My BIGGEST Advice for Starting & Running Your Art Shop! ✿ Small Business Q&A!

Summary

In this insightful video, Tammy, the artist and owner of Uncomfy Studio, shares her journey from a graphic design student to a full-time entrepreneur. She candidly discusses overcoming shyness, managing anxiety, and growing her business since its inception in 2020. Tammy offers practical advice on pricing, time management, and embracing originality despite market saturation. She also addresses the challenges of dealing with copycats and the importance of self-care for mental health. With a focus on passion and authenticity, Tammy's story serves as an inspiration for aspiring artists and small business owners alike.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Tammy, the artist and owner of Uncomfy Studio, started her business in 2020 while still a full-time graphic design student, and it has now become her full-time job.
• 🛍️ She has sold over 3,000 items and sometimes makes double-digit profits from her art sales in a single month, growing an online audience in the process.
• 💡 For aspiring artists and small business owners, Tammy advises starting with passion projects to alleviate pressure and allow for experimentation and learning from mistakes.
• 🚀 She recommends starting an Etsy shop and Instagram account on the same day to establish a clear business identity and connect with other small businesses.
• 🤔 Tammy suggests not doing too much research initially, as it can lead to confusion and discouragement, advocating for learning as you go, especially for Etsy which handles much of the business details.
• 🌟 To overcome shyness, she emphasizes that it's a skill that improves with practice and mentions that there are various ways to present art without showing one's face or voice.
• 💰 When it comes to pricing, Tammy follows a formula that considers the time spent making an item plus the cost of materials, advocating for fair pricing to attract an audience that values the artist's work.
• 📈 Tammy's goals for 2024 include making at least one new thing every month to stay creative and avoid burnout, and she encourages others to seek new opportunities and indulge every idea they have.
• 🧘‍♀️ She manages stress and anxiety through self-care practices like gratitude journaling and faith, which has helped her feel supported and less fearful.
• 👥 Tammy acknowledges the challenges of seeing others with similar styles but focuses on her unique identity and the natural overlap of influences in art.
• 📚 She has started outsourcing certain tasks, such as working with a graphic designer and an agency for email management, hinting at potential opportunities for collaboration in the future.

Q & A

What is the name of Tammy's small business?

Tammy's small business is called Uncomfy Studio.

When did Tammy start her business, Uncomfy Studio?

Tammy started Uncomfy Studio in 2020.

What was Tammy's initial occupation while starting Uncomfy Studio?

Tammy was a full-time graphic design student when she started Uncomfy Studio.

How did Tammy manage to sell her handmade Palmer Clay goods?

Tammy sold her handmade Palmer Clay goods through her Etsy shop and Instagram, which she started on the same day.

What advice does Tammy give to those who are naturally anxious about starting a business?

Tammy advises not to do too much research initially as it can lead to confusion and discouragement, and recommends learning as you go.

How does Tammy feel about putting herself out there, especially when she was shy?

Tammy admits it was hard for her to put herself out there due to her shyness, but she emphasizes that like any skill, it gets easier with practice.

What is Tammy's approach to pricing her handmade items?

Tammy's pricing formula involves the time spent making the item plus the cost of materials, which should equal the selling price.

How does Tammy handle stress and anxiety related to her business?

Tammy manages stress and anxiety through self-care practices like gratitude journaling and by having faith in herself, her hard work, or the universe.

What does Tammy think about other artists having a similar style to hers?

Tammy acknowledges that similar styles exist but doesn't feel pressured by it. She believes in the uniqueness of her own work and trusts her audience to recognize her art.

How does Tammy manage her time when running her small business?

Tammy manages her time by blocking out large spaces or entire days dedicated to one task, which helps her maintain focus and avoid fatigue.

What is Tammy's goal for 2024 in terms of her creative work?

Tammy's goal for 2024 is to make at least one new thing every month to keep herself creatively engaged and avoid burnout.

How does Tammy view her relationship with her art now compared to the past?

Tammy feels that she has rekindled her relationship with her art, viewing it as a true expression of herself and her life, including her YouTube videos as an art form.

What is Tammy's perspective on friends who aren't happy for her success?

Tammy chooses not to dwell on friends who aren't happy for her success and instead focuses on those who uplift and challenge her.

Does Tammy plan on hiring or outsourcing work in the future?

Tammy has started dabbling in outsourcing work, such as hiring a graphic designer and collaborating with others on product design, and she is open to working with more creatives in the future.

How did Tammy grow her audience on social media without following trends?

Tammy grew her audience by creating content that she is passionate about, which attracted like-minded individuals, rather than seeking out trends.

What advice does Tammy have for growing a small business Instagram account?

Tammy suggests trying new things and experimenting with different types of content, such as behind-the-scenes, process videos, or photo carousels of creations.

Outlines

00:00

🎨 Starting an Art-Based Small Business

Tammy, the founder of Uncomfy Studio, shares her journey from a graphic design student to a full-time artist and business owner. She emphasizes treating your business as a passion project when starting out, which allows for experimentation and learning from mistakes. Tammy advises new artists to establish an online presence with Etsy and Instagram to signal their intent to sell and connect with other small businesses. She also suggests not getting overwhelmed with research and instead learning as you go, which can be less daunting and more practical for beginners.

05:00

📈 Overcoming Shyness and Pricing Artwork

Tammy discusses the challenges of putting oneself out there, especially for introverted individuals, and shares her personal growth from being painfully shy to confidently showcasing her work. She highlights the importance of courage and persistence in growing an audience and brand. Regarding pricing, she recommends a straightforward formula that considers the time spent creating the item plus the cost of materials. Tammy encourages artists to value their work and attract an audience that appreciates their time and effort, rather than focusing on negative feedback.

10:02

🍽️ Balancing Business with Personal Life and Goals

The paragraph features a sponsored segment where Tammy introduces Farmer's Dog, a service providing fresh, healthy food for pets. She shares her experience with the service and how it has benefited her picky-eating dog, Winnie. Tammy also discusses her approach to scripting YouTube videos, preferring bullet points and outlines for talking videos, and the importance of creating new content to avoid burnout. She sets a goal for 2024 to innovate by making at least one new item or project each month.

15:04

🧘‍♀️ Managing Anxiety and Self-Care for Creatives

Tammy opens up about her personal struggles with anxiety and stress, offering insights into how she manages these challenges. She talks about the benefits of gratitude journaling and having faith in oneself or a higher power as a source of strength. Tammy recommends 'The Artist's Way' for those in a creative rut and emphasizes the importance of self-care, such as getting enough sleep and exercise. She also credits her small business for providing opportunities that have helped her overcome anxiety by facing and overcoming fears.

20:05

🤝 Navigating Originality and Time Management

In this paragraph, Tammy addresses concerns about other artists with similar styles and the feeling of being copied. She maintains a positive outlook, focusing on her own growth and the uniqueness of her work. Tammy also discusses her time management strategy, which involves dedicating large blocks of time to specific tasks, allowing for focused work and preventing burnout. She stresses the importance of prioritizing and setting realistic expectations to maximize productivity.

🌟 Embracing Success and Future Collaborations

Tammy reflects on the contributions of her graphic design education to her business success, particularly in branding and storytelling. She discusses her evolving relationship with her art and how she has come to view all aspects of her work, including YouTube videos, as expressions of her art. Addressing the issue of friends not being supportive of her success, Tammy chooses to focus on positive relationships and personal growth. She also hints at potential future collaborations and expresses openness to working with other artists and designers.

🚀 Growth Strategies for Small Business Instagram

The final paragraph provides advice for growing a small business on Instagram. Tammy suggests trying new things and experimenting with different types of content, such as behind-the-scenes videos, process documentation, or photo carousels. She emphasizes the importance of being genuine and creating content that reflects the artist's unique vision, rather than chasing trends. The paragraph concludes with a thank you to her audience and a mention of a sponsor, Farmer's Dog.

Keywords

💡Artist

An artist is an individual engaged in creating art, which can be in various forms such as visual, auditory, or performance arts. In the context of the video, Tammy identifies herself as an artist, which is central to her identity and her small business, Uncomfy Studio. She creates handmade Palmer Clay goods, showcasing her artistic talent as a core component of her brand and products.

