We made these m.studio digital pretties for all your devices!
Download them below. (simply click on them)
A wallpaper background for your computer + phone & one you can share on your social media feed… remember to tag us @ilovemstudio when sharing on your channels ( facebook & instagram )… we would love to go check you out!
I had the pleasure of attending the very first Kleine Rijke market. Kleine Rijke ( pronounced Klyne Ryke ) is dutch for ‘little riches’. Owners + partners Jasmyn & David from david krynauw ontwerp created the most beautiful space with attention to every little detail… but I’ll let the images speak for themselves.
Our morning at the first Kleine Rijke market was filled with little pleasures & riches, lots of inspiration, fresh homemade goods, delicious coffee under the trees on beautifully designed wooden furniture & the best lunch by food enthusiasts, ani&lea.
I am so excited for future events at Kleine Rijke & wishing Jasmyn & David so much success & joy with this new chapter in their lives!
My heart is EXCITED! The right time has finally arrived to share the new M.studio with all of you; the friends, the family, the clients, the followers, the dreamers & the inspirers…
It has been coming for some time, but M.studio has blossomed into something so much more than just a graphic design & stationery company… M.studio has grown into a place where we inspire others to live a beautiful lifestyle. We have inspired others to start their own business’ & be their own bosses, to create, to make & to dream & we’re ready to inspire even more… inspire to live a life filled with whimsy & a life that you absolutely love & a life that’s absolutely beautiful!
In celebration of this new season, not just in my life, but also the rest of the M.studio team, we have made some beautiful changes to our brand’s identity!!
THE ‘M’
a little history (when I started this company I wanted something personal) It’s the first letter of my name & the word ‘studio’ just suited… I also loved the word ‘studio’ ( for me the word ‘studio’ led the platform for a place to be creative … Any kind of creative I wanted it to be. )
some of my favourite’ words include…
Our ‘m’ is now often used in color, patterns & pretties! It gives us freedom to play around with trends & seasons. Our new ‘m’ also avoids confusion… We have been called some pretty funny names… from ‘my studio’ to ‘i love my studio’ & I am positive this teeny change will help our new & future clients read & understand our name more clearly & easily. ( P.S. there are so many M.studio’s across the world… It is only our domain & social media handles that are listed with the little ‘i love’ bits… It was at that time the only most suited words available & I kinda loved it… still do & we knew that you would too! )
Instagram : @ilovemstudio ( we’ll be keeping this profile for portfolio work & our beautiful products )
Instagram : @mariaan_mstudio ( I’ll be using my current profile for some more personal things & behind the scenes )
THE SLOGAN
My clientele has grown towards working with a lot more fellow creative business owners than corporate ( even though I love you both ) when it comes to designing their brand’s entire ‘look & feel’, from logo development to all the other elements from packaging to digital designs & during the design process we always end up with the coolest words for these companies who do not have slogans yet. I have never really had a purposeful slogan… Just an overload of descriptive words & I really needed a special & meaningful one… One that was strong, to the point & one that we can put up on our studio wall & inspire us with every project!
‘inspiring to live a beautiful life’
This is who are, what we strive towards & who we have always been… ( it just took me some time to realize )
WHAT’S NEW:
I am so grateful for each & everyone who has supported us in every aspect of M.studio & I am so excited about the beautiful future ahead… the best is yet to be!
I have written another ( more personal ) blog post about the effects these changes have had on me & my business; you can read all about it here. ( if you’re a fellow #girlboss, I know you will enjoy this one… all I can say is take the time you need to do the things you need to do… slow has a deeper meaning & there is no need for so much pressure, we need to enjoy our lives too! )
Love
Over the past six years, a lot has changed both professionally & personally that have massively influenced my decisions & goals for the future. I have realized that actually, I am right where I have to be & even if it’s not exactly where I have pictured myself at the age of 30… it is okay & sooooo much better! Life is indeed awesome & I feel so blessed. Running a business by myself while in a beautiful relationship, being a loving sister, a caring daughter & good a friend takes up a lot of time & it is precious time that should be treasured as much possible. Life is not just about working; there is so much more to it & a healthy balance is important. I think finding that balance was the most difficult part for me…
Time & wrong decisions have made me stronger and given me the perspective I needed to be excited about the much-needed changes for M.studio. I have learned a lot about running a business, what I love to do, what makes me happy, what works & what doesn’t.
The focus for M.studio has changed a lot over the last 2 years…
M.studio is my personal brand that has grown from a little wedding stationery business to a lifestyle brand. I am not just a Graphic Designer anymore; I am a Lifestyle designer & want to inspire living a beautiful life with everything we do, make, design & create! Building a strong brand doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of time and sometimes it takes getting it wrong before you can get it right. It can’t be rushed or forced & needs to grow organically.
I needed to allow myself the time to make positive changes for my business & myself. It meant sharing less on our social media, designing less & making less ( but only for a little while ). I needed to do this to have the time to create better, faster & healthier workflow systems with more organized logistics. It was frustrating at times & it took months… when I wanted to design something new I had to shift my focus to ‘admin-stuff’. The reward of better systems meant MORE time in the future to create & design & make… which was the goal!
