Small Business Saturday // Dotty About Phoebe

I love shopping with small businesses, supporting other Mums and finding things that are just a little bit different, so I am going to be asking the Mamas behind some of my favourite online shops to share more about their businesses every Saturday. First up is the lovely Gemma, a local mum to me who runs Dotty About Phoebe, a personalised jewellery company. Her items look unique and are perfect keepsakes and new baby gifts. Here is what Gemma has to say . . . 

●       So tell me a bit about what you do?

I create personalised keepsake silver jewellery, using actual hand, foot and fingerprints of peoples loved ones – these tend to be babies and small children but this is definitely not exclusive and jewellery can be made with prints from any age! I also encapsulate hair into charms and pendants often from babys first curls, from lost loved ones and also from furry friends too – these I have named ‘Locks of Love.’

As well as jewellery I capture hands and feet in lifesize form in 3D casts and also Raised Impressions. There are so many possibilities with these keepsakes and they are gorgeous in the fact that every line and wrinkle in hands and feet are replicated in the casts– these are especially popular with parents of small children and babies.

 

●       How did you get started?

In true mummy fashion I stumbled across the opportunity when I was researching for an independent tongue tie practitioner for my youngest daughter on Netmums when I was desperate for help one Saturday night! Since becoming a Mummy to my eldest daughter born at 23 weeks gestation I have a very different outlook on life to what I had before. I wanted to do something different with my career, something that meant more to me than just ‘plodding along’ at work. I was motivated by my daughter, to be there for her (and her many appointments). She is so special that I felt I didn’t want to miss a moment of her achievements. I searched for something different to do which meant more flexible working but never really found it, until I discovered The Keepsake Company who offered training in the products I now create. I had always loved silver jewellery having had my own memorial piece created after our own loss due to going into premature labour in 2011.  Having a tangible piece with your own loved ones prints is really comforting, so when I do create memorial pieces they definitely evoke emotion and I know how important that piece of jewellery will be.

●       How do you juggle running a business and motherhood?

Juggling anything with motherhood is a challenge, even going to the toilet! Somehow us Mums find a way to juggle being Mummy and also having a working life. I actually still work part time in my day job as a teacher which is what I did before I had my girls. I do hope to build my business over time to be able to do ‘Dotty about Phoebe’ full time, but starting a business from scratch is by no means easy!

●       What one piece of advice would you want to share with a new mother?

Enjoy every second as babies grow up so quickly!

●       What are you most proud of?

I am most proud of my girls, especially my eldest for the journey she has had. She has incredible resilience and determination without which she wouldn’t be here! Shes beaten incredible odds and; is such a lovable, cheeky little girl who is certainly proving statistics wrong!

In my business I have to say I am really proud that I have been given an amazing opportunity to work with ‘Just for Tiny People’ the magical teepee company who found success on Dragons Den. They have a huge amount of followers on Facebook and one of my ‘Handwriting’ charms is to be featured in early June on their live TV feed!

●       What should we check out on your website?

My top three products are;

1.    Fingerprint Heart Charm with Heart Cut out – I think these look so lovely and work really well for all ages!

2.     ‘The Love Cast’ which is a 3D casting using the feet to make a ‘V’ in the word Love.

3.     Locks of Love – Encapsulating hair into charms as a wearable keepsake.

And Gemma is offering a Locks of Love hair charm to one reader too, if you have a tiny curl from your baby's first hair cut (or straight bit if you have a child with hair like Cora) or hair from a beloved pet that you want to immortalize, then enter below. It is available in a selection of colours and to fit a vaiety of charm bracelets or necklaces.

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