Name: Kellee Milner
Website address: www.myfavoritemirror.com
What do you make or design?
My husband and I make pocket mirrors, mouse pads and coaster sets. Many of our products feature the officially licensed artwork of over 20 of our personal favorite illustrators, so we truly have something for every taste. We also do custom mirror favors for parties and corporate events.
What made you decide to design the things that you do?
Oddly enough, it involved one of my earliest memories of my Grandma. I was getting some good ol’ one-on-one time with her – teaching her to draw turkey hands (so I *thought*!) and really jazzin’ them up, listening to her sing songs about any word I could think of and just having a great day. Well, that day she also gave me a tiny little oval Coca-Cola pocket mirror and I was just enchanted by it. I was around five years old or so, but I remember thinking it was about the neatest thing ever and I’m pretty sure I started requiring a miniature pocketbook (as my granny would say) to tote it around in!
Also, one of my first ever eBay purchases (back in 1995 when eBay was still called Auction Web) was for 6 different Winnie the Pooh pocket mirrors from England. I remember then thinking how cool it would be to be able to make stuff like that.
Then, in 2002, I was looking at button machines online and found out that you could make pocket mirrors with them and my mind was blown! I knew that that’s what I really wanted to do. It became a slight obsession, because at the time I didn’t have a job and couldn’t afford a machine, so I had to wait it out, but always ALWAYS keeping my eye on the prize, so to speak! The pieces finally all came together and I got my machine! It was a slow build – I started out with one of a kind mirrors on eBay, then set up my own website at www.lookingglassgirl.com (which is still open for business!) and eventually we branched out to My Favorite Mirror so we could focus on favors, custom work and items we could duplicate over and over again.
Of course I never knew that one day it would (or even could) be a full time job, but that’s what it’s grown to be!
Who inspires you?
I have to say that Heidi from My Paper Crane (one of our artists) is absolutely amazing. She is so creative, so nice and sweet. She makes incredible art (plush cupcakes, trees, etc.) AND she somehow still finds time to do all the day to day stuff but in a BIG WAY! It’s hard to explain, but you’d get it if you read her blog. (http://www.mypapercrane.com/) I find it really inspiring that someone has time to be a great mom, a creative spirit and a business gal and still finds time to be social!
How would you describe yourself?
Lucky! Fortunate, maybe, is more apt. My uncle says I’m not lucky, that I’m a hard worker, but I think I’m also pretty dang lucky, too. I do tend to think that once you realize what you want to do with your life you work hard to get it and then to keep it, but I feel pretty blessed that people are receptive to what I am doing – both the artists who participate and the people who buy our goodies.
I am also lucky to have a supportive family who had the patience to let this little flower blossom and grow. I realize that not everyone has this luxury. I count my blessings every day. I let my loved ones know that I appreciate them.
What’s the last book you read?
Well, I don’t read as much as I probably should and when I do, I read books that you can skip around in, not usually novels. I do puzzles in my puzzle books ALL the time, almost every night before bed. I like to exercise my brain, I guess. I LOVE Places Please puzzles (http://www.pennypress.com/samplepuzzles/srwoo18.pdf ) and that’s all I wanted for my birthday, but I didn’t get it!
Are you a neat freak or creatively messy?
Totally creatively messy all the way. I’m a Virgo and I’m supposed to be a neat freak, but man, that’s just not me. I TRY. I try to stay all organized because having a clean office and workspace does enhance my productivity by a lot, but when you have 45 things happening at once like I do right now, it is hard to stay on top of things. The problem really all seems to start with paper. I am constantly switching up the paper in my printer for all these different needs (cardstock, labels, plain copy paper, fancy paper, colored paper…) so I grab stacks then take them out and put in something else – and at the end of the day I have a big stack of paper all mixed up on my desk, along with all the other things that should be on my desk and other things that have made their way to my desk… I do have to stop and straighten up at least once a week or so because it gets ridiculous.
What is one of your fondest memories?
This is totally silly, but I love how my husband and I seem to share a brain at times. Just the other day we were driving down the street and this girl was walking along and the wind had blown her hair in her face in sort of a v-formation and we both turned to each other and screamed “DEVILLOCK!” which is a Misfits song and also a hairstyle that the Misfits guys would rock. Google it!
Business related, however, my first HUGE order was a freak-out fun day! It was my biggest WHOLESALE order to date, almost 800 mirrors. I’ve done bigger custom orders, but we were riding that high for a good while on that particular wholesale order.
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Litterbugs! I want to smash their fingers! I’m not a violent person EVER, but when I see someone throw something out of their car as they drive along, I wish I could remotely roll up their window and smoosh ‘em up! I mean, what do they think HAPPENS to all that trash that they toss out? Jerks.
If you could be a bird, what kind of bird would you be and why?
A pink flamingo. Why? Because, hello! THEY’RE PINK! That’s pretty cool by itself, but also they’re an icon of 50’s kitsch and I love the 50’s kitsch stuff, big time. I prefer to stand on both feet most of the time, however.
Rachel Johnston of SBS Teas
