Okay, so I'm a liiiiitle bit behind on my February sponsor interviews. I didn't want you to miss out on any awesome people though, so here's a great interview from Amie over at Completely Unfinished!
You're a graphic/web designer! Is this something you went to school for or are you self-taught? How do you go about finding clients? Is it hard to find clients? I'm currently in school for graphic design and am very interested in how these skills translate into the real world.
A.
I went to school for design but a big chunk of my learning was teaching myself. I took a web design class in high school & I knew most everything that was being taught, so I helped out a lot of my classmates. I used to check out design books from the library and read them while everyone was eating lunch and paying attention in classes! hah. I guess that's when I realized I loved design and wanted to pursue it in college.
I'm pretty new to the whole freelancing thing, so right now it's a bit difficult to find clients. It seems like the more popular your blog is, the easier it is to get clients. Spreading the word through your blog definitely helps. I like to be active on forums and design/blogging communities to get myself out there. Also, respond to people quickly and be social!
Q.
You say you've been blogging about a year. Did you know what personality/style/vibe you wanted your blog to be when you first started, or has it kind of evolved over time?
A.
I started blogging really sporadically (this is before I read a lot of blogs) and realized I totally wanted to do it more regularly. When I first started, my posts were all over the place (I still think they are sometimes!) So it definitely developed. I have a bunch of hobbies so I wasn't sure what to focus on at first, I didn't want it to be too broad. I try to focus on 'creativity' and I love that the longer you blog the more you figure out your style!
Q.
I love your 25 by 25 List! How did you decide what goes on this list? Are you just dreaming big or are these goals that you realistically see being able to be completed this year?
Q.
A.
Thanks! Basically if I don't write things down, they're most likely not happening! hah. I made my first 'life to-do list' a few years ago on a site I found called 43 Things. I expanded on that & created my 25 before 25 list with things I've always wanted to do, and what's most important to me to get to where I want to be. A lot of them are things that are in progress & I can absolutely see myself doing. It's a good way to push yourself a bit and always be focused on your goals. 3 of them are very maybe close to being completed...eep!
You seem pretty crafty. Do you have an Etsy shop you'd like to promote, or do you mainly just craft for yourself &/or family & friends?
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A.
I used to have an Etsy shop, but I've since stopped selling to focus on making things for myself, my design work, & creating things for a new Etsy shop. The new shop is going to have different things (more of a focus on design, less on sewing) and i've been slowly designing prints, photos, bags, and silkscreens for it. I want to spend a lot of time planning and getting it perfect!
Q.
I see you've been geocaching! I've always wanted to try that. Is it hard to do? What's the general process like? How do you know where to look?
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A.
I haven't been geocaching in SO long but it's very very fun!! It's harder to do if you don't have a hiking GPS, so I totally recommend one if you plan on going a lot. I had no idea what it was until a friend informed me of a movie that was partially shot in my town, about geocaching. We spent a good amount of one summer going on 'treasure hunts.' There's an official geocaching website organized by area, some are harder than others which are labeled by difficulty. A lot of them have 'clues' which i've had to use a lot when i'm stumped on where the cache is--so I would say that's the easier way to geocache. Once you get to the coordinates that the GPS tells you, you have to really think outside the box and look around for what's hidden! I hope that made some sense!
What's your favorite animal and why?
A.
This is always a hard question for me, because I love all animals! Rabbits are maybe my favorite though, because of the major cute factor. I've had a couple pet bunnies so they have a big spot in my heart.
Q.
If you could time-travel to any time period, where would you go and what would you want to do there?
A.
I would love to travel back to the 70's and see all of my favorite classic punk bands in concert. Where? wherever they were playing :)
Thanks again for interviewing me! :)
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