Vanessa Ewing '08, a knitwear designer and fiber artist living in New Jersey, has designed a Boston Bruins cup koozie and sweater for two Dunkin' commercials that are running on national television.
Below, she talks about how she got involved in Dunkin’s new “Talkin’ Hockey with Pasta and Kendall” national advertising campaign, featuring Kendall Coyne Schofield, captain of the U.S. National Women’s Hockey Team, and the Bruins’ winger and league-leading goal scorer David Pastrňák.
How did you come to be making the cup koozie and sweater for the Dunkin’ commercial?
A fellow Moore alumna and friend is part of a private costume group on Facebook. Back in late October, there was a post from a member stating that her friend, who is in advertising, desperately needed a cup koozie and a sweater made for a commercial. I have been an avid designer of knitwear, even before my college days. My senior collection for Moore was actually completely knit! So she remembered me and sent me the post.
It was really funny, because I saw some of the messages from the posting and so many said, "It’s not possible to make something like that in a week!” and that the “deadline was impossible,” but I saw this as a great opportunity. I have had to work on super-tight deadlines before; there was one time I handknit a light sweater women’s tunic in a weekend, so I felt confident I could take on the challenge.
I emailed the contact with some ideas and he got back to me right away, saying there was someone in LA who could do it, but it would be an applique or something like that. I said, since I’m on the East Coast just like them, I saw no problem in the deadline and if FedEx was an option for overnight shipment, that would be even better. That’s when I got the job! I spent the next four days not only making a cup koozie, but also two sweaters for them.
Was that the first time you ever made a tiny sweater cup koozie like that?
I had made lot of accessories, from bralettes to spats, but only once had I made a cup koozie and it was a totally different design. They were very specific and every detail had to be approved. Even then, when the pieces were finished, they asked me to add this or change that. I think that happens a lot when it come to advertising.
Did you get to go to the commercial shoot?
I wish! The commercial was filming up in Boston on a Wednesday, and I basically hadn’t slept in four days so I had my boyfriend meet one of the staff members, who came down from New York City. The staff member met my boyfriend in New Jersey at a train stop, and then immediately left for Boston so the sweaters and koozie could be hand-delivered.
What was the reaction from people you know when they found out your items were in the commercial?
Oh, I actually had to keep quiet about the whole thing since it was for a commercial and it was a nondisclosure sort of thing. But I told my close friends and they were so excited for me. I was told the commercials would air in December. December passed, and I was bummed. I thought maybe the pieces didn’t make the cut. But then in January, I was sitting at home watching the Bruins game while talking with my boyfriend. He was facing me, I was facing the TV, and then it came on. In my most not chill moment, I opened my mouth and pointed! Kendall Coyne and Pasternak were in the Dunkin commercial with my koozie!! Of course I recorded the commercial and sent it off into the internet.
Tell us more about your business!
Having worked in the yarn industry since I was a teenager as designer and then design director for multiple major yarn companies, I ventured into self-publishing for my own line of specialty yarns. I started part time hand dyeing in 2018. In 2019, I transitioned into full time operating Cape May Fiber Company.
I hand dye specialty yarns and fibers into a rainbow assortment of colors. My knitwear patterns and yarn colors are inspired by my hometown of Cape May. All of my 50+ colors have a special oceanic namesake. I use botanical dyes as well as acid dyes, and I love to explore the world of sustainability.
Watch the commercial here.
Read more about the Dunkin' ad campaign here.
