We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kate Hunter. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kate below.
Kate, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you wish you had waited to pursue your creative career or do you wish you had started sooner?
I wish I had been told that a creative career was possible. So much has changed in the world from when I went to high school, being creative or having the ability to take the time to be creative was seen as a reward for working hard at all of the other things you were supposed to do. Growing up I never though that being in a creative field as a job was even a possibility, it was something you “worked hard” to be able to afford the time to create.
Kate, 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?
I am Kate, I am a Maker but I also run large-scale craft markets across Atlantic Canada here is a little bit about how I got started. I have always been a creative person, I have always wanted to do things myself, even if it cost me more money to make something than to actually buy it.
In 2012, I was working as a Recreation Therapist in a large nursing home and I was pregnant with my first child, I had planned to make as many things for her nursery as possible, but then, I got sick… I was diagnosed with Hyperemesis, which is a condition in pregnancy that causes extreme nausea and vomiting (ill spare you the details) but I ended up having to spend more than half of my pregnancy in and out of the hospital. It killed me that I couldn’t make anything and so I asked my husband to buy me some knitting needles and yarn at the craft store and I was going to make her a blanket, he showed up with yarn and a crochet hook, I knew nothing about crocheting but it was all I had so I figured out how to crochet, at that point I didn’t know how to read a pattern so I just started making them up, I continued to play around and make things on and off for a couple of years just for myself, but then I got pregnant with my youngest daughter and ended up spending the majority of that pregnancy in the hospital, and crocheting became a way to cope, My daughter was born 9 weeks premature and spend 7 weeks in the NICU, crocheting became the only thing I could do for her, and I made new hats and blankets for her daily. In 2016, my daughter had some further medical issues after being released from the hospital and I had to leave my job to care for her, this presented a challenge because we could in no way afford for me to give up my income, so I decided I would list some of the items I had made on Etsy, we were in a position where failure at this was not an option, so I dove in the platform and learned everything I could about becoming a successful seller, it pain off in 2016 I was ranked in the top 2.5% of sellers world wide and the top 1% of seller in in Canada. Etsy took notice and asked if I would be interested in helping other sellers in my area as a “team captain” this involved teaching workshops and hosting a one a year Etsy come to life in person market in my province. Things were going great… then Covid and suddenly Etsy took off… and so did Hazel Bea. Due to the lookdowns in-person markets were cancelled world wide, Etsy asked me to help them launch their first virtual in Market and Lookbook with me as the host, (this market model as since been adopted world wide.) I was asked collaborate on and influenced collection with A Beautiful Mess, and I began teaching virtual workshops that were viewed by sellers across the world as part of Etsy’s EtsyU program. My shop had also blown up because of all of this, I was making hats and shipping them to individuals and stores all over North America! But after a few years of producing at an obscene volume, my body just couldn’t handle it any more, the stress of shipping delays and the physical toll that making everything by myself took on my body and on my family became to much, and this past year I began to focus on selling digital crochet patterns and markets. With lock downs easing and people finding a new love and appreciation for locally made products, my friend Harmonie (@etsyteampei) and I decided to take a gamble and bring Atalntic Canadian makers into one space for one day and creat a digital magazine featuring all of the makers, Our goal was to create an amazing experience that was for both vendors and shoppers, great decor, fun music, amazing products and a great venue! The market was a huge success and we have since grown to multi-day markets, 150+ vendors per market, and hundreds of applications to participate, We get to go through each application and have been able to discover so many amazing makers and share their stories, and their products! Our markets also provide a bit of mentorship and collaboration between makers which in many cases have eveloved relationships (working and friendships) long after the market is over, The goal of these markets for us is to show the communities we pop in just how incredible our local talent is and the detail and love that we put into planning andorganizing the markets hopefully shows our vendors how much we love them and how excited we are to “share them.”
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
Shopping local (or small) first! One of the things that I never feel guilty about is buying locally, because not only am I getting an amazing product or experience, but I am also contributing to a family or an individual who will in turn contribute to our local economy, and that cycle just keeps going. when we choose to spend out dollars elsewhere, we are taking money directly from our local communities.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
Done is better than perfect! I am a perfectionist when it comes to my work, and it’s a really great skill to have, but it has also held me back from so many opportunities because I was scared it wasn’t or I wasn’t perfect. Our world is always changing and at a crazy fast speed, algorithms change all of the time, whether its google or social media, Etsy, or whatever, so it is better to post something or create something and then finetune it rather than wait for it to be perfect before showing it to the world.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @etsynb
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EtsyNewBrunswick
Image Credits
@Blueberryhillimages @caleyjoyphotography