By Mary Ellen Psaltis
We’ve heard that when life passes out lemons, make lemonade. When Danielle Hale found her life in pieces, she transformed it to ‘peaces.’ Hale channeled her time and artistic talents into a full-time business called Pieces to Peaces, that creates fashionable, comfy headbands, beanies, bows, scarves and more.
For years, Hale had been known by many as the person who wore big headbands. When her daughter Emerie was born, Hale right-sized the headbands to fit the baby’s smaller head. At first she simply “ripped up old t-shirts and tied them.” They were soft and cute.
When photos of Emerie in her charming head ties showed up on her Pieces to Peaces Instagram, friends began requesting them for their own children. Social media made the colorful bands popular. Pieces to Peaces has thousands of followers on Facebook and Instagram.
Customers’ orders have been shipped to New York, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Oregon, North Dakota, Delaware and Arizona (to name a few), but Hale resides right here in Thurston County.
When Hale moved across the country, she left behind her skin care business but brought along her sewing. A leap of faith brought her all the way out to the Pacific Northwest. She landed in Seattle but a friend recommended Olympia. Hale moved here in 2014.
Since then, her business has quadrupled. Part of the growth has come from setting up shop at the Olympia Farmers Market this past spring. (The Pieces to Peaces Etsy shop is also open 24/7.)
Wearing her own designs is always excellent advertising. Now the living room of her home is stacked with bolts of 4-way cotton with spandex stretch material (like yoga pants) made in the United States. Colorful patterns and bold solids line the shelves. Sometimes she finds 15 yards at a time; sometimes it’s 150 yards. People love the fun prints.
To keep her Olympia Farmers Market stall open, Hale hired six women (mostly moms). The staffers enjoy the part-time employment while meeting Market shoppers and showing off the headbands, scarves and beanies.
Last year you would have found Danielle sitting at her sewing machine for more hours than you’d want to count. In order to expand the business, bring a degree of balance into her life, and keep some level of stock, she recruited four women (also mostly moms) to help her with the actual sewing. This in-home work provides an income source for these women, too. Though Hale realized it was hard to have items that she didn’t sew herself, she can now spend more time on the designs and running the business.
Handmade boutique products are a special treat. We have Pieces to Peaces right here in Thurston County. View designs on the Pieces to Peaces website or touch the headbands while visiting the Olympia Farmers Market. To connect with Pieces to Peaces, follow the shop on Facebook.
Sizes range from little baby heads to full-sized adult heads. The affordable fashion runs from $4 – $22. If you are looking for even more personal attention, you might order matching headbands for your cheerleading squad or select team-colored beanies for your favorite sports league or tailgating friends. Not surprisingly, the blue/green Seahawks items are wildly popular. Local orders are shipped for free.
Pieces to Peaces is the fruition of Danielle Hale’s dedication to creating a self-supporting enterprise while being environmentally conscious. The business provides fun fashion and warmth at affordable rates.
Hale is happy to make her home here. She says, “Olympia is my place.” Success has in no way gone to her head, but her business certainly revolves around the head.
