Meet Amber Gillian | Rug Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Amber Gillian and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Amber, what habits do you feel helped you succeed?
There are so many habits that helped me succeed in my business. One of those (and the main one) is consistency. Consistency is the number one business tool/habit you need to succeed. Finding out what works for you and your business and continuing to do that every single day. Regardless if it’s a good or a bad habit, habits are hard to break so forming a good habit like consistency which builds that momentum for your business is the number one ingredient for success. Another great habit that’s helped me is Confidence. Confidence shows in every single thing you do. I remain confident even when I’m feeling down I’ll let myself have that moment to feel my emotions because we all want the best for ourselves so it’s okay to be in the moment of your feelings but after that I’ get right back to it. In the beginning I’ve seen the difference in my work when I was confident vs when I wasn’t and so can everyone else. I always have to believe in myself and carry that throughout my work.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
What sets me apart from others is my passion and my willingness to constantly learn and create new ideas. I don’t believe anyone should start/run a business they’re not passionate about.

I am most proud of how far I’ve come and how consistent I’ve stayed throughout all of the unforeseen events of owning a business all on my own and my personal life.

It was not easy to get to where I am today. Starting a business during a pandemic was hard enough. The long hours it takes to not only make but to clean the rugs, staying up all day and night to finish an order. Getting no sleep the night before a flea market to make sure everything goes well. There are many more hardships that come with running a business but I wouldn’t take any of those things away because they’ve made me who I am and my business what it is today.

Rugrat is a black-owned one-woman operation hand-tufting rug business founded in Los Angeles, California in 2021. I offer a wide variety of rugs on my website from wall hangings to coaster sets and everything in between. I also do customs. For example, a customer can send me any image (logo, photo, etc.) and from there I’ll bring it to life by turning that into a rug.
I try my best to reach everyone and bring Rugrat to you. Along with my website and flea market pop-ups, I have an online storefront on Instagram, Etsy, and Depop.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The first stop would definitely be the beach. I would choose two beaches for two different days one day we can go to Venice Beach which is more fast pace, get drinks and walk the strip and later in the week, we can go to Thousand Steps in Laguna Beach very beautiful and relaxing. The next day we can go to universal city walk eat and have a few drinks. We can continue the night at a bar in K Town called Lock & Key or Dave n Busters which is always a good time! I absolutely love hiking there are a few trails behind Pasadena that has a waterfall at the end of it that’s absolutely beautiful. Shopping is always a must great places I would give them a variety of different places to shop like Inglewood or Slauson Swap Meet, Century City Mall, Rodeo Drive or vintage flea markets all around LA. Lastly we can end the night very relaxing at a view of the city on Mulholland Dr.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would love to give a shoutout to my family. I want to give thanks to my mom for staying up late nights with me before flea markets so I can finish all my rugs on time and for doing my setups with me. My dad who just placed yet another rug order with me. My little sister Alicia for never letting me go to a flea market alone and being my little assistant when I need extra help. My older sister Alexses for always supporting me and my business when I need extra products or tools and constantly posting my business on her social media platforms. There are so many other people like friends, customers and followers who have supported me along the way that I greatly appreciate.

Website: rugratlyfestyle.com

Instagram: rugratlyfestyle

Other: Etsy & Depop: rugratlyfestyle