The CreaClip invented by local hairstylist-turned entrepreneur Mai Lieu has gotten her nominated for an international Stevie Award for Women in Business.

CreaClip, in two sizes, is a toothed clip with a level that people can use to trim their own hair or their family members' hair, evenly.

As a hairstylist, she often had to repair self-trims by clients and knew that for many, going to the salon just to get a trim could be very expensive.

There's a famous line somewhere about necessity being the mother of invention.

She formed Honolulu-based Innov8 LLC for her venture and got busy finding a manufacturer.

Her invention and its subsequent sellout performance in its debut on HSN, the home shopping network, previously appeared in this space when she was identified as Mai Bandonis, but “;I'm going to go back to my maiden name,”; she said.

Her first trade show, the Food and New Products Show last month, was a great success, she said.

Customers at her booth told her they'd read about her in the paper, or in the case of one woman, saw her on KHON-TV and said she “;rushed over”; after her son's soccer game to buy the CreaClip.

“;It was so exciting to hear from the local people who heard about it,”; she said.

She entered the Stevie Award competition over the summer and was notified last month that she was a finalist, and received a certificate.

There are 50 award categories, two of which Lieu entered. Innov8 was chosen as a finalist in the Best New Product of the Year category along with a dozen other companies.

Lieu heads to New York City next week for the awards gala, along with the other finalists, to see if she'll bring home a trophy.

She already has been singled out for an honor by Cambridge Who's Who, but is also thrilled about the potential Stevie Award, as a new entrepreneur.

Stevie Awards Inc., with offices around the world including Fairfax, Va., also oversees the American Business Awards; the International Business Awards and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie is taken from Stephen, derived from the Greek for “;crowned,”; according to its Web site.

“;I'm really excited about going and just being a part of that,”; she said.

She also plans some fun while in the Big Apple as she's not been there for a long time. But then it will be back to work.

“;I'm going to be producing a TV commercial for my product. That will be the next step,”; she said.