C'ville Entremom

Are you tired of paying full price for baby gear that your child will soon be too big for?  How about the clothes that will not fit in 3 months??  Well Entremoms, it is our lucky week.  It’s time again for the Lollipop Shop consignment sale!!

Lollipop Shop opens it’s doors for a week twice a year (Spring and Fall).  It has been a staple for many families in the Charlottesville community for 10 years running.  Lollipop Shop consignment sale features children’s clothing, toys, books, baby equipment, maternity fashions and much, much more.  Consignors price their own items from $2.00 up.  The location of the sale will always vary..  The space is rented 1 month prior to the sale.  (It’s always a good idea to log onto the website for bi-annual sale information:  www.lollipopshop.com.

This year Lollipop Shop opens it’s doors from March 13^th – 21^st and will be located at 1895 Seminole Trail (Route 29N).  This location is across from Chick-Fil-A in the former Bassett Furniture building.

Christy Campbell Wenzel, mother of Alexander (12) and Ashton (11) started Lollipop Shop when her sons were still in diapers.  Christy came up with the idea of Lollipop Shop after accumulating tons of kid stuff once her 2^nd child was born.  She found out that other mothers had the same problem…  mountains of stuff!!!  The Wenzel family did not have family in town to pass their kids’ stuff on to, so Lollipop Shop began. {Wow!  What a service to the community!!}

So how does Christy pull this sale together every year while raising 2 Tween boys??  Christy has tons of help from her husband (and technical guru behind Lollipop Shop), Anthony.  She credits a lot of help from her parents who live close by in Roanoke.  She also says she has the BEST staff of “Kathys”:  Kathy P (Christy’s 2^nd brain) and Kathy M (Christy’s “sister”).  She also credits an amazing group of volunteers and friends that she would have never met without Lollipop Shop.

In her “spare” time, Christy can be found teaching water aerobics and pilates at ACAC or playing classical piano!   What a woman of many talents.

Christy.. thanks for helping those of us in Charlottesville find affordable clothing for 10 years!

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What do you get when Entremom & Suzy team up???  A Great Night Out!

C’Ville Entremom and Suzy Said are teaming up for a fun-filled Girl’s Night Out at Jean Theory on the downtown mall. Join us for an evening of retail and wine therapy.

Jean Theory is offering a 15% discount for all guests that attend (Yes! That even includes sale merchandise). Your girlfriend Suzy will be collecting dresses for Cinderella’s Closet, an event sponsored by Monticello High School that provides dresses for low income teens. So dust off those bridesmaid’s dresses, grab a friend and join us for a great evening with friends.

This event is sponsored by Suzy Said and Jean Theory.

Please RSVP so we can get an accurate head count for refreshments.  You can RSVP to me via email or on our Facebook invitation page.

Date:  February 18th, 2010

Where:  Jean Theory  110 4th Street NE, Charlottesville, VA

Time:  7:00 – 9:oo PM

Please note: The store will not be open to the public during this private, 21 and over event for C’ville Entremom and SuzySaid readers.

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Want to plan the perfect Birthday Party for your little princess this year, but just can’t muster up the time or creativity to do so? Are you always at a loss for great crafts and fun activities to do with your kids? Well, C’Ville, luckily we have Pixie Perfect Creations, LLC.

Pixie Perfect Creations creates art themed birthday parties, workshops and classes for children. Mary C. Bias, owner of Pixie Perfect Creations, offers 2 great party planning options: full service (from start to finish) and Parties To Go (a box filled with invitations, thank you’s, craft supplies, cups, napkins plate and lots of other items to complete your party). Some of her post popular themes are:

Le Petit Tutu Party: A girly tea party in pastel hues. This packages includes flower tutus, glaze and blaze tea cups and saucers, glitter make-up and cupcake decorating just to name a few of the activities and items that come with this package.

Messes and Masterpieces: A party located in Mary’s private studio where children ages 1 and up can enjoy creating works of art with t-shirts, bracelets, backpacks… you name it. This theme is also great for Mommy and Me Groups and Playdates.

Pixie Perfect Creations offers several other themes as well as a create your own theme! Mary also offers art classes: Pee Wee Picasso, Clay Creations and Let’s Paint! Forget the Brush for budding artists ages 3-12 in her studio after school.

Mary, a former preschool teacher and current art teacher, wanted to find an outlet in which to combine her love of birthdays, arts and crafts and working with children.  She combined them all to started Pixie Perfect Creations. Between running her own business and raising her son Ty (2), Mary also finds time to teach art classes a the Carver Rec Center and run PhoTOTgraphy (custom photography specializing in children and families). Mary says that her favorite (and most popular) crafts are Homemade edible play dough and rose soaps.

