[Interview - Giochi di Carta]

Time for another interview. I'd like to introduce you to Silvia from Giochi di Carta. Silvia has worked as an illustrator of text books and fiction books for children for over 10 years. She is currently working as an illustrator, graphic designer, crafter and a paper cut artist. She is a mother of two children, ages 4 and 7. Silvia lives in one of my favorite countries: Italy.

1. You have illustrated many books. Which one is your favorite?

Silvia: Since I became a mother, 7 years ago, even my illustrations have approached the world of little pre-school aged children.

One of my favorite books is "Che cos'è? Prime Parole" (in English "What is it? First Words"), published by Italian Emme Edizioni. The designs are big, very simple and sweet.

2. You're a mom of two young children. Any tips on finding time to be creative?

Silvia: The secret is always to organize your time. When my kids are at school, I try to do as much as possible. Sometimes I involve them in some of my projects, and then the table becomes a real mess full of colors!

When they go to sleep, and the house is silent again, I can finally speak with my husband ;) and I often return to my studio to finish some work, or work at the computer.

3. What inspires you to be creative?

Silvia: Usually my greatest inspiration is nature. I love flowers, any kind of plants, the sea. Nature has wonderful designs, and I simply "copy it"!

The Internet is another great source of inspiration, because it allows me to know many artists and crafters whom with their amazing works stimulate me to always think of something new.

4. What sparked your interest in paper cutting?

Silvia: I have always liked paper. I have always drawn, clipped and pasted. After so many years as an illustrator of textbooks, I felt the need to do something different.

I discovered artists such as Elsa Mora, Jayme McGowan, Rob Ryan and many others. I started thinking that this was the road I was looking for for so many years!

5. Which paper cutting is your favorite?

Silvia: One of my favorite paper cutting is what I called "Bouquet".

6. Who are your favorite creative people?

Silvia: I follow and admire many creative people, and they often express themselves not only through illustration and design, but also with painting, DIY and decorating. They are women like Geninne, Camilla Engman, Elsa Mora, Oana Befort, Tiel-Seivl Keevers, Johanna Basford, Beci Orpin and Paula Mills.

7. Do you like to read? Any favorite, must-read, books?

Silvia: Reading is one of my favorite things to do after drawing. When my husband and I moved in together, in most of the boxes there were only books!

Now that I'm busy with work and family life, I don't have much time to read. I like to browse interior design and crafts books.

There is a classic which I like, "The Old Man and the Sea" by Ernest Hemingway.

8. What do you like best about Italy? What place in Italy would you recommend people to visit? Why?

Silvia: Italy is full of beautiful cities. Just think of Rome, Venice, Florence, and Milan. Every region has something that sets it apart.

However, if there is a place that is very special for me, it is Sardinia. My father was born on this beautiful island, and I had the good fortune to spend my childhood summers near it's white beaches and crystal clear water. A true paradise!

9. Do you travel? What is your favorite place you have visited?

Silvia: I love to travel and learn new things. Every place I have visited has been important, but I have not traveled much, and I still have many things to see.

I enjoyed visiting the Canary Islands!

10. Do you visit other blogs? Which are your favorite ones?

Silvia: I follow many blogs. Perhaps too many! My favorites are those of the artists mentioned in the previous question, but I also enjoy interior design and craft blogs. Some of my favorites include A Creative Mint, Decor8, Design*Sponge, sfgirlbybay, The Jealous Curator, Ishtar Olivera, and many others! 

Grazie, Silvia, for taking time to do this interview.

Giochi di Carta

Giochi di Carta online shop

[Interview with Ingrid from Wood & Wool Stool]

1. Please tell us a bit about yourself.

I'm Ingrid, mother of son Minne and daughter Pippa and married to Henk.

Besides my family life I work 3 days a week in the coolest place in the Netherlands Villa Augustus, where I have my weekly 'flowerday' on Thursday. I like photography and find blogging a great way to capture my life.

