Greetings!

Howdy Howdy! My name is Curly Dacs. I'm a 30 year old disabled Black artist living in Richmond Virginia and I'm raising funds to be able to help support and better my life circumstances. Specifically I intend to use the fund for paying my rent, bill support, getting my small business website back up and car repairs.

A little about myself

Once again my chosen name is Curly Dacs and I'm the Griot behind Griot Goods, my small business that creates body inclusive and diverse planters and plant accessories. I'm an artist and overall creator who loves and adores plants! They've helped me medicinally as well as in routine to help keep me moving even when my mental illnesses and chronic conditions make me want to do nothing. Especially tending to plants helps my joints which are often stiff and in pain from arthritis. I'm a poet and writer who wants nothing more than for my words to be heard, held and help others. 3D design is also another artform that has my heart because it's so joyful to take an idea from my head to something I'm able to hold in my hands and share with others.

How Your Support Will Help Improve My Life

Being chronically both physically and mentally ill, I'm constantly struggling against my own body to attend enough events and make enough sales and social media content to be able to pay for my basic life necessities like, my apartment and studio rents (the spaces cant be combined, I've tried), food and bills for my apartment.

With a fully funded goal met, I'll be able to slow my work down for several months as well as give my time and skills to the community and get my car the maintenance it desperately needs. It is spewing smoke when it accelerates and the tires, spark plugs and brakes all need to be replaced.

I've also been offered the opportunity to show my art in December but and with this break from grinding my small business and me into exhaustion, I'll be able to focus on creating the art pieces for the show.

My Offerings

I feel called to give back in whatever ways I can with the breath and capacity that will come to not be constantly struggling to survive for a few months. I want to be able to get my site back up and lower my product prices so they are more accessible to folks in these times where joy is so desperately needed.

My studio will also become a place, with this support I'm asking for here, to host free to the public small (<8 people) workshops for my Paint-A-Pot events. I want to prioritize this because with the supplies I have Id love to be able to make it accessible to other low income, chronically ill, masking and disabled individuals to experience community and creativity in an accessible space. I pride myself on my space being wheelchair accessible and having an ADA compliant restroom for visitors to utilize.

Gratitude

I want to thank you so much for reading. If you're able I will appreciate every contribution and document my community offerings on my instagram for all to see and enjoy. Thank you for hearing and seeing me. I greatly appreciate it more than you will ever know.

Please share this to your networks and have a wonderful day.

(I had to use my deadname* for the platform so please forget it if it shows up)*Deadname isn't quite the right word for my government name. I prefer to describe it in conversation as my multiverse name aka a name by which I exist in different people's realities as since they've not me the current me.

Curly's Instagrams are @femmeofstardust (personal) and @griotgoods (small business)