Interview with Debi Dalio of Clown Fish Cafe Part 1
Rico:
What's Your Name?
Debi Dalio :
Rico:
List your shop(s) -
Debi Dalio :
Clown Fish Cafe
At the time I created my Zazzle store in March, 2011, I had a couple of digital images I had made of cartoonized animals -- one was a clowny clown fish and one was a "karma" chameleon. I liked the sound of "Clown Fish Cafe" and the name didn't seem to be in use anywhere, so I named the store that and used my clown fish as the image/mascot. The name and image of Clown Fish Cafe are meant to convey a sense of humor; a fun, colorful style; and a place to kick back and relax while perusing a menu of varied items that appeal to different tastes and interests. Most of my products show my own art and photos. They tend mostly toward animal images, real or fantasy. I also have a lot of patterned images that I enjoy making. Interestingly, though, my most popular items are the monograms in various color schemes.
Rico:
How did you find Zazzle?
Debi Dalio :
I found Zazzle via a web search after discovering that CafePress wasn't going to work for me.
Rico:
How long have you been at Zazzle?
Debi Dalio :
I've had a store at Zazzle for almost 2 years.
Rico:
Are you a ProSeller?
If yes, how long from the time you open a shop until you made it to ProSeller?
Debi Dalio :
I became a Basic ProSeller in December, 2012, 21 months after starting my store. It was 7 months before I had my first sale.
Rico:
What made you decide to open your own store?
Debi Dalio :
I'm retired and was looking for a fun way to make some pocket change. Putting my art and photos on products sounded like something cool to do.
Rico:
What makes your shop stand out from the rest?
Debi Dalio :
It's fun and unusual. You never know what you might find.
Rico:
How would you describe your design style?
Debi Dalio :
I have several design styles: cartoony, fun, patterny, illustrative.
Rico:
What type of product do you prefer to design?
Debi Dalio :
I like to create images for luggage tags, buttons, keychains, phone covers, mouse pads, cards, playing cards, accessory bags, speakers, etc. (basically anything that's rectangular or circular).
Rico:
What's the best advise you got when you were starting out?
Debi Dalio :
The best advice I got through a newsletter was to make sure, if at all possible, that a design for a product is set up with templates so the buyer can customize the item.
Rico:
What was your first Sale (include link)?
Debi Dalio :
My first sale was a Karma Chameleon mug.
Karma Chameleon promotes positive energy.
Rico:
What medium/tools do you use to create your designs?
Debi Dalio :
I use GIMP and Inkscape to create my art, and GIMP to crop and adjust my photos.
Rico:
A few of my Favorite desings from Clown Fish Cafe :
Scratchboard Kitten Customizable Name iPhone 5 Covers by ClownFishCafe
Check out more Cat Casemate Cases at Zazzle
Meow! This iPhone 5 case sports a photo of a kitten scratched into India ink painted over posterboard.
This stylized seashore scene includes seashells, crabs, buoys, waves, fish, whales, seagulls, clouds, and stars on a backdrop of blues, greens, browns with a sunset in red, orange, and yellow.
Dragonfly Flower Garden Name Only Luggage Tags by ClownFishCafe
View more Dragonfly Luggage Tags at zazzle.com
Make your suitcase stand out at the airport. This luggage tag has a blue and green dragonfly and floral design with red and yellow highlights. The text on the back can be changed to whatever you like.
The second half of the Interview with Debi Dalio : will be posted on Sunday March 10, 2013. So come back for more with Debi Dalio!
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