Slow growth has had a beautiful new meaning for me. Slow growth these last 2 years has meant that I have had more time to enjoy my life, get ready in the mornings without rushing, eat healthily and exercise. Be present with where I am & not constantly feel I don’t have time for this now because I’m behind with work. Slow growth meant that I had the time to perfect M.studio’s offerings and products. Time to actually plan something & get organized. Slow growth meant I didn’t have to work late hours or through the night, constantly feeling exhausted and get burned out too quickly. Slow growth meant more date nights with Werner, more brunches with my sisters & friends and more lunches with my parents! I allowed myself the time without rushing & it was one of the best changes I could have made.
These changes helped me refine all the goals and dreams for the future. I wanted to do it all but it was an impossible task. Take one thing at a time & perfect it before moving on to the next. I have so many ideas and things I still want to do, but I realize that I may not always have the time to do it right now & it is important to also live my life, have fun, spend time with the ones I carry close to my heart & get enough sleep. I need to take care of myself first so that I can take care of the people around me; the ones I love, the ones I hope to inspire & the ones I will still be meeting in the future. It is a constant process & I am learning to prioritize things to best benefit me, even if it means a little slower growth… cause slower growth opens up time for other beautiful things & running my own business should be fun & awesome, which was after all the reason I started doing what I love!
I am now setting boundaries for my business so that it does not take over my entire life & all of my precious time. I know now that pushing myself too hard or trying to force something is unnecessary. Things will grow as it should and hard work always pays off. I look back & feel proud of what I have achieved, learned and created.
So to all the fellow #girlbosses & my many #girlboss friends! Don’t be so hard on yourselves, enjoy your business. Take time to perfect something & enjoy the process. It has taken me 7 years to know exactly what I want to do with M.studio & where I want it to go, I have made mistakes… but looking back at them, they were all valuable lessons with knowledge as the reward!
Take time & go do that thing you’ve been wanting to do!
Love
2016 was as always, a BUSY year for me! I did, saw, experienced & learned a lot! 2016 was the first year I actually reached some of the personal goals I set out for myself end of 2015 & they weren’t big goals, but goals that really improved my life in every way… I rushed less, slept more ( did not have 1 all-nighter ), I enjoyed my work more ( did less but with intention ), I got really organized & decluttered my personal & workspace ( it took months to get all the ‘stuff’ sorted & there is still a little left to do… but we’re getting there! ) & I started following a healthier lifestyle when it comes to eating & living balanced.
Some of my highlights of 2016…
The best thing about 2016 is definitely that I got engaged to the most beautiful person in my life… my best friend & business partner, Werner, in Barcelona, Spain !!!! We’ve ‘been together for more than 8 years, photographed 175+ weddings since we started our business in 2009 ( www.picturemeandu.com ) & in 2017 it’s FINALLY our turn to ‘tie the knot’ & throw 1 hell of a wedding with all the ones we carry close to our hearts !!!! #wmbothabruilof
Werner made this little video announcement for us just after he proposed… he made homemade enchiladas & we drank Spanish champagne on a rooftop in Barcelona!
I travelled to Europe for a month with Werner! We visited Barcelona ( Spain ), Paris ( France ) & Amsterdam ( Holland ) & came back broke… it was worth it!! Picture me&u also photographed Eve & Jeremy’s countryside wedding in Hendaye during this time ( Hendaye is a little coastal town on the border of Spain & France )
We had a really lovely family holiday in Kwazulu-Natal. It was the first time in quite a while we had all of us together on a beach holiday ( my parents, 3 sisters + each of our partners! ). Times like these I treasure even more as I get older!
I started Blooming Blushes with a friend, a few months back, which I hope to spend some more time on this year! We did our first big market, Tierlantynkies & won the 2nd prize for best stand design! Thank you to Hertex Fabrics for treating us with a voucher which we really spoiled ourselves with! & thank you to Natja, from the Natja Reney brand ( a REALLY talented friend ) who helped us with styling & setup!
Our little M.studio shop In Pretoria celebrated its 1st birthday !!! I’ve been wanting to share some pics from the day we opened! Thank you to Natja again for her styling skills, Karien from Whisk Away for treating us with her delicious homemade ice-cream & Tharien from Swagger design for helping me with the beautiful interior layout of my entire shop!
Picture me&u were invited by Finesse magazine to document the #netmatrieks boat cruise on board the MSC cruise ship! We spent 5 days & 4 nights sailing the ocean, passing by Maputo ( Mozambique ) & spending a day on a Portuguese Island. If you haven’t ‘been on board the MSC… you should totally plan it on your adventure list for the future!
I designed & launched the M.studio ‘Beautiful Life Planner’! This is my biggest project for M.studio up to now & I have so much planned for this product for the future. I am so excited about the community of women who are already using them & the ones on their way to many more beautiful woman! I am excited to have all of you onboard this project & know that this tool will help you live the most beautiful life ever!
A Reminder to be grateful for every experience, person encountered & memory made! Here’s to many many many more!
