Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Jo Hobbs.
Hi Mary Jo, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
It started over 38 years ago when I gifted myself a Birthday present. Took a six weeks Stained Glass class with Dan at Stained Glass of Raleigh. He has long since retired, sold the business and moved up North due to health reasons.
After my husband and I renovated our home for his disabilities in early 2019, the storage shed needed to be updated as well. With many improvements added, a dream started to emerge. After 35 years of using space were ever found, a workstation for my art became clear.
Considering my upcoming retirement in 2021, taking a hobby to the next level seemed a good direction, “She Shed Stained Glass”, a female operated and ran, at home small business was born.
Then COVID hit. Shut down for eight weeks, I started working on things like my Brand, website, business cards and inventory. Still hopeful that business would return to some kind of normal, I stayed focus on my agenda. Inventory. So when 2021 came, I would be ready. Knew I wanted to do Markets but wasn’t sure what that looked like yet.
The end of May 2020 would be a turning point. My employer had to close the store I was managing. Not many options left, a few weeks later, I decided to call it done and move forward. Because I had been preparing, the only thing left to do was to buy a tent, sign up for a few Markets and get out in front of people. I am thankful for all who supported me in my dream and passion to have my own business.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
While researching options of in person versus selling online, I felt I was not ready for the online direction. So much was already online. I did not want to get lost in all that. I wanted to be different.
Remember, I’m supposed to be retired. So I wanted to keep my dream as simple as possible and enjoy it for a long time. Yes, I would have to work at it, but on my terms and in my timing. I felt if I went online, I would not have that flexibility.
The biggest challenge is because my husband is disabled. He cannot help me prepare when I go to market. If he goes, he just has to sit and watch. That’s very hard for him.
So for now, I’m enjoying Markets and consignments. Teaching classes when available and with small and big opportunities to be in front of people, hearing their story and telling them mine, The story of “She Shed Stained Glass”, a place, not just a name.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an artist first. Been one all my life. Enjoyed being busy with my hands. I was not professionally taught even though I watched my mother through my life being artistic. I was not afraid to try new things even though there are mediums that I’ve never tried. So I have no interest to and others I have not gotten to yet. Things became simple and I wanted to share it with whoever I could with whatever medium I was using.
I think people will say about me while I’m here and when I’m gone, is that I enjoy people and I enjoy being kind and you can’t be stingy on that.
As far as my art, there are things that I have done that were gifts from the Lord and I felt he required that of me, and I knew it. So whether I kept it for myself or passed it on to someone else, Love continued. I like to brand myself as a one-of-a-kind, unique Artist. I’m not a cookie-cutter artist.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was very artistic and athletic. Being involved in both throughout my school years. My childhood was challenging and was a great escape.
Pricing:
- I like to do Earrings. Easy selling item and always asked for at Markets.. $20 gets you a nice pair of Stained Glass earrings. Custom orders are the same price.
- Hand size pieces run $30/$45
- I love bringing complex and elaborate pieces to market. Some can be serious and or abstract. Visitors can see how serious or playful I can be. That also starts conversations of what I might can do for them. $100-300
- $50-75 group is that middle range item and can be detailed
Contact Info:
- Email: sheshedstainedglass@gmail.com
- Website: http://www.sheshedstainedglass.com
- Instagram: sheshedstainedglass
- Facebook: Mary Jo Hobbs
Image Credits
Mary Jo Hobbs She Shed Stained Glass
