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Claire
Rawlins-Sniff’s love of needlework started early in life. Her
mother believed that all of her seven children, including the boys,
should know how to do everything. Claire learned to crochet when she
was 9, and as time went by, other skills like sewing, cross-stitch,
quilting and sewing were gleaned from her mother and grandmother.
Claire enjoyed the activity so much that her lifelong career goal
was to "do something that included sewing" or "be a
pastry chef." However, the realities of being a single mother
with college and braces to pay for put Rawlins-Sniff on the road
marketing to the financial services industry. She crisscrossed the
country for 15 years and admits that she always enjoyed her
Midwestern stops, especially Illinois, best.
When
Claire married David Sniff and settled in Lincoln two years ago, it
meant the opportunity to leave the fast pace behind and
"retire." Retirement didn’t last long. While shopping in
Sit ’n’ Knit a little over a year ago, Rawlins-Sniff made an
offhand offer to buy the shop to then-owner Linda Schneider, when
she was ready to sell. Schneider took her up on it. Claire reflects
that at the time, she was really joking, but the more she thought
about it, the more she wanted to do it.
Consequently,
Claire’s Needleworks opened its doors on Aug. 15, 1999. The store
had operated as Sit ’n’ Knit since the early ’80s, when opened
by Bonnie Welch. Linda Schneider owned the business for 13 years
prior to Claire’s purchase last year. Rawlins-Sniff felt it was
time for a name change to better describe the store’s current
inventory. That inventory has tripled in the last year. Almost 5,000
charts and patterns are now available. Accessories, notions and
specialty threads have been added as well. Yarn, an expensive
inventory to carry, is still available, as Claire likes to knit. She
notes that you can pick up a skein at a discount store for 88 cents
but it won’t be the long-lasting quality you’ll find at Claire’s.
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In
the framing area, new designers have been added to give a wider
price spectrum. Rawlins-Sniff has been told by customers her regular
prices are up to 30 percent less than sale prices of big box stores.
Plus, turnaround time is shorter – usually seven to 10 days
instead of three to four weeks. Though customers are used to coming
to the store to have needlework framed, Claire’s can literally
frame anything. All work is done in the store, and Claire recently
completed a framer’s school in Chicago. Now she’s working on her
designation as a Certified Professional Framer, a process that will
take about 16 months. The framing business now comprises about 60
percent of the store’s income, greatly increasing since the
closing of Painter’s Art and Frames.
Of
all that Claire’s Needleworks has to offer, Rawlins-Sniff’s
favorite is the counted thread work in contemporary styles and
designs. Though there is still some inventory carry-over, she says
she hasn’t purchased anything for the store that she doesn’t
personally like, so the store is truly a reflection of her.
The
reflection extends to the Stitcher’s Group, which meets on
Tuesdays at 1 p.m. until everyone goes home. Anyone is welcome to
drop in and join in the fellowship. This was common in Hawaii, she
says, where handwork was an important element of socializing. When
visiting friends or relatives, you always took whatever you were
working on, and visited while keeping your hands busy. Another
element of Hawaiian handwork was the incorporation of nature,
usually represented in a solid color. Quilts in the Midwest are
heavily batted pieces of art, while in Hawaii there’s no need for
heavy batting, since it’s so warm.
Rawlins-Sniff
says she likes the concept of retail, and it – along with the
Stitcher’s Group – has given her the opportunity to meet many
new people and friends. After working so hard to take care of her
children, she feels richly blessed, and that the store is God’s
reward for a job well done. As Claire says, "What can be better
than coming to work to do what you love to do?"
[Wendy
Bell,
program manager for
Main Street Lincoln]
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