Featured Store: Cavy (from cafepress.com)

(Originally posted on May 29, 2003.)

Our first featured store in GreatGear is the Guinea Pig Stuff Store. Its shopkeeper is author/artist/college student Melissa, whose story follows.

I first heard about CafePress when a reader of my comics that are published in a pet magazine wrote and let me know that I could put my drawings on merchandise using a website called CafePress. There was already a small company selling the cartoons on shirts, but CafePress had a few other items at that time, including mousepads and mugs, so it sounded like a good idea. And the fact that it was free seemed almost too good to be true!

One day I decided to draw my guinea pig Clover, who had just passed away from an incurable, extended illness. I remembered her as a very sickly animal, so I drew her as her happy, hyper former self. This ballooned into drawing all of my guinea pigs in a similar fashion, and deciding to share them with others through a CafePress store. Most of my original cavy drawings depict at least one of the guinea pigs I have shared my life with. Every drawing must contain a flower, because all of my guinea pigs -- past and present--have been named after them!

I hope that my illustrations will remind customers of the love they had for their first pets. Whether or not you had a guinea pig, I'm sure you know all about the special feelings and adventures a child and a pet can share. I am also working on developing a children's book series based on these characters. The stories and illustrations are all very child-friendly, and I've been very honored to find out that at least one clock is in a children's classroom.

I'm enjoying the hobby and community feeling of belonging to both CafePress and GreatGear. GreatGear is a very beneficial group to belong to, because you will learn many tips on how to get people to visit your site and store. Members have even looked out for me by finding web stores similar to mine so that I can write and ask to swap links with them. You'll find that other small store owners often want to help you...and GreatGear is a good place to link up with them.

I'm a college student, majoring in English. I've had to take a little break from drawing guinea pigs due to school, but I hope to do more drawing this summer--hopefully some fall-related designs since so many of them are summer designs! I hope to continue being published in both writings and illustrations--but one day to actually get a salary from it. ;)

I'm a big fan of kids, and guinea pigs are something many children are familiar with, including having one in the classroom. If you would like to make a difference in the life of a child, you can visit Mentoring.org to find a mentoring program in your area.