zozobugbabyblog

A long time coming……….

ZozoBugBaby — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:06:53 +0000

Ok.. it’s officially been 4 months since I did a blog post. That is crazy. It’s a new year, so here goes.

I’ve gotten emails wondering where I’ve been…… why no clothing in the shop…..what is going on?
Changes, changes and even more changes. The last few months have been an incredibly painful, bumpy ride, but it’s all for a better ZozoBugBaby. I’m not going to sugar-coat it. Many of you know that the last several months have been not very pretty around here. This has been the biggest transition ever for my little business and we are finally over the yucky part. Although I came extremely close, I avoided a complete mental breakdown. YAY! So what are these changes?

The biggest event for ZozoBugBaby is that as of 2013, we are moving to a wholesale-only business model. I know this will disappoint some of you, but, in the end….this will be SUCH a better way to do business and to get your ZozoBugBaby. This doesn’t mean that we will stop offering limited editions, they will just be offered differently. I am thrilled that special edition runs will be offered through Bitty Birdie Boutique, while our seasonal lines will be offered through our many (and growing!) list of stockists. While the list is ever-expanding, you can find online and local retailers on www.zozobugbaby.com in the “Stockists” section.

Secondly, everything else has been discontinued. While bedding WILL be added back into the mix later this year (still made in the USA!), I don’t have a definite timeline for that yet.

There are also a few little changes going on behind-the-scenes, as there always will be, but this path has been in my mind for a couple of years now. By moving to a wholesale-only business model, I won’t be competing with our retailers for business. I MUCH prefer this and I believe they do, as well. Let me tell you….. being a passionately USA-made clothing business AND doing only wholesale is NOT easy. Not at all, but it’s what ZozoBugBaby is about.

(I’ve written a lot…. I feel like I need a picture right now to break things up a bit, yeah?). We have 2 lines coming out for Fall ’13 and they are going to Market this week with our reps around the country. Here is a sneak peek! Photo by Shannon Sewell.

RETAILERS: Just email service@zozobugbaby.com for a lookbook and line sheets or..visit http://www.zozobugbaby.com to find a local Market to see the line!

I think the MOST exciting change for ME, personally, is that I am now designing prints for my collections. As an artist, this is something I have always had in my mind, but haven’t been able to realistically set in motion until now. (Interesting fact: when I print my designs on knit, I have to print a minimum of 700 yards!!!). I have documented the entire process of creating my signature print for Fall ’13 and I can’t WAIT to share that with you!!!!

Spring ’13 is shipping to retailers now and it’s SUCH a fun collection! It’s called “RHAPSODY”. Here are a few of my favorite pieces:

Many items are available for pre-order at My Little Jules right now, but be sure to check the “Stockists” list on the website, too!

THis post is getting long, so… I’ll wrap up with another introduction to April, the new Customer Service Department (and Facebook Captain!) of ZozoBugBaby! She can be reached at service@zozobugbaby.com!

Thanks to everyone for your support and we are finally back to smooth waters in the New Year! I look forward to taking you all with me on the new journey! SO SO many exciting things in the works right now. I just returned from an incredible business trip to Chicago with my great friend, and fellow designer, Kiki of The Measure! Have you SEEN her new Spring collection??? Check it out HERE!! I haven’t even processed all of the AWESOMENESS from that trip yet, so… will need to wait to write about that.

ZozoBugBASICS Winners!

ZozoBugBaby — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 15:56:26 +0000

…..and….the first winner of one piece from the BASICS Collection is…….

CHRISTINA P.!

…..and the second winner is………..

TARA O’LEARY!

I have already emailed the winners!!! CONGRATS!!!!!!

Don’t forget! Use code “BASICS” through MONDAY at NOON, PST, for 15% off the collection!!!
Have a great weekend!!!

ZozoBugBASICS GIVEAWAY! :)

ZozoBugBaby — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 19:19:54 +0000

I am SO excited about this new collection of knitwear basics……full of color and SO many styles you can mix and match! The knits for this line are incredible quality..nice and thick with a touch of lycra. WHat I love most about this line is that any age can wear it! Little girls up to teens can find a way to style the pieces to fit their personalities. Mix the tops with some jeans or throw a sweater over the leggings and skirt. I can’t WAIT to see how YOU all style the line! Each season I will build on the collection with new colors and silhouettes! As always….. the beautiful matching hair accessories can be found at Maya’s Curls!

THe photo shoot was a lot of fun, as photo shoots always are with SHannon Sewell and Zozo models! I thought these knits really needed movement to show off the colors and comfort, so……here we go!

The full line will be released for purchase VERY soon at the ZozoBugBaby SHOP, but right now, I am giving away one piece to 2 lucky winners!

