Christmas is just around the corner!

Have you started Christmas shopping yet? If you're thinking of shopping at koolaman designs for Christmas our advice is to get in now. To ensure you receive your Christmas koolaman designs in time, we ask that you place your orders by midnight 8th December in WA, QLD, NT, New Zealand and  midnight 12th December in VIC, SA, NSW, TAS and ACT. This will give us enough time to create your koolaman personalised jewellery sterling silver and  9ct gold personalised pieces and pop them into the post.

Orders placed after this date, may not reach their recipient in time for Christmas.

Koolaman gift certificates can be purchased up until 3pm on Christmas Eve, we'll email you a copy for you to print off and pop in a card.


We've got gifts for everyone this Christmas;

Maybe there's a baby due  near Christmas or in the New Year. Order a gift certificate and the recipient can choose their own.

hand-stamped sterling silver cuff bracelet personaslised as a special gift!

Sterling silver cufflinks personalised with names, dates or special words.

Cufflinks with initials stamped. koolaman designs is not just for parents!

The Amelia necklace, one of many in our silver seeds range.

The petite Lulu sterling silver personalised dog tags are a great gift for boys or for the Mums in your life.

The Charlie cuff with the Violet pendant. A gorgeous hand stamped sterling silver bangle for girls.

Liesel bangle, one of our all time favourites, perfect for lots of names or special words. This personalised sterling silver bangle is available in four sizes, childrens, petite, standard and large. 

Perfect for growing families and especially for Grandma's and Nanna's. Pop the initials on each koolaman silver pendant.

We're giving a set of William cufflinks to the first person randomly selected and an Amelia bracelet to the second random winner this Christmas!

To win simply
1. Make sure you're following our koolaman blog!
2. Pop over and 'Like' our koolaman page on facebook.
3. Visit the koolaman online store and then leave a comment below with the name of your favourite koolaman piece and who you would give it to for Christmas.

The giveaway finishes at midnight 12th December. Winner drawn at random and announced on our blog on Wednesday 14th December. Prize not transferable or redeemable for cash.

Penny for your thoughts!

Well,  think we did. The giveaway was meant to make it easy for the koolaman team to make a decision on the name of our new pendant. The overwhelming response to the giveaway with hundreds of suggestions meant that we had plenty of names to choose from. There was a varied response, with lots of Mums suggesting their children's names, names inspired by friends or special people,  phrases, some humour, some suggestions of beautiful names already in the collection and we even received a poem. 

We've selected the name with thanks to Brooke. Brooke suggested PENNY(the pendant) is round and penny shaped (even though there is no middle) and its just a pretty and simple name that fits with your other pendants.... We debated about PENELOPE as there were a few suggestions for this beautiful name too however we decided on PENNY. We all agreed,  PENNY certainly fitted with our koolaman designs silver collection and we think it's a fitting name for our new pendant.

Congratulations to Brooke who is going to receive one of the first ever koolaman designs PENNY pendants

We'd like to thank everyone who sent through their ideas, we were amazed by how many of you there were and we certainly appreciated your efforts.

Here are a few of the interesting replies we received.

The Poem by AM

Your pendants are inspired by children's names
And just like children, none are the same!
Your new pendant suits both female and male,
So a unisex name is guaranteed not to fail!

While I have only one son, I have not chosen his name,
Instead I have decided to play your game.
I considered names such as Alex, Quinn or Marley
But in the end, I settled on "Charli(e)".

What a lovely name for a girl or a boy!
I hope you feel this name will bring you joy,
And be a wonderful addition to your collection,
Of pendants, tags, chains and other selections!

Maria said
Hi Stacey and Lisa,
My suggestion is May! It is the month of May...Mother's Day! It is also the name of my first child of four I could fit all my children's names on this pendant! May Margaret, Samuel Alan, Max Bernard and Thomas John Kent!!!

Fiona suggested
I think it should be called Fiona - cos it's big and round just like me!!

Amelia suggested
Aimi. Has Mia (backwards) in it but adding an extra letter to make it a new name but still part of it's original name

Libby suggested
Ethel Turner wrote the australian classic, Seven Little Australians. This pendant is just the thing needed for mums with thier own seven little australians, therefore I suggest ETHEL.

