98 – Landing your dream Fabric Design Gig with Jennifer Long

Nikki

0:00
Laura, who are we talking to today?

Laura

0:03
Well, Nikki, as we mentioned in the first of our accountability group series of episodes, most of our interviews have been with people who are much further along in their creative businesses. But one of our basic premises of starting this podcast was to have you come along with us on the journey of just getting things started. Now the women in our accountability group all began with goals. They didn’t know where to begin. And they’ve achieved big things in just the last couple of years by putting one foot in front of the other, and just fucking getting started. Yes, Nikki, and just getting the heck started. Now, you may have listened to Isabel would tell her story on getting started selling digital assets. And if you haven’t yet, go back and check out episode 95 We think you’ll find it very relatable.

Nikki

0:55
So today, we’re excited to introduce you to another member of our accountability group, Jennifer Long, who started with a dream of becoming a fabric designer for her favorite company, Riley Blake Designs, and she did just that.

Laura

1:15
Hi, this is Laura Lee Griffin.

Nikki

1:17
And this is Nikki May with Startist Society, inspiring you to stop getting in your own way and start building an art biz and life that you love.

Laura

1:26
We are artists who believe strongly in the power of community, accountability, following your intuition, taking small actionable steps and breaking down the barriers of fear and procrastination that keep you stuck.

Nikki

1:39
Follow along with us on our creative business journey as we encourage you on yours.

Laura

1:47

Jennifer

long is a Riley Blake Designs fabric designer, quilt and doll pattern writer, machine embroidery digitizer and online educator. She is the creator of the bee so inspired Makers Club, and is also a wife, a mom to four and lives on a hobby farm in the prairies in Manitoba, Canada. Jennifer, welcome to the Startist Society. We’re so excited to chat with you today.

Jennifer

2:14
Hi, Laura. Hi, Nikki, I am so thrilled to be here. Thank you for having me on the show today.

Nikki

2:19
So Jen, we’d like to start everybody off by having them share their Startist story. And we know that you began in a very different career from what you’re doing. Now you were a professional ballet dancer.

Jennifer

2:34
That is right. And maybe I don’t know, it’s it’s interesting to sort of like see the whole story and how it shapes who you are. And you can’t always see it from the beginning. But yeah, I wanted to be a ballet dancer. And I think the skills that I learned there about like focus and hard work and determination, which we’ll talk about I’m sure more in this podcast have sort of led me through the right path that I needed to do what I doing now.

Nikki

3:02
Wait, you know how to focus? Can you teach me?

Jennifer

3:09
Oh, dear, well, no, I can’t say that. I do it all the time. But hyper focus definitely is is a is a skill that I do have.

Nikki

3:17
Yeah. So tell us how you got started with that. And about the transition that ended up with where you are now.

Jennifer

3:23
For sure. So yeah, I trained to be a ballet dancer and I was I got into a professional ballet school. So we trained half day dance and half day school and I was very focused on it. But at a very young age, I was exposed to sewing in a number of different ways. But my grandmother owned sewing and knitting store. So she would make doll clothes for us. And we go there for the weekend and visit her and so I learned to sew from my grandma. And I just enjoyed like knitting leg warmers and different things for dance. But it really wasn’t until I started dancing more professionally and got to walk onto the third floor, which was the costume wardrobe. It was an entire huge room was windows all along one side I remember it so clearly. And mannequins that had to tos and all of the elaborate costumes that you know from theater and from ballet and they had Yeah 20 to 30 seamstresses in there and I thought this is such a magical place it was so it just really excited me because I thought well if I couldn’t have a long career dancing or if I ever got injured I needed to have a backup plan and I thought sewing was definitely going to be that for me because all that hard work dancing and then I would just walk into that room and just see what they would do with those bolts of fabric and they would just transform you know you as a dancer and then transformed the whole stage and I just got so lit up by it so so I really just started with that focus learning to so I took this wasn’t on the on Online Course time yet. So I, I took some courses in home at courses on sewing still and I learned to sew with stretchy fabrics and just different things. And I started sewing for myself for costumes. And I guess I got good enough that other people started asking me to sew costumes for them. So I really just started doing that. And I actually ran my own dance studio for seven years. Oh, wow. And so many of the costumes so 300 costumes a year. Oh, wow. For our like dancers in the school. But I was married and had our was pregnant with our first child and had all the nesting instincts and wanted to sew. You know, bibs and baby claws and burpee towels, which I never really got into and living where we live in Prairie, rural Canada on a farm. Now, this is where my husband is from a big quilting community here. And I got super excited that you could buy all of these beautiful fabrics with different art on them, and cut them all up and cut the art up in different ways and then make art in a quilt. And it was just just like eye opening to me and I just never looked back. I made my first quilt for my son. And then they have so many quilts now.

Laura

6:22
I bet they do. So how long ago was this?

