We were lucky to catch up with Stephanie Jacobs recently and have shared our conversation below.

Stephanie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

I am at my happiest place when I’m being creative and bringing life to my work. I feel that creativity
is part of my being, it’s when I’m at my most focused, grounded and at one with the world. I have
always found fulfilment in some form of creativity, from drawing, painting, pottery, life drawing,
many years of textile work, and over the last 13 years, I have found my passion with mixed media
sculptures.
I find immense joy in capturing stories within my work through memory and people watching, or
from the unique stories told by my lovely customers. I have been amazed how others respond to and
identify with my work.
I feel my work has evolved organically throughout the years, but right now, I couldn’t be happier with
the type of work I do. Over the years I have had to work part time to keep a roof over our heads, and
yes, a regular job would have had its advantages with financial stability.
It’s not always easy being an artist, sometimes getting up at 5am to stand outside in sub-zero
temperatures on a market stall, or having events cancelled due to adverse weather conditions, when
you are relying on these events to pay the bills. At times like this I do think I must be mad not to get a
9-5 job! But when the work you create is part of your very being, it is hard to think of anything else
that could be more fulfilling.
As most creatives know, there is no rhyme or reason for the ups and downs of an artist’s life – but I
wouldn’t swap for the world!

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

I am an artist, living and working in the beautiful hills of South Shropshire, on the border of England
and Wales, UK. I create mixed media figurative sculptures from wire, foil, fabric and a weatherproof
textile hardener called Paverpol. I endeavour to capture the spirit, movement and energy in my
pieces; the tenderness between a mother and child or between lovers; the dynamics between
dancers, the joy, innocence and energy of childhood.
These are bespoke, quirky creations. Each unique piece is individually make to form a little spirit of its
own. This keeps the joy of making them alive and exciting.
From an early age, I have always loved art, I remember the very first drawing I did at the age of 8 that made me feel that this
was my life’s path. My early twenties saw me working for a large corporate company in London. It
drove me mad, and my only escape was painting furiously (sometimes in my lunchbreaks!) in a range
of medium, occasionally selling these to colleagues. I also dabbled in pottery and life drawing.
Having left London to more rural settings, motherhood to 5 beautiful children took over, and my
creative work took second place for a while, but it was a lovely life living and working on organic
farms, growing our own veg, having our own chickens, ducks, a cow to milk in the mornings as well as
two rampant sheep! A good life!
As the children grew, the niggles and itching to start creating again crept in, and in keeping with my
then lifestyle, I began to make organic children’s clothes, quilts and wallhangings, joined an arts and
crafts cooperative and sold on markets and at festivals as well as running workshops. This lasted for

years alongside my growing family, but as time progressed, I began experimenting with more and
more unique and exciting textile techniques and became more adventurous in my work, edging into
textile art as a new form.
It was when I discovered by accident the textile hardener which I now use called Paverpol that my
work stepped up a few notches. I was seeking a textile hardener to create 3 dimensional textiles
projects. But when I looked further into the opportunities with Paverpol, my creative journey took a
complete U-turn, I attended a weekend’s workshop with the manufacturers of Paverpol, created a
figurative sculpture and have never looked back.
It opened up an exciting and unexpected path of opportunities to create emotive, totally unique and
spiritually uplifting pieces, a means to express and share an emotional response and connect with
others.
I am always happy to discuss ideas for bespoke sculptures with customers; quite often a customer
will have their own story they would like me portray. Sometimes these can be very challenging and
emotive; as well as being honoured to being asked, it provides a lovely customer relationship and
adds so much meaning to my work
I now run regular Paverpol workshops here in the UK, plus sell tutorials and kits online.
My sculptures can be found for sale on my Etsy shop
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Stephaniessculptures or my website
https://www.stephaniejacobs.co.uk/

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Honestly, it’s not always easy living the life of an artist. On the one hand I’m living the dream,
following my passions to explore and create what I love, and to share my work and knowledge with
others. I can wake up in the middle of the night and start working on an idea I’ve dreamt about. I
can work into the night, by the fire. The passion for creativity is my driving force.
On the other hand, I’ve always felt I am battling against the expectational “norm” of getting a 9-5
job, to be sensible and responsible. And at these times, I can very easily succumb to feelings of guilt,
self-doubt and low self-esteem.
But as I become more involved with events, workshops, and markets, join the communities of fellow
artists and artisans who are all singing from the same song sheet, meet my lovely customers and
students, I just know that this is what I need to be doing.
My mission in life has always been to be able to make a living out of my artwork; with a little
trepidation, fear and unlimited excitement, I feel I am finally almost there! I’m cutting ties with
outside work, which in turn is giving me so many new and exciting opportunities. So hopefully my long-term goal will be realized.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Of course the pandemic had a massive impact on everyone. We couldn’t have our regular markets, events or workshops. My Etsy shop came into its own during this time and I had to improve my online presence and make primarily for the online market. My Etsy shop became very popular with my most regular customers being in the USA and UK.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stephaniejacobs.co.uk/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephanie_jacobssculptures/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/www.stephaniejacobs.co.uk
• Other: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Stephaniessculptures

Image Credits
Mike Gibson