The tooth fairy

A customer sent me a little note the other day saying "Logan is so excited to be using his new tooth fairy" and a lovely gappy photo of her little boy. I was reminded of this photo of my own daughter, Eloise taken by Vicki Knights when she was 7 years old. I remember thinking at the time why does she have to lose a tooth a week before the photo shoot? It is now one of my all time favourites precisely because it does mark a precious moment in time of her 7 year old, carefree self. No inhibitions and no self consciousness! She'll hate it when she is 20 I know that I would.

There has been much discussion about the tooth fairy this week as yet another tooth falls out. "Mum, I want you to be the tooth fairy tonight because I really want to keep this one". The lucky tooth has now been consigned to her 'memory box' to stand as a reminder of year 4 and all it's highs and lows! This particular tooth has sparked discussions on the meaning of life, who we are and why we are here. Quite an extensive topic for 9 o clock on a school night. One thing that I'm sure of is the day this one fell out will always be remembered!

We do love our little keepsake gifts here at MYHAH and this is a favourite. A sweet little tangle haired fairy complete with a tiny back pack in which to place the toothy treasure. Dressed in her velvet and net frock she stays safe in her keepsake box. It makes an adorable present for any little girl from 3 years of age.

And boys don't miss out either with this cute little fairy elf in his velvet dungarees with a pocket for the tooth. 

We have lots of other tooth fairy gifts on the website too. Go and take a peek!

Janne x

New season photo shoot part 2 - Nightdresses

It's been a busy couple of weeks here at My Heart and Home. Busy in a good way with family staying, but that invariably brings lots of extra washing, ironing and cooking! I realised I haven't even shared half the photos from the August photo shoot with Vicki Knights so thought I'd show you some of the beautiful nightdress scenes in this blog post.  Vicki is used to working with small children, but not always with animals at the same time! Austin the cat was always destined to star in our shoot, but Alfie the labrador was determined to get a look in too.

There's nothing like seeing your little poppet brushed, scrubbed and ready for bed in a pretty white nightdress for a hint of nostalgia.(big sigh) As a Mum of 9 year old Eloise (featured in this photo shoot with her friend Scarlett), I know there is only a fleeting few years in which to enjoy 'fairy stuff', before nightwear decisions are out of our control!

 All our Powell Craft nightdresses are 100% cotton and have been modelled on Victorian designs which were always white, with high necklines and long sleeves. Well, the shapes might essentially be the same, but I prefer nightdresses with a little more whimsy and these  feature owls, fairies, mice or angels. Edges are trimmed with lace and each night-dress has hand finished appliqué or embroidery detailing. As the festive season approaches lots of Mums, Grannies and Aunties will be wanting to see their own real life angel under the tree on Christmas morning! You can see the nightdresses we stock here which start at age 2-3 years.

We were lucky enough once again to work with Surrey lifestyle family photographer Vicki Knights to shoot some more lovely nightdress photos for the website. You can read the 'Secret Garden' blog post about last years photo shoot here. 

 If you have any questions about the nightdresses and sizing don't hesitate to get in touch!

janne@myheartandhome.co.uk

Janne x

New season photo shoot part 1

I  was very excited when Vicki Knights agreed to shoot my new seasons range for me this summer. It had been a year since our last photo shoot with four gorgeous little models, so this year I wanted to include the boys. Having worked together before, I knew she would be able to make my vision a reality and produce some beautiful images that reflect my brand whilst capturing the innocence of childhood.

Inspired by a friends garden field, I decided on the 'outdoor camping' theme. The location is in an idyllic setting backing on to woods and the vintage tractor was the star attraction for the children. (along with a very friendly Labrador called Alfie who wanted to be in every shot)! 

Kiran, Scarlett, Eloise, Harrison and Ro were all real stars and given a teepee for a den, a bundle of sticks and some naturally crafted bows and arrows, their imaginations took over!

I love this quote by Michael Powell: "There is no land like the land of your childhood" and Vicki captured this perfect vision of children playing naturally together. The sun even made an appearance for a fleeting moment making the scene even more magical.

Because the nightwear we stock is traditional in style I wanted the shoot to have a real feeling of nostalgia reflecting the wonder of childhood. I think Vicki has captured this perfectly.

You can see the updated site here which includes lots of the new photos and you can read Vicki's blog about the shoot here. 

This is only part of the shoot and I look forward to sharing some more very soon.

Janne
xx

Photo Shoot

July and August is the time of year when most of my family are enjoying their summer, but I'm trying to get my head around Christmas, booking fairs and ordering new stock (all with the usual panic of have I ordered too much of one thing and not enough of another or will it be a ridiculously warm winter as I order fleece PJs)! Its also time to update the site with new stock, photos and a new look too.

Last year I met Vicki Knights through twitter, loved her photography style and asked her to take some commercial photos of my nightwear for my site. The shoot was so much fun featuring a friends three gorgeous girls and my daughter Eloise. It was pretty and whimsical in the idyllic setting of the Medicine Garden. You can read about that shoot here and here.

This year I wanted to carry on the theme of 'idyllic childhood freedom' and include boys too as I have gorgeous boys pjs on the site. As one of Surreys leading child and lifestyle photographers, Vicki gets booked up months in advance and so I think I booked the session last February! These are some photos I took of Vicki in action. She is of course used to taking photos of children, but not necessarily lying flat out amongst prickles and rabbit droppings faced with a line of fire! Alfie the golden lab was determined to try and sneak into every shot too!

I prefer to have outdoor lifestyle photos of my range rather than staged studio shots and loved the idea of a teepee sleepover/campout where the children would run around and play naturally with bows and arrows, climb trees, find sticks from the woods and munch on marshmallows afterwards. Pinterest was a great source of inspiration and over the months leading up to the shoot Vicki and I exchanged ideas.

I had already ear marked the venue for the shoot. A friends house set on the edge of a wood complete with cats and a dog as well as a vintage style tractor. It couldn't be a more perfect place in which to bring the shoot to life.

I loved making the teepee from a pattern I bought on ebay. I'd almost forgotten I could sew! And roaming charity shops for props and vintage finds is always satisfying. My husband who secretly loved the idea of whittling sticks produced amazing bows and arrows with twigs from the garden and feathers collected on our dog walks.

He also made the signpost too. Every thing came together and fingers were crossed for some early evening sun.

I am so thrilled with the results of Vicki's shoot and look forward to sharing her photos later in the week.

Janne x