Katey Love is an Australian designer and illustrator based in Hobart, Tasmania. She has 2 daughters who were enthralled by black and white images from day 1, thus inspiring her to produce an Australian-designed range of graphics for babies. She hopes that these products help you and baby to enjoy the first few months of life together.
‘There is nothing lovelier than to see your baby focus and engage in something for the first time. I receive a lot of emails from parents who can't believe how captivated their baby is by black and white images. Prop the books next to them on their playmat and watch with joy as they study the pictures, or spend some quiet time together making up your own stories to go with the pictures.'. Katey xx
Why black and white images for babies? Read more.
my story
3 months after my first child was born I started to slide into a dark place of loneliness, boredom, sleep-deprivation and a feeling of ‘what now?’ Once the excitement of having a newborn had worn off, I realised I was in this for the long haul; that I was bound to this little person for all of my waking hours, and there was little escape from it. At times when she would be screaming in her cot I would just have to close the door and walk away with tears streaming down my face.
If this sounds like you, I want you to know that you are not alone. I was lucky enough to have a very supportive child health nurse who picked up on my situation when I filled out the post-natal-depression survey at one of the checkups. She called me every few days to make sure I was OK, and just knowing that there was someone out there who was thinking about me and cared enough to phone me, made all the difference.
For you it might be a GP or a friend that you can open up to. Don’t hold it in or think that it means you are not doing a good job. You are doing the world’s TOUGHEST job, so no wonder you’re finding it difficult. If you need help you can contact the PANDA (Post and Antenatal Depression Association) hotline 1300 726 306 or read through some of the inspiring stories on their website www.panda.org.au
When my daughter was 9 months old I started working on a little project - a book called Mesmerised. Having this project gave me a sense of purpose and a role outside of just being ‘Mum’. Find something that you love to do, and make time for it in your day. It doesn’t have to be work-related; it could be knitting, cooking or even just reading. Remembering who ‘you’ are during this time is important.
I hope you get a lot of joy from sharing my products with your baby (and who knows, you might even get the chance to make a cup of tea while they are absorbed in their new book!)
Best wishes,
Katey
Katey has also put together a collection of beautiful baby rattles at www.tinygiraffe.com.au The rattles and rattle-toys are all from ethical sources and use eco-friendly materials.
Here's a lovely story of how one baby benefited from Mesmerised: http://www.mylittlebookcase.com.au/books/8987/
