Artisan Of The Month
January 2013
Featured Artisan: Sabrina of Spotted Cat Creations
Playing around with play-dough that was given to her as a gag gift one year gave Sabrina of Spotted Cat Creations the inspiration to start her own business as a clay modeller. Working with polymer clay now, she can create custom works ranging from her personlized ornaments to desktop figurines and 3-D shadow box displays. You can find more examples of her clay creations on her website at http://www.spottedcatcreations.com/ as well as her Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/SpottedCatCreations.
MCA: What prompted you to start making your wrapped ornaments that you offer? How did you first get started?
SCC: I wanted to make round ornaments, and after figuring out that trying to roll a solid ball of clay was not going to work out too well, I settled on covering a glass ornament with clay. I first tried to wrap the ornaments with one flat, solid color but because clay leaves natural dents and picks up finger prints, it never looked right to me (I'm very critical of my work!). I'd looked for inspiration in store bought ornaments, which were covered with baubles, swirls and glitter, and decided to try a "wrapped" looked. It worked out - they are our most popular products!MCA: What is the inspiration for your designs...do you do custom work if requested?
SCC: My husband is a very important part to my work. Though I am the one to produce the end results, we often sit down together and throw ideas around for new products. He's been the one behind many of the scenes we've done, among other things. We do a lot of custom work - we haven't turned away an idea yet!
MCA: How long have you been doing it...at what point did you feel you can turn it into a business?
SCC: I started clay modeling 2 years ago. I had received play doh in my stocking for Christmas from my husband's side of the family, as a joke. When we got home, I opened the play doh and jokingly told my husband that I was "good" with it and whipped up a little crab. He loved it and thought I should try and use modeling clay. We started with basic white clay, which lead to picking up some different colors and books on techniques. In one of the books there was a project for a bunny. I did it and brought it to show my co-workers who raved about it and suggested that I try to sell the products. My husband and I decided to do some research and in May 2011, Spotted Cat Creations was born!
MCA: When not running your business, how do you like to spend your time?
SCC: Right now, we're selling our home, so I spend a lot of time cleaning! I am also fond of trying out new arts, so I'm in the middle of finishing up a crochet "Super Mario Bros." blanket and learning how to sew.
MCA: What do you hope to foresee for your business in the future?
SCC: Holiday ornaments have been the most popular items for Spotted Cat Creations. In the future, I'd love to be able to make bulk orders of ornaments, so I'm trying to find a way to pitch the ornaments to business who would like to make them employee or client gifts. I am also hoping to have my "Awareness Butterflies" get more attention in an effort to donate to various causes and charities.
MCA: How did you come up with your business name? Is there a story or meaning behind it?
SCC: Like a lot of the things mentioned here, my husband came up with the name. We toyed with names like "Polymer Patch", "Clay Creations" and things like that, but nothing seemed so great. We have a very loved "spotted cat" named Moo, and I'd made a little clay figure of him, so my husband suggested "Spotted Cat Creations". Seemed perfect!
MCA: What has been the response from the public towards your products? Have you sold your products at craft/fair shows before, online, other
venues?
SCC: We attend a lot of craft shows during the holiday season. Customers are very fond of the ornaments we sell, so we've expanded a lot of what it offered in terms of the ornaments. We also have our own website, a Facebook page (which we receive most of our feedback from), in addition to other social media tools, including My City Artisans!
MCA: Is there an item you make that seems to be a fan favourite...if so, why?
SCC: Our ornaments, for sure - especially the baby ornaments! Our ornaments seem to be the most popular because we can customize them so easily. We are often asked to add names and/or the year to the ornaments. They are one of a kind and a great addition to any tree.
MCA: Are there other crafts you are looking into creating?
SCC: I am trying to learn some different crafts, but I am not sure that they will be for any business purposes. I can always be found wandering the craft aisles and stores looking for something new to try. Once the Holiday Season is over, I'll be trying my skills at sewing.
MCA: Funny stories or mishaps when coming up or creating your crafts?
