Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachel Carnal. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rachel , appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

Many requests come in for custom selenite wands with intentions for prosperity, or love, for example. The one that will always stand out to me was a request to create a pet memorial for a cat that recently passed away. I have had companion animals in my life as long as I can rememeber and the pain of losing them is always very heavy and sad.

The request was made and they sent me some of their cats fur, a few whiskers, and some of the flowers they buried him with. It was so emotional and beautiful to create this one of a kind piece for them, something for them to look at every day to remind them of their departed loved one, I will forever be honored that they reached out to me to create this for them.

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.

Allistair’s Attic went online in 2008 back when I made pet bed covers, catnip toys, and bandanas. I was living by myself in Houston after returning from living in London for five years and it was just me, my three rescue dogs, and two cats, one of whom was named Allistair. He was a large, black, fluffy main coon that was my literal shadow, he monitored all of the sewing in the early days.

As time went on I had to work the 9 to 5 job as a designer and worked on my personal projects on the weekends. I still love to work with fabric but it has branched off in to my other interests such as herbal and crystal creations. I have been working with herbs and crystals on a daily basis for 29 years and finding a way to work it in to some of my creations has really opened up my mind to what I can do.

The combination of my design background and schooling in England coupled with my spiritual background has allowed me to include details and hidden meanings and symbolism in everything that I create. Sometimes I get pulled in and lost in a piece and then realize I am possibly the only one that will “get it” but knowing my intention is there is important to me.

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

Stop purchasing art on sites like Temu and anywhere else you see “knock off’s”, if the price is too good to be true, it is. So many artists have benefitted by the growth of social media, but we can also have it taken away in an instant when someone copies your work and sells it for half the price. Many people don’t understand that as an artist every penny counts. There is truth to the “starving artist” persona and most still have to work the day job to survive. When we do get to a point to create for a living and our work is stolen, that can put us out of business as well as people thinking we are responsible for the knock off’s poor quality or not meeting expectations.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Now that I am not having to produce constantly for markets I am enjoying my creative time more than I had been. Creating something because I want to and want to express what I am feeling that day tends to turn out even more detail and I feel like I am hearing my clients more clearly now. I feel very fortunate that I have a space to do this, even if it is only for an hour some days, I still have the ability to get it all out in a positive way instead of hiding under my bed some days.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.allistairsattic.etsy.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/allistairsattic
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allistairsatticfb/
• Other: TikTok @allistairsattic