The best way to make money these days seems to be to enter a niche market. Read how artist and entrepreneur Heidi Finley discovered her passion and her market.
Making money as an artist has never been easy. However, it's possible to make money and pursue your passion if the market isn't too crowded for your wares. It also helps to have the reach of the Internet.
Heidi Finley, of Sault Ste. Marie has been able to find a niche selling marbling supplies on the Internet and conducting workshops on this rare art.
Marbling is a way to make intricate designs on paper through a rather detailed process involving water and different colored paints. The colorful exquisite designs are first created on the surface of water, and then hand-printed, each one separately, by lowering a sheet of paper onto the surface of the water. Each print created from this process is like a snowflake, with no two designs quite alike. The decorated paper can then be used for a variety of things, including making gift items and even wallpaper.
The first evidence of marbled parchment dates back to about the 10th century, according to Finley, but became quite popular much later.
"Marbling is a traditional craft that saw its heyday as a skilled trade in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries," says Finley. She said it was common to find marbled end papers inside the covers of books; antique collectors no doubt have some of these books showing examples of marbled paper in their collection.
Finley discovered the art and craft of marbling and her future passion while taking her daughter to a street fair in Fort Wayne, Indiana, back in 2007. At the time she was working on her master's degree in studio art at the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne. She stopped to view the work of an artisan set up on the street and was mesmerized by what she saw.
"I was totally fascinated, I couldn't walk away from the table," says Finley. "As a painter, I was drawn to the stunning patterns and endless color combinations afforded by marbling."
After learning everything she could about marbling, she wondered if she could fill a niche selling supplies. She knew there were other people practicing the art, loosely linked around the world via the Internet. However, there were few people selling supplies on the scale that would appeal to novice or serious artists.
Finley was able to set up shop on Etsy, the popular online craft store, with not much more than an Internet connection, a camera and her budding knowledge of marbling. For the past five years she has been selling supplies, including chemicals, paper, and paint, to collage artists, book artisans and paper collectors in over 19 different countries via her Etsy store,
Marbled Goods, and
on Facebook. Right now she is one of only a handful of people in the U.S. who sells such supplies.
"Because of the Internet I can make the supplies available to anyone around the world," says Finley.
When not practicing the art of marbling or selling marbling supplies, Finley is conducting workshops for people of all ages, including an up and coming session at Lake Superior State University on May 16. She also travels the country doing workshops on marbling.
She says a lot of people have a hard time comprehending what marbling is all about. The Internet has allowed her to reach out to people share her knowledge of the craft and offer the materials to get started.
"That is why the Internet is integral to my success," says Finley.
Neil Moran is a freelance writer in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and owner of Haylake Business Communications. You can find him on Twitter at @moranwrite.
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