Featured Artist Athena6

Some women are able to take what the world tosses at them and come out happier than ever! I know of such a woman who became single about 3 years ago and then found out the firm she worked at for 33 years would no longer need her services. Many of us would just curl up in a ball and cry, but not Debbie! Instead of being daunted she found herself relieved. She and her constant companion, a beautiful Rottweiler namedIsis, have embarked on a new journey together making stunning works of wearable art.  Debbie understands that there may have to be a job in her future, but her hopes are that it can be part time at best so that she can spend her hours doing what she really loves.

Debbie was raised to be practical, so her creative side was in hibernation for far too long.  One fateful day, standing in line at a craft store, she spied a jewelry making magazine and not too long after, a jewelry creating monster was born!  She was at a point in her life where she wanted to do something new, and creating beautiful jewelry seemed to fit the bill.

Debbie began by working with beads and stones, as so many jewelry creators do, but has since added the drama of metal-smithing and glass fusing to her repertoire.  The learning process itself is enough to get her heart racing as she found that the two art forms allows her to add color to her jewelry creations as well as to her world.  Designs are constantly swirling around in her head.

This talented lady was on an unstoppable path…finding the need to create.  The result was much more jewelry than any one woman could find time to wear.  The solution came at the urging of her then husband who encouraged her to put her work to the world and sell some of her creations and Athena6 was born.  Debbie has found that selling her creations justifies her faith in her own work and feels very fulfilled when a customer finds that perfect piece that came from her head, heart and hands.  She readily admits that getting your work out there is not an easy task.  There is a lot of competition, especially in the jewelry market, so she takes time to do some craft shows and pushes her work on several websites.

Debbie believes firmly in following your dreams, but reminds new artists to be realistic.  You must put yourself out there for people to find, but you can’t sit back and wait for them to knock down your door…Create, Market, Sell!  Despite all the difficulties of living as a handmade artist, Debbie knows that creating is the most wonderful thing…she has learned a lot about herself through her life and creative process and that is a gift in itself.

Are you ready to see what one woman with a drive to create can make?  Well, Debbie’s wearable art can obviously be found on HandmadeArtists.com and her own site as well as on Etsy and ArtFire.  She also shows off her creations on share her life with her fans on Facebook .  Check them all out and know that Debbie’s heart is in each piece.

Tags: buy handmade, glass, Handmade, Handmade Artists, handmade jewelry, jewelry, metal work, metalsmith

Posted in Featured Vendor, Handmade