Let's take a moment to welcome Michelle from the etsy shop Kissing Bunnies. She creates a wide range of items for both children and grown-ups. My children are currently both the owners of cloth diapers made by Michelle that they adore. Once you've taken some time to learn more about Michelle, her craft and her passion for upcycling, please take a moment to visit her etsy shop, facebook page and blog linked at the close of this post.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I
am Michelle Triplett, I am from Tenino, Washington, a town that is so
small we finally became a dot on a map in 1987. The united states army
uses the map of tenino to teach it's map reading course (because it has
all the major land features needed in one space)
Although they don't know how to pronounce Tenino, I am sure not many
people would be able to off the bat. Tenino is pronounced T-9-O. I grew up
so far out in the sticks of Tenino that we did not have electricity for a
good amount of years. We finally did get it later, but it was quite the
experience to learn to function without electricity. We raised horses
and I became a horse trainer at the age of 14. I was very good at
working horses and miss it terribly. I threw my back out when I turned
30 and have been nursing the back injury ever since. So no horses for
me. I
needed a new career and thus I picked up
sewing. I had always wanted to have those awesome show clothes they have
at horse shows and decided I would learn how to make them. If I
couldn't wear them anymore why not be able to make them for others to
look good in. Also to make them affordable too. Those clothes get so
expensive.
I started sewing professionally at 32 and haven't
looked back. My Etsy shop is really just things I have sewn too many of
and have extra of. I would like to one day own a brick and mortar shop
but I see that as something a long way off. Right now I do mainly custom
orders, I can sew basically anything from show clothes, to curtains at
huge horse shows, to diapers for babies bottoms. I really do enjoy
sewing and am glad I came in to it when I did and now have a career that
I can do and stay home at the same time.
I am also a
professional sax player in a band. We play big
band jazz music. I never imagined I could accomplish this but it worked
out perfectly. I couldn't be more happy. Our director is the curator of
the band, he has had this band since he was 14 and is now 86 and still
playing lead sax with us. True inspiration there.
At the age
of 23 I was married, in the United States Army as a Truck driver, I had
twins on my first baby. One twin passed. Then I had a second daughter
Alexis who passed at 2.5 months. I got out of the army, tucked my tail
and came home. Trying to figure out what to do with my life then. I
became a single mom when my husband found the love of another woman. I
learned a lot about myself during that time. I met a man 6 years later
and we now have a little boy together. We are getting married this
August. He allows me to stay home, mainly because I am nursing this back
issue, but also to raise our son and heal my broken soul. He really is a
wonderful
man.
What was your inspiration for using upcycled materials for your craft or art?
My biggest inspiration for upcycling materials comes in the form of a short story.
When
I was young and wanted a fort to play in we didn't have money to buy
materials so I would steal a panel off the side of the barn, and hoist
it
up in a tree with a Y branch. Just before my
parents would get home I would put the panel back and hammer it back
into place with a rock. We had built a 6 stall horse barn from the trees
in the pasture. So that is how I knew the panel was there and easily
taken off. I guess
upcycling was just second nature to me. The best part of
upcycling
is you can sometimes get two birds with one stone. When we built the
barn from the trees we also cleared out room for an area. So two for
one.
Let's take a moment to welcome Michelle from Kissing Bunnies on Etsy. She creates a wide range of items for both children and grown-ups. My children each currently own a cloth diaper made by Michelle that they adore. Once you've taken a moment to learn a little more about Michelle, her craft and her passion for upcycling, be sure to follow the links to her shop, blog and facebook page found at the close of this post.
What is your favorite upcycled medium or
material?
Anything I can find that someone doesn't
want. I can literally see something in the raw form and think of what it
is going to look like when it is done. I was taught that skill when
riding horses. We would have to judge a horse on it's potential vs it's
current form. I never had a horse more than a year as I was allowed to
lease nags from the pasture. This started me in the diamond in the rough
point of view I have now. I had to learn to see a horse for what it
might become.
What are some challenges you have encountered using upcycled materials?
I honestly think the only challenge I have encountered with
upcycled material is sometimes I don't have enough and I can't go get more because that is all there was.
What is your current favorite upcycled item you have created?
I
made a horse a blanket out of old blankets, flannel, and scraps. I
don't have a picture any longer but it was super fun to make. I hand
sewed it together it took me almost all summer and autumn to get it
done. It was super ugly though. It was just something to keep him warm.
It lasted about a day and he had it in shreds then next morning when I
went out to the barn. So to say the least he didn't appreciate it nearly
as much as me.
I once pulled a dresser out of the dumpster
and turned it into a hamster cage. Two stories for each hamster, so two
hamsters total, and on top was storage for all the gear they use. And
built in fish tanks. It was already painted a very nice teal color and
worked perfectly in our house. Someone bought it from me for $200 too.
That was after two years of use. I
was really suprised to be able to sell it, I would of given it away but
the lady really wanted to buy it from me.
Any tips for those looking into the use of upcycled materials.
Dumpster
diving is not a bad thing, it can be stinky so wear a different set of
clothes, but sometimes you can find the most amazing things. Also the
second hand shops are wonderful places. Or if you want you can visit
with an older seamstress and conn her out of some fabric she will never
get around to using. Grandma's are wonderful for this. Anyone with an
old time sewing machine in their house will most likely be willing to
part with some beautiful fabric.
Michelle can be found online in the following locations:
