We recently connected with Minnie Cruz and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Minnie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

So ever since I was a little girl I’ve always loved doing anything artistic wether it was drawing, painting, sewing etc. In grade school I was entered into art competitions and won some awards. I also really liked making clothes for my dolls and Barbie’s out of scrap fabric. I remember getting fabric and just sewing it together however I could to make outfits for them. Freshman year I took a fashion design class and that just made me fall in love with design and sewing. I remember my dad buying me my first ever sewing machine and I would just make anything I could purses, skirts, wallets and tops. It was then that I decided I wanted to be a fashion designer. That became my dream over the next few years in high school to move to New York go to FIDM and study design.
But that did not happen after graduating I met my now husband a year after graduating high school and I got busy with other things. But my love for the arts didn’t stop. I would still continue to draw, paint and sew here and there. But obviously it’s harder when you have work, family and kids.

But when the pandemic hit everything just came to a standstill and with nothing to do I started delving into art again. I learned how to do embroidery, crocheting and started experimenting with polymer clay. I loved it because it was very reminiscent of when I played with play-doh or modeling clay when I was younger. The more I messed around with it the more I loved it. I started seeing so many polymer clay stuff pop up on my Instagram feed. It motivated me to try designing my own pieces of jewelry and it became a little hobby of mine. Soon after I was able to take some entrepreneur classes that helped me out so much. That was the push I needed to turn this hobby into a little side hustle. I’m not where I’d like to be but it’s a learning journey and this is where I’m at today.

Minnie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Definitely! I am the owner of Desert Dwelling Darling. I hand make polymer clay jewelry, sun catchers and small decor. I have been doing this for about a year and a half now. As I previously mentioned this is something I started doing as a hobby to pass the time during the pandemic but I was able to turn it into a side hustle. I like making earrings because I feel like they’re a statement piece it’s one of the first things people see when they see you. So I’m very thankful when someone decides to purchase and wear a pair of my earrings.

I like to make my pieces inspired by the colors and architecture of the southwest desert. I like to think of my style as a western desert meets boho vibe along with an occasional pop of something different here and there. You can find me out in nature wether it’s hiking, traveling, roaming around or exploring. I use that time really draw inspiration from my surroundings, in reality everything I see out there serves as an inspiration to me. I’ll be honest I didn’t always like the desert because I felt it was so brown and plain but throughout the years I’ve learned to appreciate it and even love it. It reminds me so much of my dad because he really loved living here and loved surrounding himself with nature. So being out there reminds me and brings back so many memories I shared with him. I feel like Arizona is underrated and really has so much beauty to offer. That’s want I want to convey through my pieces that they’re like a little offerings from the desert.

What do you find most rewarding about being creative?

It’s definitely when people purchase my earrings. Well, because there are so many artists out there to choose from and for them to choose my pieces it is very flattering. It’s exciting and I love it when I get tagged on Instagram by people that have purchased my pieces. It makes me feel so happy and it motivates me to keep on going. I also really like doing markets & pop-ups because I get to interact and know my customers face to face. Unfortunately due to health reasons I’m not able to do markets when it’s hot but I really enjoy doing them in the fall and winter.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

That it’s ok to make mistakes and not everything has to be perfect. When I first started my little venture I had made some very specific ambitious goals of where I wanted to be and what I wanted to do. But it was something that I wasn’t able to accomplish realistically. Not that I’m saying you shouldn’t have goals but, a lot of times me personally, I expect perfection from myself and that’s not very realistic because life happens and it’s things that you have no control over. So when things like that happen it can be disappointing because you can feel like you’ve let yourself down but that is NOT the case. I’ve learned to not be so hard on myself and accept that sometimes things happen and if I’m not able to do something just take a deep breath and think positive cuz it’s ok.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/DesertDwellinDarling
• Instagram: @desert_dwelling_darling
• Other: Link tree: https://linktr.ee/Desertdwellingdarling TikTok: @desertdwellingdarling