…The ocean inspires me a lot and the beautiful area I live in. Also the material I am using, I like to think how far the piece of wood has sailed across the sea to get to me or who used the piece of sea pottery before I found it and why did they throw it away.

…I never considered that I could be an entrepreneur, but online business did change that. Currently, I am a business owner and my life is very different from what it was 6 years ago. This gives me personal and financial freedom. Of course, hard work and stress is part of this job as in any business. But it gives you plenty of satisfaction.

…We do it as a full-time job. we hope it will grow big enough that we will be able to run an international company and start selling these in countries other than the United Kingdom. That
was one of the advantages with Etsy (and the internet in general), that it is possible to reach the
whole world.

…I have always been interested in woodworking – first in elementary school, in woodworking classes. In later years already at home alongside my father who was an occasional weekend hobby-woodworker. It has always been a hobby of mine, growing from the step at a time, learning new techniques, improving old ones. Making mistakes and learning from them. Over the years my hobby has grown into a full-time job.

…My goal for running my Etsy is to eventually be able to open up a shop at my college and teach my friends my passion and so they can start selling things too. I think it is a great way to make some spare cash that can help pay some of the college bills. I’m not trying to make a lot of money but mainly be able to enjoy my work and be able to share my knowledge with my friends.

…I did everything by myself, fully self-taught. I worked in a small shed in the garden of my parents. It took me 2 years to master wood fully and more than 200 prototypes. My parents almost lost their faith in a good ending, but just at that moment sales started to come in. I believe that anyone gets as much struggle as he is able to handle, but you need to trust yourself that you will be able to achieve your dream.

…I have been a Baby-Sitters Club collector for many years. The read the series during most of my entire childhood. I know every book title and character in the series. My 9-year-old daughter has gotten into the series and I put together her very own set. This motivated me to create sets for others, who do not want to purchase each book individually.

…My goal is to always have some products ready to ship in case I have a lot of orders I don’t feel stress and can just pack and send. I have around 40 different designs of macrame plant hanger so it’s impossible to have all of them ready – especially that often I’m asked to customize it, for example, change length or space for pot.

…I learned through trial and error. Growing up on a farm I learned several trades, how to weld, plumbing, fixing things. I grew up using power tools so as I grew older and tools evolved as well I have been able to build some pretty cool stuff as well using antlers.

…I focus on finding and curating rustic items with a primitive touch.
I love wood items the most because they show the passing of time so beautifully. The rich texture and patina given by time is something you can’t get by just applying a coat of paint.