Renae suggested
My suggestion is "hula" when I first saw the photo I thought of a hula hoop, and all the laughter joy and excitement a hula hoop brings to a family .. Old and young :-) it creates memories that last forever in the family photo album

Olivia suggested Riverina - it just goes on and on

Tess suggested
Angelina - even she could fit all her kids names on it! ;)

Plus there are hundreds more of your suggestions on our facebook collection page and the blog
PENNY is now available at our online store and at fairs and expos leading up to Christmas. Don't forget if you're need a Christmas gift for yourself or someone else, order by midnight 8th December if you live in WA, SA, QLD, NT or midnight 12th December VIC, SA, NSW, ACT, and TAS. Orders placed after this date may not reach their destination for Christmas.

Thank you
Stacey & Lisa

A new pendant for Christmas 2011 - giveaway

Well it's not entirely new, it's our beloved MIA pendant, you know the silver circle necklace worn by Johannah Griggs on Better Homes and Garden. It's been with us since we started and is one of our signature pendants.  Lots of our customers loved it but didn't have enough room to fit their entire family.  Now, we've decided to introduce  it using a smaller font as well, which means up to 46 characters can fit around the pendant.

Perfect personalised gift for Grandmas and Nanna's. Or someone with a large family!
You can win your very own, simply tell us which name you'd like to call it and why. The pendant is valued at $250.  Leave a comment on the blog and your details or under the image on facebook. Winners announced on Monday 21st November 8pm and the pendant is released for sale on Tuesday 22nd at 9am.

Out and About!

Out and About! We're embarking on a very big weekend travelling all over visiting some beautiful places, Toowoomba, QLD, Tamworth NSW, Hamilton VIC, Brisbane QLD and Geelong VIC to exhibit our koolaman designs personalised jewellery range. The koolaman team is spreading out and our Mum (affectionately known as Mama) has jumped on board to help us.

It all starts at Toowoomba Bush Christmas. The Bush Christmas started 14 years ago as a way to showcase talent in outback QLD and NSW. We've been fortunate enough to be accepted into the exhibition this year. The exhibition is open from 18th  - 27th and Mama (Lisa and Stacey's Mum) and Stacey co founder of  koolaman designs will be there on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Entry is gold coin donation.
We've had some great coverage from Lee and Lizzy at 3GR and they are giving away a koolaman designs Audrey pendant and William personalised cufflinks this week. If you're a Toowoomba local tune into 3GR and check out their facebook page for the "koolaman kodewords" and you kould win one yourself!

Recent display at the Henty Machinery Field Days with Kristie (koolaman customer service) and Mama (jack of all trades).

Our final Brisbane Mathilda's Market for 2011 will be a huge Christmas extravaganza held at Eagle Farm Racing Club. Tess will be there and can take your Christmas orders. It's all under cover and rain hail or shine the show will go on.

koolaman designs 9ct gold hand-stamped pendant VICTORIA with 9ct curb gold chain

Then it's down to Tamworth to the Brain Foundation Christmas Fair, held at the Tamworth Racecourse we'll be exhibiting Saturday 19th November 9.30 - 4pm. This is our first time taking koolaman designs to Tamworth and I'm sure it's going to be a lot of fun! Look out for Stacey who will be taking orders.

koolaman designs sterling silver round pendants KATE with large ball sterling silver chain

Much further south we'll also be down to Hamilton to the Three French Hens at the Hamilton Racecourse. We had a great time last year purchasing some lovely christmas gifts, beer and proteas. Can't wait to see what they've got in store for us this year. The fair goes for two days Friday 18th and Saturday 19th 10am - 4pm.. koolaman designs will be exhibiting SATURDAY ONLY and Lisa will be able to take orders.

koolaman designs CHARLIE sterling silver cuff personalised childrens keepsake bracelet. This is a stunning gift for a baptism, christening or naming ceremony

 Sunday is the final Piccadilly Market for 2011. We've really enjoyed exhibiting here at this Geelong Market. Visit Janina's blog to see all of the stall holders and their beautiful wares.

Just  remember any orders placed at the fairs will be sent to you free of charge saving $15 postage fee. See you there!

Have you ever forgotten something very important?

Well I must confess.... like all Mums we lead busy lives, with extracurricular activities, working, maintaining a house and caring for children, tasks here and there ... Often some things are forgotten along the way.... some not so important and some very important.

It was a sunny Wednesday afternoon, I was in town doing a few jobs, Miss Lulu was at daycare and Bella Boo with her familycarer.  My car was being serviced and I was running behind schedule. The car was taking longer than it was meant to  and as I was waiting around for it to be ready, kept thinking that there was something that I should be doing...... After a horrible sinking feeling, realised that Augie had gone home on the bus but there wasn't anyone to meet him... Now ours isn't your standard bus stop, it's in the middle of a gravel  road and maybe a car or three a day would pass, no bus shelter nearby and 5kms from our house, and there isn't any mobile phone service.... Nearly too far for me to walk, let alone a 6 year old boy whose day on the bus started at 7.25am.

