Our Time Is Now

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be a fashion content creator & influencer? What an incredible week it has been to hear Tanice’s story! In this episode, we cover how Tanice got pregnant at 18 & how that propelled her into studying Law, being in the Law corporate world for 10 years but always knew at the back of her mind she wanted to pursue a creative path. With her father's passing, she was struggling with her mental health & trying to figure out how to move forward within herself. She started posting on Instagram, showcasing her style & fashion interests which was a way for her to express herself & move through her grief. From there, she stayed true to her values & things started to evolve, leading her to become a fashion influencer & content creator. After two years of working as a lawyer & a content creator, she finally got to a stage where she felt the confidence to do it full-time. Tanice dives into what being a content creator is like, how she navigates her job & gives us a peek into the fashion world. Tanice’s story is a story of resilience. She talks about how important it is to be yourself & how people will connect to you that way. We hope you enjoy this conversation & are inspired to create your creative dreams. This project is in collaboration with Creating A Space & supported by Belfast City Council. You can find Tanice:Website: www.taniceelizabeth.com Instagram: @taniceelizabethsamuels

Mel is an illustrator, designer, and the founder and director of Usfolk Illustration agency. Usfolk is a Belfast-based illustration agency, hosting 30+ illustrators from all around the globe.    In this interview, we heard about how Mel had a huge passion for art and design from very early in his life. He tells us that he knew he was gay from a very young age and used art as a means to escape and develop skills that gave him confidence and validation.  Being good at drawing meant he wasn’t seen or didn’t feel like just that ‘queer kid’. He beautifully shares that his “creativity came from his queerness”  Mel shares with us his journey with grief, his mental health & how his mother passed away when he was a teenager.   He shared that he had to be taken out of university after having a mental breakdown & then came back a year later, only to find himself more in love with what he was doing.  It’s so refreshing to hear these types of stories because we can always assume everyone’s journey is linear & straightforward.  It’s beautiful to hear the rawness & openness of how Mel navigated all of this at such a young age.   Mel then shares the journey of his creative career which led to him starting his own business & building a global business!   Mel has a passion for all illustrators and wants to continue to encourage people to follow their passions & start their own journey early!    What a joy it's been to hear his story!   You can find Mel on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/usfolkillustrate/  Website: https://usfolk.co.uk/   This project is in collaboration with  @creatingaspace  who directed & produced this series.    This project is supported by Belfast City Council

Building a successful business & living life on your own terms Linzi Rooney is the founder of Born & Bred, a Belfast City Centre store and e-commerce site specialising in Belfast and Irish-themed gifts and homeware. Born & Bred exists to help artists thrive. Founded in 2014 by Linzi, Born & Bred sells beautiful, locally-made gifts in their shop. Born & Bred has impacted over 300 local makers and provides a space (both online and offline) where artists can come together to learn, share and sell. Born & Bred has received an array of accolades including Top place to shop for art by Lonely Planet, Top 10 places to shop in Belfast by The New York Times, and Top 50 independent shops in the UK by The Guardian. Over the last week, we have heard about Linzi Rooney's incredible journey of how she first got started in her creative journey, the inner confidence she has always had & how she has navigated building a successful business that brings her joy & happiness. At the start of the interview, Linzi shares how she started off being a freelance photographer & working for different companies, which helped her come to the realization that she wants to work for herself & create her own life on her terms. Linzi talks about the journey of having her first daughter at 25 & how she never felt that having children held her back but gave her a sense of being grounded & adaptable to life circumstances. We get to hear tangiable advice on how to create a commercial business, the standards you need to keep & how to truly build a successful brand. We touch on the topic of feeling scared to voice your opinions online for fear of backlash or upsetting people. Linzi shares how she feels strongly about putting the things she believes in on her brand so that people know what Born & Bred stands for as a team. Towards the end of the conversation, we dive deeper into how we can’t control what people will be offended by & at the end of the day you just need to focus on what's important, what makes you happy & building a business that sparks joy. Thank you, Linzi for giving us the opportunity to tell your story! It’s raw & honest & there was A LOT  of laughter! You can find Linzi at: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wearebornandbred_/?hl=en Website: wearebornandbred.com This project is in collaboration with  @creatingaspace  who directed & produced this series. This project is supported by Belfast City Council

Our Time Is Now is a video podcast series sharing the stories of Belfast creatives. We explore how they have built their businesses, overcome challenges, and navigated the shifts and changes throughout their creative journeys.   We are so excited to introduce our first creative, Macy Stewart who is a fashion and portrait photographer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland.   Macy has always been creative, right through school until she dropped out at the age of 17 when unfortunately her father passed away.    Macy found herself consumed by grief. With all her friends still at school, she felt she was falling behind and had no confidence and nothing going for her. However, she had a camera her Nanny had bought her for school and she started taking photos for Instagram just for fun and to be creative.    It was a real passion and a way for her to process her grief. She never thought photography would be a career and become her full-time job, but her passion, commitment, and talent paved the way for her success and naturally over time it has evolved to become her career.   After a year with Mastered (London) for fashion photography in 2018, Macy has built up an impressive client list. She has shot with the likes of Lifestyle sports, Dazed & Confused, Lady Gunn, Lucy’s magazine, and Irish Country Magazine as well as many Irish designers. Her work has been described as (able to) “vibrate with a kinetic, emotional energy” by Dazed writer, Anna Cafolla.   Macy’s story is one of resilience, strength, passion, and creativity and is so inspirational for other creatives.  We hope that you stay tuned for the release of the full series & find inspiration in these stories.    You can find Macy on Instagram: www.instagram.com/macystewartstudio/  Website: www.macystewartstudio.com/   This project is in collaboration with  @creatingaspace  who directed & produced this series.    This project is supported by Belfast City Council