💡Small Business Owner

A small business owner is someone who operates and manages a small-scale commercial enterprise. Tammy, the speaker in the video, is a small business owner of Uncomfy Studio, which she started in 2020. This role involves overseeing the production, marketing, and sales of her handmade art pieces, as well as engaging with her audience and customers.

💡Uncomfy Studio

Uncomfy Studio is the name of Tammy's small business, specializing in handmade Palmer Clay goods. It represents her brand and the creative space where she produces her art. The studio is not just a physical location but also an online presence where she interacts with her customers and showcases her work.

💡Passion Project

A passion project refers to an endeavor that someone undertakes out of personal interest or enjoyment, rather than for monetary gain or professional advancement. Tammy describes Uncomfy Studio as her passion project initially, which means it started as something she loved doing in her spare time, separate from her full-time studies and job.

💡Etsy

Etsy is an e-commerce website focused on handmade or vintage items and craft supplies. Tammy mentions starting her Etsy shop on the same day she began her Instagram art account, indicating that Etsy is a key platform for her to sell her handmade Palmer Clay goods and reach customers interested in unique, artisanal products.

💡Pricing Strategy

Pricing strategy refers to the method or approach used to set the price of a product or service. Tammy discusses her pricing strategy, which is based on the time spent creating an item plus the cost of materials. This strategy is crucial for artists and small business owners to ensure they are compensated fairly for their work and materials.

💡Gratitude Journaling

Gratitude journaling is the practice of writing down things one is grateful for, often daily, as a form of self-care and mental wellness activity. Tammy shares that she started gratitude journaling to help manage stress and anxiety, finding it particularly helpful in affirming that she is taken care of and reducing fear.

💡Manifestation

Manifestation is a concept where positive thoughts or affirmations are used to attract desired outcomes or experiences. Tammy writes down manifestations such as 'the universe is taking care of me' as a way to foster a positive mindset and reduce anxiety, which is a form of mental and emotional self-care.

💡Artist's Way

The Artist's Way is a book by Julia Cameron that focuses on creativity and personal development. Tammy recommends this book for artists and individuals in creative ruts, as it helps them understand and overcome negative feelings around their art and career, promoting overall well-being and creative expression.

💡Dragon Con

Dragon Con is a multi-genre convention that focuses on science fiction and fantasy, among other genres. Tammy mentions being given the opportunity to vend at Dragon Con, indicating a significant milestone in her career as a recognized artist and small business owner within the community.

💡Outsourcing

Outsourcing refers to the practice of hiring external individuals or companies to perform certain tasks or services. Tammy has started outsourcing work, such as hiring a graphic designer for a new logo and collaborating with an agency to manage emails and brand deals, which helps her focus on her core artistic work and grow her business.

Highlights

Tammy, the founder of Uncomfy Studio, turned her passion for handmade Palmer Clay goods into a full-time job, selling over 3,000 items.

She advises new small business owners to view their business as a passion project to alleviate pressure and allow for experimentation.

Tammy recommends starting an Etsy shop and Instagram account on the same day to establish a clear small business identity.

She suggests not doing too much research initially to avoid overwhelm and confusion, advocating for learning as you go.

Tammy emphasizes the importance of putting yourself out there, even if you're shy or introverted, as it gets easier with practice.

She shares her pricing strategy, which includes the time spent making an item plus the cost of materials.

Tammy discusses managing stress and anxiety by implementing self-care practices like gratitude journaling.

She mentions that her small business has helped her overcome anxiety by giving her opportunities to grow and succeed.

Tammy addresses the issue of artists copying her work, choosing to focus on her own growth and trusting her audience.

She talks about the benefits of repetitive tasks in her work, finding comfort in routine and improvement over time.

Tammy's goal for 2024 is to create at least one new thing every month to stay creative and avoid burnout.

She shares her experience with outsourcing work, such as hiring a graphic designer and collaborating with others on product design.

Tammy discusses the importance of time management by blocking out time for specific tasks and prioritizing what's most important.

She explains how her relationship with her art has evolved, now viewing her YouTube videos as an art form and an expression of herself.

Tammy provides advice on growing a small business Instagram account by trying new types of content and staying true to yourself.

She highlights the significance of her small business in helping her manage stress and anxiety, as well as the support from her audience.

