{12 Days of Giveaways} Day 2 : Freshly Picked

This next company needs no introduction, as they've absolutely crushed the kid moccasin world. Even parents who don't shop small and have zero-to-little interest in what their kids are wearing usually know about Freshly Picked (FP) because they've made such an incredible name for themselves. Durable, comfortable, easy to put on but hard for kids to kick off, these tiny leather and suede moccasins are hands-down the best of the best out there.

Like June & January, Freshly Picked was one of the first 'small' shops I purchased from and definitely the first I heard of. When I was super pregnant, I remember seeing founder and CEO Susan Petersen on Shark Tank and thinking they were absolutely the cutest things ever. I had Sydney a few days later and completely forgot all about Freshly Picked until some wonderful family friends gifted me with Sydney's first pair. Oh my gosh---I fell so hard in love and it's grown ever since. My love affair with Freshly Picked have been well documented here and here, but it's been interesting and so fun to see how the moccs fare as Sydney continues to grow older.

Six months old and wearing gold FPs

Almost three years old and wearing leopard FPs (currently sold out; other options here)

Still durable, comfortable and easy to put on, Freshly Picked moccasins are still some of my favorite shoes of Sydney's. Maybe it's because they remind of when she was a baby, or maybe it's because of their ever-expanding line of prints and colors, or maybe it's even because Sydney refers to them as her 'princess shoes' for whatever reason, but regardless I just can't quit FP.

Freshly Picked was created in 2009 by Susan Petersen, who still currently sits as CEO and is a marketing genius (and/or also has a genius marketing team). Susan, like Amy of June & January, is extremely hands-on and absolutely loves, interacts and values each and every customer. With over 700,000 followers on Instagram, it's not uncommon for Susan or one of her team members to comment on a customer's picture, or at the very least, 'like' it, which speaks volumes to her company. Susan has created some amazing grassroots marketing campaigns, including their launch of hard-soled shoes called "For Every Step," where they contacted all their first and loyal customers and sent them a pair of hard-soled shoes with a personalized note from Susan and a tagline that read, "From the first step, to the next step, Freshly Picked will be there."

Freshly Picked has expanded its line of soft-soled moccasins to newborn sizes and also includes hard-soled shoes for old kids. There are also special cleaning kits for both suede and leather, so the shoes always stay looking gorgeous, which is so nice to have because...well, kids. They have expanded sales into large retailers, including Nordstrom, Zappos, Bloomingdale's, Diapers.com, Buy Buy Baby . . . I think you can even get FP off Amazon now. The brand currently has multiple sales per year, marking their shoes down 25%, so sign up for their newsletter to stay up-to-date with sales and styles, and there is also a Facebook B/S/T group for gently used shoes as well.

And of course there is a giveaway on my Instagram starting today running through the weekend! Head over and check it out -- but for a huge bonus entry, please comment below your favorite print/color (and don't forget to leave your Instagram handle, so I know you entered twice!).

Happy weekend!

xoxo,
Sarah