1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
I'm a visual artist and writer. I have three published books of my collage, drawing and poety work. I've been doing this since the early 90s. I started making bunnies around then. I cut up an old sweater and started sewing. There was never a plan.
2. How did you choose your shop name?
It's kind of a joke. I actually really need to change it. It doesn't reflect the bunnies at all. I chose it way back in 2006. Maybe earlier? I used it as my personal website. It was just something a friend said that slipped out. 'Make it awesome'. It's just about making things better.
3. What is your favourite item to make?
Bunnies are fun but my heart is more with my art. The bunnies help support my other art practices. I can only make them once or twice a year. I make a small collection.
4. What is the best seller in your shop?
The bunny!
5. Your work sells all over the world, in which parts of the world is your work most popular?
I send alot of packages to Australia. I love that country. Our aesthetics jibe.
6. What inspires you?
Almost anything. I like nature and the city. Beatrix Potter, Frida Kahlo...all the great lady artists. I consume alot of pop culture. I watch movies while I sew and then write reviews which are sometimes on Rookie. I work for them as well.
www.rookiemag.com
7. How long have you been crafting?
Since I was a child.
8. What are your other hobbies?
Trying to be healthy. listening to music. trying to be funny.
9. Do you collect anything?
Silly things. I like Bunnykins and depression-era dolls. Exquisite teacups and fun vintage eggcups. I put bunnies in them to give them a new life. Often an eggcup just sits around. It's a perfect bunny seat.
10. What is your favourite Christmas tradition?
Driving around looking at Christmas lights
11. Do you have a favourite Christmas song?
Silent Night is a tearjerker.
12. What is the funniest Christmas present you have ever been given?
I'm drawing a complete blank on this one. Just this year my family has started a new tradition of 'no gifts'. This is both liberating and kinda sad but kind of great. We all just buy what we want for ourselves. I do love presents!!!
Many thanks to Sonja from Make It Awesome for taking part in this feature. Click here to visit her Etsy shop.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself
I am a Bristol based textile artist and illustrator creating a unique line of dolls,brooches and illustrations all stemming from my love of old Hollywood,circus history and fairytales. I originally trained and worked as an actor for many years but I always had a desire to create a niche for my constant sketching and making. After my son was born I developed my skills and created Curious Pip.
I use a variety of new and vintage fabrics to capture the charisma and charm of old Hollywood, I guess my aim is to create work which not only evokes nostalgia but brings comfort and a smile to your face. I'm rather obsessed with tatty vintage costumes!
2. How did you choose your shop name?
I had reams of possible names for my business but my little boy liked the word Pip and I love the word Curious. My household shelves are full of interesting finds and curiosities. Victorian wooden dutch dolls, Swedish vintage glass, old children's toys and books, even feathers, bones and fossils!
3. What do you enjoy making the most?
I love the whole process of creation, from my early scribbles and research to sitting down with a pot of coffee and drawing a more detailed sketch. I love choosing and playing with fabrics. The face and hair are an exciting stage because they then seem to develop a personality. I particularly love making my Circus Showgirls. I love the theatricality, bold stripes, stars and feathers!
4. What is the best seller in your shop?
Since every doll is unique its difficult to say. People seemed to love my Christmas fairies. There was also a lot of interest in my Pink haired Marie Antoinette doll. 5 people wanted that little candy coloured cupcake of a doll.
5. Your work sells all over the world, in which parts of the world is your work most popular?
I think its Australia at the moment, yes I seem to ship alot to Australia. U.S and UK. My blog appears to have quite a following in Bahrain -
lots of pageviews from Bahrain. Very interesting.
6. What inspires you?
Old Hollywood glamour, showgirl routines in old Busby Berkeley musicals, The Ziegfeld Follies and circus history. I'm forever inspired by costume and its ability to create magic.
7. How long have you been crafting?
As long as I can remember I have always sketched and made things. I used to knit clothes for my Sindy dolls when I was a child (with the help of my mum) tapestry, flower arranging, sewing and making paper dolls...
