Thursday, October 14, 2010

Bananamoo Food Magnets


Friday Finds... Bananamoo


Interview # 47
I felt intrigued over the weekend to try out Etsy chat which I have to admit was a whole new Etsy experience for me! It was great to see the feature in action and to say a brief hello to some of the artists that were conversing in there! One of the artists I came across is Bananamoo on Etsy also known as Jonie, and she makes the most awesome food magnets from polymer clay! I just had to let my eyes indulge when I saw some of her work appear in the chat window and felt very inspired after visiting her store, finding more yummy treats that she hand makes! Read on to learn more about her craft and herself :)


(Just click the images to go direct to the listings)



-- Tell me a bit about you! (Name, Age, Location, and give us a random fact whilst you're at it.) My name is Jonie, I'm 35 soon to be 36 on New Years Eve, Yes! I'm from Huntington NY.




-- What is your business about then? When I look at my products I think to myself and I usually say what I'm thinking out loud. What a fun idea! My items are for the kids in all of us. I giggle because my little girl has her play food and now so do I! Celebrating the foodie in all of us is what my business is all about. Plus zero calories!!


-- How did Etsy come into your life? Wow, I found Etsy years ago by mistake. At the time my little sister Gretta was making pillows, and I found Etsy during a Google search for handmade products. She didn't follow her dream, but I fell in love with Etsy and opened an account back in 2008... so many years ago right?! lol! But didn't create my shop until Feb 2010!


-- Are you working a day job too? Yes, I work a full-time Job as a Nursing Assitant. I work for a great nursing home and I am surrounded by wonderful residents. But my heart is in my art. I love to create!



-- How long has the artist in you been 'unleashed' for? I've been artistic for years. When I was 13 I drew my own comic book, wrote poems and summited little stories to Archie Comics. I was so excited when I recived a $5.00 check from them! Lol. Playing with polymer clay is something new for me, I was looking at some miniature food items made for doll houses one day and said to myself, I can do that! But I wanted to do it on a larger scale. I brought 4 blocks of clay and made my first item. A strawberry chocolate cake magnet! And I've been on a roll every since. I've always been self taught.


-- What has been the inspiration behind your business? Food! My love of sweets!
Funny, I started this when I decided I needed to cut calories from my diet, to think looking at faux cookies would have me running to the store? No really, I look at my items and think "wow real cookies have millions of calories". Ok, maybe not millions but you get the point. So with my decor items I can have my sweets, just without calories!

-- If you could describe your products in three words, what would you tell me? Fun, unique and delicious!


-- What would an average working day for you be like from dawn til dusk? I'm up at 4am! Trying to network and catch a quick game of fishville on Facebook before I have to leave for work. I start work at 7am, until 3pm. I then come home and play with my little girl. Kaylynn is an only child so I'm her playmate most of the time. I then cook dinner and play with my clay.




-- What's your favourite material and techniques to work with? Polymer clay, I love it! Everything is handmade. No fancy tools just my hands and little things from around the house. I love working with sand paper!


-- What is your ideal vision for the future for you and your work? I would love to work from home on a full time basis. To earn enough money to send my Kay to college and to be able to stash away a few bucks for denture cream when needed one day would be nice too!



-- Away from work, what do you like to do for fun or to wind down? I love going to the movies. Reading books is another love. But my favorite thing to do is play with Kaylynn. Dolls, dress-up, jumping around the backyard. You name it!





-- What are you likely to search for on Etsy? I like weird one of a kind items. I don't know what I'm looking for untill I find it.


-- Any last words? It's slow going right now, but I won't give up. And If your reading this and feeling the same way about your shop, don't give up either! Good times are coming... good times... and I don't mean the TV show!

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