45. That Time We Created Podcast Merchandise - IT’S LIVE.

This podcast was transcribed using Descript. Please forgive any typos or errors.

Brittany: Hi friends. Welcome to the Life of Loverly podcast. I'm Brittany, a wife, mom, and lifestyle entrepreneur here to help you discover your best daily style and encourage you to try new things when getting dressed each day, I took a tiny following on social media and turned it into a community of over 1 million amazing women, and I am so glad you're here.

I'll be sharing my heart with you beyond the 15 seconds on Instagram. So we'll be diving into things like personal growth. Friendships, motherhood, marriage, and of course the business of blogging. Really, this space is here to serve as your go-to resource, to building a life you adore while sprinkling some kindness to others along the way.

Grab an iced coffee and let's do life together. I'm Brittany, and this is The Life with Loverly podcast.

Hi, friends. Welcome back to The Life with Loverly podcast. We have an exciting announcement for you guys today, and it might rhyme with the word schmerchandise. 

Nichelle: Remember, when we were kids, we would always do that .

Brittany: Yeah.

Nichelle: You'd rhyme and it was so obvious. 

Brittany: The word is basically in that. Before we dive into that, Nichelle how was your week?

Nichelle: Full. As Mallory likes to put it. 

Brittany: Yes. Let's not add stress-full . 

Nichelle: No. It has been very full. A lot of exciting things. A lot of things that have definitely challenged us. And that we've already recognized, we're going to look back and we're going to be like, we did that so easily last year.

Brittany: I know. It's crazy because last week and this week have been two of the busiest weeks I feel like we've had in a really long time. There's a lot newness. So that's been really interesting to overcome and figure out how we are just growing from this.

Nichelle: That's the word. Growing. 

Brittany: Yeah. It's been interesting, but I feel like one thing that was so exciting from last week is obviously we launched the season for of the podcast. 

Nichelle: Yes we did.

Brittany: I'm still on cloud nine. So happy to be back in the game. 

Nichelle: It feels so good to be back. And I think this is the purpose for the podcast was to get those extra conversations that you wanted to out there, and it's been a release for us, and I think the most exciting part about this week was we landed on number three on launch week. 

Brittany: So crazy. Number three in our category. On Apple. That's insane. Chris said he checked it the night it launched and before he went to bed and it was at six. . And then the next morning when we woke up it was at three.

 Which is crazy you guys! Thank you so much for even tuning in, downloading the podcast, telling your friends about the podcast. It is just such an honor that you make a choice to listen to Life with Loverly and we appreciate that so much. It's just such a cool thing that we have going on here and we wouldn't be able to do it without our listeners.

Nichelle: Absolutely not. They have been so encouraging and loving it, sending us all the screenshots of them listening to it, telling us when they're listening to it. So yes. Thank you guys. 

Something so fun that happened last week. So you weren't here, it was your off day. Your mom had seen you do the Spanx try on, all those amazing new launches that they had this month.

Brittany: Yes. Those faux leather flares are so good. 

Nichelle: Insane. But yes. So your mom was like, I need to see these. She came by to try them on and -- so adorable. First of all, she looks fabulous in all of the pieces. But yeah, she was like, "I just want to make sure that they look good." I'm like, "girl, yes!"

Brittany: It was so funny. So she called me and she was like, "I really want to go try those on. Are you going to be at the office today?" And I was like, "I'm not there, but the girls are there." She was like, "okay, I'm going over because I love those pants. I want to order them, I just want to make sure they like aren't too long." Becasue she's a little shorter than I am and I tend to wear like a higher heel.

And so I told her, I said," I think you need the petite option." But I was so excited. Mama's 59 and she's like rocking it. 

Nichelle: Girl rocks it. Yes, she absolutely rocks it. But yeah, she was so excited when she came out. She was like, these are going to sell out. So I have to be ready. I need to know what size I need to have . 

Brittany: I know she said that on the phone to me. I was like, mom, it's okay. Like I think you can go try them on and then order them and it'll be okay. But she was so excited. So she called me this morning and said, I borrowed one of the leather dresses.

They're going out of town. And so she took one of those and then she's I ordered the pants. And my dad loves her in the leather pants. 

Nichelle: Absolutely.

Brittany: She's hot mom. That's for sure.

