On a Sunday afternoon in the sun, I found myself lucky to be sitting on a
front porch off Elmwood with Kari Smistek, designer, seamstress and
local business owner. Kari is an absolute joy to be around; genuine,
talented and with plenty to say. Her clothing line, Clementiny,
is a direct reflection of how she presents herself. The line is a
whimsical array of vintage patterns and simple shapes, all lending
themselves to the body type of any person who chooses to wear it.
BR: Has this turned into a full time job for you?
KS: Full
time, like 7am to 11pm.
BR: How long ago did you start?
KS: I started last March when I
started staying home with Clementine. Staying home, I thought, was a
great idea, and it was, and I loved it, but I needed something to do. I’m
not a sitter. I’ve always had a sewing machine but never really used
it, just tooled around with my own stuff. Then my boyfriend’s grandfather got put into a nursing home. We went over to his house and
realized his grandmother was a sewer. She had everything–all this
retro fabric, books and lace–and we got it all.
BR: Once your fabric supply runs out, where do you get more?
KS:
Right now I have a few vintage shops that I work with off Etsy and
they’re awesome. They give me deals, they ship for free–so fun. And I
go to Amvets. Everyone in Buffalo knows that our Amvets are awesome. The
girl there knows me by name…embarrassing! She’ll say things like “small order today.”
BR: Some of the clothing, especially the jackets, are so
intricate. I’m impressed! Can you describe Clementiny Clothing for us?
KS:
It’s really important to me that I use recycled fabrics. Basically
everything I use is vintage. I use a lot of bed sheets curtains, twenty
times washed, obviously! But people really like that. What’s better than a
sheet? They’re super comfortable, you sleep on them, and I use them as
lining a lot. Recycling is a huge deal, plus the fabric is unique, so
everything is one of a kind which my customers love. They feel like they
have something special. The style? I like to be organic and natural as possible so there’s
not a lot of detail. They’re comfortable. A simple fun, colorful thing
to wear.
BR: Do you wear a lot of the clothing or prefer
to see it on your friends?
KS: I do give things to my friends. I try to make things for myself, I
just don’t have the time anymore. If we have a night out I’ll make
myself a dress. I wish I had more for myself but truly, I have no time
with the orders coming in.
BR: Who is the woman wearing your clothes?
KS: I have a
lot of moms, all ages. I had thought this would be a 20 to early 30’s
group but I get a lot of 50-year-olds, 13-year-olds that are going
through their mom’s account. I’ve reached a lot of ages, which I think is
great. And I thought that it would be more of an organic type of person,
like us: your friends, my friends, tattooed people who shop at the Co-op
and eat organic food…that’s who I imagined as my clientele.
BR: How did you feel when you sold your first piece to a
stranger?
KS: Really nervous! It was a lady in England, which was
crazy to me even to begin with. I mean, I started a website that wasn’t
even my own website, it was part of Etsy and this woman was contacting
me to make her something custom! It’s nerve-racking. Building it, I was
sending her photos along the way so it turned out perfect and I shipped
it off. I was a wreck waiting for her response. Maybe no news is good
news? Then I saw an email with her name, and thought oh no, oh no! But
everything was good and she was happy. I still get that way. Shipping
out any piece and waiting to hear back is so nerve-racking for me.
And sometimes things need a tweak, it was really hard at first to
hear that, take it in. I felt like I was failing if something didn’t
fit, or they want to return it. But I’m starting to realize that stuff
happens.
BR: Didn’t you imagine doing children’s clothing when you
first started?
I did and basically only did kids clothes, making things for Clementine and myself. Which is why I named it
Clementiny. Funny, because quite a few of my customers are plus-size
women and I am so glad the name is not a deterrent. But I realized
quickly that my stuff was a bit quirky for most kids and there are so
many laws about children’s clothing. Buttons are choking hazards, the
materials can’t be flammable – well I don’t know exactly where most of
my materials come from. So I decided not to focus so much on that. It
seemed like a mess, everything had to have a disclaimer like, ‘not
responsible for choking’.
I put the clothes that I did have up on the site with three items
for women. And the women’s clothing just kept selling over and over and
over. The kids stuff was just sitting there.
BR:
Congratulations on getting into Summer Studio in New Jersey recently! Have any
local retailers picked up your line?
KS: I do have some stuff at Anna Grace but I haven’t pushed it anywhere else
yet. Anna Grace was actually my very first. Joanna was great, worked
with me a lot because it was a learning experience. Having to make
smalls, mediums, and larges is a lot different than custom. Normally I
get someone’s measurements and I make the clothing to them. But it has
worked out really well.
BR: Did you have the freedom to choose which items she sold?
KS:
She picked out three styles and then asked for a shift dress. She gave
me free rein with that one and she let me go with the fabrics. Because
I’m using vintage fabrics, I don’t have enough of one to do multiple
sizes in it. So I do one pattern a small, the medium would be different
and the large would be another. It brought color to the shop.
BR: What is your price range?
KS: I’d say for a top
it’s about $40 and my most expensive dress is $80. Clementiny
is completely affordable and I plan to keep it that way. A lot of
boutiques I’ve talked to tell me that they’d like to raise my prices;
they like to sell. I’ve started to do wholesale which has been really
great, but my prices are really low for places in comparison. I’m using
vintage fabrics. I think it’s unique when something has a little
blemish here or there but I can’t charge $150 for clothing that has a
blemish on it.
BR: Do your clothing tags speak to that statement?
KS:
Yes, I put that on every label.
BR: You’ve built a great
online following with your blog,
Facebook
and Etsy store. How do you do in person, do you have an
elevator pitch?
KS: I get really shy, immediately, and I never talk about it, even when
people bring it up. I say I make clothes! My fiance tells me I need to
talk to people when they tell me they like my dress or whatever I’m
wearing. I just say thanks! It’s easier for me to hide behind a
computer, but that’s who I am. I am trying to be more bold.
BR: But you’re very busy as you’ve said.
KS: I am! I’m
at my capacity. I did have an intern from Buffalo State College. She
actually won the (Buffalo State College) Runway 3.0 Saturday night. Tess Hinterbichler. I was so
proud of her. She was a real help to me, but she has an internship in
Boston.
BR: What’s your plan for next season, or next year?
KS:
I think right now what I’m trying to do is get some help. Either
someone to make our wholesale orders – it’s really important to not ship
things out of the country.
I would still do all of my customs orders. I talk to those customers
all the time, we email back and forth and I could never let go of that.
I have a lot of repeat customers, I remember them and like to form a
relationship with them. They tell me about their lives and we talk about
my daughter, it’s not a click and add to your cart sort of thing. Also, I’m working on some new styles!
—–
Laura Duquette is a former ballerina who now dances with words
and punctuation. She has a knack for asking questions faster than the
speed of sound, and her interviews are often off the cuff and personal.
She is Co-Owner of 12 Grain
Studio, a Buffalo based creative firm that gives typical web design a
kick in the ass.