Summer is coming...

This warm weather lately has made me feel especially good and crafty. I grew really ill in January, and although rather traumatized, I'm recovering well. In fact, I probably am recovered -- I'm just traumatized. I ended up in the hospital then, ended up quitting one of my jobs, and it took almost a month to get back onto regular food-eating... However, I don't think I've ever been happier.

I graduate from CSUF next month, and I'm so excited. After doing two craft shows, I'm taking a break to finish up my final studies, and then I can proceed with my life in crafting. Of course, my parents would like me to go to grad school, but I would also like to see where my passion will take me.

Since then, my brother has moved out, leaving me an empty room that I have converted into my workspace. I even finally bought a TV! Since being traumatized, everything has me anxious or nervous to some degree, so I find myself mellowing out to classical music lately... I sound like a total loca, I know, but if it gets the job done, then hey, it can't be that bad, right?

I just wanted to share a few photos from my last craft shows, as well as a few things I've been working on. My plans for the summer are to post tutorials and other fun things. Who knows, it may keep me busy! :D Not that my day-job isn't already... HAHA. Quite honestly though, being stuck in a tiny office with no windows within reach and very little human interaction takes a toll on the mind.

But away from the bland and not-so-fun stuff, and onto the good stuff!!!

That was from when I had set up shop at the Pink Parlour Festival at the end of March. It took a whole hour and a half for someone to bring a table, and I was lucky that I brought my own chairs because the chairs they promised us never came, sadly. However, it was a worthwhile experience, and I made many new friends! A couple of helpers and I ended up taking a silly photo at the booth two spaces away:

That unicorn had me screaming, "It's so fluffy, I'm gonna diiiiie!" :D I loved Despicable Me, and unicorns are so cute. Hehehe... Especially that one that probably had a million germs on it.

Every year, I participate in an event called the SOC Pancake Breakfast [which reminds me, I need to find their address to send them my percentage donation!!!]. This event funds sports and scout groups for the local Japanese American community, which also extends to other communities. I always see familiar faces, and each year I do better. This year was a great surprise, and I helped a friend launch her Etsy site, as well. Check it out if you're into Kindles or Nooks or other E-readers!

With tax returns coming in and the success of these two events, I couldn't be more appreciative of being alive right now. Even after the trauma, the homework, all of the projects and doodads that it takes to graduate college... all of the blood, sweat, and tears honestly paid off. I just need to pull through the next month and get things done!

I'm so thankful to my friends who have helped me along the way. :] Whew, a much need update, so until next time, see you all later!

LONG TIME, NO SEE!

Hello all!

It has certainly been a while. I got extremely ill in January, but I'm trying to forget about that. I finally quit one of my jobs, and now I definitely have more time to focus on my Etsy - which feels good!!! Currently, I'm preparing for two craft shows - a large one and a small one. The first show is the Pink Parlour Festival at the Santa Anita Race Track, and you can find information here. The second show is a local SOC Pancake Breakfast, which is much smaller, but the beer pancakes are totally worth it! :] Mmm!

I finally used a generator to develop a QR code for smart phones!


This way, if you're interested in buying from a smart phone, you can! :]

I'll be posting more pictures of some new stuff hopefully soon! <3

Imagining that I am a featured seller on Etsy... Hehe...

Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Kat, and I was born and raised in sunny California. A philosopher had once stated that strange people are known to exist in two forms -- the rich as eccentric and the poor as whackos. I think it is rather fortunate that I am a whacko. I live with my parents and 5 furry siblings, two of which are human, and a suicidal hermit crab in a genetically modified pineapple under the sea. My neighbor is an angry squid that loves music.

Occasionally, I am a musician, but otherwise, I am a working student. I am studying the fields of the liberal arts, music, and art, and my taste in art is quite uncanny. I love all things vintage and all things strange.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?
I enjoy exercising at the local gym and taking strolls along a local dirt road. Sometimes I rekindle my relationships with instruments that I had formerly played frequently. Creative photography is something I enjoy, as well, but I haven't developed as much skill yet. I love to cook, and even if my cooking turns out to be a disaster, I don't take it too hard. I am working towards a bachelor's degree, and I work a normal college student-type job.

What first made you want to become an artist?
Thankfully, I've had such creative parents that have influenced me as a child. My siblings and I grew up without a ton of money, so my father always used old things to create something new -- he'd take a hamper and turn it into a wagon that was roomier and sturdier than a Radio Flyer, and he also made us bikes out of parts from the junkyard. My mother was a graphic artist for a short time, but seeing her work all around me really brought color into my life.