Jennifer

6:24
So my son is 17 now, so that would be like 17 years ago. And right away then I decided I wanted to sell my dance studio. And when I had my first child, because I wanted to stay home. So I sold my dance studio and stayed home with them. But I’m very type a busy busy person. And love, love, love love being at home with my kids. And I should say also that in this time, I guess I’ve never really used it I say but I guess I do. I did get it my early childhood education degree, just in case I ever needed it. And I never used it for what it was intended for. But it definitely has shaped who I am. And I will talk about niches and stuff in a minute.

Nikki

7:08
Did you actually think that you might use it? Or was it always just kind of a fallback plan?

Jennifer

7:14
It was always a fallback plan. If I’m in I love children, I like I was passionate about children. Well,

Nikki

7:21
you made four of them.

Jennifer

7:24
orchids and, and I just thought, you know, if I ever wasn’t able to teach in my dance studio, then I that I would, you know, run a daycare or work at a nursery school or something like that. Yeah, so but when I when I sold my dance studio to stay at home with my kids, I I wanted to be busy and I was very, very, very creative. And I was used to sewing a lot of costumes. And so I wanted my kids to have something special and handmade and that’s where the dolls came in. Because with my aesthetics from dance and the human body and the journey that I was on as a dancer, and eating disorders and all of that I did not want that for my any of my four kids. And I didn’t want to buy hard plastic toys for them that had unrealistic body images in them so I hallelujah Yeah, I decided to create and design my own I couldn’t find anything at the time. This is like I said 17 years ago, I couldn’t find anything at the time that was soft for young kids that they could take clothes on and off of and a soft doll industry has definitely grown but these are not new like a rag doll is something that you know our grandmothers made

Nikki

8:37
well your grandmother’s

Jennifer

8:39
just started just started on the new and made it new and I quickly decided that I wanted to uplevel it so I started taking machine embroidery digitizing so I could so I could digitize and produce dolls at a faster rate with like more skill I could draw all the doll features and then digitize them and I was able to get amazing work contract with a company called pic Alina and I designed dolls for them overseas actually for oversee production. So it was just opening up my eyes to a whole world that I could work in.

Nikki

9:19
Can you tell us a little bit about how that collaboration with Piccolina came about?

Jennifer

9:24
I guess by social media would be the only way that I think I could say it and I don’t even have a huge following so I don’t think listeners that you need this big following to be successful. In fact, I know you don’t need a big following to be successful.

Nikki

9:40
It just needs to be the right following.

Jennifer

9:43
It just needs to be the right people. Exactly. Nikki, we’ve talked about this before that that you really just need to be an Instagram isn’t what it was eight, nine years ago right then you know when it first started, it really isn’t what it was then it was easier to be He noticed on there, there wasn’t quite as much. I don’t know noise and the algorithms weren’t what they are now. So write it, I think it was easier than but I actually saw pika Lena and started following them because I loved the style and what they were standing for. So they are for empowering young females to to be trailblazers, basically. And I just, I love what the company stood for. And I started following them. And I guess because I started following them really early in their journey, they took notice of me, and they actually reached out to me, because of all of the doors I was posting on the work that I was doing already. That’s amazing. Yeah, at that point, I mean, I was doing work for some independent, like children’s book artists and things like that, too. So I was doing some like doll designing for smaller collaborations like that. So that was my first really big one. And at the same time, parallel to this, I wanted to stay home with my kids. So I was writing quilt patterns for my own label. But I also was able to go straight quilt patterns, starting with a number of small fabric companies, and then kind of as you get experience and learn the industry and all the things building up to working with a lot of bigger fabric companies all behind the scenes. And it was just perfect when I was raising my young children. And I just love this industry so much.

Laura

11:21
I have a question because you mentioned the pic Alina, and I think that actually happened in the last few years since we’ve met you. Is that Is that right?

Jennifer

11:30
That’s right. So you remember when we were that I would be we were producing the dolls at that point then so we actually brought some over to North America. And we were you are right, we were producing some of those dolls at that point. But just so listeners can have an idea that when you see anything like any art fabric product at all, there are years before that it’s happening. So there were so many prototypes that were going back and forth. So many so that there were multiple years before it got to the point where anybody can see any kind of success. Does that make sense? Yeah.

Laura

12:08
So didn’t you have like what types of dolls did you do? I didn’t you have a free to doll?

Nikki

12:13
I want to free to doll.

Jennifer

12:15
That’s right. Yeah, I had a free to doll we designed. We designed our Ruth Bader Ginsburg, we did a Mae Jamison doll, Amelia Earhart, Rosa Parks, there was just a number of wonderful, strong female leaders that we portrayed in soft ragdoll form. And it was just a really exciting, exciting time,

Nikki

12:37
we’ll share some photos of those in the show notes because they’re just both really, really cool and adorable. Kinda like you, Jen.

