The LoftLady

Quality Fabric & Yarn Creations

Where are you located? McPherson, Kansas (approx 50 miles north of Wichita). I was born in Tacoma, Washington, grew up in Bakersfield, California and lived in Kenai, Alaska for 10 years but I've settled in Kansas and I love it here.

How long have you been creating handmade items? Over 30 years. I started with sewing, then I learned how to knit and later to crochet. About 6 years ago I fell in love with designing jewelery, then I took a class on silversmithing so I could work with sterling silver.
What type of products do you offer? Sewing: Purses, Totes, Wristlets, Wallets, Bibs, small Quilts and Stuffed animals.Knitting & Crochet: Hats, Scarves, Neck Warmers, Ankle Warmers, Gloves and Purses.

How did you decide on your company’s name? I am 'TheLoftLady' because I live in a loft which I absolutely love. It's not fancy but I have so much room for all my work areas. I have 3 tables together for laying out & cutting fabric, a table with 2 sewing machines set up and ready to sew. Two tables for basic jewelry supplies and a work area with a magnifying light, there is even an area for my silver work where I can safely use my torch. I also have a clay table where I make beads and buttons.

What is your motivation? Everybody has a passion and making all these things is mine. I cannot imagine not creating things. My children would tell you they have never know me to not be making something. I have tried to stop and find other areas of interest but I can't so apparently I really don't want to.

What do you enjoy most about creating handmade items? To me it is how I can start out with some fabric or yarn and create anything I want to, there are really no limits as to what I can do if I try. I love that I can just make-up something and I do not have to use a pattern. This also makes my items one-of-a-kind which is something I think buyers love - I mean don't we all love having 'the only one' of something?

Which items are your best sellers? No one item has sold better than others.
How do you market your products? I don't get to do much actual marketing. I live in a small area so have no real maketing opportunities, so although I think marketing is important I spend my time designing and making my products. I hope that the sites on which I sell will do some fantastic maketing on our behalf.

What are your favorite features on Handmade Fuzion? I love the way it is set-up, the size of the photos are the greatest! I love the scrolling photos across the top, I think they are so much more interesting then fixed photos. I also love that I can easily list a 'like item'.What new features would you like to see? I think it is interesting to see what others have sold. I would love for the featured artist to change more often for a couple of reasons. One, because more artists can be featured and two because I think people get tired or seeing the same thing everytime they log on. More design options for the stores would be great, maybe having a place for photos of the artist at work or of their work areas would be interesting.

Do you have any advice for other artisans? Do what you love to do, do your best work and be honest in your listings.