Spotlight On ...

Marcus Kwame!

1. Tell us a little bit about who you are and your life up to this point in time.
I'm an artist, musician and poet, who was born in Kingston Jamaica and raised in upstate New York. I've been making art since I can remember. My mother was very supportive and instrumental in me becoming an artist.

2. Besides your fantasy creative life, what else are you doing currently?
Right now I'm preparing for the birth of my first child, which I'm really excited about. She's due in August. I have a lot going on right now but that is the big thing!

3. What do you offer in your Etsy Shop?
I offer my paintings, drawings and prints in my Etsy Shop.

4. Where do you create?
I mostly create at home, but I've been known to create art anywhere I can get my hands on a piece of paper when inspiration strikes.

5. Where do you get your inspiration?
I find inspiration in many places. Music is a big source of inspiration for me. A lot of my paintings are somehow related to music. My wife inspires me. People who have passed through my life inspire me.

6. How did you learn how to do your craft?
I've had some great art teachers but I learned the most by just "doing." I drew all the time when I was growing up. I'm always trying to grow as an artist and do new things.

7. How do you promote your wares?
Through my website http://www.marcuskwame.com/, etsy, word of mouth (handing out a lot of cards!)

8. What has been the most important lesson you've learned since you started selling your own creations?
The most important lesson I've learned since I began selling is that the amount you sell does not determine the true worth of your work. So if things are slow I don't doubt myself or my work.

9. Is there any advice you can give others who are just starting out?
Like I said, don't let money define your work. If you create what is true to you then in the long run I believe you will be successful.

10. Do you have any favorite Etsy artists you'd like to promote here?
Lark Calderon Gomez, The Pairabirds, Three Muses Art, Alkemystic88

Spotlight On ...

Rhena of Lars and Addie!

1. Tell us a little bit about who you are and your life up to this point in time.
I grew up in Washington DC before moving to Madison, WI to go to college. After living there for six years, I moved around a bit. I've lived in London, a few towns in Thailand, and New York City. I've finally settled in Minneapolis with my husband almost two years ago. We just bought a new house a few minutes away from my sister and her family. It's nice to be near family and settled enough to own a sewing machine or two!

2. Besides your fantasy creative life, what else are you doing currently?
When I'm not sewing and knitting, I'm a writer.

3. What do you offer in your Etsy Shop?
My tagline is "Bags and such. But mostly bags." That pretty much says it all. My bags are fabric with some sort of appliqué on them. My knitted bags are felted and I'm getting into adding needle felting to them. When I say "and such" I mean things for the home like coasters and napkins. I'm going to be expanding this section in the months to come.

4. Where do you create?
I used to work on the dining room table in our tiny apartment. In our new home, my husband and I set up a space in one of the extra rooms for me to work in. Even though we're having work done on our house, my husband made sure that space for me to work was one of the first things we got finished. It's great to have an area separate from where I write so that one creativity doesn't distract me from the other.

5. Where do you get your inspiration from?
I get inspiration from other artists like those who create fabrics and yarns. I also spend a lot of time looking at other art, photographs, and the natural world around me. I also get a lot of inspiration from the learning process. I'll often pick up a new pattern or project not because I'm going to sell it, but because I can learn a new technique that I can incorporate into my designs.

6. How did you learn how to do your craft?
I've taken two sewing classes a number of years ago. Otherwise, I'm pretty much self-taught. The internet is such a great resource!

7. How do you promote your wares?
I just opened on Etsy, so I'm just getting starting with the promoting. I maintain a regular blog and try to visit other blogs and to comment there. I also keep photos -- both handmade items and other topics -- on flickr. I carry business cards with me at all times and send a few of them with each order. I definitely have to do some more, but in the meantime, fortunately, my friends, family, and customers are great champions of my work!

8. What has been the most important lesson you've learned since you started selling your own creations?
Promoting on and off Etsy is super important, but the bottom line is that if I'm not creating and if I'm not creating items that I love and am happy with, it's all for naught. I have to make sure that I always leave time to actually make things and not just promote. I have to create items, not only to keep my stock up but also to keep my sanity.

