You have to embrace your creative side to create something that people enjoy. In the case of LEGO, it's about creating a work of art that people enjoy. With WordPress, it's about designing a site or creating a plugin or theme that people love to use.
I recently sat down with LEGO artist Kelly Bartlett) to talk about how she turned her passion for transforming her art into a business.
What I love most about Kelly’s work is that it goes beyond just building with bricks. It’s about collaboration and community. In many ways, Kelly’s world of LEGO mirrors the creative process we see in web design and WordPress.
I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with her for WordCamp US, and I can tell you firsthand that her enthusiasm is infectious, and her creativity knows no bounds.
In this episode, we talk about her creative process, and the intersections between LEGO, web design, and the power of community.
Plus, we preview the then incredible new pieces that Kelly created specifically for the Hosting.com booth at WordCamp US 2024 in Portland, Oregon.
A Talk With LEGO Artist Kelly Bartlett
You might recognize her from her incredible work from LEGO Masters, where she brought her unique flair and talent to life on the screen. But her journey with LEGO began long before that, as a childhood hobby that evolved into a full-fledged career.
How Did You Get Your Start With LEGO?
Like many people, Kelly got into LEGO as a kid.
“I grew up with it and my brother and I had our Lego sets that we would play together all the time,” she said.
But she really got into it creatively when her children started playing with LEGO.
That’s a similar story to so many web designers, developers, and WordPress users I’ve met over the years. You start designing something in WordPress because it’s fun and exciting. Over time, it develops into a career.
“Yeah, and I never really intended to go pro with it because like you say, you just kind of start off doing this thing that you like. I was just building things that I liked. I built sets from the store where I followed the directions and built it. Then I started making my own things without directions, which are called MOCs, it means my own creation.”
Continuing, Kelly said, “And that used a whole creative side of my brain that I liked, but I just kept doing it because I just liked it. It was just fun and I just like to build stuff.”
That passion and creativity really paid off. Kelly was posting her custom LEGO designs on social media and slowly building a following. Eventually, the LEGO Masters casting agents reached out to her, a major turning point in turning a hobby into a career.
“And so it went from a hobby to gradually becoming a slightly more pro until somebody actually wanted to pay me to make something.”
This path from passionate hobbyist to professional is so common in the WordPress space. I started that way and so many others that I know did as well.
"So what I love about it is just the creative process, the building process and getting to that end point where you're like, I made this."
Kelly Bartlett
LEGO Artist
Turning a Hobby and Art Into Your Career
For some, turning your hobby and your art into a career can be a dream come true. But it can ruin the enjoyment for some.
Thankfully, I still love working on and promoting WordPress today. And it sounds like the same is true for LEGO with Kelly.
"I want to do this because it is fun. And if it ever doesn't become fun, I'm not going to do it anymore. And I just, so far it's not ever not been fun. I just, I love it."
But that doesn't mean that turning art into a career is always easy. You can be great at the art side, but you need to work on your business as much or sometimes even more.
"Yeah, it's been interesting to figure out the balance of the creative side of the work versus the logistics, the business end. So to manage a business, you've got to do your finances and you have to stay organized."
Kelly admits that has been the hardest part of this transition.
"I love creating things. I love building things," she said, adding, "Being the creator, that's great, but since I'm the only one doing this I don't have any else working for me. I'm an assistant, I'm [a] manager, like I have to do all that too. So that's been a learning curve for me to figure out."
As an entrepreneur for 17 years, that certainly resonated with me as well. I definitely didn't sign up to handle finances and send invoices.
How Building With LEGO Relates to WordPress
LEGO and WordPress share a surprising number of similarities, especially when it comes to creativity, structure, and collaboration. Here are some of the key parallels:
Every LEGO creation starts with individual bricks. Themes, plugins, and widgets are the building blocks of WordPress that allow users to customize websites according to their unique needs.
While LEGO bricks are standardized, they offer limitless creative possibilities. Builders can follow instructions or design something completely original. The same is true with WordPress. You can use predefined themes or develop something completely unique.
The WordPress community is actively involved in developing new tools and solutions. LEGO has an equally robust community, with builders collaborating with or inspiring others.
Creativity and collaboration are key components of both LEGO and WordPress, enabling people to bring their ideas to life in endlessly inventive ways.
See Kelly Bartlett's LEGO and Create a Custom LEGO Minifig at the Hosting.com Both at WordCamp US
Kelly created some incredible custom LEGO pieces for our booth at WordCamp US. WordCamp US takes place September 17th through 20th at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon.
If you are attending, stop by the Hosting.com booth to check out Kelly's custom LEGO race car and to create your own custom LEGO Minifig. Sort of like Gravatars, Minifigs are the little LEGO characters as unique as each WordPress user.
"I'm so excited for everyone to be able to do this. So we have a variety of minifigs that everyone can customize their own with legs, torsos, hair, and head faces."
Kelly added, "You can put a little accessory in your minifig's hand and then you get a little platform to put them on. It will be magnetized and stick as a magnet on your shirt so you can actually wear your minifig around the convention and take it home and use it as a magnet when you get home."
Plus, you can test drive TurboHub, our new WordPress control panel. It streamlines WordPress performance, security, and site management in as little as one click.
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