Jennifer

12:49
Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. So while that was all happening, I had this dream that I never thought possible until I met you guys. I kind of had it in my heart that I really wanted to design fabric. I mean, I was writing quilt patterns for lots of different designers of all kinds of levels, big designers, that big fabric designers, small fabric designers, big companies, small companies. So I was seen a lot of different fabrics and thinking, I have so many ideas that I would like to share too. And so I took immersion, and that’s how we met. So I could, but I already knew a lot of the skills that I think I needed to know. But just it really helps me kind of get confidence and put put my workflow together. I think and I think the biggest thing is confidence really, and just being in this accountability group really made me have a voice to say that there is a possibility that you could do this, that you you know that it’s not just for somebody far away in the distance that you know, it happens to real people like all of us.

Nikki

13:56
Yeah, I mean, if nothing else, we are each other’s cheerleaders, you know, we’re just encouraging. Except when it’s time for Nikki boot camp.

Unknown Speaker 14:06
Which we do need often I need a Nikki. Absolutely.

Laura

14:12
That’s our tough love that Nikki brings to the table. That’s right.

Jennifer

14:19
I think I think one thing for me that I would just love to talk about a couple of things I would love to talk about on this podcast, but one thing for me was I think we mentioned at the beginning was hyper focus, and I took this step I guess it was next step in my own business investment was one goal in mind. And it was a very, very specific goal that I wanted to be a fabric designer, but it was more specific than that. And I think you’ve kind of mentioned that Nikki is that I wanted to design and I spoken I think at our first meeting that I wanted to design for Riley Blake Designs, and that is the only company I applied for I did not apply If, for any other company and I think it’s very worth noting that I applied to them, I submitted an app like submitted my portfolio. And they turned me down the first year, they turned me down. And that didn’t stop me. I didn’t go to another Fabric Company, and I had connections and other fabric companies. I really wanted this company. And

Nikki

15:23
well, I have a bunch of questions about oh, relate related to that. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker 15:27
go ahead.

Nikki

15:28
So first, what is it about Riley Blake that was like, this is the company I want to design fabric for all the things I just love. Just a few, just a few examples would be fine.

Jennifer

15:43
I mean, a number of things, this the style, their style of design is really in line with my style. So I feel like that number one. Number two, is I know a lot of different people in the industry. And a lot of the designers at Riley Blake, are my people. Like I aligned with just you know the their thinking just like their passion, just their work ethic, just every everything I just that. And then to go one step further, the company as a whole, is just it’s a family, it really is. And they say that all the time. They say they call it the RBD family because it really truly is not a work environment. It is just a family. And I just want to I just knew I wanted to be in there. It was just so strong in my heart. I don’t I don’t know how else to say it.

Nikki

16:37
That answers my question. That’s great. So okay, so you submitted to them, and they turned you down. So then what did you do next?

Jennifer

16:46
So well, like any normal person that invests a lot of time into a portfolio like we know that it takes a lot of who we are, and a lot of your own self goes into your your portfolio, and to get rejected in any way. It’s like hurtful, but it also can make you stronger. And so this is where I think I drew on my experience in the dance world, because in the dance world, there’s so much rejection, and there’s such fierce competition. And if you let a no stop you then you won’t go anywhere. So I was sad, obviously as as you know, as he would be, but horse, but I quickly turned that into now. Let me look at this critically, what can I do? And how can I improve and now looking back, so I took the whole next year and and just assessed myself, I think I asked you guys what you know, I mean, I did lots of assessment and how I could improve things. And I just kept my focus. And it was like I just kept kept kept my focus. I didn’t decide to like go for a different company or anything else. I just want I really wanted this right.

Laura

17:59
And I have a question, did they give you some feedback when you were turned down at that stage that you could then use to perhaps integrate into the next time you approach them?

Jennifer

18:10
I don’t remember getting it. Of course, I think it was definitely given with love, because that’s just who the company was. And I didn’t feel I didn’t feel like hurt as a human being or anything like that. It was just you know, not now. But I don’t remember getting any, any big feedback.

Laura

18:29
Yeah, I was just curious to know, like, what do you need, you know, how do you sit there and go, Okay, what do I need to change to make it more appealing or to reach my goal?

Jennifer

18:39
Well, this is my next thing I really wanted to speak on. And it is niching. So I want to say that because I was already pretty clear on my niche that I wanted to design for children. But I still wasn’t as niche as I am now. And I think as I will be, because it’s really frightening, to niche. It’s really scary to niche because I love a like a farmhouse, quote, style as much as anybody else does. You know, like, I love all the things and I just love all the mediums and I love all the different styles and colors and so to be it’s scary to nice yourself, but I critically looked at the company of my dreams and decided that there was a space for me in the niche that I wanted to be in. And I just really tried to focus myself in on there and come back in a really strong in a really strong way and make sure that the next time I submitted was going to be very strong.

