What I learned about turning a 2D illustration into a 3D functional object—and how 10 ceramic Fran experiments eventually led me to the final design.

I recently sculpted the same dog 8 times.

That's right. 8 times!

If you're familiar with my brand, you've probably met Frightened Fran. Well, my 10 vases were of her!

For those of you who don't know, Frightened Fran is a 60lb fraidy cat who wasn't always so, well, frightened. In fact, she was brave once... until one fateful day when she was spooked by the neighbourhood turkey, Claire. Since then, she's never been the same.

So, she wears a floral anxiety vest now to keep her chill.

She's so chill. We swear the vest works. Sort of.

Now, people often ask me: "Is Fran your dog?" or "Do you have a 'pointy' dog, or is this just an obsession?"

And the answer is... neither!

My dog is quite round. Rotund, even. But my partner and I often joke that if we were dogs, we'd be greyhounds. Tall. Pointy. Scared.

And so maybe that's part of the fascination.

The truth is, though, that Fran's personality is based on my dog, even if she doesn't look like him.

And I keep making her because, honestly, I made her as a bag charm once and she just kept selling out.

I also just like making her. I feel a kinship with Fran... and maybe she sells so well because we all do.

These are frightening times we live in, after all.

So, this year, when I started turning my 2D products into ceramic vases, I knew I had to make Fran first.

So I did.

And then I did it again, and again, and again, and again...

Again, again, again, again, again.

Each Fran was an exploration of translating my illustration style into clay, figuring out what my 2D artwork actually looks like when it's suddenly a 3D, functional object.

And with each Fran refinement, I refined my ceramic style too. Eventually, I landed on a clay body, colour palette, and set of artistic choices that would go on to form the foundation of my ceramic work: sgraffito, sculptural elements, and low-fire earthenware.

Anywho, here's how the Frans turned out... and how I wound up making 8 of them. 😂

Fran #1: The Original Fran

In January, I made the first ever Fran vase. If you've met me at a market, you've probably met this Fran!

She's cute enough, and she has a broken paw because I smashed her and broke it off right before her first firing.

At first, I hated her. I felt like the colours were anemic, I thought the top needed to be wider to make it easier to put flowers in, and I thought her paws could use more volume.

The verdict: I needed to try low-fire red clay to get more vibrant colours.

Fran #2: Haunted Fran

This is where my earthenware experiments began!

Here's what I changed:

• I wanted to widen my vase to make it easier to put flowers in... but forgot to make her taller.

• The 2D Fran has a really long nose, but 3D Fran does not because of the way the attachments work. So, I pointed Fran's nose down to allow myself to attach it to the body for stability. I figured this would also give her a fun, derpier face!

The verdict: She's too chonky, too pale, and deeply unsettling.

I needed to use more coats of underglaze to get the colour I was looking for.

Fran #3: Not Fran...?

When I made Haunted Fran, I made two short, chonky bodies at once. But after seeing Haunted Fran, I knew the best thing for all of us was to abandon Fran altogether.

So I present you... Sniffs!

Here's what I changed:

• What didn't change?!

• I took inspiration from my Officer Sniffs sticker for this guy. He's off duty, though, so no detective hat for him!

The verdict: Ditch this Fran and start over with a much taller body.

Fran #4: Bug-Eyed Fran

I made her taller and her head bigger, so naturally, I decided to make the eyes bigger too.

Oops. 😂

Here's what I changed:

• I LOVE the red clay, so I started using it as the base for her anxiety vest.

• I started using 3–5 layers of underglaze to get more vibrant colour.

• Fran's paws are rounded and hollow to give them some life.

• I started using a dark brown to outline her features instead of letting the red clay fill the negative space. I felt like this helped make her seem less sick.

The verdict: We're entering Haunted Fran territory again with the eyes.

But I'm happy with the colours. I just think we could give the flowers some more life still.

Fran #5: Mini Fran

I knew I was blatantly experimenting at this point and felt like I was wasting a lot of clay.

So I entered my Mini Fran era.

Here's what I changed:

• I started experimenting with sculpted flowers to give her shirt a little more dimension.

The verdict: We ❤️ sculpted flowers.

Fran #6: Inner Tube Fran

At this point, I felt like I had the droopy nose down... but I wanted to play with a head that would match my Fran bag charm and experiment with different props.

