When buying a hand-crafted item from an online website, have you ever thought about the person who created this little work of art? Well, Antelope Valley resident Michelle Santillan is one of those crafters. She works in the healthcare administration field by day, but after hours, she is the head of her own embroidery business: ShellieDeeStitches. The tagline on her business cards reads “Thank you! For letting me turn your happy memories into stitches.” Michelle refers to her embroidery time as “the stitching hour.”
“I’ve been stitching my whole life,” she said during our interview. “My abuelita (grandmother) taught me when I was just a little girl.” The COVID-19 lockdown has since turned that hobby into a business. Michelle said that she has increased her embroidery work as a means of relaxing. She also says that seeing her customers smile and appreciate the images she creates for them makes her work worthwhile.
“I’ve been stitching my whole life,” she said during our interview. “My abuelita (grandmother) taught me when I was just a little girl.” The COVID-19 lockdown has since turned that hobby into a business. Michelle said that she has increased her embroidery work as a means of relaxing. She also says that seeing her customers smile and appreciate the images she creates for them makes her work worthwhile.
While embroidery and cross-stitch may seem like a modern leisure hobby, embroidery has actually been stitched into our collective world history for thousands of years. There is a historical embroidery known as The Bayeux Tapestry, which was crafted in the 11th century and it tells the story of the events leading up to the Norman Conquest of England.
Regarding our modern collective history, the recent lockdown has created a unique set of circumstances, with crafting supplies, especially embroidery thread, suddenly going out of stock in early March. As the shelves of every local craft store were totally empty, Michelle was happy to discover that she could buy her supplies from Etsy to keep up with customer demands.
Regarding our modern collective history, the recent lockdown has created a unique set of circumstances, with crafting supplies, especially embroidery thread, suddenly going out of stock in early March. As the shelves of every local craft store were totally empty, Michelle was happy to discover that she could buy her supplies from Etsy to keep up with customer demands.
“This is not your abuelita’s cross-stitch,” Michelle explains with a smile. “There’s a lot of room for flexibility in modern cross-stitch, where traditional cross-stitch tended to stick with classic designs and styles.” One aspect of modern cross-stitch that she particularly enjoys is “creating images of people with realistic hair and facial features,” which pleases her diverse range of customers.
Recently, Michelle created an embroidery design for a neighbor who had just given birth, who wanted a specific design showing her holding the new baby in her arms. The entire family was incredibly pleased with the results and the new mother happily commented: “This isn’t something that I could have bought in a store!”
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Does she have some advice for small business owners?
Michelle says: "For anyone thinking about starting their own handmade craft business, the most important thing to remember is this devote some time your project. The biggest lie that we tell ourselves is that we don't have time. Set some small goals like building your portfolio, sharing some of your finished items to friends on social media, or setting up your online shop. This is your happy space! So be sure to have fun and enjoy the journey." Follow Michelle's work at: https://www.instagram.com/shelliedeestitches https://www.etsy.com/shop/shelliedee |
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