Charity Auction to benefit Free the Children

 From the press release:

In support of

AppleCheeks Hosts Charity Auction in support of Free the Children

The popular Montreal-based cloth diaper company to donate all proceeds from the auction of series of Super Limited Edition Diapers to its charity of choice.

MONTREAL (Quebec), May 15, 2012— AppleCheeks Cloth Diapers are stylish and fun and fans of the brand everywhere love to show off their cute babies colourful cloth tushes. AppleCheeks is going to turn this tendency into a charitable act in support of a great cause!

On May 25, 2012, AppleCheeks will be launching an online charity auction on hyenacart.com. The diapers for auction will be an extremely limited release of the popular cloth diaper brand, in a colour and snap combination exclusively made for this event! All proceeds from this auction will go to benefit the company's charity of choice, Free the Children. The auction will run for one week and only twenty of these Super Limited Edition Diapers will be up for grabs.

Yay for Canadian-made! Meet Maggie from Maxwell Designs.

Maggie and the inspiration behind the company, Maxwell himself!It's a particular challenge in this day and age sticking to your guns about producing your product in Canada. We are SUPER familiar with the challenges as Canadian-made is the foundation of our brand, and we have a particular soft spot for others who are in the same boat. As such, it is our pleasure to (re) introduce you to Maggie Chilton of Maxwell Designs!

We've worked with Maggie a few times before as she's been a sponsor for quite a few of our events, but the point of this post is to advise you that if you haven't already picked up any of her products, well, you NEED to. No, really. You do. Maggie makes most of her products herself and the quality is second to none. I personally own two makeup cases, two iPad cases, three zippered wet bags, 1 wet/dry bag, change mats AND a diaper bag. And I'm not done adding to my collection.

I have this one.

Not only are Maggie's handmade collections functional, they are GORGEOUS, and it's her exquisite taste and eye for style that really set her apart from the status quo. I've seen photos of her living space as well and she certainly does practice what she preaches! Now to get her to come from Vancouver to consult on my home decor...

Read my interview with Maggie below. I have to admit, I'm pretty much floored by what she's accomplished. I knew some of it, but bronze medal skiier...??

This is one of my iPad cases.Maggie has generously offered a coupon code to AppleCheeks fans. Use the code AppleCheeks30 for 30% off all Chelsea Diaper Bags, Totes and Hobos and Cosmetic Cases only through Maxwell Designs, until May 21.

After Maggie's interview are the details for her giveaway, so pay attention because there will be a quiz!

Who were you before you were Maggie of Maxwell Designs? 

Before Maxwell Designs I was in the hospitality industry for a number of years. I have been through pretty much every department of a restaurant and my last position was as a General Manager.

Tell me about your family.

Life was pretty tough growing up in a one parent family. My mum became a teacher in order to have vacation times with me and my older brother. We were a very small family, just me, my brother, my mum, nana and grand father (who had remarried). I did have relatives in Australia and Canada though.This makeup case is used to carry around my Luna pads!

A little about my family - I was beginning to think it would never happen for a start! Now I have 2 amazing, adorable boys (again, never thought that would happen), and an amazing husband. My dream is for my boys to be hockey stars (naïve probably but a dream nonetheless). I fell in love with my husband after watching him skate and play hockey every week. I grew up in the UK (although I am 100% Canadian) and have never liked soccer or cricket etc, but hockey I love! I would watch a live game every day if I could. I also have an amazingly well adjusted, level headed sweetheart of a step daughter who is about to turn 17! My boys are very lucky to have such an amazing sister to look up to and play with, they all love each other so much it's very touching to watch.

Have you always wanted to create beautiful things?

I would like to say that I have always been creative. Art amd drama were my favorite subjects in school. I used to sew dresses with my nana, who used to make all of her own clothes!

What's the best part of your day at Maxwell Designs?

Best part of my Maxwell Designs work day? When I get comments from customers about their products. It makes my day when people love my designs and appreciate what goes into them. It's like a little piece of me in everything I make.Isn't this perfect for summer??

Tell me one thing about yourself that would surprise your readers.

