Some interviews you listen to rather than read!

Also this week on Threadbanger the gang re-released my how to make a resin bracelet video if you are looking for some crafty entertainment to watch!

We are seeking artists to be interviewed on this blog.

If you would like to find out more about being interviews then please contact the editor at artistlife@craftgossip.com

WHERE ARE YOU: Weymouth, Massachusetts (about 20 miles south of Boston)

COMPANY NAME: the Sampler

WEBSITE: http://www.homeofthesampler.com

BLOG: same!

CRAFT TOOL YOU CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT: my rotary cutter….I use it every single day.

FINISH THE SENTENCE: When I am not mailing out oodles of fun packages I am sewing up a storm and working on the Boston Bazaar Bizarre (I’m one of the organizers)

1)For those that have never heard of The Sampler explain what it is you guys do over there.

The Sampler is a fun marketing & promotional tool for indie businesses. Each month, independent crafters, artists, shops, zines and record labels who run web-based businesses send samples and promotional materials to a contribution pool. All the samples are photographed, posted to the site and then are portioned out, put in little packages and sent off to Sampler subscribers all over the world. Samplers are also sent to over 40 different media outlets to help get press for our contributors.

2) How long have you been working at The Sampler? How has it
been being the new head honcho?

I started working for the Sampler answering emails in January of 2007, and I became boss in January of 2008. Its been a lot of fun, but a lot of hard work being in charge. The monthly Samplers take up a lot more physical space than I was prepared for, so the office is pretty cramped! For now, I work alone and it isn’t so bad, but if I needed to add space for another worker it would be tough. I’ve got loads of amazing volunteers in Samplerland that help me keep the most important day to day things under control: blogging and emails.

3) Why do you think contributing to The Sampler is a wise marketing move for a small Indie business?

The goal of the Sampler is to get your products into the hands of prospective shoppers. If you’ve participated in a craft fair, you know the importance of having people see your items in person…touch them, examine the quality up close. It isn’t always easy selling things over the internet because people can’t have that experience. With the Sampler, a shopper gets a whole box of items where they can see up close exactly how well made your item is. They can also get exposed to a whole group of crafters that they may not have otherwise know about. With all the amazing craft sites out there, its difficult to find that thing that sets you apart from the competition. By contributing to the Sampler, you’ve made more of an impact because the customer already has a sample of your work in their hands.

4) What is the best piece of press a Sampler contributor has
ever received due to one of your mailings?

hmmm…I don’t think any single piece of press was better than another. In each case, it is usually a pretty big deal for the crafter. Our contributors get featured regularly in Venus, Craft, Bust and can often be found in Real Simple, Readymade, and even Better Homes and Gardens. We’ve heard from lots of our participants to be on the watch for these magazines’ holiday gift guides for many more features! My favorite bit of press was from when we participated in a gift lounge for the 2006 MTV Movie Awards. Anne Heche was photographed wearing a sleep mask by Hambone & Jennicakes, which ended up in OK! Magazine

5) Tell me about The Sampler Coloring Book, I just discovered
it and I am totally smitten!

Back when the Sampler started, we needed content to get people interested in coming back to the site. We had lots of fun stuff: games, coloring pages, and interviews. As the Sampler has grown & changed, some of these things have had to take a back seat to the mailings…but they will be back next year!

WHERE ARE YOUR DIGS: Nashville Tennessee is where i live

COMPANY NAME: Tramp Lamps

WEBSITE: tramplamps.com

BLOG: http://krockbizz.blogspot.com, but ihaven’twritten anything on it yet

TOOL YOU CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT:–for my lamp biz? i suppose i would have to say Hot Glue Gun , but it seems like every crafter would say that item. – so my backup answer would have to be that there internet- as it has been the sole means of getting my lamps out to the planet.

FINISH THE SENTENCE:
When I am not working at turning lingerie into lamps I am…i’ll be honest here and say i am probably being ultra-nerdy and engaging in high-levelonlinemedieval-fantasythemegaming with 20 million of my closest friends. Obviously since the baby’s arrival i have had to take maternity leave from that lifestyle- but i am looking forward to a night not too far from now where i can melt faces by casting spells and chatting with my fellow nerds about Uber DPS. (damage per second)

I read on your bio that you decided to experiment with making lamps as an escape from your job at the shoe factory. What made you decide to include womens lingerie in your experiment? Please dont tell me it was something like your huge collection of Agent Provocateur as I sit and type this question wearing the same hot pink flannel pants and beat up Smiths T-shirt I slept in.

