Our salty lifestyle ( Part 1)

Hey!! I'm Ash. Owner, founder, creator of Salty Shreds and all things rad. Lover, mother, stepmother. 

I surf, I skate, i breathe underwater and most importantly, i live my life to the absolute fullest extent, ceasing every moment and opportunity, whilst enjoying all the simple things our lifestyle has to offer.

Born on the Sunshine Coast 29 years ago, I've always had a connection and love for the ocean. It's where I belong and I can truly feel alive and drift away. For as long as i can remember, all i ever wanted to do was surf. Soon as I was able to save enough money, I bought my first second hand Gunther Rohn board, and would take it out any chance I got, teaching myself to surf, without having an actual clue about what i was doing. Lucky my fearless and determined personality took over, as before i knew it, i was walking on water, the greatest feeling I've ever known.

  Fast forward ten years, i'm shredding on my own custom made fish, living by the seaside, and sharing my love for the ocean with my daughter. 

2018 was the year of all years. The year that ultimately changed my life. My most challenging, hectic, yet rewarding and happiest all wrapped into one. I was able to depart from my old, very unfulfilling, unrewarding job in accounting within the motor industry, where i spent the last 8 years, to take on one of the hardest, most satisfying jobs in the world - - - - Motherhood

On Feb 26, 2018, at 5.32pm, I gave birth to the most beautiful little mermaid I have ever laid eyes on. Bryxton Harper changed my life as I knew it for the better. Being able to create something so beautiful with the person you love and getting to see the best parts of both of you more and more in them every day, is nothing I could ever have imagined.

After commencing maternity leave in January , with no plan ever to return to my current mundane job, I continued my health science degree and started my own little side business building and reclaiming furniture to keep myself busy, prior to giving birth. Suprisingly it was something i really enjoyed and  was really good at. However, once bub was born, using power tools and electric sanders was not exactly ideal with a newborn bub around.

So, the plan was simple. I was to smash out my health degree whilst raising my kids, and be fully qualified by the time they started school. Apart from being an avid ocean lover, I am also big on living a natural, holistic and healthy lifestyle. Suffering from so many gut health issues, resulting in a stressful two year journey through IVF to conceive our baby girl, I went on a holistic healing journey to living a cleaner and healthier lifestyle. After going through what I went through, and the amazing benefits I felt after my change, I became fascinated with gut health, healing and the link between diet and so many health and behaviour related issues Women, Men and Children face daily. I knew I wanted to educate and help others into bettering their lifestyle to live their best life. It still is and what I will always be passionate about.

Did I mention that I am now 5 months pregnant with another baby girl? This time conceived 100% naturally within the first month of trying.

It is truly amazing how the body has the ability to heal itself through such simple disciplinary lifestyle changes. 

So, by now you are probably wondering how the hell Salty Shreds fits into any of this. Have i ever had any interest in designing my own clothes? No. Do I have any clue about running my own business? Not at all. Do i know a single thing about clothing design at all? Hell no. I do however, love style and finding my own that suits my lifestyle and personality. I've always wanted to own my own little surf shop by the beach, but of course that was always just a dream to me and never a possibility.

One thing i struggled with when becoming a mum was not working. I've been working since I was 14 years old. The feeling like I needed to be doing something, achieving something great. I have too much motivation and drive in me to be doing nothing with the spare time i had and my degree just seemed so far away, 

So when i started to notice the absolute lack of baby clothing available that suited our lifestyle, my baby girls personality and wasn't ridiculously overpriced, i started to think that maybe this was something i could create. Within a week, I had come up with a brand, logo and my first design "wave searching". Once i started to see the interest, there was no stopping me. I just had sold my investment property and it was the perfect time to invest a small portion into what could be a very unique, and enjoyable business venture. I'm no designer, but as i said, i know style and i love to be unique and creative. I'm also no girls girl, and I've never been the princess type. I'm always the girl skating, surfing or playing sports with the boys, as I love getting dirty, being active and living drama free.  So finding outfits for my daughter that didn't involve pink or frills was another challenge for me.

This made my designs and ideas incredibly simple, as i knew exactly the type of brand I wanted to create. A brand that is based around an endless summer. Neutral tones and stylish threads that can be worn by both sex. A mixture of organic and beautiful soft materials that suit our coastal lifestyle. Quality is important, whilst still maintaining a fair and affordable price range.

My biggest challenge was the social media aspect. Living a lifestyle where technology barely exists, I've never used or had social media, being a very private person that hates sitting behind a computer or phone, i knew this was going to be a massive challenge. Something I needed to overcome. I'm slowly adjusting and I make sure I am not on my phone around my baby girl, as i do 

Now that I have been blessed with another beautiful girl due in October, and my business continues to grow, I've unfortunately had to take a step back from my studies in order to give my daughter the time she needs to grow and learn, whilst maintaining a healthy pregnancy and giving my business a chance to grow and hopefully succeed.

I have so many more designs and ideas constantly flooding my mind, so please stay tuned, follow my journey in motherhood, and in what i hope to be a very long and successful business venture.

To all you local like minded mummas who want to reach out, I welcome new friendships, lengthy chats and salty hangs with our little loves.

 

Written July 2018

P.S stay tuned for part two

Ash x x 

Salty Shreds