Member Feature: RosaMaría (464Handmade)

Featured: 464Handmade
Interview by: WallisDesigns

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your background?
Hola! My name is RosaMaría, I’m the eldest daughter in my family. For nine years I live with my love, my partner and best friend Alex, our three dogs and a very lazy kitten. We live close to the forest and to Guadalajara City, the land of mariachi and tequila, in Mexico.
I studied at Law school and have a master in Constitutional Law. I work in that area but since 2008, I looooooove to quilt and sew.




How did you get started on Etsy?
First I started to blog and through it I found Etsy.
In my every day work I analyze legal proceedings so sewing and having my Etsy shop is a way to de-stress after work. It keeps me busy, but also makes me feel creative and that is totally refreshing to me.


Where did you get your shop name from?
464 is our house’s number. In 2008 Alex and I got a bank loan and bought our first home that we love, it’s my favorite place to create and dream. Our home is our very happy place.




What is your favorite item in your shop right now?
Hmmm...the mini quilts and the wooden tape holders that Alex makes.
Making quilts is one of my favorite things to do, I love how the fabrics can be transformed into quilts and be cozy and warm for people. I love to spend days by myself making quilts, so they are always special to me.
The tape holder was a gift that Alex made for me to organize my japanese tape collection. After that I thought it would be great to have some of them in my shop and I love the idea of having Alex as a business partner too.




You are undoubtedly a treasury making machine!! How do you do it and where do you find the inspiration? ...and any tips that would help us in our treasury making.
Well, I think not having kids in home right now, helps a lot! I don’t watch TV so that gives me a lot of free time as well.
The inspiration comes from other Etsy sellers, the gorgeous vintage shops and other artists. Having an active circle helps you to find lots of beautiful stuff, and, of course, many of my treasuries are made as a wish list to myself. It’s always interesting and inspiring to see other people’s visions and choices and how they can make things work so well together in treasuries. Sometimes I feel that being a curator is like being a shopper but without having to add the items in the shopping cart, so in the end, your wallet is saved!


You recently participated in your first craft show. What was your experience doing this? What things did you learn from the in person contact with customers and your products.
It was an amazing experience, very hard and let me say very tiring but still amazing. Meeting the people who buy your stuff and seeing that they are happy with their purchase was the best for me.
On the other hand, I saw that not all the people appreciate the handmade process and many of them want to buy the things almost for free. I think the crafter or the artist must appreciate their own work and not to sell for cheap. This is a big problem in México because there is a lot of great crafters and artists here but many people don’t want to pay a fair value of their work. This is very sad and I lost many sales at the bazaar, but I’m happy I did it. We need to appreciate the creative process and the whole work in every item.


Happy Etsyversary as you celebrate your first year on Etsy! Do you have specific ideas or goals for your shop in the coming year?
Thanks it's amazing!!
More than selling in high numbers, I want my items to go to people who will love them. I sew in my free time, after my job and my home duties. Having very happy customers is always my first goal. Also, I’m working on new bags already and I want to keep a balance between my job, my home, my Etsy shop and my life.



Apart from creating things for your shop what do you like to do?
I love music, books, movies, travel, coffee and nature. I enjoy cooking for my guy and having friends over at our home. On weekends I love to spend time in my garden taking care of my plants (love succulents!) and playing with my dogs.


Ten years from now where would you like to be living and what would you like to be doing?
That is hard to say, but I hope it involves being happy and healthy, having a workshop, being a mom, and still making things.


Visit RosaMaría's Etsy Shop!