Today, we get to hear from the lovely Jess and Tony, the creators behind Works of Whimsy Studios. I discovered Jess a few months ago on Twitter, like you do these days when she shared a gorgeous piece of art featuring a rainbow splash with a d20 on top. It was pretty, so I started to follow them and check out their stuff. They have an Etsy shop full of some really gorgeous creations–paintings, pot holders, keychains, dice vaults–you name it. In our conversation, Tony & Jess talk about their journey to this point of working in their basement and how Jess is able to be a full-time creator, working with your family, the ins and outs of Etsy, and how we are made for more than being stuck in the grind of doing jobs that make us miserable. It was a really inspiring and fun conversation. Also, I realize this episode is a bit long, but I think we should all just accept that I’m going over the normal hour time limit when I have more than one guest on. Hope ya’ll don’t mind too much!
Since it is a longer episode today, I’ll keep the business items short. If this is your first time tuning in to the show, welcome. This podcast is a part of Lightheart Adventures, which is a small company I co-founded with my husband. We offer a weekly blog on our website where you’ll find tips for running games, free monthly one-shot adventures, product reviews, and more. You’ll find the blog at lightheartadventures.com. Brenton also creates beautiful dungeon maps, both on DM’s Guild and for commissions.
Some other ways you can support us and the show are by checking out our Patreon, subscribing to this show, leaving a review, and checking out our affiliate links. One of those affiliates is Dice Envy, where we’ve purchased some of our favorite dice. There are gorgeous sets in resin, metal, wood. They just released a super pretty purple and turquoise set called How do want to do this in honor of the Summer of Aabria. Go to diceenvy.com, enter in code LightheartADV to receive 10% off your order, and help support this show.
Okay, enjoy this conversation with Jess & Tony!
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Time Stamps & Screenshots
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:02:55 Jess & Tony Introduction
- 00:08:55 How did you get started in art?
- 00:11:38 Beginnings of the Etsy shop
- 00:19:52 Design Process
- 00:29:51 Lessons from working with your spouse
- 00:32:31 Inventory logistics
- 00:40:07 The necessary evil of social media
- 00:44:36 Packaging & fulfillment process
- 00:49:12 Pros & Cons of Etsy
- 00:56:37 What has been the most challenging part?
- 00:59:59 What has been the most rewarding part?
- 01:07:41 Upcoming projects
- 01:12:36 Where can people find you?
- 01:13:39 Wrap-up
Thanks for dropping by! We would love to know who would like us to interview, so please drop a comment here on the blog, on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or Discord to let us know who your favorite creators are! If you’d like access to more maps and content, including downloadable PDFs of our adventures, check out our Patreon. We’re able to do what we do because of all our amazing Patrons!
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