Mom Story: Lenneke Kooijman

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

Based in The Netherlands, Lenneke Kooijman is a mom and founder of the jewellery brand Lennebelle where she makes beautiful dainty jewellery for both adults and kids.


Where do you look for interior inspiration, favorite magazines, websites, blogs? 
At this moment I mainly get my inspiration from Pinterest. For the nursery of Lore I definitely got inspired by the blog Le dans La by stylist Aurelie-lecuyer. And I really like the online shop Les Petites Bohemes.

When I buy a magazine it is either Elle Decoration or VT Wonen, Never fashion magazines. And I love Kinfolk, simple fresh, less is more and keep it simple.. But I just like too many things so it’s all a lot more colurful and messy. In the end it’s all a mix of picked-up treasures, travel souvenirs, gifts, second hand items, pieces made from my own designs (luckily we have a friend who is a carpenter who has done many a table, dresser, door, dinner table couch, kitchenbar) Looking at my house there is not many items which have been bought from a showroom.

What are your children's favorite items in your house? 
For Mette our bed, the couch and the Zila Lila bean bag to jump on. If we would have enough space we would definitely have a trampoline.

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house? 
I like to bake cakes, get the house all decorated and dress up! At this moment I am really looking forward to a collaboration I am doing with Frankeys Playground and Lennebelle Petites which is about the theme ‘celebrating’ Stay tuned ;-)

What are your all time favorite books for children? 
Mette always chooses two books for her bedtime stories.. favorites at this moment are The Duck on the potty (this book is also one of my childhood memories), Woezel & Pip and her counting book. 

What movies do your children like to watch, is there one from your childhood you would love to show them? 
She does not really watch movies yet. When she is old enough I guess I will show her The Never ending story. It made such an impression on me, I had a crush on the little boy and wanted to fly on Falkor.

How do your children prefer to spend their leisure time? 

Playing outside in the playground and with other kids. When the weather is bad we go to an indoor playground. Not my favourite pass time but Mette loves to jump on the trampoline. We also have a subscription for the zoo and like to go there and we love to go to the beach!

Where would you like to go to on vacation - with or without your children? 
I would love to go to Thailand with the family for a tropical holiday. But for now we first go to Oudorp (the Dutch beach) in my parents in law caravan and at the end of the summer Ibiza in a cute little house in the tiniest bay of the island. I also have a trip planned with a friend to Istanbul. I am really excited about visiting this city but also scared I will miss my kids too much. Plus I also really can’t wait to spend a weekend together with my love by the end of the year when I am ready to quit breastfeeding, hopefully New York.

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

Are you a 'cook' or 'food lover' or both?
I am a foodlover and not a cook per se. I like to cook but lately I don’t take the time to try new things. Before, we lived close to the market and I would take out my cookbooks and go shopping for fresh fruit, fish and vegetables. I also like to bake, cake, pie, bread. I love this book The Bread Exchange with stories and recipes.

Mette is for sure a foodlover! She loves to help me out in the kitchen. She gets her little stool and I give her a pan, spoon, water, onion peeler, herbs and other things I have for her to ‘play’ with and she comes up with the best ‘soups’ ;-)

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

Books, websites, local shops you would recommend for tips and ideas about kids crafting?
Pinterest of course, I collect all kinds of DIY for when they are a little bit older. Local shop would be craftshop Harolds in Rotterdam for all DIY ingredients.

Are you a crafter or DIY person? 
Yes, for sure. I am brought up with a lot of crafting. When I can’t buy it I like to make it, like the music mobile for Lore. I thought they were all ugly so I bought a second hand one on Dutch Ebay, painted cotton fabric with curry, blueberry, and red union peel and sew clouds, stars and a moon.

What kind of DIY projects do you like to do with your children?
This morning we made a ladybug from paperplates. But most of the time I let her mess around with glitter, stickers, paint and pencils. No real plan or project yet.

Can you mention some of your 'how-to-raise-your-kid' advice?
I learned that Mette and Lore both really responds to my behaviour. They will reflect how I feel. I am very expressive in my non verbal communication and I have to be more aware of this.

