Notes from Chris

Episode 1548

Kat McDowell’s love for origami bloomed as a young girl growing up in Japan. Her grandmother’s room was full of different paper creations, from geometric shapes to cranes hanging from her ceiling.

Despite moving to New Zealand when she was five, Kat’s love of origami remained throughout her life. It was a way to be creative and connect with her grandmother.

As she grew up, she became a musician but never forgot about origami. This is why in early 2020, she released a new song called “1000 Paper Cranes” as a tribute to her grandmother.

No longer being able to have in-person events, Kat still wanted to find a way to promote “1000 Paper Cranes.” So, she decided to have a virtual paper crane folding party with her fans and anyone else who wanted to join in. She taught them how to do some simple origami, just like her grandmother taught her, and then premiered her music video.

The origami party was a hit, and doing it virtually posed fewer barriers than she’d expected. This gave Kat an idea— what if she could bring this sense of fun and connection to others during the pandemic? On a whim, she began reaching out to the same colleges she had partnered with before, asking if they would be interested in the workshops.

Within two weeks, she had booked nine workshops, at $500 each. This was a low-cost side hustle for her to start. She already owned a phone, computer, and recording setup. All she had to buy was the origami paper.

The workshops were a hit, and Kat even got to play some of her songs in the background. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of it sooner—but I don’t blame her, because who would think of virtual origami?

In 2020, Kat made $8,000 from these impromptu workshops. She loves that she has been able to help people relax and take their mind off of the pandemic. She’s even had to bump her price up from $500 to $750 due to increased demand.

Kat never imagined that her passion for origami could unfold into a side hustle. As a musician, she hasn’t ever had a stable income and the pandemic has made that even worse, with all of her shows cancelled. Yet by leveraging her skills, connections and passion, she was able to create another stream of income.

She’s also thinking ahead. Kat knows that the demand for origami workshops won’t last forever, so she is also planning new workshops around the art of Kintsugi, a Japanese art form where broken objects are repaired with gold and made more valuable. She now believes that her art and music are destined to be intertwined.

 

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  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Check out Kat's Origami at her website, www.kat-mcdowell.com/origami and youtube youtu.be/5_1FGQNPuhk.

SEE ALSO:

• Japanese Designer Folds Profitable Paper Wallets: After spending his twenties studying in Europe, a Japanese graphic designer returns home to a small village where his story of making paper wallets unfolds.
• Bookstore Employee Crafts Paper Bead Jewelry: When an art student and bookstore employee looks for ways to supplement her income, she invents a new art form making paper beads from popular books.
• Copywriter Carves 140 Characters into $50,000 in Cash: A creative director and copywriter makes an April Fool’s joke that turns into a long-term income stream.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work! Yours in the revolution,

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