Allysha's inspiration is drawn primarily from her family, who instilled creativity in her a very young age, and her wonderful supporting friends and co-workers.
"My family.. They have built SO much out of very little; and to see, let alone be a part of that growth gives me enough courage to conquer the world. I’ve always created things throughout my life, for myself or friends and family. But in May of 2011 I was asked to create just a simple necklace for a co-worker. One thing lead to another and next thing you know other coworkers wanted necklaces custom made for them. So I decided to make an art page to keep track of my creations.. I continued to create for people I knew or who showed interest and then I had my first art vending booth in October of 2011. Where I met Cody from Daft Crafts and Debbie of Night and Day Polymer Clay.. Next thing I knew, I started selling at It’s a Beautiful day, had a few more art booths in-between. Then in November, I started selling my arts and crafts at Daft Crafts! That December I taught my first art class and knew that working for someone else just wasn’t in the cards for me.. Here we are, 9 months later and I’d say I’ve created a pretty awesome baby to call my own."
So, yeah. You read that right. She dropped her corporate job to pursue art.
"I contemplated it for a few months.. Kept giving myself reasons to hold onto my job; “just make it through March”, “at least till February”, and then one day I just decided.. Why keep waiting?! I went to work that day and put my two weeks in. I just had this gut feeling that 2012 didn’t include anything but focusing on me and my art. So here we are a little over a month later without a corporate job.. and I am happy. Just now getting used to the freedom, but I most definitely am happy."
What does Almond Eye Creations, the name of your company, mean to you?
"Well.. as most can see when they meet me, I do have almond brown eyes. But the idea mostly came from the fact I had noticed I had my grandpas eyes. My grandpa means a whole lot to me, since I had lost my father young, my grandpa was that manly role in my life. When my brother came along in May of 2011, I found he had the same eyes. So it just.. fit. Through my art you can see my family, my friends and the things I love most about life."
Allysha's beautiful wire wrapped stones are enchanting and magical. Each stone is meaningful to her and that shows through in her art and jewelry.
"I wanted to turn the stones I found or rocks I collected into some kind of centerpiece. I found that securing them with wire was the easiest and cleanest way to showcase a stone. Teaching myself how to wire-wrap has got to be one of the best things I’ve ever done. Working with metal has to be my favorite medium to work with, besides clay."
Allysha shared photos and a absolutely heartwarming story about her favorite piece she has created.
"The one that is most special to me is this coil pot I built and turned into an urn. It now holds all my dad’s little memories, trinkets and photos.. Like a little hope jar. If I’m every feeling down or missing him, I just open this.."
If you enjoyed getting to know Allysha, come visit her at Daft Crafts! She is one of our class instructors on Wednesdays and Saturdays and also volunteers at the shop occasionally!
Like Allysha's Facebook page & visit her online store!
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