From the he(art)

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Arts and crafts lovers from around the country enjoyed seeing Krugersdorp North’s Heidi Coetzee and Ruimsig’s Elanie Pelser on their TVs every week. They are inspiring the viewers of the third season of kykNET‘s reality show, Kunsvlyt to get arty.

Heidi

Heidi has always been an artist at heart and quit her day job a few years ago when she decided to follow her
crafty dreams.

She has sold a lot of her arts and crafts, especially to the overseas market. Her speciality is junk journals, which are a compilation of decorative paper, envelopes, and everything pretty. She has a YouTube channel, Dream in Colour Creations, where she demonstrates making her journals.

Being on Kunsvlyt is exactly what she needed to get the creative juices flowing again.

‘It was the second time I applied to be on the programme and I was so shocked when I got the call that I was one of the 10 contestants for the third season. I have already had good days and I had really bad days where nothing worked out on the show, but it is an amazing experience.’

The competition is tough but Heidi has made a lot of new friends on the show. She is also learning a lot about herself.

‘The show is helping me grow in my art and I feel that it is already showing in my latest projects. Kunsvlyt is sponsored by PNA, which means that we have all the products and tools we could wish for in the ‘shop’ on the show – every crafter’s dream! I have my own little art and craft studio at home and I have a storeroom as well because you can never have enough art supplies.’

She studied art after completing high school but things didn’t work out the way she wanted them to, so she went on to sell cars for 18 years.

‘I was very unhappy with my life. I couldn’t take one more second of not doing what I loved. I left that industry and studied to become a beautician but as soon as I got started, I realised that it was a big mistake. I spoke to my husband about my dreams and soon after that, I left the job to become a full-time artist.’

When Heidi is not busy with her arts and crafts, she is a homebody. She is also a wife and a mother of three, which means that she doesn’t get a lot of time for herself.

‘Crafting can be very therapeutic. You can use whatever happens in your life and make something beautiful out of the experience.’ She loves to experiment with clay, mosaics, sketches, painting, crocheting and upcycling.

Kunsvlyt is opening a lot of doors for me. In the future, I will be giving workshops to share my passion with other crafters. I want to continue selling my art and making YouTube videos. I’m living my dream right now.’

Fast facts about Heidi:
1. What is your favourite medium? I love using mixed mediums.
2. What is your crafting style? Bohemian and Moroccan.
3. What part of crafting do you hate? I hate doing any needle- or stitchwork.
4. Products I can’t live without? I’m an art and craft junkie. I can’t live without the products of PNA, Creative Talent, Little Birdie, The Wholesaler, Faber-Castell as well as Dala.
5. Do you have tips for beginners? Do what you want, because there is no right or wrong. Don’t worry about what people say as long as you enjoy yourself.

 

Elanie

All her crafts start with seeing potential in something, and everything she makes is made with love and a lot of thought. Elanie has been a huge fan of Kunsvlyt since the first season and a friend persuaded her to enter this year’s competition. She is one of 10 contestants who is battling it out to see who the ultimate crafter is.

‘It is an amazing experience, but the true reflection of how it was on set cannot be captured in a 25 minute show. The time limits are very difficult for me because it’s challenging to complete a project in two hours. and adding to the stress is this huge camera that is on you the whole time, watching and capturing every move. But I am learning so much about different products and techniques and I’m so happy that I got the opportunity to do it.’

Her bubbly personality is brightening up the whole show. During her time on the show, she also made a lot of new friends.

Although they are competing against each other, the contestants share ideas and tips while they are living together for the duration of the show. Elanie’s favourite part of the show is the PNA ‘shop’ where they buy all their supplies for the challenges.

Elanie says that Kunsvlyt is helping her take her crafts to another level.

Her love of art was inspired by a school friend who was very talented at sketching. ‘My friend had a very creative family and was always sketching, and her mother and grandmother were always busy with some kind of project. They showed me the basics and once I started making my crafts, I fell in love with crafting.’

About a year ago, Elanie quit her teaching job to be a stay-at-home mom who can help her six-year-old son with his projects and do crafts with him.

‘Most of the time, I do crafts in the morning and close the door of my craft room as soon as my son gets home from school, but there are times when we work together on crafts. Most of my crafts are kid-friendly and I use stuff around the house like toilet paper rolls. My boy loves spending quality time with me and we have a lot of fun. Being a mommy and being a crafter go hand in hand.’

Elanie loves Pinterest and YouTube and gets a lot of inspiration online. After getting an idea, she likes to figure out how to do it on her own by trial and error. She is not a stranger to power tools and rarely asks her hubby for help.

She is adaptable and isn’t afraid to take the lead. Elanie is a perfectionist and it shows in her immaculate crafts. She is calm and collected when meeting new people but when she is with her friends, she is spontaneous and keen for all new experiences. She says that there is a huge mis-conception about what crafting is. For her, it’s a creative way to express herself and best of all – there is no right or wrong way to do it.

‘I love doing crafts but I know there will always be someone who can do it better than me. I tell my son every day that as long as you give your best, it’s good enough.’

Going forward, Elanie plans to make her own videos on her Facebook page, Elanie Pelser: Inspirasie Stasie, and to just enjoy crafting.

‘I’m not an artist, I’m a crafter. I want to do something significant with my life and I want everything I make to mean something. I want to build a legacy that people can remember me by.’

A minute with Elanie…
1. What is your favourite medium? Paint is my favourite.
2. What colour describes you best? Turquoise because it’s unique.
3. Your favourite technique? I like to experiment with paint techniques like acrylic pouring and the splatter effect.
4. Top favourite brand to use when crafting? You can never go wrong with Tjhoko Paint.
5. What is the first thing that every beginner crafter should buy? Good quality brushes because you don’t want little hairs all over your project. Every crafter also needs a glue gun.

See their DIY projects you can do at home here.

Text and images: JACO-MARI FUTCHER.

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