Saturday Artisan: the Thrifty Gift

Meet our Saturday Artisan: Amy of the Thrifty Gift. Amy is a busy mom with a lot of beautiful artworks to offer in her shop, from polymer clay to cards. 

Tell us a bit about yourself and what you create? 

I am a Wife and Mother first and a part time worker in the healthcare industry in the evenings. I decided to open up a shop because I am interested in creating just about anything and everything I can get my hands on. I started with jewelry, I love to make things for children's rooms and have done so for my children and many friends and family members. I am currently working in polymer clay but I love change and learning anything new so you can always expect something different to show up in my shop! 

How does your day go in general? 

Wearing the many hats that I do, the day is never a total plan however, I check all of my acct's and shop in the morning while the kids are doing breakfast. I try to work on some projects throughout the day and the kids love to play with beads, paint, clay or anything I am working on so they work right along side me! I also love to get outside to photograph and they usually play in the yard while I am working on that part of it. I do most of my listing in the evening once my husband is home from work or once the kids have gone to bed. I check my shop and accounts a few times during the day just to keep up. It is no a planned schedule but it works for right now.

Favorite Etsy seller? 

I adore so many things it is hard to choose one. I LOVE the wire work in FaeriKat's shop and really admire what she can do with wire. I know her fingers have got to be sore!! I also love oneofakindbabydesign her work is for the kids and her business is not only for her creative needs but to support her family and I find it inspiring how influenced by her own children she is and you can see it in her work. Magpietree has lovely vintage inspired items and her quality and craftsmanship are absolutely inspiring to me. I have lots of faves in the polymer clay department but noneoftheabove and societysedso are amazing clay artists and they are my 2 favorites.

What inspires you? 

I LOVE nature and I LOVE color. I like taking risks with color combinations and textures. I like to work pretty fast and I love to take suggestions from my children because everything is just fun to them. I look at other's work and I play with new products all the time. I can spend hours in a craft store looking at already made things as well as browsing fabrics, yarns and beads and findings. 

What do you do to save money? 

I do anything and everything to save money in ever area of our lives. As far as my product goes I pride myself in being "thrifty" and want to bring quality one of a kind pieces to folks looking for special gifts. To keep with that I never buy anything that isn't on sale in craft shops first off. That means waiting and watching ads and such but it works. I also ALWAYS use the 40% of coupon that comes with the craft store ad, even on something that isn't that expensive. I shop on Etsy for supplies and also shop sales on quality products. When there is a good sale, I load up and thus far I have grown my shop organically. It is paying for itself and I only use monies I make by sales in my shop.

What is your goal for 2011? And are you on the right track? 

Goals: I love setting and reaching goals. I love checking off lists and this year my goal is to get involved in more craft shows and meet more people like myself. I also have a goal to keep up with my blog because creating, for me, is all aspects and I love to write as well. I would say I am on track with the blog and my writing. I am a little behind with the craft shows. I have one upcoming in November- Birds of a Feather Fair in Northern Kentucky, otherwise nothing planned. This will be just my second show. I am still working on finding a niche but don't know if that is really necessary for me or not so I am networking, meeting people, making contacts and loving every bit of it!! Find out more about Amy and her shop here. 

Stay-tuned for tomorrow's giveaway!