We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jan Willadsen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jan, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
Probably around the age of 15 when I was sewing custom clothing for a pregnant woman who went swimming everyday for exercise. At that time, almost 60 years ago, there weren’t bathing suits for pregnant women so I custom designed and fabricated suits that were functional and attractive as well as suitably covering her tummy. This led to me making cocktail dresses for a small boutique. Then after attending the Atlanta College of Art, I pursued drawing, painting and printmaking and had numerous exhibitions and shows of my work in several galleries in Georgia including the High Museum of Art.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
From early childhood I was a creative spirit and encouraged by my family and teachers. Coming from a long line of self-motivated, self-employed entrepreneurs, I have always turned towards an artistic expression that hopefully supports a sustainable business. Sometimes that’s nicely doable and sometimes not so much! But in spite of the challenges, the base belief and focus is to do whatever it takes to make it work offering a creatively beneficial item that can provide financial stability.
The Pandemic provided an “opportunity” to change careers (trying to think lovely thoughts here). I had rescued Ruby Rose, a Yorkie mix, at 10 weeks old and our isolation along with her hyper-active nature tested my patience and sanity! Playing, running around and more physical activity was simply not the answer – it just got her more hyped up.
Out of sheer desperation I turned towards extensive research which fortunately led to a volunteer connection that brought Pet Enrichment to the forefront. I quickly learned about dog interactive engagements that she could easily experience, to settle her down by focusing and problem solving. Turns out that ten minutes activity with the Snuffle Ball is equal to a 1-1/2 hour walk – it’s the sniffing that actually wears your dog out – so her behavior immediately shifted.
As a result, a unique Pet Enrichment Snuffle Mat and Ball design was born. Ruby served as the Test Pup and VP of Design Development so through a series of considerations and criteria, the design, fabric, shape, density and size were effectively defined and implemented.
Initially I fabricated them for local Animal Shelters where they were Vet reviewed, approved and then animal tested. The result was that they immediately improved the demeanor and behavior of the dogs and cats. With treats tucked into the fleece folds their natural foraging instincts respond and they are quickly rewarded. Lovingly hand-crafted in a durable fleece they are soft and comforting to your Pet and a unique shape that encourages them to shake it. Ruby likes to shake the fool out of her favorites and if a few treats go flying be rest assured that they’ll be readily retrieved. They are also machine washable cold and then dry on medium heat.
Knowing how beneficial the Snuffles have been to the Shelter animals, friends and family encouraged me to offer to everyone else. So I launched the business just over a year ago and the results have been so heartwarming as PawParents share their stories, videos and photos of their Pets enjoying and experiencing. I love participating in various kinds of Venues where I can introduce firsthand the benefits in order to further educate Pet Owners and they can check out the sizes and styles while feeling the fabrics as well. And the bonus is that I get to see photos of everyone’s furbuddies along with their names, history and personalities. It’s very rewarding for me when the dogs are there too and they can actually choose which Snuffle they want!
Ruby’s Rootin’ Snootin’ Snuffles calm hyper behavior (focussing on treat retrieval settles them down), reduce boredom and stress (an interactive engagement that’s mentally beneficial), improve focus and problem solving (they can smell the treats and they have to figure out how to get to them) and slow fast eaters (they have to basically “work” at getting their food vs inhaling which is unhealthy).
They’re also ideally created to be used as a training effort impacting destructive behavior. If you have a chewer or shredder it’s an opportunity to alter that behavior specifically with Ruby’s Snuffle Ball. After very closely supervising the interaction you immediately remove and store out of sight when your Pet is finished – then each time it’s offered you are training them to respond to it as a glorified treat dispenser. While they are retrieving treats they are very busy focussing and less prone to being destructive. And a small size Snuffle Ball is perfect for a specific obedience skill (i.e. potty training, quiet/no barking) – only tuck 2 or 3 treats as the reward and remove when finished then store out of sight so that each offering is associated with a desired good behavior. They’re especially effective with puppies by starting the interactive engagement at an early age.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
All my life, everywhere I’ve gone, people have remarked about how they aren’t creative and envy my artistic abilities. When viewing my drawings or paintings they’ll remark “I can’t even draw a straight line” Well, guess what? neither can I! That’s why straight edge rulers were invented and I rely upon them in every draw a straight line situation needed!
But in fact, Everyone is Creative it’s really just a matter of recognizing how you are expressing that trait. And if you weren’t
In every day situations you regularly make aesthetic decisions – choosing clothing and accessories to wear, gift wrapping for a present, doing a fun tablescape for a holiday, purchasing colorful annuals to plant in your garden, paint colors for your home. Those all count. It’s where you make comparisons and the choices are a result of many factors. That’s essentially the creative mindset. So go easy on yourself and take a look at what you do!
What’s missing for most folks is a lack of recognition, encouragement or support from others. But if you look at the lives of historically well-know creatives you’ll see that it’s many times a curse and a blessing – can be a struggle, a problem solving form of expression. And they’re not always happy with the results!
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
The hardest struggle for creatives is the balance between self expression and making a living. It’s sad that people don’t realize little alone sympathize with self-employed creative individuals. It’s one thing to represent a manufactured product as a small business owner but a whole other set of challenges for an artist or creative person.
First of all the struggle to create, express in ways that you hope are accepted by others is significant. Then that whatever form of expression has been created is accepted enough to be purchased. And then enough is purchased to pay for materials and supplies, marketing, social media, the website costs, and the ever increasing basic cost of living.
There isn’t a steady paycheck or benefits or a 401K for them to rely upon. An artist creates because they feel the need to express themselves enough to face all the challenges but society is lacking in providing respect as well as support.
I don’t readily have answers to change that but I think it starts with shopping locally and shopping small entrepreneurs and shopping creatives making handcrafted items. Every dollar you spend with them makes a significant difference in their lives and helps to allow them to continue or here’s a notion: maybe thrive.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rootinsnootinsnuffles.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/rubysrootinsnootinsnuffles/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/rubysrootinsnootinsnuffles/
Image Credits
Willadsen Design