FEATURES

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Jennifer's first job was designing windows for Bonwit Teller in Boston. Job number two was selling textiles out of Knoll's SoHo showroom—a 12-year dose of that company's cool, modern aesthetic. Then, like so many women trying to negotiate Manhattan with a baby stroller, she moved to Connecticut—and into a period of professional uncertainty. What next? Paddle tennis, anyone?

Well, no. Instead, Jennifer started gathering vintage textiles at flea markets. She didn't sew, but her baby sitter did, so she commissioned her to create what would become her Sis Boom's signature pillow: a happy mix of plain and fancy textiles including materials such as mattress ticking, velvet, plaids, ruffles, rickrack and pom-poms. "I loved all of the designs," she recalls. "I couldn't bear to part with them."

But her husband intervened, gently sharing his opinion that perhaps the family didn't really need dozens of throw pillows. And so Sis Boom was born—the nickname was given to her by her brother—with pillows sold in boutiques in Westport and New Canaan, along with her showroom (by appointment) and website.

That was 10 years ago. Today, Sis Boom offers furnishings for every room in the house, almost all of it handmade. One exception is Jennifer's own line of cotton fabric, called Girlfriends, inspired by vintage textiles. Another textile collection, due out in the spring, is called Mod Girls, which has a groovy, retro sensibility. With this foray into the home sewing market, Jennifer acknowledges that people are making their own Sis Boom-inspired pillows and home accessories.