We were lucky to catch up with Kristin Welch recently and have shared our conversation below.
Kristin, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
13 years ago, I took a leap of faith and decided to dive into a new hobby. I received a metal stamping kit and supplies for Christmas that year and dove in head first teaching myself the ins and outs of metal stamping. I practiced until my fingers were sore and bruised but I knew the alignment had to be just right to create something meaningful and beautiful. I began selling pieces to friends and family, and before I knew it, I was making 10,000 pieces almost monthly for a Christian Grammy Award-winning artist. In that pivotal moment, when I was given a chance to create and be someone I never thought I would, I knew I was doing what I had been called to do. Making jewelry isn’t just a hobby, it is a passion. It is where I can explore my creative skills and pour my heart into creating pieces with purpose. The stories behind every piece are the catalysts that keep me doing what I have been called to do. No 2 pieces are the same, and neither are their stories.
It is an honor and privilege to come alongside those who are looking to declare truth over their lives, find freedom, remember a loved one, inspire and encourage, and I get to be chosen to create a piece that signifies that important moment in their stories.
Every story I got to be a part of allowed me to see inside my own story. I am currently working on a line of jewelry that coincides with a book I am writing. Pieces will be released like chapters in a book alongside my growing blog where my purpose looks a little different from where I started, but the progress is full of hope.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I wasn’t one of those kids who knew what they wanted to be when they grew up. I had always just walked with graceful anticipation into the next thing placed before me. I became a mom and a wife before I really found the place I was meant to pursue my creative outlets. While being a mom and a wife were the best roles I could have asked for, I didn’t realize that the Lord had more in store for me.
My jewelry business has always been based on one idea, to reach the “one”. The one person who needs freedom. The one person who needs hope. The one person who needs a reminder of who, and whose they are. I forged truth into metal as a declaration of grace in a world that can feel really hard.
I pray over every single piece I create. I want it to not only show its value and meaning but also feel like a reprieve from the battles we can face on a daily basis.
My hope is that as my clients wear the pieces I have created, they are reminded just how irreplaceable they truly are.
After a very long and hard personal season in my life, the topography of my business has changed. While my purpose has remained the same, the story behind my work has become more personal. While, like many women, I have always struggled with my identity, I reached a point in my life where rock bottom looked like a desolate land with nowhere to go. What I learned in that season was that I was being given an opportunity to start new. Fresh with a new perspective on who I was, and who I was becoming. What I thought was rock bottom was actually God laying a new foundation for me to build something even better than before.
I am so excited about what is in store for Blessed Little Bird. As the details are still being revealed, I can say with utmost confidence, that I have been called and released to not only keep creating meaningful pieces that tell a story but to also create pieces that fall in line with my story. I have learned that in the hard seasons, I have walked through, not only am I not alone, but so many parts of my journey are similar to others journey’s as well. It is in that barren space we find that what feels like loneliness is an opportunity to dig deeper into our passions, purpose, and promises and allow space to connect and hope together.
2024 looks like forging words into metal and paper.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Being called into a position of creativity can be a challenge. Some days you just aren’t feeling it. Some days you feel as if you are in a creative slump that you will never find your way out of. And some days there just aren’t enough hours in the day to create all that has inspired you. Creative work is a series of ebbs and flows. I had always tended to fight against the ebbs and push along the flow. But in that, I realized I was losing not only steam but the meaning behind what I was doing. I have learned along the way that what we can refer to as a “creative slump” is an opportunity to rest and refuel for the next season, the next project, and the next promise. Try to remember that forging truth into others is hard work. It demands space and time as well as comes with its own personal and spiritual pushback. We can often see the truth in others before we see it in ourselves. And when we are speaking life and truth to others, we can often be challenged to wonder if the same goes for us.
As you pursue your creative space to be a truth-teller, remember that your slump is an invitation to rest and be refueled. Take that time and release any burdens that you are supposed to be creating. It will come back.
Speaking truth to others is a perfect opportunity to speak the same to yourself. As you give someone the grace to offer them the truth of who they are, give yourself the same grace and confidence to confirm who you are as well.
At the end of the day, the best version of you makes the best deliverer of the gift. Grace, space, and truth are your best friends and will be what fills you when you need it most. Let it in.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
The Artists Way by Julia Cameron has been pivotal for me this year. As a creative, it is invaluable to find space to be filled again. Creatives tend to give so much in their representation of feelings and purpose, and we can be depleted quickly if not caring for ourselves in the right ways. The Artists Way is a great way to collaborate with your creative self and not just create for others, but also for the deepest parts of you.
Julia Cameron suggests daily journaling. 3 pages of writing whatever comes to your mind. No proper punctuation. No spelling fixes. Just you and a page. You and an opportunity to release those deep parts of you that tend to be stuffed into the space for later.
She also recommends weekly artist dates. While this is still a work in progress for me, the premise behind these “artist dates” is a soul-satisfying practice of putting yourself first in a world that is constantly vying for our attention. Take yourself on a weekly date. Do something you haven’t done. Or, sit at the beach or the park and don’t do anything. The point is to be present with yourself, your thoughts, and your feelings. It is the grace to give yourself space to find those deep parts of you and hold them with value.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blessedlittlebird.com
- Instagram: blessedlittlebird
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/blessedlittlebird
