If you haven’t heard of Red Velvet Art, visit the website as soon as possible. It’s dripping with amazing artsy inspiration, and I recently got Elsie, one of the girls behind RVA to answer some questions for a little artist interview. She is such an imaginative and talented artist and I’m happy she took time out of her busy life to do this. It’s a great read for anyone that wants to make a career out of their craft. Here are the questions!

Tell us about yourself.
I am a full time independent artist and designer at the ripe old age of 26. I own an independent art boutique which is an online business with a cute little local shop, as well. I spend time each day painting, blogging, making cute fashion accessories and usually thrifting. My boyfriend shares a studio space with me. He has a recording studio and produces all of his own music as well as writing the most gorgeous string arrangements for other bands. Things I enjoy most in life are coffee breaks, plastic cameras, puppies, vintage dresses and carrot cake muffins.

Treasure Map Print // Still Learning Print

You started RVA 6 years ago, and you’ve done so well! Can you share some of the joys and pains you experienced just starting out?
Rachel and I started Red Velvet Art as a hobby and a way to spend time together. We were making accessories and journals and selling them at music festivals for the first few years. We didn’t have a lot of pressure back then, but our dreams kept getting bigger and we knew that one day we wanted to make Red Velvet Art into something that could inspire young girls. We always talked about having a store, but I honestly never thought it would actually happen until this past year. It’s been a dream.

Photos from Elsie’s flickr stream

The transition of turning a hobby into a full time career is always a painful one. I’ve had to learn to work when I don’t want to and do lots of things that are unnatural to my creative personality (like taxes!). I certainly don’t recommend doing things the way we do to most people. It’s incredibly difficult to function independently. It’s a lifestyle that is full of small sacrifices and work so intense that it can ruin the creative aspect of the work for a lot of people. That said, we’ve really learned how to make things happen. We’ve all become more productive than we ever thought possible and we’ve become the kind of people who do things instead of talking about doing them. I’m very thankful for this season, for the joys and the pains.

I love your brick and mortar shop. Was it difficult transitioning to an actual retail environment?
It was incredibly fun. Doing business online has been a huge part of my career, but there was something really special about putting together a local store that just completed the whole experience for me. It’s super fun to have a shop to decorate and I think it adds a lot of our online ‘world’ as well!

Photos from Elsie’s flickr stream

What inspires you?
Clouds, rain, other people who seem to love what they are doing, vintage, other cities, boutiques, Etsy.com, seasons, green and aqua, yellow, photography, skeleton costumes, the sun coming up.

Who are some of your favorite artists and why?
I like artists with a very defined style that seems to carry on to everything they create. Mary Blair, Mark Ryden, Jim Houser and Seonna Hong are a few of my favorites.

Button Headband // Children’s Coloring Book // Pink Bow & Arrow Journal // Green Neck Warmer

Things you are currently collecting:
blue cameras, ghost figurines, milk glass, long neck dinosaur toys and forest animal figurines.

Thanks so much! LOViiiies. elsie

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Thank you Elsie! I hope you enjoyed this interview everyone. Happy Tuesday!