Kim Lapacek - Kim's Crafty Apple
July 09, 2009 | By
Kim Lapacek turned the skills she learned as a child into a crafting passion. At Age 5, she sewed a quilt for her brothers birthday while her grandmother supervised. She took the fabric scraps and rags and sewed them together to create a One-of-a kind gift.
Now, Kim's 2 Etsy shops feature a wide array of handmade goods, including quilts, jewelry, artists trading cards and so much more.
Read on to learn about Kim's childhood, her day job as an orchardist and how handmade impacts her everyday life.
Name: Kim Lapacek
Business Name: Kim's Crafty Apple and The Apple
Where you live: Poynette, WI (just north of Madison)
Personal factoids our readers might like to know: My family owns and operates an apple orchard. We have about 2500 trees and over 30 varieties. I graduated from University of Wisconsin - Madison with a degree in Civil Engineering. I worked in the field for a few years before I had my children. Now I am a stay at home mom, an orchardist and an entrepreneur (crafter).
What is your earliest or fondest crafting memory? My Grandma Landwehr (she's 89) always tells the story of watching us while my parents were in Wisconsin looking for a house. It was my brother's birthday and I decided to sew him a quilt (I was 5). I took all the rags from my mom's rag bin and hand sewed them together...it even included an old furry toilet seat cover. My brother "loved it" of course!
What does the “handmade movement” mean to you? I think to me the handmade movement means to support the local talent that is around us. I always love having something that no one else (or very few others) have. That's what you're going to get when you buy handmade...something unique. I call myself a 'practical environmentalist'. If I can afford to buy local or handmade I will...I can't do this with everything at this time in my life but I feel that by being practical about what I spend my money on I will be able to this someday.
Tell us a bit about your craft/medium and why you chose it? I pretty much started making jewelry to sell. It took up the least amount of space when I lived in dorms and small apartments throughout college. I started selling my jewelry at the apple store a few years ago and now you would be surprised how many people come in for earrings AND apples! The Christmas before I graduated my parents bought me my first very own sewing machine! I don't know how I lived without it. I make jewelry, sew, paint, dye fabric...a little bit of everything. I have a hard time focusing on just one thing and have lots of options keeps me inspired.
How has your product line evolved since you began selling your work online? I think the thing that has evolved the most since I began selling my work online is my picture taking. If you look at the pictures of the first few things I've sold and the ones I have on my site now I'm sure you'll see a difference.
I sometimes feel that I should make more things that I can make again, but I really like to change it up. I get bored doing the same thing over and over. It may not make me as prosperous as others in the end but for now I'm happy with how it's going. I have started doing 'series' of things so that I make them similar but different...an example of this would be my 'Spring Flowers' Quilt series
Is there an accomplishment you have made as a business owner that you are particularly proud of? I
am proud every time I make a sale and make a person happy. I love that others can enjoy what I am making. It's also really neat to make a sale to someone in another country. So far I've sold to the UK, Australia, and France!
I'm also proud of how much I'm learning about computers and what's out on the internet. I think I'm even impressing my brother (the computer programmer in the family) with how much I know about networking online.
What’s your crafty guilty pleasure? Supplies...I love love love having supplies - fabric, beads, wires, fibers, tools, anything and everything that I could possibly use one day to make something.
Where do you see your business in one-year? In 5 –years? Hopefully supporting my 'habit' if not making us some sort of profit.
Do you work from your home, or do you have a separate work space? Home.
Do you have a “Day-Job”, or is this your sole employment? Stay At Home Mom and orchardist.
How many hours a day do you work at your business? What are your most productive times? No idea. When the kids are napping or at the sitters/grandma's.
Do you find that there are ebbs and flows of income with your business? How do you handle the unsteadiness, if there is any? Definitely. I'm still not to the point that I can even 'support' my habit, but I figure that no matter what I will have gifts for others for a long time if this doesn't work out :) Also, at this point, we do not plan on my business contributing to our income. My husband is a full-time land surveyor and we have the apple orchard.
What has been your most successful marketing activity? Least successful? I think project wonderful has been great for marketing. An inexpensive way to get your ads on pages. Also twitter is amazing! Least successful was just posting things in my shop and not doing anything else about it...you have to do some leg work for people to find your shop and your things!
If you could have lunch with and pick the brain of any artist living or dead, who would you choose and why? I would love to have lunch with Martha Stewart...not sure if you would consider her an artist but I just love what she's done (on the crafting part of her life) and am amazed at what she's accomplished.
