You Asked, I Answered (Part 2)

Tell us about your dog...Bailey!
Bailey is my baby. He is a 6 year old miniature Australian Shepherd. He is spoiled rotten! He is the official dog of Monogram Chick.

Do you monogram everything yourself?
Yes! All embroidered items are creations of my own.

What is your favorite store to shop at for yourself? Hmm, that is a hard one. You can find me most often in Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor LOFT, Target (I’m a Super Target snob), Macy’s and Nordstrom (they have the BEST shoes!)

How did you get started - what was the first thing you monogrammed?
As I mentioned earlier, I actually started with just stationery. Then, my nephew was born and things just evolved. My very first piece was a burp cloth. I got my machine a week before Christmas; I stayed up until all hours making all sorts of gifts for the family!

What kind of embroidery machine you have for your business?
I actually run 2 commercial embroidery machines, they are so loud I have to wear air traffic controller head phones when I’m in the room with them and they are both stitching away. Dr. Monogram Chick says I’m going deaf. Huh?

If you and your hubby could travel, where would you go and why?
If I’m choosing, I’d love to go to northern Italy and Switzerland. My grandmother is a first generation American from northern Italy. I fell in love with the countryside when the Winter Olympics were held there and want to visit so badly! I don’t really have a good reason to go to Switzerland other than it seems so uniquely beautiful and clean. If you were to ask my husband, I think he’d choose the Galapagos Islands. He loves exotic animals and unique places.

WHEN do you sleep? I see posts, comments and emails with all times of the day/night!
Seriously, I don’t know!

Is everything in your house monogrammed?
I wish! You know the saying, “the cobbler’s children never have shoes”? Well it is kind of like that around here. When I get a new product I most often monogram/embroider one for myself (if I don’t do it for my sister, mom, or friends) as a test but sadly, not everything is monogrammed. My shower curtain boasts our combined monogram but my pillowcases are not monogrammed, I would love to get to that one day!

How did your husband propose? It was really very sweet and unforgettable. We were in my hometown during Christmas break and he took me to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants downtown that overlooks a beautiful park with a fountain and amazing Christmas lights. (This is the same park he told me he loves me for the first time.) We walked through the park, just talking and looking at the lights. He set the camera up to take a photo using the timer. We took one photo & he said he blinked we needed to take another. He went to set the camera and came back and dropped to one knee. I was totally surprised and we have the special moment on film(digital “film”)!

What college football team do you root for?
Go Dawgs!! Georgia Bulldogs, that is.

Do you have an actual brick and mortar store?
For now, Monogram Chick is just online…who knows, maybe one day when we are settled there will be a brick and mortar store in Georgia?!

What's your favorite thing to cook... and please include the recipe :-)
Cooking is not my forte. I keep it simple with stir fry and grilled chicken most nights. However, I LOVE to bake! Right now, we are loving the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that I posted the recipe for a few weeks back. I love anything sweet; I’ll be sharing more recipes in the near future!

How long have you been sewing (not just monogramming)?
I’ve been sewing since I was a child. I grew up with my very own Martha Stewart. My mom was quite the domestic engineer. She smocked and sewed all of my and my sister’s dresses when we were little. She even did a few homecoming dresses in junior high. Naturally, I picked up on the nack for craftiness. My first project was a scrunchy then I moved onto tote bags and pajamas. I can remember my mom teaching my entire Girl Scout troop how to sew!

What is the hardest item you have ever monogrammed?
The most challenging thing that I ever embroidered was a slip cover for a child’s chair. It was so big and bulky and the client wanted the name as large as possible, it took both me and Dr. M.C. to get that sucker on the machine! I prayed the whole time it stitched.

Well, there you have it. This was a ton of fun, let's do it again soon!