We were lucky to catch up with Kay Darby recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kay, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I first knew I wanted to pursue a profession in the arts fairly early in life. Over the years, I’ve shown interest in many forms of art and creativity, such as dancing, music, and visual art. I initially wanted to be a professional dancer and singer since I was already taking dancing lessons and was on the youth choir. Eventually, dance led me to fashion design, a passion I’ve had from the age of 7. The beauty of the costumes I wore for recitals really inspired me and piqued my interest in fashion.

Over the years, my interest in fashion has calmed down a bit, ushering in room for my other creative loves, painting and jewelry making. I don’t design clothing like I used to, but the love and passion I have for creating will never waiver.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

At it’s core, Darbs By Design LLC is a Black-owned art and clothing brand. Initially starting out as a side business selling art and face masks during the Pandemic, it has since grown to include clothing and accessories inspired by the art I create.

The artwork I sell primarily depicts Black people and our culture as well as abstract art. My goal is to create artwork that uplifts and inspires my community. I can’t fathom seeing an inspirational art piece and then feeling negative afterwords. That positive feeling is what I want to share with the world. In these past couple of years, the world has observed so much negativity and I want to use my talents to combat that. I’m happy to know that I’ve been doing my part in that venture when I see the smiles on customers faces after they’ve purchased my art.

For those who enjoy my art but may not want a painting, you can find my work on shirts, hoodies, jackets, and other novelties inspired by it. In addition to clothing and paintings, I also sell handmade jewelry. I’ve been a self taught jewelry designer for about 3 years now and as Darbs By Design LLC grows, so do my skills as an artist.

The most important thing I want you to know about me and my brand is that authenticity and positivity are the inspirations for every piece created and every interaction between seller and customer. I want to provide you with an item that you will love for years to come.

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

A lesson I had to unlearn was to not price myself based on convenience, but instead price myself based on worth. At the start of my business, everyone was stuck indoors and a lot of people weren’t working and making money. I was also getting my materials for low costs, so I felt the need to make my prices convenient and affordable for customers. For a while, this way of thinking made sense until the government lifted the quarantine and everyone could go back to work. With the re-opening of stores and jobs, prices also began to rise. At the same time, my skill levels began to increase. The main problem was that I was using “Pandemic Pricing” on items that deserved to be sold at prices that were much higher. This way of thinking caused my business to take a financial hit where I wasn’t making much of a profit because my prices were so low.

This went on until the start of this year at a pop-up shop where several customers actually complained that my prices were too low! It took a while for me to process what they were saying. In my mind, I was trying to be convenient for the customer, but I was undercutting myself in the process. So, I started pricing the new items for what I believe they are really worth.

I recently created a necklace that happens to also be one of the most expensive pieces of jewelry that I have created. I took that piece to a pop-up, nervous that it wouldn’t sell because of the price, but it actually did sell! I was finally able to process the fact that people will absolutely pay you for what you’re worth and you don’t need to downplay yourself for a convenient sale. This was an obvious lesson, but one I really needed to understand in order to grow not only as a business owner but as a person in my own right. Choose worth over convenience.

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

For me, the most rewarding aspect is just getting the chance to create. I work a part-time job, so the days that I have off from work, I try to fully utilize to create something new, or finish something I’ve already started. Spending time creating something new is how I maintain a positive mind and outlook. Now that I have a platform to share my work with the world, it makes the process of creating even more worth while.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.darbsbydesign.com
• Instagram: @darbsbydesign
• Facebook: @DarbsByDesign