We were lucky to catch up with Annie Temmink recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Annie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

I earn a living from my creative work. I am 35. After college, I took on a variety of jobs to develop my skills, including working as an apprentice to another creative professional, working in a fabric store, serving as an industrial designer, and sewing costumes for a nightclub. When I got tired of this, I moved home to save money and to explore what it might feel like to be an artist (I was 24).

I worked on a carpentry crew building a house to pay my bills while I tried to peel myself off the couch (exhausted) in the evenings to do something in my studio. It was hard. I didn’t know what I wanted to make, but I committed to showing up for a year. In that time, I gravitated towards headwear. I made a lot of crap. Eventually the crap got better. I taught a workshop (unpaid). Someone asked if I wanted to do a fashion show later that year, and I said yes. I applied for a crowd-funded grant to help support my work, and I got it ($1,200).

From there, I got offers to teach and to make music video costumes. Things started to flow. I’ve always incorporated teaching into my financial plan, and I earn about 50-70% of my income from teaching, with the remaining 30-50% coming from commissions and artwork.

What was critical for me was having a job to sustain me while I explored and developed my craft and personal voice. This lowered the pressure tremendously. I could make what I wanted to make, and explore what that meant.

It was essential that I made a one-year commitment. If it had been a month or two, I would have given up.

It was crucial that I found ways to either create art publicly or share my art publicly, so that others could invite me to new events and opportunities.

It was helpful that I had multiple ways to earn money, including teaching, commissions, and personal work. Each opportunity utilized my creative skills in different ways and nourished me distinctly. I love working with other people and sharing my skills, so Teaching is very fulfilling.

Along the way, I picked up additional jobs to learn new skills – I worked for a goldsmith and in a jewelry store (to learn to make jewelry and to work with luxury clients).

Currently, I work for a community theater where I teach scenic painting and fulfill my desire for community and connection. I also teach a course on designing and fabricating large-scale (the size of a bus) puppeted creatures at the University of Virginia, in addition to my studio work.

I don’t know what speeding up the process would have offered. It felt wise to me to move at the pace of confidence and to allow my process to unfold organically. Perhaps the best advice for a speedier process is to find ways to meet new people and connect with those you would benefit from your work, so that your network grows more quickly.

Annie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Annie Temmink, and I am a headwear and accessories designer in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. I craft showstopping, headwear for performers, dancers, musicians, drag queens, and theaters. I also create jewelry, props, and I am a scenic painter. I love bringing creative worlds to life, and I excel in the engineering required to make headwear that stays on, regardless of the choreography. I also teach and help others step into their creative expression.

I grew up as a shy only child in rural Virginia, to an artist mom and a carpenter dad. So I had a lot of time to build worlds in my imagination. I’m an incredible brainstormer and love helping others envision the impossible and then, with remarkable speed, make that vision tangible.

The best thing about this work is the way it inspires others to say, ‘Wow!’ I help people step more fully into themselves, while also pulling them out of the mundane and into the wonderful.
I’m here to prioritize beauty in the world, and I take great pride in this.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is a flexible schedule and a personal connection to the work I do. I enjoy the opportunity to work with a diverse range of people on varied projects. I get to have a lot of fun, and learn new things all the time. I

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I wish I knew how easy and powerful it can be to reach out to others. It sounds simple. It is simple.
As an introvert, it was one of the hardest lessons for me. The way I think about it now, there are people around me every day, and most are hoping for a connection or for something interesting to happen in their day. I can start a conversation at any time, or send an email to someone I admire, or offer my services to someone in need, and it may be the start of something great. At the very least, it builds my courage and opens up opportunities for adventure. If you wrote 10 personal, thoughtful emails to people who intrigue you every month, you would be surprised what can happen. I dare you to try!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.annietemmink.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annietemmink/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artemmink

Image Credits

Christophe Vorlet,
Alisa Foytik, Kelly Dowd, Dasha Semyonova, Five and Diamond,
Kristen Finn
Martyn Kyle, Kelly Dowd
Aaron Farington