Words Denise Irvine, images Brydie Thompson
I’m looking at shelves stacked high with Happily products and my fingers are itching to dive into the boxes and make things: beaded bracelets, tie-dyed bags, bespoke candles, clay models and, yes, even cut-out paper dolls from my own childhood.
To tell the story of Happily, though, we need to start at the beginning, a few years back, when Hamilton couple Kirsty and Chris Parker’s young son Hugo was experiencing some episodes of anxiety. Kirsty says that in seeking support for him he was referred to a wonderful occupational therapist.
As part of his therapy she and Hugo did crafting projects together, making figurines, bracelets and similar, and Hugo flourished in the process. His device time was restricted and he looked for more crafts to explore.
He had the perfect entrepreneurial parents to find fresh ideas: Kirsty and Chris own Sweet Pea Parties and their 13-year-old business is the biggest independent party supply and cake-ware retailer in New Zealand.
They stock decorations for all of life’s milestones, from engagements to weddings, gender reveals to first birthdays, 21sts to golden wedding anniversaries, and anything else you might think of. Two other websites – Cake & Kitchen (for cake-bakers) and The Jigstore (for jigsaw aficionados) sit under the Sweet Pea umbrella.
And now, happily, there is Happily, and the website went live in November with about 500 (and growing) crafty products which Kirsty says are aimed at inspiring young people to step away from digital devices and distractions and enjoy activities that nourish the mind, spark creativity and foster positive mental health.
“When I looked for creative craft projects for Hugo I couldn’t find the things we wanted in the one place. So I had this idea for a new business. I ran it past Chris and he said the last time he pooh-poohed one of my business ideas it was Sweet Pea, so he was on board with it too!”
Serendipitously, Happily is the second business connected to their children: Sweet Pea was launched after Kirsty and Chris hosted a blue-and-white themed baptism party for Hugo’s older brother William (now 14). Kirsty was frustrated by the limited party decorations available in New Zealand so she and Chris started Sweet Pea at home in response.
There has been a trajectory of demand, expansion and success: Sweet Pea outgrew their house and garage, they moved to premises in Princes Street, outgrew that, and are now in a much bigger building in Rostrevor Street where there is a showroom and warehouse servicing their walk-in and online customers. With space for Happily, which is a neat fit with Sweet Pea’s upbeat style.
“Happily is about happy minds, happy hands and happy hearts,” says Kirsty. “It’s about getting kids to use their hands and their brains, enjoying a play-based childhood rather than a phone-based one.”
Kirsty recalls needlework, such as long-stitch and cross-stitch, that she did as a child, and she has a life-long love of jigsaw puzzles. “There is always one on the board.”
And way before Sweet Pea, she had a side-hustle called Bella Bambino, making hand-crafted greeting cards that were sold by 25 New Zealand retailers including the former Redcurrent stores. “I’m an active relaxer.”
As she takes a tour of Happily wares she says many of the products are old-school treasures re-envisioned for the 21st century. There are paint boxes, pouches of glittery play dough, origami kits, and kits for making candles, jewellery, dream-catchers, tie-dyed items, pressed flowers, paper planes and Hey! Clay figurines (a favourite of Hugo’s).
A beautifully illustrated This is Me journal is designed to help young people document their feelings, thoughts and actions in a safe place, and it has a dinky little lock for extra-special security.
Other journals and colouring-in books offer more opportunities for individual expression, and there is a quirky line-up of sensory and fidget toys including Crunchy Slime, a Push Pop Rainbow Unicorn, a Hey Doodle Wild Digits Sensory Playmat and a Squishy Rabbit.
There is also a fragrant aromatherapy range of essential oils, mists, candles and bath bombs to promote relaxation and calm.
Kirsty says the search for new products continues in New Zealand and overseas, and they may have only scratched the surface at this point with Happily. She says Hugo, now 12, is doing well at home and school, he always has a craft project on the go, and of course there was a hand-made gift from him on her birthday.
- Happily products are online at happily.co.nz or at Sweet Pea Parties, 70 Rostrevor Street, Hamilton.
