How LittleRedWindow got started
Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you begin and decide on what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?
Hey! I’m Cassie May, the designer behind Little Red Window, where I sell joyful and unique knitting patterns for babies and children. My knitting patterns are always fun, playful, enjoyable to knit and include simple and clear instructions for knitters who like to make something a little different. Want to knit an adorable bonnet, a flamingo hat, or a large stuffed pencil? This is the shop for you!
I have an undergrad degree in art history and a Master’s degree in architecture and historic preservation. I always loved art, design, and crafting, and people had been telling me I should open an Etsy shop for years. I thought I would work in architecture forever, but during the last recession I had to leave my job and was at loose ends at home with a toddler. I started selling hand-drawn printable nursery art on Etsy in 2013. At the same time, I started a blog (littleredwindow.com) where I began to share craft, DIY, and knitting projects.
About a year later, I was knitting a baby hat for a friend and had a specific idea of what I wanted it to look like, but I couldn’t find a knitting pattern that matched my vision, so I wrote my own! At first, these knitting patterns were just for fun, but then my Bow Baby Hat knitting pattern went viral in 2016 and people began asking to buy printable pdf copies of the pattern. I put that digital knitting pattern in my Etsy shop alongside the nursery art and it began to sell like crazy.
I’m a firm believer in paying careful attention to what’s working for your business, so I phased out nursery art and began to focus on baby hat knitting patterns in my Etsy shop. My patterns are always fun, unique, and well-designed with clear instructions. I really enjoy a design challenge and absolutely love coming up with original and sometimes slightly off-the-wall ideas. Knitting has a reputation for being traditional and maybe even a little boring, but I’m hoping to change that!
Almost 10 years after starting, I have 300 different original knitting patterns available in my shop, on my website and on a few other sales platforms. I still share crafts and DIY info on My blog, where I also earn income via affiliate sales and advertising. My business has been growing ever since!
Favorite items
What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?
Honestly, I have a lot of favorites; it’s hard to choose! My most popular patterns tend to be the animal hat knitting patterns, and I think my favorites in that category are the unicorn, pig, whale, and cat. But at this point, I have designed pretty much any animal you can think of, and they’re all adorable. I also really enjoy my colorwork knitting patterns. I think the most popular in that category are the Love Notes Hats for Valentine’s Day because they are SO cute in family photos.
While I love designing unusual things, my shop also has an entire section of easy knitting patterns called Back to Basics patterns. They are great for beginners and they are quality knitting patterns that have been tested tons of times.
Getting sales on Etsy
How long did it take for you to earn your first sale and how do you currently attract customers to your Etsy shop?
I sold some nursery artwork on the first day to a friend and had consistent but slow sales. When I transitioned to knitting patterns, sales grew much faster and now are steady daily.
I attract customers to my shop from within Etsy by optimizing my listings for Etsy SEO and focusing on good photos. Most of my Etsy traffic, though, comes from my own website, littleredwindow.com. Those customers generally arrive via either Google, Pinterest, or my newsletter and then go to Etsy to complete their purchase.
Managing LittleRedWindow
How do you manage your shop? Are you running solo or do you have any team members? What tools or services do you use to run your shop and how do you handle fulfillment?
I am a solo entrepreneur. I run my website, the Etsy shop, and my other sales platforms, and I also design, photograph, and edit everything. I work at Little Red Window full time. My lovely daughter is my adorable model and muse. Aside from Etsy, I also work with Wordpress, Photoshop, Illustrator, Stitch Fiddle (a knitting design tool), Ravelry, LoveCrafts, and all the standard social media sites. Because my entire business is digital, I am obsessive about keeping all of my files backed up both on a physical drive and on the cloud.
The future of LittleRedWindow
What goals do you have for your shop in the future?
Right now, I am in the sweet spot of earning a full-time income but still being able to manage everything myself. I would love to see my business continue to grow steadily and to continue to attract satisfied (and repeat) customers. It has always been a goal of mine to grow my community of engaged makers. I have the nicest followers that include lots of wonderful people who knit my patterns regularly for charity, which makes me so happy.
Advice for new sellers
What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?
I think the most important thing to do as a new seller is to find the right product and be intentional in designing your shop. You need to define your product, your niche, and your ideal customer before you start anything. If you are selling basically the same thing as 1,000 other shops, it’s going to be really hard to make sales and it will only get harder as Etsy grows. Come up with something unique to you (and make sure you avoid any copyright issues). What makes your items stand out? How are your items special and different from the competition? Pay attention to what is working and what is selling; be willing to be flexible and go from there. You also should recognize that growth will likely take time. Possibly years. That’s totally normal.
In terms of standard new shop advice,
-The importance of having really, really good photos cannot be understated.
-Understand how Etsy SEO works and how to use keywords and tags. It’s not the same as SEO for search engines, but Etsy has a lot of good info in their files on how to optimize your shop.
-Build an outside email list via social media or your own website. You can never control what will happen to Etsy or the algorithms of social media sites, but if you have your own email list, you will always be able to reach your customers.
Once you have customers, I absolutely believe that good customer service is important. People these days expect really fast responses to questions and messages. Is it ideal for a seller? No But it is what it is. I tend to answer emails and convos as soon as I can (usually within minutes on my phone) and that can make or break a sale and really helps with getting good reviews and repeat customers.
LittleRedWindow
Joyful original KNITTING PATTERNS for your little ones!
