothes on, a tipple and no idea what to cook for dinner...
I have a complicated and ever-changing relationship with goat's cheese...it never fails me in its performance and it never fails to impress me (you can find out a bit more on what I like in food here if you like) and I kinda collect it...because it's very easy to collect and has a fairly long fridge-life, I love trying out different ones and there's not many things I love more than goat's cheese on sourdough...but I think the best thing about it is not thinking about it exclusively in the toast/salad department...I've stuffed it in chicken and all sorts of things as a last minute and it's been fab.
But let's get down to the nitty gritty of this super salad that makes you look like an angel who has been on her knees all day scrubbing the front step when really you are in the digital world and spent most of ...
G'day Beach Cottage ladies, howdy, howdy howdy today for a Beach Cottage Too Easy recipe.
If you like cake, cream, sugar and chocolate, make this.
This is, rather than a recipe, a putting it together...as you know I am no dessert maker, but, I do make quite a few sweet things, because, somehow I have ended up with kiddos, who in their roles as offspring, believe that part of the deal, is that not only do I feed them a home-cooked meal with a few homegrown ingredients in there, yes, they also believe that dessert and not the kind that comes out of a packet is included too in this All-Inclusive Deal they call Parenthood.
So, this, for sure, is no culinary masterpiece, but if you are looking for something that is so very easy, dump-able, uses everyday ingredients and at the same time makes you look like you spent hours pulling things together plus tastes good....well, then this is for you.
Best though, you don't make this for yourself, if you have spent the most part of your week sitting on your derriere reading blogs...this my friend ain't low in the calories department...if, however, you are treating yourself to a delight in a mason jar, this is so for you.
I first had a version of this when at dinner back in Old Blighty with a girl, I once, in another life, caught the train up from our village to London with...she was a funny thing really...I am not quite sure how we got on...she was kinda prissy and a bit bothered by too much...I would run to the train flustered, having got up late, and she would have a spreadsheet on the train times, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, a few years later when we both had bambinos, I bumped into her again and we met up for playdates and dinner sometimes....this particular night, after a lovely meal she served up little bowls of creamy, cakey fruity stuff topped off with chocolate flake...it was delicious!
She didn't serve hers in little jars like this, hers were in a champagne glass and not quite so layered as these ones, plus she used tinned fruit not fresh or frozen.
Years later when said offspring kept requesting dessert, one day I wangled together somehow these from what was around in the fridge and they've been with us ever since.
Most likely, if you ever come here for dinner, and shock horror, you dont' bring the dessert with you, this, if you are lucky, will be what you will get.
Throw it all together, sprinkle a lil bit of chocolate on the top and the blog reading past-time you so rudely left in order to make this, is my friend, your oyster.
Beach Cottage Too Easy Layered Raspberry, Cream & Sponge Dessert
1 small maderia or butter cake or a pack of cupcakes (or of course make your own)
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
8 tbsp fruit
1 x chocolate Flake or chocolate bar for grating
1. beat the cream cheese until it is soft
2. whip the cream until soft peaks form
3. combine & add the sugar through
4. cut your cake into portions
& layer into the bottom of your jar
5. add a tablespoon of fruit
6. layer on top the cream combo
7. repeat
8. grate chocolate or Flake on top
*Beach Cottage Recipe Notes : this is just a guide really, you can use any cream that you have on hand...I have made this with clotted cream (don't even go there unless you want to seriously get these babies on your thighs), with double cream and I have even, in desperate times squirted in that, ...
G'day Beach Cottage ladies, well I thought it was time for some blogging tips here today, alongside a few nice flowers and shells ;-)
I was recently part of a blogger discussion group over at Kidspot and a couple of hours later had a few questions from girls who couldn't make it to the live chat, one was on my Facebook page and one via email, the Facebook one I will deal with in another Real Girl Blogging Tips post...the email one asked me what essentials do I think every blog needs?