Nichelle: But that's so funny. I feel like I'm busting at the seams right now. Are you? 

Brittany: Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. So you guys. The Loverly Grey/ Life with Loverly merch line will officially be live today at 11:00 AM.

Nichelle: So exciting.

Brittany: I cannot believe we're saying these words out loud and that people are going to be able to come to our website and purchase this merchandise that we've worked so hard to create. I'm drinking out of the high mug right now. I was like, we've gotta wash all these mugs and get them up in our cabinet so we could start using them all. I'm just so excited to dive in and tell you guys all about the merch that we have launching, and there's so many pieces that mean so much to me and the designs and the why and everything.

So we thought it would be really fun to just share a whole episode on why this merchandise was so special to us, and just some of the struggles and things that we've learned along the way because you guys, we had no idea what we were doing when we first started. 

Nichelle: None. Google was our friend. 

Brittany: Yes. It's been a little over a year in the making. We started really diving in and trying to figure out what this could even look like last fall. .

Nichelle: And we've had so many fun stories and challenges and just really great memories I think that we've made over this last year that are going to stick with us for a very long time.

From traveling across the US, to meeting the people that helped us out. So many pieces of the puzzle that just fell into place and have brought us here today. 

Brittany: Yeah, I think one reason I really wanted to start this line was the same reason I even started my blog, is I felt like there was something missing in the market that I wanted to help create.

So when I started my Instagram and blog, I felt like the missing piece was people weren't sharing work wear, or sale alerts and that was something I was super passionate about at the time. There was a need for that. So bringing us back to this merch line, I wanted certain graphic tees that like meant something or I wanted the sweatshirts to feel a certain way or I wanted a hat that like said a certain thing and I just wasn't finding it to be able to like purchase and share with you guys.

So we were like, why not create it? We see a void in the space. Let's do this for our audience. Let's find the quality and figure out how we can make these pieces amazing and let our followers and listeners be able to have a piece of what we love here at Loverly Grey.

Nichelle: Absolutely. At a certain point there was a tee that you. Loved wearing. It was washed and washed over again, and it was just one of the most comfortable t-shirts you had in your drawer. And I'm sure it spurred like the thought spurred right before, like way before this. Yes. But I remember you wanting to wear the shirt and you were like, I can't wear it, because people want to know where it's from and it's a couple years old and it's just, it's my favorite, but I can't get rid of it. Insert. You were like,

I need to make my own. Yeah. And so I really wanted to come up with pieces that would be super versatile, that you could wear a little bit more casually, or you could throw a blazer on with, and put on some dress pants and have a t-shirt on. 

Or you putting your tulle or sequins on.

Brittany: Exactly. But then it would translate to if you wanted to go for a run in it, you could. . There's so much that goes into the behind the scenes, but I looked at like, where was the void I was missing? Or the pieces that I wasn't able to find. Let's create that and let's love that and let's share that.

Nichelle: So that's what we're doing. These custom pieces were made special for you guys. Graphic tees, there's an abundance of them. But what there isn't an abundance of, are beautiful graphic tees and beautiful colors, and that's something that Brittany was very adamant about. It needs to be on brand, neutrals, something that can go with everything. 

Brittany: Yeah. I wish I could send every piece to every person just to be like, oh my gosh, this is so exciting. I am so excited for y'all to get these pieces in your hand. We want to just walk through what everything is. So everything is completely custom.

We picked colors, dyed things, mixed things together to create. Used different ribbed materials, different sweatshirts. It's funny because we tested so many different products out to get an idea of what direction we wanted to go in. I guess also when we were starting this out, I didn't realize how long the testing phase was going to be and the trial, and now I see why designers work seasons in a advance because there's so much that goes into making everything perfect. We've learned so much through this process. Who knows, maybe we'll have a Loverly Grey clothing line one day and we'll have lots of experience on how to do it all.

Nichelle: But I think we can nail it at this point. 

Brittany: Yeah. Okay, so let's talk about each of the pieces. So first we've got the graphic tees, the two we've mentioned where they came from, but one is a floral bouquet that's got this really pretty ribbon and it's inspired from this velvet ribbon that ties like a bundle of wildflowers and wildflowers.

