Scoutie Girl » finding passion

growing your creative passion :: guest post by aileen holmes

tara — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:00:41 +0000

I’m pleased to welcome Aileen Holmes, artist, graphic designer, and bona fide so cal girl, guest posting on the topic of creative growth!

It’s easy to get comfortable doing what you’ve always done. And, it’s easy once you’ve achieved some success to sit back and say “yeah, I’m awesome.” …But the world is evolving around you. You’ve gotta evolve with it! Evolution is a process of growth over time. Your daily to-do lists are too small in scope to give you proper perspective of how to grow. Even new year’s resolutions can be too small compared to the many years ahead in your life. It’s important to step back and have a long-range view to identify potential areas of growth.

There are many ways to identify areas of growth:

Daydream

Sometimes the best thing to do is daydream! Ever since I was a little kid, I would daydream about my most perfect life in the future. In the beginning, I daydreamed about my most perfect tree house (complete with a giant slide, of course). My dream evolved over time to having a bedroom with a balcony (where a sweetheart would visit), to having my own apartment with a wall full of windows, to owning a house by the sea. As you grow, your dreams grow.

I invite you to daydream about your most perfect life and my most perfect career. Think about it. Where are you? What are you doing? What have you achieved? Write down all the details. Your daydreams can inspire you and even give you specific goals to shoot for. You can see the gaps between what your current life looks like and what it be. It’s important to dream big. As Les Brown said, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars.”

Jealousy

I was taught that jealousy is a bad, bad thing but my thinking completely changed when I started to really pay attention. Instead of pushing jealous thoughts out of your mind, try listening. If you have a strong gut reaction and find yourself saying “I could have done that” or “I wish I could do that”, well, you probably can! Jealousy is a very powerful tool. It shows you what you want.

Both daydreaming and jealousy are tools to guide you to your heart’s desires. They can show you how you how you can evolve and live your dreams… but those both come from your inner reflection. Sometimes you need the outside world to serve as your mirror.

Listen to others

Outside people whom you trust can also show you ways to grow. Have a chat with your mentors about your goals and they can share the wisdom of their experience, maybe even help you avoid obstacles and pitfalls that they have experienced. Also, listen to your fans/customers/clients. Your fans are in tune with your work and intuitively know what new products to create and where your work would sell. Listen and take notes.

After you have identified possible areas of growth, you’re likely to want to acquire some new skills and improve upon your existing skill set.

Start growing:

Daily practice: This is a no-brainer but it’s easy to be swept away pursuing the ever long to-do list. Be sure to set aside a bit of time every day to create and work on your passion. If you put just a little bit of time every day and pretty soon you’ll look back on previous work and see how much you’ve improved!
Classes/Seminars: You are never too old to learn something new and there is always someone who knows more than you. Why not take advantage of the resources in your community? Local community colleges are excellent and relatively inexpensive. Also, your local SBA (Small Business Administration) office has SCORE workshops. Within the last couple of weeks I’ve taken Advanced Internet Marketing and How to Write a Business Plan workshops for free! Check into your local arts and craft stores, community centers, and browse Meetup.com. There’s an abundance of people willing to teach what you want to learn!
Critique Groups/Craft Clubs/Drawing Groups: You can also learn from your peers. It’s great to create with your artsy craftsy friends. It motivates you to create, of course, but you can swap tips and network. I like to go to my local Dr. Sketchy’s Anti Art School for modern life drawing with my artist peers. I also like to meet with my local chapter of Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators hosted by my art mentor Marilyn Scott-Waters, the toy maker.
Teaching: It might seem counter-intuitive to teach in order to learn… But once you have established a foundation of skills that others would like to learn, you can challenge yourself to organize your thoughts in a relatable way and communicate your knowledge to others. You’ll have to research your subject in depth and break down your subject matter into bite-sized chunks easy for students to digest. When you teach your class, students will challenge you by asking questions and approach the subject in unexpected ways.

A daily self-discipline of working on your craft, getting the support of your community and sharing your knowledge are all great ways to work on your growth. And, with your vision identified, your actions will be much stronger–fueled by passion. I’m excited to hear about how you are growing!

Aileen Holmes is a freelance Graphic Designer, Illustrator, and Artist working in sunny Orange County, California. Having specialized in illustration and graphic design for over seven years, Aileen’s sexy and sassy vintage-inspired artwork has appeared on apparel, stationery, textiles, and posters around the world.