Well I have been around here for a while now doing the blogging thing, so I should know this, yeah and I mused this on my walk by the sea this morning I thought well what do you only need?
...I think it is really very easy when blogging, whether or not you are blogging up there in the lofty heights of the Super Bloggers or you are just dipping your toe in the water, to get side-tracked by 101 million different things that are 'essential' to your blog and if you are someone like me who actually gets a thrill from reading blogging tips then you are in an even worse place because you will find yourself literally buzzing with these essential things to add/do/implement on your blog.
However, walking along, gulping down that brisk sea air today (no sunshine & clouds) I thought you actually don't need any of that professional blogging stuff to be successful...but there are a few things that are pretty much crucial ...and once I started to think about it I got it down to about 5 - these are the only things that you need to concentrate on...once you have read through take a look at some of the big girl's blogs...you'll see that actually they don't have bundles of stuff on their blogs...but they do have all of these...
So here are my top things that your blog must have
1. About Page
There are all sorts of About Pages out there, and if you search on it there are many different tips and ideas for what to have on yours
Whatever blogging platform you use, adding an About Me Page is easy, quick and simple and will do everything to grow your blog.
I like a long-ish About Page, I am inherently nosy and I like to know a bit more about the person but at the least you should have on it your name and where you are located. I also think a photo is good too...over the last year or so I think this has become more important in blogging - if you are hesitant about that as I was, you can try using sunglasses or a behind shot until you get comfortable.
There is nothing worse than stumbling upon a new blog and going to find out more to only be faced with a piddly little one liner About Me Page...well there is something worse, not having one at all!
2. Contact Page
The chances are someone, somewhere will want to contact you and you will be surprised what lands in your inbox once you put yourself out there on the world wide web with a blog.
Many bloggers also use this page to include details for PR's/brands that may want to contact them and some bloggers put their stats on there too.
A short, to the point and simple Contact Page works really well...whenever I have wanted to contact another blogger I am often very busy and have limited time so I don't want to hang around sifting through information looking for an email address, so concise and clear ...
G'day lovely Beach Cottage lovelies.
So, yeah, so on a roll people, so on a roll.
I feel kinda home accessory wired right now.
I am always telling people, if anyone ever listens, that blogging is all about passion, not that sort of passion, but about passion that makes one tick.
Things like this make me tick tick boom.
I love finding things that suit my budget and let me treat my home but look amazing too.
So without further adieu I introduce you, ladies of the beach, to the blue vintage glasses that I have been stroking for about a week or two now...
These glasses are from a little boutique I sometimes happen upon, this boutique sells also pet accessories, carpet cleaner, bras and compost...it's quite unique though.
And, thanks to my friend Marnie (she blogs over here, go take a look at her praying position, interesting), who just so happens to be one day having me over for a lil' Greek dinner, has let me in on the fact that we call Kmart....The KMart...with an accent ....as in 'I love The KMart'...just like her MIL does. Oh yeah. Love that.
So I have had my eye on reproduction vintage glass blue wine glasses and being trying to find real true vintage blue glasses for like ever.
Oh yes I have spied them in Frenchy boutiques, I have lusted after them in stores that I shouldn't even enter and I have put them back pretty quickly in those shops with the hand-written price tags. C'mon, you know the ones.
And, though all of the above have tempted me, muchly, really, even with my wardrobe stashing skills I just thought that, actually, I'd rather be saving that casherooni for our next trip overseas..
Hello The KMart.
Tick Tick Boom
Vintage style blue wine glasses.
Do not come to my old place and think you might pick up one of these and smile with pleasure at their handblown quality, their weight, and be secretly jealous that my wine glasses cost more than your car...friend, that would not happen...these do not feel like that...indeed these in a funny way reminded me of my baby girl, she was a tiny little thing, with stick legs, the tinsssssssiest ankles and wrists you ever did see, she slept sideways in her cot wedged in between rolled up blankets and would only settle attached to Mr Beach Cottage or I or a (dirty) pj top of mine scrunched up under her nose...the first few times I picked her up to cuddle, being used to Honeymoon Baby who weighed in at 9lbs at birth and has never really stopped growing, I nearly threw her little bird-cum-rat down covered body over my shoulder.
