Seller Interview – Lori from Sew Kawaii Creations

To keep my brain happy, and to backup the stereotype that yes, I am a geek, I read. Copious amounts of amazing literature that I can store in my brain and use its one liners as my own to seem smarter in any social setting. My love for books was emptying my wallet and filling my closet with books that I would practically destroy while reading but never really make it alive to be read again. Tattered pages, smeared ink, some books were actually partially submerged in water. ( Im a bathtime reader, sue me.) For my last birthday my awesome boyfriend got me a e-reader. One named after the nickname for the space between his chest and his arm, the Nook. I absolutely love this thing, and was taking it everywhere with me. Long line at the DMV? No worries, people don’t bug you when you are reading. You can store hundreds of books in it at once, and.. you can actually go back and read them again and again! Discounted books, no closet full of clutter. I was in heaven.

It got to the point where I would actually not leave the house with my Nook because I didn’t have a cover for it. Protection.  They are pretty much$ 30-$60 for one, and they aren’t too flattering. My record of smashing screens on any techonological device I own, made me think twice about leaving the house with this sucker, or even walking onto hard wood floors with it. Finally my search came to an end when I stumbled onto Etsy.com and found that there were some kick-ass covers that wouldn’t break the bank, and that are actually really fun to look at. That’s what lead me to this awesome Etsian -Lori Renaud owner of Sew Kawaii Creations.

Her shop is filled with handmade e-reader covers custom made for your e-reader device. She has a nice selection of fabric covers that range anywhere from cutesy, colorful Japanese inspired, retro games, horror movies and more. She does do custom orders, so I asked for a fabric of tattooed chicks that I really liked the look of. She didn’t have it for display in her shop, but I found it in her sold orders list. ( Had to be difficult of course!)  I asked if she could make one for me, and right away she let me know she could. She was so sweet and it was a pleasure doing a transactions with her. I received my cover in no time and when I took it out of the packaging my eyes just popped. Her covers are very WELL made. Try finding  covers that are durable, affordable and made with small pockets, for the price she puts out.  For just $24 USD you honestly couldn’t ask for anything better, such a steal. I enjoyed her product so much, I knew I had to get an interview with this geeky crafter..

Holly from MB.org- When did you begin to sew and what made you want to make e-reader
covers?
 

Lori- My grandmother is a seamstress, so I have always had an interest in sewing, but it was
not until I picked up a sewing machine in a thrift shop at 18 that I began teaching myself
to sew. Ten years, and a few courses later, I cannot imagine a day going by without at
least a few minutes in my sewing studio.

Why the ereader covers? They actually came from necessity. I began making them
because I have a slight ereader possession problem (as in, I need to possess as many of
them as possible) and it would have cost me a small fortune to dress them all. So after
feeling like my readers were sufficiently outfitted (as well as everyone I knew with a
reader) I did not want to stop, hence the birth of Sew Kawaii Creations.

Holly-Momsbasement.org is a geeks 4 geeks site, would you consider yourself
a geek? The reason I stumbled across your page was because of the geeky                                           designs, what inspired you to create geekery items as well?

Lori-I am absolutely a Doctor-Who-watchin’, spend-my-Friday-night-gaming, Bleeding-
edge-aspiring, geek (and proud of it!). When choosing my fabric it shows because I pick
what I like. It may not be what is going to sell best (you won’t find any Amy Butler in my
shop) but I love every fabric I work with. This is how I know I also legitimately adore my
customers – I don’t have to doubt that they have great taste

Read the rest of the interview after the jump..

Holly-Everyone has a favorite geeky obsession (even if they don’t realize it) , what
is yours?

Lori-My favorite geeky obsession…that’s a hard one! I am generally consumed by geeky
obsessions. The first that comes to mind is reading of course. Between my husband and        
myself we have over 500 books in the house (and a lot of over-flowing bookcases!). I
am not even going to name the number of books on my ereaders…let’s just say I would
never have to read the same book twice for the rest of my life – without ever having
to add any new ones. There is also my lapidary obsession (essentially collecting and
identifying rocks!) I even took a geology course in university which was about as far
from my major as I could go.

Holly-Do you make and sell any other sewn creations? Any other types of
products anywhere else?

Lori-I do have other designs and sell things locally, mostly to friends, or friends of friends
and I am currently considering expanding my etsy store to include my smartphone
covers. But as it stands, I make the shop stock in my baby-free time (which is limited) so
I never know for certain how much time I can dedicate. Although that being said, if I get
enough requests for something different I would definitely explore listing more than just covers in the shop.
Holly-Your store is doing VERY well. Do you have any advice for new sellers? Do
you do any special advertising?

Lori- Thanks! Up to this point I have not done any advertising at all. The great thing about
etsy is that the people who are interested in hand-crafted items come looking for you, so
I have not found that advertising is necessary. The best piece of advice I have for people
looking to open an etsy store is to find a niche that works with your creativity. Do not
throw yourself in with the hundreds of shops who are making things for the masses –
their needs are already being met. Figure out where something is lacking and do your
best to work with it. If you are not the type of artist that is creating things on demand,
then work on taking the best photos possible (that is the first, and usually the only, thing
that will bring traffic into your store).

Holly-Where else can we find you?

Lori-I have a website http://www.sewkawaiicreations.com and can also be found on Facebook. I
have considered twitter, but am notoriously lazy when it comes to my personal account,
so it would likely be horribly neglected.

Holly-Anything else you would like to tell us about your shop?

Lori-I absolutely LOVE receiving feedback! Even now, I still get excited to read what my
customers have to say. I make my covers out of a genuine love for sewing. I do not
depend on my shop as a source of income, but rather it is a creative outlet that allows
me to relax in my free time while still being productive. So please -please- if you purchase one of my covers, I would love to hear your thoughts upon receiving/using it

Left you wanting more? Don’t forget to visit Sew Kawaii Creations on ETSY..

Kawaii Geishas Toki… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Reserved for chandr… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Pac-Man Gamer Padde… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Fright Night Movie … SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00
Harijuku Girls Inva… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Custom Sew Kawaii P… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Space Invaders Padd… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00	Japanese Fairy Tale… SewKawaiiCreat… $24.00

Tags: book, books, cloth, craft, custom order, ereader, etsy, geek, handmade, horror movie, interview, ipad, jpop, kindle, melvin, moms basement, momsbasement, nook, product review, sew kawaii creations, sewing