5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1
I’ve been writing here on Craft Test Dummies for a while now (2 years this coming July). While at CHA in January Jenny and I started talking (Well, ok. The truth is that we NEVER STOP talking but that’s a story for another day) and two things came about.
The first thing is that I promoted myself to Managing Editor here at Craft Test Dummies. With Jenny taking on more travel and work with her new HSN job I felt that someone needed to be “at home” when she is out of town. You see, I’m not just a writer for Craft Test Dummies but also Jenny’s CBFF (crafty best friend forever) and I knew, as her friend, that she’d be stretched a little thin. She (and the other contributors here at CTD) have worked too long and hard and think too highly of the readers here (YOU) to drop the ball when it comes to giving you craft product reviews and other crafty information. We are all seriously passionate about what we do here. So when Jenny is in Florida doing her work in front of the camera I’m here behind the scenes making sure that blog posts go live when they should, reading over comments, answering questions and doing other things that need doing.
THEN we also decided that I would start doing artist interviews so you would get some insight into the creative people who help drive this industry. People who make the crafts, create the art, and use or make the supplies we write about here.
Why not start with ME? I always did like being a guinea pig!
Vicki driving a speed boat last summer
I am Vicki O’Dell, The Creative Goddess. I’ve been creative since I was a tyke. My mom said I always had a vivid imagination. My plastic turtle sandbox was NEVER a sandbox but rather a ship, cave or house. She said she always had to empty my pockets before doing laundry because I had pockets full of stones and that I got upset when she threw out my MONEY. I built a mean indoor tent with furniture and blankets and I remember drawing birthday cakes, complete with burning candles, on notebook paper and turning them into birthday cards for my family when I was 4 or 5. I spent A LOT of time drawing as a kid. Then as I got older my creativity moved to more practical realms. I made some of my own clothes when I was a teen and then my own maternity clothes when I was all grown up.
It wasn’t until I was a SAHM with three little boys that I discovered that people would pay me to make things for them. I sold my craft items at shows or from my home. I got a floral design certification and created floral designs for weddings and everyday enjoyment while at the same time doing interior design work for private clients and Television. Then I got a job in a craft store and I fell in love with the craft industry.
5 tools or supplies you can’t be without-
Gesso or Primer, paint, my 5 basic jewelry making supplies, beads, ephemera
4 words you live by-
Family, Love, Flow, Gratitude
3 photos of your work –
Saying Goodbye to my Mother in Law
Epoxy Clay Pendant
Gemstone Fireworks Necklace
2 people or things most that most influence your work right now?
Right now my life and my work are in a huge state of flux and I’m trying to figure out how mid-life, an empty nest, my husbands recent job loss, and my creative work are all going to meld together. Collaborating (& the creative energy that goes with that – not to mention the supplements I’ve been taking for creativity and energy*) with him on some metal work is a big influence as well as some sort of a gypsy vibe. I’m not sure where THAT is coming from though I always did suspect that my father came from a long line of the Irish Travellers (an lucht siùil) as we moved every two years when I was growing up.
1 thing that happened that made you realize you were a creative person, crafter or artist?
It wasn’t until 3 or 4 years ago that I came to the realization that I was a creative person and I could make a living as such. I’d gotten some of my work published in a manufacturer’s catalog and was teaching classes that had long wait lists. I just woke up one day and thought, “Hey, this is cool!”. Before then, I really hadn’t given myself the label “CREATIVE” or “ARTIST”. It just didn’t occur to me that a label could be a good thing and propel me into taking my creativity seriously.
*Supplement credit: https://www.sacredkratom.com/buy-kratom/
- Pat Catan’s Craft Stores Acquired by Michael’s - February 2, 2016
- Vicki’s CHA Trend Sightings - January 20, 2016
- Vicki’s Favorite Picks from the CHA Top 20 Products - January 10, 2016
- CHA Show 2015: Behind the Scenes with Vicki - January 30, 2015
- CHA Show 2015 – New Jewelry Products to Watch For - January 19, 2015
- CHA Show 2015: Yarnia - January 15, 2015
- Trend Report for 2014-2015 – Home Decor - November 26, 2014
- Review: Stencib Self Adhesive Stencils - May 27, 2014
- Review: Clover Bead Loom Kit - April 29, 2014
- Review: Clover Beading Loom - March 18, 2014
Nice to “meet” you Vicki!
Great interview!
It was great to meet you! The projects you picked to high-light are really cool too!
Hope the future is what you wish for!