We were lucky to catch up with Shawna Corkins recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Shawna thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I’ve had my small business with my Husband as more of a hobby since 2017, We made cosplay weapons and i started to do some Baby sensory blankets for friends who was having kids.
Baby sensory blankets have different texture material to stimulate the brain during tummy time with a soft side for relaxing if parents wanted to cuddle/ play with them on the ground. I also started making No Sew Fleece Blankets for Cancer patients i knew close to me. Fighting Cancer is a rough thing to go about and hearing the story from my aunt how people always said that the Chemo medicine was always cold and patients were cold and bringing blankets with them to keep themselves warm..

In 2020 I took the leap when COVID was Full force and helped make mask out of fabric and ribbon since elastic was not available at the time. I didn’t like wearing the paper mask as it was a sensory issue I was having, and at the time i tried a fabric one and enjoyed it. Helped out Animal Shelter staff and friends to get what they needed to keep them safe. Late 2020 i got let go at my job and started to decide if i wanted to continue to help with mask making or just let it go..

Christmas 2020 i got my first decal machine, Posted my first decal on my personal profile and that just snowballed into posting on my hobby page.

After a couple months in 2021 of doing this on the side for friends and learning the ways, I decided to go out and do my first artisan market at a local church here in Tucson, AZ. With the help from my husband. Made lots of decals, I also started to make my no sew fleece blankets full force as well.

After getting my first taste of my small business growing at its first market March 2021 i wanted to continue this chapter in my life. since getting let go and only finding part time jobs at that moment. I was able to devote alot of time and energy into this. It was a lot of work to promote and make material for events that i was signing up for.

My little hobby turned into a full blown business in less than 6 months. Doing different fairs through out the City of Tucson trying to find my niche place to call “home” for my small business.

(Early 2022). i started to do my events at a local place called St. Phillips Plaza Every Saturday and sometime Sundays until the summer came. I took the summer for the majority off due to Tucson excessive heat.

St Phillips lets you book a permanent spot every season. Took the Plunge on booking a Full time spot on Saturdays for Fall 2022-Spring 2023. I overall did really well but my health came into play mid season as i found a full time job that was a lot of energy used through the workweek and keeping up with fairs was hard. I manage to make it through the season and my small business blossomed even more.

The rest of 2023 till now i still do events but not as often. I am trying to commit to promoting online and getting online sales.

As of August 2024 Insanity Craftworks is doing our first ever Big Event called Tucson Comic Con! We are so excited to take this risk to see where this can lead us to!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Shawna Corkins. I live in Tucson, AZ. I create vinyl base products like stickers and shirts. I also create some really soft No Sew Fleece Blankets.

I started my craft business due to getting let go in 2020 after Christmas gift from my husband that sparked a lot of friends to want stickers and decals from me. Jan 2021, I was able to start a part time job but was trying to find ways to add to my income and saw this as an opportunity. that just snowballed into my small business I have now.

As a person who loves to see people excited to get something that they absolutely love. This work isn’t work for me. it just brings pure joy to my life and I am happy to have this chapter of my life. I am here for anyone who has an idea and I will try to make it a reality.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I love to see people smile when they see what i have made and the mass amount of products i bring to my events,

I also love when people find something that they have been wanting for a while and they get that little happy dance. Customers bring me a smile that makes me smile ear to ear

I love to hear peoples feed back when they are surprised that i took time to make all the items i have.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

May 2023 was a big pivot point for my small business. I had to make the decision if I wanted to continue doing fairs and events, As i was loosing steam as my full time job was becoming busier and having to work longer hours than i was doing before.

I told myself lets see how the summer goes with work and make that decision. Fall 2023 I did not end up keeping my permeant spot at my market I was doing at St. Phillips. Just started to go 1 to 2 times a month. in 2024 I don’t plan on doing weekly markets anymore as i went from contractor full time to a permanent employee and took on more work load at my day job.

I am continuing to keep my presents on social media and plan on making a website with all my extra time not going and doing fairs every weekend. Focusing on the bigger events that are multiday.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @insanitycraftworks
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/insanitycraftworks
• Other: Tiktok @insanitycraftworks

Image Credits

Shawna Corkins Owner of all Photos