If you would like to find out more about Pixie Perfect Creations please visit the website (www.pixieperfectcreations.com). Prices range from $25 – $400.

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If you are like me (a mother with 3 jobs .. four including the job of Mom), then you find that there are just not enough hours in your day.  This whole “sleep thing” becomes a big problem because you end up staying up until 1:00AM baking cupcakes for your kid’s class party or dare I say it???.. working!!  Well, ladies, I have found you more hours…  C’Ville Concierge and Errand Service!

C’Ville Concierge provides individuals and businesses with personal assistance.  C’Ville Concierge can be utilized for long term or short term projects.  Are you planning a big event?  Do you need your rooms organized?  Do you need help planning a move for your family?  Do you need someone to take your dog to the vet?  Do you need someone to wait for the cable guy?  Name just about anything you need help with and C’Ville Concierge is there for you!  C’Ville Concierge has several clients (know as “frequent followers”) who purchase Blocks of Time in 10 hour increments and recieve a discounted rate.  These clients use C’Ville Conceirge for tasks such as stocking suites at Scott Stadium on game day, house sitting while out-of-town, personal shopping or on-going clerical tasks.  C’Ville Conceirge doesn’t limit their services to just the Charlottesville area, they are a part of a “concierge network,”  so they are able to provide services elsewhere as well.  Quite often, they hear from a concierge in another state who needs them to assist one of their clients with something in or around the Charlottesville area.   Sue Battani, owner of C’Ville Concierge and Errand Service, finds it gratifying to successfully complete a task for a client via a long chain of communication.

Sue has held many jobs in corporate America, but always seems to find her way back to being a business owner.  Before C’Ville Concierge, she owned Before Baby (www.beforebaby.com).. an online maternity boutique.  It began with the idea to design and market maternity jewelry for moms-to-be  and grew into a full-scale on-line boutique selling pregnancy books, pillows, calendars and her jewelry.  After 9 years, Sue passed the torch and very soon after started C’Ville Concierge, which has been in business for 4 years.  Sue states that she feels a great satisfaction when, at the end of the day, she knows she has simplified her client’s lives so that they can “dream, love, laugh and live a life uncomplicated. ”

So how does Sue split her time between owning a high profile Charlottesville business and raising a family? This year it got a little bit harder because her daughter (Alexa, 18) ”flew the coop” to go to CNU.  When Alexa still lived at home, she often helped Sue by filling in when Sue’s other daughter (Olivia, 13) needed to be picked up from school or taken to extra curricular activities.  Sue says she misses having her own in-home assistant.  Sue also says that she is thankful for her husband (Ray) who is her partner in every respect.  She could never have started her business without him by her side from day one.

If you would like more information about C’Ville Concierge and Errand Services, please visit www.cvilleconcierge.com or email Sue at info@cvilleconcierge.com.  Rates start at $35/hour.

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I recently found Pretty Me! Hairbows through another C’Ville Entremom, Betsy of By Besty Invitations.  All along this has been my vision for the site.. Moms/Entremoms refer each other!  I’m always so excited when I find a great new business that I can use!  That is the most rewarding part of having this blog!

Eva D. Masloff, owner and maker of Pretty Me! Hairbows, creates whimsical hairbows for girls on clippies, barrettes and pony tail holders.  Some of her most popular products include Tuxedo Bows, Loop Bows, Pony Tail Streamers and Headbands.  She uses unique ribbons and add ons to create one of a kind hairbows.   Her products range from $3.00 to $10.00.

Eva began her business when her daughter, Alena – now 6, was in preschool.  She searched around Charlottesville for fun, whimsical bows to match Alena’s outfits, but found none.  She decided to make her own.  Other mothers at preschool took notice of Alena’s bows and requested bows for their daughters.  Voila!  A new C’Ville Entremom is born.

Eva’s full time job is being a stay at home mother to Alena, but uses Alena’s school time to make bows.  She finds it more challenging in the Summer when Alena is home, but makes exceptions when she finds ribbons that inspire her.  Eva’s business comes 100% from word of mouth.  Psst… pass it on!

If you would like to find out more about Pretty Me! Hairbows, you can contact Eva at edmasloff@embarqmail.com or 434.975.2767.

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In my opinion, it is impossible to have too many accessories.  My addiction just grew ten-fold when I stumbled upon local accessory guru, Mindy Goodall of Ivan & Mary. Mindy mixes bold colors and intricate patterns to create unique and exciting accessories for women, children and pets.  Her specialties are belts (for adults & kids), tote bags, reversible headbands, dog collars and leashes.  Ivan & Mary belts are a must see!  Mindy uses great scroll, floral and zinnia prints on her women’s reversible belts.  For children’s belts, Mindy uses heavy duty cotton webbing with the highest quality jacquard ribbon sewn on top.  Mindy utilizes top fabric designers like Anna Maria Horner, Joel Dewberry and Amy Butler to make her totes.  They are perfect for bridesmaid’s gifts or even everyday shoppers.

