06.15.08
Posted in Uncategorized, shopping, site promotion, interviews, paper crafts at 1:15 pm by KellyM
Please meet Brian Kenny, Owner of www.briankennychicago.etsy.com.
Where are you located? Chicago, Illinois.
What do you design? Note cards, custom made occasion cards.
Where/How did you learn this? Self Taught, trial and error, observation.
Favorite Artist who inspires you? Cedric Gibbons.
Where does your inspiration come from? Anything and everything.
What do you do to combat creative block? I run. I watch old technicolor movies, go to the paper store, pour over the police blotter.
Where do you design you creations? On my sofa, laying eveything out on my coffee table.
What does your work space look like right now? The wreck of the hesperis.
How does your family feel about what you do? My siblings have been most supportive. My parents are still on the fence.
Do you have any advice for someone looking to make their own creations using this method? Do it because you love it and never judge your work by others opinions.
Best advice you received when starting your own business venture? Do not undersell your talent.
Favorite part of owning your own business? The flexibility of hours, being able to make the pieces I love and not have to go through committee or proxy.
Least favorite? Sales Calls! God invented sales reps for a reason and as soon as I sell enough cards I am getting one. Keeping track of office supplies.
How do you relax? I run or lift. Go to the museum, go shopping, have something polished, tweezed, waxed, peeled or injected.
Favorite color? Bruma (it’s the color of frosted glass).
Does this color show up in a lot of your work? Occassionally. It is very hard to find paper in this color.
If there were more hours in the day, what would you be doing? Taking on more retailers, making more cards. I have 27 years to make up for, so there are never enough hours in the day!!
A sample of Brian Kenny Chicago products. For all products, please visit Brian’s website.
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04.03.08
Posted in Uncategorized, jewelry, shopping, site promotion, interviews, paper crafts, clothing at 8:02 pm by KellyM
Please meet Annie Weihrauch, Founder and Designer of www.modern-material.com
Where are you located? Online, based out of Columbus, Ohio.
What do you design? Paper, Apparel and Accessories.
Where/How did you learn this? I landed a job right out of college as a packaging and accessory designer for Bath & Body Works where I learned a lot about retail and fashion accessory design. I have taken my experiences and translated them into my own vision.
Favorite Artist who inspires you? Gwen Stefani. She has defined our generation as a style icon.
Where does your inspiration come from? Rock & roll, fashion magazines, and other designers.
What do you do to combat creative block? I’ll give myself a few days to catch up on things I neglect such as cleaning and organizing, and then I can’t wait to get back to what I do best.
Where do you design your creations? Living room, studio, hallway, kitchen, bedroom, basement….every inch of my house is covered with something I’m working on! It drives my husband crazy!
What does your work space look like right now? A disaster.
How does your family feel about what you do? They are very supportive.
Do you have any advice for someone looking to make their own creations using this method? Start small and dream big.
Best advice you received when starting your business venture? Networking. I’ve met so many great people with great connections along the way.
Favorite part of owning your own business? Actually doing something with my designs instead of archiving them in a folder titled “old” becasue they weren’t chosen to move forward.
Least favorite? No free evenings or weekends!
How do you relax? Taking a trip to Hawaii will be the first time I’ve had to relax in months.
Favorite color? Depends on what it is going on. Black or white if it’s on me. Aqua if it’s on my walls or my umbrella.
Does this color show up in a lot of your work? Absolutely. It’s the foundation of my brand.
If there were more hours in the day, what would you be doing? Designing more.
A sample of Modern Material products. For all products, please visit Annie’s website.
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03.26.08
Posted in Uncategorized, fun, shopping, site promotion, interviews, paper crafts, Glass at 8:00 am by KellyM
Meet Emily Goodwin, Owner of www.emelegifts.com.
Where are you located? Crete, Greece.
What do you design? I make handmade cards and home decor gifts, such as painted flower pots and decorative glass jars which make great candle holders! I have plans to add magnets and keychains to the site in the not so distant future. Some items are one of a kind. I also do custom work.
Where/How did you learn this? Through books and magazines and also by trial and error!
Where does your inspiration come from? I have more ideas than I know what to do with, but each one gets noted down so that I can come back to it. Most of my business ideas come to me when I’m just going to sleep so that I have to put the light on and write/sketch them down before I forget. Always keep a pen and paper by your bed!
What do you do to combat creative block? Usually I’ll just move onto another project or spend more time doing website things or concentrate on my photography until the creativity comes back. It always comes back eventually.
Where do you design your creations? The spare bedroom is my workspace for creating. The laptop and random pieces of paper sit on the dining room table for when I’m doing website things, promotion etc etc etc.
What does your work space look like right now? Messy!
Best advice you received when starting your own business venture? I’m not sure I received any, but here’s something I soon learned. Build a website and they (visitors) will come is a lie! you have to work hard to get visitors and then to get those visitors buying.
Favorite part of owning your own business? Being my own boss.
Least favorite? Not having a “regular” income every month.
How do you relax? I always seem to be doing some form of work as I love what I do, so, “Huh, what’s relaxing?” But I guess I do the usual…Watch TV/films (not horror, I have nightmares!) I read a lot and love taking photos. Photography is my hobby, although it’s slowly turning into another business!
Favorite color? Purple, yellow and green. Impossible to choose just one!
Does this color show up in a lot of your work? Not so much in my work, but I have a purple and yellow website!
If there were more hours in the day, what would you be doing? Everything that I love-Website design, crafting and photography.
A sample of Emele Gifts products. For all products, please visit Emily’s website.
