Hi, I am Suzanne, founder of NAAiNAAi, welcome to our website!
'Naai' means 'sew; in Dutch and as that's exactly what we do, it felt like the right name for our brand. NAAiNAAi Its pronounced like Chai,Chai or Bye Bye.
I was born in the Netherlands and now live in beautiful Devon between the rolling hills with my husband and three children (...two dogs, chickens and guineapigs...).
I've had a love of wood/handwork and crafts my whole life. One grandma was an artist potter, the other an amateur seamstress and painter. Having enjoyed Steiner education my whole school life and then going on to be a Steiner classteacher, solidified this love so that after my own three children were born, I went on to use this love and skill in a practical way by sewing clothes and making toys for our family.
Having been brought up with nature, at home and in school, bringing up my own family in a conscious, wholesome way was second nature. Starting up NAAiNAAi since the children have all been at school has been a journey flowing on from that.
It has been absolutely wonderful, not least for me personally. I encountered a close shave with life a few years back after which I struggled with post traumatic stress disorder; 'anxiety' in one word. It has taken a lot of time and work to get a new balance in my life but when feeling I was resurfacing I felt finding purpose in learning new things, meeting new people and creating a beautiful brand that stands for what I stand for, very healing. Knowing how hard it is to relate as a bystander, but also knowing how impossible it can be to help yourself, we donate to a charity striving to help people on their journey; Anxiety UK, with every sale.
And talking of sustainability; NAAiNAAi wouldn't exist if it couldn't also be a cog in trying to make the ways we live more sustainable, using our resources sensibly. to read more on that visit our what it's all about page.
So thank you for all the love and support for NAAiNAAI, it is literally doing me (and others) a world of good!
Suzanne