Meet Creative: Ling of Tiny Pinc

When I was a kid (I say that a lot, don't I?) ... anyways, when I was a kid, I had this fascination for doll houses. I loved my 'Polly Pockets' and my 'Little Petshops' toys (90's babies would know this for sure). Anything that was small and cute took my breath away!

Then as I grew older, I realized my interest for miniatures lingered around and then I moved on to fairy figurines, more doll house furniture etc. All that led me to clay making; and then I discovered figurine making and jewellery making with clay and was awed by the art! One time, I tried clay making, but I guess it wasn't my thing. But I still appreciate miniatures and started working with bottles, collecting anything that was tiny, or look as if a tiny fairy or a tiny human can use it.

I salute clay artists like Ling from TinyPinc who have the patience to create miniatures. One of her most popular creations is the Baby Groot, a character from the movie Guardians of the Galaxy (a hilarious movie by the way, please watch if you haven't). I am a big fan of her work, and decided to feature her. An eccentric person with a good a sense of humour, her craft work reflects her personality. You will enjoy reading her little quirky answers, and while you are at it, find out what inspires her!

Name: Ling Hooi Yin
Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Links: Facebook | Etsy

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1. What is your day-to-day like as a creative person? How do you juggle your tasks, projects and personal life?

Nothing special....Everyday I would just get to Pinterest and Google to search up for inspirations,  pictures of real food to see what’s next that I can sculpt..

I usually make my miniatures in the morning, and night. My working time is quite irregular... When I don’t feel the “kick” to make miniatures, I would take the day off researching or designing and producing my packaging instead hehe.

2. All creative people have their own toolbox. What’s in yours and what are your favourite tools?

Since I have to deal with small things all the time... I couldn’t be using my fingers for everything kan..

I have Tons of tools in my toolbox. Most of them are something like needle heads, used to pick up small clays and texturing.

3. Fill in the blanks and complete this sentence:

“Whenever I am creating miniatures, I am literally breaking my neck and back :p ”

4. Describe your creative work with just 3 words:

Small, fun, cute :D

5. They say creative people are eccentric. Sometimes are called “weird”; so, how weird can you get?

Yes I can get really weird. I still hate everything I make. I think they don’t look good enough all the time. It’s just a way to motivate myself to make better stuffs I guess!

6. Name your top 3 favourite books for ideas:

Recipe cooking Book, Recipe cooking Book, Recipe cooking Book!

I like reading cooking books for their visuals, and how food is made :)

7. Music mixes are awesome! What’s your music playlist when you are creating & making art?

Definitely JAZZ and Indie Songs :)

8. How do you organize your creative ideas & inspirations for reference?

Pinterest!

9. What is your favourite place to go to for inspirations?

Google! It’s like an endless search! Sometimes it can take me a Whole day!

10. I SPY with my little eye:  Who’s your favourite creative person (artist/crafter/baker, etc.)?

Petiteplat! She’s one of the best french miniature artist I’ve known :)

11. If you didn't discover this creative interest, what would Life be for you?

It would be Bad. This is more like a therapeutic session during my college days on the weekends :)

12. How your creative passion inspires you?

I think it helped to make me a better person.

It helped me see the the world in a whole new perspective. :)

13. What was the most difficult part of running a creative biz?

The most difficult part was engaging with Malaysian consumers.

I would say it’s like the most difficult thing ever.

Malaysians are known to be “kiamsiap” and thanks to our economy it wasn't easy to sell our handmade goods.

“Why so expensive ah?”

“So small, why so pricey?”

“How you do this ah? I think I can do better than you leh!”

Right, these are what I heard the most in Art Markets /Feedbacks online.

Most of the Malaysians don’t really know how to appreciate handmade goods, maybe it’s the way we were brought up in this country I guess.

That’s the reason why I focused more on Etsy reaching out for Western country consumers... They understand how difficult and long it takes to make a miniature, and they really thank you for making the miniatures you make!

AND THIS FEELS REALLY GOOD :)

14. What sort of lessons have you learned from this creative experience?

“Don’t stop, believing!”

Practice practice practice! Keep making more stuffs and get inspired all the time :)

15. What is your Kung Fu style to fight creative blockages?

“HAIYAKK” *work those fingers baby*

More research online!

Well sometimes it doesn't really work, I’ll just walk in shopping malls and lookout for cute stuffs :)

16. Give the readers some love! Do you have any tips, advice or words of wisdom?

JUST DO IT BAYBEH!

You may have some crazy ideas / plans...You will never know if an idea works out until you try em out. So just give it a try! No harm :D

17. Daydream mode ON! How do you visualize yourself 5 years from now?

Still making miniatures :D