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03.12.08
Posted in Uncategorized, fun, shopping, site promotion, interviews, paper crafts, Art Deco, Calligraphy at 7:15 pm by KellyM
Please meet Cara Buchalter, Owner of www.octavineillustration.blogspot.com and http://octavineillustration.etsy.com .
Where are you located? Beautiful Portland, Oregon.
What do you design? Art Deco inspired wares; calligraphy, custom invitations, posters, logos and labels.
Where/How did you learn this? I began by creating a marriage contract in Hebrew calligraphy for a friend about 10 years ago. As word spread, I began to receive commissions for calligraphy and then illustration work. Over the years the business has grown and I have calligraphed and illustrated numerous marriage contracts, invitations, public murals, logos, tattoos, concert posters and even a wine label.
Favorite Artist who inspires you? Henri Toulouse Latrec
Where does your inspiration come from? Research. Before I begin a project, I look through my designs library. Garning inspiration from photographers, illustrators, advertisements and magazines infuses me with creativity and barrages me with ideas. I order boxes upon boxes of ephemera from estate sales on ebay and simply pour through them when in need of new images, fonts or layout ideas. I have a rather methodical (some may say anal) process in which I must first conceive of the painting or alphabet completely in my head.
Where do you design your creations? I have a studio which recently became home to the cast from the Secret of NIMH. Lately I work on my dining room table. I like to be in the center of things rather than relegated to a basement studio. And my mastiff Belle does not like to go down in the basement and I enjoy hanging out with her whilst I work.
What does your work space look like right now? Well, I recently cleaned out the basement studio but have yet to go down there for any amount of time. Thus, the dining room table is usually piled with books, sketches, gocco supplies, calligraphy inks, rulers and paints. It drives my husband batty.
How does your family feel about what you do? Usually very supportive (see above). My dad’s an artist as well so he understands the life I lead quite well. My mother’s a bit more practical and forces me to look at the business side of it all. My sister, a local music booker networks me in with that crowd and my husband is happy as long as the house isn’t one big art studio.
Do you have any advice for someone looking to make their own creations using this method? I do all my work by hand, including font-design and calligraphy. My only advice is to figure out your niche, promote yourself and make sure that you have a comfortable working environment.
Best advice you received when starting your own business venture? Have one big goal in mind. Visualize acheiving it. Everything you do should be a means towards that.
Favorite part of owning your own business? Only I can tell myself what to do.
Least favorite? Only I can tell myself what to do.
How do you relax? Reading mystery novels, watching reruns of Law & Order, walking my dog.
Favorite color? Tangerine
Does this color show up in a lot of your work? Oh, yes it does.
If there were more hours in the day, what would you be doing? Promoting, promoting, promoting.
A sample of Octavine Illustration products. For all products, please visit Cara’s website.
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02.24.08
Posted in Uncategorized, jewelry, style, fun, hand crafted jewelry, shopping, site promotion, interviews, paper crafts at 8:51 am by KellyM
Meet Anna Sofia Poirier, Owner of http://www.annasofiadesigns.com/
Where are you located? Monterey, MA
What do you design? I make glazed paper jewelry~Earrings, bracelets and necklaces.
Where/How did you learn this? I’m self-taught. I wanted to make jewelry with paper, but I didn’t have a fixed idea of what that would look like. I just let it take shape on it’s own. I played and experimented until I came up with my flat glazed paper beads. I continue to incorporate new techniques ~ I’ve started doing cut-out style beads ~ very very fun.
Favorite Artist who inspires you? On the wall above my work space, I have a gorgeous photograph of orange blossoms by Thea Coughlin, and an illustration of a stout boy with an orange fox by Terese Bast. Two amazing artists. I’m really inspired by all of the people out there following their dreams ~ it gives me the motivation and excitement to keep going.
Where does your inspiration come from? People who follow their passion in life and are true to themselves are huge inspirations to me. Music~everything from the Beatles, to Sinatra, to Swing, to Samba, to classical piano, jazz, doo-wop….I could go on and on! Dance. Color. Pattern. Nature. I get to work with the most amazing papers ~ it’s outrageous ~ I want them all ~ my favorite are the papers from Japan.
What do you do to combat creative block? A change of scenery or activity. If I get too immersed in what I’m doing I can easily get stuck. Getting away from it helps refresh my perspective. And it reminds me ~ taking breaks is essential!
Where do you design your creations? In my home office, which gets flooded with sunshine ~ it’s awesome.
What does your workspace look like right now? I sit at a long work table that faces the window with a lovely view of the trees, and lots of black-capped chickadees. I have a pretty vase of eucalyptus on the table which is very calming. I keep essential supplies within arm’s reach ~ scissors, x-acto knives, my box of beautiful paper organized by color, adhesive, sealer, pliers. Everything else is organized in nearby cabinets and shelves. I like to keep my space in order. I’m more productive when everything’s organized.
How does your family feel about what you do? They love it and are super supportive. I’m very lucky to have that.
Do you have any advice for someone looking to make their own creations using this method? Be inspired by others, but be original ~ let your own creations emerge.
Best advice you received when starting your own business venture? To charge what you’re worth. To have patience with the process of building your business.
Favorite part of owning your own business? Having such a flexible schedule.
Least favorite? Taxes. And the unpredictability of income.
How do you relax? Sitting in front of the fire. Dancing. Reading. In the warmer weather, feeding the birds by hand in our yard.
Favorite color? Orange.
Does this color show up in a lot of your work? It does. I’m nuts about orange, among all the other amazing colors out there. Certain colors just have that wow factor. Right now, I’m loving orange, lime green and turquoise.
If there were more hours in the day, what would you be doing? Reading, cooking, relaxing.
A sample of Anna Sofia Designs. For all products, please visit Anna Sophia’s website.
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