Find more growth posts right here on scoutie girl and more on Crafting an MBA!

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

april stash bust :: interview with elsage

tara — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 18:00:19 +0000

april is stash bust month! you can find more helpful articles on working through your craft or art supply stashes without purchasing anything new this month on dollar store crafts, craft leftovers, cosa verde, crafting a green world, glue and glitter, and swap-bot.

today, i’m bringing you an interview with phoebe of >elsage, where you can find all sorts of fun accessories made from reclaimed fabric & scraps. phoebe has a real passion for making do with what she’s got and seeing things in new ways! phoebe will be back tomorrow with a tutorial for using up some of your own stash!

Since this is stash busting month, tell us about your stash! And where you do find the materials you use?

Where do I begin? I collect all types of things & always have, so I have stuff that goes back to high school that I’ve been toting around with me for 10 years now. I don’t like to throw things away that could have a new life. For example, I have a box full of turquoise paper scraps from making our wedding invites, old wire & buttons that came with shirts in those little envelopes & a box of old calendars & catalogues. Envelops, ribbons from gifts; it’s all stored in my studio.

As for elSage, there are boxes of fabric that have been given (wonderful artist friends & people who were going to toss usable scraps). This is my favorite kind of material because it really drives my designs and it makes a natural sort of a limited edition. As for the materials that I seek out, I look to thrift stores (I ♥ the goodwill), junk stores, antique stores, online vintage supply shops and my parent’s house. My mom brings up all this stuff she’s packed away and leaves it for me (old Pendleton shirts of my dads, vintage buttons, beads, thread). I love when there is a story behind a material, when I’m connected to it; be it through a day of thrifting or something that I grew up with.

Why are you so passionate about using repurposed materials in your work?

I really enjoy seeing things that others would consider trash; take shape into something new and beautiful. I am not a militant environmentalist but the reuse, reduce, repurpose philosophy just makes sense to me. If it already exists, why go make it brand new? These were the starting points for my using repurposed materials but now I really enjoy how the materials drive my design, it’s become part of my creative process. I’m not into making junk, I’m into making things out of it.

When you’re scouting out new items or looking through your stash of supplies, what is your process for envisioning old materials in new ways?

I’m not really sure I can explain this. It definitely changes from day to day. I will be into bows one day and the next it will be veils. I can’t force anything. In a weird way it’s like I have a window to connect with certain materials. So when I’m seeking out materials at say, the goodwill, I look for high quality fabrics that will stand up to repurposing. I love men’s dress shirts; sometimes I go in looking for gray shirts and come out with 70s flower print cowboy shirts.

I think this is what I like best about elSage, that I have enough variety to keep me interested no matter where my creativity is that day: prints, headbands, wedding veils.

I may have gotten this ability to make something out of nothing from my dad & mom. We grew up camping our summers away and have always looked around to find other ways to solve problems. Tapestries became cabanas on the beach & a stick became a shovel. My dad still has some funny little things I made as a kid; a giraffe from scrap wood & nails, a doll from old nylons & a glass bottle. Creativity with the materials at hand was always encouraged.

Have any tips for creative people looking to see their supplies in new ways?

Open up your thinking. Instead of rushing out to buy something, look around and see if you can make something work that you already have. I started elSage with my husband’s give-away pile and some gifted scrap fabric. It will stretch your thinking to look at materials in an ingenious way.

stop over to elsage to check out her beautiful floral accessories, starting at $20 – just perfect for spring outfits!

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion :: ellie of mint

tara — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:00:50 +0000

images via mint

i’m a big fan of mint. not the holiday flavor that gives you fresh breath & a chill, but the fabulous design blog run by ellie snow. ellie was recently laid off from her graphic design job and is making a go at being a full-time blogger & freelancer. her etsy shop, hello tenfold, is fresh * clean * sophisticated! read on to find out how ellie found her passion…

you’re a blogger, a freelance graphic designer, a wife, and an etsy shop proprietor. what other passions do you have? and what’s really getting your creative juices flowing right now?

I love taking photos and reading! I just finished Water for Elephants and now I’m reading The Séance by John Harwood. I guess you could say I’m an inspiration sponge, so when I’m feeling stuck creatively I like to sit down with a big stack of design magazines and books.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame (or are overcoming) in turning your passion for design into a business.

