Despite the challenges of a pandemic, many first years are making extra cash by selling their own arts and crafts. Lydia Hill ’24 is one of the many first years who are successfully running a one-person business. Centered around fashion design, Hill’s work includes creating and selling original, handmade clothing designs on Etsy.
Running a business was never Hill’s main intention, but she was inspired to launch one after planning a winter break project. She recreated the “Harry Styles” dress on the Dec. 2020 cover of Vogue because she “loved it.” After wondering if it would sell, she quickly started an Etsy shop. “Within a day dozens of people had my dress in their carts, and I was getting messages from people all over the world,” Hill said.
Hill discovered her passion for sewing at nine years old when she received lessons from a family friend. Since then, all of her work has been self-taught. “It’s taken a lot of trial and error to get to where I am today,” Hill said. “I’m learning a lot, making lots of different projects and having fun being creative along the way.”
Since 2020, she’s made 78 sales and has a total of seven 5-star ratings and 463 admirers on Etsy. Her most popular design is her zipper jeans. “I made a new Etsy posting for some jeans I made around a year ago, and then a TikTok of them went viral,” Hill said. “Now, I’ve made over 70 sales of them.”
Hill is also selling Harry Styles Vogue Inspired face masks to keep up with the times. Sewn with two layers of satin, she markets the design as comfortable and protective. “It passes the candle test,” said Hill.
Ratings praise Hill for her personalization, sizing, and customer service. One buyer said, “Everything about the zipped jeans feels so personalized, from the custom size to the cards she hand writes. There’s even a small logo with her shop name on the back waistband.”
Hill has currently suspended operations to focus on school, but has listed several of her designs for preorder. “I am still taking orders and trying to complete some of them while I’m here at school,” said Hill. “People can message me on Instagram or Etsy if they have questions about my shop!”
For inquiries, you can contact Lydia at “lydiafaithhill” on Instagram or “Lydia Faith Designs” on Etsy.
vue11@stolaf.edu
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