2.  What inspired you to make your very first wood & wool stool and how did you decide to make it into a business?

In 2008 I designed my first recycled wooden stool with a crocheted cover for my home.

It turned out very well and the invention of a crochet cover on the seat turned out very well.

After some requests of family and friends, I decided to make custommade stools for other people and that is how it all started.

Since then I've made a lot of stools and designed meanwhile several other interior products.

The products are all handmade and have something to do with (recycled) wood, wool, crochet and color.

3.  What is your typical day like?

No day is the same, but I always start with coffee and a little tour along the web. I work different days and hours at Villa Augustus.

4. What inspires your creativity?

Traveling and my workplace at Villa Augustus, but also international Interior magazines and the internet.

5.  What is the best part of owning your own handicraft business?

I like what I make and because I don't have an actual shop, but only sell through internet, I can work whenever I want.

Most of the orders of my handmade stools are from people all over the world. It's so cool that (almost) everyone sends me a happy thank you e-mail when their stool arrived.

6.  What is your least favorite part about your work?

Definitely the packing and shipping.

7.  Do you have any tips for someone who wants to sell their own handicrafts?

Only make things you like yourself and stick to your style.

8.  Whose work do you admire?

I'm a big fan of Piet Hein Eek since he started making furniture.

Piet Hein Eek 

9. What is the best place you have traveled to? Why?

Spain. During the years we've been in all kind of districts and I like them all. I like the versatility of the country and the wonderful cities like Sevilla, Madrid, Valencia, San Sebastian, Salamanca and most of all Barcelona.

10. Do you like to read? Any favorite/must-read books?

I love to read and I would love to read more if I only had more time.

Now on my bedside table: Bonita Avenue by Peter Buwalda.

Thank you so much Ingrid for taking the time to do this interview! 

Here are the links to Ingrid's blog & Etsy Shop & Flickr page:

WOOD & WOOL STOOL

WOOD & WOOL STOOL ETSY SHOP

WOOD & WOOL STOOL @ FLICKR

[artist interview - corey moortgat]

My very first artist interview at Feelin' Blue. Please come and have a look! Corey Moortgat’s art is so fun & whimsical!

Corey Moortgat interview at Feelin' Blue.

[ an interview with artist Corey Moortgat ]

I'm so excited to introduce artist Corey Moortgat to you! I have followed Corey's blog for a long time now. Her art is fun & whimsical and she incorporates vintage pictures in her art. I love the art journal books she makes for her children. More on that in the interview. Here is some info on Corey:

"I am a stay-at-home Mommy, wife, artist, decorator, sewer, thrift shopper, and probably lots of other things I'm forgetting right now! I have a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, a Master's degree in Art Therapy, but the majority of my work career was in artistic custom framing. Since becoming a mother, I've satisfied my artistic cravings by writing articles for magazines, writing a book (The Art of Personal Imagery), and being generally artsy and craftsy at home.

My family consists of my husband Jason, my son Riley (born 2005), my son Noah (born 2007), and our newest addition, daughter Avery (born 2009). Two sweet boys, and finally a little girl to share in my passion for ruffles and dolls and shopping and all things girly!"

1.   You have three beautiful children. Any tips on finding time to be creative?

Thank you so much!  Finding time is always the issue, isn’t it?  I do it in different ways.  Sometimes, I can fit little projects in while the kids are around- like small decorating or sewing projects.  If it’s something that can be broken into smaller steps, I’ll sneak away for a few minutes at a time (if I see they are entertaining themselves!) and work for a bit.  You know kids, though- it only takes a few minutes for them to migrate back to wherever I am!  So for more involved projects, like painting or scrapbooking, I don’t even attempt to work on them until I know I have an uninterrupted block of time.  Both my older boys are in school five days a week, and my daughter goes two mornings a week, so those are good times for me to work.  When my children were a bit younger, I was very strict about naptime/rest-time.  I always made sure that they were all in separate rooms napping or “resting” for at least 1 ½ hours a day, so that I could have some “me” time!  With summertime looming before us, I will probably re-instate some form of rest-time (only my daughter naps at this point), or I will really go bonkers!  I may not have as much creative time with them home all day, but at least I’ll have a little down-time until school starts again!

