Hello! I'm Laurie, the designer, seamstress, photographer, bookkeeper, shipping department, customer service representative, and everything else behind Laurie's Gifts!
I've been professionally sewing since 1995 and running my own little handmade business since 2005. It's been quite an adventure, and definitely not something I ever planned to do!
I thought I'd share a little about myself, how Laurie's Gifts got started, and what it's really like running a one-woman handmade business.
So, here we go!
Hey Laurie, what's your background?
I have no formal training as a seamstress or pattern maker. I just LOVE to sew!
Mom always said sewing was in my genes because my great-great-grandmother, great-grandmother, and my beloved Gram were all accomplished seamstresses. (FUN FACT: I still have their sewing machines!)
I've been sewing regularly since 1990, shortly after my first daughter was born.
I learned a LOT by watching sewing programs on PBS, soaking up the wisdom of Martha Pullen, Shirley Adams, and, of course, Nancy Zieman.
I especially loved making matching holiday dresses for my daughters. I made fancy dresses for my girls, their cousins, and even their baby dolls. I also made quilts, baby blankets, and all sorts of gifts for family and friends.
In 1995, I unintentionally started my professional sewing career when a friend asked me to sew for her retail shop. She designed her own line of children's clothing, and I spent about six years sewing beautiful little outfits for her boutique.
I learned SO MUCH during those years! Not only about sewing techniques, but also about working efficiently, assembly-line production, and meeting deadlines.
Little did I know how useful all that experience would become!
Why did you start Laurie's Gifts?
Well, I never really intended to start a business!
In 2004, I was on a serious purse-sewing kick. I made fabric purses for myself and as gifts, along with LOTS of juice pouch purses and recycled candy wrapper purses for my girls and their friends.
Eventually, I decided to try selling some of my creations at a local Holiday Bazaar.
That simple little plan snowballed into creating a website and business cards to hand out at the show.
And here's something that makes me laugh now: I didn't even own a digital camera when I started building my website!
I borrowed my sister's camera whenever I needed to photograph my products. (And there certainly weren't any smartphones with fancy cameras back then!)
It was a pretty primitive setup, but it worked!
That first holiday show was a wonderful success. I had so much fun meeting customers and discovering that other people actually wanted to BUY the things I loved making.
I officially opened my first online shop in June 2005, and things just kept growing from there.
Sewing for fun turned into sewing for business, even though I never set out to be self-employed!
How the heck did you learn to run a business with no experience?
Trial and error. LOTS of trial and error! 😂
I knew absolutely nothing about running a business when I started.
I read everything I could find about selling online and building websites. I took online marketing classes and joined groups of other sewing entrepreneurs who supported each other and shared what they were learning.
I didn't know much about accounting, either. I didn't even know how to make a spreadsheet!
But I figured it out.
(It took FOREVER, and my first couple of years of recordkeeping weren't exactly pretty!)
I'm extremely frugal when it comes to running my business, and I think that's one of the biggest reasons I've managed to keep it going for more than 20 years.
My very first website was hosted on a free platform called Xaper. It was VERY basic, but that's all I needed at the time. If my little business idea didn't work out, I wouldn't be out much money.
Over the years, I've sold on my own websites, eBay, Facebook, and Etsy. I eventually closed my original website in 2014 to simplify things and concentrate on Etsy.
Years later, I opened my IndieMade website so I wouldn't have to depend entirely on one marketplace.
I've learned that having more than one place to sell my products is probably a wise business decision.
And I'm STILL learning!
My best advice to anyone thinking of starting a business is this: Don't wait until you know everything. Do the best you can with what you know now, and keep learning.
Don't be so hard on yourself! Learn as you go, and do better when you know better.
What do you make at Laurie's Gifts today?
Oh, how things have changed over the years!
When I started, I made mostly purses and accessories. I've designed and sewn all sorts of handbags, including recycled wrapper purses, embroidered Scripture Purses, repurposed denim purses, and my ever-popular Santa Purses.