Mindy’s grandmother (Mary) and mother taught her how to sew when she was in elementary school.  This began her life-long passion for creating and designing.  Mindy learned to sew on a $5 sewing machine that her mother bought at a sale from her childhood elementary school.  When she was in her 20’s, Mindy’s mother gave the machine to her and it is the same machine that she uses today!  How’s that for COGS??  Mindy, a former consulting executive, began Ivan & Mary (named for her grandparents) when she found a void in the market (sound familiar Entremoms??)  When Mindy was pregnant with her first child, she wanted a cool diaper bag and couldn’t find the perfect style, so she made one.  All of her Mommy friends loved them and another C’Ville business was born.  Ivan & Mary officially began 2.5 years ago.

So, how does Mindy juggle 3 kids and accessorizing Charlottesville?  Mindy only takes as many orders as she can handle at one time.  The nature of her business is such that she can sew or design while the kids (Grant – 6, Molly – 4, Fisher – 2) are sleeping or playing.  It works well for her and she has never needed childcare (Wow!!).  Mindy believes that it is good for her children to see her work and not always rely on her for entertainment.  Her children are more creative when they make up their own games.

Mindy has no “official” marketing for Ivan and Mary, but does several blog giveaways and has been featured on several blogs: Charlottesville Wedding Blog, Style Me Pretty and Cool Mom Picks.  She has just begun looking into Search Engine Marketing by utilizing keywords and hopes that will expand some business opportunities for her.

If you’d like to learn more about Ivan & Mary, you can visit the website (www.ivanandmary.com) or the Etsy store.  Ivan and Mary goods can also be found locally in Charlottesville at Novel, Petit Bebe and Sammy Snacks.  Products range from $10 to $40.

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Hi All!  I just wanted to say that I am so excited to announce that C’Ville Entremom was featured on NBC 29 news last night at both 5:00 and 6:00.  I got to go down to their studio and talk a little bit about the site and why it was started.  I would like to give a big thank you to all the Entremoms of Charlottesville for making this site so successful, to NBC 29 for the feature and to Mary Beth Bowen of MBPR (a local Entremom, of course) for helping with the marketing and PR for the site.

Click here to view the feature! Enjoy!

Announcements

1. C’Ville Entremom First Meet and Greet
When: Wednesday, July 22nd
Time: 7:00
Where: Siips (212 East Main Street, on the Downtown Mall)
What to bring: Business cards, samples of your work or just yourself

All Entremoms and their guests are welcome. I look forward to meeting all of you.

2. Babies R Us and Toys R Us Mom’s Night Out Event
Babies R Us is looking for local businesses to set up tables for their Mom’s Night Out event on September 24th at 6:30. All C’Ville Entremoms are encouraged to apply for a spot. It’ll be a great way to promote your business to local moms and expecting mothers. Also, did I mention, there is no fee for participation?? That’s right.. FREE ADVERTISING! If you would like more information about this event, please contact me (info@cvilleentremom.com) or Victoria Snoddy (Victoria.Snoddy@toysrus.com). C’Ville Entremom will be there with a table to promote the site, so if you cannot host your own table, I will be happy to pass out your business cards.

3. Suzy Said Launch Party
Amy Eastlack of Suzy Said is launching her website in style! Join us at X Lounge on July 9th at 6:00 pm. C’Ville Entremom will be there wearing 2 hats (like normal!!)… representing C’Ville Entremom and representing Angie Brement Photography by taking some pictures!

Let me know if there are any other events going on the would be great for C’Ville Entremoms! I’ll put the information in my next announcements!  To keep up to date with all the latest C’ville Entremom happenings follow us on Twitter or Facebook.

As a photographer, it just isn’t a good post to me without some pictures, so here is a little of what I’ve been up to in the last month…. lots & lots of squishy babies!!

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Official Launch Date:  June 2009!!

C’ville Entremom will feature the best and most exciting Mom-based businesses that Charlottesville (and surrounding areas) has to offer.  Whether you are a craftswoman, shop owner, interior designer, photographer (like me) or high powered executive,  you are welcome here!!  Each week, I will feature 1 to 2 businesses around the area to spotlight and show off.  I will be looking for businesses to feature, so if you know any great ones, please contact me and tell me all about it!  On another note, I plan to start a networking group to help us toss around ideas to help boost our business in the area.  The first meeting will take place in July, so stay tuned for that announcement!  Check back in early June to see my 1st feature!

Angie Brement

Owner Angie Brement Photography

PS.. A special thanks to Brook Robinson for helping with these photos.

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