Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-February 23, 2020
We'd like to introduce you to Kate Jansen...
Wow is definitely the word that comes to mind when we scroll Kate Jansen's instagram feed so it's no surprise she named her business @wowhaus.au. Her imaginative home is quite literally the dictionary definition of 'colour pop', exploding with curious collections and playfully blending old and new, seamlessly mixing beach vibes with a distinctly British flavour. Kate's sunny family home is in the Mornington Peninsular, not far from Melbourne if you...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-January 19, 2020
A little over two months ago I started working here at Mustard and oh my goodness what a whirlwind it has been! I knew when I started it was the calm before the storm, it was the lead up to Christmas and it was a really lovely time to be able to settle into life at Mustard. Every day is different, but I am always kept busy! I thought it would be a nice idea to let you see a little of what goes on ‘behind the scenes’ at Mustard UK HQ, as I talk to lots of you every day and sometimes it’s good ...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-January 02, 2020
Now seems like a just the right moment to get a little reflective. We've taken the last few weeks away from work (mostly) + there's nothing like a bit of space to reset + refocus. We've come along way in 12 months with a lot of hard work, tears, mistakes, wins + luck along the way.
Its brought us closer as sisters (literally, we've seen each other loads!) + given us a growing sense of confidence in business. It's been a year of connecting with other small business owners, finding support + co...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-November 17, 2019
We'd like to introduce you to Kate...
It's official, Lockers + Plants is a thing. With more of us bringing greenery into our homes, the need for leafy inspiration has us hooked on Kate from @tribeandus's instgram feed. One scroll and you'll understand exactly why. With a thoughtful mix of vintage pieces, natural textures, very cute kids and a variety of plants so big it should probably be classified as a nature reserve, we thought there was only one more thing Kate needed, a Shorty!
Tell us ...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-November 03, 2019
Happy birthday to us!
September marked one whole year since we launched Mustard in the UK so we threw ourselves a party!!
Being your own boss(es) means it's all too easy to let the days slip by without really stopping to see how far you've come, to actually reflect and maybe even to reward yourself for your hard work. So we did the one thing that all small business owners know how to do well: create more work for ourselves! ;) Yep, throwing a party takes a lot of work but we totally thin...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-September 08, 2019
We'd like to introduce you to Kim...
It has to be said that one of the most notable things about @kimgrayza is that she's the mama of triplets + a big brother. Raising four kids, with three being baby humans all at once, really is pretty damn incredible. But, being a mum isn't by any means the whole story of who Kim is. We've been following Kim on Instagram for a while + admiring her neutral, minimalist home, laid back style and is on a gentle mission to live more sustainably. We challenged K...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-September 01, 2019
This week we let our stockists and customers know that we are increasing the price of The Skinny. We sent out emails and we shared stories on instagram all the while holding our breath and hoping it would all be ok. We were nervous because people love it when you reduce prices, not so much when you raise them!
We received a message on instagram asking "why the sudden jump in price?" so we thought we would open up about why.
When first creating our products we wanted to use the minimum packag...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-August 18, 2019
I'm Miriam, a colour consultant by trade, colour lover at heart. I'm back with Colour Class no. 2 with some options of how to style colour with the newly released Berry range of lockers. If you read the 1st colour class blog (read here) we styled the new Ocean locker with inspiration from the earthy and calm ‘Repair’ colour palette from Dulux's 2019 colour forecast. Since you loved it so much, it makes me very excited to tell you that we are bringing you a series of Colour Classes showing y...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-July 21, 2019
I'm Miriam, a colour consultant by trade, colour lover at heart. I thought I’d start with a little bit about why I'm writing a blog post for Mustard Made. Firstly... I love this brand and I respect and admire the girls behind it so much. It doesn’t feel all that long ago that myself and Becca had our baby boys a couple of weeks apart (who are now two and a half) and were already talking about ‘what’s next’ when it's time to go back to work. I had almost completed my studies in Colour and D...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-July 14, 2019
I'm going to start this blog post by saying this feels a little funny to write. Why? Because the way The Midi and The Lowdown were brought into this world felt a bit more like a baby being born in the back the car on the way to hospital with heavy metal booming on the radio than a soothing water birth surrounded by candles and a chilled Spotify playlist.
Let's just say, it was a little hectic.
The beginning.