Nikki

19:50
And you did and

Laura

19:53
so tell us a little bit about how you niched How did you niche down

Jennifer

19:58
I think you guys you probably even I remember me talking about it and struggling with it back and forth. Because I, I was creating quilt patterns that were like for home decor too. And I had even a club that was, you know, having a clientele even I already had customer base that wasn’t children focus, you know, it was like a home decor focus. And I’m having home decor quilts and, and then just being able to really turn the business side of me just to focusing and messaging. For early years crafting and early years design and early years sewing. I struggled with it a lot, because even though I loved that part of myself, I was really concerned about losing out on a customer base, I had already slowly started building and also that I just was worried about getting bored in this niche and wanting to pivot or anything else like that. But what I’m finding about niching is that it’s actually so freeing and fun. It’s so it’s so freeing to be able to know that this part of me is my business part, it doesn’t mean that there’s not still parts of me that are home decor, and I can still sell quilts that it’s just not what I post on my feet. And it’s not what I put on my website, but it’s still who I am. It’s just not what my business is focused on. And I think when I discovered that difference, it was very freeing, and obviously really helped me with this success.

Nikki

21:39
That is a great way to think about it.

Laura

21:41
It is and so you were able to niche down like you said early years, which was on the dolls, right? Absolutely, it was on the fabric design kind of focused on that sort of audience. So tell us a little bit more about how after you niche down how that helped you reach your goal, what happened next? I

Jennifer

22:02
think it just really helped me have a clear focus. Well, we keep coming back to focus, Nikki just having a clear understanding of my purpose. I mean, it’s when you’re an entrepreneur, you can do all the things, there’s no one telling you this is you need to do with this, this, this and this. And the exciting part is that no one is telling you, you need to do this.

Nikki

22:31
But the terrible part, nobody is telling. And that’s where Nikki bootcamp comes in. And, and I say, Jen, which I have to tell myself this all the time, which is why I can say it to you. You can do anything, but you can’t do everything and do everything, at least not all at once.

Jennifer

22:51
Yes. 100%, Nikki 100%. And when you give yourself permission to say I love everything, but I just want to do this thing and be known for this and do it better than than what’s out there in the industry. And yes, just be like, excellent at this thing and be known for this thing. And that’s when I think you really can see, like, great success happen.

Nikki

23:19
So you niche down even further. And your collections got better and tighter. So you approached Riley Blake again,

Jennifer

23:30
I did I so once I felt like over ready, because as artists, you know, you know, you can always do more, right? Always, always, always. And at some point, you just have to say, I know I’ve put everything in here, I can’t continue to sit here any longer. I have to I have to go next and it was very scary. Like there’s a lot of that five seconds of courage that we’ve talked about before there’s a lot of that that has to happen always because you know, you’ve already been rejected or multiple times has been rejected, you know, you have your own voices in your own head happening. And there’s always reasons to and, and not to, and you just have to, like swallow and not look back and step forward. And and just to do it. And I think one thing that I really important to me this whole process through is I’m I always try to be kind. I always try to be honest, I always try to give lots of grace to other people, because I often need grace myself, but I think just be really honest. And the second time I submitted i It was honestly me. It was just 100% I made my cover letter, it was just everything that I had been working for. And it was just me being 100% honest and this is what my goal was and I think all of that combined with Really, just people can see that. So I think it it all worked together.

Laura

25:06
I think it’s amazing. And I remember that first time you told us I want to be a Riley Blake’s designs fabric designer, like you were, you were just so excited about that and to see that come to fruition and not be, you know, a lot of people the first time they get rejected, they’re kind of like, okay, well, that company, you know, I’m gonna give up on that I’m gonna go do something else.

Nikki

25:29
Or some people would just give up on being a designer, a fabric designer altogether. You stuck with it for sure.

Laura

25:38
So let’s talk about what happened next, though. So once you submit it to them, and then you were able to to have your first collection, what was your first collection like?

Jennifer

25:50
So my first collection was be a superhero. And it was a mini collection that they actually put through a little bit early, I think. So it was a mini collection of just dolls. Because then two months later, a full four SKU collection called forest friends came like right on the tails of that. And it was just very, very exciting to have two collections so close together at the very beginning, and I was able to make some great connections with stores, and just different people in the industry that have opportunity to sell your fabric for you, I guess.

Laura

26:31
Well, let’s talk a little bit about the fabric because I think if you didn’t just have straight like fabric prints that people could create quilts out of wasn’t your doll your love of dolls also included in this it is

Jennifer

26:44
so I am I guess known for seeing Nietzsche Nietzsche, I am getting known for my panels. And so a panel is like a cut and sew panel. So really leaning into not just sewing for early years, but encouraging sewing in early years so that children can sew too. And one way that they can do that is to create these professional dolls because I am a professional doll maker on to printed on to a panel that they can just cut the front cut the back out. And with basic sewing skills on a basic sewing machine, pretty much almost anyone can can do and make and make this gorgeous doll. And, and just with all of my experience and my membership clubs and all of the different things that we have grown into through the process of trying to get here. I have a lot of experience with like doll clothing, and then my costume years and stuff to that I think I brought a lot to the table there as far as panelists go. And then they obviously need repeat patterns because the dolls clothes need repeat patterns. And it just kind of really built built from there.

