Novelty Brooch Friday - October

I am so excited about this months brooch and seller.  Broesj is an Etsy shop I have looked at many times - oh you know a couple of times a month, and have bought a few brooches myself. Yep all three on my beret!

Babette is the owner of this fantastic shop and was so lovely in agreeing to offer one of her brooches as this months giveaway. Babette has answered 5 questions that, I think, give a little insight into her interest in brooches, the development of her shop and her favourite makers...and she loves Lea Stein's brooches just like I do and I know a lot of you do as well.

How did you come up with the name of your shop 'Broesj'? 

I'm Dutch. In the Netherlands we call a brooch 'broche', which is pronounced 'brosj'. While I was fantasizing about starting my own Etsy shop I came up with the name 'broesj'.

It has something from 'broche' in it and sounds a bit like 'babushka' (the mistaken name for the Russian dolls (they are called Matryoshka pop. A babushka is a headscarf). It also connects a bit to my name, which is Babette. The best thing about the name is that people will call brooches a broesj. So they ask me 'do you have any broesjes?' I love that!

When did your interest in brooches begin? 

My interest in brooches began at an early age. I accompanied my mum to flea markets. While she was looking for little treasuries I found out that it was a great place to search for unique fashion items ánd accessories. Searching for earrings I also came across brooches. Quickly my collection started to grow.

When did you turn your interest into your shop Broesj on Etsy?

In the Netherlands on Queens Day it's a tradition to visit flea markets. They are being held in every city and start very early. Every year me and my mom will go on the hunt for vintage treasures.

On one of these days we came across a mega large bucket filled with brooches. Since I'm very indecisive I was hovering around the bucket a while. The salesman asked if I would like to buy the whole lot. And I did.

When it was getting a bit slower in my job as an independent graphic designer I thought about my brooches again. I started designing a card. And then I thought: why not try to sell some of those on Etsy? Since I had some doubles I could try and say goodbye to some of them. That was in November 2011 and the start of my Etsy shop.

Do you have a favorite maker of jewellery/brooches?

One of my favorite brooch-makers is Lea Stein. She designs some of the craziest modern looking brooches with a magnificent material. The brooches are also quite large and recognizable.

What do you think it is about brooches that people love?

With brooches people can carry out a message without saying something. Since there are so many brooches in all kinds of forms and shapes, every day they can choose what they want to say or find a brooches that accompanies their mood. Look at Madeleine Allbright for example. Through her brooches she carried out a very strong message in politics.

So this ladies and gentlemen (I'm sure we have a few out there) is the novelty brooch you could win this month from Broesj - gaaaahhhh isn't it so cute!

So for your chance to win this cute brooch just post a picture of yourself on Instagram with your favourite brooch, entries can be submitted on any Friday from now up to  and including Friday 25th October with the hash tag #noveltybroochfriday and we will announce the winner (randomly chosen) on Monday 28th October. Open to everyone, you can enter as many times as you like, either new or vintage brooches.

Each month Erin and I will take it in turns to showcase those sellers of vintage brooches and designers we admire and love to wear ourselves.

*If you are a designer or sell vintage brooches (worldwide) and wish to donate a brooch for an upcoming month and have your shop showcased, please contact me at tunabake@hotmail.com