Time management and balance are a couple things I’m working on. I’ve realized that although I put a lot of hours into my business, I’m not always being productive. When most of your work is done on the computer, it’s hard not to get side-tracked, or multi-task to the point of being unable to focus on one thing at a time. I also need to get out of the house more during the day, and an exercise routine wouldn’t hurt!

your shop, hello tenfold, has an emphasis on classic typography, sophisticated colors, and modern touches. Tell me about your process in visualizing and designing a new product.

It really depends! Some clients are very specific about the look they’re going for, and I take inspiration from photos they gather for me from wedding blogs and magazines. From there, I spend time looking through fonts and deciding which ones have the right feel for the project, and then I just start “playing” with illustrations, layout, and patterns. Sometimes it’s a quick process and other times it will take many hours to get things right.

what is one thing you struggle with on a daily basis in living out your passion for design?

Design is such a personal process for me, and I put a lot of myself into each project I work on. So, I’m trying to get a thicker skin and not be so hard on myself when the first attempt at a project isn’t perfect. I’ve found having creative hobbies that are totally unrelated to the creative things I do for work is helpful. For example, I love taking pottery classes. I’m pretty bad at it, but it’s nice to let go and make something for the sake of making it, with no expectations for how it should look in the end. That way, I can focus on the process and not the product. It’s easy to lose track of that when you make your living from something creative!

visit ellie at mint or at hello tenfold.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | girls can tell

tara — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:00:20 +0000

i first met sara selepouchin, the brains behind girls can tell, through handmade in pa. her work is oh-so clever in both design & execution. using her background in architecture, sara dissects everyday objects, diagrams their parts, and turns them into detailed screen-printed images on other everyday objects. her work embodies the adage “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

i had to find out more about what drives sara’s deep passion for craft & community.

you’re a crafter, a teacher, a lover of everyday objects, a creative community advocate… what are your other passions? what’s really getting your creative juices flowing right now?

well, in all honestly, during the holidays, it’s more a matter of cranking out everything i designed during the year. when i am in design-mode (which i’m looking forward to for january!), i’m inspired by just the amazing little machines and things we surround ourselves with. how things come together to form new things is so intriguing to me. i like to try to make people see everyday things in a way they might not have thought about otherwise. i also really love connecting with other people in the handmade community.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame while turning your passion for craft into a business.

it was actually something of an obstacle that really allowed me to pursue my line full time. i was, slightly infamously, let go from my previous job (as the Etsy Teams coordinator for Etsy.com) quite unexpectedly. since i was completely submersed in the handmade world anyway, and had been printing my wares part time since early 2006, i took the plunge and decided to just work as hard as i could to make it happen and to build girlscantell into a real job. it seems to be working pretty well so far, though it is without a doubt the hardest job i’ve ever had, and completely life-consuming.

your work is based on the beauty & detail of everyday objects – function & art seem to be considered equally. tell me about your process in visualizing & designing a new product.

these days, most of my diagram ideas come from suggestions of other people (you can suggest a diagram at
girlscantell.com!). i do a lot of research in drawing up the illustration (fact checking!), and i’m actually very careful that all of my illustrations are similar in size and scale so that i can print them somewhat uniformly across my line of products. when i’m considering a new product, sourcing materials takes a long, long time – there are a lot of considerations to balance – environmental sustainability, durability, uniqueness, aesthetics, consistency, availability, and of course, cost. i’m always considering what i might want to do next. it’s fun to consider that the possibilities for my line right now seem pretty much endless.

tell me about something you struggle with on a daily basis living out your passion for craft, design, & community.

it’s difficult because i’m constantly battling this need i feel to do more to create a network of professional artisans, especially in philly, where there is so much talent. i’m kind of a ‘grass is always greener’ kind of person in that i’m just about always convinced that i could be doing more or changing things to make drastic improvements – it’s always ‘what’s next?’ with me. i think about opening a storefront. i think about opening a handmade business center. i think about hosting round table discussions. i think about expanding my line into more boutiques. i think about ways to teach more people to print. i think about how my business can contribute to the development of my neighborhood. that kind of thing. it’s a good quality to have (most of the time), the drive to constantly improve, but it also makes for some sleepless nights. it’s exhausting, but exhilarating.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | aster & sage

tara — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 14:00:21 +0000

i love all the fabulous designers i’ve met through twitter! [aside: seriously, twitter, what did i do without you?] this week, linda yesline, of aster & sage, answered my call for the next finding passion post subject. i’d not seen her work before, but i immediately fell in love with the bold colors, unique compositions, and clear focus of her line. her passion for eco-friendly crafting also drew me in! linda says her goal is to promote green ideals in two ways: “consumers are exposed to the possibilities of recycled materials, and our products’ popularity encourages fabric mills to manufacture material with recycled content”

you’re a passionate crafter, making handbags, jewelry, and other accessories, who’s also passionate about recycling and frugality. what else are you passionate about? and what’s really getting your creative juices flowing right now?

