Etsy Interview with Ugly Artwork

I'm Amelia in real life and I'm uglyartwork when I'm online. I love kitty cats, sunshine, the great outdoors, and all kinds of great stuff like that. I refuse to consider that I'm getting older, so I've never settled down. I like trying new things, and doing what I want to do, when I want to do it.

When and how did you originally find Etsy?

My best friend told me about Etsy back in 2008, and my original idea for uglyartwork.etsy.com was that I could sell some work from my life as a painter. That plan fizzled out very quickly, as I'm not actually a very good painter. After a while I forgot all about uglyartwork.etsy.com. I came back when I ended up with a box full of beads.

How and when did you start making jewelry and your other items?

I started making bracelets because of my love of photography. I bought myself a new camera but couldn't afford the case I wanted, so I started making my own. It needed a giant button but I couldn't find a giant button. I decided to try polymer clay, which I'd never used but only seen in the store. I started making button after button and then tons of beads. I figured I'd try working with hemp just because I had all these beads. It occurred to me that I could use uglyartwork.etsy.com, maybe take it seriously and put some work in to it.

What is unique about Etsy and what about the website do you like the most in regards to your shop?

What's unique about Etsy, at least from my perspective of the internet, is that it's very, very, neat and tidy. I find it very easy to use too, very uncomplicated. In a world of .gifs, glitter, and wave files, etsy is like a perfectly blended Tim Horton's Iced Capp on a hot day. (or any day, actually). I just like it. One of my goals with uglyartwork.etsy.com is to get it to look very neat. It's a work in progress. Etsy has created a great backdrop for that. I appreciate the uniformity, I guess.

What inspires you the most in regards to your creations?

I mostly get inspiration from my supplies. Putting the right components together isn't always easy, but the ones I struggle with usually turn out to be the ones I like the most. I like contrast, I like the brightness that contrast creates. Things that appeal to me usually provide pleasing visual or textural contrasts. This challenges me both in the creation of my pieces, and in the set up of uglyartwork.etsy.com.

What is your favorite piece you've created and why?

This is gonna sound crazy, but I try to not think of the perfect little baubles in my shop as anything other than product. Besides, I love every handmade piece in the shop. if I personally don't love it, it's not good enough to sell at uglyartwork.etsy.com! No, really, I have to say in all seriousness that my new key fobs have got to be my favourites, for now.

What do you want to accomplish with your online shop?

Right now a lot of my focus is on the shop itself, and I kind of think of it as a craft that I'm always working on, so I really just want it to be awesome and I want to occasionally buy myself a present with "my Etsy money"

Do you have any new creations in the works? If so, what can shoppers expect to see from you soon?

I'm actually, physically working on new pendants and clips.

I've always got a ton of ideas in my head, in a notebook, and on my iPod, so who knows. Anything could come out of my brain and end up in my Etsy shop.