Did your Shop help build your artistic voice?

[Former_Member]

When you opened your shop, did you already know who you were as an artist or maker, or did you discover yourself more along the way?

I feel like I'm still discovering exactly what my artistic voice is, so I'm wondering if you veteran shop owners figured some things out as you went along or if you had a 100% solid plan the whole time.

[rhodyart]

Good question. I've known for some years that I am most comfortable in the mode I'm currently in (vintage with an edge), but I keep feeling tugged to go in another direction. Every time I try a different direction the work comes out contrived or just plain bad. So I would say that on one hand I do know who I am as an artist and I know my point of view. On the other, I really think there's much more room to grow.

I am of the opinion, though, that in order to be a GOOD artist, if not great, you must always be willing to grow, play, experiment, try different things, and so on. Otherwise you become stale

[Former_Member]

Ah, I see. That's a difficult balance, staying in your usual mode vs growth... Thanks for the feedback :)

[ShapelyWood]

Wood Art all the way for me:)

[Former_Member]

I discovered my self along the way.

[Former_Member]

Once I discovered my medium, I evolved as I improved, but nothing is so inspiring as a person telling you how much they love what you made!

[SnarkFactory]

It's definitely helped me figure out what kind of artist I want to be. Having a shop forces you to think about who you want your audience to be and how you want to be remembered. It's given my work more direction and I love it!

[Former_Member]

When I opened my shop at the beginning of the summer, I had a sense of myself as an artist and what my point of view is, as I had already been designing for a few years. And I definitely have committed to working with beads as my primary medium (although there's always room for innovation with adding unusual materials to jewelry).

However, I don't see this process as ever being complete - I agree with Lin that it is important to continue evolving and experimenting. Even in the past few months I know I've grown in terms of my techniques, design perspectives, and creativity, and I plan to continue honing these things going forward. That is part of what makes it all worthwhile!

[Former_Member]

I feel like my work now has a more distinct look to it (compared to before, when I wasn't selling with Etsy). Not everything looks the same, but almost every piece has the same style, whether I plan it or not. Etsy has definitely helped me learn more about my own artistic abilities and has helped develop them as well!

Love the name of your shop, Nikki! :)

[Former_Member]

I hope I continue to grow and change continually. I started silver casting because i wanted to make my own rings, and now It's my sole source of income. Making jewelry has unlimited design and technical potential, and this is why I chose it, but I keep slowly changing and evolving for me as I learn More.

[Former_Member]

I hope I continue to grow and change continually. I started silver casting because i wanted to make my own rings, and now It's my sole source of income. Making jewelry has unlimited design and technical potential, and this is why I chose it, but I keep slowly changing and evolving for me as I learn More.

[BlackCatStudio98]

I definitely hae been evolving since I opened my shop. I didn't have much of a clue as to my style when I first started. That wasn't very long ago and there is definitely much more that I want to learn and try. I started out buying all my supplies for my jewelry from handmade artisans on Etsy, but now I want to be the artisan. I'm so busy right now with farmers markets and arts and craft fairs and then will be busy for the holidays, but starting in January my goals are to learn to make my own ceramic/pottery jewelry pieces and to start working with metal.

Discovering my style, and learning new things has been an incredible and enjoyable experience!

[Former_Member]

I definitely think my store has helped me develop an awareness for artistic senses. A lot of my styles were all over the place, but after learning new techniques, I've grown.

Born a perfectionist and creative person the brainstorming process was always hard, almost impossible. I would do one design and then toss it if it didn't turn out the way I imagined, or put it up the way it looked most decent - and not exactly what I wanted. It took a while but I learned that it's all right to save and go back to something later and to keep tweaking.

Now that I've worked on my store for a long time, and see how far I can go, I'm considering going into other lines of artwork that I wouldn't try before and seeing where I can go there too.

[Former_Member]

Wow, such a variety of responses, and all so positive :) It's great hearing about everyone's artistic experiences.

I like how you phrased it too Mallory, "Having a shop forces you to think about who you want your audience to be and how you want to be remembered." I've totally got to step back and think on that one for awhile, haha.

And thank you Katie! :D