For the past year or so I have been feeling exhausted and annoyed with social media, reducing my posts drastically to protect my mental health. All of the steps involved in creating an engaging post, and the 2021 push to prioritize Reels on Instagram, had me feeling demoralized and unable to keep up. I did try for a little while, but I was bitter and resentful - you may remember my first Reel, which was titled “I Hate Reels”. It got the most traction of any of my posts, ever. ha.

But I recognize the importance of utilizing social media as a way to connect with my customers and attract new ones. I decided I still wanted to participate, but I needed to do it in a way that didn’t drain me and add more things to my to-do list, when all I wanted to do was be making pottery.

Enter…delegation + good timing. My friend Darcy Vasudev (Cult of Darcy) was growing a new branch in her creative business and starting to focus on working with brands for content creation. I reached out to ask if she’d be interested in doing product photography for me, to help take one thing off of my to-do list. We had a great chat about what I wanted out of the collaboration and I knew she’d be perfect for the job! I sent her 4 mugs and she’s been churning out incredible photos + videos for me. It’s been a breath of fresh air to not have to think up new ways to photograph a mug! Darcy has a keen eye for detail and embraces the slow living philosophy as well, which comes through in the ways she tells stories through photographs.

I also hired a local photographer, Jody Foster, to come and do a “studio session” with me, to get some photos of me while I work in my studio. I think having some photos of the behind-the-scenes process will help bring a more personal feel to my website, blog and social media. It was fantastic to work with Jody and I love having a folder of photos to draw from in many different situations. When I first started doing pottery in 2019, I was making mugs on my kitchen table in our mobile home. Now that we live in a home with a basement, I converted one of the bedrooms into my workspace and every day I pinch myself that this is real life! I’m excited to have photos showing off my custom table built by my husband and his brother, and the art by my friends Kristin Jolly, Amandeen, Art by Aligo, and a funky piece by Isaac Murdoch.

I strongly believe in supporting your friends in their business adventures and paying them well - I strive to tip generously and never quibble over their prices. Pay people what they are worth. Being able to rely on my two friends and their expert photography has been so worth the cost of hiring them.

My handmade pottery is best seen, felt, and experienced in person - but having fantastic photos and videos helps my worldwide customers get an idea of what they are investing in when they buy Studio Stiina pottery.

You can see more photos of my work in my portfolio, or on instagram or facebook.