8. What are your other hobbies?
Well apart from making and illustrating I enjoy dancing. I tap dance and do ballet - as a hobby. Since giving up acting 5 years ago it fills that void of what I got from performance. I did a fair bit of physical theatre but I never danced professionally during my career. I did ballet as a child but tap is totally new to me - I love it. I love going to the cinema, the theatre and reading. I've always got several books on the go. This time of year ghost stories are my favourite. Susan Hill's ghost stories are chilling! My plans for 2013 are to learn the accordion and do some Aeriel performance. We have a circus school at the bottom of our road so I've no excuse to not do a class.
9. Do you collect anything?
Not so much these days but I've had my moments. My husband and I have both been obsessive collectors in the past - chairs, glass, vintage clothes, the list goes on! Our shelves are still full of curious objects. We love flea markets and car boot sales.
10. What is your favourite Christmas tradition?
My favourite Christmas tradition has to be the fetching and decorating of the tree. I love a real tree. Nothing beats the smell and look of a real festive spruce in your household. I love taking out all the decorations that were so lovingly put away last year. My little boy thinks they're like treasures! His particular favourites are two little retro reindeers I've had for years! However I guess my answer might be swayed a little this year in favour of my little boys first nativity play! oh I love a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie too of course.
11. Do you have a favourite Christmas song or carol?
Fairytale of New York and Rosemary Clooney singing Here Comes Suzy Snowflake.
12. What is the funniest Christmas present you have ever been given?
I'm writing this several days before Christmas 2012...So I'll let you know!
Many thanks to Sarah from Curious Pip for taking part in this feature. Click here to visit her Etsy shop.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
I was born in Dublin,Ireland ,after leaving school I studied animation at Dun Laoighaire College of Art & Design (Dublin) for 3 years,I moved to the Uk a few years back to complete my studies at Bristol University.I currently live in Manchester where I work as a freelance illustrator & general collector of Vintage goodies.
2. How did you choose your shop name?
As much as I like a clever pun or a witty name I decided to stick with my own name (Andrea Kett)
3. What do you enjoy drawing the most?
Probably glamorous ladies (i used to want to be a fashion designer when I was younger,so naturally I love drawing outrageous outfits, and accessories)
4. What is the best seller in your shop?
Probably my paper doll books (Miss Marpole and Undead Threads especially),although I have been selling a lot of greetings cards this year too,I find that cards are something that people always need ...(also anything with Marie Antoinette sells well)
5. Your work sells all over the world, in which parts of the world is
your work most popular?
I would say the vast majority of my customers are from the UK or the US.
6. What inspires you?
Lots of things inspire me from music to Vintage fashion (mainly 1920’s -1950s), a good film,especially ones with unusual costumes. John Waters films are a real favourites of mine (I love all the little details,even down to the clever names he gives his characters).I am partial to an ol’ browse around a charity shop too,(these are a great source for my other craze,collecting vintage cake decorating books)
7. How long have you been an artist?
I don’t really remember a time when I wasn't drawing, but I suppose technically I've been working as a full time illustrator for about 12 years or so.
8. What are your other hobbies?
As I mentioned earlier,I like reading,watching films,general treasure hunting etc (nothing sporty I'm afraid)
9. Do you collect anything?
Yes definitely, my house is packed to the rafters with my collection of lovelies, Vintage tins,wooden peg dolls (Victorian ones),Worzel Gummidge memorabilia, jewellery, odd china, vintage cake decorating/kids party books, fancy stationary,figurines,seaside postcards... to name but a few.
10. What is your favourite Christmas tradition?
Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without the Snowman or the Worzel Gummidge Christmas special on TV (not to mention Muppets Christmas Carol & Elf) & no matter how old I get I must insist on a selection box too!!
11. Do you have a favourite Christmas song or carol?
My Fav Christmas song would be between the Pogues “fairytale of New York” & The Pretenders “2000 miles”
Favourite Christmas Carols :Good King Wenceslas & Hark the Herald angels sing
12. What is the funniest Christmas present you have ever been
given?
I'm not sure about the funniest but certainly one of my favourites was a Barbie Mc Donalds
(i remember my poor Dad spending the morning putting all the stickers on it ,I thought I would die from the excitement and I can still picture it as though it were yesterday....Happy days)
Many thanks to Andrea from Andrea Kett for taking part in this feature. Click here to visit her Etsy shop.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Missy and I'm a happy-go-lucky misfit living in British Columbia Canada alongside my merry little family of 4.