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

What is a normal day with your children? What do you do on the weekends?
On a normal day, like today, we hang out at home played with Duplo and made the ladybyg. Together with Mette I prepared scrambled eggs for lunch. After their nap we went to a friend on the cargo bike, who also has two girls, one a week older then Mette. Girls playing, mothers chatting and the babies sleeping. This weekend we will go to the zoo in Amsterdam on Saturday and then a birthday in a park and on Sunday we go to my grandmother and we go walk in the forest and dunes and have a picnic.

What is your idea of a perfect day with your children?
Cuddling in bed with the four of us, late breakfast, to the beach as a family, bbq on the roof terrace, early to bed.

Do you keep your children's play areas separate, or do you believe they should have a space in every part of the house?

We have a corner in the living room with her own desk and her own big drawer with toys. I like to clean up the mess in the evening. We also have a playcorner in my workspace. I am still planning to put in a swing. In the future I would love to have the girls share the attic and they will have a bedroom and a playroom.

Bloesem kids | Mom in The Netherlands:Lenneke Kooijman

All images courtesy of Lenneke.

.. Lennebelle Jewelry
.. Lenebelle Petites

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Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Sally lives in Singapore and very recently published her first book, Find and Seek Singapore.. already one of our favourites and also a big hit amongst customers of the Bloesem shop.

Where do you look for interior inspiration, favorite magazines, websites, blogs?
My favourite daily online inspiration is without doubt the designfiles.net, I am a huge fan of creator Lucy Feagins as she always presents amazing original content from Australia and it keeps me in the loop as to what is going on at home - it often makes me a bit homesick as well as giving me house envy. I do follow several art/design/interiors/fashion and mommy blogs – notably jessicacomingore.com, joannagoddard.blogspot.sg, garancedore.fr, lovetaza.com, ohjoyblogs.com and my sister’s blog dianaellinger.com (of whom I am always in awe). Locally I love lilreddotfolks, woolfworks.wordpress.com, and of course bloesem.blogs.com.
I am inspired not just by aesthetics but by how people live with family and particularly by creative women in business.

I have always collected picture books as beautiful objects – whether they be architecture or artist monographs, cook books, or children’s picture books, old or new. Book shops are a must – Basheer Graphic Books in the Bras Basah Complex is a treasure trove of inspiration for me. Books are what I love and what I create, so they are what constantly inspire me. I am also an avid consumer of magazines, my favorites at the moment are Peppermint, Frankie and Habitus.

When I work I often listen to podcasts such as Grace Bonney’s ‘After the Jump’, the Creative Mornings Lecture Series, or a great TED talk. Music is also a great motivator for me.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

What are your children’s favorite items in your house?
I realize that my boys are both quite different in personality and are attracted to different things. They also seem to go through stages of favoring certain ways of play. My eldest Rupert(5) loves dressing up and being ‘the character’ (rather than playing with a figurine), and at the moment he is into being Robin Hood with as many swords/bows and arrows he can get his hands on. He will customize belts into holsters – or stick his sword straight down his pants to get the desired effect, he will wear his sweaty velvetine suit all day if I let him. He has also come to really enjoy playing UNO and board games such as junior Monopoly, and enjoys collecting swap cards.
David(3) will generally tag along with what Rupert is doing, however I have noticed that when he is on his own he has more patience for drawing and painting, taking his time to colour and is good at tinkering away by himself. He is also very in to animals and is almost maternal with his soft cuddly dog collection.
They both love books and reading has always been part of the bedtime routine (to the point where 2 year old Rupert would not go to sleep unless I read 6 books!).

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house?
We see it as a good excuse to invite our kid’s friends and their parents over for lots of yummy food (usually a bbq with lots of salads) and make a cake (kids are easily pleased in this department) and have a good time – lots of kids dancing and running around, a sprinkler on the lawn is always a hit. Simple pleasures.
What are your all time favorite books for children?
I have lots of favorites from when I was a kid – Would You Rather by John Birmingham, Mr Magnolia by Quentin Blake, as well as a beautiful and well thumbed Treasury of Animal Stories that my parents still have at their place. Anthony Browne’s books (Gorilla, Changes) were intriguing to me as a young girl and equally both my boys will ask for his books over and over again.
I remember reacting to certain picture books as a child – noticing how colour might bleed off a page, the shock of negative space, dark versus light, the interaction of the text – having an awareness of how the dynamics of the layout can contribute to whether the story visually is memorable. And this is something I think about when I design now. The overall package of the book is also significant.

