The Story....

Several years ago, a friend of mine got my brain started on an idea of incorporating my passion of recycling into what I hoped would one day become a viable business.  I believe every artist, no matter what discipline, dreams of being able to make a living doing and creating what their heart and bodies were designed to do.  After deciding to become a stay at home mom, I struggled with losing my 'self'.  For those of you with a creative soul, you will understand what I mean when I write that I had to take that creative energy and direct into something else.  I cooked, I decorated, I gardened and then I started sewing.  I started sewing clothes for my daughter.  Then I started sewing clothes for my friend's children.  Then I started creating totes and bags out of recycled fabrics, upcycled fabrics, found fabric, old clothes and plastic bags.  My initial idea was to create a trendy grocery tote to carry my groceries home without bringing home all those plastic bags.  I wanted to make something beautiful out of something that would have been thrown away.  The idea has transpired into a small business that now sells totes, diaper bags, zipper pouches and fashion accessories including jewelry. 

Towards the end of 2010, my cousin Maggie and I were talking about being stay at home moms and losing our sense of identity.  She was a new mom to twins, a boy and a girl and I was the mother of an 8 year old and a one year old.  I was also in a spot where I was in need of finding a job because of a change in my husband's job.  I was beside myself with having to make that life change and having to put my baby boy in a daycare situation.  We decided we would go into business together and created Green Envy Girls.  We tried working out of my kitchen and dining room but immediately discovered that would never work for what we wanted as a business.  After a lot of discussion and finally coming to terms that we needed to start small, we moved into her storm shelter that is inside her garage.  People laugh when we tell them we work out of a storm shelter but it has been great!  It is the perfect size.  It is a designated place to design and create.  We have told ourselves and eachother that we will work when we can knowing that our time is precious with small children. 

This blog is going to be a story, hopefully an inspiring and fun story, of our experience starting up a small business.  I'm sure that there will be stories of children, mommyhood, marriage and our adventures in the storm shelter.