Nikki

27:57
And I think what’s really unique about your collections, they’re not just repeat patterns. I mean, mostly, when you think of a pattern collection, or fabric collection, you just think the hero pattern and you know some blenders and whatever yours has, well the first one the be a superhero is mostly the cut and sew. That’s right dolls, the but the future ones that you’ve done, include a combination so you have repeat patterns, and you have cut and sew dolls or I’m looking at some other ones I’m seeing a fox sleeping bag panel and and so each of yours has a combination of the repeat patterns and something very specific, a specific project for people to make. That’s rare and that is I haven’t looked at a gazillion patterns but that seems very unique to me. I don’t see a lot of that.

Jennifer

29:00
Oh, thank you so much. And I think it’s just really finding like what your your heart is telling you and what your gifts are and then just not being scared to stay focused on them and and really because everybody has something to offer and we just need to really like believe in ourselves and really have people around us that lift us up to that we can believe in ourselves.

Laura

29:25
And and I want to talk a little bit about your, your be a hero be a superhero collection. You also created the most darling quilt pattern that basically is a body like with a little cape on it and then the head would be where the actual human beings head would be right because they pull up the quilts and and then the head is there. And you did like a mermaid one as well. But the superhero one was fantastic and didn’t you do some charity project around that?

Jennifer

29:57
That’s right. So remember I said I went and did my or Which other education degree and I never used it? Yes, of course. So I guess I can’t say that I never used it because turning a quilt into a toy is definitely something that, you know, is is in us when we’re like learning to be like a child are learning how to work with children, right. And so that’s where the idea came to me for, you know, put tucking a child in at bed at night. And when they lay under the covers, then they actually become this design that we’ve created on front of them. And so yes, I started with a be a mermaid, I have a be a ballerina, there’s a be a firefighter coming out soon. Yeah, there’s but be a superhero, was actually a pattern I was already working on. And then I, I had a club, reach out from another, a long arm quilter, actually, that I had a very close personal story to her that just touched me, while her friend’s son, very, very young, had cancer. And he was five years old, battling with cancer and ended up you know, passing away, but there was through that experience, there were so many children on the children’s ward, on the oncology children’s ward that were fighting, and they were all superheroes. So the superhero quilts became launched, I decided to launch those ones with this charity in mind. And we donated a portion of all of the sales directly to them for years. For two years, I believe. And yeah, it was just a great movement. And it actually took on a life of its own it we we have a hashtag called superhero movement now because there was just another lady in a small town, just a small town, I think they made 50 bia superhero quilts at their quilt guild to donate to a children’s hospital. So it’s just been.

Nikki

32:01
That’s fantastic. Very

Unknown Speaker 32:02
empowering, very empowering. Well, it’s

Laura

32:04
just another example. Jennifer, how you leaned into that niche, and it was so a part of who you are, I mean, you had that education and your background, you love children. And you kind of leaned into that. And it has now developed in all these different ways. So you’ve got the fabric designs with Riley Blake, you’ve had these incredible quilt designs that have launched this movement. And all of that came from you stepping out of your safety zone and really diving into this area that was close to your heart. Hey,

Jennifer

32:37
I know. So, so fun. I mean, looking back, it’s so easy. It seems so easy, right? But it’s not looking forward, like you know it. And I think your listeners that are starting out, need to feel that because it isn’t easy. Knowing the path that you should take, of course, when you look back on a path that that has success at the end of it, it’s easy to see that it was the right path. But it’s not easy to know that that’s the right path when you’re at the beginning of it and knowing which way to go. And I’m sure yeah, having having people around you that believe in you and saying what, speaking, the dream that you have, even though it seems so I don’t know, unrealistic, maybe even. There’s power behind that

Nikki

33:30
for sure. Yeah. And along with that, I mean, looking back, yes, you can see where you are now is a beautiful combination of all of the things you’re interested in. And it all came together. But it came together on a very, very winding path. very crooked, and probably some some wrong turns and having to turn around and a few tears. Yes, yes, yes. But But ultimately, it’s it’s the right direction for you. Yeah, it’s really exciting. But I also want to bring in something else that you have going on, that is maybe a little side path, or you tell us you also have a membership. I do. Tell us about that and how it fits into your overall plans.

