Cool to look at, she thought. But with a price tag above $20, Brenda Gutierrez couldn’t afford it. But being an arts-and-crafts girl, she decided to make her own trinkets.
Brenda has been crafty since she was a little girl, when her mom taught her to crochet and cross stitch. And she already knew how to make jewelry out of polymer clay. But the supplies for that process got to be expensive. So she did some research online and learned how to make necklaces out of plastic.
“It was a lot of trial and error, because I ruined a lot of designs,” admits Brenda, 21. “I have a bag of about 15 necklaces that are ruined. I just wrote down what worked, and now each necklace takes me about an hour to an hour and a half to make, plus the glazing that goes over them. That itself takes about three days to dry.”
Now she has online stores called Cutesy Cuppycake (cutesycuppycake.etsy.com and cutesycuppycake.ecrater.com). She carries necklaces, bracelets, earrings and headbands. Most sell for less than $15.
Hello Kitty hair bows and necklaces are her big sellers — and yes, she does worry about copyright issues, but she hopes people will see that she makes things out of love not exploitation.
“I guess if I ever hear something, I’ll just stop doing it,” she says of the fun feline designs. “I don’t want to get in trouble or make people mad. I just think she is really cute and appealing to people of all ages.”
But Brenda’s designs go well “I think my jewelry appeals to young people who don’t have much money, so I wanted them to be able to afford it,” Brenda says. “I’ve always been into arts and crafts, so it’s really nice when you can take something you are good at and enjoy doing and make somewhat of a living from it.”
Eventually she wants to take Cutesy Cuppycake to the next level. She has taken business classes at Kansas City Kansas Community College and is saving money so she can go back in the fall.
“I would really love to own a brick and mortar store, not just an e-store — a store where I sell merchandise from local indie designers would be fantastic.”
And, of course, her crafts would be for sale there, too. She has recently added oil painting to her skills and hopes to master sewing.
“It’s a way to relax and get your mind off of things,” she says of the creative process.
“You can pretty much create something out of nothing, and there are no limits to one’s creativity. Also, it’s something I like to think I’m really good at, so when I have finished a project, I feel very proud of it.”
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