Transcripts

why am I so nervous okay hi my name is

Tammy I'm an artist and small business

owner and today I'm going to answer your

questions for those of you who don't

know me I started my small business

called uncomfy studio in 2020 back then

I was still a full-time graphic design

student taking my clay with me to campus

so I could make orders during my breaks

never in my life do I think I can make a

living selling handmade Palmer Clay

Goods but here we are uncomfy is my

full-time job now and I've sold over

3,000 items some sometimes making double

digits from my art sales alone in a

single month and I've garnered an online

audience at the same time so those are

my

[Music]

qualifications okay I think we're

ready I asked you guys to send me

questions on Instagram YouTube and Tik

Tok so I got a ton a ton of questions

let's start off with some small business

questions and then I'll go into the more

fun personal ones by far the most common

question I got was just over overall

advice for amateur artists or people who

are just starting their small business

when I first started my small business

it was in October of 20120 so I was

still a student I was in my sophomore

year of graphic design school so uncomfy

was very much my passion project and I

think everyone should view their small

business as their passion project when

they're first starting out that means

you can alleviate yourself from all the

pressure because it's just for fun it's

not the thing that is going to make or

break you you're allowed to make

mistakes you can experiment as much as

you want with different styles of art

different styles of content that you

want to make as far as selling your

items I started my art account with the

intention of selling them so I started

my Etsy shop and my Instagram on the

same day so that way it sends a very

clear message to anyone who encounters

you that you are a small business and

that's not just for customers it's for

other small businesses so they can

follow you and you can become friends

and share advice with each

other here here is the base for my key

cap another huge piece of advice I

always give to my friends which is a

little bit controversial is to not do

too much research and I say this because

if you are a naturally anxious person

you're going to do all this research

you're going to find out about more and

more and more things that you have no

idea about you are going to encounter

things like taxes state regulations

business entities and it's just going to

confuse you and discourage you most of

my other successful friends are ones

that just jumped right and they just

started posting Tik Tok started selling

on Etsy without knowing anything and I'm

a huge proponent of learning as you go

especially if you're just starting out I

recommend starting on Etsy because they

take care of all of that for you anyway

all you have to do is set up your shop

and take care of fulfilling

items I also got a lot of questions on

how to put yourself out there if you're

really shy or introverted believe me it

was very hard for me to put myself out

there too just to prove it to you you

here is Me 3 years ago when I first

started posting on YouTube hi everyone

um it's Tammy welcome to the Vlog

today's plan is to work on some

orders yeah I'm sorry I didn't film that

I'm going to get better at filming and

vlogging in general I promise yeah like

if you think I'm awkward now I was so

awkward and painfully shy back then but

the thing is like any skill you just

have to do it more and it does take take

a lot of courage to put yourself out

there but there's one quote that I saw

randomly on Tik Tok that I just haven't

been able to stop thinking about sense

and the quote goes something like this

the universe will reward those who are

courageous enough to do what they

love hi this is editing Tammy I also

wanted to add that there are many

different ways to put yourself out there

if you're not comfortable sharing your

face or even sharing your voice there

are plenty of successful artists and

content creators who make videos without

doing any of those things I'll link some

of my favorite ones down below but just

know that even when I first started out

I didn't show my face at all and I was

still able to grow and then I slowly got

more comfortable with sharing my face

and my personality and now it's part of

my brand so if you are very shy just

know that you will still be able to grow

and here is the key cap that I made so

cute regarding pricing I follow a pretty

simple formula the time you spent making

something plus the cost of materials

should equal the price that you sell it

for but what does that really mean so

you have to think about how much you

