Art Comes To Life In Stuffed Creatures

The potential for a business is endless. There are so many unique ideas, some that people haven’t touched on yet and some that people have, that can turn into something very successful. The real trick is finding that diamond in the rough and doing something with it.

Then there is a woman like Karen Lefebvre-Christou who not only created a business but also created a way to bring joy to sick children as well. Through art2life and her little artlings, she is able to take a child’s drawing and turn it into a physical creation that can be held.

Anyone can purchase an artling made from a piece of their child’s art through her website. Outside of her business she takes the time to go to hospitals and turn the drawing of a sick child into a physical doll they can love for a long time.

What is art2life? When was your business started?

art2life is a company that brings people’s drawings (art) to life in the form of a soft sculpture/stuffed doll/pillow. The concept originated as a gift idea I whipped up really quickly for a friend’s toddler as a holiday gift in 2005. In the spring of 2006, I made a dozen more for my son’s pre-school teachers as an end of the year gift. Once the parents and kids saw the artlings (I don’t think they really understood the concept until they saw the finished product), they were so enthusiastic and gave me such positive feedback that I decided to start a business from home.

What was the inspiration behind it?

The inspiration for the first artling was my son Alexander’s first drawing of our cat, Scooby. Alexander was about 3 years old and I was so in love with this rendition of Scoobs that I wanted to preserve it in some way. I have always been drawn to children’s art — it’s so pure. They just put crayon to paper and emit whatever is in their heart onto paper. They don’t think too much, they just do what comes to them — they are not focused on perfection, just on creating. I think it is extremely valuable to capture that in a long-lasting, huggable form.

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