Total Bag Envy

Wednesday, 24 June 2015

You should DEFINITELY take advantage of this!!

What a busy week it has been! Last Thursday we were lucky enough to go down to Brisbane for the Pregnancy, Babies and Children’s Expo which was on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Kym and I had such a great time meeting new mums (who are now Total Bag Envy followers) as well as our Facebook fans who came to say hello and grab a bargain! We had a lot of mums who came to view our bags and see all of our Award Winning nappy bags. Madison won the Gold medal this year and our Tempt, Lust and Lyla bags have all won silver awards!

It was such a busy weekend with heaps of our gorgeous nappy bags finding new homes. Orange was definitely the new Black. Our Orange Lust went off like hot cakes and was our best seller of the Expo! Everyone also absolutely LOVED our Nappy Clutches. The idea that you can fit all change items into the clutch to make changes easier was a hit. Mums also loved that they can take it on quick outings and be completely hands free as well as out to dinner! With such a multifunctional clutch, no wonder it was a hit!

With such amazing feedback from all of the mums at the Expo, Kym and I have decided to extend our Expo Offers for one long weekend! We absolutely love our Total Bag Envy family and wanted to share the love with all of our mums and mums to be. So… this weekend, we are going to discount ALL of our bags until the 30^th of June. Make sure you get in quick to bag a bargain as some of our bags are very limited in stock. There are some bags that I have NEVER discounted so low (maybe it’s the wedding fever?) but if I were you, I would definitely take advantage of these offers!

Happy Shopping!

Until next time,

Kym and Kristy x

Thursday, 4 June 2015

Emotional Roller-coaster - some weeks are harder than others

Boy, what an emotional roller coaster the last couple of weeks have been! It all started a couple of Fridays ago. The day had started off super exciting! Our wedding invitations arrived and they were gorgeous! We were so happy with them and we really needed to get them sent out as I was a little late getting them organised. On the same day we also had our taste testing of the food they would serve at the wedding. Yes, we got to taste the food options for the wedding and pick our favourites. Yum! It was such a fun and exciting morning. Then the day took a massive downturn as I found out that our Grandfather had sadly passed away. Talk about going from an emotional high to low within one sentence. I actually went to Mackay to be with my mum while she and her brother and sisters organised his funeral.

And then, a few days later, another emotional turn when we found out that our Madison Nappy Bag had WON the My Child Excellence Awards in the Favourite Nappy Bag Category! We couldn’t believe it when we saw that Gold Medal in front of our bag and feel so grateful to everyone who voted. It really made our day as we are such a small business and to see that everyone loves the bag is such a huge compliment so thank you!

Our emotions coped a battering again at our Grandfathers funeral. It was a beautiful service and apart from Kym forgetting to tell me not to look up (when doing a reading) it went off without a hitch and I think he would have really liked it. Seriously, if you are going to do a reading at a funeral, just look at the words you are reading, don’t look up at everyone!

Grandad would have also really liked the wake! It was actually so nice to see all of our extended family, some we haven’t seen in years, that we had a really good time. The State of Origin was also on that night and we like to think Grandad helped with that field goal because he loved seeing the Maroons win.

So if we have seemed a little off or absent lately, this is why. We are getting back normal and have been playing catch up (or trying to) all week. Thank you again for voting for our Madison nappy bag and also for your kind condolences.

Until next time,

Kym and Kristy xo

Instagram: Total Bag Envy

Wednesday, 6 May 2015

Wedding Update....

So…it has come to my attention (through a lot of emails) that I haven’t updated you on my wedding plans. Well… you will very pleased to know that so far they are going quite smoothly! The only thing that I didn't see coming (and was like a punch in the stomach) was that my Wedding Coordinator, who told me she would be organising my day and making sure everything goes smoothly… is going on Maternity Leave soon!!! OMG! Are you serious?!! Everyone has been telling me how amazing this woman is and now I have to hand over everything to… I don’t even know yet! I don’t know who will be taking her place! This is the first thing that has veered my plans slightly off track! BUT, (deep breaths) I am sure that her replacement will be just as good and that she will be thoroughly filled in beforehand. I’m hoping so anyway…

Other than that, a few very exciting things have been happening. For instance, I have my Wedding Dress! Yay! Plus, it’s the right dress and I still love it (which was a big relief) and I also have my veil! Happy dance! I have ordered some shoes online yesterday (which is a little scary because I like to try them on first) but I am hopeful that they will fit and look good. The bridesmaid’s dresses should be here soon. The girls are a little freaked out that they won’t fit but I’m positive that they will. We still need jewellery, shoes for the bridesmaids and all of the men’s stuff but I think we are on track. We also know where we are getting the suits from so that will (hopefully) not be too much of a drama.