These days, my business focuses primarily on handmade aprons.
My Pinafore Aprons are by far my most popular design, but I also make vintage-inspired 50s Smock Aprons, traditional Chef Aprons, Twirly Skirt Aprons, and Multi-Pocket Half Aprons.
Everything is individually cut and sewn by ME, right here in my home sewing studio.
I don't mass-produce anything, and I don't have employees helping me with the sewing.
I'm pretty particular about my workmanship, too. I don't like exposed seams or unfinished raw edges. I want my aprons to look just as nice on the inside as they do on the outside!
Many of my aprons are made after an order is placed, and I love helping customers choose fabrics and colors to make something uniquely theirs.
I've also accumulated a rather impressive fabric collection over the past couple of decades. (Let's not discuss exactly HOW much fabric I have!) 😊
These days, I especially enjoy using some of those beautiful older fabrics to create one-of-a-kind aprons.
It's a wonderful way to make something special from fabrics that may never be available again.
How many hours do you work each day? Do you take weekends off?
HA! That's a good question!
I usually start my day at the computer, taking care of orders, answering messages, updating listings, bookkeeping, marketing, and all the other office-type work that goes along with running a business.
I wish I could say I spend most of my day sewing. That's the FUN part!
Unfortunately, the business side of things probably takes up about 75% of my time.
I sew after the computer work is finished, and how long I work depends on how many orders I have waiting.
A typical workday is about 8–10 hours.
(And don't even ASK how many hours I work during the Christmas season. You really don't want to know!)
I try to get everything done during the week so I can keep my weekends available for family time.
Sometimes that works better than others!
What's the BEST part about your job?
Without a doubt, the flexibility to be there for my family.
When I began sewing professionally, it was partly because I wanted to stay home with my girls while they were little.
Later, after my daughters were grown, being self-employed allowed me to arrange my work around spending time with my mom during the very difficult last years of her life.
That time was priceless, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
Now that I have grandchildren, I love having the flexibility to spend time with them, too.
My business will never make me rich monetarily, but it has indeed made my life richer in all the ways that really count.
And THAT has been the greatest reward of all.
What's the WORST part about your job?
Being connected to work 24/7!
When you run an online business by yourself, there's always something that needs attention.
Customer messages, orders, shipping questions, website maintenance, bookkeeping, marketing... the list never ends!
And since customers shop online at all hours of the day and night, it's difficult to ever feel completely OFF duty.
I try to stay connected with my smartphone, but I don't want to be tied to it every waking minute.
Sometimes I have to remind myself that it's perfectly okay to put the phone down and walk away from work for a while!
What's something that happened in your career that you NEVER expected?
Oh, this is a fun one!
In the summer of 2008, my Wrapper Purse Collection caught the attention of a large company that specialized in upcycling materials that weren't easily recyclable.
Their CEO contacted me completely out of the blue, and a few weeks later, I joined the design team at TerraCycle!
How cool is THAT?!
I worked as a design consultant, creating totes, handbags, purses, and accessories from recycled chip bags, candy wrappers, and other packaging materials.
It was such an interesting experience, and I enjoyed doing that work for several years.
Eventually, my own business grew to the point that I couldn't keep up with both, so I stepped away from the design work.
But what an unexpected adventure that was!
I certainly never imagined that sewing purses from discarded wrappers would lead to something like that.
Any final thoughts?
Looking back, it's pretty amazing how one little Holiday Bazaar turned into a business that's now been part of my life for more than 20 years.
I've learned a LOT, made plenty of mistakes, met some wonderful people, and sewn more things than I could possibly count.
And I still love what I do!
I especially appreciate the customers who choose to support small handmade businesses like mine. When you purchase something from Laurie's Gifts, you're buying something I personally designed, cut, and sewed—not something that came off an assembly line.
And that really does mean a lot to me.
Thank you for being here, for reading my story, and for supporting my little business!
Kindest regards,
Laurie 😊
Browse my handmade aprons and purses