FOR QUILTS SAKE

INTERVIEW WITH PAM GEISEL OF FOR QUILTS SAKE



Tell us a bit about yourself (name, location, personal stuff).
My name is Pam Geisel and I live Yellow Springs, Ohio, with my husband and 2 cats. My education and work experience has been as a graphic designer and also as an instructor of both graphic design and desktop publishing. While I was teaching I incorporated lessons on being creative.

Are you a full-time artist/crafter?
I’ve always been an artist but I am now crafting full-time.

How long have you been in business?
1 year

What percentage of your income is from "online" sales?
15-20% are on-line sales, the rest are from craft shows.

What can your customers look forward to for 2008?
I’ve already added quilted postcards (yes, you really can mail them!) and watercolor paintings of quilts that are matted with a sewn quilt square. This year I also plan to add quilt patterns and fused, abstract design using lots of scrap fabrics.

What do you utilize most for INSPIRATION?
I am inspired by everything, so this is a tough question. (a) Nature, (b) shapes and the secondary patterns they make when placed together, and (c) sometimes the fabric tells me what it wants to be.

How does being CREATIVE effect your life?
It’s like breathing...it’s a part of me that’s always there.

What do you love most about what you make?
Making art that is visually interesting is my goal, but what I really enjoy about quilting is how tactile it is.

Do you offer any services such as, wholesale, custom orders, swapping or bartering?
I already do Custom orders and swapping and I’m open to wholesale and bartering.

What advice can you share with other artists/crafters?
I think that everyone is born being creative, so try to remember what it felt like to be creative when you were a child. Do what you love and keep striving to come up with new ideas.

If you had "studio elves" what job would you give them to do?
Sewing bindings, sleeves and labels because it’s not the creative part.

Do you have studio tips on staying organized, and working efficiently?
Figure out what kind of organizational system works best for you and take care of mail, bills, orders, etc. when they come in instead of letting them pile up into a mountain of work.

Please share why "buying/selling handmade" is important to you...
Buying handmade is important to me because it supports another person directly and encourages them to stay creative.

Besides creating & selling handmade goods, in what other areas of your life do strive to be 'independent, resourceful, & creative"?
Every area of my life that I can (except cooking!). How I approach problem solving and dealing with obstacles.

Where would like to be in 10 years?
Still married and living in Yellow Springs and still quilting and making art, but maybe a little better known!.

VISIT PAMS OWN WEBSITE...WWW.FORQUILTSSAKE.COM HER FLICKR PORTFOLIO AND HER SQUIDOO SITE