Years ago, long before I even knew there was going to be something called
Effie's Paper, I was interviewed by Real Simple magazine about my family's heirlooms. Other people had jewelry, my heirlooms were my grandmother's quilts. My grandmother and company namesake, Mrs. Effie Hayes, was a creative soul and was into DIY long before DIY was cool.
Although her craftsmanship was museum quality – some of her quilts were a part of an exhibit in 1997 at Detroit's Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History – my gran was emphatic that her quilts be used and not hung on walls. My grandparents didn't have a lot of money, but you know they loved you if you were gifted with a quilt.
When I was a practicing lawyer in Chicago just out of law school, my girlfriends would come over on the weekends to hang out. There was always a pile of quilts in the corner and people would use them just as Effie intended during movie nights and late afternoon gossip sessions. Every time I wrap myself up in one I think of her and feel like I'm being hugged.
I owe my sense of style, my creativity and my love of paper products to my gran. I guess you could say it's in my DNA. Effie was a woman who believed a lady should have the perfect shade of red lipstick, write a wicked thank you note and always carry a hanky in her pocketbook. (And yes, I've followed this advice all my life and it's served me well!). So, it only seemed fitting to name my company after my gran. I know she's up in heaven just tickled pink that her legacy lives on.
So glad you're here sis – just sharing a little bit about my WHY this am.
