I meet all kinds of wild and crazy people on the internet. (Didn’t our mothers warn us about this???) One of those “wild” folks is Beth from Wilde Designs. She is a creative force and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know her better through this interview!
Tell us about Wilde Designs? What was your inspiration?
Everything. Honestly, I tend to pull from whatever sparks my fancy – my family, books, movies, television shows I love. My first and foremost goal when making things is having fun, so my goal is finding projects I’m passionate about. My hope is always that others have as much fun looking at and buying the items and designs as I did making them.
How long have you had an online shop?
I first opened Wilde Designs in late 2007. It was my first time selling my wares “for real,” and I was terrified.
Walk us through a typical day.
My day starts whenever my son gets up, which is usually around 6am if not before. He’s just shy of a year old, so my husband and I get him fed then get ourselves ready for work. Most days my husband Wes (a computer engineer) works from home, so I bundle our son Pike up and drop him off at daycare before heading into the office. I work as a graphic designer as a university. Between work day tasks, I try to pop in on Twitter, post some links, do some promotion, and then when I get home, I usually do some more. Listing new items and making new things is usually relegated to weekends since my weeknights are spent picking Pike up from daycare, making sure we all eat, and then bundling the baby man off to bed so that Wes and I can unwind for an hour or two before we go to sleep as well.
What do you love/hate about blogging?
I love the immediate access to people and how freeing it can be to throw your thoughts and feelings out there. It can be frustrating having to do so much promotion to get traffic, though. Sometimes it’s hard to remember to focus on the fun and not on the views.
Do you enjoy other hobbies?
I love writing and obviously all manner of creative pursuits – painting, drawing, jewelry making, etc. I’m also a total pop culture junkie. I love movies and television, and I honestly have to pry myself away from one screen or another, be it the TV or the computer.
How would you describe your fashion sense?
Comfortable and cute. I really do try to be stylish, but I have to keep things cheap, and with a baby in the house plus both a full time job as a designer and my part time job running the shop, I don’t always have a lot of time to devote to getting pretty. I often stick to basics like jeans and a nice shirt with cute necklaces and such to dress it up.
Are you a small town or big city girl?
I absolutely love visiting big cities on vacation, but when it comes right down to it, I was raised in mostly small towns, and it’s still what I love. I like in a rural town that’s a suburb of a slightly larger one now. I’m twenty minutes away from a lot of fun stuff and conveniences, but I can see the stars at night. It’s a worthwhile compromise.
Favorite vacation spot.
New Orleans. Wes and I went there on our honeymoon and fell in love with the city. It’s absolutely beautiful, and there’s so much great food and shopping and culture. We are planning to go back as soon as we can save up the money. We even got matching fleur de lis tattoos with hearts.
What’s your favorite chain type restaurant?
I love Olive Garden, but I have a serious addiction to the onion strings at Chilli’s. Seriously, there’s crack in those things or something – can’t get enough!
What things are unique to where you live?
We have a lot of great, unique restaurants. One of our favorites, Roosters in Denton, TX, was even featured on the Food Network. In our town, Ponder, you’ll find an awesome old bank that was robbed by Bonnie & Clyde.
Favorite candy.
Hardest. Question. Here. I’m a sucker for chocolate. I think Twix and Snickers are usually tops for me, though at the movies, nothing beats Junior Mints.
Your scariest moment?
When I went to the hospital with Braxton hicks contractions and was told I might have to deliver – and was subsequently diagnosed with HELLP Syndrome and had to be careflighted to another hospital for an emergency C-section.
What helps you when you are in a bad mood?
Either cuddling Pike or settling in on the couch for a good TV show or movie. Lately a good Glee marathon will cure most ills for me.
Use one word that best describes yourself.
Weird.
LOL! Thanks for helping us get to know you a little better Beth! You can connect with Beth:
Website: Wilde Designs
Thank you so so much for this beautiful feature! I really appreciate it, and I had a lot of fun with the interview 😀
Wonderful interview! (I’m a Junior Mint fan too!)
Great interwiew! SO much fun to learn more about Beth!