My Creative Life is a weekly interview, with the same five questions, with folks who are living authentically, creatively, and making a living out of their passions.
This week I am honored to have Lynn Wigell a.k.a The Yarn Wench. With a name like that, you have to be creative! She produces the most gorgeous roving and yarn for knitting, crocheting,
needlefelting, wet felting, etc. Visit her website, www.TheYarnWench.com and her flickr page to oh and ah over her goodies.
5. Can you give some advice to folks who would like to do what you do? Make sure you're passionate about what you are doing! Starting a little business like mine is so much more work than you might imagine. With that said, it is also one of the most fulfilling things you'll ever undertake! Make a schedule and stick to it - it's too easy to find other things to distract you when you're working from home. Treat your business like a full-time job. And have fun!
This week I am honored to have Lynn Wigell a.k.a The Yarn Wench. With a name like that, you have to be creative! She produces the most gorgeous roving and yarn for knitting, crocheting,
needlefelting, wet felting, etc. Visit her website, www.TheYarnWench.com and her flickr page to oh and ah over her goodies.1. What do you do? (career wise - whatever you want to share)
I have a website called The Yarn Wench where I sell my hand-dyed, handspun art yarns and hand-dyed fiber for other spinners and fiber artists. I'm starting my 4th year in business.
I have a website called The Yarn Wench where I sell my hand-dyed, handspun art yarns and hand-dyed fiber for other spinners and fiber artists. I'm starting my 4th year in business.
2. How did you prepare for this career? (formal and informal education, books, workshops?)
I got my B.A. in Fine Arts from Indiana University. My area of concentration was Woven and Constructed Textile Design and I studied with acclaimed weaver Budd Stalnaker. For a number of years until I had my first child I was a full-time
weaver and spinner in the San Francisco area. After my first baby came along I became a full-time mom and squeezed fiber art and my other artistic passions (complex cloth design, mixed media, collagraphy, jewelry making, quilting, paper making, to name a few) into my rare free moments. It wasn't until my husband was downsized from a job he'd held for 15 y
ears that I suddenly found myself needing to make a living. I turned to the only thing I knew after 17 years as a stay-at-home mom - my art. The Yarn Wench was launched and I'm having the time of my life!
I got my B.A. in Fine Arts from Indiana University. My area of concentration was Woven and Constructed Textile Design and I studied with acclaimed weaver Budd Stalnaker. For a number of years until I had my first child I was a full-time
weaver and spinner in the San Francisco area. After my first baby came along I became a full-time mom and squeezed fiber art and my other artistic passions (complex cloth design, mixed media, collagraphy, jewelry making, quilting, paper making, to name a few) into my rare free moments. It wasn't until my husband was downsized from a job he'd held for 15 y
ears that I suddenly found myself needing to make a living. I turned to the only thing I knew after 17 years as a stay-at-home mom - my art. The Yarn Wench was launched and I'm having the time of my life!3. Besides living according to the values of creativity and independence, what other values are you honoring by following this path? I am able to live a simple life free from the stress and anxiety of the corporate world. I'm afraid I would wither away if I weren't able to express myself creatively. In my business I don't even have to leave home - the postman comes to me to pick up my outgoing orders and to bring me my supplies! A typical week involves several days manning the dye pots, some time at the spinning wheel, photographing and inventorying the items I have completed each week, launching an update, invoicing and shipping out my orders. I enjoy how this little business is a self-contained entity that I control - and it feeds my soul!
4. What struggles or challenges do you face, if any? At first, it was hard to realize and adjust to the number of hours of work it took to get established. I went from a full-time mom to a full-time mom and a full-time business woman practically overnight. Suddenly I was working 7 days a week as a Yarn Wench and that went on for two years until my husband found full-time employment again! I was the breadwinner for the first time in our marriage. It was a challenge but it also was the best thing to have happened to me personally as I really got back to my artistic roots and reunited with what I do best.
5. Can you give some advice to folks who would like to do what you do? Make sure you're passionate about what you are doing! Starting a little business like mine is so much more work than you might imagine. With that said, it is also one of the most fulfilling things you'll ever undertake! Make a schedule and stick to it - it's too easy to find other things to distract you when you're working from home. Treat your business like a full-time job. And have fun!
