Daisy Natives a blend of food, fashion and feminism

Three years ago, Sarah Eckett sat beneath the Christmas tree in her home in Jackson, and pulled the wrapping paper off a sewing machine.

Little did she know that this simple sewing machine would lead her to abandon a career in the culinary arts and instead begin her own lifestyle brand.

It was February 2015 when Eckett launched Daisy Natives. At the time, she had barely 350 Instagram followers. Now that number has swelled to more than 22,000 and what started as an Etsy shop specializing solely in headbands has expanded to a full-blown website with more than 30 products to choose from.

Scroll through the site and you will find everything from T-shirts and hats to stickers and pins. Some are quirky. Others are empowering. Many involve food in some form or another.

A dusty red hat embroidered with the title “Pizza Queen” sells for $25 and the popular tee that declares “Tacos and Champagne” in bold lettering is currently selling for $20.

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According to the website, Daisy Natives is “a lifestyle brand for Champagne clinkers, confetti throwers, and the ones who have too many revolutionary ideas keeping them up at night.”

This is a brand for the people who “book flights to places we've never been with no real plan in mind (and) have dance parties with our best friends in our underwear at 2 a.m. We embrace our weird and wear what we want.”

No, this isn’t your average clothing company, but then again Eckett isn’t your average woman.

The 25-year-old is a self-described “girl with a constant nacho craving and a love for oversized tees.”

She earned a degree in baking and pastry arts at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York and worked at a bakery in Plainsboro before moving to Austin, Texas, and committing full-time to Daisy Natives.

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“It was so fun and so creative, but I didn’t really picture myself doing that for the rest of my life,” Eckett said of her time as a baker and cake decorator. “I was waking up at 4 a.m. every morning and going to work for 12 to 15 hour days. It was exhausting. I needed something else to fuel my creative side.”

So Eckett turned to the sewing machine she had received for Christmas and poured her creativity into handcrafted headbands. Soon enough, Eckett expanded the business and began creating graphic tees.

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The result was Daisy Natives, a brand that skillfully combines Eckett’s love for food, fashion and feminism.

“I want my stuff to be relatable and fun,” Eckett said. “I want my designs to make people happy and laugh.”

Her first tee sold out within an hour. It was then that Eckett began to believe she may be onto something.

Not all of Eckett’s designs are lighthearted though. Perhaps the most popular line, “Girls Support Girls,” is a call to action for women worldwide to stop competing and start supporting one another.

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“Girls are horrible to each other,” Eckett said. “They’re taught very young that other girls are competition, which is an awful way of looking at your fellow females.”

Eckett hopes her brand may inspire the next generation of young girls to think differently.

“I was sick and tired of seeing girls destroy each other on social media and compete. That’s not a way to live,” Eckett said. “I’m hoping to change that a little.”

The “Girls Support Girls” collection includes shirts, sweaters and accessories. According to Eckett, the mantra means, “I’ve got your back. We’re all in this together. I’m going to support you and love you and cheer you on.”

It’s a message that seems to have resonated with women across the nation, particularly in a year when sexual assault was brought to the spotlight and women rallied together for equal rights.

In fact, Eckett credits the Women’s March last January as the moment when Daisy Natives grew almost overnight.

“Over that weekend, I saw ‘Girls Support Girls’ shirts popping up all over the place,” Eckett said. “I think that’s when it really started taking off, and it’s been quite a whirlwind since.”

All Daisy Natives items are designed and packaged by Eckett herself. She works with a local screen-printing shop to bring the designs to life, but everything else is a one-woman shop.

“I do everything,” Eckett said. “I’m the one answering emails and I design, pack and ship orders all out of my apartment.”

Eckett enjoys the freedom that come with being her own boss and having full control over her business.

It also means she can take full credit for her success. Eckett has her own hard work and determination to thank for the rising popularity of Daisy Natives. Well that, and her mother for giving her a sewing machine in 2014.

For more information, visit www.daisynatives.com.