Senior Elliot Millican has always been very interested in art and making their own things. So, when Millican saw Instagram accounts beginning to sell jewelry, they decided to hop on the trend, creating @strawberrydeer_shop on Instagram. Millican’s store contains a wide variety of jewelry, like resin rings and earrings, beaded bracelets, clay earrings, pendulums and more.
One of Millican’s concerns around selling their goods is the pricing of the products, especially considering the high prices some other businesses charge.
“I want to make sure things are affordable enough, but at the same time I have to make sure I’m being fair to myself because I put in a ton of work and it’s kinda hard to match up the time and effort I put into something into a price that others think is fair,” Millican said.
Millican also brings up struggles of trying to sell as a small business, like struggling with a small platform, which can often make it hard to promote pieces. Millican tries to promote their jewelry when they can by wearing it out in public, and they are hoping to make business cards in the future to further help promote the shop.
Millican is always working hard on improving their store, and their art in general. They enjoy being able to sell things they’ve made, and prefer running a shop and creating their own hours over having a set schedule at another job.
Art teacher Lisa Warren has had Millican in multiple art classes in their past years at North.
“(Millican) is a very creative student who has never been afraid to use their personal voice,” Warren said. “(Millican) enjoys working in a variety of mediums, and has a very strong work ethic.”
Even out of class, Millican puts in work and practices their art, always attempting to make the best final product they can. Warren has enjoyed watching Millican’s art grow throughout the year, and seeing all of their hard work paying off.
Family friend and customer of Millican Meghan McCarthy has also loved seeing Millian’s art progress through the years. McCarthy has purchased from Millican before, and is planning to hopefully purchase again.
McCarthy, since seeing photos of the jewelry, has been obsessed with it, especially the rings.
“I wear like five rings a day and I’m always happy to expand my collection so I can match them with all my outfits,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy loves the purple resin ring they purchased, and recommends Millican’s shop for both high quality and cute jewelry. They also continue to be on the lookout for new pieces to expand their jewelry collection.
Like McCarthy, many others are also searching for new and unique jewelry items. This allows Millican to have creative freedom.
“I don’t have to… listen to what other people want me to do,” Millican said. “I can just make what I want and sell it because I know some people will like it.”