The creative juices of two Durban moms fizzed after being fed up with the lack of choice in clothing for their tween daughters. Liesel Oldbury and Gitta Bezuidenhoudt share their story behind Sherbert.
Liesel and Gitta have always been close sisters and have shared the journey of motherhood with one another, including navigating all the joys and challenges together. Their children have also pretty much grown up together and consider themselves siblings rather than cousins.
Gitta, who has a background in fashion design, thrives on being a mom to daughters Seven-year-old Stella and Ava, who is nine, while graphic designer Liesel is a proud mom to 12-year-old Milla and Thomas who is nine. The sisters say there is never a dull moment in a life spent raising girls.
“We love that our girls are free and busy – they’ve always got something going on, and they’re reliably independent, but still up for a cuddle. They don’t necessarily fit the mould of princesses, but they are girls, and, as mothers we’ve loved the girly side of dressing them up. It reminds us a lot of how we grew up.”
Both siblings agree that in a world where social media and teen life go hand-in-hand, they’re hanging on to those priceless moments where they are able to connect with and remain strong figures in their children’s lives, especially their daughters’.
“During adolescence, kids begin to explore their social world, including who their friends are, what they wear, and what activities they do. It’s an exciting season but also quite daunting for moms and girls, especially because our girls feel deeply,” says Gitta.
“We’re raising them in a world that can be a little scary,” adds Liesel. “One in which the emotional issues they face are very real to them … school, sport, not quite fitting in, body issues. It’s a challenging and emotional journey for us all.”
It was while easing into this phase of parenthood that Gitta and Liesel both found that shopping for their girls was becoming more difficult. “With tween bodies constantly changing, it was getting harder to find clothes that fit and made our girls feel good about themselves.” say the women.
So off to the best brainstorming space they had – the dining room table with a glass of wine in hand. Here they shared their frustrations and decided to use their skills to create a wearable, with the emphasis on comfortable, way for their girls to embrace where they’re at.
In November 2022 the sisters were popping corks and celebrating the launch of their proudly Durban range of clothing with the key ingredients – a mother’s love and some tween inspiration. The team believe their clothing makes their girls, and their girls friends, and any other tweens, feel empowered by what they wear.
“There are a few accessories that we’ve snuck in, but the focus is on comfortable clothing – wash, wear and no tear! We believe that fit over sizing helps inspire many young girls who are navigating that space in-between kids and small adult fits.” says Gitta.
Big on supporting local, the women source fabric that is knitted at a mill in Westmead. They generally prefer thicker fabrics, as these offer more comfort and last longer, they say. After creating their own designs, which are then printed onto their chosen fabric, the clothing is manufactured at a factory in Umgeni Road.
“As for designs and colours, we try to keep these gentle, feeding off what our girls gravitate to more, like purples, blues, oranges and soft greens.”
The emphasis is on fun, so Gitta and Liesel spend a decent amount of time playing around with design ideas and colour swatches.
“And the girls always get involved. We show them our ideas, they try on our samples and give us their honest feedback. It has been so special to see them choose and wear our clothing. But that doesn’t mean we never have to go shopping for regular clothing at fashion stores that are all the rage among tweens these days! This is also why we try to make our range so versatile … so they can mix and match with branded items they love just as much.”
Their Winter range will be out this month, featuring tracksuits, hoodies, woven fabrics and cotton twills.
And that’s not all that’s in the pipeline! The women are busy brainstorming ideas for pop up events for moms and girls that involve loads of fun and also giving back to the community by supporting local NGOs and NPOs.
“We’re also dying to make denims! And then there are shoes … something we’re giving a lot of thought to. How awesome this would be to complete our range.”
Where you’ll find Sherbert …
Gitta and Liesel trade at the monthly I Heart Market at Sugar Rush in Ballito (the next one is May 6 from 8.30am to 2pm). Sherbert is also stocked by Spence and Mae at the Mushroom Farm in Hillcrest and Big Tree Africa at Sugar Village in Ballito. You’ll find the full range online at sherbert.co.za where every outfit includes measurements and a size chart.
Details: Follow them on Insta and Facebook at @shopsherbert