It is very hard to name just one random fact people might not know about me, I have some interesting ones though....I have a Post Grad in Education, I was a Pastry Chef, I have made desserts for Harrison Ford and Jessica Alba, I have personally met Christian Slater-Nicolas Cage-Britney Murphy when I was a Manager at a restaurant in Vancouver, I joined the (English) Army at 17, I can fence, I have a bronze medal in skiing......I could think of quite a few more but it might get boring.

What do you dream of for your future with your family?

My dream for my family's future is for my boys to have the childhood I never had, have the opportunities I never had, to not have to worry about the small things, to always feel secure and loved. Steve and I are busy making a home for our family (we moved house last year) so its nice to put our personal touch on things and create a space for the boys to call their own. 

Just because Maggie calls it a makeup case doesn't mean it can't be used for many, many other things!Personally I would love to continue to design, using different mediums, perhaps creating some home furnishings or a line of accessories.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Twitter Party With Diaper Pin!

It's time for a PAR-TAY! A Twitter Party! The WONDERFUL people at Diaper Pin are throwing a big bash for our favorite tweeters (YOU!) & there are TONS of prizes to be won! Think Little Bundles... Swim Diapers... A STARTER KIT! Did that catch your attention?! 

The party is Tuesday, May 15th at 9pm EST. There are more details on the Diaper Pin blog AS WELL as the RSVP! So make sure you sign up so you're entered to win the AMAZING prizes!

Super Fan - Megan Metcalfe

1. Your full name - Megan Metcalfe

2. Where are you in the world? Bright, Ontario Canada.... where is that you ask? It is a small village south of Kitchener Ontario.

3. How many kids do you have? I have one child, a baby boy named Kieran who is 10 months old.

4. How long have you been cloth diapering? I started cloth diapering about 7 months ago, part time. I started exclusively using cloth when he was about 5 months old.

5. How long have you been an AppleCheeks fan? I am proud to say that the first and only brand I have ever used is AppleCheeks!

6. Where did you purchase your AppleCheeks? I bought all of my new diapers from a wonderful, super cool girl named Lindsay at Bump Maternity + Baby. I have on the other hand gotten all of my used diapers from the Facebook Applecheeks For Sale Or Trade page. I traded for them all with hats and goodies that I knit :) They are all a great group of mama's!!

7. What do you do for a living? At the moment I am staying home and LOVING it!! But, like all good things that will be coming to an end very soon and I will be going back to work. I am a Refrigeration/HVAC mechanic by trade and now work on the sales side of it selling equipment. It is a much better gig and I stay MUCH cleaner!! Hopefully one day I can pack that all in and knit full time and stay home with my babies!

8. Besides using cloth diapers, what other ways do you help to reduce your impact on the environment? I guess when it comes to other environmental impacts that we are making I am not that exciting. We just do regular old recycling, composting, turning off lights and saving water. We try not to use things that are uneccesary like shopping bags and water bottles, but like I said nothing to fantastic that is going to win us a noble peace prize! Which I suppose is something that we could really work on. Diapers are our biggest thing since it totally hit me when I read about the fact that EVERY disposable diaper ever made are out there in landfills! I found that very disturbing and I still can't believe my diapers are still out there hanging around and will be for many years after I am not!

9. What else would you like us to know about you? Tid bits to know about me??? Hmmm, I am about as exciting as my recycling efforts! I taught myself how to knit about 2 years ago and now I can't stop :) I specialize in props for newborn photography and baby goods. I pretty much spend all of my free time doing that and of course working on my poetry!

Follow Megan's knitty exploits on her Facebook page.   

AND...keep reading because Megan not only knits, but she writes some AWEOME poetry ;) 

Ode to AppleCheeks

When I first started diapering, never would I have made this prediction,

About how I would develop this crazy addiction!

I pinch all our pennies to save up our cash,

But I always find extra when it comes to my stash.

Seeking Hard To Finds has become a kind of mission,

While anxiously awaiting the new Limited Additions!

Eucalyptus, Periwinkle, Lavender Fields, Sailor Blue,

Will I ever find an Orange Zest, in a Size 2???

