Rebecca Kneale has come home, both literally and professionally, but the road was not without some bumps along the way. “I had a career in the corporate world,” she says. “Then, in 2008 it all went bust and I couldn’t find another job in my field.” It was a challenging time, but also an opportunity to imagine an entirely new approach to work. “I’ve got three children. I like being with them. So I had to consider something different. That’s when I started working as a professional photographer.”
This busy, creative field was exhilarating — “I bet I’ve taken a million pictures,” she says — and led to more ideas and a greater confidence in her skills in photography and beyond. “I just wanted to make things,” Rebecca says. As the ideas flowed — first for a line of handmade dolls, then embroidered necklaces and personalized wedding keepsakes — she began to see that she could master the skills she needed for her next journey: opening her own Etsy business, Sew Happy Girls, which now supports her.
Read on to learn how Rebecca launched and developed a successful handmade business and shop the Sew Happy Girls collection.
Tell us how you started Sew Happy Girls.
I had an idea — just a dream — that I wanted to make dolls. I thought, “I do all kinds of creative things. I’m going to make dolls now.” I wanted to embroider the dolls’ faces, so I watched a lot of lessons on YouTube and I taught myself how to embroider. I opened my Etsy shop, but I never sold a single doll. The doll market was saturated and I was new to Etsy and didn’t know how to get seen.
What did you do next?
I didn’t give up. I tried other things: I started doodling and making embroidered doodles of things like flowers and deer. Then I wondered if I could sell embroidered necklaces. I had never heard of embroidered necklaces, but it turns out there was a market for them on Etsy. And they sold!
I remember where I was when I got my first Etsy sale. I was in Target and I got a notification that I had a sale. It was absolutely thrilling! After that, I started adding things to my shop, trying new things. I loved every second of it. It was a very dreamy time for me. I just wanted to try new and different things to see what would sell.
How did you come to design for weddings?
I had been doing embroidery for almost a year. A friend was getting married, and she asked me to embroider the wedding couple’s initials on the groomsmen’s ties, and stitch a message on the back of her groom’s tie. What do you say at a moment like this? You don’t know if you can pull it off but you just say, “Yes!” On the groom’s tie she wanted, “I’ll always love you,” with a heart. I put it all together on a patch, and when I held it up I thought it was pretty cool. Would anyone on Etsy like it? At that time, I didn’t even know what to call it. There was no market, no niche, I didn’t even know how to tag it.
Then what happened?
I listed that patch, and it sold the same day! The next day I sold another patch. Then I started getting a lot of convos with questions. Could you make one for my Dad? Can you write this, can you write that, can you do it in my colors? I started right before Father’s Day, and by August 1 I was absolutely swamped with orders. Since then, I’ve been steadily moving on.
A lot of the items listed in your shop are geared toward the guys in the wedding party — for the groom and the father of the bride. That’s a bit unique for a wedding shop, isn’t it?
Yes, and I think that’s why they’re so popular. My customers want something special for their men. Dads are hard to shop for. Brides ask for something sweet like, “I was once your little girl but now I’m grown up.” They want to put those two ideas together in a sweet way. And they love that everything is handmade. I draw every heart. I stitch every stitch myself. I can’t believe it myself sometimes, how many lives it has touched.
I think you have about the best solution for “something blue” I’ve ever seen.
Something blue was my foray into the women’s side of patches. Men contact me in secret to get something blue for their bride. I want to share the love with everybody.
Weddings can be showy affairs, but many of your items are something of a secret — something that is hidden and nestles behind a tie or under a hem. That makes them very intimate, doesn’t it?
That’s the thing I love the most about it. It’s such a moment, such a memory. I hear things like, “I’ve never seen my father cry, but this did it to him.” It really makes you stop and think about that moment, and what the people in our lives mean to us. It’s such a sweet, tiny gesture, and so loving.
The portrait patches are especially intimate.
Someone asked me for a remembrance patch with a portrait of her departed father stitched next to her heart inside the dress. These patches are for people who have lost someone they want to have with them on their wedding day. I don’t share much about them online because they are so personal. People send me photos that I print on fabric, and then I stitch on the photograph. I was a photographer before I started my Etsy shop, so naturally I really love the photos.
Where would you like to go next?
Well, I think about that a lot. I love what I do, I love being creative, I am interested in so many things. I will probably always make patches, but if patches go out of fashion I will make something else. I think sometimes that I might like to be a teacher. There’s so much to learn about doing this: how to tag, SEO, social media. There’s such an incredible learning curve and journey. It’s still pretty mind-blowing. My husband has to remind me that I have really accomplished something. But I just keep hoping I will make another sale tomorrow.