I adore thrift stores. I love that you can never predict what you’ll find. Thrift stores make me look at products in a different way. Almost everything in a thrift store was once mass-produced and was manufactured to be sold. Now these products are no longer wanted by their original owner, they have less monetary value, and even their utility is called into question. I look at the products and think about what it was, and what it could be… I might find a chipped china bowl that’s no longer good for the dinner table but could be a great water dish for my dog…thrift store shoppers are creative by necessity. I love getting thrown into a situation that forces me to be creative. I look at color and texture and I may not buy anything but I take home a lot of information about what I see.

Thrift stores get my creative juices flowing, but when it comes time to think about new product designs I get my inspiration from the library and from Twitter. I can never get enough information about art, design, cooking, and any kind of non-fiction that catches my interest. On Twitter I follow tons of design people who post links to art and design, and I’m constantly clicking on new links. I’m particularly interested in design from Japan and from Scandinavian countries and I think you can see their influence in my work. I also go to www.urbansketchers.com at least once a day to see what’s new– people from around the world post what they’ve drawn. I am fascinated by the drawings and accompanying commentary from the artists.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame while turning your passion for design & craft into a business.

It’s been hard for me to see myself as an artist. I didn’t got to art school until I was in my mid-twenties, and by then I was pretty sure I wasn’t a ‘real artist’. I didn’t know where I fit in– I graduated with a degree in industrial design, an experience I value dearly, but I never did feel like a designer either. I realized that being an artist is about sharing a unique perspective, so it’s probably for the best that I shy away from defining myself. That would kind of defeat the whole ‘unique perspective’ thing I’ve got going on.

you’re work is bold, colorful, and lots of fun! tell me about your process in visualizing & designing a new product.

I’ve always been jealous of people who make ceramics– all they have to do is order clay from a supplier and they’re done. I’ve spent so many many hours making phone calls and scouring the internet for materials I like. When I find the right material I try to think about what kinds of products would work with the material I have. I play around a lot with color combinations–that’s another limiting factor– I always wish I had better color options! I also play around on the sewing machine to see what ideas might develop. My blossom bracelets and pins came about that way; I had a lot of fabric scraps and I gave myself the challenge to use the shapes I had available.

tell me about something you struggle with on a daily basis in living our your passion for craft & design.

I know that I work my best when I give myself time to be creative every day. But the necessities of daily business: bookkeeping, marketing, production…they all eat into my creative time. I aim to give myself time to draw every day, though that’s a goal and not something I have been good at achieving. But I know that my creativity drives my business, and if I’m not creative it’ll all fall to pieces. So I take guitar lessons, color with my toddler’s crayons…I try to squeeze art into any spare time I have.

The one thing that does help me immensely is meditation. I set a timer for 8 minutes and I allow my mind to wander. It is such an effective way to recharge my brain. Ideally I’d do this every day too, but somehow I don’t always find 8 minutes in my day. Jeez, just admitting that hurts. Thank you, I will now be amending my actions immediately. If I don’t have 8 minutes for myself, that’s my own fault. [So now you know, most of my struggle is between me and myself!]

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | 3squares

tara — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:30:13 +0000

i first met jean from 3squares while researching crafty locales for my “shop local” series over on try handmade. i, too, share a passion for jean’s jewelry inspiration: food! she deftly & creatively takes everyday food items and creates modern, strong jewelry pieces in their image. keep reading for more information on how jean found her passion!

your line is based on the joy of food and your passion for metalsmithing. what other passions do you have? and what’s really inspiring you right now?

I’m passionate about comforting things. Good books. Old movies. Down comforters. Earl Grey. Cashmere. A robust bottle of red. Pasta. Sinatra. Sounds contrary to my modern tastes, but it’s true. Actually I’m not 100% sure, but I might be channeling my grandmother.

