Olivia and I are in the local paper, thanks Carly for the lovely article
Little Bird says something about respectby 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
Sweet little button badges for 99p and 'To The Zoo' silk-screen prints of a limited edition of just fifty. The prints are silk-screened with water based inks onto premium 280gsm recycled paper and fit into a standard A3 frame. You can see more details at the shop.
'To The Zoo' new range of T-shirts
little bird by post, from the red sketchbook
"Mermaid", limited edition print
"Lickety Split", limited edition print
"Miss Yum Yum", limited edition print
So, the Little Bird Empire expands. As my dear friend and fellow blogette Sarah commented, "some people nest, you obviously build empires!" Well, this maternity leave would be ever so dull if I were just lounging around in front of trash tv all day long!
I am now 3 weeks away from baby's due date - eeek! And am spending my days alternating between extreme nesting, eating too much camembert and drawing.
Oh my goodness, more press news... here we are in the fashion pages of The Green Parent magazine, Ethical Fashion Special, February/March issue.
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.
