Showing posts with label makepienotwar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label makepienotwar. Show all posts

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Giving From The Heart

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This Christmas, we wanted to share this touching story. One of our former hostesses wrote to tell us about a girlfriend who lost everything in a fire that burned her whole house down.  It reminded us that we have so much to be grateful for and that joy truly is, giving from the heart.

When we loose everything, sometimes we're surprised to find what we treasure and miss the most. 

Aston, our first remote hostess, had hosted a Jay + Renae trunk show a while back. We're glad to say that she had a fun time with friends and enjoyed a successful party! Earlier in the month, she wrote us to inquire about reordering a necklace that one of her girlfriends had purchased. It was a custom order personized necklace by Alana Little of MakePieNotWar. In her email she explains...


The reason for this email is that one of the girlfriends from my trunk show house burned down about two weeks ago. They completely lost everything, but so very thankful they are all safe and okay. It was crazy. Their dryer had caught on fire during the day and the fire department came quickly and put it out. But due to the lingering smell and having a 9mo old and a 7yr old, they stayed at her parent's house for the evening. Well, apparently it caught on fire again in the middle of the night and completely burned the house to the ground. They literally lost everything.  But God was so good to protect them, and our community have reached out to help them.

When I saw her tonight she told me that one item she lost was her necklace that she had purchased at the trunk show. It had both her boys names inscribed on it. I would like to buy her another. I cannot remember exactly who the designer was, but I think it was MakePieNotWar. I can describe the necklace if need be or send a picture (another friend bought the same one). Just not sure what I needed to do or where to begin in getting it replaced for her.

Thanks so much!
Aston



The story really struck us. Imagine losing everything to a fire! Especially with two little one's so close to the holidays. Well, we simply had to do something ... her story made our hearts break but also, we are so honored to find out that one of our handmade pieces is so meaningful. So we replied to Aston right away and promised to take care of it.  We wanted to surprise both Aston and Julie and replace the necklace as a gift from us at Jay + Renae. We notified our member Designer Alana Little and she got to work right away so it could be finished in time for Christmas. 

This is what Aston wrote to us just before Christmas Eve...



I had the privilege of delivering the necklace to Julie today. It was a complete surprise. She told me that this necklace was one of the first things she thought about as she realized everything in her house was destroyed by fire. She was heartbroken because she had not had it long and it was the first thing she owned that had both her boy's names on it. We talked about how some items seem so small and insignificant to others, but are invaluable to you because of what they mean or represent. They can never be replaced by anything else. She was overjoyed to be given the exact necklace that she had lost. You made it possible to replace one of the items she held so dear. 

Thank you! This made her Christmas! 





Thank you Aston, for sharing this story with us and for giving us an opportunity to be a part of this joy. Julie, we hope you enjoy your necklace and that it brings as much joy as the original that you lost to the fire. 

Merry Chistmas everyone. 

Your friends at Jay + Renae


Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Giveaway: MakePieNotWar

As you may have read in our previous post, we are very excited about our new collaboration with women designers on Etsy. We feel this really widens the scope of Jay + Renea as a collective and creates exciting opportunities for everyone involved. Above all, it keeps us in step with our company mission of supporting women in their creative businesses.




So to celebrate, we're hosting our first ever giveaway! Choose from a collection of hand forged and hand stamped pieces from our featured designer Alana Little of Etsy Shop MakePieNotWar.




TO ENTER:

  • Please visit Alana Little's Etsy Shop MakePieNotWar
  • Pick out your favorite piece*
  • Then "like" Jay + Renae on Facebook. 
  • Leave a comment on our Facebook page letting us know which piece you would like to have customized just for you by Alana Little herself.




We will announce the winner here next week so be on the lookout for our next post! Or sign up to get notified of new postings in your inbox.


We have several incredible designers lined up for our upcoming Jay + Renae trunk shows for April and May. And we will kick off each month with a giveaway to introduce our featured designers of the month. So stay connected and follow us on Facebook or visit our website JayAndRenae.com. Or join us at our next trunk show...we'd love to see you!


*Any piece valued up to $50



Jay + Renae is a modern Collective of jewelry and accessory Designers, savvy entrepreneurial Representatives, and our cherished Supporters like you! Our mission is to support women and mothers find success in their creative businesses. Through collaboration, we bring greater recognition and success to each member. We love helping women succeed - creatively, financially and personally. And we love having fun doing it!

Join us today. Bring together family and friends to share in style. Host your own Jay + Renae Trunk Show and make helping women succeed a part of your everyday. Or jump-start your own fun and flexible creative business as a Jay + Renae Representative and let your stylish entrepreneurial side shine!



A Wonderful Collaboration




Jay + Renae is a brand new company. We know we have tons to learn and lots to improve upon to deserve your attention and loyalty. And we take that job seriously. We are constantly working to measure up to the standards we've set for ourselves and work to make sure we are on target with our mission to help women and mothers find success in their creative businesses.

So we are very happy to announce a brand new aspect of Jay + Renae! Starting this month, we are collaborating with women designers on Etsy - the site that has taken the concept of handmade to a whole new level. Each month we are featuring the work of one to three designers whose philosphopy and work reflect our core values  - original, heartfelt, fun and of course, high quality handmade craftsmanship.
Alana Little (left) with her amazing assistant Risa of
Etsy Shop MakePieNotWar
Meet our featured designer of the month, Alana Little of Etsy Shop MakePieNotWar. Alana creates a fresh collection of hand forged and hand stamped jewelry that add a wonderful dose of sophisticated whimsy to your day. She specializes in custom work, personalizing anything from dainty rings to bold necklaces that bear your astrological sign.

Alana is a busy mom like so many of us, balancing a creative self-made business and a family life with a three year old! We caught up with her for a quick moment to ask her a few questions about taking that proverbial leap of faith and the reason behind MakePieNotWar.
Whimsical, modern, and thoroughly handmade
by Alana Little of MakePieNotWar
What was the toughest thing about giving up the corporate world and going 
into business for yourself? 
The toughest thing for me was not having that steady stream of income! You just have to take that leap of faith and have a good backup plan. But I also come from a long line of self-employed determined individuals, so becoming an entrepreneur was a natural evolution for me. 

What motivates you when things get really tough?

What motivates me everyday is the idea that Failure is NOT an option.  When I had my baby, Lucy, 3 years ago, that became my mantra. I was determined to work harder and smarter to grow and continue making MPNW a success. 
What was the motivation behind naming your company MakePieNotWar? 
My best friend and I came up with this name late one night. I love the smile people get when they see something that I've made. I know that crafts won't solve the world's problems, but we can add joy by creating something that makes someone smile!
How does it relate
 to your work/designs?

I definitely have a whimsical way about minimalistic jewelry.  I personally have a free spirit as the name suggests and I think it comes through in my company, from our hand stamped tissue paper, a custom carved stamp, to my crazy cat lady ring!
                                                                                                            Alana Little
Hand forged and hand stamped...personalized just for you
by Alana Little of MakePieNotWar
There are many reasons why we’re so excited about collaborating with Etsy shop owners like Alana Little. We love introducing new designers and making their work available to you for your own private viewing. We enjoy growing our Collective to include a more diverse body of work. But best of all, we love that it gives us the perfect opportunity to expand our reach and support a greater number of women who share our goals.

We’re proud to say that this is what Jay + Renae is all about. We think this keeps us in step with our company mission. We hope you agree. 
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Look out for our next post detailing our first ever giveaway! It's our way of kicking off our collaboration with Etsy Shop MakePieNotWar. Hope you win!