Something that's very special to me and my dad, and he's just always has been our thing. We dance to Tom Petty wildflowers at my wedding and. I have a tattoo of a wildflower bundle just in his honor and just reminds me of him and so that's something I was like, this is really pretty and could mean a lot of different things for people.

But the way that it sits on the t-shirt is perfect for tucking in making it a little bit more put together or you can just wear it out and about with leggings, but it's a really pretty muave color, which I think just goes with so many things. So that's the first T-shirt. And then we've got a Life with Loverly T-shirt that also has a floral design on it too and that's more of a creamy white, which is a little bit more of a neutral option, but it's also such a good t-shirt with a little bit more of our Life with Loverly branding.

Nichelle: Absolutely. And these are a relaxed fit. We wanted to make sure that you didn't feel like you had a unisex tee on, or even one of those really tight, more feminine tees.

 It almost feels when you buy it it's already been washed tons of times. It's so soft. So you're going to love living in it immediately. 

Brittany: Yeah. They're so good. Next we have the two hats. One says shine on, which I'll get into that in just a second with a sweatshirt. But one says shine on, is this beautiful green, and then the other says hi

 It's the same hi that I have on the coffee mug as well. And this hi is like a beautiful pink with a white writing that says hi across. And it's really fun because this high is something that I write on my Instagram stories all the time when I'm like, good morning. Hi friends. And I do this like cursive, hi, that I write out.

So we wanted to bring that hi to a hat because I think it's like what is more inviting, if you like, than walking up to somebody who has the hat on that says Hi. And it's hi, how are you today? It's like already a conversation starter. . So I'm really excited for that one and the fact that it's my handwriting, which makes it feel very personal. It's something from me to you guys, so I think that's really cool. 

Nichelle: The quality of these hats is insane, guys. The detail on the back, there's a little cute stitching on the back that you'll see, and the adjustable strap has that feature where it tucks in, so you don't have that weird flap in the back.

The details on. Nailed it. 

Brittany: Yes. I'm so happy with the way everything has turned out. And then the sweatshirts. Oh my goodness. I love these sweatshirts so much. You guys have probably seen me wearing the shine on sweatshirt. I think that one's my favorite. It is this beautiful meal cream color and the stitching on it is white, and it says in cursive, shine on.

Shine on is like a mantra that we have here. It goes back to being a light, being positive, being that light in a situation in your friend group, and I think it was 20 14, 1 of my tattoos that I have on my side in my handwriting says, shine on. And this was a reminder for me , I can't control everything, but I can control the way that I act and the way that I have like outlook on situations.

And so it's just a reminder. So I've carried this for almost the last 10 years and I really wanted to put that on a sweatshirt because while I love phrases like Be Kind and things like, there's already a ton of that out there. Shine on felt very personal to me, but also encouragement that if somebody reads on your sweatshirt, shine on. It's another thing that can just like spark positivity and kindness, which, what we, ultimately are trying to do here.

Nichelle: What a great talk trigger. 

Brittany: Yes. So that one is so good. And then the sweatshirt, it's a little bit oversized, but it also works really well if you wanted to tuck it in and wear it with jeans.

 I would say, If you want it to fit more oversized, you should size up. I go between both, sometimes I wear the small, if I'm wanting it to be like a little bit more fitted. It's still not fitted though.

Nichelle: It's just not your cozy lounge. Almost like tunic length when you go with your true size.

Brittany: So if you want something a little bit more oversized, cozy that you're going to like lounge in, then size up one. I think that's true for everybody here who's tried on the sweatshirts have said the same thing. They're just so comfortable. The inside material feels so good.

It's not like a fleece inside, it's more of a summer sweatshirt inside, but something that's still warm and can be like worn in the cooler months and can be layered. Like I think it would be so cute to do like a cute collar, like layer it over a flannel shirt. 

Nichelle: That's going to be so cute.

Brittany: Yeah. We've got some styling ideas that will be coming to Instagram, so if you want to see more, make sure to tune in there. And then our next sweatshirt is A Life with Loverly branded sweatshirt. That one's just pretty simple. It's a beautiful pink and it says Life with Loverly on it. And it's funny, my best friend Shay, who I've talked about, who's actually been on the podcast before from our last season, she was over at the office the other day and I was like, which sweatshirt do you like?

