Myra Blackburn knows something about establishing a successful business that fits into her life as a busy mother.
“I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom so I started thinking of things I could do,” Blackburn said, after her twin sons were born five years ago. With two older children in addition to the twins, she and her sister, Elizabeth Blackburn, decided to purchase an embroidery machine and that was the beginning of Sister Stitch Design.
“Neither one of us had any experience sewing,” Myra said. “I’m completely self-taught.”
She quickly mastered the craft by watching hours of YouTube videos and joining a Facebook embroidery group. “I started embroidering things for my kids to wear to school and I started getting orders within the first month,” she said.
As word of mouth quickly spread, Myra Blackburn went to work personalizing t-shirts, hats, jackets, towels, blankets and more from her home in Kentucky. She now runs the business on her own after moving to Martinsville, where she opened a storefront two years ago. “I love it. I get to work on something new all the time so it never gets old,” she said. “We can embroider on any article of clothing except silk,” she said. As the business has expanded, she now offers vinyl screen-printing and takes orders large and small.
Sister Stitch Design is a featured vendor at Sarah Bush Lincoln Volunteer Guild’s Fall Market where Blackburn will be selling an array of embroidery and screen-printed items including t-shirts, children’s character towels, pillows, hats, bags, blankets, coffee mugs, plates, cell phone covers, and more.
The Sarah Bush Lincoln Volunteer Guild’s Fall Market offers opportunities to shop for one-of-a-kind items, as well as national chain home-party items for the house and garden. Fall Market is set for 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, October 21, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 22, in the Lumpkin Family Center for Health Education. Convenient parking is available in the north parking lot. Admission is free.
Some of the handmade items include: Some of the handmade items include: jewelry, pottery, candles, quilts, clothing, and honey products. From the home-party line, shoppers will find cosmetics, jewelry, body wraps, antibacterial cleaning items, home décor items, food storage, and much more.
This year’s event sponsors include SBL Women’s Healthcare, Painted Properties Realty Company, Cromwell Radio Group and Inyart Tire & Auto Center.
The complete list of vendors is as follows: Mary Kay Cosmetics, Grandma’s Pantry, Usborne Books, Norwex, Kari’s Clay Creations, Vintage Cottage Beauty, Scentsy, Lucky Ducky Baby, Crocheted Creations, The Pampered Chef, Sew Bee It, Wild Flower Honey, Ekko Jewelry Designs, Pink Zebra, Tuperware, Bee My Honey, SBL Medical Weight Management, Sugar Plum, Pretties, Lainey B’s, Vitality Skin Care, A Stone’s Throw, Stanley Home, Products/Fuller Brush, itWorks!, Plush Boutique, Touchstone Crystal by Swarovski, Camry Day, Premier Designs Jewelry, JLM Jewelry, Avon, Matilda Jane Clothing, Maddison Avenue Candle Company, Tastefully Simple, Sister Stitch Designs, Gene’s Jewelry, Young Living Essential Oils, Gold Canyon Candles, Thrive by Le-Vel, Wood Pens & Things, Razzle Dazzle, and Rag Quilts by Sandra.
Volunteer Guild director Colleen Stoner said, “We’re really excited about the quality of vendors we have at this year’s Fall Market. I think community members will be pleased with what they see. What’s even better is that all proceeds support Lifeline grant assistance. The Guild provides grant assistance to individuals who would not otherwise be able to have Lifeline in their homes. Lifeline is dedicated to provide personal response service, peace of mind, and early intervention to individuals whose health is at risk in East Central Illinois and assist them to remain safe and independent with dignity in their own homes. Each year the SBL Volunteer Guild donates $15,000 for Lifeline grant assistance.
For more information, contact the SBL Volunteer Guild at 258 or 348-2500.