An Inspired Chat with Hillary Youngblood of Lenexa

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Hillary Youngblood. Check out our conversation below.

Hillary, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Definitely integrity! Intelligence comes down to the genes you inherit from your parents so you don’t have much control over that, ignorance is a different story. Energy is something that comes and goes during life, sometimes you have a lot to give and other times you don’t. Integrity is so important and completely within your control, you know who you are and what you stand for and hopefully have a strong moral compass.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello! I’m Hillary Youngblood from Hillary’s Hobby, where I do all things silverware! I make jewelry and other fun things from silverware I find secondhand, bringing new life to old pieces.

Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
My relationship with my husband has shaped how I see myself the most. We have grown up together, we’ve been together since we were in high school. Since we have so much shared history and trust how I see myself is through a reflection of what he sees in me. He is a huge supporter of everything I do and that positivity grows my confidence and validates my endeavors.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
The fear of failure is one that has haunted me my entire life. Overall it pushes me to work hard at obstacles but I often worry about what opportunities I missed simply because I was too scared to try and fail. As I get older this fear is lessening which is a good thing. People say with age comes wisdom, and with each year I live less fearful of failing and more excited about attempting challenges.

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes! The public version of me you see online is definitely me! When I started making videos years ago on social media of creating jewelry I was making it just for me with absolutely nobody seeing it. Very organically over the last few years I have gained more followers online and I still make all the exact same type of videos and am the same person I was when I started.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days. 
I get extremely excited regularly (as you often see in my social media videos) at finding rare character flatware to turn into jewelry. My favorite so far that I’ve ever found is a vintage silver plated SpaghettiOs spoon, it was amazing!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/HillarysSpoons
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hillaryshobby
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/hillaryshobby
• Other: TikTok: @hillaryshobby

Image Credits
All photos taken by Hillary Youngblood