These glasses are like that...be careful or you might lose your wine down the front of your shirt.
But oh baby, we are not talking picking up here, we are not talking quality, we are not talking house accessory snobbery.
Beach Cottage ladies, we are talking aesthetics.
And this is what I need in my cottage.
Blue vintage style glass, paired with coastal / nautical / beach stuff on my deck.
It's The KMart.
Tune in tomorrow, tomorrow, I have more budget foofing for your home, or maybe it will be the dress that wraps me up in supermarket-chic and makes me feel like me again.
Good Day to you my friends, wanna come hang out on my deck, talk house accessories, The KMart and drink some wine from blue glasses?
Sarah
I savored every word of this post ….wow! I love it all! ….and the feeling conveyed is so comfy and soothing. (The man , not so much ….) Thanks for the entry into this wonderful giveaway!
Wow I am in LOVE with that window on the wall! What an awesome idea! Love the story! Especially the quote about working hard and luck! Never heard it before… but it’s so true… I should probably start working harder then!
I relax with some me time by taking a hot bath, getting my nails done, and flipping through the pages of my favorite magazines.
I am IN LOVE with this site and furniture-can they please furnish my whole home?! Just so beachy, comfortable, and lovely!!!
It depends on what time of day that I need to chillax.
Mornings are beach walks, evenings a glass of wine and a chatting with Captain Valentine.
Weekends [ = my favourite] hammock time!
x Felicity
I cope- just- cos I only have ONE child! And he’s now 19.
Loved this refreshing,inspiring and beautiful post highlighting how extraordinary,
the ordinary can be and become when we accept the real and everyday
whilst embracing the good and moving forward to the better.
Great post Sarah and so lovely to ‘meet’ other beautiful people.
What a fun and inspiring story!
HHmmm boot camp, what a good idea…… is it extra to have them toss you out of bed, in order to get to boot camp????
The dreaded creep of ‘no longer young’..
Looove visiting your blog. Inspiring.
I really loved reading such a fantastic family success story. It certainly is hard work juggling a full time job in your own business & keeping a balanced family life. Im sure you know Sarah that when the business is your own your mind NEVER switches off. Lovely interview!!!
I like to chill with my blogroll when I get home from work
Love your pom poms and love your blog….it’s all sooooooo gorgeous.
Oooh, yes please! I could really use a little house love right now, and that gift card sure would help! L-U-R-V your pompoms in the next post, btw… And your stinking teenager and husband sound just like my hubby when it comes to my obsessions… erm, crafts.
I can see why you love Russel & MacKenna.
With all those perfectly coloured glassy deco’s and fabulous fabrics to inspire, Katie xx
Thank you so much for doing this interview!! I loved reading, and like you, I LOVE a good success story!!!
To unwind, I like to read or do crafts. I love to make cards and other paper crafts, and I recently started painting. I’m loving all things crafty right now, and it relaxed me.
I’m off to check out the Russel & MacKenna site!!
Thanks so much!
Michele Rice
what gorgeous photos and lovely style, thanks for sharing! I love to relax with friends….good food, wine and gossip tends to be all I need to recharge.
You two gals are PURE INSPIRATION!!!
XOXO,
Tracey
Getting up at 4:15? Crazy but oh so inspiring. She really takes advantage of a day and is talented to boot!
I love that blue dresser–with everything going white right now, the colors are so refreshing!! (Okay, white is fabulous too!)
I love that blue dresser–with everything going white right now, the colors are so refreshing!! (Okay, white is fabulous too!)
Oh, how I would LOVE to win the gift certifcate!
Absolutely love ALL the furniture shown.
Wow! This is such a great giveaway! I am in love with all of the furniture!
Yippee!! Enter me please:)
Wow! What a generous giveaway!!! I love to sew to chill out lately!
