Q&A with Molly Callahan

Your grandma has some competition.

Junior biochemistry major Molly Callahan was first taught to knit by one of her residents and since then, the Summerville, SC, native has been selling headbands to make extra cash and even help fund a study abroad trip. Check out my Q&A with her below.

Q: What inspired you to start making headbands?

A: I’m an RM (resident mentor), and one of my residents taught me how to knit. An advisor then asked me to make her a headband, so I’ve been making them ever since. My resident who taught me how to knit is actually one of my best friends to this day. Our whole group of friends is into knitting.

Q: Do you make other accessories?

A: I’ve made hats as well, but they’re a little frustrating because they take so long. I’ve also done scarves, and I have a pattern for arm warmers and mittens. I’m also working on a blanket.

Q: How much do your headbands sell for?

A: The headbands sell for $10, and they come in 19 different colors.

Q: Sweet, so how long does it take you to make a headband?

A: If I sit down and make it at one time, it usually takes me about two hours.

Q: Are you involved in anything on campus?

A: I’m an RM in Honors — this is my third year as an RM. I’m also on the Honor’s Council.

Q: Why is student entrepreneurship important?

A: It helps pay the bills! I paid for a lot of my study abroad trip to Scotland last year through knitting when I sold 50 headbands.

Q: What are your career aspirations?

A: I want to go into higher ed and student affairs. As an RM, they captured me, and I realized I’d do really well in this field. I want to do the HESA (Higher Education and Student Affairs) program here or somewhere in the South.

Q: How does Tradeversity compare to using your Etsy site?

A: It has different uses. Tradeversity really targets my peers, and it’s really nice to just be able to meet on or near campus.

Q: Why do you think Tradeversity is helpful to college students?

A: I appreciate the network. It’s also very easy to use; I set up the account while I was waiting for my class to start.

I like that you don’t have to “bump” things like you do in Facebook Free and For Sale pages. You can also set up multiple items and have the option to set them so the listing doesn’t expire. You really see people getting their businesses going on there.

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-Lauren Harper