So cool I had to share it with you my beautiful readers! :) It's an Etsy Interview - Featured Seller: Better Off Wed.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My mother told me that the first word I ever spoke was “no.” I’ve always wanted to go my own way. So naturally, when it came time to design my wedding last summer, I went against the grain and rejected the Wedding Industrial Complex and designed everything myself. While I was in the thick of designing my wedding decor, I decided to put some of my creations out to world and see what world thought of it. It was then and there that Better Off Wed was born. It took off like a rocket, and has been such a wild ride!
I live in the Bay Area and do all of my making at this stellar public-access workshop calledTechShop. TS is like a huge playground for makers filled with super high tech equipment like lasers, water knives and 3D printers. Many members, fueled by free popcorn and untold amounts of caffeine, work late into the night with the hopes of making a dent in the universe. It’s always fun to peek over people’s shoulders and see what they’re dreaming up.
The Classic Wedding Cake Topper in Turquoise Blue - Large - Mahogany Wood $69.00
Apart from creating things, what do you do?
I teach creative people how to take their products from inspiration to execution. You can find me over at Jitsoo: Blackbelt Strategies for Badass Business. And if it’s not obvious, I drink a lot of coffee!
What’s the most important question a couple should ask their wedding vendor?
“How will this be a memento that helps us remember we’re crazy in love? How will it help us remember the reasons why we made this wild decision to spend the rest of our lives together?”
Your wedding day is just the beginning of your adventure together, and like any good adventure there will be perils – snakes, barracudas, hurricanes – who knows! Anything that can bring you back to that day of total clarity, pure love and reckless excitement can be a lifeline.
My husband wears a piece of our handmade fabric wedding altar around his wrist. Seeing it definitely takes me back to that thrilling moment in time, on a tiny island in the middle of an alpine lake, where we exchanged our vows.
Who has been most influential in your craft?
I would have to say that it’s a place – the TechShop – rather than a person has been most influential in my craft. I’ve always had tons of ideas, but when I joined the TechShop I had access to the tools I needed to turn my ideas into a reality. I have taken lots of classes there – from welding, to woodturning, to vacuum forming – but have gravitated to the laser cutter because it’s super versatile. You can cut tons of different materials with laser sharp precision. The TechShop has also be an awesome place to share knowledge and collaborate with outside-the-box thinkers.
How would you describe your creative process?
My husband calls me “the tornado,” if that gives you any sense. I usually go for all-out work sessions where I get messy, spread my materials everywhere and dig in. I sketch my ideas, design in Illustrator, cut the wood and fabric with the laser, and then piece it all together by hand.
How do you get out of your creative ruts?
There’s nothing like getting way off the grid to give me perspective and fresh eyes. My family has 100+ year old rustic solar powered cabin at the edge of a protected wilderness area that I have known as paradise since I was six months old. I go there every summer to do an internal reboot, wipe my slate clean and see what new ideas stir.
Where would you like to be in ten years?
I would like to have trained a whole army of people how to quit their day jobs and do something they love. That’s an insurrection I’d love to be a part of.
- Visit her shop -
Have a fabulous day,
M.
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