At the moment I am crazy into silk. I have a pile of scraps and more ideas than I can get out of my head, but I’m working on a bunch of new pieces combining metal and fabric. Love the unexpected combination of rustic, oxidized metal and bright, luscious silk.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame in finding your passion for jewelry making and turning that into a business.

I think the hardest part was preparing to take the plunge and quit my job to work full-time on my jewelry. I have a marketing degree and had worked hard to build a solid resume, but I knew I couldn’t keep with it forever – I was burning out. If I was going to make a change, I couldn’t wait much longer. But leaving the security of a “real” job is a scary thing, and I certainly couldn’t have done it without my husband’s support, literally and figuratively.

your work is geometric, colorful, and inspired by food! tell me about your design process in creating a new piece.

Many ideas are inspired by my habit of reading cookbooks. I have a collection of more than 100, and I read them like novels. Really, at least a couple are sitting on my nightstand as we speak. A recipe or ingredient can spark an idea for a shape, color or texture. I generally sketch out my thoughts, and those often mutate into other ideas until I have pages (or envelopes or napkins) full of variations on a theme.

tell me about something you struggle with on a daily basis in living out your passion for jewelry.

I struggle every day with finding the right balance. Funny how when you’re doing something you love, it can really consume you. My daughter tells me when it’s time to put the computer down, and I try and listen. And my husband (a bit of a neat freak) has relaxed his clutter standards a bit.

People talk about time seeming to move faster once you have a child, they grow up so fast. But running your own business makes time zip by even more quickly. For the first time I’ve realized the huge list of things I want to accomplish, and the small amount of time available to do them. But I guess that really does force you to prioritize and focus on the top of the list. At least I’m trying.

The kid says it’s time to put the laptop away now, but thanks for listening scoutie girl!

metalsmithed jewelry by 3squares :: $22-75

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | khristian howell

tara — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:30:00 +0000

inspiration and passion often go hand in hand. khristian howell, a surface designer, photographer, and graphic designer, uses her passion for culture & travel to inspire her work. i wanted to find out more about the passion behind this versatile designer!

you’ve been working as an independent surface designer since may 2008 – you obviously have a passion for design! what other passions do you have? and what passion is really inspiring and motivating you right now?

Travel and education through travel. I never tire of getting on a new train, eating something I’ve never heard of, and laughing with a new friend. It keeps me going and passionate. Its like good food for the soul really. I think it is vital to teach the importance of travel.

tell me about one obstacle you had to overcome to realize your dream of working as an independent artist.

I think all artists struggle with self doubt and fear. In my case, I walked away from a great design job to pursue what my heart was aching to do. It was like jumping off a cliff. The good thing about jumping is that you get to fly, and I plan to stay in flight for quite awhile!

your work is full of bright colors, sophisticated shapes, and fun details. tell me about your process in creating a new design.

Sometimes I will start with a place I am dreaming about and build from there. Often I start with creating my color palette. Color is such an emotional experience to me that many times I might think up a really great color combination and the feeling is what leads me to what the group will be about. This was very much the case with “Mon Sheri” collection. From there I start with a core print and build out a supporting cast of coordinating prints.

what is something that you struggle with on a daily basis in living out your passion for design?

There are times that I struggle with balance. I have recently started scheduling days off and time for yoga and reading!! I know it sounds crazy, but I just get so carried away working because it just doesn’t feel like work. Sometimes I’ll stop and think to myself – wow, I have worked for ten days straight! I am working on getting a handle on it!

find out more about khristian on her website and blog.

all images are copyright khristian howell and may not be used without the artist’s permission.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | rikrak

tara — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:30:00 +0000

fun! yup, that sums up kristal from rikrak. she’s fun, her designs are fun, even her blog is fun! but i knew there had to be more to her passion for craft than just fun – so i subjected her to “finding passion” and she obliged!

you’re a crafter, a blogger, a mom – you obviously have a lot of passions! what am i missing? and what are you most passionate about right now?

thanks so much for having me, nicey!

gosh. so many things: familying, mommying, making arts & crafts with my little sweetie, having 80’s dance parties in the living room, sending snail-mail letters, travelling near & far, picnicking, taking photographs, playing at the park on blue sky days, splashing in the puddles on grey sky days, having tea parties with dear friends, going on adventures with my cute husband, laughing with & learning from my wonderful mom, and playing games with anyone who’s willing!

