Amanda Van Dyck fills gift boxes in her home in Queen Anne. BELOW: "Date Night" is one of the themes available for the stocking stuffer boxes. More themes and information available at www.primroseandmay.com
Photos courtesy of Primrose & May
As the holidays are approaching, many homes are buzzing with home cooked meals, holiday decorations, shopping for presents, and anticipation for the big night.
But who is making the magic at home? For many generations, and for the majority of U.S. households, women — and specifically, mothers — are working overtime to "deck the halls”.
One Queen Anne mom is also using this busy time of year to launch her new business.
HELP FOR THE MOMS
Amanda Van Dyck has created Primrose & May to make the season bright for all of the moms out there who are busy making magic for their families.
“Moms pull a lot of unseen weight, especially around the holidays. I am looking forward to celebrating them!” she said.
“There were so many years where I stuffed my own stocking,” Van Dyck added.
And she isn’t alone. A recent poll on Instagram found that 80 percent of moms have an empty stocking on Christmas morning.
Primroseandmay.com can help fill that void in mom’s stocking. This new site has 20 different stocking stuffer gift boxes. They range in price from $16 mini stocking stuffers up to $48 deluxe boxes. Themes include: Booklover, Cat Lady, Dog Mom, Garden Box, Positivity, Relaxation, Date Night, a Sweary Mystery Box, and more. Each box contains 6-7 items. And they are shipped in a gift box to maintain the surprise.
Van Dyck is a former educator and entrepreneur who grew up in Everett. After graduating from Western Washington and earning her teaching certificate from Central Washington, she taught in Friday Harbor before teaching and settling in Queen Anne with her husband and children. But she still remembers how her own mother went out of her way to make their holidays special year after year.
“Christmas magic is your mother’s love,” she said. She plans on recreating that magic for other families who may need a little help.
“My husband is amazing,” Van Dyck said. She explained that he is very thoughtful about fixing a drippy faucet, ordering new blinds, and all of the practical things around the house. But she said he tends to freeze when it comes time to buy a gift: “He gets overwhelmed at all of the shops.”
So, in order to keep the magic for her children, she bought her own gifts and stuffed the stocking herself. She found it disappointing to open the presents on Christmas morning when she already knew what was in them and that’s how she knew she was onto something with her new business.
“I know I’m not the only woman,” she said.
UP AND RUNNING
To supplement her creative side, Van Dyck set to work gathering items that she knew other mothers would enjoy discovering on Christmas morning. She focuses on handmade items from small businesses, with a commitment to shop local and buy from women-owned businesses as much as possible. In addition to building the website and doing all of the photography and social media, she has also been busy designing her own logo, packaging, and labels.
In the new year, Primrose & May will introduce a new collection for Valentine’s Day and self-care packages. There will also be surprises for Mother’s Day and additional craft boxes that can be done with children or on your own.
“We never really outgrow our love of that holiday magic. And if someone else does it for you, it becomes magical again!”
More information can be found at www.primroseandmay.com