Follow Sew Happy Girls on Instagram.
Photographs courtesy of Sew Happy Girls.
68 comments
Megan from MegansMenagerie said 2 years ago
Such sweet keepsakes! Your shop is beautiful! Congratulations on the feature!
DeUno from DeUno said 2 years ago
Lovely shop! Congratulations on the feature!
Renee from RandMhandmade said 2 years ago
Beautiful...Congratulations on your feature!!
Sue from SuesAkornShop said 2 years ago
What great items! Congrats on your feature-lovely shop!
Mary Robertson from MaggiesInn said 2 years ago
What a wonderful idea. You are so creative and I love the whole concept, especially the little dolls. Congratulations on turning your talents into this amazing shop.
Niki from JandEdoodles said 2 years ago
Your portrait patches really are beautiful. What a wonderful way to incorporate a loved one that is no longer with them. Congrats on the feature and success!
Kashuen Collectibles from Kashuen said 2 years ago
What a unique shop. So many memory can pack in a shop. Congratulations on the feature.
Francine from HomespunHeartofMine said 2 years ago
What a wonderful idea! You have definitely found a need and filled it beautifully! Congratulations on the feature and many blessings for your continued success!!! :D
Cathy from msbijouxbeads said 2 years ago
Your dolls are the cutest! Great feature
AnitasPottery.com from potterybyAnita said 2 years ago
Beautiful work! I love to see an age-old craft re-imagined in new ways! Congrats on your new path! And so glad you get to spend more time with your children! I did that, too. ♥♥♥
renee and gerardo from GTDesigns said 2 years ago
Super creative ideas all around! The patches are so personal on many levels, start with handmade...the dolls are beyond charming. Lovely art and congrats on your feature!!!
Etrennes from Etrennes said 2 years ago
Wonderful inspiration and passionate work! Wishing you all the best for continued success!!!
Emilee Manley from YarnOverHookByEmilee said 2 years ago
Love your shop! Congrats on the feature!
PSOGLAVKA KLARA from PSOGLAVKA said 2 years ago
♥♥Beautiful work! ♥♥
ClassicMemories from ClassicMemories said 2 years ago
Lovely shop. Congrats on the feature.
Mary Jo and Rachael from SouvenirAndSalvage said 2 years ago
Absolutely gorgeous pieces! Those tie patches for grooms and father of the brides are touching enough to almost make me cry while typing this. Sincere round of applause for building such an emotionally based niche market. Men aren't considered often enough when it comes to gift ideas that are hand made. You've captured an a perfect idea geared towards them specifically that will memorialize a major crossroads in their life. When I get married, I would be honored to order one of these from you for my father. All of your other products are just as lovely also. Congrats on the feature and all of the well deserved success!
Cristy Ramos from ArtisanBathandBody said 2 years ago
Beautiful and inspiring! Congratulations ♥
Farideh Nouri from FlairPaintings said 2 years ago
Lovely shop!!! Congratulations on the feature :)
Dorothy from JewelrybyDorothy said 2 years ago
Lovely shop! Congrats on the feature!
Georgia from JewelMeShop said 2 years ago
Your dolls are so cute! Congrats on the feature!
Tim and Brigita Cornwell from jacobswoodentoys said 2 years ago
Beautiful keepsakes and lovely studio. Congrats on the feature!
Anne Dixon from 2SistersHandmade said 2 years ago
I love your dolls! And, such a unique idea for the patches. Congratulations on being featured!
accentonvintage from accentonvintage said 2 years ago
Great shop! Great designs!
Madeleine Keller from ThoseGoodVibrations said 2 years ago
Your work is so creative and cute, I love the aesthetic of embroidery. Congrats on the feature!
Sherri from ButterflyFeetDigital said 2 years ago
Lovely shop, congrats on your success!
Zalooza from Zalooza said 2 years ago
Beautiful embroidery patches! Best wishes and congrats! : )
Nicole from Crackerjackarma said 2 years ago
So sweet ~ I enjoyed reading about you and your shop ~ Filled with heart your pieces are joyful and endearing and enduring !
Jennifer and Gary Pierce from LoftAtticEarth said 2 years ago
Love how you used your creative powers along with persistence to find a market and provide a product! Your art is is beautiful and personal! Keep up the good work. Best wishes as your business grows.
TropicalGarden from TropicalGarden said 2 years ago
Beautiful products! Congratulations on the feature!
