“It was my daughter’s brainchild,” says Hazel Rimmasch of Vintage Door, the crochet edge bias tape business she co-owns with her daughter, Arlene Cook. “Three years ago she was looking through some of the things my mother had sewn and admired the bias tape she’d used. It had a crocheted edge. She found a few leftover packages that must have been 30 or more years old,” Hazel recalls. “It was made by Wright’s. She searched for it, but they no longer manufacture it.”
Arlene was determined to find a similar product to use in her own sewing projects. First she asked her mother to crochet edging onto some existing bias tape, “But it just wasn’t the same,” Hazel says. So Arlene began searching for an existing manufacturer. Eight months later she finally found a factory in Europe that produced a crochet edge bias tape she was satisfied with.
In July of 2013 Hazel and Arlene opened an Etsy shop together to sell the bias tape directly to quilting enthusiasts. Customers loved the vintage charm and sales were good. Within a few months the pair reached out to three local quilt shops in their Salt Lake City neighborhood to see if they’d like to carry the bias tape as well. “They loved it and it did very well,” Hazel says.
Blue floral crochet-edged bias tape from Vintage Door.
When Arlene saw that this year Spring Quilt Market was going to be in their hometown she decided the time was right to invest in a trade show. “We thought we’d try to get some new wholesale accounts in the Western states,” Hazel says. They registered for a booth and in January began sewing samples, eventually making about a dozen quilts plus several small projects such as pillows. They used the binding to make double gauze baby blankets and a minky blanket as well.
Before the show they put some thought into their strategy. “At first we figured it would be best to place a large order in advance of the trade show so that we’d have plenty of product on hand ready to ship,” Hazel says. “But then we realized that we really didn’t know what people in all the various demographics would buy. Talking to friends it seemed it would be okay to wait to place the order so that’s what we decided to do.”
Arlene in the Vintage Door booth.
Bindings on the display in the Vintage Door booth.
Hazel says this turned out to be a wise decision. “On Etsy the polka dot print is our bestseller, but at the show it was the florals and the solids.” They placed the order with their manufacturer the day after the show and told shops that orders will arrive in 3-5 weeks.
Polka dot crochet-edge bias tape from Vintage Door.
The Vintage Door booth turned out to be tremendously popular. “There were a few other booths selling trim, but we were the only booth at Market selling just bias tape,” Hazel says. “We didn’t have a quiet moment until 5:00 pm each day of the show. We could barely look up.”
“At one point we did look up and this group of people dressed all in black came over and surrounded the booth,” Hazel says. “We were really busy and I thought, ‘Uh oh. We’ve done something wrong and we’re being shut down.’ I looked at my daughter and her face had lost all its color.” It turned out that the people dressed in black were staff members of Quilts, Inc. and they’d come to award Vintage Door the Best New Exhibitor Booth Award.
Hazel and Arlene of Vintage Door accept their booth award.
For Vintage Door attending Quilt Market was the key to scaling their business. Although they’d had a successful Etsy shop for three years, having a booth at the trade show got their product in front of quilt shops all over the country in a way that they couldn’t have done on their own. By the end of Market they’d opened 47 new wholesale accounts in 43 states.
“It was a fabulous experience,” Hazel says. “We worked out butts off, but it was fabulous.”
Maddie Kertay says
So adorable… I just sent them a message.. we would love to carry this at SPOOL!
Abby says
That’s awesome. I think it would do really well at SPOOL!
Tay Cutchin Satterfield says
What a great product !! I wish them well !!
Sara @ Sew Sweetness says
I bought 3 tubes of this at Market, it was beautiful. They also had fusible bias tape (that they used to make the applique panda quilt).
Abby says
It’s neat that they were selling direct to consumer on the show floor.
Melissa says
So, in addition to the personal interaction, there are still very good reasons to attend quilt market and it isn’t outdated after all.
Abby says
If you have the right product and your goals are aligned with the way the show is organized, absolutely.
Leah Kabaker says
I guess that answers the question, is Quilt Market still necessary.
Sarah says
What a great success story. That trim is adorable!!
Ann says
Just to thank you for all the interesting products, articles and podcast
you put into your newsletter! You brighten my day with all the latest
happenings and info and I know it takes a lot of work to gather it and
format it for us. As a long time seamstress , quilter and crafter you keep
me on top of the happenings which, in turn, inspire me to do more and
and keep on learning new things even if I am a senior citizen!!!
Abby says
You’re welcome, Ann 🙂
Cathy Mc says
Great story, I am happy for them! They have an original product and made it stand out in a sea of me-too sameness.
Sara says
No, a hand crochet trim that takes hours to produce intricately beautiful, variable and customisable results, just isn’t the same as a standardised product made on a machine (!)
Abby says
Both are good things. And one is a scalable business that can support your family.
Kate G says
Great story, Abby. Your reporting standards are terrific. Covering both the up and downsides of an organization is what reliability is all about. with this reader. Count me as a fan of While She Naps. You make the world a better place.
Abby says
Thank you. That means a lot to me.
Rebecca Grace says
This is an ADORABLE product! Abby, do you know of any online tutorials, either written or videos, showing how to use this bias tape to finish quilt edges or garments?
Abby says
I learned how to bind a quilt from this tutorial by Missouri Star: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vCWpxBRs20
Jeifner says
Grainline Studios has some great blog posts on how to use bias bindings in clothes.
Laurie Sharp says
I’ll be spending the next few days at a trade show, selling Woolpets kits, for independent toy retailers http://www.astratoy.org. My husband and I have found this trade show to be a great boost to our business during a usually slow time of year. And, it gives us an opportunity to meet with toy sellers, sales reps and other manufacturers face to face. Attending the trade show itself is a lot of work and it is expensive, but so far we have always covered our costs and gained some new valuable customers. And, our sales reps seem to really appreciate having us there. Also, I like to probe toy store owners regarding what their customers are looking for in our products.
I understand that due to increasing e-commerce trade shows may loose their impact, but I think people always like to meet in person and see/touch/feel, really experience the merchandise.
Thanks for all your great info, Abby!
Jeifner says
My local quilt shop has carried their crochet edge bias tape for years. It is very cute and I guess I assumed that most people had seen it before. I just used it to finish the edge on a doll skirt and doll quilt.
Marcia Herath says
Would it work for neckline binding on a t shirt?
Abby says
It would for a shirt made from woven material I think, like chambray?
Karen says
The Missouri Star quilt tutorial for binding is wonderful but I, like Rebbeca Grace, also would like to see a video specifically applying this cute binding to a quilt. I have the perfect quilt in mind waiting to be finished but I’m a little leary to purchase the binding without seeing exactly how it is applied. I love the product and the possibilities though!
Abby says
Karen, Maybe you can reach out to Vintage Door on Etsy and ask if they have a video tutorial already made or if they might be interested in making one?
Karen says
I did and they basically referred me to you tube for a generic video on how to apply bias bindings. I was more interested in how this particular binding could be used to finish a quilt when it is only 1/2″ wide. I cut my bindings for my quilts 2 1/4″, so even folded in half it is twice that size.
Abby says
I see. I’m not a quilter so I’m not in a position to make this video for you. I’m sorry.
Mary says
Karen, I you send me a piece of the binding, I would be glad to make a tutorial for you of how to apply it to a quilt.
Karen says
Thank you Mary, but I haven’t purchased any yet.