I still have my childhood Barbie… in her original pink and purple jumpsuit. She was the most beautiful thing I have ever owned. She had friends, a boyfriend and a sister, but she was always my favourite. When Lexa is old enough she can look forward to get a starter collection of her own from a mermaid, ballerina, rockstars and fashionistas to superheroes.
Here are just some of the newer Barbies that will form part of her collection.
…and this one will go into my own personal collection 🙂
‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’ – Nelson Mandela!
Richards Bay, 23 April 2018 – Hosted by JB Marks Education Trust Fund, the 7th prestigious Career Exhibition in South Africa is taking place today and tomorrow in Richards Bay, Kwazulu-Natal at the Zululand Chamber of Business Foundation to form part of giving the SA youth a better chance at a bright future with knowledge and resources.
As JB Marks Education Trust Fund, the ethos is to give the youth some fighting chance as future leaders who are fully capable of changing the economic and social status of South Africa through exposure to information and opportunities available at the JB Marks Career Exhibition. Ultimately, we aim to inspire and motivate.
As we celebrate the 21st anniversary of “Education is power”, the Annual Career Exhibition is an initiative that the Trust Fund takes great pride in because it has been designed essentially as a platform to plough back into the community. For this reason, these Career Exhibitions always target areas that have the least access to resources and opportunities.
“Information is power, and the best way to empower our people is to arm them with knowledge and resources. Moreover, this is a platform that will enable learners in and around Richards Bay to be in a position to make the best possible choices about not only what to study post Matric, but also which industries to pursue post tertiary. This will go a long way towards minimising career challenges faced in the country; and subsequently contribute positively to the state of the nation’s economy and growth,” said JB Marks Education Trust Fund Board member, Simphiwe Nanise.
As we celebrate our 21st Anniversary, we believe that there is no better way to celebrate this milestone than with an event that will have such a positive impact on the great community of Richards Bay.
“As the Department of Basic Education in KZN, we are profoundly proud to be the beneficiaries of an initiative of this magnitude, especially one that focuses on empowering learners through education and well-needed information regarding their future careers – this are the kinds of interventions we need in our communities, to the JB Marks Education Trust Fund, I say – well done and continue to do the good work” says Dr. Ngogi Mahaye, Head of Ministry.
“We remain objective in ensuring all students who access this education trust are making a contribution towards the upliftment of the lives of our members and society in general – ultimately education is the most powerful weapon.” Concludes Sekanka
Lexa must be the luckiest girl in the world, because she gets to play with toys that I could only have dreamt of as a child. She received a Fisher-Price phone, you know that old-fashioned white, red, blue and yellow phone with the big round dial…
She gets to pick 3 toys to take on her daily toy date with the rest of the kids in the complex and I can hear what she drags along from my upper floor office window when they make their way there. Sometimes I take a peek and then I see her dragging a little phone closely followed by a little black cat.
We always pack the Fisher-Price phone if we go somewhere, because she loves it and it isn’t the noisiest toy around.
In my opinion, I would love to keep the little phone for her one day, because old-fashioned phones never go out of fashion or favour in my world.
If you are too young to know how the original Chatter Phone looked, here it is:
Few things irk me off as much as people that don’t do their job and then are hell-bent on arguing with you about it… and then sommer humans suck too.
A couple of weeks ago we ordered dinner via UberEats. The gate phoned to say the delivery driver has arrived and I let him in. We heard him drive by and next moment the app says my dinner was delivered. We quickly phoned the guardhouse to catch the guy but he had tailgated out.
Apparently the delivery guy knocked on some random door, the shi*** person claimed my dinner and oh… I had to eat the last slice of bread in the house as dinner. I was not impressed.
I would’ve probably been OK with this story if UberEats didn’t have their call centre in India and after repeatedly asking them to contact the driver and asking to speak to a manager, I was still on hold for more than 30 minutes. Can you imagine how that would ignite a short-tempered person to literally explode?
I got a refund, but the facts of the matter is that (1) why was my food delivered to a random number in my complex when we had added our unit number on 3 different lines so it cannot be missed. (2) Why do they have a call centre in India? You do business in Africa, you employ more Africans. (3) Telling me that I don’t have the right to ask about an order my husband placed on his UberEats app and paid with a credit card that is linked to my account while I could supply a screenshot of the order number and he lives in the house we share… that doesn’t fly with me.
I have deleted UberEats because this was not the first time I had to be without dinner because they couldn’t find my unit or oh wait, my part of the order wasn’t packed (that is a thing). My husband also deleted UberEats and I have literally told everyone that I know about the fantastic customer service.
