My name is Veronika and I am a mom of three, a designer, a photographer and a lover of animals - especially horses! I met my husband at school in Prague and we have been together since; we are both Czech. I was pregnant with our first child when he was offered a job in Canada, and we decided to move across the ocean to try life in a new country for a while. Twelve years and three children later, we still live in Ontario with the addition of our cat and five horses. 

I truly fell in love with wool after my first child was born. Living in Canada means preparing for very long, cold winters. While searching for the warmest clothing for my newborn, I also wanted something eco-friendly so that it was non toxic not only for my kids but for the earth (biodegradable, sustainable) so wool was my first choice. I believe that if wool is produced well, from sheep to product, it can be all of these things. 

I would like to say that I dress the kids as kids, not tiny adults. I’m a fan of bonnets, onesies, overalls, wool, linen, cotton - anything easy to move in; ready to play and explore. If possible, I always seek these in my favourite, earthy and natural colours: greys, browns, rust, dark ochre, terracotta... keeping within this palette makes it easy to style, too. Their wardrobe is a mix of consciously made pieces with a lot of secondhand items bought either from local thrift stores, or handed on from friends or social networks. I have to remark that my children don’t seem to care about what they wear and I’m lucky never to have heard “But I don’t want to wear this!”. Instead, they like to know the stories of their clothes: where from, by whom and what were my shoes, toys and clothing made from? This topic is often discussed in our house because as a product photographer, I have the pleasure of getting to know these things first hand from designers, makers and shop owners. 

Of course, none of us are perfect when it comes to what we buy but I do believe that if everyone thought more deeply about these things and made small changes, we could all achieve something for this planet. Layering is key for me when dressing with wool. It took me a while to try wool as a base layer, but I am so happy I did, especially in colder months although wool as a temperature and self-regulating material is great all year round. It absorbs moisture, slowly evaporating it from the warm body and won’t leave you damp or stinky because of its antibacterial properties - it’s simply the best!

In our regular winter (around minus twenty or below!) I like to start with this as a base layer - for example, a merino tank top, plus long sleeve top and leggings. A middle layer would be a thicker sweater and knitted pants, followed by a merino balaclava and neck warmer, wool hat and socks, and topped with a boiled wool layer like an Engel or Disana overall or pants or jacket or coat. Boiled wool is also amazing in heavy snow conditions, even very wet snow. If the weather is milder, I’d probably remove the pants and balaclava - for me it’s always better to have to take something off than be sorry for not having enough on.

My favourite ever item from MamaOwl is definitely Engel merino fleece suit. My son has spent three winters in it and I’m only sorry I didn’t have it for my two older kids.  It’s all worth the investment with pieces that can be passed from child to child and I keep recommending it to anyone I know with newborn.
Other than Engel, I also love Disana, Misha and Puff, Red Creek Kids, Angulus, Faire Child, Mormor...haha stop me, and of course I'm also very excited about SISKIN to try, it looks absolutely amazing so congrats you guys! The Flower fairies and Grimm's are both well loved in our house.

One of my favourite things about wool is how easy it is to care for, although many people think the opposite, and I used to too. Wool's natural self-cleaning properties amaze me all the time: I find especially boiled wool and sweaters very forgiving in terms of not needing to be washed all season.I like to just air clean by leaving it outside, exposed to fresh crispy air or laying it in the snow for a few hours, with wet dirt or mud coming easily off after or with gentle brushing when dry. At the end of the season I hand wash sweaters using pure Castille soap or any truly non toxic shampoo and dry it laying flat, reshaping it with my hands. Base layers like merino I wash more often, and even dry them in the dryer on low.

Veronika's kids wool: Engel slate suit, Engel slate jacket, Typically Red Pixie hats, Mormor Palle Sweaters, Disana boiled wool dungarees, Disana boiled wool mittens, Engel exclusive cardigan, Engel exclusive top, Misha and Puff Pointy Peak hat

Veronika @veronikagphotograpy