Vanessa Goodson, of OMGNess Styling, decorated a baby shower for All Black Julian Savea's wife, Fatima Savea. Photo / Nikki Deles
The Herald is this week profiling people who have made a living by turning a hobby into a job.
Vanessa Goodson lives in a colourful world.
Blues, pinks, purples and fuschia - you name it, she's got it.
The founder of OMGNess Styling is a self-proclaimed lover of balloons and has become a sought-after stylist thanks to her knack for making unique and over-the-top balloon garlands.
"It started off as a hobby - 100 per cent," she says.
"I've been a flight attendant for nine years, flying for Qantas, and I've had two babies while doing that."
While on maternity leave last year, she decorated her older daughter's fifth birthday.
"My friends were like: 'Oh, you need to do something with this talent you've got'.
"I started doing other people's kids' parties, which I loved. I got to do me and use my ideas and my vision. I'd be up all night looking for inspo [inspiration] and then making it my own.
"Then I tried out a balloon garland for a client and then that just went crazy. I made one and suddenly there were orders from everywhere."
She sources her balloons from a supplier overseas who makes sure she is stocked up with all kinds of bright colours.
"I use the creme de la creme of balloons - the best quality and the best colours. You can tell the difference between them and the $2 shop balloons.''
Despite balloon installations being hugely popular overseas, no one was doing them here, she found.
On her busiest weekend, Goodson made nine balloon installations for different clients and events around the city.
She caters to all kinds of styles, colour palettes and themes for birthdays, bridal showers, hens parties and even corporate dos.
Among her clients is Fatima Savea, wife of All Black star Julian Savea, whom Goodson helped to style a baby shower for.
The demand for her work has been so high that in October she decided to resign from her fulltime job in order to expand her business.
"I found a passion for balloons. That was my special something that I took out of styling - I can style all the time, but balloon garlands are one of my most popular products on offer.
"I started out as a stylist and balloons have just recently popped off," she said.
"I'm seriously living a dream. Sometimes I can't even believe that it's happening to me."
Jobs for Mums' game of chance; big prize money, long odds and a little social enterprise.