Gigrove Stories: Becky
In this series of Gigrove stories, where we talk with our users, we had a chance to catch up with Becky, she’s running an art store: The Shop at Humboldt Art Dept
Tell us a little bit of your background Becky, where are you from?
“I grew up in the Chicago suburbs and now live in the city with my husband and giant goofy dog. For about a pair of decades, I worked in professional theater in Chicago as a set designer and prop master after which I earned an MFA in Interior Architecture. From there I’ve been working in the architectural field with a brief stint in TV/Film as a set designer on several television shows and feature movies. These days, I run two blogs, Flipping the Flip and The Bake Dept while also working freelance as a draftsperson. In general, I’ve been a creative kid all my life, a Thing Maker or as my husband says, I create something out of nothing.”
What was the motivation and vision behind starting your store? We’ve noticed that you are selling “anti-signs”, with messages that portray the opposite of what the “usual signs” do.Â
“My Antisigns come from a place of dark humor and honestly, it’s because, and no offense here, I’m exhausted by the “live love laugh” type signs you see everywhere. I thought it’d be fun and funny to create wall decor that’s the exact opposite in every way. A little edge, a little bite, a little rough, but definitely amusing. I’m always creating something or have an idea brewing in my head so as such, having an outlet to sell the items I make is great so they don’t pile up at home.”
How do you approach the self-employed part of your work?
“I’ve more or less worked independently or as self-employed the vast majority of my life so it comes naturally to me to fit pieces together to make it work. It’s definitely not easy as it’s not always possible to know when the next job is coming or the next sign or lamp might sell so I tend to have many irons in the fire to balance everything out. At times, aspects can suffer for lack of attention while another thing takes centre stage, but I’ve generally made it work. Never doubt your abilities, but it is a lot of time management and understanding limits.”
What is it like, having a side project to work on?
“All my projects have improved my life one way or another. Either I’m meeting interesting people because of something I’ve done or made; making someone laugh with one of my Antisigns; I get to create and always have an outlet for doing so; and it feels great when someone buys something I’ve made by hand, that they appreciate what I’ve done and are willing to put it in their home.”
How does Gigrove fit into your project?
“One thing I love about Gigrove is the simple pricing, I’m not being “nickel and dimed” to death like other sites, and I don’t have to worry if I’m making enough in sales to cover fees. Further, I love that I can list an unlimited number of products and have multiple categories. The shop looks great with its simplicity and minimalism in design. I have a page on my blog that links to the shop’s site, and it’s all very easy to manage.”