You also can’t go past a well-crafted story written in verse such as anything by Julia Donaldson – my kids love all her books.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Tell us about your book. What inspired you to write it?
Taking some time off from my work as a designer and having my children really was a career catalyst of sorts. I found myself reading mountains of picture books to my kids and loving it again. Revisiting books I read as a child to my own children triggered a lot of memories of my early years and this sort of ‘sparked’ the germ of an idea to create Find and Seek Singapore.

Like other mums with littlies – you have plenty of time to think but not that much time to do. Taking that first step and starting the project was key, and staying committed to it was the challenge. So little by little I started to chip away at building the imagery of the book, forming a narrative about a boy who visits Singapore and discovers the sights, sounds and tastes of this amazing city that we infact live in.

I felt that there wasn’t a lot on the market that Celebrated Singapore through the eyes of a child. Having two very active boys that needed to be kept busy mostly outdoors meant we are always on the lookout for fun things to do, and our activities together was plenty of inspiration for the book.

Also, even though I was very happy and grateful to be taking a break from work to raise my children, I felt that I needed a creative outlet. I didn’t have enough time to commit to employment that required regular hours. So, I started working on the book partly to keep my brain working and creative skills evolving, and if nothing else to create a keepsake for my children of our time spent here in Singapore.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

What movies do your children like to watch, is there one from your childhood you would love to show them?
They do enjoy watching movies although they do get scared quite easily (Lion King too scary mum). They both adored Frozen which was a pleasant change from the usual boy category. I really enjoyed watching Planes 2 with them for the amazing scenery around the world, quite spectacular. A firm favorite is Epic which features a fantastical world of characters of tiny ‘leaf men’ who fly around on birds wielding swords (so of course it is popular with Rupert).
I have introduced Rupert to E.T which was a hit and I would love to show him the The Never Ending Story.  
How do your children prefer to spend their leisure time?
They both love being outside preferably with friends. We have some lovely parks in our neighborhood with no shortage of buddies to play with. They love riding their bikes or scooters, kicking a ball and sometimes flying a kite. They get very tetchy if they are inside for too long, and I always joke that they are ‘like dogs and need to have their daily walk’ (or run-around time outside).
The hose, water table and sand pit are also an endless supply of entertainment.
Where would you like to go to on vacation - with or without your children?
There are so many places I have on my wish list. We have been so lucky since moving to Singapore as we have had a lot of opportunity to travel – pre and post having kids. I would love to travel to Japan for a family skiing holiday.

Are you a ‘cook’ or ‘food lover’ or both?
I am both. We cook all our meals with the occasional night out. I grew up on a farm where everything on our plate was mostly home grown, country life does tend to instill a love of food, particularly seasonal produce. My mum is a fantastic and very creative cook who never seems to tire of producing amazing food to feed the family – I sometimes get a bit stuck in a rut.

Books, websites, local shops you would recommend for tips and ideas about kids crafting?
You cant go past Spotlight and Art friend. Pinterest is an absolute goldmine.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Are you a crafter or DIY person?
I would say I am more a DIY person in terms of what we do with our house. I like using found and more eclectic pieces that may need a little TLC (I found an abandoned cane chest of drawers on Changi Road which I rescued and revived), we have a lot of second-hand furniture which I love for their charm and the story that is behind them. I enjoy working in the garden and our little vegie patch.

I put my ‘craft’ on with the kids when they are at a loss for something to do, we have a lot of art supplies – inks, paints, papers, stamps, beautiful pencils and chalks – some of which I used to create the textures of the illustrations in my book Find and Seek Singapore.

What kind of DIY projects do you like to do with your children?
If we have an old box or large piece of cardboard they love painting it or re-purposing it to become something else – a boat, a city, an airport, or a crocodile. They also love cooking, so we often make banana cake together.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Can you mention some of your ‘how-to-raise-your-kid’ advice?
- babies need to feel secure in order to sleep
- boys need to be outside and move around every day
- keep putting the broccoli on the plate
- be consistent
- make time for you and your husband
- sometimes a bit of ‘quiet time’ (code:TV) is good for everyone!
- if else fails put on some music and dance

I lose my patients with them often and I am no expert, I am forever learning.