9. Is there any advice you can give others who are just starting out?
For an on-line store, photography is the single most important element of your shop (aside from having a great product). Your customer can't touch and hold your product, so you have to compensate for that by taking great pictures. Don't use a flash, use natural light, use all five photos spots, and edit your photos before you post.

10. Do you have any favorite Etsy artists you'd like to promote here?
Luna Feliz is a fellow Minneapolitan who sells really cute Chinese take-out boxes. Sinister Bags are also here in Minneapolis. She makes great vinyl bags (a material I would never have the guts to work with!). My Handbound Books makes great journals, which as someone who can't work with paper at all and who is, ironically, a writer, I respect a great deal. Orange Moon Toys makes these great shadow puppet toys, which I will definitely buy if we have kids one day... or maybe even if we don't have kids! I have to give a shout out to Studio Wonjun. She's from Thailand, living in NYC and has one bag that's been on the front page about a zillion times -- but also has a bunch of other crocheted items that are really cute:

Spotlight On ...

Maia of Astrida Naturals and Media Move!

1. Tell us a little bit about who you are and your life up to this point in time.
My name is Maia of Astrida Naturals and Media Move. I'm 24, and currently live in the suburbs just outside of Chicago. I went to undergrad for New Media Design but before I finished, I knew I wanted to work for myself. After I earned my BFA, I went back to school and earned an MBA so that I could start my own business. During this time I was also working with my father, selling African American books online. Now we have a store, and I am fully pursuing my dreams of self employment by selling shea butter products and providing graphic, web, and flash design services.

2. Besides your fantasy creative life, what else are doing currently?
I own a bookstore! In November, 2007 I opened a bookstore with my father, we actually earned out MBAs at the same time and used our store, Azizi Books, as our final business plan project. I'm here at Azizi Books all the time, even as I write this. We also continue to sell books online at http://www.blackbooksdirect.com/.

3. What do you offer in your Etsy Shop?
At AstridaNaturals.etsy.com, I sell unrefined shea butter products and African black soap. MediaMove.etsy.com is my new shop. I currently offer premade banners and custom banner designs, but I would ultimately like to offer dynamic advertising and marketing solutions, such as video and interactive flash movies and banners and websites, for other merchants.

4. Where do you create?
I've completely taken over the kitchen for my shea butter creations!

5. Where do you get your inspiration from?
I draw inspiration from my family when creating new products. My shea butter business originally started because I wanted to create natural skin care solutions for myself and my family. They pretty much tell me what I need to create next.

6. How did you learn how to do your craft?
I did a lot of research before I started the shea butter business. Owning a bookstore gives me lots of access to great books, so I read as much as I could about skin care and all the ingredients that I could to use to create a line. I also did a lot of experimenting on my family and friends before I started selling.

7. How do you promote your wares?
I have a blog, astridanaturals.blogspot.com where I talk about my products and share my knowledge about skin care. I also promote a lot on Etsy. You can find me on the forums almost daily. Even if I only have time for one post, I think that it has helped. I don't really promote my design services too much. Word of mouth usually gives me enough design work and new media jobs to keep busy.

8. What has been the most important lesson you've learned since you started selling your own creations?
I've learned not to get too distracted by what other sellers are doing in my category. I used to compare, and it was driving me nuts, so I don't anymore. I've also learned that great communications leads to happy customers.

9. Is there any advice you can give others who are just starting out?
Do your research! Try not to get distracted but what others are doing in your category. Stay true to your goals and remember why you started selling in the first place. If getting hundreds of sales is your goal then you have got to promote like a street fighter. Also take great pictures.

10. Do you have any favorite Etsy artists you'd like to promote here?
Why, yes, I do have some favorites! I love, the Adinkra pendents from CreativeArtandSoul.etsy.com, the journals from Kreativlink.etsy.com, needle tatting from TotusMel.etsy.com, and soaps from dennisanderson.etsy.com.