tell me about an obstacle you overcame in becoming a full-time creator. how did that obstacle shape your business and your attitude towards your craft?

figuring out my strengths and working to them. we live in a great little place in the heart of our beautiful city and we don’t have much extra room for a full-time at-home business. so, our dining room does double-duty as family table by day, craft studio by night. spending money on advertising was an expense my little business couldn’t afford at the start, so instead, i focus on my adoration of photography, and spend a lot of time taking the best pictures I can. i use an inexpensive point and shoot camera, and only natural window-light in all of my photos (even though waiting for a sunny day can sometimes require patience, especially during those long winter months in Ottawa!) i think the time investment of making great pictures has really been a good one!

i’d encourage anyone who has a dream to create full time, to work toward their strengths, little bit by little bit, and get creative about problem-solving! believe in yourself, and see if you can find a way to make obstacles into opportunities.

your pieces are bright, clean, modern, and eco-friendly – tell me about your process in designing a new piece.

oh thanks so much, scoutiegirl. that’s so nice of you.

gosh – to be honest, quite a few elements are part of the process. firstly, i get crazily excited about the interaction between light, colour, patterns & shapes. so i feel lucky to always have new little designs spinning around in my head as we take a walk, or cook dinner. i also adore the nostalgia & history behind vintage textiles, and the way they seem to inherently inspire fun & functional patchwork goodies in my head. so that is often how the designs are born. and i’m not much of a sketcher – i like to create at the sewing machine. so i often take the hatchling of an idea and the materials and sit down at the sewing machine and get creating!

what do you struggle with on a daily basis in living out your passion for craft?

like many of us, finding a balance between all of those passions we’ve been chatting about has been an obstacle sometimes for me: that age-old quest for balance as a mommy, a creator, a fun friend & partner & daughter, etc. (insert whatever each of us yearns to do the best we can at here!)

after we had our little sweetie was the time when we also decided to try my designing full time, so that one of us could always be home with little rikrak. this, of course, has many delights & challenges associated with it, especially regarding finding balance! yet those teeny tiny spurts of time (when little rikrak would take a mini-nap; when sleep came at night, etc) made me eventually able to focus on setting little mini-goals on a daily basis. i found this to be a most successful way to accomplish things and find some semblance of personal success, too. i found personal and crafting success in this way, too: today we’ll go to the park, i’ll try to write a note to a loved one, i’ll have a little tea party with mr. rikrak. i’ll try to cut out 2 stockings. done. while it might not sound like much, setting myself up for success, what I could actually reasonably accomplish in a day while being a full-time mommy, too, and setting do-able tangible goals, helped me build my little business, and feel truly happy in life, teeny bit by teeny bit.

i still struggle with this sometimes, but would highly recommend that starting with small steps toward reaching your dreams, breaking it down into achievable goals, brainstorming creative problem-solving ideas where need be, and trying to add a variety of great things you love into everyday, no matter how small, has been a helpful way for me to grow my little business.finding success in little things: it’s a great life lesson my parents taught me. and as a now full-time creator, i think it helps me to plan my days and get stuff done! hopefully !:)

visit kristal at her etsy shop or at her fab blog.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | sarah john afana

tara — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:30:00 +0000

i discovered sarah john afana on the etsy front page last week and new she would be perfect for “finding passion.” her faceless figures, haunting abstract landscapes, hand-painted ornaments, and endless passion for her art represent exactly what i’m looking for! you can find her work in her fine art shop, sarah john afana, and her craft shop, schemata.

you’re a fine artist, photographer, and knitter. anything else? which are you most passionate about right now?

“Right now” changes from hour to hour. As you mentioned I work in a variety of media so it’s really a matter of what needs the most attention. This is my first year selling my hand painted glass ornaments online so I am preparing inventory for two gallery locations and two online marketplaces. Sundays I am fortunate enough to get out to the beach for some surfing and photography. My Surfer Series of paintings is all worked from photographs and having just the right action photo to work from takes perfect timing. Although crafting media may be consuming more of my studio time at the moment, I am constantly thinking about my next painting I can’t wait to start.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame in becoming a full-time creator.

