Suzanne Fallon and her daughters Abigail and Charlotte were looking for something to do this summer, so they decided to make beaded garden stakes.
“We ordered a kit from Amazon to make your own fairy garden stick wands,” said Suzanne. “We got the kit and the wand was a cheap aluminum small post. It had plastic beads and we were like, ‘Oh, this isn’t high quality. We could do this better.’ So, we decided, ‘Oh, let’s post these four we made and see if people like them.’”
The First Post
They made their first post on Facebook Marketplace over a week ago and it took off. Hundreds of people commented, wanting their beaded garden stakes. But at that point, the family had no more to sell.
“So, we started ordering pieces, piece by piece, from hardware stores and Amazon and putting them together ourselves. And then we advertised in some more pages,” said Suzanne.
Selling Stakes
They’ve now sold more than 200 of the beaded stakes, made of zinc plated alloy steel, to local residents. Abigail and Charlotte, who are 12 and 10-years old respectively, have been the ones crafting these stakes for their business, called Sticks and Stones.
“Abby’s kind of like the artist more. She can see what doesn’t match with it,” said Charlotte. “Our first ones did not match at all, but we still were able to sell them. She’s like, ‘How about we do different?’ We got more beads that look good with it. We started following same patterns that we’ve already done and making new ones.”
A Therapeutic Experience
Abigail has really enjoyed both making the stakes, and being able to do it with her sister.
“Well we get to spend more time together and it’s fun beading because it gives me something to do,” said Abigail. “It’s actually a lot more fun than I expected.”
Suzanne couldn’t be more proud of her daughters and the success their business has had. Plus, she’s seen added benefits.
“You know, you sit and do a puzzle at the end of the day or you sit and relax. This is our unwind time. We sit and think about the design and what bead colors go together. It’s therapeutic,” said Suzanne.
Children’s Business Fair
The sisters are participating in the children’s business fair at Naperville’s Arrow Academy on July 16, where they’ll be showing off and selling their stakes. Suzanne is excited to see them put their talents on display.
“Just to be accepted seems so cool,” said Suzanne. “And it’s all young entrepreneurs, all showcasing their goods; and they have a judge coming around who will interview all the small business owners. They’ll look at how they advertised, how they’re showing their goods, how well they know their goods.”
Staking a claim on their growing business, and a summer of success.
For Naperville News 17, I’m Josiah Schueneman.
