Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Townsend.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
Sewing and designing has been in my life since I can remember. From being a ten-year-old who spent their free time playing on their mom’s old Singer sewing machine to graduating with my bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising, design and fashion has always been my passion. After college, I went on to work in corporate retail for companies like Michaels and Francesca’s. Being a Buyer wasn’t quite as glamorous as The Devil Wears Prada, but it was pretty awesome and full of trips to NYC, LA, Vegas, and lots of meetings about leopard print and how long chokers were going to be “in”. As much as I loved my job, my personal life progressed and my family grew. I made the very hard decision to leave my dream retail career and stay home with my kids. I quickly realized that I needed a creative outlet, so I borrowed my Mother-in-laws very old sewing machine and set up shop in our guest bedroom closet. Having my own boutique shop was always a dream of mine, and with a new found love for baby things, FrilliesBoutique.etsy.
Please tell us about your art.
Frillies Boutique is all handmade goods for babies. My most popular items are my swaddle cocoons with a matching bow or beanie. My swaddle cocoons are amazing little sleeping bags for babies that are beautiful additions to newborn photos, but are also functional for keeping baby secure during sleeping. Mom’s love them because of their simplicity. There are no zippers, snaps or velcro, just high quality stretchy knit fabric and a comfy great design. Other than the functional design, my prints are what really set my shop apart. I put a lot into having original prints for my customers to choose from, so a portion of my swaddle prints are personally designed by me and the rest come from small freelance artists. All of my fabric is small batch printed before being shipped to me, where my seamstress and I cut and sew each individual order.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing artists today?
From my personal experience, the internet and social media pose a huge challenge for artists originality and individuality. Not only me, but multiple of my small business friends have had their product images stolen and used on other social media accounts or other small shop sites. This causes your product to become less original and unauthentic, which is heart wrenching when you’ve put so much in to that piece. It’s obvious that social media is an amazing platform for reaching people and getting your name out there, but it comes with the risk of reaching people who only intend on copying or stealing your work.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
My shop is just a click away at FrilliesBoutique.etsy.com, but I can also be found on Instagram @frilliesbabyboutique and Facebook @frilliesbabyboutique1. I occasionally do pop-up shops or events in the Houston area, which I announce on my social media.
Contact Info:
- Website: FrilliesBoutique.etsy.com
- Email: frilliesbabyboutique@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frilliesbabyboutique/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frilliesbabyboutique1/
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
