As children, Jennifer and Sarah Pearsall used to watch their European mother sew and knit their favorite clothing. Their love and respect for hand-made refinement grew when both adventure-seeking sisters joined the Peace Corps and began working around the world with artisan-affiliated institutions. Soon, they began dreaming of ways they could honor the traditions of hand-made craftsmanship.

Eventually, the sister-duo decided to pool their artisan-affiliated work background together and start Sefte Living, a bedding line that celebrated the beauty, heritage, and detail, hand-crafted by expert artisans they have connected with amidst their travels. Even though the two live on opposites sides of the country—Jennifer in California and Sarah in Manhattan—the two make it work across the coasts and around the world.  Each Sefte Living piece is hand-crafted by female artisans in Southeast Asia. These artisans practice the lost art of intricate hand embroidery, passing the skill down from grandmother, to daughter, to granddaughter. That means, that the piece you buy is a one-of-a-kind that brings both social and financial independence to hard-working skilled female laborers across the world.

We are so privileged to have a brief Q&A session with Jennifer to learn more about Sefte Living, including the work that goes into each piece, her personal motto, and the Sefte Living design details that she loves the most.

Plum Alley: We’d love to hear what it’s like to be an entrepreneur with your twin sister, especially working on different coasts! 

Jennifer: Sarah and I grew up with similar interests and passions. We loved traveling, working with people from developing countries for adventure, and we had an obsession with art and textiles. When we both ended up on separate coasts, we wanted to hold on to something that would bind us together. The business has provided that for us. It has married our dedication to our work with our devotion.

Plum Alley: We'd love to hear about a growth experience you had while running your business - good, bad, laughable, completely thrilling, and what you learned from it.

Jennifer: Starting Sefte was the hardest, most rewarding thing we’ve ever done. We started the business out of our houses. I’ll never forget being five months pregnant and the business was just taking off. My entire house was full of boxes of product—floors to ceiling, bedroom, bathroom, living room. It was a crazy stressful time. Luckily, we both have husbands that respect and encourage our entrepreneurship. We lived with those boxes in our house for a year before we finally moved everything to a distribution center.

Plum Alley: Where do you gather the inspiration for your designs?

Jennifer: Everywhere. From a Parisian catwalk to the undulating sand dunes of Africa. Wherever our travels take us, we find inspiration in their people and landscapes.

Plum Alley: Tell us the quote or notion that you live by:

Jennifer: Make time.

Plum Alley: We’d love to hear about some of your favorite Sefte Living design elements. 

Jennifer: The Paya throw features a hand-crocheted detailing. It’s exquisite. The Artisans sit together, chat about their day, and crochet the Alpaca yarns to create this beautiful design. This process is the way all blankets used to be made. There is heart and soul in each one. There’s something special about that, something that connects all of us.