Interview with a Maker: Brit and Chey

Did you meet Brittany and Cheyanne, of Brit and Chey second.hand.made at our July show at PRI?

Meet Your Maker (MYM): Describe what you make, how, and when you got your start.
Brittany and Cheyanne (B/C): Our concept is second-hand-made which is creating new, unique and innovative goods out of recycled materials. This often includes hand-painted and reconstructed shirts, bags as well as other accessories like hair flowers. We are just two best friends that love to craft and once our dining room turned into a craft room, we decided we needed to start doing something with all of this stuff we made!

MYM: Is this your largest source of income or do you have another job?
B/C: We are both have ‘real’ jobs. Although Brittany strives to make a career out of crafting, we are currently just doing craft shows and markets for fun.

MYM: What are your favorite hobbies outside of the crafting that we see?
B/C: We are both huge music nerds. We have a collection of instruments and have ‘musical Monday’ where we just chill, play and listen to music.

MYM: Any advice to someone about making the leap from hobby crafting to selling?
B/C: Don’t let anyone else tell you what to do. Make what you love and don’t worry about the money or what other people think. Opinions are great but it should make you happy first. That is success.

MYM: Have you had any big breaks?  How did they happen?
B/C: Nope. Were starving artists. Haha.

MYM: What are your most effective marketing/promoting tips?
B/C: NETWORKING! Talking and spreading the word among friends and any acquaintances really helps. We try to always get people talking. Word of mouth beats out Facebook and Twitter any day.

You can check out Brittany and Cheyanne’s etsy shop here for more of their goodies!