2. How did you choose your shop name?
It's a play on the old phrase 'oopsy daisy' tied in with a tribute to the First Lady of Kitsch, Miss Betty Boop. As a youngster I got hooked on a VHS compilations of old black & white Betty Boop cartoons and a love of Betty's big eyed beauty and sweet persona have stayed with me ever since.
My entire body of work is heavily influenced by cherubc dolls and charming toys from back when Betty first became a world sensation. I should also mention a nod to the stirring ee cummings poem 'a winter afternoon'. The last line of this poem in particular, "I thank heaven somebody's crazy enough to give me a daisy" encapsulates all that I aspire to put out into the ether with my wacky unsual images and whimsical dolls.
3. What is your favourite item to make?
Print work is the most rewarding for me. When my daughter was born there was a particular type of decor I yearned to decorate her room with, but it just did not exist. I set about bringing the things I saw in my mind's eye to reality and it all took off from there. Being surrounded by a large arsenal of junk food and bright kooky play things all day tricks me into thinking I never grew up! :)
4. What is the best seller in your shop?
The dolls sell the quickest and I can't re-stock them fast enough. 'Oh Deer' and 'What the Frank' are the prints purchased most often.
5. Your work sells all over the world, in which parts of the world is your work most popular?
I'm sure there is more boopsiedaisy stuff in the United Kingdom than anywhere else on the planet. For whatever reason, my work really seems to resonate with the wonderful people there.
6. What inspires you?
Big eyed dolls, colorful food and candy, words, dreams, fairytales, holidays, different eras of the past.
7. How long have you been crafting?
Crafting is big in my clan. In the 80's we had a Saturday morning tradition of making breakfast people out of whatever was in the fridge & cupboards. There was always an abundance of crafting materials at the ready, handmade Christmas ornaments would be added each year to the tree, etc. My sister & I made our own 20 page magazine 'The Cheeseball Update' when we were pre-teens that always kept our friends & family in stitches. The women in our family all just seem to exit the womb with a pencil
or paint brush in hand. Crafting is in our very blood.
8. What are your other hobbies?
Thrifting almost daily, reading, writing, drawing, baking, collecting, and I can never watch enough horror.
9. Do you collect anything?
Dolls, cameras, books, magazine clippings, Pez, vintage squeak toys and salt & pepper shakers, vintage Halloween & Christmas decorations, Snow White or Frankenstein related items. Things too numerous to mention. My husband likes to say I "collect collections".
10. What is your favourite Christmas tradition?
Wearing pajamas all day while basking in the ambient light of the tree as carols play on the turn table and the kids try out their new toys.
11. Do you have a favourite Christmas song or carol?
I like the really fun ones like "I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas' and 'Baby it's Cold Outside'. I feel like I instantly officially catch the Christmas spirit though when I hear 'O Holy Night' for the first time each December.
12. What is the funniest Christmas present you have ever been given?
When I visited Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New York a couple years ago my Mum snapped a shot of me with my eyes closed dreamily, puckering up to Boris Karloff's 'The Monster' for a long deep kiss and for Christmas that year she presented me with a hard bound journal with that picture as it's cover. It always makes me snort so I suppose that is the funniest holiday gift I ever got.
Many thanks to Missy from Boopsie Daisy for taking part in this feature. Click here to visit her Etsy shop.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself.
Hi there! My name is Lesley DeSantis and I'm the artist and everything-else behind the scenes at When Guinea Pigs Fly. I'm a bit of a Renaissance woman...not the kind that dresses up at Renaissance fairs (though that does sound kinda fun!), but meaning I do a whole bunch of different creative things and have a never-ending supply of curiosity for learning and mastering new things, which is great for being a creative entrepreneur! One day I can plan out marketing and sales, another I'm painting, and another I might be doing something totally non-When Guinea Pigs Fly-related. I live outside of Boston with my husband and pets and love the ocean, delicious gluten free cupcakes and...if you couldn't guess...guinea pigs!
2. How did you choose your shop name?
I knew I wanted my shop to have a whimsical flair, and when I first began creating artwork with the hope of opening an Etsy shop, I gravitated to guinea pigs immediately. One of the first paintings I made, before I opened shop, was a guinea pig superhero (seen here: www.etsy.com/listing/50705957/guinea-pig-superhero-print it's so funny to see how my style has evolved over time!). The thought of a flying guinea pig tickled me so much. I agonized over picking a name, but when I was talking it over with my mom one night, "when guinea pigs fly" stuck. It was exactly what I wanted -- suggesting a cute mental image with a clever play on words. Moms are good at helping with things like that. :)
3. What do you enjoy drawing the most?
I suppose you could call guinea pigs my muse. I sometimes feel really inspired to paint other creatures, and when that happens, I go for it and don't restrict myself, but more often than not I come right back to these sweet little rodents!
