Maiden Name {interview + giveaway}

The South African design front is exciting me more and more everyday! I love how talented the people are and I love sharing it with you. To prove that local is always the lekkerest, Ingrid Auret from Maiden Name shares her inspirations behind her creations, her love for design and what it's like to be your own boss.

In her own words Ingrid describes Maiden Name as - a business that was started with the hope that it will grow into a much-love shop and brand. Every product is hand painted and made with lots of love. Maiden Name pieces are all made to order and because it is handmade, might not be perfect, but each piece is slightly unique. 

Maiden Name consists of two categories, somethings for you - where you will find jewellery and accessories and somethings for your home - where you will find decor.

SFL also had a quick interview with Ingrid to find out about the person behind the brand.

Ingrid, design is booming in South Africa. Why did you start this business?  

 I always knew that the 8-5 desk job is not  for me, so after 2 years of doing the desk job thing as an exhibition  stand designer (which I absolutely hated!), an opportunity to do an  internship at a local decor magazine popped up and I grabbed it. 

It was very stressful to leave the comfort of a monthly salary, but I was only 23  with no expenses or responsibilities other than rent. I figured rather do  it now while I only have myself to worry about. After a month of interning  I got the opportunity to start doing freelance exhibition stand design
work for a company in Holland (very lucky!) So left the magazine and  started my freelance venture, very excited! 

I then also had time to pursue  my biggest dream of starting a product range (Maiden Name). I consider  myself very lucky and making very scary decisions, which turned out to be the best decisions I have made so far in my life. I am now excited about  'work' everyday and I also love exhibition design (which I am still doing freelance).

Not a lot of people have that kind of moxie to do their own thing. What are some of the challenges of being your own boss?

The biggest  challenge is definitely the financial aspect, it is very stressful! But that is all - other than that, being your own boss is great, if you are driven,  motivated and have enough self control to get up early (business hours)  and work till late (non business hours).

 You have to be willing to put in a  lot more hours than you get 'paid' for.

You create these amazing, handmade items. Where do you get your inspiration from?
am so inspired by any form of  design, and especially here in our own South Africa, we do it so well and  after a recent trip to Europe I learned that we are SO up there, if not better, at being designers and creatives! I am extremely proud of where  South Africans are at design wise. South Africa and South Africans inspire me.

Ditto! We have amazing talent in this country. What is your favourite colour to work with?
White white white!

White always stays stylish and modern and goes with anything. Although I  have a personal obsession with black at the moment, we just painted one of our walls black and I cannot stop smiling about it!

Black eh? Hope it's a chalkboard wall. So, what would you do if you won the lotto?
Buy myslef and the boyf a small,  old Victorian house in Tamboerskloof that we can renovate and make our  own. And then see the world, I would travel. It is worth so much more than any earthly belongings.

I am so in agreement with you. Traveling is one of the greatest things about life. But tell me, what has been your proudest moments since you started?
I was out for drinks with friends around the middle of last year, had to go to the loo and as I
entered another girl was leaving the bathroom. She paused, pointed at my  satchel and said: "That's Maiden Name".

I was so excited that someone in a  random place recognised the Maiden Name satchel!

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Ingrid was so awesome that she is giving away two of her stunning handcrafted items - a coathanger, which I am absolutely drooling over, and a to-die for bowl with a little kitten in it.

How to win:

(only mandatory entries)
*Like Maiden Name on Facebook
*Like Second Floor Living on Facebook and leave a comment to tell me that you have entered.

But wait, there's more:
(make sure to leave a comment for each entry, mkay?)
* Share this post on Facebook. Just click on the Facebook icon in the bar at the bottom of the page.
* Follow Maiden Name on Twitter
*Tweet about it - just click the Twitter icon in the bar at the bottom of the page.

 
May the best one win! Good luck!
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*All photos via Ingird Auret
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Bridesmaid style - the works

Today marks the start of the six month countdown to my wedding day. Six months seems like a lot, it is half a year, but it's very little in wedding speak. Besides working on my physique for the day, which I have been doing pretty damn hard, I am almost finished with all the planning.

The only things I need to sort out now are my bridesmaids' hair, dress, bouquet and shoes. 

And the cake.

But seeing as we are entering the cold season now, I'll have to wait for spring before I'll decide on the dresses. In the meantime, I'm oogling all the different styles out there. 

I'm quite drawn to natural, flowy dresses, 

but still don't have the faintest idea of what they are going to wear.

Here are some of my ideas.

What did your bridesmaids wear?

with the exception of a few pins found by searching on pinterest, 
most of these pics are from The Pretty Blog's pinterest boards

My succulent garden. And some gardening tips.

Today is such a gloomy day, we've had a few of these, with almost nonstop raining. But I shouldn't be complaining, I recently started revamping my garden a bit - so I should be thankful for the rain, it means less work for me. This revamp is exciting and if I had an unlimited budget, it would have been finished much earlier - the way 'impatient I' likes it.

Part of the revamp includes spreading some succulent love to pretty up my place. Do you know what the best things about succulents are? Well, come to think of it, there are a few.

1. You can steal them from other people's gardens. I am not advocating theft here, or crime - just greening the earth. Besides, succulents make little babies and grow very fast, so plucking a baby from a big succulent isn't stealing. Or am I just trying to soothe myself here?

2. Don't steal other plants people. It's wrong.

3. Succulents grow in harsh conditions. Ahem. I might be one of those people who sometimes forgets to water her plants for a few days. Ahem, weeks.

4. They grow like crazy. And they're pretty.

I took two succulents from a neighbour's outside garden a few months ago and planted it in a pot. It has grown so much that I had to plant it into another pot, which it outgrew quickly. This lead me to planting them into an open stump in my garden. This is the picture story. I mean, there's enough words already.

And now ladies and gentlemen, the stump that got succulated. 

Call the local press, the difference is big!

Also, I got by with a little help from my friends. Not. 

And don't look at the length of the grass. It got cut the next day.

He loves his damn blue ball.

Vovo Telo Bedfordview

Over the weekend, we were too lazy to cook food, or go and buy groceries. Also, I was a bit ill and didn't have an appetite, so we headed out to town in search for some grub and dropped in at quaint little bakery/coffeeshop Vovo Telo, only a few kilometres from our house.

I had a macchiato, in which I accidentally poured sweetener - it already had sugar in, while Flip had a humble old Coke. We both had poached eggs on a slice of rye toast. It was delicious. The shop also had freshly baked pastries that I would have eaten in an instant if I had not been ill. To sum it up, it was great! Enjoy a few photos from our visit, and if you ever see one, pop in! You'll be pleasantly surprised.

My favourite part about this Vovo Telo was all the bunnies. The shop manager told me that it wasn't just for Easter, but it was part of the shop's look and feel. I'm obsessed with bunnies! She also told me that the wire ones pictured below was bought from a street vendor close by. She lamented that wire art might disappear after a few years, but I think it's here to stay.