Auctions are held and everyone is bidding to win,

Who knew we'd spend so much on something a baby just sits in!

I don't care if it is girly, I will take what I can,

As far as I am concerned Samoa can be worn by a man!

I trade diapers for hats that I knit up with urgency,

I guess in a way they're my new form of currency!

Checking my watch and stalking the mail,

What beautiful colours fill my diaper pail!

There are no other diapers out there, AC's are the best,

My day gets much brighter when I see Lemon Zest!

Sitting and waiting for a colour that is new,

How pretty is St. Lucia and it's sister St. Lucia 2?

I toyed with the thought of a Prince song rendition,

With hopes of Purple Rain to be my newest addition!

Trading and swapping and locating more,

Laundry has become exciting and no longer a chore!

My stash is getting up there and must weigh a ton,

I am so happy I just scored my Mrs. Robinson!

Looking through my stash trying to find what's omitted,

If my husband finds out, he will have me committed!

Droning on about diapers, I must get quite repetitious,

Good God the baby looks darling wearing his Delicious!

At work I will search, afraid I'll get fired,

To be honest I was sad when coriander was retired!

Easter is coming, candies and goodies no more,

There is only one kind of Chocolate that I'm hoping for!

This poem is pretty silly and might even sound dumb,

But can anyone out there help me locate a PLUM???

I trade diapers for hats that I knit up with urgency,

I guess in a way they're my new form of currency!

I toyed with the thought of a Prince song rendition,

With hopes of Purple Rain to be my newest addition!

Constantly looking, desperately searching for weeks,

Hi my name is Megan and I am addicted to AppleCheeks!

Dragons' Den - The Follow Up

Written by Ilana Grostern.

For details of our original response to our Dragons' Den appearance, please click here.

To view the episode if you are Canadian, please click here. If you are viewing this post from elsewhere, please click here.

As many of you are aware, Amy and I appeared on CBC's Dragons' Den on January 18, 8 months after we had filmed our hour long pitch to the Dragons back in the Spring of 2011.  When we last left you, we appeared to have entered into a deal with Jim Treliving and Arlene Dickinson whereby they agreed to give us $100K in return for 25% of our company. The truth is that at the time of the airing we were still in the due diligence process and no conclusions had been reached about how either party intended to proceed with the deal. So the purpose of this post is to update you on what's happening behind the scenes! 

Wow, what an amazing last three and a half months it has been! Peers had been telling us for years that we needed to go face-off against the Dragons but until April 2011 we simply did not feel ready. And when the time was right, it was clearly right as we skipped the audition process completely and were selected to pitch by merit of our web application alone.

The main reason we pitched to the Dragons was for the publicity, plain and simple. We wanted to prove to the Dragons' and to our Canadian audience that manufacturing and distributing cloth diapers do make for a viable business model and that motherhood and business can and do mix nicely. And prove it we did! The Dragons were so impressed by our pitch that they made us an offer right there, and we shook on it. It is important to know, however, that before we went on the show we signed a loooooooong waiver, and one of the points to which we happily agreed was that any deal that we shook on on the show was non-binding by either party. It's all in the name of good television, after all!

So we are sure you are dying to know what the outcome of our Dragon Dealings has been! Both parties have very amicably walked away from the deal. Neither Jim nor Arleyne, in the end, were interested in working with a company whose growth is slow and steady, and from our side of things Amy and I are VERY happy being each other's only partner! Too many cooks spoil the broth, or so they say.

We are SUPER happy to report that the publicity we received from our six minute airing has launched our brand to a new level of recognition. Thanks to you, our customers, and our fantastic retailer family, this Canadian-made model is standing comfortably on its own two feet! And as such we have decided to step back from our intention to manufacture a complimentary line overseas. We have not ruled out this option down the road but for the foreseeable future we have decided to focus on things here at home and are working hard to increase production so we can meet this new, unprecedented and self-sustaining level of demand. We are proud to be manufacturing our line right here in Montreal, and we know you are happy with this decision as well!  It has been said that you vote with your wallet and so many of you have voted for us and we sincerely thank you.

Happy diapering!