And I hope that horrible human that STOLE my dinner caught a bug from it and suffered. Shi*** humans should not have the right to live on this earth.
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It’s a magical moment that inspires all kinds of storytelling when kids play with the Barbie Dreamtopia Flying Wings fairy doll. Simply attach one of the two sets of included flying wings to the butterfly wings on Barbie® fairy doll’s back. They snap right in to create a gorgeous double set of wings. Then pull the purple bow at Barbie® doll’s waist four times. When you’re ready to see the wings fly, press the butterfly button hidden on her bodice — the flying wings launch and soar into the air! Their beautiful fluttering motion and colourful designs make the soaring wings look like magical butterflies! It’s so much fun to repeat over and over, especially with two sets of wings.
Kids will love sending their stories into the sky. Barbie® fairy doll is ready to help their dreams take flight wearing an outfit inspired by Dreamtopia Rainbow Cove™. The pink bodice has rainbow stripes and stars, and the fairy skirt has a shimmery print of clouds and rainbows. A pink tiara adds a royal touch for fancy fairy occasions.
Fans of the animated series can recreate scenes, fairytale lovers can play out favourite moments and creative minds can tell fantastical stories because when you enter Dreamtopia with sisters Barbie™ and Chelsea™, you wake up to a world where dreams become reality!
Includes Barbie® Flying Wings fairy doll wearing a tiara with two pairs of flying wings. Doll cannot stand alone. Colours and decorations may vary.
Key features: The Barbie™ Dreamtopia Flying Wings fairy doll lets playtime take off with wings that really fly! Barbie® fairy doll comes with two sets of flying wings that can be attached to the butterfly wings on her back — snap the wings on, pull the purple bow at her waist four times and press the butterfly button hidden on her bodice to see the wings fly off into the air! The two sets of flying wings have colourful rainbow decorations, solid bodies and a fluttering motion that mimics butterflies! Barbie® fairy doll inspires colourful stories with looks from Rainbow Cove™: a pink one-shoulder bodice is decorated with colourful stripes and stars, a fairy rainbow skirt shimmers with a rainbow and cloud print and a pink tiara adds a final fairytale touch. Collect all the Barbie™ Dreamtopia dolls and accessories and let your stories take flight (each sold separately, subject to availability).
Little girls are little for such a short time in their lives. Let them play. Let them dream. Set their imaginations free with Barbie Dreamtopia #YouCanBeAnything.
I like to think that I’m doing my bit to support the local economy. I consciously look at where clothes are made before buying – but then there is the exceptions that I buy because I really like the print… especially for Lexa.
By now you should know that I love Barbie and by extension it means Lexa will never in her life own any other range of dolls that are similar. It will just not happen. She is very fortunate that I am a keen Barbie T-shirt buyer and that she probably has enough for 1.5 weeks without doing laundry.
Not all of them have been bought at retail prices as I am a frequent visitor to Durban’s factory shops… so don’t raise your eyebrows just yet.
You will be surprised to know that the Barbie clothing for your little princess found on the shelves of South African retailers isn’t imported and made in some country in the east – aikona, it is made right on the sunny shores of Durban! Plus if you have time to read about the manufacturing process (below) there are some other interesting facts.
It’s not the same picture for all
There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes once a retailer decides they want a Barbie line on their rails/shelves.
Blue Horizon Licencing, the agent for Mattel in South Africa, looks at what worked at the retailer in the past – colours, themes and styles – and work with the retailer’s trend department to work on a new line that could be brand new or incorporate an updated version of a past line.
…but it’s not all up to Blue Horizon and retailers as they receive a collection of artwork and style guides from the US/UK.
Blue Horizon has an in-house designer called Leanne and she will work on a concept and this gets send to the retailer and if they buy into the concept, the design is finalised.
Then it goes to the manufacturer
Leanne then hands over the artwork to Ayanda at TCI in Durban. The TCI team consisting of Ayanda the designer, Lisa the design manager and Lee who is a merchandiser to design a range incorporating Leanne’s design.
They take into account the pricing range of the retailer, silhouette and styling and then it gets send off to the retailer and Blue Horizon to do final approvals.
Off to the printers
The approved artwork and cut fabric panels are then send to Ocean Blue, the printers, in Durban. They then print the beautiful Barbie artwork onto the garment panels in a variety of techniques on a huge industrial printer with many functions.