Jennifer

34:25
You know, at the same time that I was aspiring to be a fabric designer, as many of your startups will know, when you are drawing art and not getting revenue. It’s difficult, right? And so I mean, I had to be smart to and think how am I going to be able to I mean, I have this goal and this dream and I pray that I will realize it to be a fabric designer, but you know, I also have to have other plans in my business. You know, that are all going to work towards it. And I love teaching, I taught dance for many years. And I like I told you I have early childhood education degree. So I really love teaching, it seemed like a really nice fit, that I could share some of my skills, yeah, with people that the people that might be interested in them, and I have a wonderful membership, that has morphed and changed over the years, honestly, it has changed due to like me niching, but it has also changed due to like life, my life changing, and customers changing and just different needs, also. But it’s like this late living, breathing, and no arm, I guess, of the business. That is really important to me. And it really helps me focus. It really helps me focus. Because if you’re accountable, like just like an accountability group does, if you’re accountable to a group of people, to provide them something every month, then you need to be accountable to that. And it so it really helps me with my content. And it really helps me with my year planning, because I plan a whole year in advance what’s going to happen, and I try to plan that around my fabric collections. And it kind of all works together now. Nice. Wow. But yeah, it’s just really helps me with with that focus, I think.

Laura

36:25
So what happens as part of that membership, what if somebody joins your membership, what do they learn in a given month, and who

Nikki

36:33
is it for,

Jennifer

36:34
so it’s for people that want to sew. So it’s a it’s a sewing membership, but it can be quilting, or doll making or crafting. And they so they get each of those genres every month, usually on a theme. So they’ll get a quilt pattern and a doll pattern and a craft tutorial every month. And they also get this community and they get education that comes along with it. So through my years of like, working with professional doll making and working as ghost pattern writer for you know, I have a lot of I think, tips and tricks to share. And we do that inside the membership. So they get all the content at the beginning of the month. And they can kind of go through it as they want, there is a little group that they can chat with each other and share their projects with inside. It’s really not a huge commitment financially for anyone, it’s actually less than the cost of one pattern a month. So it’s not a huge financial commitment for people, which is important to me, because I want people to so but it’s also not pressure, they don’t have to make everything. And what is so exciting, I can tell you is that people that join because they love quilting, they come and tell me I just made my first doll for my grandchild. And they’ve never made a doll before ah, or people that just like crafting. And all of a sudden, John started making a quilt pattern because it’s part of the membership. And they really enjoy quilting. And so I feel, I don’t know, like it’s just really, really makes me happy.

Nikki

38:10
Well, you’re expanding their experiences, their horizons, their skills.

Laura

38:14
Yeah. And what I love about it, as you talked about niching down, so you’re niching down sort of with the the topic of things that you do, but you still have that breadth of you’ve got the quilting, you have the doll making you have the crafting, so you’re able to kind of satisfy those urges that you might have to like, create those things, by combining them all in this membership, which I think is really cool.

Jennifer

38:38
Oh, yeah. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, I absolutely agree, Laura, I think you guys probably even helped me with that, too.

Nikki

38:46
Okay, I have a very important question for you. Go for it. How the hell do you do it all? So you have this business that contains the membership? You have? You know, you’re designing new fabric collections all the time. You’re raising four kids, you have a farm where you’re growing a lot of your own food, and you what else you’re designing quilt patterns, you have the membership. I already said that.

Jennifer

39:17
So many things YouTube videos. Oh my gosh. And yes, I

Nikki

39:21
doubt. How do you manage? How do you juggle it all? This is the question I’m always asking because I’m a terrible juggler. But how do you juggle it all? How do you manage your time? And do you ever sleep?

Jennifer

39:35
Well, I mean, it helps that I am pretty hyper. I mean, we’ll just be honest, I am a pretty hyper person. But I also think that it’s also really important to know that we all have the same amount of hours in the day. Nobody has more or less hours and it looks like somebody’s doing a lot of things, but they might have help. And so I do have help. I I don’t I can’t. I mean, I didn’t at the beginning, but I do now I cannot possibly. So every single quilt I do long arm every quilt that I do, but I can’t possibly so everyone, so, um, you know, I get some help with web with my website or with my social media. Like there is ways that you can I think Tom Ross actually, is it really big? I don’t know, encourager of this. So I was part of a membership, or I am part of a membership that he has, it’s actually a membership for memberships.

Laura

40:32
And he is the founder of design cuts for those that that may not know his name,

Jennifer

40:37
right. Yeah, it’s been very inspiring that way too, because, you know, I started on the, on his membership at the ground floor. So I got to speak a lot with him. And he said, which was actually hard to hear at the beginning. But if there’s something that you are doing, that you could pay somebody else to do, which would then free up time for you to do something that somebody else cannot do. That can be a revenue generator, that you should do that. And that was kind of foreign to me, because I thought I should do it all. So

Nikki

41:15
that’s why I don’t go to the grocery store.

Laura

41:20
If you can pay somebody else

Nikki

41:21
to do that, and this episode is sponsored by Instacart. Not really at all.

Jennifer

41:29

Nikki

, yes, I know. That’s what you have for children, Nikki that you can like say, you know, go get groceries for mom. Yes. Yeah,

Nikki

41:35
I don’t have four children. So I have to pay somebody to do that.

Laura

41:41
I need to train rocket how to go to the grocery store.

Nikki

41:44
Yeah, he would eat everything on the way back.

Laura

41:47
Oh, my goodness. Okay, so I have another question. I know that you live in Manitoba. And

Nikki

41:55
Manitoba is Canadian for fucking coal.