After I pulled my heart from the ground, all of these thoughts ran through my head, he's left out there by himself that he'd be in tears, a random person (not that likely considering the lack of traffic) could have picked him up... Then I rang my mother in law, who like a 'supergranny' travelled at the speed of light to get to the bus stop. And in the meantime I wiped my tears and headed home not knowing what state I was going to find Augie....

Well it's fortunate that he's grown up to be a resilient child, our kindly bus driver patiently waited for 35 minutes for someone to arrive (ours is the last stop)... and then as he drove down the last 5 kms to our house met 'supergranny' on the road. You see he didn't want to drive to the house because he would have missed me on the road and he was worried  I'd be concerned that the bus wasn't at the stop (little did he know I was 50kms away) and he also didn't know if there were any adults at koolaman as he wouldn't drop Augie off and leave him to his own devices..... God bless him!

As for Gus' emotional state, he had a great trip home, wasn't concerned at all, in fact he enjoyed it as he had an uninterrupted ear with the bus driver  and the bus driver said that he shared many an interesting story (not sure if I like that or not).

Since that fateful day there have been a few systems popped in place!  I have a daily alarm on my phone for pre-school pick ups, school pick ups and bus pick-ups! And it goes 15 minutes early for me to make sure that I have enough time to pop arrangements in place, if they aren't already.  The bus' UHF radio has been repaired and the bus driver can call up the houses or the boys in the paddocks if needed and a UHF radio has also been installed in the car. And finally everyone at koolaman are made aware of any changes to the bus routine..

Have you ever forgotten something very important? I'd love to hear your thoughts.... 

Arriving at the bus stop, and I'm there to take him home!

The perfect bag - win one for yourself!

We love exhibiting our silver and now our gold collections at shows and expos around the country. There are a couple of reasons;  to meet our customers who always give us such wonderful feedback which often help drive new ideas and the second is to catch up and meet with other exhibitors.

This weekend, Friday 24th, Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th  we'll be at the Brisbane Pregnancy Babies and Children's Expo along  with the girls from Isoki.

We've been meeting up with the Isoki girls at the Pregnancy Babies and Children's Expos around the country for the past few years.  We've always admired their sophisticated range of baby bags and accessories. And we've  often bought bits and pieces for presents for family and friends. In fact the word ISOKI is derived from an African word meaning 'a beautiful gift'.  Thanks to Maria and the girls we're lucky enough to have a beautiful ISOKI bag to give away valued at $199

All you need to do is pop on over to ISOKI view their gorgeous collection of bags select your favourite and tell us why in the comments box here.  Download a free ticket to the PBC Expo and you can see all the bags for yourself! Easy! For an extra chance, pop a comment into the ISOKI comment on the koolaman designs facebook page. Giveaway is open to Aussie residents only and closes at 8pm on Thursday 30th June 2011.  What better way to finish the financial year than a beautiful bag. Winner drawn at random. Prize is not transferable and not redeemable for cash. If you don't have a Google ID just leave it as anonymous and your contact details.

Don't forget if you're in Brisbane and looking to buy a silver koolaman designs then place your order at the PBC Expo and you won't have to pay postage! (save up to $20) And,we're giving away one of our Liesel bangles soon, simply visit our stand at J19 and pop your details down to win a  LIESEL bracelet . This  koolaman designs JUNE giveaway will be drawn 8pm  on 30th June 2011.

Mother's Day 2011

How are you going to spend Mother's Day 2011?

It's sowing time at Koolaman Station and it's usually a picnic in the paddock while the boys are sowing the wheat crop. This year won't be any different, with a sausage on the bbq,  marshmallows for the kids to toast. Mother's Day is a quiet day, at least I don't have to worry about dishes. Last year the kids made special cupcakes complete with parasols.....

Don't forget to pop your Mother's Day order in by midnight tonight for WA, QLD and NT addresses, Visit our online store to place your order for one of our unique Mother's Day gifts in sterling silver or 9ct gold. Other states, have until midnight tomorrow 27th April to decide on what Mum would like this Mother's Day. If it's for a grandmum, what about the SOPHIE pendants with grandchildren's initials on each tag, a Mum who wears gold the GRACE pendant is perfect and for a Mum who has everything, try  the EDWARD keytag



SOPHIE sterling silver pendants - perfect gift for grandma



We're giving away a Liesel bangle this April for anyone who visits our stands at Magnolia Square or any of the other markets and fairs and pops their name in the giveaway....  The March winner was H Colyer from Joslin SA



LIESEL  bangle



as good as gold!

