To put a bow on a present is to finish the job.

In contrast, Theresa Gallaher found out that putting a bow in the hair of her oldest daughter was just the start.

Gallaher began Sweet Pea Bowtique, a bow and headband company out of her Oxford Township home in 2006.

"I started making hair bows for my daughter - and headbands for me - and it kind of took off," she said.

The bows are targeted for girls, newborn to the end of elementary school, but Gallaher said she also has custom-made orders for high school cheerleading teams.

SOMETHING NEW

When Erin, 5, began preschool her mother tired of going to the store and looking for the right match - at the right price - for bows.

"I couldn't always find bows to match (Erin's) outfits and that's when I started making them myself," said Gallaher, whose husband Monty is a psychology teacher and boys varsity golf coach at Lake Orion High School.

Korker Bows with curly ribbons are Erin's favorite. Megan, 2, will surely have a favorite once her hair grows out, her mother said.  "I put ribbon clippies in her hair," Gallaher said.

Gallaher said Sweet Pea is the nickname her daughters got from their grandmother, Barb Gallaher, and it sounded appropriate for the brand name.

'COMFORTABLE' FIT

The headbands are popular among all ages, and Gallaher said her interest in wearing them prompted her to start making them. She always loved wearing headbands, but the ones she bought at the store didn't fit so easily.

"I wore headbands, but they always gave me a headache," Gallaher said. "I make them comfortable, with a lot of different, fun fabrics."

Jenni Smith, an Orion Township resident, said she has bought more than 30 bows, plus a bow holder for her daughter, Lauren, 4. She also has purchased matching mother and daughter headbands.

"(Gallaher's headbands) are comfortable - you can wear them all day - plus they're super cute," said Smith, a former neighbor of Gallaher's in Holly. "Wearing headbands can turn a 'bad hair day' into a 'great hair day.'"

Smith said her husband, Tyler, prefers it when the ladies in his life wear headbands, especially when he's watching his daughter for the day.

"He doesn't know how to do hair bows," his wife said. "He says it's great when Lauren has on headbands because he knows how to make those look right."

FORE SCORE

GALLAHER SAID SHE SPENDS ABOUT 10-15 HOURS PER WEEK MAKING BOWS AND HEADBANDS, A PROCESS THAT INVOLVES FOLDING, SECURING, SEWING AND HEAT SEALING.

With her love of bows, Erin Gallaher might just start a fashion statement on the golf course. Her father just bought her a set of clubs and the two play on Boulder Pointe Golf Club.

She's like a traveling advertisement.

"We were in Disney World and someone stopped and commented about my daughter's bows," Theresa Gallaher said. "I get a lot of business from people who see bows in my daughter's hair."

skowalsk@hometownlife.com|(248) 651-7575, Ext. 15

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