OK, here’s a post from my now-closed previous personal blog. It’s for a worthy cause so I wanted to repeat it here. The Snuggles Project is an effort to create ’snuggles’ for pets in animal shelters. I became involved last year due to my developing fondness for Kiki the Wonder Dog, and so have made 3 of these to date for a local shelter. A snuggle is a little blanket/quilt thing that you make and the animals can snuggle with it instead of sleeping on the cold cement floors found at most animal shelters. Because of this, the animals tend to be more at ease, which makes potential adopters more at ease and so adoption rates increase. 

If you have any sewing talent, or even if not, check out the site and make a snuggle for a pet today!

The ‘Daily Artisan Spotlight’ is a regular feature on Mindless Pursuits intended to provide insight and exposure to the tons of talented artisans working today. Please comment and give them some encouragement and check out their work! If you would like to be considered for the Spotlight, click on the ‘Free Press’ link above!

What is your shop?
Hare and Drum (http://hareanddrum.etsy.com)

What is your art/craft?
Collage and decoupage. Mostly picture frames.

Describe your style in 2 words:
What Tickles Me. Okay, that’s three words. I make whatever I find inspiration for at a given moment. That gives my shop a lot of product variety.

What is your favorite piece and why?
My favorite is the Medieval Manuscript frame shown here. The process of creating it was long and arduous: it involved finding and altering the right image, applying crackle to the frame, some 20 layers of final varnish to give it a smooth finish, and all the other minute steps. I love the result! It’s perfect! It’s my baby!

What is the most memorable piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Make what people want to buy, and it’s not always what you would want to buy. I’m still struggling with this one, but it’s always at the back of my mind. It is a bit of an impediment sometimes. That’s why I decided to make a bit of everything. I pour my heart into some, especially smaller and vintage inspired pieces, and my skill into the more marketable ones. I make it a point to have fun with the latter: burnout is not good.

What is the one piece of advice you’d give?
Never make anything because you must. All pieces I made under pressure landed either in the trash or on my husband’s workbench for sanding and reusing.