What do you make/design?
My work varies from paintings and prints to one of a kind textile sculptural characters to hand felted and textile accessories. Although there is quite a lot of variety in the techniques I use, they all have the same themes and aesthetic running through.

Where can I find your products?
The list is ever increasing! As well as selling my work at the ‘Get Made’ shop in Nottingham – there are other venues. I sell at various craft and art fairs and events in and around Nottingham and here is the list of other places.

On-line – gilfling.etsy.com
gilflingsdesigns.etsy.com
www.folksy.com/shops/gilfling

Galleries
Focus Gallery, Derby Road, Nottingham
Studio 61, Lea, near Matlock, Derbyshire
Lakeside Arts Centre, University Park, Nottingham
Cakewalk – a shop/boutique in Ilkley, West Yorkshire
The Art and Soul Gallery – Bothell, Washington State, US

I am also currently working on a new collection for a new shop/studio which will opening soon. Debbie Bryan‘s shop is situated in the Lace Market in Nottingham and will be opening at the beginning of June 2009. As well as this I will also be attaching a shopping cart to my website so you will be able to buy from there too!

How did you come up with your name for your company?
Until recently my business name was ‘Gilfling’s Designs’. This name was chosen very soon after graduating when I thought my business would be much more directed towards designing and making costumes so seemed to fit and reflect my celtic roots. However since my artwork has become my main focus this did not seem such a reflection of my current work so I have now decided to keep things nice and simple and just use my own name – hence the new website gillianleesmith.com

Why did you decide to start your own business?
Upon graduating with a Ba Hons in Performance Costume from Edinburgh College of Art in 2005, it took me a wee while to find my feet. After working on a few small films and attending some business courses, my main aim was to work as a freelance costume designer. However, due health problems this was proving quite difficult. During a particularly difficult and long period of suffering back pain, I was unable to apply for costume jobs. Film work is very physically taxing with lots of lifting, standing and carrying and so I began painting again.

I had originally applied to Art College to study fine art but changed to performance costume so it had been a while. Long days spent painting and creating from home and the discovery of a website etsy.com (little known in the UK at the time) I found myself tentatively listing my work online. Surprised when it began selling I began to wonder if it was actually possible to make a living from this. Three years later and I am gradually making my way towards my goal of making this my living.

Why did you decided to start blogging and what do you get out of the blogging process?
My blog began just over 2 years ago (gilflingsdesigns.typepad.com) Looking back I had been reading ‘art and craft’ blogs for a little while and loved the idea of having a documentation of my work and a way of recording its development. Thinking about it now though it has become so much more than that. I have ‘met’ wonderful people online through my blog. Working alone can be incredibly isolating and it has been my way of connecting with people. It has been a way of getting feedback on my work, discovering like-minded individuals and making over-seas friends. I am not a regular blogger though and often have periods when I get sick of talking about myself. I do try to mix it up though by featuring other artists I admire but I generally always come back to waffling about myself and my work!

Strangely though I get very embarrassed when ‘real-life’ friends have told me they read my blog and one even told me that she didn’t have to call me anymore as she could read my whole life’s goings on, on my blog! As satisfying as it is, there is no substitute for meeting a friend for coffee and nattering about life – something I wish I could do with many of the overseas friends I have come to know online.

What kind of advice you would give to someone thinking of starting up a creative business?
In the beginning, it is very easy to think you have a very clear idea of the way in which your creative business will work. This may be so, but my advice is to retain an element of flexibility, as it may not always work out as you originally intended! I could never have dreamt that I would be doing the job I am doing now and I am learning new things every day. I have found that sometimes I have had to take an unexpected path or two but always with the ‘bigger picture’ remaining in my head.

