Meet the Artist ~ MumblesMummy
What is your name (and usernames)? My name is Beth. My username for pretty much everything
is “MumblesMummy”.
Where are you from? Manchester, UK
Age- 30.
How long have you been in the art industry? WOW! “Art Industry”… I’m not sure that I consider
myself an “artist” I just make stuff from the ideas that
fall out of my head. I’ve been selling the items that
resulted since January 2012.
What got you started? I’ve always been an arty/crafty kind of person since as
long as I can remember. My brother taught me to draw.
But I didn’t learn to crochet til the date my daughter
was due to be born in January 2010.
What types of customs/art/crafts do you do?
Crochet, Jewellery, Painting, Sewing, Drawing, Digital Imaging,
Photography, Sculpture, Poetry, Needle Felting, Prose
etc. Scrapbooking, Cardmaking, although my main focus is
Crochet and Jewellery.
What sort of mediums do you use?
I use yarn A LOT, and lots of beads in all types of materials for my jewellery.
I make embellishments etc from Clay like Fimo or Sculpey
Are there any products you just can’t live without?
My much beloved hand-turned wooden crochet hooks. They are
One of a Kind, made by a lovely guy in New York and they
are amazing. My daylight lamp is a recent acquisition
and I really don’t know how I put off the purchase for so
long.
What is your most favorite piece of work you have made?
my kids?? hmmmmmmmmm… I love almost all my
makes, but the peacock inspired bracelet is my favourite
item of jewellery, and the character hats
me an awful lot of joy cos they make my customers so
happy… Although the reactions of the customers for the
12″OBT and the recent Gir Hoody were awesome. I guess my
favourite item is my company logo… it fell out of my
head in a moment of rare genius, and has been a realy
good omen for me… Favourite item of Wooly Nonsense
would have to be “Bert” – the chameleon I made as a 3D
representation of my company logo
What is your least favorite piece of work you have made?
Again, this is really difficult, as I like everything I
make… Probably the Pink Viking Hat was the most challenging… I’m
just not a pink person
What is the worst injury you’ve had from working on your
art? Barbed needle to the thumb, when felting the detail on to
the Minion hat for my son. I had to remove it with
pliers.
What is the funniest mistake you’ve made while working on
your art? I’m not sure I’ve ever made a mistake that was big enough
to be memorable. I’m very conscious of what I’m doing
and althought I’m a fast worker, I tend to be pretty
accurate. I’ve unpicked over 80 hours of work after
noticing an error in row 3. That wasn’t funny.
Developing the design for the Viking hat was quite
amusing… I made over 12 sets of horns before I got them
the way I wanted them. LOL. I’m sure that now I’ve said
this I’ll make an hilarious mess on my next project. LOL
Who/What inspires you? My customers and my children. Without them, I wouldn’t
have come up with many of the designs that I have. I
love being given a subject, and being allowed to do what
I want with it. I wouldn’t have a business if it weren’t
for the requests of my kids and very first customers. I
appreciate their support endlessly. It’s hard to believe
that this time last year I’d NEVER made a hat… and that
I now have a wait list, and have recently taken my 200th
order.
What projects are you currently working on? I have a WIP (work in progress) box which is taller than
me…. I’m always working on something… but for now
it’s christmas gifts (shhhh) and christmas customer
orders (bigger shhhhh). Keep watching my facebook – I’ll
be showing them off as soon as I can.
Do you have any odd habits while working on
customs/art/crafts? I tend to sit in the same place, and I drink a lot of tea
and soft drinks during the process. If I start to hit a
block, or am struggling with a particular element,
switching to a different chair usually helps overcome it.
I always make the beanie part of the hat first, then
build the rest of the hat around it. Before I start to
make jewellery, I tend to spend a long time looking at
various elements and carefully “cherry picking” the bits
I will use, and keep them in a fairly battered black
tray. I think very carefully about everything I make, to
make it perfect for the recipient. I work on several
different projects at once, with varying hook sizes, yarn
thicknesses and colours to prevent cramping in my hands.
My laptop is always nearby, to search for images to
ensure accuracy when doing “inspired by pieces” – it
really bugs me if I get a detail wrong. So much so that
I will remake an item rather than sell it to someone with
an error.
What types of art do you enjoy? I enjoy all types of Art. I don’t really fit into a box,
my preferences are very eclectic, if a piece “speaks” to
me could depend on a lot of things, and sometimes I don’t
know exactly why I enjoy it.
Do you take commissions? I certainly do! I welcome challenges! BRING IT ON!
Where can people see your work and contact you?
The main place at the moment is on facebook, at
I have a website which is still under construction, and will hopefully be up and
running sometime next year.
Do you have any favorite tips or tricks?
Sit comfortably, in an atmosphere you find calming and
joyful. The rest will come.
What advice do you have for someone just starting to get
into customizing/art? DON’T try to make something ‘cos you think someone will
buy it. It’ll look forced and it won’t attract people.
Make something that comes from your heart. Look at the
work of others only to see how to be different. Don’t be
afraid to think outside the box, and accept challenges
from people – never be unwilling to hear ideas from
anywhere… And ALWAYS remember to thank the source of
your inspiration. It matters.
