Meet the Creator - Jo Maree
A farmer and mother to three small boys.
Being time poor and having a lack of free hands are things I now wear with pride, however it wasn’t always this way.
A few years ago, when I took on the role of a mum, it didn't mean I was to move away from being a farmer. Balancing the challenges of motherhood was already difficult, but when I combined it with my existing responsibilities, it was the little things that stressed me out.
I felt frustrated each morning thinking about the practicality of the shirt I would need to wear for the day. I worried about my colleagues feeling the need to divert their eyes as I struggled learning the positions of feeding and hiding unwanted skin exposure. I worried about sun protection, how my post-partum body now looked, or about getting a nice or expensive top ruined because it’s all I could find.
I just wanted to wake up each morning, throw on my ‘daily uniform’ and feel comfortable in what I was wearing.
When I had my first baby, we had a very busy new business and were in the dry depths of the 2019 drought. While my husband was working away for the first few months, I was at home holding down the fort. Waking up before light each morning, feeding my baby, packing a bag for the day, chugging down half a coffee, and heading off to work - baby in toe, all before 6am.
I worked for hours each day in close contact with many other staff, both male and female. I got dirty, I got sweaty, and I got sunburnt. And right beside me every step of the way was our newborn son. Our days consisted of managing our 8,000 free range hens, working in the packing shed, and driving around feeding cattle.
The sleepless nights and 24hr demands of a newborn baby sure take it out of you, and finding clothes that were practical, and I was comfortable in was just another thing I had to think about every morning. I searched every corner of the internet for a shirt that would just make my day that little bit easier with no results.
A little while later our second baby came along, and I was still working day to day in our business, while chasing after an 18-month-old.
Unfortunately, this little one needed 24hr oxygen for his first few months of life which added to the juggle. With breathing tubes and an oxygen tank, my hands were now completely full to say the least. The zips and buttons on my breastfeeding shirts frustrated me yet again, however this time I wasn't going to let it get the better of me. Out came the scissors and sewing machine and my old work shirts found a new life.
JoMaree Designs was born