Laura

42:00
And, and basically your studio, if I recall, is in another building sort of outside of the house. And there are certain months of the year or days of the year that if you are, I don’t know if your skin is exposed for more than like 10 seconds you get frostbite.

Jennifer

42:17
So I’ll correct you a little bit. Okay, so, Laura. So actually my studio this is

Nikki

42:24
this is the American This is the American understanding of Canada.

Jennifer

42:30
Well, okay, a couple of things I need to correct on so the studio is actually I didn’t start in here and everybody should be aware that to started in just the rec room in the basement and then into a bedroom and then we renovated our garage into so this garage is actually attached to the house so I’m actually okay don’t have to leave. But it is it can be cold. We’re

Nikki

42:55
slightly less impressed with you now. Yeah, I know. Sorry.

Laura

42:59
I know. Not as hard as you thought. But it does like like if you go outside for a certain amount of time. It’s like a frostbite situation. Is it not?

Jennifer

43:13
100%? Yes, this is especially in January and February No. No exposed skin for frostbite warning. They usually give you a time limit. Like 90 seconds.

Nikki

43:24
Why do you live there?

Laura

43:27
And is this why the kids go to the groceries?

Jennifer

43:31
Have you seen our prairie skies we just actually had the most beautiful dancing Northern Lights last night they’re posted all over everywhere. So open prairie sky we get super extremes here we have so much so in the winter it’s a lot darker for sure. But in the summer it is basically like 430 in the morning till like 1130 at night with sun it’s

Nikki

43:54
okay one of these years I’m going to drive up there in the bus and visit you in the summer

Jennifer

44:01
do but I’d be really impressed with you if you came in the winter I’ll just say yes.

Nikki

44:07
Not gonna happen. I’m not that interested in you being impressed with me I’m just now leaving Florida after being here for the winter. Okay, let’s get back on track what have we forgotten to ask you?

Jennifer

44:26
Well, I guess the exciting thing that I mean I don’t know if there’s anything that you haven’t asked me but I think the thing to know is once you are in like once you get a yes once you get a yes I don’t want people to think that it’s always a yes so there’s still knows like there’s like it’s just part of the what happens and and you put work because even though you get yes and you get now you’re a Riley Blake Designs fabric designer. It’s still me means that you have to submit often. And there could be lots of notes for lots of different reasons. Maybe they’ve just done a collection that you’re submitting for already. Or maybe somebody else has submitted one at the same time, you know, maybe it’s just not the right colors. Maybe there’s lots of other reasons.

Nikki

45:18
Let’s actually talk about that process just a little bit. So they accepted your first few, and you submit something out. And so how does that process work? Do you create a collection? And then submit it? Or do you come up with a concept? run it past them before you finish it out? Do they give you suggestions? How does that work?

Jennifer

45:41
So there’s no I guess, one way, there’s no hard and fast way. I think it’s really dependent on the designer, maybe even their niche, how many other designers are in that niche, and all of the things like all of the above, really, but in your experience all the above. But for me personally, I think what works best for me who I am and just how I work is I try to ask, I think I’m getting a lot more confident now. So I should say that I’m working on my seventh collection right now. Wow, there’s four that are out in the world and two that are going to be shown shortly. So I am working on my seventh collection. So I’m starting to feel more like I know what customers want. And what the company Wait, wait,

Nikki

46:33
wait, let me pause and say you’re working on your seventh year first one came out last summer?

Jennifer

46:40
Well, so like I said, there’s a big leg. Right. So that right? The first one came out last summer, but that’s a year before that. Also rice still? Yeah,

Nikki

46:53
let’s still be impressed that it has not been that long, and you’re working on your seven. It’s super exciting. So okay, now carry on. I don’t remember what I was saying that. Yeah, I just had to pause to be impressed by that for a minute. But I was asking you about about the process of it. Like, do you bring them ideas? Do you bring them a finished collection?

Jennifer

47:17
It’s easiest for? I think, I mean, I’m not the art director. But I think it’s easiest for them to see, like if you give them a concept idea to know what to expect after you’ve had a lot of history with them. So like, the more history and the more you are in your style and in your niche, then they can know what to expect from you. So then if you say I like to work on this theme. Next, you’ll have a better possibly idea about direct write,

Nikki

47:51
because they know your style. And they know how you put a collection together? I think