Way back before Mustard was officially a thing we were dreaming up the two door lock...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-April 30, 2019
Instagram has a way of making everything look easy. Yeah sure you can run a business, all you need is some motivational quotes and a coffee on a Monday morning right?
(FYI neither of us drink coffee and Mondays get way too much negativity!)
There are brands that have really inspired us as well as our friends in small businesses and it's easy to look outside and see everyone killing it and think that it's possible for us to do the same.
In many ways we are. Here we are today, much further th...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-March 19, 2019
This month we are focusing on showing some love to our stockists on social media so we thought it would be good to share our experience of selling wholesale. This is a two part blog post (click here for part one) where we'll talk about some of the key thing to consider if you are planning to go down the wholesale route. Think of it as a mini guide from our personal experience.
Hopefully it will be helpful if it's something you're new to.
How do you find stockists?
Trade Shows
When we dreamed ...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-February 28, 2019
This month we are focusing on showing some love to our stockists on social media so we thought it would be good to share our experience of selling wholesale. This is a two part blog post where we'll talk about some of the key thing to consider if you are planning to go down the wholesale route. Think of it as a mini guide from our personal experience.
Hopefully it will be helpful if it's something you're new to.
Preparing to wholesale
One of the first things you'll need to think about is t...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-January 31, 2019
One of the scariest decisions we have made in our first year of business was to take a break from it.
From the very beginning, Mustard has consumed our minds, our time + our hearts. There are days where it feels like it's the centre of the universe + it can being really challenging to separate from it even just for the evening.
We counted 8 different channels that we can be contacted on + because we operate in two hemispheres it means we are switched on 24 hours a day. It is often said that ...
Posted by Afterpay Integration On: Published-December 31, 2018
Our aim for our colour palette was to create options that were versatile, beautiful and worked well for mixing and matching. Whether the lockers are for a living room, bedroom, office or hallway we wanted there to be a colour that fits with your space.
White has been a popular choice in Australia, the sunshine and beach definitely have a lot to do with it as people gravitate to bright open spaces. The Olive has been a big hit on instagram and has a steady following of plant lovers, it's defi...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-December 24, 2018
Last month I had the absolute honour of being a speaker at the first Fe Collective night. I would be lying if I said I felt qualified for speaking at an event when Sara of Kate & Kole and founder of Fe asked me to. But the more I thought about it the more I reasoned that everyone has a story to tell that others can learn from.
Although it feels like we've come along way and we have certainly formed the bones of our business I know that we are still just writing the opening lines of our s...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-December 18, 2018
I’m going to let you in on a little secret…
Me:
I moved to Australia 7 years ago with my son and husband who had been raving about how great his hometown Newcastle was for years. Our relationship didn’t last long after the move but my love for Newcastle and Australia grew and grew. So, I found myself single and a long way from home with a curly haired 3 year old and no money.
Being a mother and working is, let’s be honest, bloody hard at the best of times. The hours of the jobs I was offered...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-October 26, 2018
We'd like to introduce you to Catharine...
If you haven't discovered @paperandlilies on Instagram, let me describe her feed for you. It's like a warm, rose tinted interior hug. Every image is inviting and has 'family' written all over it. We challenged Catharine to style her Shorty in Olive in three ways and every room is a complete delight!
Tell us a little about you…
My name is Catharine. I live in Canberra with my partner Luke and our two kids, Scarlett 6 and Riley 3. I moved around a lo...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-October 08, 2018
We'd like to introduce you to Alina...
We discovered Alina through her instagram account @thecalmandthechaos and instantly felt joyful and overwhelmed with admiration in equal measure! Not only does her home encapsulate the phrase "pop of colour", it also shines with love and playfulness while remaining a practical space for her 7 children to grow up in. We challenged this busy mama to style her Shorty in Mustard in three ways and love what she's done with it!
Tell us a little about you…
H...
Posted by Rebecca Stern On: Published-September 02, 2018
16th February 2018, wake up at 6 am, one hour commute to work, 9 hours at work, leave, travel to Heathrow and jump on a plane. One outfit change, a little bit of sleep + 4 movies later I arrive in Sydney to four very smiley people. (My sister Becca, her husband Jono, Dylan + Ellis, the best nephews in the world!)
But before I can even see the Australian sun, the work begins on the car journey home. Making plans for every minute of the next few days as we were about to launch our new brand: M...
