I am honored to have been asked to do the first video interview on Mommies Cafe, the community site where mommies get together online for a coffee break.
The interview goes into detail on how I got started in business and as an author, and includes some advice for other work at home moms. I had a lot of fun doing the interview, and I hope you’ll check it out.
Hi I’m Hannah Stevenson from While They Sleep Designs. I am wife to a great guy named Jeff (the handsome man in the green). And I am “Momma” to three little girls all under the age of two: Twin girls Laurel (green skirt) and Maisy (blue skirt, scowl on face) and our newest little one, Norah Jane (the sweetest cherub of a baby). Life is crazy over at our house as I’m sure most of you can imagine. But there is NEVER a dull moment and that’s the way we like it.
I love to sew, crochet, paint, bake. I look forward to learning to knit someday. My mom taught me how to sew on her old New Home sewing machine, but I never really had a passion for it until my babies were born. Now I can say that I am certifiably obsessed.
I love to create..but find it hard to do while my little munchkins are underfoot so I have learned that the three words “fast”, “easy” and “affordable” make me and everyone else around here very happy. That’s why I created my blog “While They Sleep“. It is the place to go for inspiration and projects you can do while your babes are sleeping (or destroying the living room).
I believe that everyone has within them the desire and ability to create. My goal is to inspire and encourage especially women to do just that! It is also my goal to help those who are new to sewing say to themselves “I can do this!” and learn a new skill or two along the way.
I also have an Etsy shop where some of my original patterns are sold. My goal is to produce projects that are beautiful and practical but also all fall under the rules of “Fast, Easy and Affordable”. Things you can actually get done “While They Sleep.”
I’m proud to introduce the newest pattern available in my Etsy shop: The Pod Swaddler. You can go to my shop for more details.
I do everything I do from a little corner of the kitchen. My husband is working full time and going to school at night so I usually get a lot of what I get done while he’s away and the girls are asleep. I look forward to someday having a room just for creating and doing projects with my girls. I also look forward to doing a lot more with creating patterns. My dream is to have my own pattern line someday. But I am happy with the pace of my shop and my blog right now. It keeps me busy but not too busy to enjoy these precious, fleeting years with my girls.
Here’s a sampling of what you can find on the blog:
The Table Runner Apron
Lillian Weber says she took a year of sewing in 4H when she was 17 years old, but she forgot all about sewing as she pursued other interests and goals. After her three children were born, Lillian says “the creative side of me was itching to get out and do something.” Since money was tight, she began by upcycling clothes for her kids, then went on to branch into doing alterations and production sewing.
She was frustrated by fitting problems, especially for women with fuller busts, so she “pursued the fitting secrets with a passion and finally found enough of them online and in books, which, together with my analytical and problem solving brain, helped me solve fitting problems in sewing.”
Her business, JSAW Mastectomy Designs, was born in 2003 and Lillian says its still feels like a bit of a startup since she’s constantly learning new aspects of the business, like the ins and outs of online stores and website development.
Lillian designs and sews custom made nightwear and intimate apparel for ladies who have had a lumpectomy or mastectomy due to breast cancer. Her designs are custom made to her customer’s specific measurements, they do not come in small, medium and large, all with the same bust cup size. She actually creates a new pattern, based on the customer’s measurements, for each new garment order she receives.
The business is run from Lillian’s home office and she has a sewing room setup in the basement. Lillian says the best part about being self employed is “being able to be there for your family when they need you. Also being able to follow one’s own dreams and heart’s passion.” Lillian knows the frustration of not being able to find clothes that fit, “not because of a mastectomy but because of having a body that is a combination of about 4 different dress sizes,” so she completely understands the relief of finally having clothes that fit well.
Visit the JSAW Mastectomy Designs website at www.mastectomydesigns.com, or check out her online store at http://store.mastectomydesigns.com.
Alexandra Smith started sewing when she was about 11 or 12. She remembers making costumes for herself and a friend on her mother’s Bernina 830, which she still owns. She made her first quilt in the 7th grade and fondly remembers taking sewing classes in junior high. She sewed off and on for years, then about 5 years ago she re-discovered sewing as a serious creative outlet. Alexandra started sewing for her daughter and family, then for friends and neighbors, and people were soon asking her for more.
Last year Alexandra decided to start a blog as a way to lay the groundwork for her own business. Since that time she says, “I have met such an amazing community of people and gained the confidence to reach for higher goals. I have been fortunate (and busy) with custom orders, some through my blog and some through word-of-mouth.”
Her business, Lola Nova, creates a wide variety of eclectic products including home goods, accessories and children’s apparel. Check out these gorgeous custom stuffed animals Alexandra recently made for a customer from her grandmother’s blanket.
Alexandra works out of a cozy corner in the basement of her home, she says it isn’t glamorous but she’s happy to have her own creative space. She plans to open an Etsy store next month and is looking forward to displaying her wares at some local craft fairs this fall and winter. Visit Alexandra’s Lola Nova blog where she generously shares project tutorials for neat designs like this summer wallet, as well as helpful sewing and gardening tips.