Originally published in print March 2021.

 

Grace: So, Catherine, you started a small business during Covid-19 as a creative outlet, called Wonky Trinkets. What is Wonky Trinkets?

Catherine: Ok, I think it’s very nice that you go as far as to call it a small business. I’m a very idealistic person, and I was like, maybe this is going to be my thing. I was also working a part time job and studying and trying to maintain some sort of social life. So it wasn’t the best time to start. But since lockdown happened, I started to really get back into making art. Essentially, I like [the medium of] clay, and you know how on TikTok everyone started making those little clay figures? I started making little funny face ashtrays. I was like, “Oh my God, it’s so fun!”.

G: So, were you always into making things out of clay or was it something you picked up in quarantine? Were you only inspired, like you said, by those TikToks?

C: I’ve always really liked making stuff with clay. I grew up with clay all around the place. My mom actually used to make door locks. They’re things you can hang on your door as a kid and it has your name.

G: Oh, my God, I love those things. I had them all over my door as a child.

C: Yeah she did that, but what she did was scenes. She would do a child sleeping in a bed or something, and she would customize it for people. So if they had a dog, she put a tiny little picture frame of them and their dog. She would go to craft fairs and sell them and put their name on it. And so as a kid, I suppose I had access to all of those things. It made sense to start. That continued into secondary school… and I also grew up around a pottery school.

G: Do you think with the pandemic, there’s been an upsurge in people who are doing creative things, because they’re either on PUP (Pandemic Unemployment Payment) or they’re working from home? So with more free time and less emphasis on making money, they can now pursue these creative hobbies?

C: I would definitely agree with that. I think [the pandemic has] also encouraged more people who wouldn’t necessarily consider themselves to be creative to start dipping a toe into creative stuff. My brother worked in bars and pubs for the last 10 years since he came out of college. He’s been doing woodwork as his passion project for the last seven. And over the last seven years, it’s really grown. He’s been doing exhibitions of his work, there are a lot of independent shops that are selling his stools and tables and stuff. He’s always wanted [for that to] take off. He was like, “Okay, this pandemic. I don’t want to work in a bar for the rest of my life, so I’m going to go ahead and just give this all my energy instead now because I am on PUP, I don’t have to worry about money at the moment.”

So, yeah, I think [the pandemic has] also given people the space and time to step back from what they’re doing and be like, “Is this actually what I want to do or would I be happier doing something else? What’s important to me and what do I like doing with my free time? Why don’t I do more of it?”

And I think the fact that he had the time to step up and not worry about money and working all the time, and actually do something that was his hobby [was really important]. Also, that he could make a bit of money without being so stressed out about making a living from it.

G: Absolutely. So, yeah, crazy times. Thank you for the interview!