Betty Nails: *O* Otaku Polish [Indie Guide Project]

Hi Girls & Boys!
I'm so happy to be back with another Indie Brand !
Today I'm presenting you the Adorable Ilze, the make of Otaku Polish!

Olá !!

Estou super feliz por hoje vos trazer mais uma marca Indie !
Hoje Apresento-vos a Ilze, a linda criadora dos OtakuPolish !!!!

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For those who don't know what I am talking about (Follow me through Facebook to know a lot more!) I am making an Indie Guide A-Z! This will be a huge project and a enormous pleasure to do! So .. what am I going to do? Everyday, I'm going to show you a different brand of Indie Nail Polishes (and some of their major stockists too!! )

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Your Name: Ilze Anna Puķīte

Brand Name: OtakuPolish

Where are you from?

Long story!! I'm a Latvian (it's a liiiittle tiny country in north-eastern Europe ^_~), born in Mountain View, CA, and raised in Portland, OR. I went to high school in Brussels, Belgium, and I currently am studying at university in California again. :3

When did you start?

The idea for OtakuPolish came to me at literally 3am one hot June night RIGHT as I was about to fall asleep. I jumped out of bed, scrawled my idea down on a Post-It, and crawled back in bed and tried to sleep. The next morning, it was all I could think about, and I knew I had an idea that I couldn't ignore. I had my shop open by July 2012. ^_^

Is there a story behind the name of your brand?

"Otaku" means "geek" in Japanese. It can refer to any sort of geek - a military geek, a history geek, a video game geek. However, in English, the word has come to mean specifically an anime geek. Someone obsessed with anime, who knows everything there is to know about their favorite characters, shows, mangas, and manga-kas, is known as an "otaku." My polish is inspired by anime and anime characters, and meant to give otakus everywhere a chance to declare their love for anime even on their nails, to help supplement cosplays, and complement all the awesome anime-inspired nail art out there! ^_^

How many polishes/collections have you created?

I have 3 anime-inspired lines total so far, each with 4 polishes in them: Asuka Langley Soryu (of Neon Genesis Evangelion), My Neighbor Totoro, and Howl's Moving Castle. I also have a special fall line.

Is there a special polish/collection? Why?

Yes, my fall line is called "Rudens", which means autumn in Latvian, and it is Limited Edition. My mother, who lives in Oregon, asked me to create some polish for the Portland Latvian Community Center's Christmas Bazaar. I created a line inspired by fall in Portland and my Latvian heritage - grey skies, fallen leaves, Baltic amber and delicious apples. A portion of each bottle's sale goes to the Latvian Community Center, which provides cultural and educational services for Latvians in Portland and the surrounding area.

Were you polish addicted before starting making polishes?

Oh, absolutely! I was always known as "the girl with the nails" - my polish collection was (and is!!!) ridiculous! I've been painting my nails since childhood. I loved nail art and unique combinations and I was probably one of the first people to be doing accent nails and skittles :'D - one color was much too boring!!! ^_^

Did you have a blog before making polishes or have you started one after?

I had a nail art blog on tumblr, but when I made my website, I moved all my blog posts there. You can now find my blog at www.otakupolish.com/blog/ ^_^

Whats your favorite thing about making polishes?

I absolutely love the process involved in taking a well-known character or show and translating that into a unique, recognizable and pretty polish. :) It's important to me to be true to the characters and really emulate them with each polish, while also making them attractive and fun to wear. :3 It doesn't hurt that I'm a naturally creative and artistic person and I find it incredibly fun to do!

Can you tell us a curious thing that has happened to you with some client or something funny?

Well, one of my first orders (when I was still on Etsy) was to one of the really big and much more well-known indie polish makers out there. (Not naming any names, though!) It wasn't like a review swap or anything, just a regular order under a normal name. I only realized who the purchaser was after a coincidental glance at their username and location and a comparison with their Facebook Page, and that was long after the polish was sent out. I always hope for feedback from every purchase, but I never heard anything from them. I don't know if they didn't like my polishes or what but I sure would have liked to have heard something, anything!

Let this be a PSA to all polish makers, then: Don't you like to hear back from buyers? Don't you like hearing feedback? If you buy indie polish from other people, let the maker know what you think! It's only fair! <3

Is there anything you'd like to share:

I'd love to hear from people which animes they'd like to see featured next in my lines! The very next line is going to be inspired by Neon Genesis Evangelion in general, per my IndieGoGo campaign, but after that it's all up in the air! I already have LOADS of ideas, and I'd love to hear what people want to see most! There's a survey available on my website where you can vote for your favorite anime or suggest your own - I'd love to hear your opinions!

http://www.otakupolish.com/preorders.html

I've gotten so many great responses to my polish so far and it makes me so happy to know that people like them! I hope that my friends (not fans, friends!) understand that working and going to school full time makes it more difficult for me than most to make polish in huge quantities, but that I work hard and try to keep everything up to date and always plan for the future and possible expansion too! I appreciate everyone's support so much and I always love to hear from people. Thank you all so much! :3 <3

Contacts

Website: http://www.otakupolish.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OtakuPolish

Blog: http://www.otakupolish.com/blog.html

Store: http://www.otakupolish.com/shop-otakupolish.html

Stockists: Just me, so far! ^_^

Other Media: You can follow me on Twitter @OtakuPolish, though I'll admit I rarely use it. I'm most active on Facebook and absolutely Instagram-addicted...
Instagram: @OtakuPolish

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Personal Notes from Betty:

Girls! Readers! This girl is so so so funny! Everytime I have an email from hear I have to read it all no matter what time is it! When I got her answers to this interview I was already in bed, no glasses, no lenses ( I am almost blind lol!) and I stuck my phone to my nose to red it all! Ilze is a great girl, super funny, hardworker and she loves what she does and that can be seen thought her great work and amazing polishes! Read her interview and stop by her pages! It totally worth it!

Thank you so much Ilze, for the support and for taking part of this! <3

Once again I show my total support for Indie Makers and my full respect for their work. I will not translate the interviews because words and meanings get lost in translation. I hope you understand. Please pm me or comment bellow if you have any doubts. If you are an Indie Maker and wont to participate in the project, please contact me through Facebook or email (blog.bettynails@gmail.com). You are still in time!

Don't Forget to come tomorrow !