Made by Mom Gift Guide: This Apex moms creates embroidered hoop art, jewelry, amazing bridal bouquet portraits

Valerie Evans worked for many years as a VIP and celebrity tour guide at Disneyland. Today, she's building a business around her own handmade creations — incredible embroidered recreations of bridal bouquets, embroidered hoop art and jewelry.

You can find her items on her Etsy site — Plaid Loves Threads, which opened in 2015. Evans, who lives in Apex with her husband and two kids, is part of our 2020 Made by Mom Gift Guide. Here's a Q&A with more information about her work. Stay tuned to Go Ask Mom for more Made by Mom features!

Go Ask Mom: How did Plaid Love Threads get its start? Have you always been crafty?

Valerie Evans: When my husband took a job in the Bay Area, we moved and I transitioned into being a full-time stay-at-mom. I wanted to find a creative hobby to stay productive and add a bit of joy to my daily life. I’ve always been crafty with scrapbooking, cross stitch, and sewing. However, I came to realize I didn’t really enjoy those activities. I liked the calming, repetitive aspect of cross stitch, but wanted to branch out and be more creative with it. So, I researched and taught myself hand embroidery.

GAM: What all do you offer?

VE: I create embroidery hoop art and embroidered jewelry, embroidery patterns, and DIY embroidery kits. I also specialize in creating hand stitched bridal bouquet portraits.

GAM: How has the pandemic reshaped your business?

VE: I miss doing handmade markets and teaching my embroidery classes. While I’ve started teaching classes online (yay!), I miss that wonderful feeling of being all together and having that hands-on learning experience.

GAM: What do you love about what you do?

VE: It brings me joy and calms me. I find it very therapeutic. I love creating beautiful pieces that have the potential to become treasured heirlooms and working with clients to create something special just for them.

GAM: What are your hopes for the future of your business?

VE: I’d love to continue to grow and be known for the quality of my work. I’ve even been thinking of possibly partnering with a florist or two and offer my embroidered bridal bouquet replicas as part of their bridal packages.