And what cuter Valentine Cards to send to family, friends and to school with your little one than one featuring their adorable little face! I have a special shoot in store this week to debut some Valentine’s Day fun, but for now, here are some super fun cards I wanted to share with you that we are offering and even a book mark!To order your Valentine’s or book a shoot in time to get them just fill out the contact section!
After my winter melt down and subsequent blog post and then the ensuing emails from other entrepreneurial women I thought it would be so fun to tell you guys about some women I have gotten to know who run their own businesses too! I think it is great to support local businesses and women who are pouring their hearts into areas that they are passionate about, be it photography, baking, retail, painting, sewing or anything else!
The first woman I would like to introduce to you is Amber Upshaw, owner of Hand Me Down Style , (become a Fan of her fan page on FB here!) a Children’s Consignment store, currently located in Famerville, LA! Amber’s store is awesome and carries not only awesome clothing, toys, and baby gear, but she also make one of Autumn’s favorite things: tutus!
Below are a few questions Amber agreed to answer for me and some shots of Autumn in the one of Amber’s tutus that she makes and a shirt we also bought from the store!
First, tell us about yourself and what you do as a business owner?
I am 23, and have been married for almost 5 years. I have a 2 year old son, Lane, and a baby due in August. I own Hand Me Down Style, A Children’s Store . I resale gently used children’s clothing, toys, and much more.
What/who inspired you to want to open your own store?
As I was growing up both of my parents owned their own business. I have always known that I wanted to be my own boss. I love being able to take my Lane to work with me. When I became a parent I found out how expensive it is to provide for a child. I began looking for resale stores and found there really were not many to chose from. Â I opened my store hoping to provide quality items at a low price.
Do you have a hard time balancing your roles as wife, mother of a toddler, and business woman?
Somedays I do wish that there were more hours in the day. Â One good thing about the business I own is , when my family needs me I can close the doors.
What are some things you have done to market your store?
I have advertise in local papers and with yard signs. Word of mouth has been the best advertisement.
Any big plans in 2010?
I would love to move to a bigger building this year. Â I would also like to start carrying handmade items made by mothers in the area.
On a recent trip to Amber’s store we got not only this outfit, but other name brand items in great condition, such as GAP, Old Navy, The Children’s Place and more!
This is a photo of Amber and family from this past fall that I took at the pumpkin patch, you can also fine Amber’s son Lane on my blog header, he’s the cute little cowboy! 🙂
If you are a woman, running your own business and would like to be featured on my blog or if you know of someone you would like to know more about in the world of entrepreneurial women, email me at Crystal(at)crystalgarcia.com (but replace the (at) with the @ sign).
Last week one of my closest friends had sweet baby boy #3, Porter Cade! Jamie has been helping me with shoots and finding props and fabrics to compliment all the newborns I have been shooting lately, and we have been talking about her newborn shoot since she got pregnant months ago.
To ad to the excitement I got to photograph Jamie and her boys, Maddox and Harris, and her husband Brian, for her belly shots and then again at Porter’s birth where Porter’s name and gender was a surprise. It was such a fun and special time.
Jamie, thanks for being a great friend that I can be honest with and share life with, even through the bumps in the road! Congratulations, you are awesome!
Meet Harris, Maddox and Porter (in order from left to right).
Jamie does pregnancy so well!
Jan. 14th: Happy Birthday Porter!
Dr. Harper, our favorite doctor for having babies!
Dr. McGehee, our favorite doctor to see our babies!
Maddox and Harris meet Porter
I had to include this one, because these two women are very special people in our lives. We love you Ms. Kim and Ms. Janet!
Jamie had this hammock made for me, and well, Porter, as a surprise! The hammock is made of hand spun yarn and then hand crocheted by one of our other crafty friends, Rachel.This along with some finger-less gloves (for shooting in the cold) and another hanging prop were the gifts Jamie gave me when when I brought her her birth pictures in the hospital. Some people just know how to spoil me!
This is only a few of Porter’s newborn images, there are many more to come. 🙂
You might remember baby Austin when he was in his mommy’s tummy here. Today Austin came over for his newborn pictures and the first shoot in his series of 5 milestone sessions over the next 12 months in our First Year Program. Hannah followed the recipe for a great newborn session and brought Austin with a full tummy and in clothing that was easy to take off to do his pictures and boy did it work! Austin slept right through his session and the various poses we put him through.
Hannah you were awesome on the shoot today and such a sweet and wonderful laid back mommy! You have eased right in to being a mommy of two, congrats! I look forward to our sessions together this year!
Thanks for all your sweet comments! They mean so much to me!
I LOVE pregnant bellies! Every time I see one I start to get the baby bug….until I remember that pregnancy is not exactly becoming on me. Denysha on the other hand, is a lovely pregnant woman! She was a joy to shoot and looked great in front of the camera sporting her cute baby bump! I can not wait to meet your baby girl!
