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Sue Hillis Designs |
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Designer's Name: Sue Hillis |
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Location: Richmond, VA
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We appreciate you joining us for the Friday Feature this week! What’s been going on this summer at Sue Hillis Designs?
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Can you tell us how Sue Hillis Designs got its start and how the company has grown over the years?
I have always been a stitcher. When I was very young, I did stamped cross stitch and then found crewel embroidery as an adult. I quickly ran out of crewel projects that appealed to me but figured, I can draw so I will create my own crewel projects! I sat down with pencil and paper and created…sort of. I found I had a talent for choosing color, and a talent for drawing the subject, but when it came to deciding which embroidery stitches go where, I couldn’t make the commitment! I kept second guessing myself and being young and flighty, I gave up. Cut to several years later…a friend “forced” counted cross stitch on me! It did not appeal to me at first—I thought it would be very monotonous--until I tried it, and I was immediately hooked! This was in the mid 1970’s (yes, I am that old!) and once again, I ran out of projects. There were very few cross stitch designs available in those days because we were just beginning the “rebirth” of counted cross stitch in the US. There were maybe five designers and they were just starting out so designs were scarce. Once again, I thought I might try my hand at designing my own needlework, and this time SUCCESS! I could draw, I could choose color, and guess what? I didn’t have to choose which stitches go where—it was ALL cross stitch so the hard part was already decided for me. Houses and buildings always appealed to me, so I had charted some local landmarks for myself. When I took them into our local cross stitch shop to select the threads, the owner saw them and asked if I would be willing to sell some to her…and that was the beginning of Sue Hillis Designs. I certainly had no plans to go into business—I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Some of my fellow designer companies in those early years were Designs by Gloria and Pat, Alma Lynne Designs, Graphs by Barbara and Cheryl, Tidewater Originals, and just a few more. In those days, most of us did black and white charts—no color covers or even a photo—and if the shop did not have a model on the wall, the stitcher had no clue what the finished project was going to look like. She was just happy to have a pattern at all and she truly watched the design unfold with every stitch. The fabric we all stitched on was white Hardanger—yes, 22 stitches per inch! Our eyes were young then and it’s not as if there were choices to be made. If we had seen one of today’s shops with thousands of patterns, and hundreds of fiber and fabric choices, our families would have had to come and drag us out of there at dinner time!
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Looks like you and a band of sea worthy stitchers are in for some fun this fall! Would you tell us about the “Stitch Ahoy” cruise and if others can still sign up? Unfortunately, it is too late to sign up for this year. The ship sails in less than a month and leaves the New York harbor for a seven day cruise up the Eastern Seaboard into Canada. We will be seeing the change of seasons, watching for whales, stitching, laughing, and eating our way up the coast and back! I’ll be teaching a class on finishing techniques which will take place the first day of the cruise while we are at sea. Except for the first day, the ship sails at night and docks during the day for shore excursions. We’ll be visiting a Canadian shop, Because You Count in Moncton, New Brunswick and meeting Jennifer Aikman-Smith of Dragon Dreams while we are there. This is my first cruise so it’s a real adventure. With the wonderful response we got from stitchers, I am sure we will be doing more events in the coming years...in fact, I already have a couple of ideas in mind. As the events begin to take shape, stitchers can read about it on www.stitchahoy.com.
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New From Sue Hillis Designs... Thanksgiving Pie is one of three new designs in the popular "Post Stitches" series from Sue Hillis. What Thanksgiving gathering would be complete without pie? When stitched on 14 or 28 count fabric, Thanksgiving Pie fits nicely into a 4" x 6" or 5" x 7" frame. A silver fork charm is included. |
How has the cross-stitch industry changed since you first began designing and do you feel we, as an industry, are headed in a positive direction? Well, as I indicated earlier, there are SO many products that continue to evolve for stitchers. The fibers choices are just amazing. When I go into a shop and see the colors on the wall, I just stand there and drool! And we have more fabrics and threads coming all the time. There are thousands of talented designers available to us—literally there is something that will appeal to even the most particular stitcher. I think we are coming out of an era where we packed way too much into our days. We have all the technology that was supposed to make our lives easier and so we filled up that time by taking on more and more tasks. As a result we were all so stressed that we had to experience a “crash and burn” to get us to re-prioritize. I think more people are realizing that they have to make time for themselves so they are more emotionally healthy. I am seeing a new generation of stitchers and new shops popping up and I am very optimistic about our stitching world.
