A few weeks ago I was looking at our Kitch Towels in the shop and thought more people need to know how great these little towels are, so I contacted Erin, the gal behind the Kitch name and interviewed her. This is the story….
Who makes up Kitch Towels?
Myself with help from my sweet husband! We have co-owned a screen printing shop in downtown Buffalo, NY (called Steamroller) for the past 11 years, and Kitch is an extension of that.
Where did the name come from?
I wanted to convey a sense of my design aesthetic as well as purpose...So, Kitch is short for kitchen and at the same time short (albeit the wrong spelling) for kitschy.
Why did you decide to print on towels?
I just love the idea of something that will change your room as easily as you change your mind. You can't always change your kitchen paint or appliances on a whim, but you can certainly have a dozen different towels on hand to hang and change out as the mood strikes you!
Where do you get the designs? How do you pick them?
Well, my favorite thing is new inspired by the old. My home has an overall clean, contemporary vibe to it with little hints and nods to the 40's and 50's which is how I pretty much approach my designs.
Actually, using flour sack towels themselves is an homage to the past and the story behind them is very interesting. In a nutshell, flour used to be packaged in cloth bags and when the depression hit, housewives got crafty and started cutting those bags up into pieces and used them for household cleaning to save money. When the flour companies caught onto that, they stared printing the flour sacks with floral designs & different patterns to lure women to buy their brand. That trend died out sometime time in the mid 50's when flour was packaged in paper bags.
So, basically...I usually get inspired by something that I see like a movie, book, or piece of art, and then I sit in front of the computer until I can flesh out what is in my head. I like to use vintage inspired imagery and tweak them by using more contemporary colors or patterns.
You are very busy with your family, how do you balance working and family life?
Well, it's not always easy, but I would not be able to do it without the help of my very supportive and extremely talented husband, Tim!
Does Kitch have any big plans for the future?
Hmmmm...yes! Well, in my head - very big plans :)
I stared doing this last November, and I would just love to keep plugging away on Etsy, table events, and wholesale orders. My goal for Kitch is to be able to work full time at it. I think that it's very important to do something you love. I used to tour full time in a band, and when I had my daughter and quit doing that, I couldn't picture myself doing anything else that I loved as much for a career. But I was completely wrong! There's always room for new dreams and making Kitch my full time job is mine :)
What's it like working with Cats Like Us?
Oh my gosh - wonderful! Julie Ann and Andrew are so kind and it's absolutely the easiest and most pleasant business relationship I have! (Of course it is dangerous to go into the shop with a drop off - I want to buy one of EVERYTHING in that shop!)
For more information on Kitch check out her facebook page here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kitch/153191458041202
OR etsy here :
http://www.etsy.com/shop/kitchtowels
You can check out the Kitch Towels for sale at Cats Like Us here: Kitch Towels on sale at Cats Like Us
I just wanted to thank Erin for taking the time to answer a few questions and hopefully Cats Like Us can work more with her in the future. I see a trunk show on the horizon!
Your Kitch and kitsch lover,
~Julie Ann