Oh, we’ve got an incredible guest on the podcast for you this month! We’ve invited our wonderfully talented friend, the delectable Kerrin Piche Serna, to talk to us all about standing out from the crowd. We know when you check her out she definitely fits the bill!
Kerrin has been a Disney Princess and videographer in the past and is now an artist, creator of exceptionally awesome candles and an author. And she totally brings her “Kerrin energy” to the episode. Listen in to find out what on earth we’re talking about!
(AND we’ve finally got our pretty embedded audio back – woohoo!)
Meet Kerrin
A graphic artist based in sunny California, who makes the most awesome candles, turning pop culture figures into saints & idols for fans and “anybody who’s just into weird religious, non religious crazy shit”, Kerrin is a whirlwind of creative energy and joy. She’s also a dog mama, an ex real life Disney Princess, a videographer and an author – and this episode is fizzing with go-your-own-way vibes!
What we talk about
Storytelling through words, pictures, video. Creativity in all its guises. Finding what you want to do via doing some other stuff and figuring out what you do and don’t love – in Kerrin’s words, “I learned I just do not have the heart of a journalist”.
Ideas sparked from seeing something and knowing you could do it better – in this case turning the Golden Girls into saints on a candle. Selling out her first stall at a work event for side hustles while she was at Dreamworks. Delivering the joy of fandom and inspiration with a lot of playfulness and fun.
Making your customers happy while also making yourself happy! Seasonal decor that stays up all year round. The playfulness of these candles if you happen to be a lapsed Catholic.
Saying no to the things you don’t want to do, even if other people request them. (We think this is MASSIVELY IMPORTANT under this month’s theme but also generally – you don’t have to do something just because someone asks you to!)
Being a one woman show, and how production has changed as sales have grown – and which things have stayed the same. Selling at Bravocon and getting to see some of her false idols holding candles of themselves with a lot of joy!
MEETING KERMIT AND MISS PIGGY OMG WE CAN’T COPE.
Geekery and fandom, enthusiasm for weird stuff and passionate excitement about the stuff that made us stand out for the wrong reasons as children. Embracing your geekery – and making up for when you were younger, and loved it just as much as you do now, but had to hide it more to try and fit in.
Enjoying stuff you’re into and finding your geek friends online – it’s one of the best things about the internet. The connection of finding people who love what you love – whatever that is.
The terrible, terrible advice often given at the start of a business journey, to be “professional” and not to bring your whole self to your business in case you put people off. This is bullshit, guys!
Never being “meh”. You want a reaction, either way – for people to love you & your work, or hate it, but never just shrug their shoulders and not care. Kerrin’s work absolutely embodies this – and is all the more successful for it!
Inspiring outrage, hate mail and accusations of stealing iconography. Glorious ways of dealing with these things (listen in for Kerrin’s best tip on that!).
Remembering that if you stand out from the crowd, you’re probably going to upset or offend some people – and that’s ok, it’s not personal to you and they are not your customer / people.
Standing out by creating conversation, inspiring emotion – and the conversations you won’t ever hear, but which might just result in future business for you. Seeing the positives if someone takes the time to write to you about what you’re creating, whether what they say is good or bad.
“Honestly, at this point in my life, I feel a little bit honoured to be considered a disgrace.
Kerrin Piche Serna
Not being afraid to be yourself – and being unapologetically, unashamedly who you are.
How all of this translates into other creative pursuits. Making for yourself first – only creating what you like. Creating from a deep level of appreciation and love. Not being a genre based writer and writing joyfully in a genre a lot of people don’t know exists (though magical realism is my fave – Carla).
Knowing, accepting and embracing that you may never have a huge following because what you do isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea – and that’s ok. Writing, or any sort of creating, from an authentic place, and creating something which speaks to your own soul first. And definitely not people pleasing!
If something requested or suggested sounds tedious, giving yourself permission not to create it (even if it would sell well). In Kerrin’s words, “And I really think that’s what makes your art better, and I think it was what makes your business better, because you’re happier doing it, you’re invested in it, you’re connected to it, and therefore it shows in your work, and then you connect to others who are on your same wavelength.”
Only putting in good energy, and never putting resentment in with your work. Learning what your own energy is, and how to appreciate it. Losing the shoulds and supposed-tos from our lives.
The thing I would have most liked to have learned earlier was to not give a shit what other people think. It’s just a life ruiner to do that with anything you do. And it is so hard for us to unlearn that. And I think I wish young women, young people everywhere could just be like, yeah, great, thanks, world, fuck it, I’m going to do what I want.
Kerrin Piche Serna
We have a brief chat towards the very end about intellectual property, parody and commentary.
Leaning into what you’re into so you find your people, your peace, your happiness, your joy. And where you put your energy is where you grow your energy.
And we think this message of being your true self and not worrying about what people think of you is probably the most important message we have from the podcast and our conversations.
Get more Kerrin in your life
The Eternal Flame website – you’ll find the full range here and she ships worldwide
Instagram @theeternalflamecandles
She is on Facebook too but doesn’t hang out there much.
Kerrin has just been commissioned to do a John Waters candle for the Academy of Motion Pictures (that’s the Oscars, guys!) – so keep an eye on her socials for that!