We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nicole Washington a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I started working with clay on a whim and learned mostly through trial and error. I watched a few videos and bought some clay and went for it. Looking back I wouldn’t do much different except for more research. I would look into the different brands of clay and find nicer metals so they wouldn’t tarnish. Overall the process is something everyone has to go through to grow and excel at their craft. I think pushing through frustration and making myself keep learning and growing was essential. I could have dropped the idea when my first earrings turned out abysmally, but I didn’t and continued to learn and turned it into a successful business. Covid was a big factor in starting my business since at the time we weren’t doing much in person, now I do most of my sales at markets and events rather than online.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Nicole Washington and I am the owner and creator of Clay & Clover. I hand-make clay earrings and other accessories like bookmarks, rings and bracelets. I got into polymer clay as a hobby during lockdown and really loved that it allowed me to be creative outside of my full-time job. I decided to create a business out of it and have been loving it ever since. It functions as my creative outlet and stress reliever in my free time. One of the best things about clay earrings is how lightweight they are, I’ve always loved big statement earrings, but not how much they pull or hurt your ears. With clay you don’t have to worry about that since most pairs only weigh around 0.1 oz; about the weight of a nickel.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist and business owner is when people love and relate to my work. I make what I love and when someone else experiences the same enthusiasm, it’s a wonderful feeling. I pull inspiration from all around me; nature, a favorite book series, the Greek gods and goddess, all of those have sparked ideas for my collections. I love when someone shares similar interests and falls in love with my creations.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I really focused on my social media presence in 2022. Consistency is the major key to growth. It’s also very important to understand the algorithm of the platform you want to use. For example, I use instagram as my main social media and they had a huge push for reels and less focus on pictures so I started filming EVERYTHING. People love watching the process of creating and I had a few reels go viral, that’s how I achieved my following. For me, it really helped when I batch made my content so it was easier to post throughout the week during my day job.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://claycloverearrings.etsy.com/
• Instagram: Instagram.com/clay_clover
• Facebook: ClayCloverEarrings