What is a normal day with your children? What do you do on the weekends?
On the weekends we usually go out somewhere as a family for breakfast. Places such as ‘Loysel’s Toy’ and ‘South Coast’ are fantastic as you can actually have a decent conversation, enjoy a good coffee and yummy eggs, whilst the kids have space to scoot around on their scooters/bikes. We then follow this with a walk around the surrounding area. The kids love Gardens by the Bay or the Botanical Gardens for a good run around. On Sundays we might have a bbq with our friends in the park.

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

Bloesem Kids | Mom Story: Sally Roydhouse

What is your idea of a perfect day with your children?
The kids love to travel, so they are always up for getting on a plane and flying somewhere exciting (who doesn’t). We have also had some great family trips in the car into Malaysia, across on the ferry to Bintan, or even just exploring our own backyard here in Singapore – there is always more to exlpore.


If you are living in a foreign country, how do you feel about it? How do you meet new people, make new friends? What is it that you miss most about 'home’?

I have lived in Singapore for eight years now and I am still constantly amazed by what a fantastic opportunity it has been for me and my family – in work and play. It feels like I have lived through a few important life stages here.

I think that when you become an expat you become a lot better at making friends and connecting with people of all different cultures/ages/walks of life. I hope that when we eventually do go ‘home’ we will continue to create new friends and be ‘open’ and not just caught in our own ‘bubble’. We have made some amazing friends here who are from all around the world.
 
Whilst spending time at home in Australia with family is so precious we want to make the most of our time here and are far better off for the experience.

Thank you Sally for sharing your home and thoughts with us! ~ irene

- Find and Seek books

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Mom Story: Peta from Love Mae

Peta-girl

How wonderful to introduce the lovely Peta from LoveMae to you.... she is the founder of love mae ... you know that beautiful fabric wall-decalls and wall stickers label with all the romantic colors and patterns ... "Love a little bit more passionately, live a little more recklessly and nurture a little more deeply. It is you that notices the precious detail in life and enjoys the moments that are truly important."

Peta lives in Stokers Siding in the Byron Bay area above Sydney together with her husband and two daughters.

Do you keep your children’s play areas separate, or do you believe they should have a space in every part of the house?
I must admit I've always loved the idea of a children's creative area where they are able to hang out and create chaos. I imagined this as a space where they don't have to hear me ask them to tidy up constantly, so I made one of the rooms in our house into a craft room. I was so excited and thought that my our little home might be a bit tidier for it - we live in such a small cottage and mess can really take over very easily. It didn't work though, my girls follow me everywhere so if I'm cooking the bench gets covered in an amazing amount of stuff. I do however get a bit strict with the end of the day clean up. I figure I'm teaching them good habits, but I must admit it's because I work quite a bit when they go to bed at night and I need to house tidy to be able to concentrate better.

Cubby-girls

Where do you look for interior inspiration, favorite magazines, websites, or blogs?
All of the above. I'm a very visual person and love being filled with inspiration. I'm an addict. Small crazy bursts is all I can squeeze in lately, but I'm sure I'll make more time for it soon. Blogs are much more easier for me to access and enjoy. I find I completely go off on a tangent when give the chance.

What are your children’s favorite items in your house?
In the house, the love their craft supplies. I  think all of us would be lost without them.

Some tidying tips? Do your children tidy up after themselves?
I love a tidy space, in fact its the only way I can clearly think. Not a good trait with two crafty girls. I promise I'm trying to work on it for their sake. I dream of built in cupboards where everything hides behind doors. In the meantime we find ourselves being quite minimal, we don't have lots of things. Living in the country most of our time is spent outdoors. Every month or so I do a complete tidy but otherwise they are encouraged (or cheekily tricked) to tidy at the end of each day. Especially when a cubby house has taken over most of the house.

