Today’s featured Etsy shop is AJ’s Country Cottage, a shop featuring
handpoured room-scenting candles, highly-scented soy candles, handmade olive oil soaps, highly-scented wax melts, and lip butters.
I asked AJ some questions about herself and her work…
Tell me about yourself.
Married to my college sweetie. We live in rural Missouri with our 2 kids, 2 cats, a dog, and more fish than I care to mention!
How did you get started making your art?
I’ve always had a desire to create things with my own hands. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve dabbled with all kinds of media. I couldn’t live without creating. I poured my first novelty candles when I was about 13, and have worked hard at perfecting a well-burning, room-scenting jar candle for the past five years. Now I’m also really into making artisan soaps from scratch, and I love coming up with new ideas for scents, for color combinations, for textures, and for other techniques that make my soaps not only functional, but aesthetically pleasing as well.
What other types of art do you make for fun?
I love working with richly-colored and interestingly-textured yarns to create apparel and other functional items. I’ve knit and/or crocheted everything from simple dishcloths to complex afghans and sweaters. It’s so much fun, I can never imagine tiring of this!
What inspires you in your work?
I often get inspiration for new scents and techniques when I take walks. Somehow exercise, fresh air, and solitude stimulate my creativity. Nature’s colors and scents often inspire me while I’m out. I’ve been inspired by sunsets, flowers, newly-mown hay fields, and rain, for starters. I’d love to capture some of those rich fragrances and colors in my work.
How did you name your shop?
I wasn’t too creative that day. My name is AJ, and I live in a small house in the country. “Cottage” sounds WAY more romantic than “house” though, doesn’t it? 😉
What is your day job?
This *is* my day job, creating and selling pleasantly-scented products for home and personal care.
What kinds of jobs have you worked in the past?
I used to teach school. Then I was the manager of small desktop publishing/typesetting firm before launching my own business.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about starting their own
small business selling handmade goods?
Work hard to research and learn all you can, and then practice, practice, practice. Nothing beats good old-fashioned experience. We don’t learn to drive a car primarily by reading books; we learn by doing it.
AJ’s Country Cottage items can be purchased online at ajscountrycottage.etsy.com and in person at local shows and farmer’s markets.
micheledodge
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