Stacey and Lisa and the koolaman designs team  are very excited to be launching the gold with character collection. After many requests the gold has finally arrived, and not just any gold, koolaman light gold, a 9ct subtly coloured gold, just like the sunsets at koolaman station.  All ready in time to be the perfect gift for Mother's Day 2011.

VICTORIA - a stunning circular pendant that is sure to be one of our most celebrated pieces and treasured by all who wear it.

CATHERINE

 CATHERINE is both petite and elegant. The gorgeous light gold pendant with fixed jump ring offers the flexibility to be worn with one, two or three pendants, reflecting each individual style.

 The stunning koolaman designs ELIZABETH light gold pendants team beautifully together with sets ranging from one to six pendants. Best described as a combination of city chic and country charm.

GRACE

The name  GRACE was chosen for this koolaman gold pendant to relect its true old world glamou. Known as our heirloom piece, this pendant really does transcend time and passing trends. This round familiar circle is designed for those who appreciate both simplicity and elegance.

 GRETEL

 Classic and contemporary the GRETEL is suitable for both males and females. Wtiht he ability to wear up to five pieces on the one chain, this is the perfect way to celebrate and keep close to your heart all those that are special to you.

You're going to love these delicate gold pieces recreated from our favourite sterling silver pendants. Pop on over to the koolaman online store and see what all the fuss is about! koolaman designs handstamp sterling silver pendants and now are hand stamping 9ct gold.

We love the soft 9ct koolaman gold on the sterling silver ball chains... and we know you will too!

The winners of the koolaman designs Valentine's Day Giveaway

Hope you all had a lovely Valentine's Day.  Even if you were like me and it passed like every other day ! From all your comments, I need not feel left out, as it seems though there are many partners out there that aren't drawn into the Valentine's Day hype.

The winners were drawn at random using random.org . The first winner Heather won the silver AUDREY pendant and large ball chain. were #86 Heather with her comment "

With 4 year old Matilda at pre-school today, it's just my 2 year old main man Toby and me this Valentines Day. No pressie or flowers for me today...but plenty of cuddles and kisses!!!"

The second winner, the winner of the WILLIAM silver cufflinks is  Maisy Dee #59 with her comment "My husband doesnt do anything for valentines day either ~ it would be nice but i consider everyday to be a good day. My husband does all my housework - washing, ironing, cleaning etc.. All i have to do is cook! So I am lucky enough to be treated everyday!! :)"



The AUDREY and large ball chain - sterling silver hand stamped pendant



Congratulations to Heather and Maisy Dee !

Thank you to everyone who kindly spent time on the koolaman blog, entering the giveaway. We're also on facebook and will be announcing other giveaways and launching of new products in the coming weeks!

KATE pendants and large ball chain

Roses are red.....

Roses are red, violets are blue, koolaman is special and so are you!

We've been busy stamping away our Valentine's Day orders. There are lots of people who have shopped online to get their partner something special this Valentine's Day. Our sterling silver hand stamped WILLIAM cufflinks have proven to be one of more popular gift for the men and the AUDREY pendant  is a stand out favourite for a gift for the girls.

Now, if you're anything like me, I've never received a Valentine's Day gift and I don't think I've even received a bunch of flowers on the day. It  was bk (before kids) that a bunch of flowers would arrive, but as far as a Valentine's Day gift.... Nope not ever! My husband, is a Valentine's day non-believer!

Anyway, because we know there are people out there who would love a Valentine's Day gift (like myself) The koolaman team have decided to give away a handstamped silver pendant with silver chain and a hand stamped silver set of cufflinks to two very lucky people.

A set of the WILLIAM cufflinks  and an AUDREY pendant and chain and if you're like me, the only way to receive a Valentine's Day gift is to buy it or win it yourself!

Tell us what you're going to do this Valentine's Day,  a special gift you'd like to receive or give or perhaps (just to make the Valentineless people like myself envious) a special Valentine's Day treat or surprise someone's given you! Or even just a few words to describe your Valentine!

Giveaway is open to Aussie residents only and closes at 11pm on Monday 14th February 2011. Winner drawn at random. One entry per person please. If you don't have a Google ID just leave it as anonymous and your contact details.