We recently connected with Ashley Delose and have shared our conversation below.
Ashley, appreciate you joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?
My mom’s love for vintage and thrifting piqued my interest in textiles early on. When rummaging through her closet, I’d get lost in the mix of colors and textures, from stripes to florals, velvet to leather, and sequins to rhinestones. When I received a sewing machine in high school, I realized how much time, effort, and money went into creating clothing from scratch – quite the opposite of my mom’s and her mom’s generation! After not fully finishing a top, I found satisfaction in hand picking clothing from second-hand stores, altering them, and sewing smaller projects like accessories. I inherited my grandma’s sewing basket filled with sewing notions (fabric trims, threads, buttons, etc.), and to me these objects were heirlooms representing do-it-yourself culture.
It started with collecting vintage fabrics and sewing notions. Not many people make their own clothes anymore and there is a surplus of beautiful, quality sewing trims and sewing supplies from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s waiting to be rediscovered. I experimented with hand sewing using these existing materials as inspiration. I spent countless hours playing with different types of fabrics and manipulation techniques and continued tinkering with different art and craft techniques, like braiding, beading, quilting, and collage to see where it could go. Eventually I started making hair pins and earrings with embellishments from fabric, thread, and beads. Being resourceful and working within constraints allows unexpected ideas to take shape. I also enjoy the challenge of combining techniques to create something different and unexpected.
After college I reached out to a few local shops for the consignment of my handmade jewelry and hair pins. During that time Etsy was new so I set up an online storefront there with a small collection of pieces. While working full-time in New York City I sold my work on the weekends at pop-up markets like Artists & Fleas, Renegade Craft Fair, and Hester Street Fair. I started learning how to talk about my work, how to display it, price it, what to keep doing, and what to change. Participating in markets was (and still is) a great way to identify and meet your target customers, test out ideas, and get inspired by customers and fellow artists.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I studied art and minored in theater production costume design in college. While working in the costume shop I learned how to sew and how to construct and mend garments. Over the years I’ve experimented with traditional art and craft techniques, which has helped me develop my own style with distinct designs combining textiles with beadwork.
Ashdel is a collection of modern textile jewelry created from vintage sewing notions and glass beads. Fabric trims, threads, and fasteners traditionally used in garment making are repurposed and meticulously handcrafted into artful treasures. Inspired by the yoyo quilting technique, mini fabric yoyos are the foundation of most pieces. Yoyo quiltmaking was popular during the 1920s-40s when resources were scarce. Leftover bits of scrap material were cut into circles, hand stitched around the perimeter, and gathered in the center to create rosettes. The yoyos were then sewn together into rows to create a quilt.
Customers get excited about the style of Ashdel pieces and feel good wearing them, since they’re lightweight and made with titanium, which is hypoallergenic and comfortable for sensitive ears. I think customers like knowing their piece is made by the artist. A little bit of the artist’s soul is in each piece. The tiny stitches are visible on the fabric and are an imprint of the maker’s handiwork. My work embraces refined imperfection and simplicity with attention to detail. I hope it inspires creative self-expression in the wearer.
Thoughtful design and minimizing waste are important to me in designing and making. Playing with ideas for how to use the small fabric remnants has been a fun, and quite an obsessive, process inspired by zero-waste design and the desire for a little-to-no-waste studio workflow. With other art mediums like clay, glass, and metalsmithing, the scrap material can be recycled again and again. Zero-waste pattern making is designed to create garment patterns that produce no waste or leftover fabric. It’s a slow process to design out waste and be resourceful with materials in the design phase. I view my business as connected to the way the fashion industry used to be; slow and a protest against fast fashion. Now, there’s an increased desire for more transparency about materials used and how they’re sourced and impact on the environment. I’m the sole designer and maker of each piece, and although my business is tiny, I hope my decisions have an impact on the broader culture.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I’ve second guessed myself and my work many times. Working for myself has been more difficult than I imagined – it’s true what people say ‘if it were easy everyone would do it!’ At times I couldn’t imagine how to get my handmade business to a point that was sustainable.
I went through a period where I lacked confidence in my work. I wasn’t putting my work out there enough, I questioned if it was good enough, and I wasn’t putting in 100% effort. I took it to heart when my work was passed over for wholesale and consignment opportunities. I got stuck and wasn’t sure which path to take or where to focus to take the business further. It felt overwhelming with so many decisions. There was also a lot of uncertainty following the height of the pandemic. I was so frustrated and told myself ‘this path isn’t for me and that I’d go back to my previous research work and continue my business as a hobby.’ I started freelancing and applying to research jobs but it didn’t lead to full-time work. I decided to give my business one more try, committing to it fully 100%. I revisited the designs with a clearer perspective and focus, I created new designs and refined existing ones, I continued selling at pop-up markets and building out my online shop. I focused on building a connection with my audience and interpreting feedback as guidance to move forward, honing in on what I enjoy making, what they like, and the sweet spots where the two overlap. Once I committed to more consistency in production and outreach, I was able to rebuild my confidence and trust my instincts better. Connecting with other artists in the community has also provided community and support.
Looking back, this was probably necessary to my growth; it made me question if I really wanted to pursue this path forward, but it was also probably slower than it could have been. I had to learn how to set goals and grow at my own pace. It’s still a work in progress!
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
The transition from hobby to full time business was a slow progression over many years. I lived and worked in New York City as a video editor, a front-end developer, and eventually a user experience researcher. I worked both as a consultant and an in-house researcher developing digital products using lean/iterative design and testing principles. I enjoyed the process of identifying pain points and unmet needs and collaborating to design and test solutions. This influenced my process in terms of prototyping and testing ideas, interpreting feedback, and refining designs. I continued creating as a hobby on weekends and craved a job where I could be creative and work for myself. I kept coming back to my love for art, craft, and textiles.
When we moved to Austin, TX in 2016 for my husband’s job, I had saved up money to provide a cushion and in 2017 I started focusing on my creative business full time.
Austin has a large community of independent artists and small businesses, so I started seeking out pop-up markets to participate in. Over the years some key moments were honing in on a core collection of designs, setting up my own website and shop online, increasing wholesale outreach through Faire, and continuing to sell in-person at pop-up markets. Participating in the Blue Genie Art Bazaar (a month long pop-up retailer) during the holidays has been a great opportunity to reach a wider audience. I’ve also collaborated with local, independent stores with limited collections and teach sewing workshops. The biggest shift has been increasing consistency with the jewelry production, so that I have a bit of inventory on hand for upcoming markets and wholesale.
Contact Info:
- Website: ashdel.com
- Instagram: @shopashdel
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-delose-89614616/
Image Credits
Ashley Delose