It feels like everywhere you turn right now, AI is part of the conversation. It’s in business tools, social media, design platforms, writing apps, and even online shops like mine. As someone who has spent more than 30 years working with my hands—designing, cutting, sewing, and finishing handmade aprons—I’ve had a front-row seat to how quickly things are changing.
So I wanted to share my honest thoughts: not as an expert in artificial intelligence, but as a small handmade business owner trying to navigate it thoughtfully and responsibly.
The Good
Let’s start with the positive, because there is a lot of good.
AI has made it possible for small businesses like mine to do things that used to be out of reach. Tasks that once required expensive tools, outside services, or hours of technical work can now be simplified. That matters when you’re a one-person shop wearing all the hats.
One of the biggest benefits for me has been helping customers visualize my work more clearly. When I create an apron, I see it in my mind worn in a cozy kitchen, at a farmer’s market, in a classroom, or while baking cookies with grandkids. AI helps me share those ideas visually so you can better imagine how a piece might look in real life.
It’s also helped me save time on repetitive tasks so I can stay focused on what I care about most: designing and sewing.
The Bad
But there are also real concerns.
One of the biggest issues I see is confusion about what is real and what is generated. In a world where images can be created instantly, it becomes harder for customers to know what they’re actually buying if sellers are not transparent.
There’s also the risk of everything starting to look the same. Handmade work is personal. It carries the marks of human hands, decisions, and imperfections that give it character. If we rely too heavily on digital tools without intention, we risk losing some of that uniqueness.
And of course, there’s the larger conversation about creativity—what it means for artists, photographers, designers, and makers whose work has traditionally relied on original creation and real-world production.
The Ugly
There’s a harder side to all of this too.
AI can be misused. It can be used to mislead, to imitate real people’s work, or to replace handmade craftsmanship entirely in ways that remove the human story behind what we create. That’s something I feel strongly about.
I’ve also seen how quickly it can become overwhelming—so many voices, tools, trends, and opinions that it’s easy for small business owners to feel pressured to “keep up” instead of staying true to their own rhythm and values.
And perhaps the ugliest part is when technology is used without transparency. When customers believe they’re seeing one thing, but reality is something else entirely, trust is broken. And trust is everything in a handmade business.
The Reality (for Me and My Shop)
Here is where I land personally:
I am a handmade business first. Always have been, always will be.
Every apron in my shop is still designed, cut, sewn, and finished by me. That will not change.
At the same time, I’m also a small business trying to communicate my work clearly in a digital world. If AI helps me show you how an apron might look in everyday life—on different bodies, in different settings, in ways that help you feel confident about your purchase—then I’m open to using it as a supportive tool.
But I believe strongly in being honest about it.
That’s why I’ve chosen to be transparent when I use AI-generated lifestyle imagery. It is meant to support understanding, not replace the real product or the real work behind it.
My Hope Moving Forward
I don’t think AI is going away. I also don’t think handmade work is going away.
I think we’re in a season where both will exist side by side—and the responsibility is on us as makers, sellers, and customers to use it thoughtfully.
For me, the goal is simple:
To keep making beautiful, functional, heirloom-quality aprons… and to keep sharing them in a way that is honest, helpful, and respectful of the craft behind them.
If you’ve supported my shop, you’ve supported real hands, real fabric, real sewing, and real care in every stitch. That will always be the heart of what I do.
Thank you for being here as this world changes and evolves with us.
With gratitude,
Laurie