Sewing it together
After printing the panels are sent to TCI to be sewn together by seamstresses. Each garment then gets quality checked before being pressed and tagged with the retailer’s swing tags. Then it is send off to the retailer’s distribution centre.
PS… almost everyone working on the Barbie lines are women!
It’s not over yet!
Blue Horizon still has to create marketing material. They arrange for a photoshoot which includes sourcing models, getting samples of the range from TCI and planning the shoot. They have a stylist, usually Erin Smylie from www.erinsmylie.co.za, on set who ensures the models are on point and ready with hair and outfits all day long.
A talented photographer called Kat Grudko (www.katgrudko.co.za) does the shoot and directs the little models – with Leanne on set to help with funny faces, tickles and jumps to get the girls smiling.
Timeframe
The product can take up to 8 months from initial concept to on the shelves – with multiple lines being developed simultaneously!
And there you have it… the whole product cycle with a Fashionista holding it.
…but this is not all you need to know
Now that we know that the design, print, cut, make and trim are done by South Africans – what about the material?
They do source single knit jersey fabric locally and TCI is now also starting to buy cotton yarn locally – and this is great news for local cotton growers! Unfortunately some specialised fabrics still have to be sourced from international suppliers – like denim and mesh.
So next time you are shopping for Barbie clothing, look at the tags and see that it was made in South Africa!
Adopting a tiny kitten is a magical experience, it literally takes seconds after introducing the curious little feline to your home that you realise two things: firstly, cats are Laugh Out Loud adorable, and secondly, you’re needing to learn a whole lot more about your little kitty. That’s why WHISKAS® has made the Kitten Kollege syllabus available to all South Africans.
The esteemed and prestigious international institute of feline education offers a broad curriculum for kitten owners. No matter what topic you’re curious about the Kitten Kollege has a class for you.
Currently, the illustrious Kitten Kollege offers classes on just some of the following subject matters:
So, if you’re interested in graduating in Kitten Care, or getting ahead on Curious Cat Conversations, this tertiary institution has a course to ensure you’re enriching and nurturing your kitten’s curiosity throughout their journey.
Satisfy that cat-like curiosity (and learn a little more about it too) by signing up for the FREE educational and endlessly entertaining Kitty Modules with WHISKAS® Kitten Kollege.
See all the Kitten Kollege videos
I don’t know why, but each time I go out of the office for a meeting one of my clients have an emergency. It’s like they can sense that I will be muting my phone – because I haven’t had anyone call me all week with any issues (other than the 2 days I literally stopped at the meeting venues).
It’s strange to think that I last worked at an office more than a year ago. I sometimes miss the coffee times or the long walk to Woolworths on the other side of Sandton City. I miss my colleagues even if all of them have moved on to other companies. I miss joking around and slacking off the days that I didn’t feel like working.
… don’t get me wrong, I still slack off some days to go have a coffee or indulge in a day of shopping – but what’s the fun in sneaking around from yourself?
So anyway, just because I mentioned the 2 days of meetings I want to show you something from my cupboard that I like to wear out… on my feet and arm 🙂
South Africa, 18 April, 2018 – Mattel South Africa has introduced a new brand franchise, Enchantimals™, to the South African market. The new range of whimsical characters and animal besties depicts a fantastical world celebrating the special bond between children and animals, as a pet is often a child’s very first bestie. Enchantimals joins Mattel South Africa’s girl’s portfolio of well-known brands offering products and engaging storylines that ignite imaginative play.
Launching with small dolls and playsets, the Enchantimals product inspires stories of friendship, empathy and compassion towards all living things. The characters and stories come to life through a variety of short-form YouTube content and a 60-minute movie on Nick Toon.
“At Mattel we are passionate about introducing properties that are both on-trend and purposeful,” says Andrea Ziella, Head of Marketing and Trade Marketing, Mattel SA. “We’re essentially bringing a popular animal aesthetic inspired by social media filters and marrying it with product and stories encouraging empathy and friendship.”
Who are the Enchantimals?
The Enchantimals™ dolls are a group of lovable characters (who are half animal) who have a special bond with their animal best friends. Each character is complete with her animal sidekick with whom she shares an unbreakable bond of friendship. These pairs of animal besties use their abilities and compassion to maintain balance, peace and harmony amongst all living things. Fans will have fun discovering new characters and collecting them all.
Some of the Enchantimals characters include:
In addition to the above core characters, there are many more to collect to play out your Enchantimal stories.
Enchantimals product ranges from RRP R129.99 – RRP R719.99 and is rolling out to South African retailers nationwide from March onwards. Follow along on the Enchantimals journey on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.