The other big big thing that I have been stressing over and I have finally done is that I have finally ordered invites! Boy has that been hard! To find invites that you like and then find some that you like that can also be personalised has been a mission. Then trying to do your guest list up, without offending anyone, and get their addresses has been a long task. I’m just hoping that they look good when they are finished! My mum keeps telling me that an invite gives someone an insight into what kind of wedding it is going to be. For instance, if it has shells on it, it’s going to be at the beach, if it has chandeliers, expect some kind of extravagance. So trying to find invites that ‘fit’ my wedding was daunting with mum giving me that advice! I actually have no idea what the ones I picked are saying, but I like them ;)

So to sum it up, things are going smoothly, there have been no more Bridezilla moments and I am just getting more and more excited! I promise to keep you up to date.

Until next time,

Kristy xo

Tuesday, 31 March 2015

5 of The Best Things to do on School Holidays

School holidays are once again upon us and there are a lot of parents out there asking the same question, "What can we entertain the kids with these school holidays?" Well, here are 5 awesome things that your kids will love to do.

1. Go to the movies – you can’t go wrong with the movies and as usual on school holidays, there are some great movies out that the kids will love! Most cinemas usually have Spit the Dummy sessions (your cinema may use a different name) where you can even take your baby as well.

2. Bowling – you can’t go wrong with good old fashioned bowling. Kids love bowling and at some venues there are even other activities that they can do as well such as laser skirmish.

3. Board games/Card games – I love a good board game and so do kids! Pick up a game of Monopoly or Trouble or Operation to keep them busy. There are so many games out there that there will be one they will love. The problem will be getting them to put them away without losing all of the pieces!

4. Exploring – grab a hat and go outside exploring. Take the kids to a park or the beach and make a list of things that they might find there and get them to find them. The kids will love it and they will be really excited to show you that they have found them all.

5. Cooking- with MKR and Masterchef being extremely popular there are more and more kiddies wanting to get into the kitchen. School holidays are a fantastic opportunity to teach kids (or yourself if you’re kitchen challenged) how to cook. There are endless things to cook and bake and if you pick some really healthy treats for the kids to make, chances are they will eat them too!

Until next time,

Kym and Kristy x

http://www.mychildmagazine.com.au/my-child-2015-excellence-awards/

Instagram: Total Bag Envy

Wednesday, 11 March 2015

Top 8 Reasons Why You Should Vote For US!

It’s that time of year again… the My Child Excellence Awards are upon us and our gorgeous Madison nappy bag is in the draw! Honestly, we really want to win this year. Every year we have been runner up (which is still fantastic and something we are very proud of) but it’s usually been the better known, bigger, more established brands that take home first prize. Or overseas companies. So we would love it if our underdog Aussie brand came out and trumped the lot. So, here are our top 8 reasons why you should vote for us!

1. Our bags are made to a high standard using exceptional materials

2.We like to incorporate bright colours into our bags to brighten up a tired mum’s day.

3. We are Australian!

4. We are normal, everyday women juggling children, work, husbands (or soon to be for me), organising a wedding, housework and trying to look after ourselves for a few minutes in to every single day

5. We design every bag with mums in mind, trying to figure out if it’s easy to grab what you need out, that it’s not too heavy (we don’t want you to put your back out), that the design is fresh and new, that it is big enough for everything you need and so much more I need more than one page! Basically, we design them for you.

6. We price our bags to make them affordable. They are worth more than what we sell them for, we were just sick of there not being any affordable, amazing nappy bags out there.

