Featured Team CAC Seller….

We've continuing our feature in the team blog, to coincide with Self Portrait Thursday. Each week we'll feature another team member. We're continuing things with Susan of Wagscreations.etsy.com.

To start, please tell us a bit about yourself. What's your story?

My name is Susan Foskin. I am a Christ-loving, fun-having, dog-hugging, wife to the most wonderful man I know. I strive for perfection (oftentimes too much) and like to work hard, and am learning to play hard too (something that doesn't come so easily).

What is your favorite quote?
I actually have two favorites right now… "Coincidence is God choosing to remain anonymous." And “The Best use of a life is to spend it on something that outlasts it.” I have the first quote on my outgoing email and the second quote I put on a huge sign on my living room wall.

What is your favorite movie?
My favorite movie is really generic but I am in love with things like St. Elmo’s Fire, Ocean’s Eleven, & When a Man Loves a Woman.

What is your favorite TV show?
I don’t watch much TV so if I have to pick one, it’d have to be Tyler Perry’s “House of Payne” since that is really all I watch on a regular basis.

What is your favorite song at the moment?
Favorite song at the moment…depends on where I am (work, home, car, etc..) I would say that it is either “Slow Fade”, or Vivaldi’s Concerto in d Minor, or anything by Toby Keith. I know it is rather spread out, but really it depends on where I am and what I’m doing.

What kinds of music do you listen to?
Christian (hymns, rock, etc..), classical, 80s rock, and country

How long have you been creating?
I’ve been creating for as long as I can remember, but I’ve been selling my creations for about 4 years.

What inspires you?
I’m not sure what it is, but God just delivers various ideas and inspirations for me to work with to me and I run with them. I may see a set of colors together on something else and think, “oh, that’d look really good mixed together on something I make”, or wonder how I can mix a particular patter or something on one of my designs.

Please describe your creative process (the how, the when, materials, etc.).
I usually have something in my head for a day or two and play around with it mentally for a little bit and then sit down in my craft room and start working on it. I often have several projects going at once (if I don’t, check my pulse!), and bounce back and forth from one to another. Many times, the project will take a direct turn from where it started in my head to where it ends up because in my rummaging around to find the perfect item that I was looking for in a drawer or canister, I will find an item that will work even better and take it a slightly different direction.

Is there any kind of music you listen to when you create?
I’m probably one of the few people that prefers silence and the sound of my dog sleeping/snoring at my feet while I create.

What's your biggest artistic disaster to date? How did it help you progress?
My biggest artistic disaster to date was a huge batch of clipboards that I was taking to a show and they had to be finished. I thought that I’d finish them in the hotel room, but I didn’t factor in the humidity of the location (from what I have at home) or the time needed appropriately. So they really did not turn out good at all, thus causing us to run really low on inventory for that show and high on stress.

What's your favorite piece that you've done?
I have several pieces that I really like, but one of my favorites is a domino necklace that I wear quite often that says, “Life is Good, Eternal Life is Better” and has a small silver cross on it. I like this piece because it has opened the door to allow me to share my faith with people. For instance, just yesterday, I wore it and a lady read it and said, “Wouldn’t that be nice?” (meaning having Eternal Life) and so I was able to share with her about Jesus Christ and how he died on the cross and stuff. It is not one of my bigger pieces, but I believe that it is a bigger piece in the grand scheme of things. This necklace is coming to my shops in the next week or so.

What's the best advice you were given when starting out?
Don’t give up. If you love it, then keep doing it.

Do you have any advice to give others?
Find what you are good at AND what you love, not just what sells. Because if you make something that sells a ton but you don’t enjoy making it and find great pleasure and love while creating then it is the same as any other job.

What's coming up for you; any big plans artistically?
I am working on getting into 2 other stores and I will hopefully be accepted into the local Mistletoe Market show in October (the Junior League show) here in Oklahoma City. I am also looking for wholesale shops to get into.

Where can we find you? Both online and in stores.
Wagscreations.com
Wagscreations.etsy.com
Timeless accents Gift Shop in Arcadia, Oklahoma
Loving Touch Crafters Mall in Yukon, Oklahoma