In this business, we like to say that there's a difference between things looking homemade and looking handmade. And we agree, we want our work to look like the latter. If someone says that your work looks homemade, it's essentially the kiss of death for your business. 'Homemade' practically means, 'haggle the price with me'. It means your stitching is sloppy or inconsistent. It means no one is mistaking this quality for factory-made. And it means your work is worth far less, than if it's branded and sold as handmade quality garments.

I've spotted three common offenders - mistakes seamstresses make when marketing their products, that send their potential customers running, and doom them into the 'homemade' territory.

1. Clutter


2. animals

3. steaming & pressing

Selling things you make? You might just be making some lethal marketing mistakes...

This one's for me - the messiest maker in existence. I promise you, I am worse at cleaning up our space than anyone who could possibly read this. Even though I LOVE creating in a clean space, my hectic schedule coupled with a hundred-year-old workspace means we've always got building dust settling, textile dust gathering, and of course, tons of off-cuts of different fabrics, piles of half finished projects, and ideas partially conceptualized.... all strewn across the workspace. When people walk in, and their eyes can't fix on any one particular thing, that's usually my sign to do a lap and cleanup, ha!

And while we don't think twice about making messes when we’re making, we tend not to notice that from the outside, messy = dirty. And our messes look normal to us, but to the outsider, or the buyer, it just looks like clutter, therefore, in their mind, it's made in a dirty environment. 

If you do a quick scroll glimpse at your Tiktok feed, Instagram handle, live stories, or even product shots, does it look even the slightest bit messy and crazy? Chances are, it’s actually hurting your sales. People bring fabric products into their homes, so their subconscious shuts off, if they see the product being created in a messy space, because most people's brains tell them that messy = dirty.

This one’s a bummer. You could've made a beautiful product, complete with stunningly finishings, but if it’s got even the slightest bit of unwanted crinkling, wrinkles, or simply just unpressed, puffy seams... it doesn't look factory nor couture-level handmade. If you're making a garment, slowing down enough to press each new seam makes a world of difference to the final product. No amount of pressing after the fact, can make up for not pressing between steps.

And remember, when you don't press/steam, it looks homemade. And homemade means it’s worth less. The last thing you want, is a finished product that looks like it was cut out of a Simplicity pattern and pieced together on a home machine. This isn't meant as shade towards people running their businesses off of home machines - I ran my entire business off of a Brother Project Runway machine for the entire first year and when I finally got a serger, it was a little 1034D that my parents got me on Amazon for my birthday. The point is, no matter what kind of machine you used to create your product, it should look like it could’ve been made on an assembly line.

It’s such a simple step, but so often is one that gets skimped over, be it during the making process, not stopping to iron every set of sewn seams, or spending time in the final pass-over with a lint roller and steamer, to bring out the beauty of the finished garment.

These simple pointers seem so obvious to some, but more often than not, makers overlook the basics. I hope this helps you market better!

Don’t get me wrong, I love my pets! My pup of 14 years passed away this year, and I can honestly say it's been the hardest adjustment of my life. Watson was with me 24/7, and came to work at the shop every day that I've owned my business. He was a stellar hypoallergenic floor manager and never once messed with anything in the shop. HOWEVER, as animal lovers, we forget that there are people out there that are allergic to them, and actually, the percentage of the population that's allergic to cats and/or dogs is pretty high!

20% of people have pet allergies... and whether they do or they don't, simply SEEING your cat in your studio can turn them off of your product. The truth is, even fellow pet owners say they're less likely to buy a product that's been in the same space as another pet. 

On the far end of the fur-baby spectrum, I’ve even seen people post videos and photos of their pets rolling around in their fabric!! I've watched live stories horrified, as they share images & videos of their pets, curled up in fabric that they plan to use and eventually sell. It’s unsanitary, unsafe for your pet, and can even be dangerous if an iron knocks over at the wrong time. Years ago, I was on the receiving end of a stressed out phone calls of “my cat swallowed tulle and now she’s in surgery!), and the fear of what could have happened is enough to make your workspace separate from your pet's space without close supervision.

Bottom line - unless you make products for pets, don’t market behind the scenes using them.