7. We need a win. The last year has been tough in more ways than one. No we are not looking for a pity vote, we are looking for an empowerment vote. That two women who didn't ‘know’ people in the industry and with no advertising/marketing budget can come out on top once in a while. That a bad year is just that. A bad year. And that this year can bring amazing things.

8. Kym and I love this company and we think our bags are phenomenal! I took one to America and Thailand with me and it had to endure being shoved and thrown around buses and planes, under seats, squashed into over- head lockers, people standing on it, tripping over it. We have had kids chewing on them, jumping on them, swinging off them, kicking them, sticking food to the outside and just throwing food inside so that it gets as squashed as possible. And they have endured all of it.

So we are asking kindly if you could please vote for us this year in the My Child Excellence Awards. We are under ‘Your Favourite Nappy Bag’ in the Style section of the awards. Here is the link to vote:

You can just vote for us or you can vote in every category and go in to the draw to WIN lots of prizes.

And this is the awesome nappy bag you are voting for:

Thank you so much for all of your support!

Until next time,

Kym and Kristy x

Instagram: Total Bag Envy

Thursday, 5 March 2015

My 1st Bridezilla Moment

There are 21 weeks until I walk down the aisle! It seems a long way away however it is already March and Christmas wasn't that long ago to me so I’m thinking it’s going to come around really quickly! Already I have had a Bridezilla moment. Yes, that’s right, I’m not afraid to admit it. I was also hormonal and had a massive headache that didn't go away for three days but it has already happened. I don’t think it will happen again (but you never know!).

So, here is what happened… Bridesmaid dresses. Now everyone was thinking that I would take a really long time to pick my Wedding Dress – nope, that was easy. It has been the Bridesmaid dresses that has really taken it out of me. I am only having two Bridesmaids so it sounds simple enough however it really wasn't! Like I had mentioned last time, I had tried buying dresses online. The first ones I bought were beautiful dresses however I thought they were a bit too much for what I wanted (and they didn't fit). The second dresses I bought online were not good at all. They were a terrible colour for my girls and just didn't fit properly. Two internet shopping tries and zero results. I thought that I would have to try the shops here again….

This time, they were really nice inside (too busy last time so just ignored us) and very helpful. I actually had my hubby to be tag along with me seeing both of my girls were out of town. Don’t worry, they had fishing magazines there so it must happen all the time! Apart from the old ladies in the shop telling my future hubby how gorgeous he is (and him trying to act embarrassed but was secretly loving it), I was a bit overwhelmed by this stage.

In the lead up to all of this I had been looking online (again) for a dress that both girls would like and look amazing in and that I would like as well. It hadn't been going very well. Either one didn't like it, both didn't like it or I didn't like it. I was really starting to stress out because every shop owner was telling me that I had to order ASAP as I was running out of time to order them. They all said that it takes 3-4 months to get Bridesmaids dresses in store and if I didn't order soon, I wouldn't have any! What?! Nobody tells you that it takes that long to get dresses! I was under the impression that you walk into a shop, say ‘I like that one’ and either walk out with it or wait a week or so until they could get one sent up. Not once did I think I needed 4 months to get two dresses! So at this stage I was really starting to stress out when I walked into the shop where the shop assistants were busy asking my hubby to be how old he was and how beautiful his name is.

This time, they actually let me try some dresses on (last time I was in there I was only allowed to look at a book) which just started stressing me out more because the one I had got everyone to agree on showed a little too much cleavage for me to pass as a Bridesmaids dress. So I felt like I was back at square one. I started rattling off things that the girls wanted in the dresses and had a little melt down. Yep, starting crying in the shop. Only slightly, not bawling, just a few tears but I felt like a right goose. And then something wonderful happened… The shop owner told me to calm down, stop stressing out about something as silly as a dress and just pick one (yes, she is very straightforward and said it just like that). She reminded me that it was my dress that had to be perfect and exactly what I wanted. She asked me again what I wanted the dresses to be like, walked over to one of the books I had searched through, turned to a page and said here it is. It was perfect! It had the features the girls wanted as well as what I wanted. I took photos, sent them to the girls and they love them as well!

Success! Bridezilla moment over, happy days are here again!

Now the only issue is that there wasn't a picture of the back of the dress….

so many dresses to choose from...

Until next time,

Kym and Kristy x