If you have read her blog bio, you will know one of the things that Ms. Jeannie loves most in life is havin’ a laugh.
She loves stumbling upon things that are unexpectedly funny, which is exactly what occurred, when she set out to interview one of her favorite fellow Etsy shop owners, Frick and Frack Scraps.
Frick and Frack Scraps builds some of the most wonderfully whimsical yet fully functional home decor items. They are rustic, provincial, aged, weathered, repurposed, re-salvaged and entirely original in all aspects. Here is a sampling of items from their shop…
Naturally she was thrilled to discover the funny designer behind the fun shop…
Ms Jeannie: I love the rustically provincial/whimsically repurposed theme of your shop! Please explain a little about your design inspirations.
Frick & Frack Scraps: Well, thank you, firstly, for the compliment and the interview. Your blog is so unique. I get inspiration for my projects from leftover scrap laying around. My father was an architect and an armchair engineer. He used things differently and saw potential in lots of things that most people would not see. I think I got a little of that from him. And also from beer.
MJ: Do you think a lot of people are inspired by beer?
MJ: You have sold a lot of one of a kind items in your shop. Currently there are 11 items for sale. Are you concepting new ideas now?
FFS: Well, don’t you do your homework?! I have been busy, in the non-Etsy world, with other work, so right now I am on sort of a break, but I always look for things to use for when I am back in the saddle on my saw horse.
MJ: What designers inspire your work?
FFS: Well, I think of things in very straight terms. Not a big fan of curves, so I think that makes Mission and Prairie designers my gut inspiration. O.K. I will admit it. I have posters of Stickley and Wright on my bedroom walls.
MJ: What is your most favorite type of material to work with?
FFS: Wood and steel and beer cans.
MJ: Do you ever worry about running out of scraps to work with?
FFS: Not while I live in the United States. It is funny how some people see things as useless and others see a winerack. There is more than enough.
MJ: Explain a little about your design process. How do you get started on each piece?
FFS: Since it is all scraps to start with there is a bit of a limitation at the beginning. I can not go into something thinking “table” when I only have enough scrap for a box. Once I have stuff in front of me, it is a very simple, no holds barred process. The real upshot is if I make a “mistake” it just goes into a bin until it can be used on something else.
MJ: While you are working on each creation, do you ever think about where they might end up? What style of house it will go to? Or what sort of person would buy it?
FFS: Absolutley! There is a lady on Etsy, Jacksonofalltrades, that wanted some Frick & Frack for a birthday party at a dude ranch. I never thought of my pieces that way but I think it will look good. So I have that going for me, which is nice.
MJ: At what point in life did you realize you were destined to build things?
FFS: I have always built things as far back as I can remember. “Destined” is such a big word. I think it should only be used when referring to superheros.
MJ: Speaking of superheros…who is yours?
FFS: My pal, Thom Zelenka. If he were a real superhero he would be Always OK Man. He never seems to get rattled, always has a nice or kind word and has always been the same guy – from the day I met him to decades later. Pretty damn cool.
MJ: What is it that lures people towards your items?
FFS: I am not sure. I made the four pack out of parts that were left over, after a six pack I had made that sold pretty quickly. I am sooo glad I am able to find similar materials for the four pack ’cause WOW have I had to make alot of them. But I digress, I think people like the price, the FUNctional part, and also I make alot of things that hold or incorporate alcoholic beverages so it could be that these buyers are all fun drunks.
MJ: What is your most favorite item in your shop right now and why?
FFS: By far, the Fire Box Humidor. My pal, Tommy and I, made that and I am so proud of the re-use of that fire box. It is so outside the box. See what I did there?
MJ: Is there one item that you are constantly striving towards building for your own personal collection?
FFS: I use my wife’s style as a guide to things I build for our house, so that there is no conflict. I once bought a table at an auction for like 200 bucks and she called it the “UGLIEST TABLE IN THE WORLD” two years later I sold the original Gustav Stickley drum top table for 1500 bucks. I still smile about that. But I still do not get to pick out what I like. Ah love!
MJ: If you could build props for any tv or movie set, past or present, which would you choose?
FFS: Gangs of New York, There Will be Blood and A Good Year in the movie department for sure. I think there would be no challenge for me to get it right the first time.
MJ: Two of the three movies you mentioned, star Daniel Day Lewis. Do you think he would be a fan of Frick & Frack?
FFS: I think so. He is very unique himself and he lives in a castle pretty much so he’s certainly got the money to “drink my milkshake”.
Side note: If this reference confuses you, check out the “milkshake” scene from There Will Be Blood
MJ: Also, two of the three movies you mentioned are period dramas and the third is a contemporary drama set in provincial France. It is easy to picture Frick & Frack in both these worlds. What inspires you about the look of these films?
FFS: There is a utilitarian feel to everything old to me. Not much design just use in mind when they were made in the old days. That has beauty to me. I like that.
MJ: What one type of item is a consistent seller in your shop? What seems to be the slowest to sell?
FFS: The Four Pack is a runaway success. The Fire Box Humidor and the Coat racks are the slugs but I looked at other Etsy shops that have coat racks and mine should be sold as firewood compared to others! There is such cool stuff on Etsy.
MJ: What type of environment (besides the fireplace!) would your coat racks look best?
FFS: I dont know. The ones with the wooden “sleigh” shaped hooks would be great in a rustic cabin in Montana. Like a River Runs Through It house that Ikea just re-decorated.
MJ: What are some of the challenges of being a handmade seller?
FFS: I think people’s expectations. I make things rustic. I am not a finish carpenter. I send items out that might give you splinters. Really. I have not had any problems but that is the part that makes it hard.You just never know how someone will react when they get an item in hand having based their purchase on three or four pictures and a description.
MJ: Do you think if you heard more feedback from buyers that you would build different items?
FFS: I am not sure. I listen to my head when I build. There is not much more room in there for other people.
MJ: What’s your shop’s greatest success story?
FFS: Well, all of the coverage I have gotten for sure! I think when Urban Outfitters emailed me to be a vendor for their outdoor center in PA, that was pretty cool. Nothing ever came of it, in the end, but just think about how that one email could have really changed things. And the ONLY reason is due to Etsy and all of their hard work.
MJ: If you could spend one day, building Frick & Frack alongside anybody famous, living or dead, who would you choose?
FFS: Frankie Wright. (that’s what his friends call him)
MJ: What does your studio space look like? What would your ideal space look like?
FFS: I build most everything thus far at my pal, Tommy’s, old mill building. It is old, dusty, and full of great equipment. My ideal space would be a 1/2 indoor 1/2 outdoor space, maybe an old barn.
MJ: What’s next on the Frick & Frack horizon?
MJ: What would the title be to that movie be?
FFS: I think it would be: Luck. I have had alot of it in my life.
POST UPDATE (10/10/2012): Frick and Frack Scraps has just entered the blogging world! If you are in need of a laugh (or 20!) stop by and visit their aptly named blog, Out of Hand.
In the Vintage Kitchen: Where History Comes To Eat 
That was very interesting.
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