an ocean and a rock away...

"What you at my gentle spoken friend
I lack a frame to put you in
when you're an ocean and a rock away.

I feel you in the pocket of my overcoat
my fingers wrap around your words
they take the shape of the games we play.

I feel your words through my buttonholes
pin them to my fingerless gloves,
green and prone to fraying.

I keep you in the pockets of my dresses
and the bristles of my brushes
spin you into my curls today.

I spoon you into my coffee cup,
spin you through a delicate wash.
I wear you all day.

Thoughts of you warm my bones
I'm on the way, I'm on the phone.
Let's get lost, me and you,
an ocean and a rock is nothing to me..."

Lisa Hannigan

Happy Competition Winners

How great is this photo! Carly in Devon won one of the Little Bird tee shirts in the Green Parent competition, she sent this fab photo of her boy and a lovely email to say;
"Many thanks Joanna...we received the t-shirt today, it is lovely! My son had to put it on straight away...I've attached a picture of my happy boy! Thanks for the extra goodies too, much appreciated :)"

Michelle in Edinburgh chose a 'Carmen Miranda' tee and wrote to say;
"I received the top very promptly a few days ago - its beautiful, many thanks again."

I've just posted off a 'Let's Go Fly A Kite' tee shirt to Jane in Stoke-On-Trent and she's sent an email to say "I've just received it! Thank you very much, I love the design and it feels really soft. My older daughter will be delighted with the balloons and stickers too!."

I've a huge smile on my face from this photo, it's lovely to share with you x

Perfect, perfect words from Sonya

LOVE

I hadn't met his kind before.
His misericord face - really
like a joke on his father - blurred
as if from years of polish;
his hands like curled dry leaves;

the prolifigate heat he gave
out, gave out, his shallow,
careful breaths: I thought
his filaments would blow,
I thought he was an emporer,

dying on silk cushions.
I didn't know how to keep
him wrapped, I didn't know
how to give him suck, I had
no idea about him. At night

I tried to remember the feel
of his head on my neck, the skull
small as a cats, the soft spot
hot as a smelted coin,
and the hair, the down, fine

as the innermost, vellum layer
of some rare snow creature's
aureole of fur, if you could meet
such a beast, if you could
get so near. I started there.

Kate Clanchy

(Sonya, you have inspired me with these lovely words to take out a new poetry book every time we visit the library, I have been leaving them in the loo because that's the only time I have to myself - poo and culture, ah a mother's life! Love you x)

another happy customer!

You look gorgeous, thanks for the photo x

giveaway...big prizes...free stuff...read all about it!

I met this lovely lady Molly through Flickr who has a great blog called MommyCoddle, it's full of interesting snippets of her life with her three young daughters in Maryland, they home school, do wonderful creative things together, other times she shares interesting things and interesting people and every so often she posts a "Show & Tell" to share good finds with other mums. Well, I'm lucky enough to be part of her blog this week and she's doing a Little Bird tee shirt giveaway, so if you fancy a big goody bag of free tees then go and check it out...

Joanna x

Competition Update...
We have a winner, Christy received her parcel of tees and sent me this lovely email...

"Happy mail day to us! The tshirts came today and they are wonderful! So soft! My oldest has proclaimed them her new "cozy" shirts. Believe me, cozy is important around here. =) Thank you again for your generosity! The girls were also excited to see the balloons and stickers. I already have several people in mind to give the catalogs to! We'll be looking forward to the new designs. Thanks again!
Christy"

The Green Parent Ethical Fashion Special

Oh my goodness, more press news... here we are in the fashion pages of The Green Parent magazine, Ethical Fashion Special, February/March issue.

fame!

Olivia and I are in the local paper, thanks Carly for the lovely article

Little Bird says something about respect
by Carly Lockhart

"A local artist has opened a children's clothing business that sells 100 percent organic, fair traded cotton T-shirts for children aged six months to six years.
Jerseyborn Joanna Craven (34) launched virtual shop Little Bird at the end of last year with her first collection of long sleeved T-shirts for autumn and winter.
The T-shirt designs by Miss Craven feature Carmen Miranda of the Allotment and the Acorn Boys, who look like two boy scouts.
But the Little Bird best seller is an owl design which was inspired by Miss Craven's daughter; Olivia Howell (4), and her favourite toy, Phunt the elephant.
'Her friends think she is called Olivia Owl' said Miss Craven, 'and the pattern of the owl on the T-shirt is modelled on her favourite toy.'
Miss Craven started thinking about Little Bird about two years ago when she discovered what little choice there was for children's clothes.
'A lot of T-shirts that you can buy have slogans across them and are not very respectful for children' she said.

Illustrations

'I thought about how I could use my art work to make something myself. I wanted the illustrations on the T-shirts to reflect a child's world and lifestyle. Then I started thinking about how they would be made and what they would be made from. I realised that they should be made from organic cotton, and fairly traded, to make a product that was respectful throughout.'
The T-shirts cost £18 and are available to buy at www.littlebirdbypost.co.uk. They are made in a Fair Trade factory in Turkey and printed using organic ink.
'Sometimes prints on T-shirts can feel plastic, but these are really soft,' said Miss Craven, who added that the T-shirts are also durable.
'I knew they had to withstand washing and ironing, and often people pass on children's clothes to siblings and friends so they had to last.'
After the success of her Little Bird autumn/winter range, Miss Craven will launch her spring/summer collection featuring short-sleeced T-shirts with seaside designs.
She plans to change the T-shirt designs every six months to fit in with the seasons and ensure that there is sufficient choice."

Joanna x

another handsome model...

Look at this handsome chap in his tee shirt! Please keep these pictures coming, I love them. Also, lots of friends have been emailing kind words to us to put up on the site.
Here's what they are saying...

"I can sincerely tell you I love the tee. Its actually a great fit and J had compliments all round when he wore it last Saturday - it so simple and unusual." Helen, South Yorks

"A LOVES the shirt so much … she insisted on sleeping in it." Sharilyn, Lovely Design, Canada

"Thank you so much for the lovely T-shirts. J put his on right away and went to bed in it. It is the first time that they have identical pieces of clothing - I hope it will encourage some positive bonding!" Carla, New York

"The kids love the t-shirts, though the stickers and balloons were the immediate hit and we love the bold designs." Jo, Jersey

"It's arrived! Thank you so much for the very exciting parcel. E was chuffed to bits. The stickers and balloons were such a delight too. The quality of the top is wonderful and fits beautifully... I am spreading the word....little bird is fab!!!" Emma, Hastings

“Thank you so much, they are stunning and brilliant quality” Jeni, Jersey

“many thanks for the lovely t shirt” Andrew, Jersey

“wow I love them” Francey, London

“oh how gorgeous is your t-shirt! I have enclosed a picture of O wearing his new t-shirt so you could see how happy he is in it.” Sabine, Australia

“The T shirt is so soft and comfortable, was wondering when you plan to do slightly larger sizes for 21yrs and over” Jo, Jersey

“Stunning!” Sarah, Rye

“The shirts are awesome” Joel, USA

[North Star Child] “he’s pretty darn cool, looks like he needs a starry hug.” Sarah, Hastings

"Our little bird tees arrived late last week and my girls have pretty much been wearing them, washing them, wearing them, washing them... I love them, and wish they came in my size!!” Molly, USA


Word of mouth is the best recommendation we could have, it’s also the greenest and most honest advertising. I'd love to hear from you...

Joanna x