Today I’m excited to speak with Gabriel Lea, first time YA author and creator of BookBud. Her little Etsy shop is creating quite a stir with her beautifully designed and professionally sewn book sleeves that have customers coming back for more. Why? Gabriel has cleverly applied her college education in fashion design and manufacture to creating book sleeves that are not only stunning to look at but are made differently to other sleeves on the market. When I asked Gabriel what sets BookBud apart, here’s what she had to say.
So how are your sleeves different to the rest?
Gabriel: All the book sleeves I know of are lined with foam which seemed weird to me for a few reasons. Firstly, you want to be able wash your sleeve when it gets grubby…it’s made of fabric…duh! You can’t just throw foam in the washing machine. It would need to be hand washed - not very practical or user friendly. Second, foam tends to compress and dent. I’ve had a lot of people tell me that their foam-lined sleeve is permanently dented where books have squished it out of shape. And third, it can be a struggle to wriggle your book in and out of a foam sleeve. So I wanted to make a better product for people.
Well, it seems that you have, given all of BookBud’s glowing reviews on Etsy and IG.
Gabriel: Thank you. I started the store in February this year and I’m thrilled with how it’s slowly been building recognition. People are loving the thick, fleecy lining as a better alternative to foam.
They’re also loving how well your sleeves are made and all the extras and add-ons they can choose from to customise their sleeve.
Gabriel: Yes, people can choose to add pockets, a cute button flap or a velcro tab, to name a few of the extras.
And your prices are much cheaper than many other book sleeve stores too.
Gabriel: Well, I guess having worked as a designer, pattern maker and seamstress for many years, my sewing skills are pretty speedy and I use industrial sewing machines which are SUPER FAST! I have no interest in overcharging people. I think my prices are fair for a hand-made product and I intend to keep my product and postage prices as low as possible so everyone can afford a Bud!
You also have Designer BookBuds in your store. Tell me about those.
Gabriel: I wanted to be the first to create book sleeves with original fandom designs, so I did. The Harry Potter houses were popular, as was the ACOMAF quote. I create the graphic designs and have them custom printed onto fabric and then sew them into BookBuds. I’m a huge advocate for saving our environment so the fabric is printed with eco-friendly, non-toxic ink. I’m hoping to have some new fandom designs finished in time for Christmas. I wish I didn’t have a day job to go to. Otherwise I’d just sit at the computer and write my next book and design cool book sleeves all day…bliss.
Well thank you so much for joining us Gabriel!
You can visit Gabriel's Etsy Store here:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/BookBudByGabrielLea
Instagram here:
https://www.instagram.com/gabriellea.author/
Instagram here:
https://www.instagram.com/gabriellea.author/
