We recently connected with Heather Schlein and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Heather , thanks for joining us today. So, one thing many business owners consider is donating a percentage of sales or profits to an organization or cause. We’d love to hear your thoughts and the story behind how and why you chose the cause or organization you donate to.

I donate a portion of sales quarterly to dog rescues, specifically those that support senior dogs. I started Lucy & Leigh in 2021 when my senior dog, Lucy, had increasingly expensive medical needs. At that time, the proceeds from Lucy & Leigh were primarily used to offset her medications and medical care. When she passed in February of 2022, I made it my mission to continue supporting senior dogs through my business. I primarily donate to Senior Dog Haven & Hospice out of Wilmington, Delaware, but I’ve also been known to sponsor the adoption of a dog at any rescue whose story reminds me of my Lu.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Creating is something that’s in my blood. When I was growing up, my mom and gram had a craft business called Crafts by Becky. I remember my mom working late nights in the living room and early mornings on Saturdays at craft shows. As a kid, I’d tag along with her. Eventually, she let me start my own little display in her booth for bracelets. I still have the Bracelets by Heather sign in my workshop. I think I charged 25 cents a piece for little bracelets made out of pony beads and elastic. That soon turned into Headsbands by Heather as I learned how to use the sewing machine and made my own scrunchies. I’d love to go back and tell my 10-year-old self that 30 years in the future, friendship bracelets and scrunchies would rule the world again.

Oddly, it was my teaching job that got me into earring making. One year, our superintendent rolled out a month of spirit days leading up to Christmas break. I love the holidays, but I also knew that planning outfits for the entire month would make my head explode. My mom had given me a faux leather earring kit prior to that, and I’d just been saving it for a rainy day. I had the idea to just create earrings that tied into some of the themes instead of dressing up. I got the itch to keep creating after the holidays. Friends started asking me about where I was getting my earrings and one day, my husband encouraged me to start an Etsy just to see what might happen. I had no idea how to use Etsy let alone how to run a business, but I learned as I went and three and a half years later, Lucy & Leigh is thriving.

I primarily make leather and wood earrings. Right around Covid, I got really into big earrings but I absolutely hated how badly they hurt my ears. When I started making my own faux leather earrings, I realized that I could have the best of both worlds — bold earrings and pain-free ears. On top of that, I’m someone who’s always loved fashion and style, but, as a plus-size woman, I didn’t always feel that confident experimenting and finding my own personal style up until the last few years. Bold earrings gave me the opportunity to dip my toe in that pool without feeling self-conscious. One of the things I love about Lucy & Leigh is the community and confidence that have built up around me. My goal with my earrings is to make other women feel confident stepping into their own personal style as well. I share a lot of my outfits and how I’ve paired them with Lucy & Leigh pieces on Instagram. My hope is that other 40-year-old women see that and aren’t afraid to wear the pants or try the skirt they’ve had their eye on because they’re feeling too self-conscious from the few pounds that’ve crept on in the last few years. I’ve been really grateful that my little corner fo the internet is an incredibly supportive community.

I know there are a ton of other leather earring makers out there, but I really try to curate a specific aesthetic for Lucy & Leigh. One of the best compliments I get is when someone shows me a pattern they’ve seen out and about that feels like Lucy & Leigh to them. I’ve really tried to fine-tune my aesthetic over the last three years and I’m really proud of how far it’s come. Another huge part of Lucy & Leigh is that I hand-cut absolutely everything. I use a sharp pair of scissors and cut everything out myself. I know it could be so much easier (and quicker) if I used other methods, but this is how I got started and it’s important to me to stay true to the value of truly being handmade. I even paint my wooden studs with a really fine model painting brush to maintain that attribute.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I started my Lucy & Leigh account with a following that was solely friends and family. To be honest, when I go back to the very, very beginning of my Lucy & Leigh account on Instagram, I realize that I missed a lot of the beginning steps because I was only posting on my personal account, too afraid to commit to a business account as well. Once my first few orders went out, friends would share their earrings and tag my account and I slowly started to grow through word-of-mouth. The biggest thing, and something I will forever be incredibly grateful for, was when another maker found my page and ordered a pair of earrings. I was at school one day and, at the time, my classroom was a black hole for the internet, so I didn’t always get notifications during the day. When I walked out to my car at the end of the day, I noticed that my Instagram notifications were bonkers. I realized that this account, The Little Green Bean, had shared the earrings she purchased from me and people were not only following me, but asking me for these earrings she had ordered. At the time, I was literally making one pair of everything, so I didn’t have any extra materials and I definitely wasn’t prepared for that influx of orders. I ended up creating a waitlist and I think I sold somewhere around 50 pairs of those earrings. I will never forget that feeling. Missy, the face behind The Little Green Bean, and I have grown really close over the past few years and I’ll forever be grateful for her taking a chance on me and sharing my little account.

My account is not massive by any means, but my advice for those just starting out is to be genuine. Don’t try to put on a front. For me, I think it’s easier to stick to this because I know people will see me out in public often since I go to markets nearly every weekend. I’d never be able to hide my loud laugh or my foul mouth. My office is constantly a mess. I live in sweatshirts after school. My makeup isn’t always perfect. But I always show up as me and I think people are drawn to that. I know that I tend to follow more accounts of people who I feel like I could sit down and have a beer with than people who present this perfectly curated life.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

For me, I think building my reputation is two-fold and goes back to being genuine again. First of all, I always try to put out a high-quality product. Since I hand-cut everything, I’m constantly looking at my pieces up close and if I even see the slightest imperfection, it’s back to the drawing board. I’m so particular about the pieces I put out, but that doesn’t mean I’m not going to have a jump ring that isn’t closed perfectly or a back that isn’t glued on correctly. When you’re making things by hand, it’s impossible to always put out a perfect product 100% of the time. Mistakes are going to happen and I’ve found that owning up to the mistake and making it right is one of the best ways to establish a reputation as a business that stands by their product.

On top of that, Lucy & Leigh literally would not exist without the maker and customer communities that surround it. I try to connect with my customers because I know that for me as a customer, I love knowing the story of the person making something I’m buying. I love when you’re able to connect with someone over the most random thing and I’ve made a lot of really great friendships with customers because of that.

I also really believe in building up other makers. Like I said before, I wouldn’t be where I am without Missy from The Little Green Bean. When we are all working together and supporting each other, customers see that. Customers also see the ones who aren’t – the ones downplaying others’ accomplishments or copying from other makers. I know I keep saying it, but it all comes down to being genuine. If you’re true to yourself and your business and your product, your customers and community know and that’s what builds up a reputation in the end.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lucyandleigh.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/lucyandleigh
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/lucyandleighhandmade

Image Credits

Christina Reilly (all but set-up and office photos)