Rhonda Stubbs from RhondaCorner said 2 years ago
WOW! What a great story. Thank you for sharing and congratulations on your feature. I wish you the best of luck on your future endeavors.
emaxtees from EmaxTees said 2 years ago
So nice items :) Thanks for sharing with us
birdhouseaccents from birdhouseaccents said 2 years ago
Congrats
Relly from RelsFindsNapaValley said 2 years ago
Great designs with warm messages. Congratulations Rebecca of shop Sew Happy Girls!
Julie Pedersen from purposedesign said 2 years ago
so unique, way to go!
TreasuredMemoryLane from TreasuredMemoryLane said 2 years ago
What a unique idea and creations! Congratulations on the feature!
R. Anne from LnRworks said 2 years ago
That's a great story! Congrats on your shop and feature!
foofoogal54 from GracefulVtgClothing said 2 years ago
Oh my stars. Those dollies are adorable.
Myriam Whitney from MyriamWhitneyJewelry said 2 years ago
So creative and Organized!!! Love the all the colors and personal touches!!! Congrats!
Maryanne and John Fender from FenderMinerals said 2 years ago
Congrats on the feature. Your studio is so neat and organized!
Patti Jacob from envisionandCREATE said 2 years ago
Such beautiful stitching! Great idea for the patches, love the personal part of them! Congrats on your success and best wishes!!
Marisa M. from FeltInMyHeart said 2 years ago
The tie patches are such a sweet idea. I can see why your work is so popular. Congratulations on being featured!
Debi from MadGirlRetro said 2 years ago
What a sweet idea! And a pretty shop! Congratulations on the feature!
Michele Lea from NawteaKittea said 2 years ago
Really adorable idea! Love everything in your shop.
Dorina van den Brandeler from DoriKri said 2 years ago
love love love such a nice feature on this shop!! It's great to be able to see 'behind the scenes' those dolls look like such fun to make! Fantastic shop Compliments!! Ciao
Sunita from TouToucans said 2 years ago
Oh wow!! These are so adorable.. love your work!
Rosemary Lambert from cardhugs said 2 years ago
This type of creativity is what I would call "the poetry of the embroidery world." I love her ideas. I like how she didn't give up, but kept trying. I love to see her being a success and being her own boss. Most of all, I love to see her products affecting customers in such a beautifully personal way! Congratulations!
Sylvie from zesteceleste said 2 years ago
Tellement beau ! J'adore :-)
aressa from OriginalBridalHanger said 2 years ago
Neat idea! I love your dolls...They are awesome!
littleJB from littlejbByJanid said 2 years ago
Lovely shop. Congrats on the feature.
Narongsak Supa from narongsak said 2 years ago
Beautiful work! Congrats on the feature!
Olesya Bagriy from BelkaUA said 2 years ago
Beautiful shop!!! Congratulations on the feature!
Joann Hayssen from JoannHayssenDesigns said 2 years ago
Your pieces are so lovely!
Maria from StyleGraphicDesign said 2 years ago
So lovely!!!
deardear from deardearArt said 2 years ago
Great item~~ I like it
Olga from LinenAndTailor said 2 years ago
Lovely shop! Congrats on the feature!
Yuri Pysar from Pysar said 2 years ago
wow! such cuties! love them all :) congrats on the feature ??
Laura Diaz- Alberto from LaDiwithaBaBy said 2 years ago
This is SUCH a beautiful product, it made me tear up a little. Congratulations for the feature! Will keep this shop in mind.
Rachel Bingaman from BingArt said 2 years ago
Really creative way of capturing special moments as keepsakes. Lovely!
DivineOrders from DivineOrders said 2 years ago
GLORIOUS! Congrats on the feature. Thank you Rebecca for sharing your awe-inspiring journey, behind-the-scenes passion, and lovely arts with us. - Peace.
Katrina Dzerkale from Dominna said 2 years ago
I LOVE those ties !!!!
kiyumi zhang from LittleFairyHouse said 2 years ago
WOW, Your shop have catched my eyes when I opened your page at first time. Hope you sell well at next year.
kiyumi zhang from LittleFairyHouse said 2 years ago
What a sweet shop is! Congratulations on your feature!!
Randy Silver said 2 years ago
How do I get a password so that I can purchase some items. I am having difficulty getting a password. Please help me
HOLMESTIES from HolmesTies said 2 years ago
Congratulations! Keep up the good work!
Laura from PetalAlley said 2 years ago
I love the floral necklace, so pretty. ♥
Sally from SallysVintageKitchen said 2 years ago
Lovely shop! Congratulations on the feature!
Anna from bellecaprice said 1 year ago
Your dolls are amazing. Congratulations on being featured.
Shirley Freeman from Sewingthrutheyears said 1 year ago
love your shop and all your patches. keep up the good work