It's art, duh

One of our crafty friends who makes totally cute things we wanted to show you is Sonya Evans of Bean Child/Full Spectrum. Sonya screen prints unusual, unique clothing to give a crafty girl or kid a great wardrobe boost. Some of her stuff she even hand paints, for example my purple thistle dress is all hand painted and beautiful! Sonia recently added women’s plus sizes – 2 and 3 X to her offerings, making crafty clothing accessible to people who might not fit into tiny sizes. Here is our interview with Sonia. You can find her at Craft Sabbath, Craft Lake City and the Downtown Farmer’s market, as well as on Etsy.

1) Hi Sonya, tell us a little bit about yourself, the things you make, and how long you have been doing it.
Hi. i’m a mom of 2, a 4 yr. old girl and a 1 yr. old boy. they keep me on my toes. my husband of 11 yrs., chauncey just had his last day of his day job yesterday and will be contributing his talents to “the full spectrum design” full time starting TODAY, june 25th. we are very excited to meet this goal and can’t wait to see where this takes our family as well as our home based business.

2) What got you interested in screenprinting?
well, i was an active member of the la leche league in eugene, oregon where my daughter was born. breastfeeding was new to me and so incredible in many ways. my i “heart boobs” onesie was where it started….and is STILL a best seller 4 yrs. into business. screenprinting was a way to get “i heart boobs” onto a onesie in an efficient way without uncomfortable iron-on letters or trying to embroider each one. babies grow faster than i can stitch by hand! so, after hours of googling (is that a word?) and many youtube videos later, i came up with my own unique system and here i am today. i love it!

3) Tell us about your screen printing set up, sounds like you print in the laundry room with a baby gate in the doorway.
that’s true. baby gate at the laundry door where i print and a card table. i stretch my own screens made from canvas stretcher bars, mesh, and staples. because of this i challenge anyone to a thumb war. my thumbs get a serious workout stretching screens this way. the bathroom in my basement is used as a darkroom. that is where i do magic.

4) Do you draw your own designs?
some designs i do draw. others are photographs that i manipulated on the computer to make great graphic images. i also make collages of clip art on occasion as well as using copyright free images from the encyclopedias inherited from my great grandmother. those are typically old woodcuts from the late 1800′s to the early 1900′s.

5) What brand clothing do you print on? How do you find such cute styles?
the clothing brands range. i spend too much time shopping the web for cute blanks that work well with my prints and taste for stylish knits.

6) Tell us where we can find you this summer – what festivals and events are you doing?
i am at the downtown farmer’s market every saturday from 8-1. that is where you can find the largest selection at once. i am also part of the craft sabbath co-op which is currently held at nobrow coffee on 300 s. and 300 e. every first sunday of the month. i’ve got my fingers crossed to be a part of craft lake city again this year in august at the gallivan center (editors note – yes, she did get in, look for her at Craft Lake City). i hope to see you and me there! AND, please don’t forget my etsy shop www.thefullspectrum.etsy.com. this is where you can snag my wares when you need something new any time of year.

7) Tell us a little bit about your life (being a mom, living North of the city) and how you fit art and craft events into all the craziness.
being a mother is the most rewarding job in the universe! my kiddos keep me going and are the reason i started this in the first place; to stay home and raise them myself. fortunately, business is good and my husband, chauncey will be joining me so we can expand the business and he too can enjoy watching the kids grow. what do they call that? a ma and pa business, or did i just make that up? we do what we can when we can and seem to get it all done somehow. well, except for what’s next….jewelry! we are joining our talents and are launching a line of jewelry. this should be out before the end of summer into fall. i can’t wait!