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What are a few of your favorite things about being a part of the cross-stitch business? That’s easy—everything! I love that I have a creative outlet, I love that I can meet and interface with people who have the same interests as I do, I love being involved in an industry that adds beauty in the world and peace in my life.
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In your opinion, what are some of the keys to the success you have enjoyed over the years? This one is going to sound silly but I consider myself a champion consumer. I know what is generally on the market, where to find it for the best service and the best deal. Because of my experiences as a consumer, I know to listen to what my customers want in product and service. I pay attention to correspondence commenting on my products, both positive and negative. Sometimes I forget to look at a new product from a stitcher’s viewpoint and miss the obvious. Years ago, I was making cute little whimsical drawings on the page that the chart was on. Someone wrote to suggest I do away with the doodles and make the chart larger. That was so obvious yet I did not think of it on my own! Over the years, I have learned stitchers that are drawn to my designs like a bit of whimsy, they like full cross stitches with few fractional stitches, large easy-to-read charts, embellishments that are included with the leaflets, fabrics and fibers that are readily available to them, and they like that most of my designs fit into standard size frames. This is a working formula for Sue Hillis Designs that comes from listening to shops and stitchers. If you have comments or suggestions you want to pass on to me, I would love to hear them. My email address is suehillisdesigns@aol.com.
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Would you share a little about your family and are any of them involved in Sue Hillis Designs? I was blessed to have fallen into a business that allowed me to fill my creative needs and stay at home with my children when they were young. When I started SHD in 1976 , the children were ages 7, 4, and 3. During the day, I could fill orders and run back and forth to the post office with them and I did my designing after they went to bed. They all participated in SHD on some level as they were growing up and saw first hand the inner workings of how a business is run. They know being a business owner is a 24/7 adventure and what a ride! At one time or another, all three of them stitched for me. My boys did warehousing for me as well has being the packhorses at shows. I hired and fired my middle son probably a dozen times as he was growing up. My daughter now is a marketing consultant and I regularly reap the rewards of that talent. All of them, including a very supportive husband, are “on call” even now if I need them. Generally, they get paid with Mom’s home cooking!
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What are some activities you enjoy when you don’t have a needle and thread in hand? I am ready to go antiquing at the drop of the hat! My collections are always evolving—right now I am collecting vintage samplers (stamped cross stitch) from the 30’s and 40’s to hang in a guest room. And I have to start thinking about my Christmas décor—it’s never too early to plan! I have 9 full sized Christmas trees that go up every year…each has a different theme but they change a bit each year. I have a patriotic tree to commemorate our 22 years as a military family; the main tree has a variety of ornaments collected that tell a story about places or events that hold a special memories; there’s a tree that has the shabby chic glass ornaments from my childhood; one tree is filled with vintage toys and tea dyed flags; my studio tree has vintage sewing and needlework items; there is even a tree in the laundry room with miniature stockings, long underwear, Santa hats and soap bubbles! All the kids and grandkids come home for Christmas so it’s a marathon of chaos and fun. The grandchildren (6 so far!) refer to my house as the “Christmas House” and that makes it all worth while.
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Would you mind sharing a favorite recipe in closing? I do a lot of cooking and entertaining and my favorite recipes are those that I can make ahead of time. Here is a recipe for breakfast muffins that are a really easy addition for a brunch. Cheesy Sausage Muffins One lb sausage ( I like them spicy so I used HOT sausage, but regular is fine too. If you use regular sausage, then add 2 or 3 teaspoons of sage for a little extra flavor) One can condensed cheddar cheese soup 1/2 cup of milk 3 cups of Bisquick Mix Preheat oven to 400 degrees, brown the sausage and drain well. Mix together Bisquick, milk, soup, and sausage. Fill greased muffin cups about 3/4 the way full (I use mini-muffin pans). Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes. Makes about 32 minis. If serving them later, be sure to refrigerate them. I rewarm them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 300 degrees. YUMMY!!
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