want to make do you want to make minimum

wage let's say you want to make a little

more than minimum wage let's say you

want to make $20 an hour you want to

sell your handmade crochet items and

let's say for the example you spend $5

on a ball of yarn but you only use half

of it for this project so that's $2.50

for the cost of materials and you spend

3 hours making it so 6250 is the minimum

that you should be charging for this

handmade piece a lot of people feel bad

or guilty or even shameful for charging

what is a fair price for their art but

at the end of the day by fairly pricing

your items you're also attracting an

audience that ultimately you want to

keep you want your audience to be the

people who are understanding of your

prices the people who value your time

and effort and your art so yeah I'll get

some comments complaining about my

prices but I'll get 10 times more

comments of people supporting me for who

I am and and I'm so grateful for that

and I hope that happens to you one day

as well question how is your puppy so

cute and happy all the time hm that's a

weird question but I guess it's a good

segue into the sponsor of this video

Let's rewind to earlier this morning

good morning friends today we're going

to do a lot of sculpting a lot of

chatting but first I need to make us

some breakfast for me I'm having my

matcha protein chia seed pudding and

Winnie is having her favorite which is

Farmer's dog it is food made with real

whole freshh meat and veggies and it's

gently cooked in human grade kitchens to

retain its nutrients and moisture

content which is huge for me Winnie used

to have a lot of tummy problems but she

loves this food which I was so surprised

by because she is a picky eater you just

tell them a little bit about your dog

and then they'll send you personalized

recipes to your door for as little as $2

a day Winnie loves the turkey one they

come in these pre portion siiz packages

and all I have to do is thaw it out

overnight I'm going to portion out her

serving size which is a quar of a b bag

per meal and then after you portion out

your food all you have to do is fold it

over place it in a tupperware and pop it

back in the fridge and that is literally

it it's so easy but it's so wholesome

sit good girl so if you have a puppy in

your life and you want to give them more

wholesome healthy food this year I have

a discount code for you get 50% off of

your first box of fresh healthy food by

using my link down below thank you

farmer dog next question is do I script

my YouTube videos before I film them or

do I just talk to the camera usually I

film Vlogs so those are completely

unscripted those are just slices of my

life but for a talking video like this

yeah I'll have bullet points like for

this video I pulled all the questions I

wanted to answer and put them in my

notes app for later use I do think

writing a brief outline of your YouTube

video is really useful and it saves you

a lot of time in fact I probably should

have planned out this video more but

alas does my work ever feel repetitive

yes but I actually love things that are

repetitive if you have anxiety you might

relate to this but I'm very much a

creature of habit like I'll watch the

same show over and over again I'll

listen to the same music I will buy

multiple of the same plant just because

I know I can take care of it and the

same goes with my polymer clay items I

love being able to say that I make

hundreds of the same thing I feel like a

little Factory and it's almost like a

game to me I like writing things down

and Crossing them out and I like seeing

myself get better and better each time I

make the same thing but I also strongly

believe that I need to keep making new

things so I don't get burnt out and that

actually leads into this next question

which is what are my goals for 2024 I

feel like last year I got burnt out

quite a bit because I kept prioritizing

things that weren't necessarily filling

my cup but now this year my goal is to

make at least one new thing every month

and that can be anything that could be a

new clay character so this month I made

coet Maxine or can be working on an

entirely new different type of product

like my Glass Dragon cups I am super

super proud of myself this January

because if you watched my other video I

showed you guys my vision board and on

that vision board was to make glass cups

and I'm so happy that I was able to do

that within the first month of the year

so yeah that's my goal is just to like

always be seeking New Opportunities new

things indulging in every idea that I

come up with because by feeding my

curios I it I'll be able to stay

creative and here is Mr Coffee

[Music]

