news
Product review by The Opinionated Parent 24 August 2009.
Product review by The Dirty Shirt 11 August 2009.
Interviewed by MilkMonster Laughs on 13 August 2008. http://milkmonsterlaughs.blogspot.com/
Meet Mompreneur Lily Huang
I'm always on the look out for things, places, and people who inspire me to live life creatively. Lily Huang, owner of Baby Bean Limited is such the person. With a 16 month old daughter and a husband who travels frequently for work, I was curious to find out just how she manages to run a company and personally handcraft Bean Mark Jewelery all whilst taking care of her little toddler. I met up with Lily, along with husbands and kids, for a little play date and chat on Sunday afternoon in her home in Midlevels. When we arrived, we were greeted with a cheerful smile and reassurance that her daughter would be up from her nap soon to play with MM. As our husbands got acquainted and chatted about the Olympics, her daughter woke up as promised, and while she sorted out clothes and a nappy change MM and I had a moment to get down and play with her pet rabbit Maxi, and check out Nunu, her turtle of six years flounder about his tank. "Does MM want a snack?" she calls from the kitchen "I'm making banana and yogurt smoothies!" 10 minutes in and I am totally digging her down to earth personality and style, and do-it-yourself attitude, I mean she even makes her own yogurt!
From the time her daughter is up until our hour play date is over, our conversation loops from how she makes her flat 'bunny friendly'. They have fabric running across the room between the two area rugs so Maxi can hop around without slipping on the hardwood floors; Postpartum girdles - she swears they will restore my stretched out waistline; Homemade yogurt - which she let me try because I was skeptical about how it would taste but as it turns out, is really delicious! If good taste wasn't enough to motivate, it's really about the BPA and toxins in the yogurt containers - which having checked once I got home, are indeed contained in plastic No.6 which is on the list of plastics to avoid; And how we share an obsession for cleanliness. I admitted to wiping down shopping carts with alcohol and was relieved to hear that she too is a germaphobe at which point her husband informed me that she mopped the walls with bleach during SARS!!! Haha I am loving this woman! To how she stays on top of thing with a filing box for all the business cards she has collected over the years. Well organized doesn't begin to describe her, it must be how she manages to find time to source materials and create her pieces because I can barely gather enough time to even write this post. "They [kids] grow up so fast and I just wanted to make something that could capture this moment and also something to pass onto my daughter" she replies with sincerity when I ask her why she started her company. The sterling silver pieces with a tiny fingerprint are almost as precious as the fingers that left their imprint. Ranging from $400 to $1000hkd, each one is carefully made by hand, a one of a kind keepsake that can be engraved with name and personal message at no extra charge. The process involves taking a mould of your child's fingerprint which is then cast in solid sterling silver and polished. "Each one takes me between 2 to 3 hours" Lily tells me, "I make them after my daughter goes to bed." With a solid start on her jewelery business, her next project will be to launch her Bean Pod Sling Carriers [pictured above]. I went home that night inspired and very happy to have had an opportunity to hang out with Lily, a mother who has found a way to strike a balance between fulfilling her work aspirations without missing a single moment of her daughter's childhood.
If you would like to be featured on MilkMonster Laughs, please Email me a brief description and your contact details.
