Thanks to all of the time she spent stuck at home last year, senior Maggie Molitor was able to explore her creative side. 

With a little help from the internet, Maggie was able to discover her new hobby—making earrings. 

“I was like, ‘Well I can at least try to [make earrings],’” Maggie said, “and so I did. I’ve been having a lot of fun with it, and so I’ve kept doing it even though we’re starting to transition out of [quarantine].”

Maggie has made earrings with objects ranging from pencils to old headphones, but she has started making earrings out of more conventional materials lately, such as clay. 

Though right now she mainly makes them for herself and her friends, she is also starting up an Etsy shop where she will sell some of her products. 

As she heads off to Michigan State University in Lansing next year, Maggie’s business major will help her manage her Etsy shop.

“I feel like I can do a lot with [business],” Maggie said. “It’s a really versatile degree. Even though it’s not like a super creative degree, I can still follow creative things I want to do while having [the business degree] to support me.”

Her goals for the future and her newfound hobby aren’t just something she picked up recently; they’re deeper than that—Maggie has always been a creative person.

“I’ve been doing creative things for as long as I can remember,” Maggie said. “My parents still have art of mine saved from as far back as preschool and kindergarten, maybe even younger. I was always one of those kids who always wanted to draw and color whenever I could, and I’m still kind of like that to this day. It was just something I found fun and liked doing, and I liked being able to express myself like that—I still do.”

Maggie’s house is filled with art from her and her siblings, as they are all artistic, but Maggie’s creations aren’t only a way of expressing herself. They also foster positive feelings of accomplishment and general joy in her. 

“I feel happy when I’m making art,” Maggie said, “and there’s always a sense of accomplishment when I finish something. It’s also a good relaxer for me, while it can be a bit frustrating at points when things don’t turn out how I want them to, but, overall, my emotions surrounding art are largely positive.”

Whether she is a young girl coloring the pages of a coloring book, a teenager making earrings, or whoever her imaginative side helps her become in the future, art has a large impact in her life. 

“Art has always been a part of my life and something I’ve enjoyed doing no matter how old I was,” Maggie said. “Art has made me happy for a long time and still continues to do so, so I’m always going to be creating in some regard.”