We recently connected with Cristen Baldwin and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Cristen thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?

I attribute my first sale for Woodline Crafting to someone I went to school with named Mallory. She saw on Instagram that I had been working on learning hand lettering and reached out with a request for bridesmaid gift boxes. I remember being so incredibly excited that someone would trust me enough to work on something for a day that important. But I was also scared beyond belief. I’m a perfectionist, which can be a blessing and means I’m keen on small details, but it’s also a curse and causes me a lot of cognitive dissonance. I remember constantly asking “what if I mess this up?” But I’ve learned over the span of seven years that the journey is to be enjoyed and messing up just means you may have to figure out ways to tweak things. She was very happy with the end result and I was so excited to have completed it for her. Thank you always, Mallory!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I call myself a jack of all trades because I really offer the kitchen sink when it comes to different crafts. But the main craft that I am most proud of is my wood burning. I am self-taught and it’s been a work-in-progress over seven years. But if you need someone to create a memorial portrait of your pet, or burn an ornament commemorating your baby’s first holiday, or a cool burn of a movie character, I’m your girl. And it’s all done by hand. I have absolutely no hate toward burners who use the glowforge or machines of the like. I believe we all have a seat at the table. But for now, I’ve got my hands. For the pet portraits specifically, I donate some of the proceeds to Best Friends Animal Society. I’ve done this since I started and I love being able to wood burn that message on the back of each pet portrait. But if you also need me for vinyl decals, shirts with vinyl, paintings, lettering, or greeting cards, I’ve got your back. I just really want to make people happy and always hope they love what they purchase from me. I’m always grateful for the support.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Oh boy, can I. In 2018–mind you, I’d only been burning pet portraits for less than a year—a fellow wood burner reached out to me saying she had a client that was interested in a large portrait. She was unable to take it on because of other commitments and wondered if she could send them my way. I always say yes to new opportunities. When the client got to me, he said he wanted a four-panel, 60”x36” pet portrait. I was freaking out! I was excited but also scared out of my mind! But I gave him a quote, he agreed and sent me the photo, I laid it out and got the panels I would need, and got to work.
And then the cognitive dissonance set in.
My brain was full of “you’re going to mess this up,” “this is way too large of a project,” “you’re not qualified for this yet,” even though I’d successfully completed multiple pet portraits prior to this one.
It took me eight months and one of my burn pens broke, but after replacing that and getting disciplined, I finished it. The client loved it and I came out a stronger wood burner with a lot of lessons learned.
The main lesson? Slow progress is still progress.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I really love seeing the reaction people have when they open up a handmade item I’ve created.
For example, it’s become a tradition, by accident, to make my dad something music-related for Christmas. I’ve wood burned the Hermit on the Hill from a Led Zeppelin album, the character ‘Guy’ from a Disturbed album, and a scene from Pink Floyd’s The Wall. We both love music and it’s always fun for me to burn, but seeing his excitement is even more rewarding.
I’ve created a pet portrait for my father-in-law for a hunting dog that was a very special part of the family. And while that caused hard emotions, I could tell he appreciated it.
The reactions always range, but I think I like stirring an emotion in general. My artwork causing people to feel something makes all the hard work worth it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Etsy.com/Shop/WoodlineCrafting
• Instagram: @woodlinecrafting
• Facebook: Woodline Crafting

Image Credits

The photo of me was taken by the wonderful Jessica Shea of Jessica Shea Photography.
All other photos are my own.