Hutch

Studio 2

If you are living in a foreign country, how do you feel about it? How do you meet new people, make new friends? What is it that you miss most about 'home'?
I don't live in a foreign country, but 5 years ago we moved a rural location. A little cottage in a little village. Finding new friends that you truly love the company of can be difficult, especially when life is so busy. I find that my children seem to attract like minded people. It's an amazing ability they have and of course it's always convenient that their children and ours children get along. I often fantasize about living close to all my good friends, but with them scattered everywhere I know it will never be possible.

What is your idea of a perfect day with your children?
The perfect day would definitely start with a little bit of a sleep in - not so much that the morning is gone, but enough that you wake up naturally. Straight into the car and down the beach. A big swim and sandy play to work up a big appetite. We've got a family breakfast tradition going on the moment so we would head home for this. The rest of the day would be hanging out. We really love to entertain too so friends to join us in the afternoon and into the night would be a perfect day for us.

What is a normal day with your children? What do you do on the weekends?
It's warm here now and I can feel the summer sun. Our weekdays are very busy. Lots of school work and all sorts of activities including piano, circus and swimming lessons. Gosh children have so much going on. Our weekends are filled with beach, gardening playing and friends. We love all our weekends so very much. I'm travelling a lot at the moment so our weekends are filled with each other. 

Back hills

Backyard

Can you mention some of your ‘how-to-raise-your-kid’ advice?
Some days I still can't believe that I'm a mother. I'm not sure if I have any advice as I feel like I'm stumbling along making all kinds of mistakes. I try to include my girls in everything and always remain honest with them. I don't really believe in the little untruths to get through a situation. I think understanding is the most amazing trait we can posses, and honesty has a big part to play in this. I believe you can love whatever you understand.

What kind of DIY projects do you like to do with your children?
We are crafting mad in this house. Crazy messy crafters. My girls are amazing at turning nothing into something. I stick to that sort of DIY. My husband is a joiner so I try to steer clear of the DIY at home ... don't want to mess with his manhood. In the Love Mae studio it's a different story though, I wield a drill with passion.

Are you a crafter or DIY person?
Crafter when my husband is home and DIY when he's not. Its a much happier home that way.

Studio wall

Dauther-packaging

Girls room

Books, websites, local shops you would recommend for tips and ideas about kids crafting?
I'm a big Hello Sandwich fan. Everything Ebony Bizys does is wonderful. My girls and I find lots of amazing craft projects on lovely blogs.

Pinterest is amazing for storing these ideas. We are also lucky enough to have some great craft and origami books. We went through such a huge origami phase lately.

We are very excited about a new movement in a local town. A collective called Hey Maker is just about to deliver pure crafting goodness. Its a collective of women who see the need for a place where crafters can meet and craft together. They have classes for all ages and are really inventive with their courses. If only that kinda thing would roll out like McDonalds.

Cubby house

How do you like to celebrate birthday's and other special days in your house?
We do the year on year off thing. One year we have a party and the next the kids choose what they want to do. We find it really fun. I don't think I could do a party every birthday. I've got this problem with wanting to do absolutely everything myself and I end up quite a mess at the end of it. I think mothers are crazy like that.  When I'm sipping my wine at the end of the birthday party day I always declare I'm crazy if I do it again. 

Are you a ‘cook’ or ‘food lover’ or both?
I'm part time both. At home I'm a cook, it goes with the country setting. I have an incredible talent of keeping the larder full as it's a 15 minute drive to the nearest town. I love cooking and entertaining. I travel alot with Love Mae so I balance this with dining out in every city I find myself in. The restaurant trail I find in Sydney, Melbourne and New York will always be a huge passion of mine. I get so incredibly excited when I find a good restaurant.

Where would you like to go to on vacation - with or without your children?
Our next vacation is to Cairns (Australia) to watch the solar eclipse. We are very excited and have a few side trips planned in the area. As for the next unplanned one, I'm doing my best to convince everyone that we need to buy a caravan. Then we could holiday without involving airports. My husband thinks I'm just trying to add to his work load, he knows I'll buy some vintage wreck that needs a complete overhaul. I drive him mad with my love for things that need 'a little work'.

Dog-girls

Family

~ Thank you Peta from LoveMae for sharing your home and thoughts with us! ~ irene

..Love Mae

 

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