4. What is the best seller in your shop?
Even though the shop is called When Guinea Pigs Fly and primarily features guinea pigs, the #1 seller is actually the 'Otterly Romantic' print of the otters holding hands (www.etsy.com/listing/62235654/otters-holding-hands-cute-otter-art). I was so inspired to paint that after seeing an adorable YouTube video of otters holding hands at the Vancouver Aquarium (if you haven't seen it, you must! www.youtube.com/watch?v=epUk3T2Kfno), and I think a lot of people find it to be a really appropriate gift for their sweetheart or...brace yourself... "otter half" (har har!), which makes me so happy.
5. Your work sells all over the world, in which parts of the world is your work most popular?
It is amazing to me to think that my artwork is in people's homes all over the globe! The top three places it's most popular are the U.S., the UK, and Australia. Guinea pigs seem to be held in a lot higher regard/are more popular in the UK and Australia, which I never knew until I opened shop! One of my very first orders went to Australia and I thought it was a fluke, but several orders a month usually make the journey 'Down Undah'.
6. What inspires you?
Cuteness, in all its shapes and forms, but of course if I see something with a guinea pig I'm immediately smitten. I'm inspired by all sorts of animals and can often be found visiting a local wildlife sanctuary and farm to recharge. I'm inspired by classic, sweet stories like Winnie the Pooh for my watercolor scenes and there is never a shortage of guinea pig photos to paw through! Sometimes I'll see a particular photo of a guinea pig and think "omg that guinea pig totally looks like a [whatever the next painting ends up being]". They all have their own little quirks and personalities and that can sometimes dictate in what direction my artwork goes.
7. How long have you been an artist?
I began drawing when I was very young and would doodle every day after school with my big basket of markers at the kitchen table. I began learning how to paint and draw more photo-realistic works in middle and high school, and began developing my own style as When Guinea Pigs Fly got established. So as cliche as it sounds, I suppose I've been an artist pretty much my whole life, but only a 'working artist' for the past three years or so.
8. What are your other hobbies?
I write musicals with a writing partner, one of which is currently in production and being marketed to children's theatres across the country (it's a modern twist on the Tortoise and the Hare. If you're near CT in February, come see it! fairfieldtheatre.org/NCTC/), and another which is in the planning stages to be produced by Marymount Manhattan College in the spring. I love learning new arts and crafts, graphic and web design, baking, and have been known to grace a few runways as a fashion model (ooh la la!). My interests are eclectic but when I'm interested in something, I really go for it.
9. Do you collect anything?
I'm developing a growing collection of adorable mice from the talented artists at the Etsy shop The House of Mouse (www.etsy.com/shop/thehouseofmouse)! I also have a rather enormous stuffed animal collection. Not the expensive 'collectible' kind, but just ones that have spoken to me over the years. I don't have the heart to get rid of the ones from my childhood and I am so easily smitten when I see new ones in stores that have that little 'special something'. I can't help myself! :)
10. What is your favourite Christmas tradition?
I absolutely love going back to my home town of Rockport, Massachusetts to enjoy the festivities there. I don't get to all of it every year, but Rockport has a wonderful Christmas pageant, a tree lighting ceremony, and all of the gift shops are open. It feels very magical and timeless. Spending Christmas Eve into Christmas Day at my parents' house is also very special to me.
11. Do you have a favourite Christmas song or carol?
Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" has always been and will always be my absolute favorite. All of his Christmas music is wonderful, but that one piece really tugs at my heartstrings.
12. What is the funniest Christmas present you have ever been given?
Oh what a fun question! Hmm... I'd have to say a handmade card my best friend made me a few years ago. We had racked up an enormous list of inside jokes between us involving various colorful characters (both real and imaginary) in our lives. She tied them all in with a rhyming poem and I laughed myself silly.
Many thanks to Lesley from When Guinea Pigs Fly for taking part in this feature. Click here to visit her Etsy shop.
