Meet: the Folk AND a giveaway

I’m honored to introduce you to Julie, the talent behind the Folk, a gorgeous earthy and fabulous Etsy shop full of crochet, wire and felt goodies. Be sure to check after the Q&A to see the beautiful earrings Julie is giving away.

First things first: If you could describe your shop in three single words, what would they be? Ooh, that’s a tough one. Hmm. I would say earthy, diverse and adorable.

I really love the aesthetic of the Folk. What inspired the look you wanted to give the shop? Well, really it’s been in a constant state of evolution, which I think is important in a lot of ways. When I look back at what I was making when I first opened shop in 2009 under the name Respect Your Mother, everything I had in the shop was in some way connected to nature and the Earth. In the beginning everything was polymer clay: polymer clay trees, earths, flowers, etc.  I do still love the original pieces, but you know how evolution works! As I began to learn more and more techniques (and still always learning!), I started to make all kinds of pieces with all kinds of mediums. It’s really hard for me as an artist to stay in one place creatively, and sometimes for the sake of the shop’s cohesiveness I wish I could! Ha! I think just within the past year or maybe six months, I’ve kind of created a steady-ish look for the shop. My main inspirations still are nature and color. I have certain color palettes I like to work with that I think help shape the overall aesthetic of the shop. I like to think I have a good eye for color.

Your crochet pieces? Absolutely amazing. How do you come up with what kinds of ways you will feature that talent? It can be easy for crochet pieces to come off kind of “grandma,” but yours are so modern and lovely. First of all, thank you so much! I’m so happy you feel that way! So I actually just taught myself how to crochet in September of this year. I learned to knit in February. My husband was away for the weekend, and I decided I would take full advantage of my alone time, and I’m always up for a good challenge.  I fell in love with it. Not even kidding. I have to crochet a little every day now or I’ll feel unsettled. I’d say it was the learning process and eagerness to experiement with different fibers, stitches and hooks that are responsible for the designs — as well as creating things that I personally would love to wear. I’m not a very “blingy” person, so I appreciate accessories that are bold without being shiny. I can’t wait to continue expanding with the art of crochet.

Between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., I am most likely to be found: This August I decided to quit my day job (hurray!) to pursue my hand made business full time. I turned 29 in July and thought, it’s now or never. I didn’t want to reach 30 without really going for it! About a month later the magazine my husband worked for went under, and he lost his job. Ouch! So interestingly enough, for now, we are both home everyday. So between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., you can find me at home fulfilling Etsy orders, making fancy fabric flower broaches and earrings that my mother-in-law sells at her boutique back in Texas and designing new pieces. If I’m not at home I’m running errands or out for a walk in my beautiful Los Angeles neighborhood of Silverlake.

If you asked my best friend what she thought about me, she would say: Haha hmm… my best friend Julie (yes, we have the same name!) and I have been friends since seventh grade, and we both live in Los Angeles now. We don’t get to spend near as much time with each other as we used to, but I think she would still say that I am her soul mate. We used to joke that when we get married, we would have to marry two guys who are best friends and all share a house. That may not have happened but we still have a deep connection.

Bowling or golf? Bowling. Wait, real or on the Wii? Haha.

Book or movie? Book.

Earrings or necklace? Necklace.

Summer or winter? Fall

Zoo or amusement park? Zoo!!! LOVE animals.

Where else can we find you?    Twitter     Etsy     Blog     Facebook

Julie wants to help Snap, Crackle, Pop readers get into the holiday spirit. She’s giving away this gorgeous pair of heart earrings.

These earrings are made with silver-plated non-tarnish wire or, if you prefer, Julie can make them in gold-plated wire.

How to enter:

• Mandatory entry: Favorite the Folk, or follow Julie on Facebook if you do not have an Etsy account AND follow Snap, Crackle, Pop in the aggregate of your choice, or you can sign up for e-mail alerts (the second selection along the right-hand side of this blog). Leave one comment saying you have done BOTH of these things; if you don’t, this entry — and subsequent entries — will be disqualified.

Really want to win? Here are ways to earn extra entries:

• Follow Julie on Twitter AND follow Jac & Elsie on Twitter. Leave one comment saying you’ve done BOTH of these things.
• Follow Julie’s blog, The Folk Collective. Leave a comment saying you’ve done this.
• Tweet about this giveaway. Leave a comment saying you’ve done this.
• Heart your favorite item in Jac & Elsie. Leave a comment saying you’ve done this, and include the link of the item you hearted.

This giveaway is open internationally will close at midnight on Nov. 20. Good luck, all!

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