I love alternative light sources – as i see it. Nearly every light source in my home would be classified as non traditional: twinkle lights, a plastic nativity scene cow, so forth. Anyhow, this drive to make lamps steered me towards lingerie rather naturally. I had a strapless bra i had to wear for a bridesmaid get-up. it had a life of its own as it was so hard and stiff with padding and foam support. I made a prototype out of it – and it was too good to pass up as a fleeting idea. This was 5 years ago.

Before you opted for lingerie, did you experiment with making lamps out of anything else? What is the wackiest thing you ever made into a lamp? My mom has a lamp out of an armadillo shell and turned the saxophone I played in middle school band into a lamp, so I have seen some crazy lighting in my time.

I have always made lamps / lighting of some strange sort since i was in college sculpture classes as part of my art Minor. I have made lamps out of old jelly jars, bundt cake pans, shadow box frames and most recently: thrift store repurposed OWL-kitch .

How does a lamp maker from Tennessee manage to go on the Game Show Network, HGTV, Graham Norton Show and do the stage lighting for an Imogene Heap tour? That is such amazing exposure!

I have been incredibly lucky, but i am also not afraid to contact people i admire or send blind emails out to get more exposure and press. I think i am in a great position to be able to start each email to a production co. or famous person with “hi im kelly and i make lamps out of undies.” I am not bashful or shy and there was never any reason for me to put those hang ups on my business. I will never hesitate to contact someone i am a fan of or an outlet that i believe my creations could benefit. The worst thing that can happen is that they could say , “no thanks” or not answer the email at all.. and this certainly does occur from time to time.. and it isn’t anything to hang your hat up over.. not everyone will feel the same way about what i create. i would be creeped out if everyone in the world was nuts for tramp lamps- we need diversity.

From swim suits to slips, you make your lamps out of all kinds of delicate ladies garments. How does one keep up with the demand and keep stocked up on unmentionables? Do you live at the flea market and thrift store?

i live right off the best thrift store drag in Nashville. There are great spots here to get supplies & garments. I even find an assortment of padded hangers at these stores. I have been in tight spots before where i have received a spot of press and the demand was so great for lamps that i ran out, it is stressful, but it doesn’thappen very often. I always try to keep at least 2 dozen lamps up in the online gallery at all times. If a large order comes in for 8 or more lamps, i will make a push to add a slew of new lamps up as fast as a i can.

I just so happen to have a vintage hot pink nighty that belonged to my mother in the 60s complete with fringe. Does tramp lamp do custom orders if I wanted to send along said nighty? Wow I never realized that was slightly creepy until I typed it out, but even if it was my moms it is really cute.

Yes i do custom lamps. and you have said the magical words! I prefer to make custom lamps with garments that You provide, rather than you describing to me what you are interested in and Me going out hunting for your concept.. that can be quite a task of hit or miss. When you give me the garment, then you get the exact piece you want! Its such a great way to make your vision come about. I can provide the trim and any details such as fathers or beads. Now, not All garments make good lamps. So i would need to see a photo of what you have in mind before i could say if it could be illuminated.

WHERE ARE YOUR DIGS: Austin, Texas

COMPANY NAME: Kailo Chic

WEBSITE: www.kailochic.com

TOOL YOU CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT: My sewing machine

FINISH THE SENTENCE: When I am not sewing my heart out I am… doing one of the many other tasks that go along with running your own business.

Kailo Chic offers wristlets, clutches, wallets, totes and more in a wide variety of fun and bold patterns. That is a lot of sewing! I myself can’t get past the ironing part of sewing so I stick with jewelry. What is your favorite and least favorite part of being a seamstress. Do you do all your own sewing?

Yes I still do all my own sewing believe it or not. That is why as it stands right now, pretty much everything to do with sewing is my least favorite part. I am currently headed for burnout-Ville. Luckily my husband has started to help me with the ironing part of sewing, so that is a plus! Hopefully soon I will be able to start farming out some of my sewing so that I am not stuck making everything myself. I have just had trouble letting go

Kailo Chic started with purses but has recently branched into jewelry, T-shirts, belts and more. Why the decision to expand the line? Are you customers loving all the new additions as much as I am?

My decision to expand my line always lies in me getting tired of making the same things over and over. I keep branching out as a way to give myself a new creative outlet. I still enjoy handbags, but after three years of making the same bags over and over, I need to find new things that I enjoy making.

You have a fantabulous new line of laptop bags. How did you get hooked up with Pacific Design?

Well, they actually found my stuff in a local shop, Parts and Labour (Ironically, it is also the first store that I ever sold my stuff in and where I got my start). They had just started to work with Chloe Dao and big retailers were showing a lot of interest in more fashionable mobile tech cases, so they decided to look for a local designer to partner with as well. They found me and the rest is history!

You had a release party for your lap top bags with Project Runway winner Chloe Dao here in Austin, whoa exciting. Staples and Office Max are carrying your line now. How has your experience been thus far working with another company on a bag like you have with Pacific Design? When you are used to being your own boss and making all your own executive decisions it can be a big change.

Well, the experience was quite a learning one. During the course of working with Pacific Design I learned how to draw up professional sketches of bags for factories to sample, how big box retailers view fashion (p.s. they are scared of too much color and bold prints and they definitely don’t like change that much), and how big companies selling to big box stores have to work at least a year in advance in order to get products into the stores. Luckily in my case with Pacific Design I did have final word on the product designs and which prints of mine we should move forward with. It really wasn’t a difficult transition and it was nice to be able to say to them, I think we should do such and such and they knew how to go about getting it done.

A woman after my own heart you are a lady that knows the importance of good marketing and editorial coverage. Kailo Chic has been featured in Daily Candy, New York Magazine, Bust and many more. What piece of press brought more visitors to your website and orders into your inbox than all the others? I have found that not all press coverage is created equal. I have had features in small Indie Magazines that sent orders through the roof and product in huge publications that felt like nothing more than a blip on my bank account.

The best piece of press I have received by far for online orders was a mention of a pair of my earrings in the Seventeen Magazine Holiday Gift Guide last year. The response was amazing I think from that one mention alone I got 300-400 orders! The best mention I received for gaining new wholesale accounts was in a trade magazine (Beauty Launchpad) for beauty shop and salon owners which brought me close to 10 new wholesale accounts and the largest wholesale order I have received so far. Since I currently do all my own PR, here is hoping that I have time to keep up with it and hopefully get some more good mentions this holiday season!

WHERE ARE YOU: Dallas, TX

COMPANY NAME: One Good Bumblebee

WEBSITE: onegoodbumblebee.com

BLOG: onegoodbumblebee.com/blog

CRAFT TOOL YOU CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT: So many things! But I’d say my most precious tool is my Rotatrim paper trimmer.

FINISH THE SENTENCE: When I am not running One Good Bumblebee I am making art for the fun of it.

I saw from your adorable childhood pictures that you have a life long love of all things crafty. When and why did you decide to take this passion to the next level and start selling your goodies?

Although art has always been in my blood, I never really aspired to have a career in art. I always wanted to be a teacher. But while working towards my degree in education, I realized that teaching really wasn’t for me. So then I fell in love with creative writing and poetry and somewhere between sending off applications to writing schools and receiving the acceptances, I switched gears yet again and returned to visual art, which I’m pretty sure is what I’ve really loved all along. I feel at home when I’m making things with my hands. I just knew I couldn’t do anything else with my life. Selling the things I design and create just came naturally to me. My father is a professional photographer so I knew it was possible to make a living selling art.

You have so many fun things on One Good Bumblebee, but the art department is where we can find Ms. Katey Nicosia. What is your medium of choice?

I am very drawn to the idea of cutting up unrelated pieces of paper or images and gluing them together to make something new. I am a collage artist at heart. I literally have urges to cut and glue. I’m a paper addict. And the older the paper or the more history a piece of paper has, the more I love it. I like to work with things that have a mystery about them, like most old papers and ephemera do.

I see that you are an avid blogger. Does the One Good Bumblebee blog have a certain theme or is just whatever floats your boat that day from ice skaters of the 70’s to artists obsessed with detail in their work? What came first your e-commerce website or the blog?

Sometimes I wish I had a very specific blog on one tiny topic but it’s almost impossible for me to do that. I love so many different things and I have so many interests, so my blog can be a bit random, but in the end it’s really just a perfect representation of me and the things I love. I try not to censor myself or be “professional” but to just be me and say whatever I feel like saying. I’m a believer in going with your gut and being as true to yourself as you can, and I think that’s why my blog is so full of different types of posts and ideas. It grows and changes as I grow and change. My blog came before One Good Bumblebee. The One Good Bumblebee blog is not a business blog. I try to remember that it came first and it’s about me, not necessarily about the store One Good Bumblebee. It’s a way of showing the real person behind the business.

According to your website these are you top sellers:

Pile of Paper

Mini Piles of Paper

Kill Time Workbook

Dog Pencil Sharpener

Jar of Whimsies

Could you pretty please tell us a couple of sentences about each and perhaps your theory on why they are your best sellers.

Pile of Paper: I love paper and I’m so excited to know that other people like it as much as I do. The piles of paper are literally piles of old papers and ephemera that I assemble together in special little ways. I try to make each pile look like a piece of art, or to at least be visually overwhelming, and in turn inspire someone to make something from the papers and pieces inside. These are probably a best seller because It’s pretty obvious I love making them. I think my passion shows through and people appreciate that.

