Over the next several years I did more markets and started selling in more local shops. As my business began to grow it was hard not to get caught up in the “girl boss”/”hustle” mentality that was popular on the internet at the time. I saw some of my artist friends with no kids traveling around the country to do art shows. I struggled to feel like these were things I should be doing. But also, I felt a pull to stay close to my kiddos. Sometimes I found the balance and sometimes I just had to say no to certain things.
I also went through a really dark time around 2016/2017. I won't go into all of the details but I was struggling daily to keep my head above water in my personal life. I struggled to see God in the circumstances of life during this time as my world as I knew it had been flipped upside down. During this time I craved being outdoors in nature. It was the only place I could see God or felt any peace.
I didnt know it at the time but this season of life was changing me and also began shaping my art. It even shaped my vision for my art.
One of my visions is to create art that helps others to connect with nature and to see beauty where you are: in the ordinary and everyday. In a world that can be so dark, beauty can still be found everywhere and that beauty and light can inspire hope and joy in all of us.
In 2017-2019 I worked on a series of natural history prints with this vision in mind. I illustrated a bird a day for a month and then moved on to illustrating a butterfly a day, a wildflower a day, etc. These prints have been the bread and butter of my business for 5 years and I am so thankful.
In 2020 the covid pandemic hit and I was sure that my art business was doomed. All of the shops i sold in were closed and no art festivals happened that year. However….the most surprising thing happened. My natural history prints blew up on Etsy. I was selling 5-10 a day and could not figure out why my sales were skyrocketing. I kept my printing guy very busy that year and he told me that it didn’t surprise him. He told me that since folks were working from home, they were turning their homes into offices and looking for ways to decorate them. Also, with folks staying home and slowing down there was this rise of folks paying more attention to the natural world around them. This year I made exactly the same amount from my art as the year before solely on Etsy sales. It makes me smile at how God took care of us and sustained my art business during that time.
Read Part 3 HERE
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