As I grew older, my work has been inspired by strange things, retro fashion, and toy foods that I grew up with, as well as miniatures that I used to see in Re-ment collections and doll houses.

Please describe your creative process.
I rarely sketch, and if I do, it's on a receipt or scratch paper lying around because I feel like I must hurriedly do it before I forget. I tend to see the finish product first and then think about how I will put it together, and oftentimes, I just create as soon as I get home from class or work, which has me working until the wee hours of the morning. Some things are a week-long process, such as glazing items in between work and school hours during the short time that I am home, or letting epoxies and glues cure during the hours that I am away from home. Once a product is finished, I go about making the packaging for it, or packaging it in something I have already made.

My mornings are filled with checking emails and taking packages to the post office, sometimes accompanied by a local delivery after work. I am always excited to see a buyer and taking in insight from them about new product ideas.

What handmade possession do you most cherish?
There is this tiny wooden chair that my dad had made me just as soon as I was able to sit up, pretty much. I believe he had made it from reclaimed wood, and he signed it to me and dated it. He also had me put a few large stickers on it to make it my own. I've had it for basically my whole life.

Name your top five books, movies, musicians, and websites besides Etsy.
Books: Always Running [Rodriguez], The Catcher in the Rye [Salinger], The Pill Book [Silverman, 1994], Norwegian Wood [Murakami], Complete Guide to Symptoms, Illness, and Surgery [Griffith].

Music: Pretty much anything pre-1960s, 80's pop and rock, The Phantom of the Opera, Yanni, and some Metal.

Movies: I don't know -_-"

Websites: well, I do like tumblr...

What advice would you give to artists who are new to Etsy?
Don't give up too quickly and don't focus too much on promoting your items. The first sale always comes when you least expect it. Also, take good photos and write good descriptions.

at work, creating my line of winter stuff! and a narwhal. ♥

What are your favorite features on Etsy? What new features would you like to see?
I love the business tips and reading about featured artists. I also like that my sold orders reflect much-need information. I think that the listing process could allow for some more tags.

How do you promote your work?
I use Facebook, and I sparingly blog. I also use Deviantart, which really gets my work out there. However, the best promotion is actually wearing my work. It's usually a great conversation starter that results in sharing a business card or two... and occasionally gaining a sale. :]

My melody hiding in my ruffles!

In ten years, where would you like to be?
Healthy, hopefully married, hopefully still running a business and doing the things I love in a sweet fixer upper of a Victorian house, perhaps making furniture at this point, living with my precious husband and a dog.

I've started selling vintage, too!

Here are a few of my vintage items. Hopefully, you'll check them out! :]

Gothic Chocolate Brown Rose Choker

Sexy Secretary Double-Breasted Dress, modeled by my good friend, Yuri!

Elegant yet Grunge-y Velour V-neck

Bohemian Love Dangle Earrings

Laurel Burch Femme and Homme Figure Trio Dangle Earrings

My SD card!!!

Unfortunately, I had the klutz-iness to accidentally press "format" on my camera, which wiped out all my pictures, including the ones that I had planned on using for a special blog post this week! :[ I am going to take some new pictures of the rest of the progress, and hopefully I can post them soon!

Mold-Free Claywork!

People always ask me why I don't just use molds to make my life easier -- and my answer is simple: if I did, then I didn't really make my work; my mold would have done it for me! I'm one of those people that simply doesn't care to take the easy way out most of the times. You could say I'm old-school or something like that. But I honestly think, what fun are you having if you are just pushing clay into a shape and taking it out again? You don't feel the clay form with your hands or in your hands. You aren't exactly putting a whole lot of heart and soul into every detail. It's far too easy.

It all stemmed back to my days with Play-Doh... People around me were always using cookie cutters or the pasta machine or something, and I thought, well, it makes a pretty nice consistent shape, but I, too, can make a consistent shape if I tried.

So my biscuits are consistently biscuits. My ice creams are consistently nearly the same ice cream shape with a natural variation of textures. My cakes are consistently cakes. And it is all because I care about the wearer and the product itself. I wouldn't let you wear it if it was some cheaply made item that I honestly didn't care enough about. And if I won't wear it, I won't sell it. It's the honest goodness, the cheat-free method that makes a difference in my work.

And I hope that you feel that way, too...

Because I only accept the best of the best for both me and for you. :]

I really want to thank you all for your support as I find my way into this business. You guys are truly the best! :]

Another Treasury Feature!

I'm so excited! Today, I received an email saying that Etsy user Sannipanni has featured my moon cake stud earrings in her mid-Autumn moon festival treasury!

Here's the link!