NATALIE’S CREATOR STORY
‘Using My Gift to Bring Joy to Myself & Others’
We’re so glad you found this story of one of our amazing Creators, Natalie Emerson. The whole concept of Student-Made was created because of students like Natalie– extremely creative & talented, and looking for a deeper entrepreneurial experience on their campus. We know you’ll enjoy hearing from her about how she’s taken advantage of our platform at NC State University— including the unique online shop, frequent pop-up events, and a manager team committed to her success.
My ambition to sell my artwork began in 2018 as a sophomore in high school when I decided to paint graduation caps for my classmates. Meanwhile, I was learning ceramics skills in my high school 3D art class. In the spring of 2018, I was awarded two National Awards from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards in ceramics, for one of my first projects. At this point, I knew that I wanted to pursue ceramics and potentially sell my work in the future.
For a few years now, I have been creating wheel-thrown pottery, and this year, I have finally begun selling my work and officially started NFE Art. I am so thankful for all of the opportunities that Student Made Store has to offer. It has become a dream of mine to pursue my pottery business for the rest of my life. I hope to continue enjoying what I create, along with maintaining a purpose by creating for others. Being able to hand something I created off to its new owner and putting a smile on their face is one of my favorite parts of selling my work.
The opportunity to sell and have my own business through Student Made has been such a positive influence on my college experience. It has allowed me to remember a sense of purpose in what I create and to learn the elements of selling artwork. At the start of college, I fell into a rut with my creativity because I was not making things that I loved and I did not know how I needed to improve. It was until I joined Student Made this past summer, August 2022, that I regenerated the inspiration I needed to create pieces that I love. Through pop-up sales, I have been introduced to what my target customers are looking for and that has allowed me to better plan my creations. The opportunities to create for holidays and specific collections have added inspiration for what I make, and it is beyond exciting!
Through my years working with clay, my main takeaway is that it is not for the faint of heart. I have had my fair share of broken pieces that I spent weeks, and even months on. One notable challenge I faced as an artist was when I sculpted a life-sized bust. This specific piece was close to a three-month process and still remains my largest-scale clay piece. When the time came for this to be fired, it seemed as if it was dry enough. (And a note for non-clay people: when firing clay in a kiln, the greenware, or unfired clay, needs to be ‘bone-dry’. This is a state where moisture has left the piece entirely. This allows for the heat of the kiln to evenly harden the clay.) When I returned to the studio, there was news that my sculpture had shattered where the clay was too thick and not entirely dried.
At this moment I shed a few tears and wished I could reverse what had happened. But this disappointing moment turned into the best thing that could have happened to my creative process. I learned that I could take the broken pieces, glue them back together, and I completely redesigned the surface. The new design took twice as long as my initial plan, but it led to an even greater result. I learned from this challenge that, yes, the art form I love to do is going to be challenging most of the time. I also learned a life lesson that things will not always go as I have planned, but the path is always leading to a much better result or learning experience.
I have considered myself an artist for some years now, but it was not until I joined the Student Made community, that I held a new sense of inspiration and excitement for the craft that I love! (See my life-size bust below!)
Check Out NFE Art!
