Talk of Inspiration, Traveling and Entrepreneurial Woes on the Paper Pastries Blog

The lovely Margaret Haas of Paper Pastries interviewed me for her blog, the first of many Artist Interviews. Have a read!

My Bazaar Bizarre Interview!

Craft adventures with Le Petit Elefant

Do you ever need to recharge yourself to inspire you, and how do you go about it?

I think most people turn to retail therapy in times of high stress. I do the same but it’s a little more ridiculous and impulsive—I buy plane tickets. I’m a nomadic addict who can’t stay in one place for more than six weeks, and it’s taken me from San Francisco to Los Angeles, across the country to New York City, and over the Pacific Ocean to Southeast Asia where I lived for 7 months. These trips aren’t solely vacations however; I’m working too. As I meet people & travel, I collect materials for my plush, sketch the surrounding scenes, and write down my adventures to use for later projects. Then, when I come home, wherever that ends up being, I work furiously until I run out of steam and have to leave home again. It’s a wonderful cycle and how I work best.

What inspired you to go into the craft business & do you still have a day job?

Hands down the best thing that’s ever happened to me was getting laid off from New Line Cinema, my first and only 9-5 job. The combination of unemployment checks, severance & money saved from the past two years provided me with a comfortable, financial cushion to launch my business. It was a very slow process, and I honestly didn’t envision it becoming a business until much later. All I knew is that I wanted to draw & sew.

Currently, I have no day job. I’ve been living solely on my creative income. I’ve never worked as hard in my life & for that reason I don’t think I can work for anyone else. I see where I can go as an artist and compromising my time and energy doesn’t seem worth it, even if that means living without a steady income and risking going broke.

reaaaad the rest of it here!