Jennifer

47:56
so yes. But yeah, I think really at the beginning, I mean, all the hard work, all the hard work is at the beginning, because you have to put in all this work before on collections, I have so many collections that will never see the light of day because they’re just not good enough anymore. But they were my practice collections to get me where I am. And so you put all this hard work in the end. So when you are starting in a company, then you still put all that hard work in there to show everything that you can I mean, I’m even designing the quilt patterns to go so I can give the whole vision, you know, the whole the whole concept. And really, they can come along on the journey of that collection with you. Right? Yeah. So I don’t think anybody should feel like I’ve arrived. Like, it’s always work, there’s always still going to be rejection, it’s going to, it’s always going to be that but I’m learning more and more and more that rejection doesn’t scare me anymore. It like fuels me to make it better. And every time every time I’ve been rejected, and I’ve put my focus that way, it’s been better. And when you work in a company situation with an amazing company like Riley Blake Designs you get it’s a it’s a team. Like it really is a family and a team. And so they have suggested things to me. Well try it. Why don’t you try this or maybe this color? Or why don’t you turn this over here? And sometimes I’m like, Oh, yes, I can see that. And sometimes I’m thinking oh, I don’t know. I really like it how it is but but if I try it, sometimes I’m like, Oh, I liked it how it was before and they go oh yes. Or sometimes I’m just thinking, wow, yes, it’s just elevated. Yes, it elevated my art just that one little thing you know, it just elevated it and so it’s really important to not to know you don’t have to do it all on your own and it doesn’t have to be a company that can be your people doing that with you. Like you meet your accountability. group are your people. Yeah,

Nikki

50:01
right. Right.

Laura

50:03
So what is one piece of advice that you would give to someone just getting started with fabric design?

Jennifer

50:09
My advice, if you want a career in fabric is to be around fabric. Because fabric art is different than other art, in the sense that a full collection feels really, really different. Because there’s, I mean, I know that there is this still, like if you’re going with wrapping paper, or even craft papers, being around different fabrics and seeing how they play together, and understanding them in a quilt. Because designing for paper versus designing for fabric is different, you need a lot of non directional for fabric, because you cut these pieces, and you turn them and you do all sorts of things to them, to make them into something else, especially if you’re in the quilt industry. So I think just really getting comfortable with fabric art. And, and then trusting you trusting yourself.

Nikki

51:13
So that’s, that’s really great advice. Well, both of them are really great advice. Absolutely trust yourself. But the first part about if you want to do fabric get really into it be really in that world makes total sense, because I really like doing repeat patterns. But I don’t. So I’m not a quilter I admire them, but I don’t do them. So I don’t have that knowledge about how these things are going to be used. I have it in the abstract, but not with any experience. So it’s much harder for somebody like me to try to design a really functional, full pattern fabric collection. Whereas I’m working on things that are more home goods, you know, it’s not, it’ll be a few patterns that work together in different ways. And that’s something that then I can have more experience with because it’s not, it’s not a world I don’t know. So I absolutely agree, whatever, whatever niche you’re you’re wanting to get into or whatever industry get really, really deeply involved in it.

Jennifer

52:22
Yeah, and I don’t mean that you need to, to sew at all, in order to be a fabric designer, there’s lots and actually, you know, I was a ghost pattern runner for so long and go put the ghost pattern writers out of jobs just because you know, we don’t but but saying that is that just I mean understanding, like just right seeing it. And so anything that you that like lights you up that you get so excited about is what is your art is going to shine the best in you know, if fabric is what just makes you like you dream and fabric. I always say I dream in fabric. So, you know, it just feels really natural for me to be in this industry.

Laura

53:03
It’s a perfect fit.

Nikki

53:05
It really is.

Laura

53:06
So Jennifer, we have so enjoyed having you here today on the show, giving us lots of advice on how to get started in fabric design. And we’d love to know where can our listeners connect with you online.

Jennifer

53:20
So I have a website and it’s called be so inspired. So it’s B E like a bumblebee. And then so as an S Ew, and then inspired. And that name came from when my kids were little actually I we do have we live on a farm like Nikki said, and I have a huge garden with a lot of fruit and stuff too. So I wanted the bee to represent that part of myself that I love canning and that whole that whole side of it. Obviously sewing and then just I’m constantly being inspired. I think I feel even more than I’m inspiring. I just just like seeing my kids seeing people seeing like we saw the Northern Lights the other night. I mean, just all of that. I just see it and I think that needs to be fabric that needs to be a quilt, you know. And so it just seemed really you’re definitely

Nikki

54:11
in the right business.

Laura

54:14
All right, so be so inspired and on your social media is at the same handle. It is

Jennifer

54:19
all on all the places on YouTube on Pinterest, Facebook, all the places. Yeah.

Laura

54:25
Perfect. And if people are interested in your Makers Club, they can also find you at be so inspired.com That’s correct. Yes. Thank you,

Nikki

54:33
Jen. Thank you so much for being here. We’ve been wanting to do this for so long and glad we finally made it happen. And you have said so many inspirational things while you were talking. I was like Ooh, that’s a quote I can pull out. That’s a quote. You were just fantastic. So thank you for being here. Thank you so much. To learn more about Jennifer and read today’s Startist Society Show Notes Let’s go to Startist society.com/jennifer long.

Laura

55:05
If you’ve enjoyed today’s episode, we’d love for you to share it with a friend. Sharing helps us reach more Startists like you and keeps us inspired to create new episodes.

Nikki

55:15
Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time.