10 Things You Should Know About Debi Beard
To celebrate her quirky style and the debut of her feature article in HandCrafted magazine, we’re inviting design star and recycle queen Debi Beard to take over our Facebook page for two one-hour sessions for a live Q&A!
10 Things You Should Know about Debi Beard:
1) YouTube Inspiration
I started my YouTube channel because I had auditioned for HGTV design star eight times in a row. I was almost selected three times but never quite made it on the show. Out of frustration, I created my own one woman DIY show on Youtube. I had no idea how much fun it would be or that so many people would be interested in watching my amateur productions. In the most recent video, I announce my Facebook Takeover on Stampington’s page and offer a DIY and giveaway for a sugar skull T- shirt made with vintage lace:
2) Debi Doesn’t Own a T.V.
“I don’t own a television or watch T.V. (Which is kind of ironic after spending so many years auditioning for television!) The only shows I miss watching are: Project Runway and Inside the Actors Studio. When people make reference to Game of Thrones or Breaking Bad I have no idea what they’re talking about.”
3) Vintage or Bust
“The majority of the supplies in my craft room are vintage. I love to peruse estate sales and find old sewing boxes and craft supplies from way back when.”
4) Somerset Life Plays Role in Reunion with Biological Father
“There was an article about my vintage shop located in Solana Beach published in Somerset Life that actually led to me finding my long lost biological father.”
“It’s a long crazy story, but in a nutshell, a photographer named Claire Brocato took a photo of an old rusty bicycle on display in front of my store and posted it to her Flickr profile.
When Stampington’s publisher Kellene Giloff, saw the rusty bicycle picture on Flickr, she e-mailed Claire to find out where it was taken. After discovering that it was taken in front of my shop, Kellene enlisted in Claire’s help to capture more images of my store, which was then featured in Stampington’s “Locales of Intrigue” column.
When Claire arrived at my shop for the photography session, she shared how she had reunited with her daughter that she had been forced to give up for adoption. Even though Claire started searching for her daughter with virtually no leads, (as her daughter lived on the other side of the world) she miraculously found her through Facebook. I had spent years searching for my dad and had given up. When Claire told me her story, I realized that social media didn’t exist at the time I was looking, so I decided to try finding my dad via Facebook. I found him within one week! The sheer randomness of it all is a miracle to me. If Claire had never walked by my store, taken the photo of the rusty bicycle, posted it to her Flickr site — if Kellene had not happened to find that picture, and liked it enough to email someone she had never met before, l probably would still not know who my Dad is, not to mention an entire new family.”
5) Unlikely Creativity
“I was the only one in my family who loved to create. The family I grew up with was not interested in art, and it wasn’t until I was in my forties that I discovered where my creativity came from. I recently found my biological father through Facebook — turns out he is an artist and he has a whacky sense of humor too.”
6) Before Social Media there was Face to Face Interaction
“When I first started making handmade items, social media didn’t exist. There was no Etsy, Blogs, Pinterest, Facebook, or even beautiful art magazines like all the Stampington publications. The only way to market your work was through local events, and literally going door to door, meeting with shop owners, and showing them samples of your work. It’s a very different world now and it’s an exciting time to be creative!”
7) Art Paid Debi’s Way for School
“When I was in my twenties, I sold my handmade projects at local craft fairs to pay for books and school supplies. My designs sold quickly and before I knew it I was selling my crafts to hundreds of retail stores across the country.”
8) Debi Ditched Teaching Plans to Pursue Art Dreams
“I originally went to school to study english literature and planned to become a teacher. Soon after finishing school I realized that this was not the right choice for me and started selling my handmade work full time.”
9) Debi is an Actress!
“I started taking acting workshops a few years ago, but up until that point I spent most of my life very afraid of speaking in public or being on camera. The first day of acting class I almost left because I had so much anxiety.”
10) Debi Transforms Trash into Dreamy Treasures
Debi is renowned for her dumpster diving abilities to transform discarded materials into unique keepsakes.
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You might also enjoy: GreenCraft Magazine
Posted: Monday, October 21st, 2013 @ 10:03 am
Categories: How-To Project Tutorials.
Tags: art, Claire Brocato, community, craft, Debi, Debi Beard, design, designer, DIY, dumpster dive, facebook, free, Giveaway, Guest Artist, HandCrafted, Magazines, recycle, takeover, tutorial, upcycle, Vintage, YouTube.
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I love Debi! Thanks so much for the inspiring post! xoox
You’re so welcome Christine! We hope you join us for the Facebook Takeover.
Debi you are so fun and brilliantly talented. Thank you for the wonderful enjoyment and inspiration this afternoon.
hugs
susan salyer
Thank you so much for sharing my story here! I am so honored to be featured in Handcrafted, Stampington magazines are my favorite, filled with beautiful, dreamy inspiration that I can get lost in for hours! I cant wait to chat with everybody this Wednesday :)
xoxo
Debi
Debi I found you while looking up Cece Caldwell paint and loved all your vids, your so talented and have some great ideas I love watching and learning from you , thank you.
Randi K
Debi, You are who I want to be like when I grow up. PS I am 42 years young.
Love, love your talent and personality. So much fun to watch and learn from you.
Debi I love your story and all that you shared~ You are so fun n’ fabulous~ I can’t wait to chat with you! ATB @>————-
I have really gotten inspired by your videos…and laughed alot too! Kudos to you and all of your successes….keep on keepin’ on….
I’ve loved watching and learning for years from Debi. She is super talented and a hoot taboot!
[…] It will be so much fun to talk to you live! You can find out more details here, by clicking on the Stampington Blog […]
Congratulations, Debi. Thanks for sharing your very touching story with your subscribers. I love your DIY tutorials. You are an inspiration. Now, I want to make a sugarskull lace t-shirt.
P.S. I would love it if you do a tutorial on glazing to bring out the details in furniture. I’ve only been painting furniture for about 6 months and am using only CeCe Caldwell paints and wax. I’m not getting the amount of detail definition that I’d like with the aging cream, so I thought that glazing might be the answer. I am having luck using the aging cream to antique the overall finish, but it’s just not making the cracks and crevices stand out like some pieces I’ve seen. Thanks for considering it :)
I have watched your work for a while now and think you are very talented. you and my daughter, Laura, from Turning Leaf Crafts, have that same sparkle!
Keep on SPARKLING!!!
What a touching story! You are talented beyond measure and a complete joy to watch! Congrats on the feature, Debi!
Debi’s story is so inspiring. She is an amazing person and inspiration to so many people. Especially myself with dream I am pursuing in an upcycled business, mainly with furniture. I love reading about Debi’s journey. She is a true treasure.