Senior Chiara Walton, has been running her own business selling exotic hand made masks since her freshman year. She decided to make masks because she was influenced by her mother who had made them frequently in college.

“I love seeing designs I created in my head, and written down on paper really coming to life in the 3 dimensional masks,” Walton said.

The masks can be used for occasions like Halloween, Mardi Gras, masquerade, and anything in between.

It takes Walton roughly a couple days, weeks, or sometimes even just a couple of hours to make the masks but it all varies on the design.

“I do it as much as I can, I love it and it just makes me so happy that I can share it with other people,” said Walton.

So far Walton has sold around 100 masks, and her mother has sold a few thousand. Walton said, “It’s fun when I can just focus and sit down on what I am doing, but when I get out of that I’m just like “AHHH” this is something somebody wants, something I’m making for somebody. Are they gonna like it? Are they not? Am I pricing it too high? Too low? It’s kind of crazy and stressful.”

Other than making masks, Walton enjoys painting, sketching, photography, theater, choir, sound design, and costume design which she likes to tie in with her masks. If any students are interested in buying a mask or even paintings, jewelry, glass bowlings, etc, you can check out her website: www.GoddessMasks.com

Walton said, “A lot of people say you hide behind a mask but with the right mask you can bring your personality out and show it to the world.”