Always fun and inspiring to read how other moms do it! get through the day, make life work, relax, etc. Thanks for the giveaway!
Goodness, right now, I just need to sit here at the old computer and soak up inspiring blogs. My best way to escape the everyday!
Hi Sarah,
Thank you for the interview and a giveaway too? So nice to know there are small business owners that are making American Made Furniture in America. Living in North Carolina and privilaged to have a bi-annual furniture Furniture Market in our area has provided me the opportunity to see and know first hand how the industry has changed over the years. Local (NC and VA) companies have either gone Out of business or if they have been fortunate to stay in business have had to send the jobs over seas. This has meant a loss of jobs for families that made furniture for years and were very proud of their work. North Carolina has been severly affected by the loss of the furniture industry. It has also effected the manufacturing of textiles, materials and hardware companies in our region. All of the materials needed to make furniture were made in and around NC. SO, if a family can survive and make beautiful furniture and keep other people working and being creative in their community I say kudos for them.
Quality products are worth what you pay for them! It is each persons individual choice how and where they want to spend their $.
Example: Choose your coffee; store brand, made at home, barista from a national not locally owned chain, or your locally owned coffee house (beans roasted on the premises) and your neighbor works their while their kids are in school. The choice is yours!
To answer the question, I relax by visiting the lovely blogs that creative people have written and are sharing apart of themselves with strangers.
Always, Teresa T.
I am a mom to 3 busy kids and I’m building my dream cottage in a beautiful town. I unwind and relax by taking a long walk with my dogs and am also known to pour myself a drink while making dinner : )
Love love love this giveaway & all things beachy! Being a Marylander myself , I love all the water that surrounds us!
That brother… if I were not getting married in 3 weeks I might just try to snag him myself
Yes, the brother is dreamy! Would definitely love a stroll along the beach with him… that would be very relaxing. Then retire to a beachy cottage with loads of dreamy, beachy furnishings and things inspired by my favorite websites and blogs… heavenly!
I love the colors of the furniture, and the family feel. Now, browsing their website . . .
I take my dogs for a walk down to the lake, there’s something relaxing about throwing a toy for fetch over, and over, and over again at sunset!
I am a beach house owner only in my dreams, but I love your blog! The furniture in this post is definitely dreamy!!!
I have died and gone to heaven!! I Luh huv their furniture. Unfortunately it’ s a little out of our budger ( cry ). Maybe one day!
LOVE LOVE LOVE this blog and this article!!! And yeah, the brother is a hottie
Lauren, you rock! And it is so much fun following Russell & MacKenna. What great furniture … and what a great brand.
As for favorite ways to relax? A good walk around the neighborhood with my two dogs always makes the stress of the work day disappear … followed by coming home and curling up in my Russell & MacKenna Libby back chair, with a good beer and book!
Absolutely love this furniture and the family’s story. My favorite way to unwind is a hot bath. Predictable, perhaps, but classic!
Thanks for sharing this wonderful story! I’m not sure whether It makes me feel motivated, or HOPELESS!!! 4:15 AM? Every morning? Boot camp? No wonder I can’t get out of my own way! I have so much admiration for women with this kind of drive and the things they accomplish. The furniture is beautiful, lovely to see a young family make a life from a business and product they create and love.
My therapy? Sunday afternoons with my family Grown children ages 26, 28, and 30, and their significant others. Depending on the season, it’s football games, beer, bocci on the lawn, afternoons at the ocean, barbques, , wine, fires in the mancave’s old woodstove, music, food, lots of cooking by everyone, dogs…everywhere, they all have one, we have one, four dogs in all, usually! Come to think of it, I usually need therapy AFTER Sundays with my family
Thanks again for your wonderful blog!
PS: Love the Hinkley! My son captain’s a Hinkley out of Sag Harbor, it’s a beautiful boat!
I relax by – snuggeling up with a good book and my puppy and/ or hubby.