Then and Now: My first craft fair!

Don't you love when things come full circle?

Here's a picture of me selling at a kid's craft fair when I was about seven or so.  What was I selling, you ask?  I actually remember what I made (and you can kind of see them on the right there): fish magnets!

I drew the shape of goldfish on paper, colored them in differently with colored markers, cut them out, laminated them, and glued them to little magnets.  Looks like I might have been selling some necklaces too?

(Greater Boston peeps...points if you recognize the location!)

 

 

And 20+ years later! Ok, this is actually last year, and my setup has changed a bit, but you get the idea. 

Pretty cool right?

Did you ever do anything as a kid that foreshadowed  what you ended up doing?

Featured Artist: Jessica from thestapeliacompany

This is the first in what I hope will be an on-going feature: a spotlight on a Victorian-inspired Etsy artist.
Jessica is the talented artist behind the shop thestapeliacompany. She has created a darkly Victorian atmosphere in her shop, and everything right down to her storied descriptions are full of surprises and the surrearly beautiful. Please meet Jessica!


A little about myself, well, I am a painter, illustrator, photographer and graphic designer who has always be fascinated by the aesthetic of the Victorian period. The clothing, the architecture, the literature have inspired various choices in my work. I like to create things that are dark and beautiful, and these adjectives also describe that period. My work mixes carnivals and circuses, botany and biology, antique photos and horror-related motifs. Look at any of my work and you will see one or more of these themes.


My craft is primarily painting and photography. I've been taking photos for about 10 years but only started selling them 2 years ago when I opened Stapelia. I have been drawing and painting since I was small.

Like I said, the dark, beautiful and at times horrible aspects of Victorian life are what inspire me. I love the works of Edgar Allen Poe, Mary Shelly and others and the paintings from that time also inspire me to make dark work. In addition, the fact that people traveled and collected specimens and journaled and created curiosity cabinets also fascinates me. Really, I like it all, but if I had to choose, it would be the literature and architecture that really inspire me most.


Here are some of the shops I really love on Etsy:

Beat Up Creations
http://www.etsy.com/shop/BeatUpCreations

Just Mad Books
http://www.etsy.com/shop/justmadbooks

Topsy Turvy Design
http://www.etsy.com/shop/topsyturvydesign

Sushi Pot
http://www.etsy.com/shop/sushipot

I do have a blog! And I update it weekly with art, photography, movie reviews, strange news, and my work:
http://thestapeliacompany.blogspot.com

And some of my paintings can be found here:
http://thestapeliacompany.com