Moms on Mondays - Katie from MoonStoneFox

Today on Moms on Mondays I am so happy to feature Katie from MoonStoneFox.  This mama is super cute, her son is even cuter and she is just so excited about her shop!  I can fell her enthusiasm through her post and hope you can too.  Read about her shop below and then head over to Instagram to go shop!  

What is the name of your shop and how can we find you? 

The name of our shop is MoonStoneFox and you can also find me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.

Tell us about what you make/sell in your shop.

Most of what I make are our really cute and comfy baby harem pants. I also make leather pacifier clips, baby bibdanas, beanies, and hand stamped swaddle blankets. My husband and I have designed a few t-shirts together for the shop, one of which will be released soon! (Those will be available in little sizes for your babes, but we will have a few available for mom and dad too!) I also have a few really adorable leather tassels for your keys or bag! (Gotta have fun stuff for us mamas too!) My husband, Zac and I are working on launching a 'home' category for MSF, which will eventually consist of various hand made items for your home, but mainly (at least in the beginning) we are focusing on lighting fixtures. I'm super excited about this!

How/why did you start making these products and open this shop?

I've personally always noticed a lack of "cool" baby clothing for boys. You go to almost any clothing store, and 3/4 of the store will be for the ladies, and you'll see this tiny little section for the boys filled with polos, button ups, and cargo pants. No real variety, no individuality. When I found out I was pregnant with our boy, Fox, I had a hard time finding things I was really in love with. After he was born, and I got a bit settled into a routine, I realized he slept a lot during the day, which meant I had time to create and experiment! I found a few DIY tutorials on how to make my own baby harem pants for Fox, so away I went, sewing up a storm! My intention was just to make some fun, stylish clothes for my baby, but I was soon approached by my friend Shea who asked if I'd like to be part of a boutique and actually SELL my baby clothes! Of course I said yes! I thought it would be a fun experience for me, and a way to actually jump start a little "business" for myself. 

How long have you been in business? 

Well my business has been an evolving thing, and will continue to be, I hope! I started making the pants in August 2014, and started selling them in December 2014. 

What is your background (college/career/etc.)?

I grew up in a small town in New Mexico, and went to a year of college at New Mexico State University where I studied clothing, textiles, and fashion merchandising. In 2005 I moved to Southern California, and started cosmetology school at Paul Mitchell in Costa Mesa. For the past 10 years I have been working as a hair stylist full time, up until I had my little boy last July.  Now, I work part time at my salon, and and the rest of the time I spend being the best mom and wife I can be, while trying to find any spare minute to work on MSF! 

Tell us a little bit about your family.  How does this company help your family?

I am married to the most wonderful man- my husband Zac. We met 6 years ago, fell in love fast, and got married a year later! He is an amazing husband, CrossFit coach/personal trainer, drummer, visionary, and father to our beautiful, and perfect son, Fox Huckleberry! Fox is a year old and it's going so fast! It's been a bitter sweet experience watching him grow, as I'm sure you moms already know. At first, MoonStoneFox was simply an outlet for my creativity, and a way for me to have cool clothes for my kid without having to spend a ton of money. Now I see that it could be our future! To me, MSF seems like that thing that was always meant to be in my life, I just needed to muster up the courage to go after it! For now, I hope that it will at least provide us with some extra money for the things we may not be able to afford otherwise, and maybe give us the chance to save up for a house or something! And, it's great that I can do it from home, especially now that I only work part time at the salon and the rest of the time I get to be home with my baby.

Did you ever think you'd be doing this?  What did you think you'd be doing instead?

I can remember being in Junior High, and thinking that it would be so cool to start my own clothing company some day. And then still, when I went to college, that was what I was focused on. When I later decided to become a hair stylist, I thought my dreams of creating my own clothing company we're never going to happen. What I didn't expect was that I would start with baby clothes! Becoming a mother has changed my life in so many unexpected ways, and this was definitely one of them! I didn't think I had it in me to actually start my own business, I guess I just needed something to kick start me into it! 

Does anyone help you with your shop?

As of right now, I handle most everything from start to finish. I design and hand make the harem pants, paci clips, bibdanas, beanies and blankets myself. I also help my husband create the designs we get screen printed on our shirts. My husband will be doing most of the crafting and creating of our 'Home' line of goods. So, between the two of us, we take care of everything right now!

How do you find time to run your shop and create products? 

THAT is the big question, isn't it? It's definitely not easy! What I always tell people is "I wish there were 10 of me!" I seem to have a million ideas in my head at all times, and not enough time or resources to actually make them happen! (Maybe/hopefully someday.) When Fox was a newborn, he slept a lot, and I was able to get quite a bit of work done. Now that he's almost one, and progressively becoming more and more active, my "work" windows are becoming smaller and smaller! Buuuut, ya know, they only stay so little for so long, so I obviously choose to be mom and wife first, and maker second! I wouldn't have it any other way!

What do you love about this businesses?

I love that it is my own! I love that I have total creative freedom! I love that I have super cute, tiny people wearing things that I made with my own two hands! It's such a good feeling! 

What is the most challenging part of this business?

For me, it is easy to get sucked into to the mindset of work, work, work! It's hard for me to put my work aside, and live life with my family before it zooms by me! But, it's so worth it to make sure I do that and soak up these precious years!

Where do you see your shop in the future?

I want it to be our main work focus, and our main source of income! I want to be able to expand it into even more of a 'Lifestyle' brand. I would also love to eventually get our products into stores. I don't want to put limitations on where it could go!

Tell us your favorite product or your most favorite thing you've created?

I obviously love everything in the shop, but I'm especially a fan of our Cool Kids Harem Pants, and our leather pacifier clips and tassels! I have also made a couple small leather clutches, and hope to eventually make larger leather bags/totes too, and have them available in the shop.

Do you have any advice for future mom-entrepreneurs?

This may sound cliché, but honestly, if you have a dream, pursue it! If you have a talent, use it! I think you'll regret not going after something you've always wanted to do! Why not at least try?

What are some of YOUR favorite shops/products, besides your own? 

My girlfriend Shea has an adorable little vintage shop called Buenos Diaz Vintage. I love Soul Sunday Apparel's new little shop! They have some seriously cute tees! Also, Olly Oaks has some really great moccs, tees, and other super cute items for your littles! Wild Bird is quickly becoming the new hot baby carrier because her carriers are amazing and beautiful! Anyway, I could go on and on, but those are just a few that come to mind!

Thanks Katie, loved having you here today!  :)