JJB Maison

Where has the time gone? It's almost been a month since my last post. I've busy with our 10 year event for November and am slowly getting ready for the Dallas, Atlanta  & Paris show! :)  I am working on a home/decor line that will be branded as JJB Maison which means "house" in French. I've been also learning French as I get ready to head into the world of design and fashion in couple months! Getting excited!
This comes at a critical juncture as more and more home stores are ordering our place mats and storage solution products like the reusable pouch. I also feel the chalk table runner should really be a home line, as it fits more in the entertaining at home than kids. There definitely are overlaps, but opening a new avenue will definitely give us ways to design without feeling constrained by a juvenile brand.

We are doing an  official launch in Spring, but here are some of our logo ideas for our new home line. 

Post Holiday Madness

here's me taking a break from work, putting up holiday decorations.

Middle of December, and I still hadn't busted out our Christmas decor and trimmings... kept saying to myself, I'll deck out our Christmas trimmings after Thanksgiving, then it turned to, first of December...to First week...Second weekend....Before the 15th, and oh my, my head had been in the sand because I was really living my December month (and you know how busy December is!) as if I was in January.
What made the whole thing even more devastating was when my landlord came over to fix our microwave, he asked me if my religion/ethnic background celebrates Christmas, at which I bursted in tears yelling, "YES!"
Well, that same week, we had some guests come over, and she had brought an ornament to hang on my tree that still wasn't up, and profusely apologized for assuming I had would celebrate Christmas as she saw no tree! I was mortified. Well on Dec 18th, the kids and I muddled through our boxes of Christmas trinkets and tinsels, and put everything up within hours.... I can't even explain the guilt I have towards the kids for cutting their Christmas experience short.

And to even make it worse, I am living my January life now unedited, full-blown, and it's only January 1st.

I decided to throw basically 3 shows this month:
Dallas, Atlanta & NY Gift. NY Gift and Atlanta will be managed by my reps, but Dallas, I personally have to attend to, and I was busy again getting ready for the crazy trade shows... doing it again after I just finished ABC (seems like yesterday), is really tiring me out... I love the synergy and the thrill it brings-meeting customers, selling and designing.. but the work leading up to it is almost too much for me.

I just got back from Dallas yesterday because I had to set up the showroom for the Dallas Gift Market coming up in 2 weeks, in which I need to go to. Still haven't arranged sitters, rides for the kids, but I hope I can hatch a plan in the next few days.

It's been 6 months since I moved back from Japan, and the kids still do not have beds yet, a piano bench, and the house is still looking like we are still moving in... all of which I had made a promised to myself I would get it done by Christmas...well maybe Valentine's Day this time!