• What do you feel makes your work unique and truly your own?  Seasonally I curate a candle collection that showcases my passion for the southwest, handcrafted products and quality ingredients. The Prickly Pear Sorbet scented candle is my most unique candle. The fragrance is a custom blend that I created to make the perfect fragrance of the delicately flavored prickly pear fruit.

• What sort of things inspire you?  Where do you look for inspiration?  I celebrate the culture and style of this region by selecting scents influenced from the southwest. The stunning deserts, mountains, canyons and rivers are purely inspirational. I also look for inspiration in my daughter Brooke because while I try to teach her the meaning of life, I realize she continues to teach me what life is all about.

• When do you feel the most creative? In the morning after a cup of coffee.😬😂

• Where can we learn more about you?  Instagram. Photography is another passion of mine, equally along side candle-making, crafting, a love of the outdoors and being a mom and I document it all through pictures on Instagram. All of the photos in my feed are taken by me, unless it's a repost from another Instagram account. @sunnybrookeco

How would you describe your style?  Are there any artists / designers that you particularly look up to?

I describe my style as simple, bold and modern. I am always inspired by women artists/designers such as Frida Kahlo, Eileen Gray and Georgia O'Keeffe.

What do you feel makes your work unique and truly your own? 

My designs are an extension of my visions and my personality.  The colors, textures, and materials converge into my creations.  They are the offsprings ofmy architecture background and my own design visions.  

What sort of things inspire you?  Where do you look for inspiration?

My daughters are a big part of my inspiration. They make me see the world humbly. They make me thrive and work harder.  I am also fortunate to have a husband that encourages my creativity. 

Inspiration comes to me in different forms and shapes, butI find that memories are a big influence in my creativity.  My days growing up in Puerto Rico with the beautiful deep and prominent colors of the Caribbean are a major influence in my designs. Now that I live here in the desert, I find its colors, shapes, and patterns  that make up these beautiful landscapes are becoming embedded in my visions.

When do you feel the most creative?

I am the most creative early in the morning with a cup of coffee in hand.  Or whenever I have a quiet moment to myself  which is hard to come by.

What is your creative process like?

I look at color patterns and materials and think of an idea. I start by drawing and using color to have a complete look.  Then I can start making my pieces and finally combining everything until I am satisfied.  Creating is a constant process. You are always thinking about it;  You need to draw it, make it, draw it again, make it again, until it makes sense. 

What's the coolest artistic tip you've ever received?

When I was in my last year of architecture school I was always drawn to my memories and experiences to create a space.  It was during one of those moments that my studio teacher always told me to sketch, sketch, sketch because it was the only way to visualize what I was thinking. 

Where can we learn more about you?  

You can find out more about me on: 

        Etsy: www.etsy.com/shop/soniagraciahandmade

        Instagram:@soniagraciahandmade

        Facebook: www.facebook.com/soniagraciahandmade

How would you describe your style?
I would describe my style as refined rustic.  Meaningful, authentic and raw jewelry that embodies the handmade feel without being “rough." 

Are there any artists / designers that you particularly look up to?          I can’t say that I look up to any one particular artist.  I’m moved by so many creative mediums.  Photography, ceramics, drawing, painting.  When the artist is good at eliciting raw emotion, I’m drawn in.  There is something incredibly inspiring about someone with that ability.

What do you feel makes your work unique and truly your own?             There are definitely lots of handmade jewelers out there. What makes my work unique and my own, is that it comes from some unnamed place within.  I’m compelled to create from my own emotion with the intent to resonate with someone else who has that “me too” feeling when they see/read about one of my pieces.  Many of my pieces are connected to a sentiment or a story, and I do my best to share that when I present the piece.

What sort of things inspire you?                                                                 Is it too contrite to say that I’m inspired by life?  By living this messy, beautiful life?  I’m inspired by the rawness of it all.  The beauty of joy, love, happiness, sadness, visceral pain. 

Where do you look for inspiration?                                                              The landscape of my native home, Arizona.  The desert is the perfect embodiment of beauty with a raw edge.  Like a captivating cactus washed in the the glow of the unrelenting sun and peppered with thorns sharp enough to draw blood should one get too close. The juxtaposition of the desert’s prickly beauty and unforgiving way.  It’s as if she says “Here I am.  Beautiful exactly like this. Take me or leave me.”  That’s about what I strive to show in my creations.  “This is me…real, raw, unforgivingly as I am. Take me or leave me."

When do you feel the most creative?                                                         Creativity is a fickle thing.  It comes on in waves, and when it does, I simply have to hop on and ride.  I’d be a liar if I said there was any one time over another that has me feeling most creative. I suppose the one common factor is emotion.  Any time I’m flooded with emotion, is a time that the work tends to pour out.

What is your creative process like?                                                             My creative process, possibly in true creative form, is not streamlined at all. Sometimes it’s something someone says that sparks an idea, sometimes it’s the glow of the low hanging sun and the way it seems to drip over the mountains, and sometimes it’s just something crying from within, begging to be let loose. From there, I form the idea, make a mental note of the steps I’ll take, and then I just dive in.  I usually don’t sketch my designs first, and when I do, it’s more of a form of making a note than a “how to.”  Just a way to help me remember the idea.

What's the coolest artistic tip you've ever received?                                 Hands down it was “You should always either be attracting or repelling. Be so much yourself, that you are attracting those who are drawn to what you do, and repelling those who aren’t”  It was almost like permission to let those who don’t matter go.  Let them not like me, and still be okay with that. Putting art out there is scary and opens one up to constant rejection.  That advice is the salve I use for those times when rejection stings a little too much.

Where can we learn more about you?                                                       I’d love for you to come check out my website: www.dancingdragonflystudio.com                  

my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/dancingdragonflystudio/                                  

and on Instgram: @dancingdragonflystudio

Meet Leah Kiser, of Artifact Fine Art.

I'm a figure painter of characters.  Satirical ideas and dark humor often inspire me, sort of like a cartoonist, but where I feel I differ is in my patience for details. I enjoy falling deep into the visual world to learn how things fit together realistically.

What sort of things inspire you? 

I find inspiration in everyday life.  Silly thoughts will often pop into my mind at inopportune moments and when they make me laugh out loud I start to think about how I can make that idea work on canvas (I have to admit -my kids are helpful in that part of the process). My ideas often seem childish, but the color and composition of my work has a more serious or mature feeling. 

Are there any artists / designers that you particularly look up to?

I look at paintings by masters for inspiration on composition and color.  Gustav Klimt, Degas, Van Gogh, other impressionist figure painters are usually a good start for me. 

When do you feel the most creative?

I feel most creative when I'm alone. I paint in my garage and listen to sort of visceral music while I'm working -White Stripes, Bon Iver, El Ten Eleven, Adel, Postal Service. I like the way the music makes me feel.  It puts me into a creative and active frame of mind. 

I paint because it is therapeutic for me.  I am more of a listener and observer.  Words do not come easily for me, and when I make art I get to develop my ideas and understand the world from my humble perspective.  When I share my hard work with others, I learn that many people do appreciate my way of thinking and the hard work that I do. It helps me feel valid (thank you, fans).

You can learn more about me on my website artifactfa.com

Shop Artifact Fine Art at Jackalope Art & Craft Fair on December 12th & 13th at Steele Indian School Park!