Meet Kiwi Schloffel of Craft Boner in City Park North

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kiwi Schloffel.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Kiwi. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Have you ever spent 20 minutes in the grocery store trying to figure out which card to get someone for their birthday or Mother’s Day or graduation or some event before realizing that there wasn’t a card that really, truly said what you were thinking?

So did I, way back in 2012. When faced with this dilemma back in 2012 I got frustrated and made my own card to send to my best friend for her birthday because I really just needed to tell her that she was a badass bitch and I couldn’t find any other card that would do the trick. Since then, the brand has evolved a lot and now there’s an are a ton of fun products and more than 120 card designs but the bottom line is the same: I want to make you laugh. Not in the ha-ha-I’m-being-polite kind of way but actual big belly laughs that make your eyes water and give you an annoying stomach cramp because you just can’t stop. I studied journalism and graphic design in college and realized my love for both design and words pretty early on. Lucky for me, I was kind of a terrible reporter and soon realized it definitely wasn’t my dream career. I quit and took a job repairing and troubleshooting computers and while I was pretty decent at it I realized I needed a creative outlet and Craft Boner (the blog edition) was born.

I started the blog and decided that it would be like the ‘80s hair band of craft sites. Again, blogging wasn’t really my forte and soon I had moved back to Denver and it evolved into an Etsy shop and then into what it is now – a brand of hand-lettered curse words on cards and other items aimed at making you chuckle.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Absolutely not! I’m pretty sure that if anybody ever tells you that starting your own business is a smooth ride that they’re full of lies. I’ve faced copyright infringement from other designers, huge growth that I wasn’t prepared for, getting and then leaving a retail space and a million other speed bumps along the way. But I think the thing that still trips me up is my own imposter syndrome. Sometimes, I hold myself back because I’m afraid and learning to try and overcome that has been the biggest challenge.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I make hand-lettered greeting cards and lapel pins and stickers and art prints and notepads and other things with curse words and funny sayings. I often find people telling me that I put onto paper the things that they think in their head. I’m known for being honest about everything from my business to my personal life on social media and people often recognize me from my Instagram stories because I try to keep them funny and lighthearted. I think I’m most proud of sharing my own personal experiences in a way that makes other people feel seen.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I’ve had help every step of the way and there are too many cheerleaders to name! When I first started it was my close circle of friends because my family didn’t understand at all what I was trying to create. Now I’m lucky to still have those friends and my boyfriend on my side and also to have convinced my family that it’s not crazy to start a business with “boner” in the name. But more than that my biggest support system is fellow business owners both in Denver and across the country. Being a business owner can be a lonely and isolating experience so I’m incredibly grateful to be able to ask them questions and have them in my corner.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.craftboner.com
• Phone: 9703890913
• Email: hello@craftboner.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/craftboner
• Facebook: facebook.com/craftboner

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