When people say something “changed their life,” they’re usually talking about falling in love, having their first child or taking a trip across the globe. But for Jennifer Zamudio, founder of Dot & Army, it was paper towels.
One day it hit her: She was tired of having to constantly buy expensive and wasteful paper towels and napkins. (Hear, hear!) She majored in art and has some serious sewing skills – she’s been sewing since she was eight – so when she decided to start making her own cloth napkins, it just made sense.
Inspired by her idea to minimize waste and create lasting, stylish additions to the home while doing so, she moved to southern Georgia and found a studio to house piles of cotton, linen and chambray. Which, by the way, she only sources from the U.S., and repurposes materials she finds at estate sales and thrift stores. Love that.
She named the company “Dot & Army,” after her grandparents Dorothy and Armand, who were always big supporters of her craft. The little-company-that-could got on its feet with the help of her family, in fact, who she employed to help make the first batch of napkins and towels by hand. The company’s taken off quite a bit since then – it’s been nearly a decade since those first stitches.
Jennifer and her family are now fully committed to the “un-paper” way of life. With Dot & Army’s gorgeous linen napkins, it’s not hard – they’re elegant enough to set out at the fanciest dinner and cocktail parties, yet causal enough to hang with Tuesday takeout.
Life changing.