Hippity Hoot Notions – Stylish Whimsical & Unique

BY JACLYN ROSE –

When Jeanne Sterner first picked up a crochet hook it was simply to make a couple of hats for a soon-to-be-born niece.  As she sat at her computer watching YouTube videos on how to crochet, Hippity Hoot Notions, the incredible business she would build was not even in her mind, rather she just wanted her niece to have some adorable accessories for her newborn photography shoots.

Sterner was born and raised in Mena and graduated from Mena High School in 1998.  She married her husband Billy, an Insurance Broker who recently opened a Farmer’s Insurance Office in Polk County, in 2008 and they have two children, Samantha, age 15, and Gavin, age 11.  “Billy and I have a little farm with miniature horses and we both love it.  He’s very encouraging of my business.  We are a great team.  I really enjoy being a mom and I love seeing who the kids are becoming as they get older.  When they are young it’s all about the cuteness and how much you love them but growing up it’s so fun to hear their thoughts, they are so different than mine and I want to encourage them to be themselves.  They are becoming such interesting people,” said Sterner.

Around 2010-2011, Sterner began making hats for her newborn niece, which grew into a couple of friends wanting them, which grew into strangers wanting them, so Sterner opened her store on Etsy, an online store for homemade and repurposed items.  Her owl and Arkansas Razorback hats took off, and at their peak, Sterner was shipping out stacks of packages every day.  “I was 8-9 weeks out on my hats and was making Razorback hats night and day, I thought, ‘I’m going to get arthritis,’” said Sterner with a smile.  Sterner enjoyed seeing the photos of her clients in the hats and through that evolved into making other photo props, such as her signature tutus with a crocheted waist to her current top sellers, handmade couture sewn and gathered special event dresses.

Through the course of Hippity Hoot Notions, Sterner has seen the industry change, her store went from being one of a few stores with similar items, to one in a sea of competitors, but she has managed to stand out through her ability to stay ahead of the current trend, a task that requires both creativity and dedication.  “I encourage my customers to customize their orders, from hats to dresses, this allows each person to have a unique look.  My designs are special occasion, over-the-top dresses with lots of silks and chiffons,” explained Sterner.

Running a business with very set deadlines, while being a wife and mother, is a lot for anyone to manage, but Sterner has been successful because of her dedication to her family and her job.  “It’s 100 times harder than any job I’ve had because I can’t just ‘leave it at the office,’” Sterner explained.  “I tried to set hours for myself, because it was consuming my time, and I knew if I’m going to make it, I had to create some separation.  I try to only work while the kids are at school, from 8:00 am until 4:00 pm, and I try to not work weekends, if I can help it.”

With much of Sterner’s business being online, she has shipped her products to 63 countries and all over the United States.  “I have a strong following in Australia and ship there a lot, I have customers from Europe, who tell me they can’t find dresses like this there, it’s almost like I’m somewhere exotic,” Sterner said with a smile.

One of the areas that Sterner has learned throughout her journey so far is photography.  Though she has enjoyed photography as a hobby since her children were little, she began setting up stylized whimsical photo shoots to model her dresses for her website and her knowledge and expertise began to grow.  These lifestyle themed modeling sessions became such a hit that she has expanded her business to provide photography to her clients.  “I don’t work in a studio, these are lifestyle themed, and I try to capture that feeling of childhood.  We have our miniature horses and a miniature donkey and the picture I am most drawn to was looking at the face of the child when they see the animal for the first time.  Or if you put a little girl in a fancy dress and put her in a swing full of flowers, she thinks she is a princess, or give a little boy a fishing pole and it’s magical.  I tell my clients to not expect their child to sit and pose, I want to photograph them just being children,” Sterner explained.

You can visit Sterner’s online store at www.hippityhootnotions.com or can reach her by emailing at jeanne.sterner@yahoo.com.

About Author

Jeri Pearson

Jeri is the News Director for Pulse Multi-Media and Editor of The Polk County Pulse. She has 10 years of experience in community focused journalism and has won multiple press association awards.

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