I think like most artists you talk to, the business of being an artist is a huge obstacle. Finding the ability to market and promote sales while still trying to maintain the creative time in the studio is a difficult balance. For me, living in a rather rural part of California, the opportunity to market and sell my work was very limited. While it might sound cliché, having the technology that is available now has allowed me the opportunity to be selling and shipping around the world. By having an online presence with the venues and social networking that is available along with digital cameras and the professional print quality at home, I am no longer limited to what is locally accessible for me.

your paintings are evocative, full of motion, and feature interesting techniques. tell me about your process in envisioning and creating a new piece.

While my Surfer and Figure Series’ are created from photographs much of my work begins very organically. When working in acrylic I cover the entire surface with 1-3 colors and pour or spray with rubbing alcohol for a resist effect. Once that dries I can general see a texture or a pattern that intrigues me to work into the final image. Sometimes it’s that pattern that ends up being the focus for an abstract piece. I enjoy working expressively and letting the materials and textures guide the direction while trying to work an image I want out of them.

what do you struggle with daily in living out your passion as a working artist?

Focusing, since I enjoy working in so many media I have a tendency to bounce from project to project. Lately my days go like this; I will do some of the business of being an artist (emailing, listing work for sale, packing and shipping), spend an hour or two on a batch of ornaments, either photograph new work or edit photographs, find time to knit if possible, and somewhere in there find time to maintain daily life. The BEST days are the ones I know I will get a block of hours of painting time in the studio. I have thousands of photographs to be edited and manipulated for new paintings, if I could just obtain the time to focus on them.

find sarah’s work at her fine art shop and her craft shop, featuring ornaments & knits.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"

finding passion | arosha taglia

tara — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 07:30:00 +0000

arosha taglia, a native of italy now living in israel, strives to bring the art of communication to his craft. his jewelry speaks on many levels: high design, effortless beauty, and an attitude of strong femininity. each piece he creates is also born of his love of sculpting. you will find 3 distinct but related styles in his 3 online shops – click each image to be taken to the shop of your choice! i asked arosha to tell me more about how he found his passion for jewelry design:

you’re currently working in metals, silk, and plastics. what technique/medium are you most passionate about right now? are you working on adding more techniques to your collection?

In my work, I already used almost every material possible. I like to pass from one to the other, as my intuition guides me. At the present, I particularly love my latest plastic collection, which is the most innovative line I’m working on. I’m also loving the silver collection, which enables buyers to have a good level product with an original, cutting-edge design.

tell me about an obstacle you overcame in becoming a full-time creator.

To be a full-time creator is always a jump into the unknown. The obstacles have usually been related to my difficulty of having to market my work, which is almost fully done of unique pieces and small collections. Most of my recent results should be attributed to my partner in work and life, that is managing with intelligence and attention the commercial part of my work, giving me freedom to develop the creative and technical part of my work.

your designs are innovative, modern, strong but distinctly feminine: describe your process in designing a new product.

I don’t follow a fixed structure. Some of my jewels are computer designed, but the majority are handmade. I follow all kinds of inspirations – some from nature, some from geometry, some from the material itself, some from an abstract idea, some from my work as a sculpture. I usually develop a theme in a few pieces, allowing the fantasy to be as free as possible. This is the reason why the dimension and shape of the jewels is often uncommon. I create for customers who love cleannes and uniqueness, that are not interested in brands but look for an artistic point of view.

what do you struggle with daily in living out your passion for jewelry?

Creating jewelry is not my only passion.. I’m a very eclectic artist, and my work touches almost all the visual communication arts. So I alternate the jewelry design work with painting and sculpturing. I also practice meditation and I’m preparing a workshop that combines meditation, painting and theater as means of self-development. I think that living my life to its maximal intensity, and developing all the sides of my personality, is the best way to preserve my passion.

if you weren’t designing for a living, what other passion might you like to pursue full-time?

I’m proud to have the courage to do what I love most in life, and I challenge myself in many fields. The only other thing I would have been doing with pleasure is enjoying life and meditating on a far away tropical island.. Other than that – I’m living my life with passion and I’m passionate about everything I do.

to view each of arosha’s collections, click the corresponding image.

Please check out these Scoutie Girl sponsors:

diane kuligowski - jewelry with spirit
paco sign + lupe - handbags that merge art & fashion	tsai fi - artillustrationdesign
sora designs - vintage & natures inspired jewelry	pure rox jewels - contemporary artisan jewelry
blend creations - modern jewelry in stainless steel	nature scripts - personalized word pictures
craftee - daily zine	imooi - jewelry for men & women"