Becasue I was going to order her one. And she was like, I want to, I want the Life with Loverly one because it's like I am doing life with Loverly, I am your best friend and I do life with you. And I'm like, I love that.

Nichelle: She's your biggest cheerleader too, so she definitely, I could see her wanting to go out there and tell the world about this.

Brittany: Yeah. She wore her hat to play tennis the other day and sent me a picture, and so I thought about that. It's more than just a merch branded podcast sweatshirt. There's meaning behind it, but it's such a beautiful pink. I love that one as well. And then tell us about the third sweatshirt.

Because I feel like this one is so unique and special, but really special for Nichelle.

Nichelle: Yes. It's so cute how this came to be. I think at this point we had nailed the bundles for the T-shirt with the artist and we were trying to create these three miniature botanicals and we just couldn't fall in love with anything that had come through and on a whim. I'm like, I know Madison is probably sitting at home drawing on her iPad. Let me just see if she can create a few things and she's sketched up. I think six botanical stems. Voila. Three of them ended up on the sweatshirt because they were exactly what you had envisioned.

Small miniature, just cute botanicals Soft. 

Brittany: Yes. So for those of you guys that don't know, Madison is Nichelle's daughter and she's so talented and it's so cool to see, we really brought a lot into this. This is a very collaborative team effort. This isn't just me being like, I want this.

It's everybody's opinions. And so I think that's what makes it really cool too. Everybody was giving their opinions, like these dye are looking a little too blue or a little too forest green. So I think that sweatshirt, aside from like getting the botanicals, nailing down the perfect color was also something I feel like that took forever.

Nichelle: It almost didn't make the cut guys. Because we kept getting too blue of a color and then last minute. 

Brittany: Yeah, that one is really awesome. And it's very dainty, maybe you don't want anything that says like Life with Loverly a Loverly Grey on it, but you want something from the collection.

This is an excellent piece That's just simple, beautiful little floral designs across the chest. And this is also like a great giftable piece too. I really feel like each of the sweatshirts, there's something for everyone within that sweatshirt.

Nichelle: There was a lot of intention behind that. We wanted to make sure that it could be something that could go out to everyone and everyone could find something that was giftable. We're going with the holiday season too, so it's a perfect time for that. 

Brittany: Speaking of giftable, the next few items on the merch list are extremely giftable, starting with the notebook, which might be my favorite piece from the whole collection. 

Nichelle: Don't lie, it is.

Brittany: I love the notebook so much. I'm so old school though. I love writing things down and I really wanted to specifically make. A notebook that you could use for a lot of different things. So this notebook has tabbed sections and it's this stunning watercolor design that's a little bit different on each of the sections.

 It's got gold foiling. It's all of our branded colors. It is beautiful. We worked so hard with an artist to get this exactly how we wanted it, and I personally use the sections for the first one's, my to-do list. . The second one is for the podcast notes. The third one I use for brainstorming ideas and just like jotting things down.

The fourth one I use for my notes that I take when I'm in my therapy session, and then the fifth one is just like an extra one. So if I need to move one of those down. But I love being able to carry one notebook and have everything in it for what I'm going to be doing in the day, and I thought that was super important for me.

Nichelle: Agree. I feel like a lot of feedback was given on the notebook early on when we were doing like secret little question boxes. So many people are still pen to paper. Thinkers and creators. and then they might move to the digital aspect of, planning out and doing all of that. So this was very special made for everyone.

Brittany: Yeah, and I think it's like a perfect gifting piece because you could use it as a journal , or you could gift somebody one of the coffee mugs with this notebook and a pen set, or their favorite lip gloss or something and bundle it together. I just feel like it's so important to encourage people to get their thoughts onto paper and journaling and writing things out.

That's so much of what's gone into this brand over the last six years started with an idea and with me being like, let me just write out some ideas of how this could actually work. I feel like having a good and solid notebook has been so important to me. This is one that I absolutely love and will continue to use like over and over again. 

Nichelle: Yeah. That's why it felt like it was a no brainer for pens to be a part of this. So we have a collection of three pens that are in a cute little canvas, little bag again made for giftable options and they have the Life with Loverly and Loverly Grey logos on them.

And tell them your favorite kind of pen.

Brittany: I love a good blue pen that writes really well. This was also something we were really particular on. These pens are amazing. I think this idea came last year. When we bought the office, we were like, we need Loverly Grey like pens to use. And so we started writing with these pens we just made, and then we were like, how can we make these better?

