Designer: SlyMagPie My mother has a jaw dropping collection of antique and vintage jewelry that has eternally fascinated me. My favorite pieces change often and I love opening her jewelry boxes and looking at them with new eyes. I also love to steal them. Now I have a lovely collection to inspire me. My style has greatly evolved over the last 7 years that I have been designing. You‘ll find I offer a truly eclectic array, as I love to create things I’ve never seen before. At night, I lie awake thinking about what I’m going to do the next day with my blowtorch and gems. Things like seeds, the crease down the middle of a blade of grass and the way a stone looks when you hold it up to the sun are my inspiration. I live among the art and bluegrass of Louisville, KY and spend my days writing, creating jewelry and pleading with my toddler to stop eating things he finds on the floor. Possibly, I should spend more time vacuuming. My husband is not only funny and  handsome, but incredibly supportive. I’m sure he’d wear my jewelry every day if he were a girl. It’s a sweet life.

Vicki Shields, Three Wheels Design   I am a self-taught designer, school counselor, and mother of two. I started this company after the birth of my son three years ago. The generosity of our family and friends meant I had a lot of thank you notes to write. The problem was I couldn’t seem to find stationery that felt quite like, well, me. Armed with my laptop and stacks of fine paper, I set out to create a line of cards that I would be proud to send to others and sign my name to. I find inspiration in everything from the colors and textures of vintage fabric to wallpaper patterns and my daughter’s hand-knit sweaters. Classic styles are classic for a reason, and my designs update them without upending them. Modern paper. Modern Families.

Alayna, ZadyBall I am a stay-at-home mother of two wonderful children. When my first child was about 6 months old, he had a toy giraffe with a knotted string for a tail. He loved playing with the string, and would rub it to help him fall asleep. He loved it so much, that I thought it would be great to make something for him that had lots of strings for him to play with. So the first Zadyball – a soft, stuffed ball with fabric strings attached – was born. He carried that ball with him all the time, and nearly three and a half years later, he still won’t sleep without it! So many people asked about my son’s toy, that I started giving them as gifts. They were a hit at every baby shower, with many of the guests asking for one. Because there was such an interest, I decided to turn my idea into a business. Many people have asked how I came up with the name “Zadyball”. Zady comes from a combination of my two kid’s names.

Marlese, bobe Bath Essentials, Canadian-based company bobe (pronounced beau-bee) offers customers a tempting array of made-to-order bath and body products. The unique name, an acronym for 'beyond ordinary bath essentials,' began as a comical family memory for founder Marlese Sears. At the age of eight, Sears' younger brother brought home a fish named Bobby, which he misspelled as bobe. The name stuck and now lives on through an invigorating line of nourishing formulas. To best suit customers' needs, an extensive selection of over 100 scents and flavours- ranging from intoxicating vanilla to juicy tart lemon- is blended beautifully with quality soybean oil, crystallized sugar, shea butter and other ingredients.

Designer:  Wired Originals I was lucky to be born into a creative family full of support and imaginative ideas. Since I was a kid, I've been a crafty critter, always crocheting, drawing or writing. I began making jewelry in 2007, and I do believe I've found my permanent passion.   I find inspiration anywhere and everywhere, including the different hues of sky and earth, unusual found objects and the patterns found in nature and urban settings. I like to describe my pieces as "unordinary jewelry for everyday wear" -- Jewelry that goes equally well with that little cocktail dress or your favorite pair of faded blue jeans. All of my designs are handcrafted from my home studio in western Colorado where I live with my boyfriend and two very obnoxious cats.

Designer: Victoria, Victoria P. Zurcher Designs I am the mother of a very cool five-year-old tomboy who is not frilly at all.  Truth is, I'm not either.  While getting her nursery ready, I struggled to find "girl" things that weren't too "girly".  Eventually, I began designing and painting fun stuff for her room and Victoria P. Zurcher Designs was born. As my little girl has grown, so has my inspiration and I added stationary pieces to my list of goods.  Many of those designs are dedicated to kids that they might learn the personal kindness of a simple handwritten note. My design style is a funny combination of preppy, modern, colorful and funky.  I have an incredibly supportive husband who doesn't mind that I spend way too much time on my computer writing, designing, and blogging.  I've definitely got it made...

Alyssa, Vintage Body Spa, LLC Vintage Body Spa began creating natural spa products in 2005.  I came across the company in my quest to find natural and safe products to use on my infant daughter’s eczema.  Lo and behold, the company was also up for sale.  I had spent time making bath and body products years prior, and was anxious to return to the craft.  I knew the best way to know what was going onto my daughter’s skin would be to make it myself, so we took a leap of faith and purchased the business, seeing a perfect opportunity to work from home. Products continue to be made in small batches, ensuring quality and freshness.  Only the highest quality ingredients are used, and we never use harmful chemicals or parabens.  Some signature products such as Butter Beans ™ and Rilàcks Melts ™ are vegan, and products are never tested on animals.   My daughter’s eczema has almost been eradicated, something for which I am thankful and proud.  I live in Louisville, Kentucky with my daughter and wonderfully supportive husband who understands that my work ‘forces’ me to soak in the tub in the name of research. I truly have a blessed life! I hope you will find as much enjoyment using our products to ‘Indulge Your Body’ ™.

Sahara, Crazy 4 Jewels I have always loved to create and make things with my hands.  I have tried pretty much everything, but making jewelry is my favorite.  The relaxing feeling I get when I make jewelry is like no other, it’s my meditation.  I love to see my ideas come alive and once the ideas start pouring in they pour.  There is just not enough hours in a day to put all of my ideas into action.  I create my jewelry to have a chic modern to a vintage look. Crazy 4 Jewels was created over 2 years ago, after a long journey of trying to find a baby bracelet for my daughter.  After no avail, I decided to give it a try and make it myself, well here I am still at it and loving it.  Starting my own line has giving me the opportunity to do what I love and still be able to work from home to be there when my kids arrive from school.  I hope you can find something for you or that special someone that can be treasured for years to come.

Rebecca,  Sweet Peas Art Studio I am a stay at home mother of 4 creative and active children ages 13, 11 (identical twins) and 5 years old. I have always been artistic. It "runs" in the family. I am an identical triplet, we all went to college for art.  I really enjoyed the process of print production for all sorts of media. My career was mostly in print advertising and print production.  I started creating children's art when I become a stay at home mom, 13 years ago! I needed a creative outlet and I started creating items for friends and family. My business started 8 years ago when we finally stopped moving due to my husband's career.  I really enjoy creating images that a child can view, dream or just giggle about.

Paula, Plays with Mud Plays With Mud was created as an outlet to serve my overwhelming supply of glues, old papers, stashes of fabric remnants, and my passion to create new things.  I’ve been crafting all my life, and in that journey I’ve tried about everything out there.  My fondness for sewing stems from my mother’s side of the family, as well as my penchant for all things vintage.  I stumbled into pottery after graduating college, and the rest as they say, is history.   I work full time for a creative agency, and have been blessed with an amazing little boy and supportive husband (who can be found stuffing sock monkey booties while watching ESPN … sshhhh).