Invterview With Jocelyn, owner of Flowerleaf.

Welcome Back!

I recently sat down with one of my friends who is also a crafter to interview her.  Jocelyn runs her shop, Flowerleaf, and can be found here. Jocelyn is one of the most successful artists on Etsy that I know of and has over 100 sales in her shop.  Her feedback is cosistantly positive and she provides the highest in customer service, which is why I was courious to pick her brain! Let's begin!

1. What’s your name and shop name and what do you do?

My name is Jocelyn, Flowerleaf is my Etsy shop name, and I am currently not working, but working on art and jewelry and hoping to move into a career as a freelance artist.

2. Where are you located?

I live in California's central valley where we can drop down a little below freezing in the winter and see triple digits in the summer - fun, huh?

3. What’s the favorite part of your craft?

I just love creating things in general. I am pretty eclectic so one minute I will be drawing and the next minute working on a new ring or necklace. I love so many different types of media and love putting different colors, shapes, and textures together. It makes me happy.

4. How long have you been crafting?

I have been doing art since I could pick up a crayon, but I have only been making jewelry (more seriously) for about 2 years.
5. What’s your favorite thing to make?

I love drawing, painting, and I love making jewelry. I seem to make more necklaces than anything else, but I am really loving making the Scrabble tile rings lately.

6. What kind of camera do you use to shoot?

I use a Panasonic Lumix DMC- TZ3 - a point and shoot, but it'll do for now.

7. Who models your items?

My little sister Kimberly models my items. she has her own shop on Etsy as well and can be found here.
8. What's the most rewarding part of running your own business?
Just knowing that people enjoy the things I create and that there are people all over the world wearing something from my shop is pretty rewarding. That and just seeing one of my pieces all finished.

9. What's the most challenging part of running your own business?

The most challenging part is to remind myself to trust my instincts and to also remember that there will always be times where I am just not motivated to create something, but I just need to make myself do it. I also need to get more organized. I have organized chaos going on at the moment.

10. On average, how many things do you create per week?

I would say I create about 4-5 new items per week, maybe more. Maybe I need to start keeping track...

11. What inspires you?

Everything that is colorful and striking and beautiful inspires me. Nature, people, music, so many things.

12. Take me thru your creative process.

There's really not much of a process that goes on. I pretty much tell myself I am going to start creating and I just go from there until I feel I am done. If I am not happy with the results I will either try to improve it, or scrap it and start over.

13. What is your best advice to blossoming crafters?

My best advice is this:

Do what you love and remember you're doing what you love, so have fun.

Don't second guess yourself.

Work hard.

Be patient even when things may not be working out at first and to not give up.

Always be willing to take criticism and to be learning new things all the time.

Thanks for that creative input Jocelyn, and thank you for letting me interview you for this week's post.

Here is Jocelyn's shop.
Don't forget to follow this blog, follow Jocelyn's blog and check back often for updates.

Xo