Natural Kids: Friday Feature with Threepetals

Tell us a little about yourself..

I am an artist....seeing that sentence written out like that still "gets me"! It's taken such a long time to allow my hand to write it! But it is easier now to accept it and squirm a bit under its weight, than to continue to justify why I could never use that label. I may never be a great artist, (and some days, not even a GOOD one), but I have to own up to it---artist....I'm an artist.

What do you make? How long have you been crafting?
I have been creating, for the sake of creation, my entire life, really. I was a quiet child, drawn to creative people, and effervescing with creative energy. And fortunately, although I was rather "odd" as a child, the people who loved me continued to encourage me to create----write poetry and short stories, paint, sketch, sew, build, and recreate! Since my most astounding creation to date (3 amazing children: Edie, Owen, and Liam) I have focused most of my creative energy on them---homeschooling, loving, living and creating with, for and around them!

What inspires your creations? What started you working with fiber and fabrics? How long have you been on Etsy? Most of their toys are made with "natural" materials, and I have so loved the relationships my kids have developed with these toys, that I began making many of their toys myself. I love finding new fibers and fabrics to work with! But wool and cotton are still my favorites, by far!
Such warmth goes into and is exuded from these fibers! And I see in the way my children play with toys made from these fibers, just how drawn to nature they really are, and how much they get out of playing with elements of nature. Magical, really!
After I'd been making little gnomes and fairies, and pouches and what not for my kids and for their friends' birthdays etc, I had a few people ask me where they could buy more items similar in nature. This eventually led to a few conversations with other moms who had started their own Etsy shops.....And , after MUCH mulling over and hesitation, I finally decided to give it a shot! And while it still feels a bit strange to sell an item rather than just give it as a gift, I have to say I am loving Etsy! I opened my shop in September 2008, and have learned and grown a great deal as an artist and as an entrepreneur since then!

Do you have any advice for fellow Etsians?
My greatest advice where Etsy is concerned is "Go for it!!" The cost is minimal, the effort is as great or as little as you want to or can exert, the experience is informative, and the reward can truly be great! If you're wondering if your items are "good enough", go ahead and try anyway! You just may sell something while you're trying to figure that out!

What do you hope to learn/gain from the Naturals Kids Group?
I am so excited to be part of this group! How wonderful to feel such kinship with so many other artists! I have wanted my kids and myself to be part of a "community" like this since I first started having them!

Where can your items be found?
Aside from a couple of local craft shows I do with my home school co-op, I only sell items on Etsy at this time. My husband and I are currently renovating his grandfather's old jewelry making shop in West Virginia, however, and are hoping to open a small retail establishment in the next year.