{featured artist :: Eclectic Orchid}

Here at Gussy has a lot to say {and sew} we love to look at all things beautiful. Beautiful jewelry to wear when out with someone special, beautiful stories about finding joy and inner creativity…

Today is week #25 of my series on Featured Artists, which is a bi-monthly event showcasing fun and sassy handmade shops! I love searching for new wares to show the Gussy community. You can read all back Featured Artist posts by clicking here.

Please join me in welcoming Marcy at Eclectic Orchid.

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What inspires you?

I take inspiration from music, movies, nature, my family, found objects (aka: antique and thrift store treasures), bright bold colors, and any and all things shiny!

Where do you call home? Are you from there originally?

I currently reside in South Carolina in one of the outlying suburbs of Charlotte, NC. I have lived here for four years with my husband, daughter and canine son. My home, however, will always be a small town in Southern Louisiana, between New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico.

Name something unique to where you live.

There is a fun little festival every Spring called the Come See Me Festival. During the weekdays there are musicians in a very lovely place called Glencairn Gardens. It is one of our city’s little gems. The azaleas are always at peak blooming time. You can sit back and take in the sights, smells, and sounds of the return to spring.

Share an interesting fact about yourself.

I actually have a master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling. So many years spent in college to come to the realization later on that all I ever wanted to do was create beautiful things.

How did you come up with your shop name?

I absolutely adore orchids. I love their beauty, simplicity and delicate nature (did I mention I can’t keep one alive to save my life?). My style has always been very eclectic. I love to combine different elements, from feminine, vintage, modern, to edgy pieces for a unique look. Combine the two and voila… I had Eclectic Orchid.

Share a little bit about yourself.

I am a stay-at-home mom to my lovely 4-year-old daughter and my 6-year-old fuzzy son of the canine variety. I adore them and am so thankful to be able to share each and every day with them. I am married to a wonderful man and my best friend. I am also a creator trying to find my place in this beautiful world. I live for big hugs from my daughter, sloppy kisses from my fuzzball son, holding hands with my husband, spending time with my family, getting caught up in happy memories, the first cool day of fall, the first blossoms of spring, traveling to places unknown, finding the beauty in simplicity, and the art of creation.

What made you decide to open up shop?

After my daughter was born, I was going through some boxes and came across my old jewelry supplies. I originally started making jewelry again to break the monotony of being home all the time. I realized how passionate I was about it and that’s how Eclectic Orchid came to be.

Give us a little glimpse into what a typical day in your life looks like.

My daughter wakes me up bright and early each morning ready to start the day. I stumble to the coffee pot (definitely not a morning person) and get a brew going while I fix her morning cup of chocolate milk. I usually check emails, answer convos, and package orders in the morning. After breakfast we usually run errands, spend some time in the yard, visit with friends, or land where the day takes us. Our days are full and each is always different. At night I usually take time to create. I am a night owl and that’s when the wheels really start turning!

Share with us a favorite Etsy purchase or shop.

It’s here: Dauphine. This lovely little print called “Dauphine” by a darling little shop called Oh Kirby. I love the colors, the simplicity, everything about it. Sigh. Isn’t it divine?

List a few of your most favorite pastimes.

Any time spent with my family, traveling through the Alps in Austria and Germany with my husband, watching the ocean at Folly Beach, listening to my daughter laugh.

Read any good books lately?

It’s been a while. I keep starting Pride and Prejudice but can’t commit. Does Southern Living magazine count? I am a sucker for articles on pretty gardens.

What is your most prized possession?

Probably my camera. It captures all the moments I never want to forget so that they are forever frozen in time and never lost. Little fragments of time, people and places – memories tucked away for a rainy day.

What are three of your favorite foods?

Can I just go with Greek food? That’s more than three, but I really can’t put a limit on it! Baba Ganoush, Moussaka, Hummus, yummm! A good ole Cajun meal always fits the bill as well! Fried fish, shrimp fettuccine, sausage with red beans and rice. I’m from the south. We know how to eat, haha. Great, now I’m hungry.

What would you like to learn to do?

I got a wonderful sewing machine for Christmas. I would love to learn how to use it and sew all of these wonderful ideas I have in my head!

What are you listening to right now?

Silence. It’s blissful sometimes. There is the ever so faint sound of my husband playing Wii in the background. I really should close the door…

Name one place you must visit in your lifetime and why.

I’d really love to see Tuscany. I’ve visited several places in Italy, but I have yet to see Tuscany. I imagine it to be so lovely. I would love to take a bus tour, see a past-its-prime villa, purchase it, renovate it, make friends with the locals, learn to cook Italian food, and find my spirit. Oh wait, that’s “Under the Tuscan Sun”. Oh well, sounds fun doesn’t it?