And every time a guest would come over, somebody would come over, they'd be like, wait, is that a Loverly Grey pen? Can I have one of those? So we started sending them off in giveaways or giving them away at the closet sale. People have always loved using the Loverly Grey pen.

So that's a fun addition. These would be great stocking stuffers.

Nichelle: Oh that's a great idea. 

Brittany: Yeah. Toss little pen set. If you know somebody who loves listening to the podcast or is always buying things from Loverly Grey this would be a great little added stocking stuffer.

Nichelle: I love that. 

Brittany: And then of course we couldn't do a merch line without coffee cups. You guys , these are probably the things that we'll use the most around here because we are all drinking coffee all day every day. And we have a tea drinker. Ellie drinks tea out of these cups and they're perfect.

But we have six different designs. One is the classic hi so the same hi that you get on the hat, you'll have on the mug, which is so great because when you hold it out it says hi on it, so it's like safe to speak to me. I'm drinking my coffee . We've got a branded, a podcast Life with Loverly logo one, which is awesome.

And then a few other beautiful botanicals. I think the green one might be my favorite. Yeah, it is such a beautiful sage, we took some inspiration from our podcast room to create these botanicals and it's got Loverly Grey woven within. It's just stunning. It's so cool how these ideas that we've had for these products are now living on a product that we're holding in our hand.

That fully hasn't sunk in yet. It's crazy. But one of the best things about the mugs .This is also on the notebook is there is on the bottom of the mug, there is a QR code and you can scan that. So our vision behind this was when you open up your cupboard and get your mug out in the morning, you can scan the bottom of the QR code that will take you to the latest episode of Life with Loverly.

So then you can make your coffee. And while you're drinking your coffee, you can listen to a podcast episode

Nichelle: and we all can have a chat together.

Brittany: Yes. I am so appreciative. I did not come up with that idea on my own. My hair stylist actually came up with that. Suzanne was like, okay, I have this idea. What if you added a QR code to the bottom of this. And then we started like talking through it and I was like, 

Nichelle: shout out Suzanne. 

Brittany: That is amazing. So we put it into play and the QR code's on the bottom of all the mugs. So I'm so excited to have that little fun touch that you can, or if you wanted to gift it to somebody that maybe didn't know about the Life with Loverly podcast, they'll be able to scan it and get a taste of the podcast too.

So yes, that was a fun little added touch that we were really excited about. 

Nichelle: One of the best features of this mug is that it is, a 16 ounce mug, and it is the perfect size. We wanted to make sure for you guys that you can brew your coffee and also have, any topping of choice on it. I know we like to froth our oat milk. And it is the perfect size for that combo. 

Brittany: Literally, I just did it before this episode and did my coffee and it just went right up to the top and I was like, yes, it's perfect. So it's just going to be so amazing to get these products in your hands, and I can't wait to see how you guys wear them and style them and gift them.

We really hope that you feel part of this community when you're investing in one of these items. That's what it's all about for us. We want to spread kindness while creating a community of women where you feel like you belong .

Nichelle: Let this be a reminder to you guys that if you have a dream, take that first step, take the second step, you can make it happen.

It's one of those things that, again, we knew nothing about this industry until we took the first step. We were like, let's go. So we encourage you to be brave and go out there. Make your dreams happen. 

Brittany: And then just to wrap this up, I want to say a huge shout out and thank you to our partners at Thread Vision who have really made this all happen for us.

They have been amazing to work with as far as just like helping us source and design. Make this whole project come to life. It's been such a journey that we've been on over the past year, but Kirsten and Whitney have been unbelievable and so amazing, and we would not be here without their help and without their support and just everything that they've done to help this launch happen.

So thank you to Thread Vision. We are so excited to see you guys wearing all these pieces, we can't wait to see which ones you love the most. Make sure whenever you get your pieces in or when you place your orders, let us know what you're loving. Tag us on Instagram. It's going to be so much fun to see what you guys love.

Hi, friend. If you're loving the show, will you go find that follow button on your podcast app? This will ensure that you won't miss a single episode. I love having you in this community. Until next time,

this season of Life with Loverly is produced by Elizabeth Evans Media Productions.