Happy Mothers Day!

“My daughter and I LOVE our rings!! We call them our ‘power rings’. I told her that since seaglass is something that has been “broken” and tumbled by the sea and comes out even more beautiful, that she can use it as a touchstone for when she goes through tough times. She has already used that thought, and the power of the ring, to get through something tough this week.” – Amy, Plum Goods

Mother’s Day is special around here. It is a reminder of what brings us into this world and inspires us.
I am blessed, as a designer, to get to be a part of your story in a small way. Well, I just love that. It warms my heart every time.

A message of love to moms from David Pu’u and Ocean Lovers

Today, Mother’s Day, I will be in the shop and I will get to see some of you who are bringing mom in to pick out something nice. I can’t tell you how wonderful that feels for me! Thank you for that.

- Donna von Hoesslin (Pu’u) , Designer, Owner, Ocean Lover

Giving Back On Thanksgiving Weekend: 25% of Our Total Sales to Sandy Relief

Instead of the typical Black Friday sale, adding to the flood of emails you are inevitably receiving (I know I sure am) from retailers competing for your eyeballs and wallets, we really want to offer something different here at Betty B.

I consider this whole Black Friday hoopla a race to the bottom I do not want to participate in as a retailer. I would rather join the race to something different, something human and out of a space of generosity for others not so fortunate, not out of greed.

It’s so funny because my daily read Seth Godin blogged about this very subject today: In a Hurry to be Generous

So here it is, my Thanksgiving Weekend Special:

• All Weekend Long Thursday-Sunday we are donating 25% of all sales in the online shop to Clean Ocean Action, a cause currently devoted to coordinating a rebuilding, recovering, and restoration program for communities affected by Hurricane Sandy.
• And 25% of all Ventura shop sales on Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be donated to Clean Ocean Action.
• I have a free surprise gift for all shoppers on all three days who come in to the retail store and spend $25. What is it? Come in and find out!
• Saturday is a big day for AMEX users, as they can get a $25 statement credit for shopping small and that includes Betty Belts. Sign up now if it’s not too late (offer is capped): https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/Shop-Small/

Throughout the weekend, I will be posting how much money we’ve raised so far on the Betty Belts FB page as tie allows. Thank you notes go out to all making online orders here stating the amount from their purchase that gets donated. My first online order came in this morning and I am happy to say so far it’s $49.75. If you are planning on buying some of your holiday gifts from me and want to make a difference with your wallet, do it before Sunday night, please.

That said, we are planning another cause day December 2nd for Friends of the Ventura River.

Oh, lest I forget! My husband, David Pu’u, has jumped in and will be donating 25% of his royalties from his print sales until the end of December to Clean Ocean Action. Read about it in his blog: Tis the Season. Enjoy a tiny sampling of his work below.

“Gratitude” by David Pu’u Surfer: Sean Tully

Light Fantastic: Happiness by David Pu’u Surfer: Sean Tully

“Enlightenment” by David Pu’u

Sierra Partridge by David Pu’u

Pink Champagne Barrel by David Pu’u Surfer: Larry Ugale

Seth on Scale

“It’s good because rightsizing allows you to be profitable and live as a human.”

Today’s Daily Dose of Seth once again just nails it. This is one of many reasons I don’t send my designs free to celebrities and don’t want to sell my brand to Macy’s or Urban Outfitters. I keep BB small and manageable so I don’t lose control and can keep surfing, but most of all, so it can remain win-win for my artisans, my staff, my self and my customers. In manageable scale.

Once, in 2007, my brand was on display at the National Retail Federation’s annual “Big Show” at Javitz Center in NYC, in the “Store of the Future” installation of a Pop-up Store.

I felt like such a prostitute when I saw who was coming. The C-Class of all the big box retailers marched through and I had to stand there and explain to them why they needed to make environmental and social responsibility a priority. A major shoes and accessories chain asked me to create a cheap line of jewelry for them which I felt would have necessitated exploitation of the people making them to get the price as  low as they needed it so I simply said NO.

Thank you, Seth, once again, for confirming what I already knew in my heart.

Ready for the doors to open.

Giving Thanks

Winter Morning Love in California by David Pu'u

Gratitude is something I feel more than ever now. Just an example:

Last night my production manager (who is like family) in Bali and I had a “meeting” across oceans. We chatted and shared pictures via online messenger and email with our respective smartphones. It allowed us to be so close, as if we were sitting together in her family compound where she houses the Betty Belts Bali headquarters.

We discussed numbers, financials and timelines, but we also laughed a lot and even shared cat pictures…  and  I am grateful for the connections like this, for the connectedness… I haven’t been back to Bali in over a year, but I am grateful that my business can still work due to  new technology wedded to a faith in my people there…

Connectedness is easier than ever now… with family, friends, business…

I couldn’t have said it any better than Seth Godin did today  here:

“… celebrate two things:

The people in our lives who give us the support and love we need to make a difference, and…

The opportunity to build something bigger than ourselves, something worth contributing. The ability to make connections, to lend a hand, to invent and create.

There are more of both now than there have ever been before…” (read rest of Seth’s blog here)

And this slideshow I created a while back says it all too.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Thank you for being here and being authentic and being you.

May you find connectedness in all aspects of your life and enjoy the bounty it offers you.

A New Year of Appreciation

The beautiful Balinese people who I have been working with for six years now on the production of Betty Belts and Betty B. can teach us a lot about generosity, love and appreciation. One thing I have never seen among the Balinese is a sense of entitlement. They practice gratitude every day with their daily ritual of offerings and frequent ceremonies. It’s mind-boggling for a westerner to see how much of their productivity is spent (not wasted!) on offerings, but eventually you understand that it is what makes them who they are and it would be a terrible thing if that should ever change. As a society, they have a balance that is enviable for the rest of us. It’s why we are so enchanted with Bali.

So I’d like to offer up a post about Appreciation in the New Year because I know it will enrich our lives to practice more of it. There is so much to appreciate. Always look for it.

Tell people you appreciate them.
Tell God you appreciate him and what he has given/created.
Look around you and appreciate what you have, because there is always someone out there who has less to appreciate than you do.
It might not be an easy habit to develop, but it will benefit so many that the benefits will be innumerable.

I appreciate you.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for enjoying.
Thank you for keeping the Betty Brand pulsing in these unsteady times.

I’m wishing you a new year (a lifetime!) of love, sweetness, joy and most of all, appreciation!

Smiles from Ventura,

Donna von Hoesslin

Owner/Designer at Betty Belts/Betty B., Member Team Betty

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