How Mishel Turned Her Living Room Into a Glass Art Practice

What happens when you stop treating creativity as something separate from your career?

For Mishel, it meant leaving the corporate world, rediscovering her love for making things with her hands, and eventually turning a glass art workshop she took in Korea into something of her own in Amsterdam, bringing a technique that is still very new to the city.

Her creative journey has taken her from fashion to UX design, freelancing, creative picnics and, now, teaching glass art. She started practising in her living room, hosted her first workshops, and is now getting ready to move into her own studio.

We spoke about finding the courage to try something new, building a creative career, the unexpected community that comes with workshops, and why you don't have to think of yourself as a “creative person” to make something.

So, first things first, what brought you to Amsterdam?

I came to Amsterdam years ago, and that was more for studies. Before that, I used to live in New Zealand, and I grew up there. But, for more context, I am Korean-Mongolian. So it's a mixed background, and growing up in New Zealand is, of course, a beautiful version of life. It's a very laid-back environment. And coming here, I really felt like I had a drive. Because I noticed people are, first of all, very ambitious, very diverse, and with many experiences as well. And yeah, different lifestyles. Everyone seemed to be doing something different. And for me, in a way, it felt like trying is cool. And I've never felt that before.

And for me, in a way, it felt like trying is cool. And I've never felt that before.

So tell me a little bit about your creative background. What were you doing before this?

My general background is very creative, I would say. I've been creative since birth, maybe. I've always liked to do art and I just didn't know what medium that would be, so from high school, I was already into fashion. I initially went to a fashion university too. And then I came here and changed to UX design, which is more like website designing, focusing more on the user experience, and psychologically, how people see design. And yeah, it is very related. But with corporate burning me out, it was a good chance for me to go back to the creative side.

How did you first discover glass art?

The idea of making glass art came up when I was bringing my boyfriend, Arjan, to Korea for the first time. We're very similar people. We're curiosity-driven, creative, new activities, all this. So when I planned the trip, I tried to choose experiences that weren't available here already or known yet. And one of them was glass art because we wanted to make a custom piece for our house that we live together.

We have two cats, and we met while longboarding. So we wanted to make a piece where there's two cats on top of a longboard. And for that, I really liked the whole setting, the teacher, the interaction. It is very intimate in a way, and yeah, I kind of kept circling back to this day. So I took a course, and then I just kind of decided that's what I wanna do.

How did you start practising glass art yourself?

Well, not here, but in Korea. There is an association where they give out workshops and teach to the public. Everyone can come and learn how to do it and get a certificate. You get all the resources and everything. Well, basically, you are kind of purchasing their knowledge. And then I just had to get it started here, practice myself, get the materials because they already gave me the resources. I just started in my living room, basically.

I just started in my living room, basically.

You also started building a relevant community online. How did that happen?

Honestly, I didn't really have that circle at all. But I think it also helped me that I didn't start with the workshops right away. I quit my job around one year ago today, and I started teaching in April, so quite late. But in between that time, I was freelancing and already working alone. That kind of experience was obviously very lonely. I wanted more interaction, and then that's when the workshop came to me.

Initially, I had an account that was focused on how to freelance and kind of sharing my life. To connect with some other people, basically. And that's when people started reaching out, and they're like, “Oh, I see you” or, “You inspired me”. And I thought that was sweet; a complete stranger is just supporting me. I think that gave me the courage as well. And my algorithm in general changed completely. There's more people doing their own thing, and my mindset was already shifting.

So when did you start thinking, okay, I can actually start hosting my own workshops?

For me, for a really long time, I had this mindset that creativity and then making a living were two separate things. It was really hard to fix that. And especially with my background, I unfortunately grew up with the kind of traditional mindset that artists struggle to make a stable income. That was really hard to change. So I never really connected creativity to my main career. That's why I stuck to my corporate job. And because work was always the real part of life for me. I need a stable income. I need a visa. I need security. And all these practical things. So, obviously, a job wasn't necessarily something I expected myself to enjoy. That's normal.

And then, like I mentioned, because the world is changing and my algorithm was already filling up with these girlies running their own business, running their own workshops. And this was already shifting my mindset. But I think meeting people really helped me see that. Meeting people and enjoying workshops. And then, I just decided to start. And, yeah, when I eventually quit my job, I basically didn't wanna waste that opportunity. So that's when I started building in public. I think in my first workshop I actually had one person joining a ten people set up. So it could have been disappointing for sure, but I had so much trust in myself in some way. So I didn't stop and kept making iterations to result in full bookings in the first month!

I had so much trust in myself in some way. So I didn't stop and kept making iterations to result in full bookings in the first month.

What do you enjoy most about teaching the workshops?

I have a really good answer for this because I actually like all the aspects that are outside of art. So basically, people come and join because they wanna make art, right? But a lot of what happens during the actual thing, has nothing to do with art. It's like you really learn more about yourself, and you really connect offline. Just completely shut off. And I love that because it's not only strangers that kind of discover each other. You know? But even people that know each other, they're completely learning new sides of each other. And I thought that was really inspirational too.

Has anything your students done surprised you?

What's really surprised me is the willingness to try something new. How I told you at the very beginning, I was really inspired by the fact that trying is really cool. But obviously, it's only been a few months since I launched and it's such a new art, you know? It can be really scary. But people book it anyway. I thought that was very cool because for me, it's actually something I need to think about first. Like, I need to know if it has any reviews, if it has any kind of samples or examples of people doing it first, and some reassurance. So I think that's very brave. I didn't have that, and people were comfortable with doing it. So yeah, that really stayed with me.

What advice would you give to other creatives who want to start teaching?

I would say just say fuck it and try it. Honestly, you need to start somewhere. I started in my living room. It's one step at a time, and it's not perfect. I'm still adjusting from day to day. With every interaction, you learn something new. So I think that's something good to keep in mind. And, of course, you're gonna question yourself along the way. Of course, it's gonna be scary, but that's completely normal, right? Even if you do something that you're used to, you also feel that way at some point. Something I saw that I really like, I think it might be a trend, but I see a lot that you've never seen this version of yourself before. And I really like that saying. You can be gentle to yourself, right?

I would say just say fuck it and try it. Honestly, you need to start somewhere.

What do you hope people take away from your workshops?

I hope that within these few hours, they feel like they don't really need to prove anything. I especially noticed that everybody has different jobs, ages and occupations. And they are unsure whether they are creative or not. Some people are like, “Oh, I'm very uncreative. Can I still do this?” But, that really doesn't matter once you're in here. You're here because you wanna try something new.

What's next for you? You're moving from your living room into your own studio. Are you planning to explore more glass art, try different mediums, or something completely new?

With the studio, I have more options to be maximalist because, as you already see, all my rooms are filled up. So it's gonna allow me to do new art. I value three things in a workshop, and that is: being handmade, unique, and very practical. Once you're learning, you can put your art onto anything. Like, literally, I have a candle holder right here, and then I put my art on it. It can be on a glass, on a window, a photo frame, whatever you can see. I love that part about it. And also, with the background I have, I feel like I have the advantage to explore more that's not yet here. So I feel like that also covers a unique part. That's my goal. Bringing new things here. Because, like I told you before, I mostly have people coming that have never done workshops before, different occupations, ages and background. So for me, I'm a little bit on the bridge of bringing “non-creative” people. And I really want to push it that way.