How did you learn your craft? Did someone teach you? My parents have always supported my crafting. I took as many art classes in school that I could fit in with my regular classes and I took advantages of other opportunities outside of school (I learned how to make Ukranian Eggs in third grade....). A lot of what I do/make is self taught but my mother-in-law is a very good quilter/seamstress and she has taught me a lot of tricks. I also love to read books. Bead and Button magazine has been very good to me.
What do you like most about being your own boss?
Technically, I am not my own boss yet. I still have my kids that rule my life. If they are sick or need something they always come first. Luckily, they are fairly easy going kids (so far) and I have enjoyed them 'bossing' me around :)
But, if I don't count my kids, I like not having anyone tell me what to do. I have never in my life been a follower and I think that was always the hardest thing about being an employee. You just had to keep your mouth shut and do what you were told...I've never been good at this. Now I can pretty much do what I want, when I want. If I mess up, it's on me.
What is the hardest part of being your own boss? TIME MANAGEMENT! I have a hard time figuring out when and how much time I have to spend on each part of things...crafting, homemaking, farming, and marketing. I'm sure I'll get it figured out one of these days.
Where can your products be found, both online and offline? I have two sites on etsy: KimsCraftyApple.etsy.com, which has my quilts, hand-dyed clothing, bags, and other miscellaneous items. I currently split my jewelry line off and am selling it at theApple.etsy.com. During apple season I have all of my products at my apple store - we've converted part of one of my in-law's sheds (www.lapaceksorchard.com). The other 8-9 months of the year you can find some of my jewelry at a local business in downtown Poynette, Capri Gallery. Some of my hand-dyes are being sold at another local Poynette business, Little Blessings.
How did you finance your business? I don't really have a plan for financing my business. I guess we just don't buy fancy cars, tvs, or other 'toys'...I buy supplies.
Who is the person most supportive of your craft business? How do they support you? I have been creating things for a really long time so this person has changed throughout. My middle school art teacher told my parents at conferences to buy me whatever supplies I asked for because I would use them...my dad listened. I have always gotten what I needed for a project.
My husband is extremely supportive. He gives me the time I need to do marketing and create my crafts. He also doesn't get mad when I bring in bags of supplies or the postman delivers a large order of supplies. He believes in me and knows that someday it will pay off.
My mother-in-law is also very supportive. We actually do the hand-dying together...sort of. I typically dye all of my clothing articles but since she has a top loading washer she washes everything out. We both dye fabric and we're teaching a fabric dyeing class this summer to others. She's also the one that taught me the proper way to quilt. She teaches quilting at a quilt retreat with her sister in the falls (www.quiltsbybarb.com). When I first met my mother-in-law I walked into her house and saw she was crafty. I thought to myself, "this woman's going to like me!" Luckily...she did/does since we run a business together and live so close. She also is more than happy to watch my kids when I have a big order or a deadline for a project.
I'm only mentioning a few of the people that are supportive. Everyone in my life supports me and my craft in one way or another. I couldn't do all the things I do without them.
What do you do when you get a creative block? Switch crafts. I guess this is part of the reason I do such a range of crafts...it helps keep me motivated and inspired.
What do you do outside of your craft? (career or hobbies or both) Kids, Apples, Reading, shopping
What advice would you give to a crafter wanting to turn their hobby into a business? Make sure you keep doing what you love. If you stop loving it, you're going to lose your inspiration and others will see it in your work. USE the internet! There are so many fabulous sources to help you on your way! Find them and USE them!
What’s your supply addiction; is there a specific color or type of supply you just can’t pass -up? Pretty much anything and everything! Luckily I live on a farm so there is a lot of space to store things! I save everything! I have shelves full of fabric, beads, sweaters, paints, etc...anything that I could possible ever use to make something.
What is your favorite tool and why? My sewing machine. I don't know what I would do without it. I also 
really cherish my needle nose pliers (I know...I'm cool)
Tell us a bit about the space you create in? How has it evolved since you started your craft? I currently have taken over 1/4 of our basement and the kitchen island. I do all my crafting downstairs and all my promoting from the kitchen island on my laptop. That way I can keep an eye on my kiddo's while I work. Probably not the most efficient but I don't know when I would sleep if I couldn't do some of my work when my kids were up. Luckily they are very independent, good kids (most of the time)
What is your favorite type of handmade item to buy for yourself? I really try to just buy things I can't make myself. But, if something strikes me and I just can't stop thinking about it, I pretty much will have to buy it. Lately I've been into hats.
Photos are courtesy of Kim Lapacek
Nichole Jeske makes handmade jewelry and geekery, which can be found at Paw & Claw Designs.
All rights reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached, or otherwise used, except with the prior
written permission of HandmadeNews.org.
