CatFlowers: Local, Hand-Sewn, Bangin’ Accessories… Um, Yes!

Cat Downs and Michelle Evans are Philly’s newest cat ladies… And they’re about to slay you! (Do cats “slay”?… I’m not a very good writer, am...

[Photos by Jesse Gimbel]

Cat Downs and Michelle Evans are Philly’s newest cat ladies… And they’re about to slay you! (Do cats “slay”?… I’m not a very good writer, am I?… Huh. Ok. I’ll get back to doing videos soon, I promise.)

But seriously… A week before the catFlowers Esty store even opened, it was the hottest, most-talked about shit in Philly. Highlighted on numerous local fashion sites, including PW Style, catFlowers is about to be worn by all your in-the-know friends (and about half of the hotties that go to the Barbary on Monday nights).

And because I’m a young gay dude, some of my lady friends expect me to be up on these trends. So I contacted catFlowers, and while I would normally do a video interview, I’m still on my crouches and that makes everything mad difficult. Ok, here we go, I’m about to bust out in some journalism ’05 shit! Philthy Blog sits down with catFlowers…

Philthy Blog: Hey ladies! Ok, so what materials do you all use? How are catFlower accessories made?

CatFlowers: Right now we’re working with some vintage floral fabrics and lace that Michelle found, and mixing that with store bought cotton solids. Everything, for the most part is fabric (except for some tools). This way, you don’t feel like something is stabbing you in the head. Also, everything is hand sewn. We weren’t too much of a fan of glue-gunning anything. That shit breaks easily. Oh, and paint. We like to hand paint cats onto things.

P: What inspired you to make hairbands? Any plans to extend into other areas?

C: Well, it’s more than headbands, but headbands are a big trend now. Particularly decorative ones. We wanted to give a feel of walking into a forest, and having to fashion a headpiece out of flowers and leaves, without actually doing so. Besides that, we also have some jewelry (also made from fabric), pillows, and barrettes. Eventually, We’d like to move into clothing, artwork, and pageant wear. Minus that last one.

P: Who do you envision as your perfect customer?

C: Everyone!
Ok, maybe not everyone, but a large majority can get into this stuff. Gals of any age, brides, cat ladies, cat dudes, aerobics instructors, tennis players, coke heads, grandmothers, your sister, your mom, my mom, etc.

P: Are you’re hairbands everyday chic or special occasion?

C: Both! They would certainly make sense for things like weddings, parties, bat mitzvahs, etc. We also think there’s nothing cuter than a girl wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and flowers or bows on her head.

P: This is probably a weird question, but because I know very little about Etsy, what does Etsy give you that selling to a store doesn’t?

C: We’re just starting with Etsy for now, as well as Artfire. Since it’s the Internet and all, and it reaches people from all over the world, it’s a good way to test out what sells and what doesn’t. We’re pretty new at this, and while we’d like to think we know a good deal about what’s going on in the world of fashion accessories…there’s no better way to find that out than seeing what millions of people are interested in purchasing. Etsy is basically Ebay….just with handmade and vintage items, and who doesn’t love ebay!?! Eventually we’ll work on getting into craft festivals, and hopefully into one-of-a-kind local shops.

P: Ok, when does your Etsy store launch?!

C: We’ve already started (slowly) putting things up. To check it out click HERE. [catFlowers.etsy.com]

You can also follow catFlowers on Twitter HERE and on Facebook HERE.

Thanks catFlowers! All of my bad writing aside, you’re stuff is amazing and, I want one of these like, right now!

TTLY, Conrad

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