TO ENTER:

1. Leave a note on this blog post (not Facebook!) and let me know your ZozoBugBASICS style! THat’s one entry right there!

2. SHARE this giveaway on FACEBOOK, TWITTER and/or PIN one of these photos on PINTEREST! Come back here and tell me you did so! You get ONE EXTRA ENTRY for EACH ONE!

DEadline: FRiday, August 31st at MIDNIGHT, PST!

Now..check it out!

HAVE FUN and GOOD LUCK!!!!!

Be sure to check out all of the ZOZOBUGBABY CONNECTIONS!

ZozoBugBaby WEBSITE
ZozoBugBaby on FACEBOOK
ZozoBugBaby on TWITTER
ZozoBugBaby on PINTEREST
ZozoBugBaby on INSTAGRAM: zozobugbaby
ZozoBugBaby NEWSLETTER

Scrap HAPPY madness…..

ZozoBugBaby — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 02:26:38 +0000

It’s Sunday night. Our “art room” is a straight-up disaster, but….I was so blown away with what my girls created this weekend that I felt compelled to share.

Now….. our house is kinda known as THE house you can come to and let your creativity fly. We sling paint and clean the mess up later. Although starting the week off with such a disaster kinda drives me a little BONKERS, I let it go because my girls are digging into their little creative brains and I know how that goes.
Fabric flies when I’m creating, and so it goes with my girls. Photo ONE (not even the handles on our rolltop desk are immune to the tornado):

That’s my view right now. *sigh*

BUT…I was SO Blown away by these books that Zoe has been making. She’s putting together fabric combos and she INSISTS that I offer her books in my shop so I can sell them. I told her I would, but….alas..I cannot part with them. I’ll have to do a bit of Mommy slight-of-hand, I imagine. I LOVE that she even created a “Dr. Who” book. Yes……the geekdom factor is very huge in our house. My husband and girls are VERY into Dr. Who…and she even spelled “doctor” with fabric! HAHAHHA!

Even Delia created a little “scene” with fabric. The piece on the left is a window, overlooking a garden:

So…from the Zozo household, the girls present another way to use those fabric scraps you have lying around.
I’m sure I’ll have another episode of “The Zozo Girls Craft Workshop” soon!

..and the winner is….

ZozoBugBaby — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 15:04:32 +0000

The winner of the CUSTOM mixed-media dress is…………..

ALI BLOXSON!!!!!!! CONGRATS!!!!!!!!

I can’t WAIT to get started! Stay tuned…..maybe I’ll do more for the Fall!

One-of-a-kind GIVEAWAY!

ZozoBugBaby — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 01:33:02 +0000

Not long ago, I made 2 special one-of-a-kind, mixed-media dresses for a Shannon Sewell workshop. I loved being able to blend a bit of my own artwork into dresses! I was even doubly thrilled with Leslie of Little Posh Princess wanted to order a few! So….I decided that a little mini-collection was in order!
I would love to do these as time allows because it’s just pure FUN! THis collection features 5 dresses in each sizes 2T, 3T, 4T, 5T and 6. These are only available through Little Posh Princess…a preferred ZozoBugBaby retailer! Be sure to check out the descriptions for the quotes on each dress..and all of the fun details! Each dress was made to work for Summer, or to be easily layered over a tee for Fall!

Check out all of the dresses HERE.

Now….to celebrate this new adventure…I’m giving away the WINNER’S CHOICE OF:

A. One of the original mixed-media dresses (size 8).

B. A custom mixed-media, one-of-a-kind dress!

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Become a fan of LITTLE POSH PRINCESS on Facebook

2. Come back to this blog post and tell us you did so!

3. Get EXTRA ENTRIES by SHARING THIS POST on Facebook, Twitter or PINTEREST!

4. Leave a comment for EACH TIME YOU SHARE!

DEADLINE:

The deadline to enter is MIDNIGHT PST on Friday, July 13th!

Winner will be drawn bright and early on Saturday morning!!!

GOOOOOOOD LUCK!!!!!

and OWLS bring them together……

ZozoBugBaby — Wed, 04 Jul 2012 03:18:59 +0000

I have been SO super excited to shoot these darling upcycled owl hats for my friend Joy of FRECKLETREE. My girls lost their minds when they saw how adorable these hats were!
What I adore so much about Joy’s hats is the stitching. I just love how she uses interesting and funky stitching as a part of the overall design of the hats. It adds such a unique element!

Now…for those that know us….my girls fight CONSTANTLY. Maybe it’s because they are only 19 months apart and they are GIRLS. I dunno, but…it wears me out. I think Joy’s hats have MAGIC in them because my girls had SO much fun on this shoot!
And LOOK! They actually look like they LOVE each other in these photos!

So,..there you have it. Owl hats from FRECKLETREE bring kids together.

