MAY - Louise - Our Beach House

WAHM of the Month – MAY 2011 Louise from Our Beach House


This month Mums Lounge has the pleasure to feature the lovely Louise from Our Beach House as our WAHM of the month. Louise, a mum of two children, Chloe (7) and Jack (4) runs her business from her beach home in partnership with her Mum. Hi Louise. I usually ask our mums why they chose their particular business name, but in this case it is pretty self explanatory. Our business name Our Beach House, comes from just that! My mum and I both live at Mission Beach (Mum’s house is right on the beach) and we are obsessed with everything ‘beachy’. We started Our Beach House in May 2010. We love our own beach houses and wanted to help people out there to create their own beach house. To us a beach house has a feeling of calm and warmth as well as fun and a sense of feeling alive! I love the fact that you are not only a work at home mum Louise, but that you work with your own mum. Mum is the creative genius behind all of our jewellery and clothing. She hand-makes everything right here in Mission Beach. I look after the marketing and homewares side of things, but neither of us would be where we are today without the other. We really compliment one another and have very similar tastes, which makes it a pleasure to go to work every day. I have spent many an idle evening relaxing with a glass of wine ‘window-shopping’ on your gorgeous website. But for our members who haven’t yet had the pleasure, can you tell us a bit about some of your favourite products? Our Beach House specializes in handmade jewellery and clothing as well as quality home décor we have personally sourced. Our most popular product at the moment are our beach playsuits. They are so comfy and easy to wear. Our neck jewels are amazing and unless you have seen them in person, I don’t think you could comprehend the understated beauty behind each piece. Mum uses the best materials such as Sterling Silver, Swarovski Crystal and Pearls, Freshwater Pearls and Semi-Precious Stones. And I personally name each piece so it is not only seen as a ‘piece of jewellery’ but a ‘piece of art’. Our prices definitely represent our quality. When you are not busy with your business what is your favourite way to relax and enjoy time with your family? To relax we head down to the beach in the afternoon with a glass of wine and watch the kids play until the sun goes down. I love to watch my babies grow into healthy and happy children. I feel a sense of pride in watching them discover their world and learn about everything around them and how they relate to other people. As we all know though motherhood isn’t sandcastles and ice-creams though is it? (More’s the pity). Is there anything you find difficult about trying to juggle being a mother with being a business owner? Definitely trying to cope with it all on my own when my husband is away for work. I have a newfound respect for single working mothers! I definitely love the freedom of being able to work from home, but sometimes I feel a bit guilty for working so much when I should be playing with my kids. And finally Lousie, what are your goals for 2011 and beyond? We would love to be able to expand our business this year by recruiting another seamstress and possibly someone to model our clothes for photos. It would be great if we could also attend some more markets around Far North Queensland. The Mums Lounge Team wish you and your mum every success in your endeavors Louise. I’m off to apply some more sunscreen and sip a cocktail in the shade. Check out Our Beach House at www.ourbeachhouse.org.au