After several months of secrets, I'm finally able to reveal what I have been up to! MiniLou is my new children's company. Creative, sweet, and soooo fun, the products are inspired by my own children and the sweetness of childhood.
The story behind MiniLou is a simple one. Last summer, I started drawing these kitty paper dolls for Siri and Felicity. I loved paper dolls as a girl. I remember dressing them up and playing house with them. I saw Siri and Felicity loving everything I was illustrating for them. I invented a story for the kitties that I would tell them at bedtime. Siri and Felicity started hand drawing their own little paper dolls mimicking the ones I made for them. We were all sitting around a table together. Drawing. Playing with paper dolls. I loved their creativity, and MY creativity when we were doing this together.
And that was it. I loved the idea of a line of products that promoted creativity for kids. I knew the little kitties needed to become something.
So MiniLou was born. Creative products for kids. Small, easy-to-handle products. Products that were easy for moms to deal with. Basically, anything that I would love for my own children to play with.
Slowly and surely, I gathered a wonderful team of illustrators. The little kitties turned into MiniLou's first product category: Pocket Paper Pals—a small, reusable package of paper dolls and landscapes. Perfect for storing and playing with. Printed on textured paper. Bright, happy, sweet.
I added mini coloring books—5 in x 7 in that fit perfectly in my purse and in the hands of my little ones. Then came the sketchpads and the bookmarks. Objects that would inspire and uplift. My kids were excited for every sample to come home to them.
MiniLou's Fall 2014 Catalog is a compilation of the very first of what the new company has to offer. I hope you enjoy it! A lot of heart went into this first catalog. It has been a new adventure. Scary—it's always scary to start a new company. Humbling—there are so many people who have backed me and encouraged me. And wonderful. There is no better word. Wonder-ful sums it all up.
And with that has come a wonderful whirlwind of exciting new things. MiniLou's fall collections hit shops in September. I leave in 3 days to do press checks in China. I've never been to China before although I am half Chinese (My mother is ethnically Chinese but from Malaysia). My instagram feed will be a fun montage of work and play. I hope you have a chance to watch for it!
Please go check out the new website, the facebook feed, the instagram feed @miniloukids, the wonderful new video we have up, the twitter account, and the pinterest account. I can't wait for people to experience the Kid's Corner, where we plan on releasing free downloadable coloring pages and projects.
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I hope you see the sweetness and joy of childhood emanating from this new company.
Thank you so much for all of your support in this wonder-filled adventure.
Carina