Just about one year ago, I walked through the revolving doors of a Chicago skyscraper and into a new life. I had spent the previous four years in marketing with a non-profit association – in all honesty, it wasn’t a bad job! In fact, it was awesome in tons of ways (e.g., healthcare coverage is way cool)…but I never felt completely myself there. I couldn’t stop daydreaming for something more in line with my artistic passions.

I have always loved anything arts and crafts related, but I had recently fallen particularly head-over-heels for hand lettering and illustration. And as that love grew more and more, I started realizing how much I wanted some major change… a different way of stringing the days of my life together. So with a brand spankin’ new graphic design certificate and developing artistic talent, I thought the next logical step would be to take the leap into freelance illustration and design. Simple, right!?

My husband, Ryan, and I took a five-week backpacking trip through Europe after leaving our jobs in the fall of 2018. This is us in Brussels, Belgium. Still missing the waffles and beer…*sigh*

I’ve been stretched, crushed, inspired, and uplifted in more ways than one over the last year. Major life transitions have a tendency to do that. The emotional ups and downs are suuuper fun…HA. But honestly, I’ve gained more clarity about who I am and what I want in this condensed period of time than I ever have before.

I’m sure many of you could think of times when life turned upside down and you really learned something new about yourself. For me, I learned just how much I appreciate the simple everyday moments and opportunities to do things by hand. If I look back to my childhood, though, I’m now just re-learning this and giving myself permission to chase that passion wholeheartedly as an adult.

I absolutely LOVE the feeling of making something from start to finish…taking a blank slate and creating something tangibly beautiful and useful. Specifically, I love learning to sew and knit, drawing anything nature-related, cooking with straight-from-the-earth ingredients, making special gifts by hand, hosting themed gatherings, creating cozy spaces, and ALL that creative goodness. Those sorts of things make my heart burst into song, Hallelujah chorus and all.

So as a way of publicly declaring my love for all things handmade, and to keep myself accountable to sharing my art with the world (helping me crush that whole “imposter syndrome” thing), I decided to start a lil’ blog!

This blog is for fellow kindred spirits who would love an evening crafting at home with homemade soup on the stove and a natural candle slowly burning away. (Where my old souls at? Up top!) This is for other freelance creatives trying to balance all that life throws at them. This is for those interested in natural health and cooking from scratch. This is for homesteaders and fellow aspiring homesteaders looking for fun projects and inspiration. This is for other serial DIY-ers looking for another craft to dig their creative claws into.

Ultimately, this blog is for anyone who wants to slow down, work more with their hands, make time for life’s simple joys, and join me on a journey of finding our roots.

I will share updates on my illustration work, nourishing recipes, craft tutorials, book recommendations, free downloadable tools and resources, and general musings on sweet day-to-day things. This is an invitation to slow and artful living. I hope you choose to follow along!

Introduction: A Journey to Slow and Artful Living