Here's what I changed:

• I swapped out Fran's head style. (The droopy noses are honestly a b*tch to make.)

• And stuck her in an inner tube!

The verdict: We love Fran's wardrobe change.

I've now got all of these ideas for new Frans. Wizard Fran. Frankenfran. Clown Fran. Dragon Fran!

Think of the possibilities!

They're all in progress, I'm just slooooow to underglaze and fire them, so they're not pictured.

Fran #7: The (Almost) Final Fran!?

Despite the effort the droopy nose takes, I knew it was the way to go for my larger Fran vases.

So I accumulated all my favourite things from past Frans and made a big one again.

Here's what I changed:

• I returned to the body proportions of Fran #1, but widened her head to make it easier to hold flowers.

• I used the red clay as the vest.

• I added some volume to her paws and her legs.

• I sculpted larger flowers on her vest.

The verdict: She's almost perfect.

I just wanted to play with attaching the nose to the body a bit more.

Fran #8: Suntan Fran

My goal here was to build the exact same Fran... but with the droopy nose.

Only, I was working outside and then walked away from her to garden.

When I build Frans, I do a lot of darting (cutting into the clay and pulling it in). After a day in the sun, she was too hard, so no darting was possible.

And now she looks like this forever. 💀

Here's what I changed:

• Her nose is attached to her body.

• I just didn't get to complete this one. 😭

The verdict: Fran #7 was the final Fran after all.

I'll be making a little Fran squad and can't wait to bring them on my market tour this holiday season.

And honestly, I'm glad I made all 8.

It would have been easy to look at Fran #1 and think, okay, I made the vase. Done!

But each version taught me something new - not just about how to make Fran, but about how to translate my illustration style into ceramics.

I figured out the clay body I liked. I figured out how many layers of underglaze I needed for the colours I wanted. I learned which sculptural details were worth the extra time (hello, flowers!) and which ones made my life unnecessarily difficult (looking at you, droopy nose).

And somewhere along the way, I stopped trying to make a ceramic version of my 2D Fran and started figuring out what Ceramic Fran should actually be.

Apparently, she needed 8 iterations to figure that out. 😂

A recap of my first One of a Kind show, including the products that surprised me, what sold best, and what I'll be changing for future markets.

My first One of a Kind show is done... and honestly, nothing went the way I expected.

In April, I exhibited at One of a Kind for the first time, and I went into it with about two weeks to prepare.

That's right - TWO. WEEKS. 

Naively, I applied to this show back in February thinking that was lots of time for the April show. I was put on the priority waitlist pretty quickly and assumed I wouldn't make it into the line up. But two weeks before opening night, I received a call saying they had a space open up.

So, naturally, I took it.

In retrospect, this was perhaps not the most relaxing way to spend my first show... but I'm glad I did it. 😂

What has hit me the most since the show isn't actually what sold.

It's how much support it took to make the whole thing happen on such a short timeline without completely losing my mind (or dropping the ball in every other area of my life).

My partner, my friends, my mom, and my mother-in-law all stepped in to work shifts, prep food, take care of Arlo, run last-minute errands, listen to me spiral, and basically hold everything together in between.

I genuinely couldn't have done it while keeping the rest of my business (and my brain... lol) going without them.

So, here's a little roundup of what my first One of a Kind show was actually like and everything it taught me.

The Biggest Surprises

There were a few things I absolutely did not expect going into the show.

👉 Best sellers changed every day.

I assumed I'd have a pretty consistent group of best sellers throughout the show.

Nope.

Every day had a different winner.

👉 A card I'd never sold before suddenly became a best seller.

One of my favourite things about markets is that they can completely change my assumptions about a product.

A card that had never really sold before suddenly became one of the best sellers on its day.

And that's exactly why I love getting products in front of people in person. Sometimes you just can't predict what someone will connect with.

👉 People wanted Halloween... in April.

I knew I liked my Halloween products... but apparently, so did everyone else.

Even though One of a Kind took place in April, my Halloween products were surprisingly popular.

Honestly, I respect it.

👉 Over 100 people chose to shop with me.

This one probably means more to me than any individual best seller.

More than 100 people stopped at my booth and chose to buy something from my little business.

That's pretty wild to think about.

The Best Sellers Each Day

Here's what topped the charts each day:

Day 1

• Greeting Card: You're Not Over the Hill (Quite Yet)

• Bag Charm: Frightened Fran

Day 2

• Greeting Card: You're Not Old, You're Retro

Day 3

• Bag Charm: Peter, Paul and Perry

• Sticker Sheet: The Roots

• Greeting Card: Another Year of Adventure

Day 4

• Greeting Card: Happy Birthday Pal

And while the daily best seller changed, there were a few bigger trends that became clear when I looked at the overall numbers.

What Actually Sold

Have a Lovely Birthday was the overall card bestseller.

This wasn't really a surprise.

Have a Lovely Birthday does really well in stores, online, and at markets, so it's becoming pretty clear that this card has found its people.

Apparently, people do in fact like having lovely birthdays.

People LOVE sticker sheets.

The Roots outsold The Woofs by a touch, but both sticker sheets were incredibly steady sellers throughout the show.

This was a good reminder that people don't necessarily need a big reason to buy something.

Sometimes they just see a bunch of tiny things they like and go, "Yep. Mine."

Fran and Peter, Paul and Perry nearly sold out.

The overall best-selling products were my Fran bag charm and my Peter, Paul and Perry bag charm.

Both were best sellers on separate days, and because I'd made a TON of them for the show, they both came very close to selling out.

This was especially exciting because these are two very character-driven products... and apparently people have opinions about which little weirdos they want to take home with them.

Apparently, I am not the only one who wants to read in peace.

This sticker was one of my favourites going into the show, and it turned out to be a customer favourite too.

I can't say I'm surprised.

We all deserve to read in peace.

And then there was Felix.

Felix was my worst-selling bag charm overall.

Which is honestly a little heartbreaking because I had the most fun writing Felix's story.

He does have a life beyond the bag charm, though, and I've realized that while people seem to like Felix as a character, he just doesn't quite hit in this particular format.

So I'll probably be laying Felix's bag charm to rest soon.

RIP, Felix. You were fun while you lasted.

The Ever After Club Makes Its Debut

One other exciting thing happened at this show: The Ever After Club made its debut.

The Ever After Club is my collection of greeting cards featuring Sven and Sally, two bears who go through life together.

The collection is all about celebrating life's major milestones—from weddings and anniversaries to new homes, babies, sympathy, and everything in between.

It was really exciting to finally introduce them at a show, and I'm looking forward to seeing where this collection goes.

What I'd Do Differently Next Time

Of course, no market recap would be complete without a list of things I would absolutely do differently next time.

1. I'd restructure my prices.

I want to bake taxes into my market pricing and use nice, even numbers.

Not because there's anything wrong with my current pricing, but because it makes cash transactions so much easier.

If you've ever stood at a busy market trying to calculate change while three people are waiting behind you, you understand.

2. I'd rethink my booth layout.

For this show, I had more of a "step into the booth" setup.

And honestly?

People don't always want to step in (which, same).

I'm already thinking about ways to bring some of my displays and racks closer to the front so people can interact with the products without feeling like they have to physically enter my booth.

I'm curious to see how that changes the way people move through the space at future markets.

3. I'd bring fewer vinyl stickers and more ceramics.

This one was probably the clearest product lesson for me.

Vinyl stickers are currently my least favourite product to make and they were also my least popular product category at this show.

Ceramics, on the other hand, are one of my favourite things to make, and they generated a LOT of interest.

The Biggest Takeaway

My biggest takeaway from One of a Kind wasn't actually about what sold.

It was about what people were excited to see next.

People were incredibly interested in my ceramics, even though they weren't a major part of my product lineup yet.

And they were also very excited about my puzzles, which were coming later that spring.

That was really encouraging because they're also the products I most want to make.

And that's probably the biggest lesson I'm taking away from this show:

Sometimes your customers give you permission to lean harder into the things you already want to be making.

So that's what I'm going to do.

More ceramics. More puzzles. More weird little characters. More things that make me excited to walk into my studio and start working.

Thank You ❤️

More than anything, I'm incredibly grateful for everyone who stopped by my booth, bought something, shared a tip, told a friend about my work, or lent me a helping hand.

And especially to the people who helped me survive those two weeks of frantic preparation.

My first One of a Kind show was chaotic, exhausting, surprising, and a little bit terrifying.

But it was also really, really fun.

I'm working on my market lineup for the rest of the year as we speak, and I can't wait to see you around.