I love random acts of kindness, those simple things that can make all the difference. They don't have to be huge, anything will do. One day I was heading home and I passed a woman walking on my country road. She smiled and waved, I mean really, sincerely waved. A giant grin (I saw teeth), and a body shaking wave. You'd have thought she was my very best friend in the world. I couldn't help but respond in kind, her joy was contagious. It was then I decided to wave to all who passed me on my daily walks. It was a small extension of kindness, but it made me feel great. Sometimes I'll surprise people and get a positive and energetic response. Others are too busy talking on cell phones and trying to stay on the road to be bothered, which is fine, all I can do is extend the kindness, not force others to accept. And some it is truly hard to wave at. You know, the ones that roar by, splashing water, snow, salt everywhere with little to no regard for me. I'll confess that sometimes I fail with them somewhat. I don't manage a friendly wave, but at least I don't express my distaste with another much more unkind gesture. ;)Recently I had the pleasure of 'meeting' a fellow Etsian after she posted on my Facebook wall. She took the time to read my blog, and become a follower. She then continued on to my daughter's blog and became a follower there. She visited all of our Etsy shops (and there are four of us in my home!), handed out hearts to everyone and generally left behind a feeling of unsolicitated, genuine kindness. I was so taken with her simple acts that I had to send her a thank you, and see if she wanted to become my first featured artist on Inspiration Earth. I was thrilled when she accepted, I wanted to get to know this kind woman a little bit better. To begin with, her name is Julia, and she can be found at JuliaPeculiar.Etsy.com. She began by describing herself with the following words: loving, open-minded, stubborn, optimistic, melodramatic,loyal, moody, creative and absent-minded daydreamer. I could hardly wait to get started!
What led you to Etsy and what motivated you to open a shop? I can't remember how I found Etsy, I think maybe a friend told me about it. I remember thinking straight away that I would love to open a shop on Etsy. It seemed a really friendly and creative place to be, and I found all the different ways people were being creative really inspiring. I had decided that to open up a shop was a great way to mark my 40th birthday. I had been putting it off for so long, and it was something I really wanted to do. (Yay Julia!)
What are your favorite things to create? My favorite things to create are paper dolls, as they always just seem to create themselves, and I love to see their personalities gradually coming to life. I made my very first mixed media canvas just before the end of last year, and was surprised to sell the second one I created on Etsy just before Christmas. I am really looking forward to learning new techniques and trying out new ideas.
I think my favorite thing I've made so far on Etsy has to be the personalized ring box that a lovely chap asked me to create for him for his marriage proposal at the beginning of this month. He sent me a beautiful message telling me he'd had tears in his eyes when he received it, and that they would always have me and my work in their hearts. I was really honored to be a part of such a special moment of their lives, and was touched by how appreciative the customer was.
I will always have a love for ACEOs as they are what got me into altered art in the first place. I had seen a few altered art ACEOs on Ebay and loved them. Through these sellers I discovered the artist's group ZNE, which I'm sure a lot of people are familiar with as it was a great meeting place for anyone interested in altered art. I made my very first ACEO in September 2007 and it was like lightbulb moment for me. Until then I'd dabbled in various creative things, but never felt that any were really 'me', but as soon as I started creating altered art, I found something that moved and excited me, it was amazing.
What do you find to be your best-sellers, or what generates the most interest? I haven't sold enought to have a bestseller! But I would say I've mostly sold ACEOs and my paper art dolls seem to generate a lot of interest.
Do you work outside of the home also? While my husband was in the USAF, I was lucky enough to be a SAHM and I dabbled in making dried flowers and country crafts. I'm a florist by trade, so it seemed the most natural thing to do. I never really made any money doing that though, I have thebusiness sense of a cabbage!
Soon after my hubby retired at the start of last year, I was lucky enought to find my dream job of working on a homeschool programme with an amazing little boy with autism. A couple of months after starting though, my whiplash from an accident I'd been in the preivous year came back with a vengeance, and I ended up having to quit work and begin physio again. At the time I was heartbroken, but I decided to turn it into a positive, and once I was able to start working on my art again I decided to really go for it, trying new ideas, and to reallybelieve in myself as an artist. I got a bit depressed after having to leave my job, and dealing with the whiplash, and I think my art played a big part in helping me to recover.
Is it your hope to make a living off of your creations, or is it just a hobby? I would love to make a living from my creations. I now get advice from my daughter who is much more business savvy than me, and I'm learning a lot from others on the Etsy forums and Facebook.
Who are your most avid supporters? My family are great at supporting me, my hubby tells me I'm very talented, bless him. And my teenage son and daughter are always ready with praise when I appear before them, like a toddler saying, "Look what I made!" My best mate Dawn Handy, who is an amaazing artist, is a great inspiration to me, and has always encouraged me to share my art and believe in my creative self. She has really helped me to grow as an artist. I've also met some fabulous people on Facebook who are very supportive. Evi of AedanSeppe on Etsy and Arien of VictorianScarlett on Etsy have been particularly supportive and encouraging.
Do you sell anywhere other than on Etsy? How does that do? I decided recently to open a shop on Folksy, as I realized a lot of people, especially in the UK, aren't even aware that Etsy exists. I'm working on getting my first listing up right now.
Where else can people find you and your work?
And so, that was my first featured artist. I had such a great time reading her replies and learning more about what makes her tick. I found myself smiling as I pictured her parading her creations in front of her family (I do the same thing)! I found myself cheering her on when I read about her injuries and embracing the change of direction her life took (go Julia)! And I was so happy that she has a husband, family and best friend that support and encourage her on her creative journey. She was cheery, energetic, honest and positive. What a great way to kick off my features. Thank you Julia. :)