We recently connected with Vaughn Hartley and have shared our conversation below.

Vaughn, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I’ve actually always been a maker/the creative one, but didn’t think I would ever be able to do that full time. So I did the next best thing that I thought would be a career, but also let me be creative- photography. It wasn’t long after graduating I realized one of the few ways to make money in this field is either weddings, advertising, or people. And I didn’t really enjoy any of them. It was either too much pressure, repetitive, or too complicated for me to do well. It was shortly after being laid off from my portrait photographer job that I realized I wasn’t going to continue to pursue this field anymore, and needed to try something else. I knew that “something else” had to allow me to be the one coming up with ideas, making the schedule, and learning what people wanted. I was willing to take on every role for one business if it meant I didn’t have to go back to being told how to be creative, when, and for how much.

Vaughn, 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?

I graduated from art school with a degree in photography in 2019. And for about a year I was a portrait photographer for a mortgage company. I was laid off due to covid-19 and really had no idea what to do next. Out of boredom and missing spending holidays with family and friends I started making crafts to decorate my apartment. Nothing new for me as I’ve always enjoyed making things. I decided to list some of the fall items I had made on Etsy, in the chance that some others may enjoy them as well. Not thinking anything would really come from this, I was of course shocked when almost over-night I started making multiple sales. From there I continued adding more items and trying new things. My items are mostly banners and garlands, made with felt and yarn. I also hand paint different themed knobs and wood wall hangings. I like to think I bring a bit of whimsy to holiday and kid’s bedroom decor, but I really just make and sell things that I think are cute. Popular items include woodland creature dresser knobs for nurseries, and custom name banners for kids, birthdays, etc. I really love that people from all over enjoy the items I make and want to display them in their own homes or give them as gifts. Mostly I want other people to see the care and creativity I put into each item. That this is not a hobby, there is so much time and energy that goes into creating not only customer’s items, but coming up with new ideas too.

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

One example I have of being resilient was at the beginning of starting to sell on Etsy. The holidays were about over and my sales were dropping. I had only just started selling on September and it was now getting towards January. I was enjoying the excitement of making and selling so much, that when it slowed down I thought it was over forever. But I took a minute, thought about where I was capable of taking my shop and thought, “what’s something that customers would look for year-round and even want to purchase multiples?”. This for me was custom name banners, custom cake toppers, and nursery decor! Quickly these items took off and are now my top sellers.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

One of the most rewarding aspects is the feeling that other people out there like what you’re making so much that they want to pay for them. And not just once, sometimes multiple times. It’s like getting to do your favorite thing, and be rewarded for it so you get to do it all the time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/squeezeandthankyou
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squeeze.andthankyou/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093182557619

Image Credits
Vaughn Hartley