Friday Finds... OurHomeToYoursInterview # 43
For me as a mother one of the greatest things I like to do with my free time away from the mini me's is to make things with my hands. Once upon a time I would have had more of a mundane TV related existance to while away the hours, up until the discovery of my passion to knit and crochet and photography. OurHomeToYours for me defines the drive behind the passion of a mother to create! Although in this case it's 3 mothers :) I don't know, there's something I know in me that just switched on once I was about halfway through the pregnancy of my eldest, and the urge to click a shutter, needles and yarn hasn't stopped since! But along with that came all those other things you'd typically associate with a stay at home mom. Baking, art, glueing, role playing, music, gardening... It just seems a natural thing to do, and something I admire in all moms that take the leap and create for a living to share their passion with other people. OurHomeToYours is a strong team of moms using their talents together to make great fashion items accessories and offer vintage home decor goods.
(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.) Our Home To Yours is a shop with 3 members. I'm Debbi (the mom), Amanda is my daughter, and Alison is our mutual friend. Right now Amanda lives in Kansas, but will be moving back to NC at the end of this month. So all 3 of us will be in the same little area of NC. We are all stay at home mom's at this point of our lives. I'm homeschooling my 9 year old daughter, Amanda has a toddler that she chases around the house, and Alison has 2 beautiful boys, both pre-school age.
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What is your business about then? Fun. And expressing ourselves with our art and crafts. What we do is more than a hobby, it's our stress relief and relaxation.
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How did Etsy come into your life? Amanda and I were talking about how to supplement our income, while still being home and available for our kids. I don't remember who discovered Etsy first, but we discussed it for a while before giving it a try.
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Are you working a day job too? HAHAHA We are homemakers with children. We're too busy for a day job.
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How long has the artist in you been 'unleashed' for? For Amanda and I, all our lives. My mother was an artist, and I spent a lot of time at art shows while growing up. So I've always loved the smell of paints and pastels. Amanda has inherited her Nana's talent for fine art, and is finishing her Masters Degree in Graphic Design. Alison has just recently discovered the joy of sewing, and as you can tell by her pouches, she is very good at it.
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What has been the inspiration behind your business? Everything, and anything! We do and create what makes us happy, and then hope others like what we do.
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If you could describe your products in three words, what would you tell me? Everything, anything, ecclectic.
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What would an average working day for you be like from dawn til dusk? Well, with being stay at home mothers, our days are anything but average. I know that I personally don't get to spend as much time as I like in my studio, but once I'm in there, I'm there for the day!
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What's your favourite material and techniques to work with? Amanda and I both like to crochet. I love to pick up vintage items, and I've rediscovered the joy of working with pastel and paint. And Alison's wonderful husband just gave her a brand new sewing machine.
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What is your ideal vision for the future for you and your work? We'd love for our shop to grow, but our joy is in the act of creating something beautiful. I hope we never lose that, no matter how much our business grows.
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Away from work, what do you like to do for fun or to wind down? My husband and I like to ride our motorcycle and travel. Amanda and her husband enjoy spending time with friends. And Alison and her husband (who's a fantastic photographer) love nature and spending time outside.
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What are you likely to search for on Etsy? Childrens items.
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Any last words?Be sure to check our shop often, since we rarely (if ever) make the same thing twice. You can follow us on facebook and twitter, and we have a blog where I sometimes tell family secrets, lol. I also have a sister shop on Etsy, VintageVinyls, where I sell classic record albums of all different venues.
http://www.ourhometoyours.etsy.comhttp://www.ourhometoyourscrafts.blogspot.comhttp://www.twitter.com/ourhometoyourshttp://www.facebook.com/ourhometoyourshttp://www.vintagevinyls.etsy.comThanks again,
Debbi