SCC: I will admit that I never scale my figures right the first time. We have started creating custom shadow boxes, and this requires the figurines inside to be very small - only, I happen to forget this every time! My husband is the one to mount the figures or assemble the boxes, and he's always complaining that everything is too large to fit inside the shadow box. In the end, we always seem to have two of everything!
MCA: Anything else you'd like to share about your business....? Words of wisdom or advice, etc?
SCC: We cannot begin to express the appreciation we have for everyone who believed Spotted Cat Creations could become a real thing! Family, friends, and customers have given us so much support and it means the world. Also, and I say this to everyone, please support local artisans! And remember - handmade gifts are the best!
December 2012
Claire Of Homespun Dazzle
In trying to find an alternative to regular paraffin wax candles, Claire's research led her to soy candles. Once she started making them for her own personal use, she knew she could expand. She doesn't limit herself to just candles. An avid crafter, she also enjoys soap making and sewing. So look for other creations by Claire.
Our Interview
MCA: What prompted you to start making your candle products that you offer? How did you first get started?
HD: I love candles and started doing some research about different alternatives since I was starting to realize that paraffin candles have a lot of negative qualities. Which lead me to find out about soy candles and I thought, hey I can make those and I took it from there. Since I have a two year old son, I didn’t want him breathing in harsh chemicals in the house but still wanted candles so it was the obvious choice.
MCA: What is the inspiration for your scents, packaging, etc?...do you do custom work if requested?
HD: I like to have a combination of different scents since they are so subjective. I want to have a little something for everyone. As for my packaging it is ever changing always taking feedback and trying to mix things up. I do do custom work…actually I have just finished doing custom candles for two different stores.
MCA: How long have you been doing it...at what point did you feel you can turn it into a business?HD: I started my business in December 2011 and officially launched it January 2012. Almost right away I had a lot of interest from family and friends and I just took it from there.
MCA: When not running your business, how do you like to spend your time?
HD: I am also a fulltime Child and Youth worker in an alternative classroom. But as much as I can I spend time with my son and my boyfriend, they both inspire me so much to take it to the next level and be the best I can be.
MCA: What do you hope to foresee for your business in the future?
HD: At this point I just want to provide awesome products that people love, and eventually I hope to continue to grow and be in more stores
MCA: How did you come up with your business name? Is there a story or meaning behind it?HD: I first started with only soy candles but I’m a really crafty creative kind of person so I wanted to have a name that I would be able to sell other products besides the candles. I also wanted to showcase the fact that my products are handmade so after a few days of thought I came up with HomeSpun Dazzle.
MCA: What has been the response from the public towards your products? (i.e. have you sold your products at craft/fair shows before, online, other venues or is this your first foray into selling your products)
HD: I have done 6 shows this year and everyone I seem to do better than the last. A lot of it comes to experience how I set up my table, which products I choose to bring, how much, signage etc. And I have repeat customers which is amazing people have tried it and are coming back for more!
MCA: Is there an item you make that seems to be a fan favourite...if so, why?
HD: As far as candles go my top sellers all year have been Margarita and Coffee Cake & Spice. Going into the holiday season we will see what the new favourites will be. I have also started selling infinity scarves and they are a HUGE hit. I can’t keep them in my house and I haven’t even done an official launch yet.
MCA: Are there other products/crafts you are looking into creating?
HD: At the moment I make candles, soap, bath salts, lipbalm and scarves and I think that’s all I can handle and still provide a quality product. But who knows what the future holds.
MCA: Funny stories or mishaps when coming up or creating your products?
HD: Let’s just say I try as much as possible to not make orders just before I go to bed, my energy is too low to concentrate.
MCA: Anything else you'd like to share about you or your business....? (words of wisdom or advice you'd like to share, etc.)
HD: My advice would be especially if you have a family to make a schedule for your business and stick to it. You don’t want to burn out in any areas of your life. And also remember anything is possible! I remember my first show thinking maybe I can’t do this but now only 8 months later I’m in two stores and have the most amazing customers. Stick to it!
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