„If you
can imagine it, I can paint it!” – Rhonda Savage
 |
| Despicable Me 2 - Good VS Evil |
Indeed Rhonda is one of the most talented
painters I’ve ever seen. What she puts her mind to, she spreads it with paint
on any surface. The painted shoes are the most famous products she has. The
images make me smile every time I look at them, even if I am sad. Perhaps,
Rhonda’s positive attitude is extended in her paintings and from there, they
end up touching the viewers heart. I talked to Rhonda about her life, her
online shop and where does she find her inspiration.
- Who is the person behind Seriously
Savage?
I'm Rhonda Savage. Full time artist, mom of 2 boys, 7 dogs and 3 cats named
Dammit, Get Down and You Too.
 |
| Rhonda Savage |
- Where did you get the idea for
your business and when did you get started?
I've always painted my shoes. I put flames on my Converse before THEY put
flames on their Converse... And one day I painted a pair of Lilo and Stitch
shoes for myself and thought, "Hey, I wonder if anyone buys these?".
I Googled "Custom Painted Shoes" and was blown away at what I saw and
was immediately hooked. I wanted to try it.
- How did you come up with your
brand name?
When telling people my last name, they'll say, "Seriously?
Savage?" and the name just naturally came about.
- When did you start painting shoes?
Or when did you realize you have a talent?
I started painting shoes to sell about 1 1/2 years ago. I just plunged into
it and put a few creations up on Etsy.
 |
| Custom made shoes |
- What goes into making a
painted shoe?
I like to start with a white shoe and paint a custom background. I use heat
set paint so as one set of shoes dries, I'll start another and work between the
two. I do a rough sketch with a pastel pencil so I know just where to place the
characters. If I'm happy with the placement, I pencil in the design and begin
to paint. I work in layers. I try to avoid boring, one dimensional paintings.
Once I'm done with the painting, I go into any small detail work, apply a UV
protection to help keep the paint fresh and package them for shipping. Some
shoes can take a few hours, others with sketching, painting, dry time, etc..
can take up to 15 hours or more. Of course, in between time, life happens and
things get busy so a shoe can actually take 3 days or so to finish completely.
 |
| Custom made shoes |
- What is your favorite thing to
paint?
If I'm doing canvas work, my favorite subject are Native American children
and War horses. For shoes, I love to do Disney characters but I will do almost
anything requested.
 |
| Custom made shoes |
- Which one is your best seller? My best seller has been the My Little Pony Cutie
Mark shoes.
www.etsy.com/listing/103804945/any-size-any-character-my-little-pony?
A close second are Despicable Me Minions and The Little Mermaid.
 |
| "The Little Mermaid" |
- How do people get in
touch with you? Where do you sell? Do you have a site or blog?
People can find me at my Etsy shop at www.etsy.com/shop/seriouslysavage They
email me through the site with shoe ideas and we come up with a neat, unique
pair of shoes. I've never found time for a blog or a lot of social media
promotion by myself other than Pintrest and Stumbleupon. I rely on Google
searches. Chances are, if you Google "custom painted shoes", you'll
find many of my creations.
 |
| "Despicable Me" |
- Do you run your business full-time?
How do you like being self-employed?
I do run my business full time and I love, LOVE being self employed. If I need to
take off for a day, I can. I'm home for my kids and I love being my own boss. I
worked in a dull gray cubicle for too many years. Now, if it's a nice day, I
can pack up my shoes and paints and go work outside in the yard and enjoy the
sun. Some days I work 15 hours. Others maybe one or two. It all depends on how
many orders I have ahead of me.
- Do
you have some tips for other small business owners, creatives and people who
like to become their own boss?
 |
| Custom made shoes |
My best tip would be, "Just do it!". Don't over think things. I'm my
own worst enemy in that department and have learned that you just need to
plunge in to what you're doing, ignore the critics, embrace the praise and most
importantly, have FUN! Don't compare yourself to anyone else but do a bit of
research to make sure you get the most out of your efforts for your business.
- Are you participating in or managing
any projects you would like to talk about?
Right now I'm just in the zone for Christmas. Concentrating on getting orders
out and delivered before the holidays.
 |
| "His first dance at the Pow Wow" |
- "I have a
dream." What's your dream?
My dream was always to be recognized as an artist. I get kudos for my shoe
paintings but some day I would like to have my own canvas paintings and
creations in a gallery and hope people like them just as well.
 |
| "Native American War Horse" |
- What are your thoughts
about the handmade trends that are rather new and growing?
I love to see handmade items and am happy for all that are trending at any
time. That means people are passionate for something they create and buyers
appreciate a homemade item rather than a store bought, mass produced trinket.
- I see a lot of people starting their
handmade business. What do you think makes you stand out from the crowd?
I think having a wide variety of items to show makes a person stand out. People
are visual animals. You can say you can paint anything but people want to see
it.
- Is there anything else you would like
to tell me about yourself?
Besides painting shoes, I have also restored and painted cars and travel
trailers. The cars I've done are the Andy Griffith Sheriffs car, Dukes of
Hazzard General Lee and my favorite, the Scooby Doo Mystery Machine.
 |
| The Scooby Doo Mystery Machine |
I drove it for years and had wooden cut outs
of the characters that I would set up and people would come take pictures with
Scooby and the gang. I would like to make another one to have as a portable
shop. I will one day soon!
On a personal note, I love to get out and see and do things. The open road
calls me quite often and adventures without a map or a plan are always the best
kind.
Thanks to Rhonda from Bakersfield, United States
for this lovely interview.
To see more of here art work, check out her online shop:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/seriouslysavage
