Meet Our Team
Keepsakes Owner
Barbara Hils
Barbara is a fourth-generation business owner. She can trace her work "genealogy" back to her great-grandfather, who started a wholesale notions business in the mid-1800s. Since starting Keepsakes in 1997, Barbara has seen many changes in the Cincinnati cross stitch community, and is thrilled that one-time customers have grown into long-time friends!
Team Member & Floss Whisperer
Sue Coates
Susan is a customer-turned-employee. She is a true artist, with an amazing eye for color, design, and artistic balance. If you need a color conversion or a "Surprise Me" box of needlework goodies, Susan is your person. In addition to being a cross stitcher she is also a machine stitcher. When she fires up her sewing machine wonderful things get created: project bags, needle keeps, scissor fobs, and more.
Team Member & Worker Bee
Jen Grimes
Jen is another customer-turned-employee, and a valuable part of our team. She can be counted on for great insight, hard work and beautiful stitching! She even stitched a few Stitch-Con models for us, but is notoriously camera shy. That's why she's an avatar on our website!
Team Member & Top Organizer
Jan Rieder
Like all of our employees, Jan is a stitcher extraordinaire. She always brings a ray of sunshine to our store, and she is always quick with a positive word or idea. Jan is our “professional organizer” helping impose order upon chaos. (How are we so lucky to keep finding these good people?)
Team Member & Go-Getter
Barb Blankenship
We're so excited to have Barb join our team! A long-time customer, Barb had become such a part of our family that we just had to bring her on board!
Team Member & Queen of the House
310
By popular demand our shop cat 310 gets included on the employee page. Her duties include: sleeping, eating, knocking over open beverages, begging for attention, and, at least in theory, catching mice. Once upon a time she was just a stray cat, Barbara began feeding her, and the rest is history. And yes, she is named for the DMC number for the color black!
Team Member & Social Media Manager
Melinda Briggs
Melinda joined the team on the eve of Keepsakes' 25th year, and what a whirlwind it has been -- refreshing the Keepsakes website, creating an online store, launching a monthly newsletter and more! With a 30-year career in communications, Melinda says the cross stitch community is by far the most giving, caring and kind group of individuals she has ever been lucky enough to be a part of.