Bar now this question is for all my

fellow uncomfy people how do you manage

Stress and Anxiety with regard to life

generally and managing your business

I've been wanting to start putting my

art out there and trying to earn an

income from it but I've just found

myself overwhelmed by fear to the point

it's just a dream I put aside for a

couple years oh this question makes me

so emotional because like I know exactly

how you feel for a very very long time I

was only motivated by fear but over time

I started implementing various like

self-care so I started gratitude

journaling and that has really helped me

just writing down three things I'm

grateful for every morning and writing

down a manifestation like the most

common one that I write down is the

universe is taking care of me I'm going

to cry just talking about it I think at

my core I felt like I was all on my own

so once I started writing down like the

universe is taking care of me like I am

taken care of it made me feel so much

better and that sentiment gives me the

strength to live my life without fear at

the end of the day you just have to have

faith in something whether it's in

yourself in your hard work or in the

universe if you yourself are in a

creative rut and you feel like you've

been chasing something for years and

years I highly recommend the artist's

way this book came out in the 80s or

something and it's still something that

artists and all my friends have been

using to this day it talks a lot about

why we have these negative feelings

around our art and our career and it

helps you work through that the book

actually talks a lot about how your

creativity is a reflection of your

well-being so it encourages you to get

enough sleep get enough exercise and

those are the things that I've been

trying to do as well to help manage my

stress I love lifting weights now it

helps me so much with managing my body

pain and here is Tangerine

Maxine

on the flip side of that question

someone asked how do you think your

small business has helped your

anxiety this starting my small business

and documenting my journey has allowed

me to reach millions of people has

allowed me to help millions of people so

even though my whole life I didn't think

that I would amount to anything great I

started my own business I reached a

100,000 followers on YouTube by myself I

am self-taught I've talked on an artist

panel in front of like 30 people I was

given the opportunity to vend at Dragon

boil Festival a festival in Colorado

that I used to go to every year as a kid

and now I was a vendor there this job

has given me so many opportunities to

speak in front of people to put myself

out there that initially were super

scary but I got past them and now I can

say that I did all of these things and

in that way it has helped my my anxiety

because the next time I'm nervous or

stressed deep down I know I can do it I

also want to give a special shout out to

anyone who has ever messaged me has ever

commented on my videos has ever sent me

mail those are the messages that I've

held on to during my darkest moments

like the fact that I can help comfort

and Inspire other people with my art

that is what motivates me every single

day s be

baby I know

[Music]

do you love that I'm home all day with

all the small businesses on Insta Etsy

Etc how do you feel about artists that

have nearly the same style as you do you

feel the pressure to always be more

original or better and do you sometimes

think that some people are somehow

stealing ideas from you let me think

about this I have noticed people doing

stuff that is similar to my art style

I've even experienced an artist who

copied my designs for exactly what it

was and then just resold it for a

cheaper price when someone copies you

it's very easy to feel horrible and like

manipulated and it's very easy to feel

used like they saw my stuff and they

stole it and now it's theirs but that's

a very negative Rabbit Hole to go down I

try not to think about it too much I

just try to keep my head up keep my head

focused on what I want to make

everything I make is something that I'm

truly excited about and most of the time

people who are copying me I can tell

that they're usually younger or they

have less experience so it doesn't add

any pressure to me and I just trust in

myself and in my audience and in all the

hard work that I've put in cultivating

my art career that it pays off that my

audience knows me and recognizes me for

what I make I also recognize that there

are so many other businesses and artists

who just make really similar things to

me and it's not copying it's just like

we're all living in the same world and

we're all influenced by the same things

so that to me is is just a very natural

part of art making some people say like

YouTube is oversaturated Instagram is

oversaturated there's too many people

making the same thing but I don't think

you should think that way this might be

corny but you are the only one who can

be you like even though there are

thousands of other Asian girls on

YouTube doing art I am still unique

because I am me I am not Amanda rachy I

am Tammy den and there comes a point in

your life where you just have to realize

that being you is more than enough here

is a Sakura bow radish spirit with its

flower companion okay so it is getting

rapidly dark so I think this will be our

last sculpt of the day and then I'll

probably move to the couch and do a

rapid fire round of questions a question

I got a lot was how do I manage my time

or what should you expect when you're

running a small business like what sort

of tasks am I even managing throughout

the day regarding time management is not

that I'm trying to do everything every

single day I think people are just

naturally not not meant to be doing 10

different things so instead of doing

that I like to block out large spaces of

time even full entire days just

dedicated to one thing so when I was

still a student I would block out times

to study and times to work on my small

business I would block out Fridays and

Saturdays to do all of my homework and

then on week nights I would work on my

small business and that seems sort of

backwards but to me I was prioritizing

my small business over my studies so I

was just doing the bare minimum and I

still graduated guys finished school I

actually think my small business is

really successful because I did go to

school and I learned so much about

business and marketing from my graphic

design degree but now that I'm out of

school that sentiment still stands I'm

still prioritizing what's most important

to me so emails are not that important

so I won't even look at them until later

at night I find that I get very very

fatigued if I'm trying to do too much so

I set realistic expectations for myself

for example when I'm editing my YouTube

videos I dedicate a whole day to just

editing I won't do anything else and for

the rest of the week I can actually work

on my orders I can actually film I think

it's called uninterrupted Focus time if

you just have 4 hours of uninterrupted

Focus time you can get so much more done

than just trying to squeeze in little

bits of work every now and then and here

is the Harvest cat look at everything we

made today I'm so proud of

[Music]