I couldn’t resist putting this SWEET little bow dress on Zoe, from my friends at Right Bank Babies! It’s so twirly and just perfectly simple. I can’t wait to visit their shop in LA during an upcoming trip in September!

Delia is wearing an oatmeal striped top from The Measure and a ZozoBugBaby skirt! (On a side note: This skirt was one of the first ones I did as a business, back when ZozoBugBaby was on Etsy! It’s 4 years old and still going strong!).

Have a great 4th of July everyone!

Color-it FUN! :)

ZozoBugBaby — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 17:59:15 +0000

While it doesn’t technically qualify for my “Free Summer Activities for the Kids” series…..it’s really quite fun, so..here we go!
One brand I ADORE is Merah Muda. Every adorable bag they make uses either 100% organic cotton or all upcycled fabrics!
They recently began offering color-it-yourself tote bags in so many different themes!

My girls love bags…and boxes…and ANYTHING they can put their STUFF into. They are at an age now, where they want to carry purses with them to the Saturday Market with allowance money stuffed inside.
These tote bags are perfect and my girls had SO much fun making the bags their own. Pssst…you can even buy the markers from Merah Muda, too!

Our BEFORE bags:

And the AFTER bags:

You’ll OOOH and AAHHHH over all of the Merah Muda goodies, but, you can find the COLOR-IT-YOURSELF bags HERE.

ENJOY!!!!!

CHOOZE to Zozo!

ZozoBugBaby — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 01:06:28 +0000

I was so excited to see the Chooze shoes made with fabrics designed by Anna Maria Horner (my favorite fabric designer!). Sharon of Chooze asked me to create a couple of looks to go with them! The weather has been pretty rainy, with bursts of dry days, so….I had to do the shoot inside. The designs and shoes were so colorful and patterned, that I opted for simple. Now, my girls are extremely sensitive to footwear and I can’t tell you how much money I’ve spent on shoes they won’t wear. THey LOVE their Chooze and wear them EVERY. DAY.
They are being released this month, so head on over to http://www.choozeshoes.com to grab some! The beautiful patchwork twirly dress that Zoe is wearing, The Anna Dress, can be found HERE. Delia’s skirt set, THe Maria Skirt Set, can be found HERE!

Art, Messes and OCD

ZozoBugBaby — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 05:53:54 +0000

Yeah…I’m not OCD, so let’s just establish that right now. I’m actually OCD in my BRAIN, but not in my HEART. LOL. I get seriously frustrated daily with the clutter in my house. I throw clutter away. Don’t care what it is. I hate it. Having said that, I am 100% an artist. I went to college to study art. My mom tells stories of me painting my bedroom walls with poop out of my diaper when I was a baby. Creating is just IN ME. Period. To me…life is about ART…..clean up the mess later.
I am NOT OCD when it comes to creating anything. My studio is a horrible disaster. My house is pretty clean most of the time, but most of our downstairs is hardwood. Ya know how I compute hardwood in my brain?
HARDWOOD = AWESOME ART SPACE.

Now….I’m pretty loose and free with the art-making in my house. Since we do have old fir floors and I know it’s all wipe-able….my brain goes like this:

BE HAPPY AND CREATE AND HAVE THE MOST FUN YOU CAN HAVE EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I do have a few friends that are very OCD and don’t allow paint in their homes. I am here to reform you. Here is my philosophy:

YOUR CHILD’S CREATIVE GROWTH IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE MESS.

There. Do you feel better now? LOL. I really hope so, or the rest of this post may give you a panic attack.

LET YOUR KIDS SLING PAINT. That’s it. Just DO.

I have a pretty big living room area that is actually 2 rooms. All hardwood. I let the girls go FREAKIN’ NUTS with the paint. I lay paper all over the floor and let them BE THEM.
Yes..it’s messy. Yes..you will have clean-up after, but OMG..your kids will have the TIME OF THEIR LIVES for a long while. Isn’t that AWESOME???????
If you have OCD or “clean” issues..this will be uncomfortable for you, but put that aside if you can and just ENJOY your children and the fun they are having!!! It is SO WORTH IT!!!!!

1. GEt a big roll of paper from the craft store (or Walmart).
2. Get big tubs of paint.
3. Get brushes, sponges, rags…etc…
4. Let your kids paint their bodies!!!!
5. GET YOUR CAMERA!!

I promise you..the mess and clean-up are worth the pure joy your children will have.
Also…..if it’s just straight-up not doable in your house…try it outside and hose them down afterwards!

XO…..live to show your kids the fun of childhood………. I’m at home and not at my studio laptop with my other photos, but…here is an old photo to show you….I spare no mess in my house. It’s all cleanable.
When in doubt..default to your kid’s creativity!

Julie