Mini Pile of Paper: These are smaller versions of the original Piles of Paper. They are just as fun but more affordable and quick. I like the idea of a customer being able to buy themselves a little something that makes them happy just for the fun of it. The Mini Pile of Paper, I think, serves that purpose. They’re a surprise because you never know what you’re gonna get, and there’s so much fun in that, I think.

Kill Time Workbook: I also sell other people’s products and it’s always a gamble! You never know what people will like, what will sell well, what won’t, but I love the Kill Time Workbook. It’s for people who like to draw and mindlessly doodle. A lot of my customers are creative and this fits them perfectly.

Dog Pencil Sharpener: I think these are a best seller because they’re adorable, functional, and affordable. It goes back to the idea of getting something small and fun in the mail even if you don’t have lots of money to spend. And who doesn’t need a pencil sharpener?

Jar of Whimsies: These are jars filled with vintage whatnots. Each one is different. I like the idea of selling a surprise and thats exactly what these are. You don’t know what you’re gonna get but you know its gonna be good. That’s thrilling and fun!

What is the crafty scene like in Big D? I am from North Texas (McKinney) and between One Good Bumblebee, The Dallas Craft Mafia and The Make Studio it seems like things have really gotten crafty since I left.

I wish I knew! I’m so busy working that I hardly ever have time to get out of the house and find out what’s going on. I’m working on that.

WHERE ARE YOUR DIGS: San Diego, CA. Actually in the Normal Heights neighborhood. Seriously. I didn’t make that up.

WEBSITE: www.soapylove.com

BLOG: www.soapylove.blogspot.com

TOOL YOU CAN NOT LIVE WITHOUT: My 9″ square silicone brownie pan – I love love love it!

FINISH THE SENTENCE: When I am not making the most adorable soap in the world I am… running myself ragged as a mom of 2 kids and doing my darndest to grow my business, too.

Silhouettes, polka dots, ice cream cones – you have all the shapes and flavors of soaps covered. What is the best seller for Soapy Love?

My best seller is my Neapolitan Soapsicle. It’s a classic!

On the flip of that what is your favorite soap to make? I know for me it is not always one in the same.

That is a really tough question. My favorite soap to make is the next soap design on my list. I am the most excited by doing new things – once I make a soap design I like to learn from it and move on. That’s why I have so many soaps in my flickr account! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/soapylove/)

I adore the Soapsicles we made on Craft Lab, I need to snag some for my guest bathroom especially now that they have matching ice cream truck soap dishes. When, where and how can I get my hands on one of these!

Yes! I’m so excited about these little trucks! The fleet will be arriving in early July and should be available on my site then, too. They fit all of my soapsicles and most any other soap bar, too. They’re a must for any ice cream fan!

Soapylove has been primarily an Etsy store until lately. You now have a shopping cart on your website. Why the choice to have both?

I am actually phasing out my Etsy shop for so many reasons. The main ones are 1) I felt like I was missing a lot of business by not having an easy way for people to buy my soaps when they went to my site. Making them find the link to my Etsy shop, registering, and needing a Paypal account was not very shopper-friendly. 2) It takes a lot of energy to keep an Etsy shop active, and all the relisting really adds up! So now I have a cart and I am so glad! I really needed to simplify my business as much as I could with so much to do at home.

Not only do you make soap, blog about soap and write soap books you also teach soap making. Tell me about your cameo & UFO soap making classes at the Soap Making Intensive in Washington. That sounds so super fun! What are the classes like?

The Soap Making Intensive is going to be awesome! There are classes in cold process soapmaking (making soap with oils and lye), glycerin soap crafting (what I do), and making other body products, too. Students will get a whole weekend of different classes. It’ll be like Soap Summer Camp! I’m dragging my whole family up there for it!

You have a new project called The Soap Lab with a brand spankin’ new Big Cartel store and matching blog to boot. Tell us all about it.

Oh, yes, I’m so excited about this!! One thing about Soapylove is that people expect colorful, yummy, and sometimes silly soaps, but I have LOTS of other ideas that don’t fit that description. I love modern design and wanted a way to showcase some of my most complicated techniques in a new way. So I am building a Big Cartel shop and developing my first soap collection which will be called “Antiquities.” Each month I will have a new collection. Unfortunately, I have a lot of major obligations at the moment and I probably won’t have that shop open until August. In the meantime I have The Soap Lab blog (www.thesoaplab.blogspot.com) where I’ll be posting about my inspirations and soap developments. Definitely check it out! You’ll make my day!