us all right we are done sculpting for

the day because it is so dark outside

but you guys haveed so many questions

and I really want to try my best to

answer as many as I can so here is

uncomfy rapid fire question section the

Kenya brand asked what did majoring and

graphic design contribute to your

business success I attribute many of my

marketing skills to graphic design the

most vital lesson I ever learned from

school was the importance of story

branding which is the idea that like

you're not just selling a commodity

you're selling a lifestyle so I just

remember we had a whole project where we

took mundane ordinary items and had to

Rebrand them to be like marketable but

yeah I definitely learned a lot from

graphic design shout out see you Denver

Snapdragon designs asks how do you feel

like your relationship with your art

hasband recently um such a great

question I feel like last year my

relationship with my art was very

fraught I felt like it wasn't my art

anymore I felt like it was just my

business but now I feel like I've

rekindled that relationship I feel like

my art is now like the truest expression

of me and my life I now view my YouTube

videos as my art form as well so that

has helped me tremendously in

consolidating like all the different

parts of being self-employed and now

everything I do from sketching sculpting

filming and editing that's just another

expression of my art and another step in

the process tur Angie tar Angie they

asked have you ever had friends that

aren't happy for your success and how

did you handle it I actually have been

dealing with friends who aren't as happy

for my success as I would hope them to

be but I'm choosing not to dwell on it

as much in the end I really want friends

who just uplift me and challenge me and

make me the best version of myself that

I can be I'm so happy and grateful to

say that I have made friends who do

uplift me in that way so I don't know if

that's me dealing with it per se but

I've just accepted that people grow

apart and that's natural and it's okay

Raquel asks are you still thinking of

hiring in the future I'm a huge fan of

your work and an art student so curious

thank you so much I've actually started

dabbling and Outsourcing work I'm no

longer doing everything by myself I'm

working with a graphic designer right

now to work on a new logo and I hired my

friend Ally to help me design the dragon

cups I also work with an agency who

helps me manage all my emails and

incoming like brand deals yeah I've just

been dabbling and Outsourcing like

Contracting work not necessarily like

full-time assistance yet if you happen

to be a graphic designer or illustrator

and you want to work with me just shoot

me an email of your portfolio of your

works and maybe in the future I'll reach

out to you this person asked what was

the size of your audience when you

started to open a shop it was exactly

zero followers I think I said this

before but I started selling on Etsy

from day one so I didn't even have an

audience yet I just knew that my art

Instagram was dedicated to my shop so

would it make sense for me to not have a

shop open yet if that makes sense Alba

sketches asked do you know how to

discover what sounds are trending in Tik

Tok and Instagram and I actually don't

use any trending sounds I'm actually

very very bad at using trending sounds

or doing Trends in general but I think

it's like a blessing in disguise because

my growth and my audience isn't

dependent on me trending I don't have to

seek Trends I just make what I want to

make and I've gained an audience for

that and I think ultimately that's how

everyone should do social media okay in

the same vein Vermillion shop asked

biggest advice for growing a small Biz

Instagram account I have tons of advice

but if you're feeling stuck definitely

try something new there are so many

different types of videos that you can

make for your small business you could

do packing videos talk about what

supplies you ordered talk about the

story behind your art film the process

of making your art from start to finish

or maybe split it up into a series all

of those ideas are super viable you

could even just do a photo Carousel of

all the different things you made that

week and I've seen those blow up as well

okay I think that is all I'm going to

answer today I am exhausted thank you

once again to everyone who submitted a

question I hope you found this video

video helpful I hope I gave you some

comfort some inspiration that's all I

ever want to do with this channel if you

have a puppy definitely check out

Farmer's dog and I'll see you guys next

time

bye

rest on her shoulder I was cleaning her

shoe when it clicked on the trout over

in the Bright Morning

Dew we brush

and we braided d