Cute, simple, fun, quality stuff

Random Facts About You?

I have a rescue dog named Kaveri (Buddy). He was rescued from Russia where he was abandoned to a summer cottage. I love animals and that's why i use them in my work aswell.

I can see my dream house from our balcony. It has three big apple trees on the yard.

I make awesome overcooked pork eastern style. Yumm! You boil the pork meat in a sauce that has ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar and garlic in it.

I have been to Fidji, Australia and Tokio. All of them are awesome but Fidji had the best snorkling places, cheapest prices and no poisonous insects.

What got you started crafting?

I have always loved doing things by hand. Since I was a little girl, I made things from clay and drew a lot and enjoyed it. After graduating (Master of Art) I took a job that wasn't creative at all so I really needed to blow of my creative steam. That's why I started looking for a material that's close to clay so I can put my hands in it. Polymer clay is perfect for making things at home.

What is your source of inspiration?

I get my inspiration from the world around me; animals, sounds, smells, colors, patterns. I took part in a one year pattern design project and after that I see patterns and repeat patterns _everywhere_. My trips to Japan are the source of my cute animal earrings inspiration. Randomly I meet an animal so cute I want to recreate it, but they usually don't end up in Etsy. I just think that everyone should have a pair of funny, cute earrings so they can wear them and be a little less serious that day. That's what I do! (and it works!)

I love to make items that become a part of a story when you wear them or use them. My earrings will definately get some comments for you, and start some discussions. Many times people comment on my animal earrings, that they want to give them to a friend who is in need of cheering up. That's just perfect! The first cute pair of animal earrings that I made were some penguin earrings with hats on. That's how I decided to make other animals and birds aswell, because the penguins melted some hearts.

What have you made recently?

I really like making my cat bookmarks. Each cat turns out differently and when I change the paper backgrounds around they come even more different. It is so much fun to play around with the papers, cats and mix and match them together. I bought like 15 different papers last time I was in the craft shop and I am also making some patterned papers myself.

Where do you sell your crafts presently?

Finnish people don't use Paypal or Etsy much, so I do most of my selling trough Facebook.

I started my shop about a year ago when I heard that Etsy is a great place for handmade items. I have had my shop a bit over a year now. First six months I didn't really do anything in Etsy and I think I got like one sale during that time. My first items were all handmade earrings from recycled or upcycled materials. I didn't know anything about promoting etc. so the summer was really quiet for me. When the fall came I started to read the forums and getting more items in my shop. Now I'm between jobs and I love having so much time to spend on my arts! Im hoping that miracously I will start getting so many sales that I don't need a new job. I would LOVE to make my stuff 24/7 and it's what I've been working on lately since my new spare time.

Why are handmade crafts important to you?

Handmade is the only way to express myself to the fullest. Anyone can just glue parts together in a way, but to create something from scratch is totally another story. Doing things by hand is like pouring a soul on canvas. I think that everyone should have more handmade items in their home and I try to live up to that myself. Last Xmas I ordered a pair of stockings on my wall and they're just awesome. I would have never been able to make them so well myself and I can be sure no one else has the same ones. Basically handmade items make me feel special and they feel better when I know my money went to a real person and not some random stock owner.

Find Me

Location
Helsinki, Finland

Email Address
Nelli Kivinen

Personal Website
http://nellilang.fi

Store Website
http://www.etsy.com/shop/NellinShoppi

Twitter
@Nellinshoppi

Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/NellinShoppi