  

2.   Where does your love for vintage stem from?

I have always loved “old” things.  I can remember going to antique stores as a teenager and buying things.  When I was younger, I collected dolls and teddy bears, and that’s where some of the interest probably originated.  My mother and sisters and I went to doll shows frequently, and I loved looking at the vintage dolls.  As I grew older, I stopped collecting those particular items, but I continued to like old things and began using vintage ephemera in my artwork.  My interest in vintage children’s and nursery items came about when I began having children, obviously.  And it blossomed into a full-on obsession when I had my daughter!  I’m back to collecting dolls and vintage girly things, as you can see in the way I’ve decorated her bedroom and my studio.  Oddly enough though, she isn’t really that interested in dolls!  I guess that’s okay though, because I’m pretty selfish, and I don’t know that I want to share– ha ha!

3.   You must have great antique shops in your city to be able to find so many wonderful vintage items. Do you ever shop online too? If you do, are there any sites you'd like to recommend? 

You know, I actually haven’t bought much of my stuff near home!  One of my favorite things to do when I’m on a trip is to scout out the antique shops in the area.  It’s always fun to shop in a new place that I haven’t been to before- no telling what undiscovered treasures there may be!  This is where a lot of my treasures have come from.  But I also shop a lot online.  Ebay is my favorite source, but I also look on Etsy and the Goodwill auction site.  In fact, I have to stop myself from shopping on Ebay too much- there’s SO MUCH good stuff there, I could buy things all day long! 

4.   Do you have a favorite art piece you have done?

That’s a hard one!  I try to always work on a piece of art until I love it.  I’m a perfectionist, and it really bothers me if I’m not happy with a piece.  But there are a few that I would call favorites (for now anyway!).  This one (http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreymoortgat/5453120197/in/set-72157600262370987) and this one (http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreymoortgat/6964940212/in/photostream) and this one (http://www.flickr.com/photos/coreymoortgat/4847407791/in/set-72157600262370987) all hold special places in my heart.  And my kids’ art journals- those would be the first things I’d grab if we had a fire!

5.   What is your favorite photo alteration technique?

I don’t know if I’d call it an alteration technique, but my favorite way of incorporating photos into my artwork is to use the photo’s colors as a guide for the whole piece.  Before I begin a piece, I try to gather all the key images (whether they are photos or other ephemera).  I look at the photos/images and determine the color scheme based on their colors.  This way, the photo always feels as if it belongs in the piece and doesn’t stand out too much.

6.   Who are your favorite artists? 

I get inspiration from so many artists, but these are some of my current favorites:

Betsy Walton (http://www.flickr.com/photos/betsywalton/)

Mia Christopher (http://www.flickr.com/photos/readinginbed/)

Mati McDonough (http://www.flickr.com/photos/74248192@N00/)

Jennifer Mercedes (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mercedej/)

Barbara Gilhooly (http://www.flickr.com/photos/gilhooly_studio/)

You can always check out my Pinterest boards for images and artwork that I find most inspiring as well!

7.   Do you like to read? Any favorite, must-read, books?

I go through stages of reading.  I won’t read for several months, then I’ll get on a reading kick and read for several months…  Anyway, I just finished the Hunger Games trilogy (like everyone else in the world!), and I really liked them.  They were definitely entertaining, easy reads.  Generally, I love “coming-of-age” books about young people and I also love anything that has to do with psychology or the mind.  I have a master’s degree in art therapy, so those topics are right up my alley.  In fact, if anyone out there has any good book recommendations with those themes, I’d love to hear them!

 Corey's book is called "The Art of Personal Imagery" and is a wonderful source of art techniques and inspiration. I highly recommend it!

I would like to thank Corey for taking the time to do this interview. I really appreciate it!

Here is a link to Corey's wonderful blog:

Corey Moortgat