The other thing that I have found invaluable is the people I have met. It is so important to surround yourself with positive encouraging people (it may sound corny but it is so true! It helps so much to have a person who really believes in what you are doing). If you can find someone who can almost mentor you, whether it is friend or fellow artist, having someone to bounce new ideas off is exciting. Sometimes you can’t see the wood for the tree’s and it is useful to have a adviser who whilst sharing your enthusiasm can also take an outside view and remain encouraging. I am a member of Design Factory which is an organization promoting and supporting designer/makers in the Midlands. This has been a huge help to me in discovering where I want my work to take me and the mentorship scheme really supports you in meeting these aims and goals.

Finally – be under no illusions – running a creative business is extremely hard work!! I would challenge anyone to start a creative business from scratch and work only 9 till 5. It is incredibly hard to switch off and I have often worked long into the night preparing for a craft fair, or designing marketing products, or catching up on my emails or finishing ‘that’ bit of hand stitching. As a sole trader, you are everything in your business. Artist or artisan, designer, maker, secretary, tea-maker, accountant, researcher, events booker, general dogs-body, advertiser, graphics designer and the to-do list is never ending. This is by no means a way of trying to put anyone off running his or her own business. It is extremely rewarding being your own boss and your successes are even more satisfying when you do well and succeed in meeting your goals.

Where do you get your inspiration from?
Much of my inspiration comes from my childhood loves of storytelling, history and fairytales. dolls and puppets. My degree in Performance Costume has left an indelible print on the work I am creating today in that it is very character based, rich in texture and sentiment and features detailed costumes and stories within the themes. All my work has a hint of sadness or melancholy and deals with emotions, memories and dreams and the complexities of life. I am endlessly inspired by tales of sea-faring men, puppets that come to life and mysterious souls – quite a romantic really! I also take great care in working with the colours I use. This really is an important part of my work and really sets the tone and atmosphere of my pieces, also influencing the way in which people respond to it.

What would your ideal collaboration project be?
I actually have an exciting collaboration coming up with the designer/maker Debbie Bryan. Debbie creates the most extra-ordinary resin buttons and brooches, which are more like artifacts from another era. She has designed a series of pieces, which are specifically hand made to work with my textile character sculptures and will be launched at her shop opening.

I am also incredibly interested in automata and have long since had notions to attempt to incorporate this into my work some-how, however I am not sure I have the spatial awareness and knowledge of mechanics to actually make it a reality. I would love to work with some one who could design and make the machinery whilst I made the ‘outer’ figures and textiles and then bring them to life by movement.

How would you describe your work?
Thought provoking, soulful, melancholic, nostalgic, contrasting between decadence and decay, captivating, reflective, imaginative, personal, atmospheric, surreal, expressive, poignant, – not that I have thought about it much ha ha!

How are you finding being involved in the Nottingham Craft Mafia?
It has been wonderful to be a part of a community of fellow artists and crafters and be able to share experience and knowledge at our fortnightly meetings. It is hard sometimes to be the ‘everyman’ in your own business and inevitably, there are skills that do not come so naturally. For me, I am not particularly great at the marketing side of my business and the display of my work, so it has been wonderful to get advice, feedback and opinions and share experiences.

What are your goals for the coming year?
My main goal is to actually get a balance in my work. Sometimes it is easy to let the many aspects of business take over and find it difficult to actually get time to design and create. I really want to get better at scheduling in ‘studio’ time in amongst all the marketing, attending events and business side. After all, if I am not actually ‘creating’ then I am not going to have much work to ‘market’!

I have recently been accepted to my first trade fair, which is happening next spring. This has been a huge goal for me and I am looking forward to showing my work directly to gallery owners and gauging the interest. I also want to attend higher profile events such as Lustre and Origins in London and will be making a huge effort in the next year, concentrating on developing my designs and improving the standard of my work in order to have a chance of participating at these events.

Thank you Gillian!

You can see more of Gillian’s work featured at the NCM shop/HQ – ‘Get Made’ throughout June. Pop in and see us Thursday – Saturday 11am – 6pm at 17 St James’s Street, Nottingham (next to The Malt Cross).