We recently connected with Madelyn Motsinger and have shared our conversation below.

Madelyn, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

Both my parents and grandparents have made such an impact on my life as a creative entrepreneur. Perpetual October in part is an ode to my grandmother, who I was very close to. She always supported me and encouraged me to prioritize happiness in my life. I’ve always been a creative spirit, and enjoy making things with my hands. This project makes me so happy, and gives me an almost therapeutic outlet creatively.

My mother and paternal grandmother are also inspirations to me, and have set me up with lessons learned that I take with me every day. My mother is a tough cookie, and has taught me to not give up in life. To keep pushing and pursuing things in my life that are important, including Perpetual October. Grams (Nancy), my paternal grandmother, has such a loving heart and is quick to show her pride and support. I’m so thankful to have such a positive family that doesn’t hesitate to lift me up and support me.

My father passed away earlier this year, but he was always one of my biggest cheerleaders for Perpetual October, and any entrepreneurial endeavor in my life. From buying earrings from me for his own clients, reposting my successes and posts, and offering advice, he was always proud of me with this venture. It’s been a massive struggle losing him so suddenly this year, when he and I were so close, but I know he’d be proud of the progress I’m making with Perpetual October and continues to watch over me. I of course wish for anything more in the world to bring him back to me, but I know that’s not possible. I’m forever grateful for all of the lessons he’s taught me, advice he’s given, and pride he beamed along this journey.

Madelyn, 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?

For the folks who are not familiar with Perpetual October – I’m a maker originally from Missouri, and former interior designer! This project was created after I noticed that there was a common practice with materials in my library that they would be tossed in the garbage bin once their purpose was served, or if they were discontinued. I decided that these materials are too beautiful to be discarded so easily, and took home everything that I could! I had no idea what I was going to make with it at the time, but knew I’d figure out something eventually.

Fast forward to my lightbulb moment! I’d always been fond of making things with my hands, and had made jewelry in the past in high school. I decided to try and make some earrings from these beautiful materials, and it worked! I wore them and got compliments on them fairly frequently enough that I thought maybe I could make these and sell them. The statement earring trend had started to take off, and so I decided to make a go of it!

I expanded my line from just earrings to include wall clocks, as that would not only keep wallcoverings out of landfills, but also unique textiles as well!

My main mission with Perpetual October is dual purpose. I want to give folks something unique and memorable to wear or decorate their home with, but also want to give these beautiful materials a new life instead of letting them take up unnecessary space in landfills!

I’ve recently expanded my offerings once more, and am now making unique abstract tapestries. This allows me to use even more textiles that aren’t necessarily ideal or interesting enough on their own to be focal pieces. But together with other fabrics, they create something wholly unique and wonderful. And you don’t need to know how to read an analog clock face to enjoy them :)

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Markets (especially outdoor markets!) are always a risk. There is so much to consider with outdoor markets, but none of it will guarantee success. I’ve had so many experiences with markets that could have really crushed some spirits, but as a glass-half-full person, I just chock it up to another lesson learned. At the end of the day, yes the hope is to sell your creations, but worst case scenario, it’s marketing with fellow makers, potential future customers, and even possibly new stockists!

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I believe that artists, creatives, and makers need to stick together and support one another. This might be a controversial hot take, but I think we can all rise together if we don’t see each other as competition to get the sale over someone else. This leads to unhealthy competitive practices like undercutting others with lowering your prices just in an effort to obtain the sale. This I believe is detrimental to both the maker and the consumer. As far as the maker community goes, this constant under-pricing your wares is not only undervaluing your efforts and profit margin to continue to grow, but also cheapens the one resource that we can never get back: time. As far as customers go, encouraging them to compare prices to more mass produced items or to look for the cheapest option out there doesn’t allow them to really see, consider, and appreciate the amount of time and effort that handmade items take.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/perpetualoctobershop/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PerpetualOctober
• Other: https://www.faire.com/brand/b_7y9vfqf6hj