Meet gracy fowler | botanical artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with gracy fowler and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi gracy, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The magic behind my brand is simple; I started out with a passion & just had fun with it. I started experimenting with botanical art on my eighteenth birthday in March of 2019, finding potential customers every blue moon. Now here I am three years later with an art studio & a registered small business. There was never a time where I sat myself down & said “Okay grace, this is the plan, these are the goals..” it just kinda snowballed into what it is today. As sales started to get serious, I remember this moment of clarity that was just “here you are, & here is this opportunity to support yourself doing something you love. make the right move.” Realizing you have the opportunity to turn your passion into an income is a feeling I will never forget. It’s a terrifying leap, quitting a day job to focus your time & energy into something that doesn’t guarantee success. My business wasn’t born from a plan, numbers, or with an end goal in mind, but it is treated & cherished just the same.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My subject matter, medium, and inspiration all derive from nature. Creating wall pieces that demand attention, functional decor for everyday use, and jewelry, is a labor of love. Every individual creation houses preserved flowers foraged by my own hand. I encase them in glass-like epoxy resin so their beauty can be admired for years to come. Akin to moments in time, flowers are not meant to last. In that sense, my art symbolizes the desire to capture our most beautiful moments from life and freeze them in time so as to never lose them.

Getting to this point in my life was definitely not easy. Being an independent artist, no one is going to push you but you. I don’t have anyone watching me to say “Are you making your deadlines? Have you mailed those orders yet? Have you responded to those emails?”. Hands down the self motivation is the most challenging part of what I do. It may sound silly, but when you are completely in charge of your own work/time management, it is so easy to let yourself slip up.

The hardest lesson I have had to learn is to always protect yourself & your brand. Have a shop policy page & a set of standards to hold not only to yourself but your customers as well. As we all know, not everyone is a peach. There are literally humans who will make it their dying mission to smother your reputation as a small business owner/artist if their experience with you is a hair less than perfection. I learned the hard way, & I always encourage aspiring artists to prepare for the worst.

A little about me; my name is Gracy, my pronouns are she/her, & I am a 20 year old artist living in Fort Worth Tx. I have been an artist for as long as I can remember & it has always been the foundation of my personality. Aside from my love of all things expressive, I adore travel, my golden retriever, my soulmate, and good food. I am an empath & have always prided myself on having a strong connection to the emotions & energy around me & a goal to always make that known in my art. To my admirers; I hope you stay a while, & soak in the energy I pour into my own he(art).

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
For a local art tour, breweries in the area love to host art markets on the weekends to give exposure to artists & gives everyone a relaxed environment to enjoy/shop for affordable art. You can definitely catch my art at a few of the local events.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My wonderful partner Jose has been more supportive of my goals than I could ever ask for. the encouragement, motivation, and selfless support that he has provided me during this journey is priceless. I would not be here without him.

Website: https://shopbuttercup.bigcartel.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbuttercup/