Friday Finds... BlushingDoveBoutiqueInterview # 35
BlushingDoveBoutique on Etsy by Amy Sarah Lilley is a pastel shade haven of cute candy colored jewelry. Almost everything she creates is wonderfully girly and almost takes you back to your childhood, particularly the sight of those gorgeous love heart pieces! I remember the days of eating and savouring loveheart sweets and can still remember the taste of them quite vividly!
Amy also creates interesting headbands made from a variety of different beads and lace which apart from being up my street bohemian, are also extremely feminine and unique. She has kindly taken part in this weeks interview and it's been lovely to learn about her growing passion for her new craft and life outside of Etsy. Enjoy the interview!
(Just click the images to go direct to the listings)
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Tell me a bit about you! (Name, Age, Location, and give us a random fact whilst you're at it.) My full name is Amy Sarah Lilley, I am twenty-two years old, and live in Newark-on-Trent with my hubby of almost a year and our naughty puppy. A random fact about me is that I prefer to eat with long-pronged forks and really small spoons. Food just tastes better that way!
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What is your business about then? My aim is to create cute, quirky and fun jewellery and accessories that are still ultra feminine and a bit classy too. I want the women who wear my designs to feel confident and creative, and to realise how beautiful they are!
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How did Etsy come into your life? After finishing a degree in English, getting married and moving to a new place last August, I felt a bit down in the dumps because of all the massive changes. Despite my joy at being fortunate enough to find and marry the man I love at a younger age than most, I still had to get used to all of the adjustments, and I found this really tough at first. I'd never had much time for a hobby when I was studying, so started experimenting with various things. I started out by making and selling headbands on eBay. A lady I met on eBay told me about Etsy a few months later, and here I am!
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Are you working a day job too? Not at the moment, I've taken a year off after getting married. I have just registered as a personal English tutor though, so am hoping to start working soon.
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How long has the artist in you been 'unleashed' for? That's an interesting question, I've never thought of myself as an artist before! But I guess I've always been 'arty' in one way or another. When I was at university I expressed this in the way I dressed. I used to have really short, sometimes platinum blonde or pink hair (I'm a natural brunette), and odd earrings, all that sort of crazy stuff: people often mistook me for an art student. Since graduating, I no longer have the desire to dress in such a flamboyant way, so I guess I have found another way to vent my creativity via my Etsy shop.
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What has been the inspiration behind your business? My love of cute and girlie style has really motivated me to set up my little shop, also my love of creating. My main inspiration was the thought that this was something I could really put 'myself' into. I feel that what I do is very personal, and my Etsy shop reflects 'me'. I have a pink dove tattooed on my right foot. I got this a few years ago whilst in my 'arty' phase, and have lived to regret it since. When I was trying go think of a name for my shop, I decided to incorporate my own pink dove into my shop's title, it is now a part if me and a direct result of that 'arty' side I've talked about. And so 'Blushing Dove' was born.
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If you could describe your products in three words, what would you tell me? Fun
Feminine
Delicate
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What would an average working day for you be like from dawn til dusk? I must confess there is little structure as I am not yet in a proper 'working routine'. It is normally like this:
Get up, check Etsy and eBay orders (yes, I sell on eBay too!), clean the kitchen, make orders, promote on my iphone over a late breakfast, work on new designs, clean something, walk the dog, occassionally I fit in an exercise DVD, cook for my husband for when he gets home at four, rush to the post office. As I have applied to be a personal tutor, I spend part of the day studying for this, as I love English and want to do the best job that I can. My husband and I then usually spend some of the evening together.
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What's your favourite material and techniques to work with? I love the Japanese craft of sweet deco, and love making cute food items out of clay. I also love using pearls! As I mentioned, I am learning to crochet too, so this may well become a favourite technique of mine!
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What is your ideal vision for the future for you and your work? If I'm being really ambitious, I would like to get some of my designs featured in magazines, and maybe to stock some boutiques. I am secretly hoping that I will do well enough to enable me to grow this from a hobby into a small business (so that I can do just this and personal tuition to support my husband, and will not have to look for a day job!). As long as women buy and love my items, I consider myself successful. This is what I love, and I consider anything else a bonus.
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Away from work, what do you like to do for fun or to wind down? I love to read, swim, learn to play guitar, cook and watch movies with my husband. I'm also learning to crochet at the moment.
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What are you likely to search for on Etsy? I love all of the supplies on Etsy! I also love many of the dresses, and hats by Janine Basil. I hope my shop does well enough for me to be able to afford one.
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Any last words? I hope I have not bored you with my essay-like answers! Come and visit my shop and know that I have put a lot of myself into getting it to take off. I hope you will find something that you love at 'Blushing Dove'.
