Meet Janet Precourt | Multi-media artist

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

Hi Janet, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I’ve always loved art since I was a small child. I watched my Mom do all kinds of craft projects from sewing to pottery. She often let me join in. I took a couple of art classes in school and enjoyed learning new techniques in water color and charcoal art. As I became a young Mom, myself, out of necessity I had to decorate my babies’ rooms with paint and sewing projects, since money was a little tight. So, my art aspirations grew from there. I even taught a toll painting class in the 80’s and bought a scroll saw to cut my own wood. I’ve never been afraid to try new techniques or crafts. I’ve dabbled in macrame, dyeing reeds for basket weaving, crocheting, acrylic painting and some water colors. My friends and I were getting together when we could and enjoying the next craft adventure when we were raising our children. Then my corporate career took over most of my time, but I tried to still do projects with sewing like making pillows, curtains and other household items when I could. Once I retired from that 40 year corporate job, it was time to devote my time to my family and what I enjoyed the most…making art. So, I tried new techniques like making resin items from Geo canvases to coasters, working with alcohol ink and chalk paste and inks. Then Covid hit the world and being stuck at home, I started a frenzy of creation of resin art and my friends were telling me that I needed to start selling my items and out of sheer necessity as I was running out of room to store all the items I made, I decided to open up a Craft booth at a local mercantile. It took me a while to determine what my local area was willing to spend their hard-earned money on and the price point for those items. I’ve found it to be the most rewarding experience when someone buys my items and admires them. I find myself always thinking about what the next project is going to be and creating things like acrylic wall art and wreaths for my friends. I like following other artists and see what stirs their juices and getting inspiration from them as well.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m the most proud of not being afraid to try new types of art. Resin used to scare me because of the hazards involved with that media and the sticky mess. But after watching many tutorials on You Tube and taking classes, I decided to try it on my own. I like the fact that you may have an idea in your head on what you want to produce, but resin has a mind of it’s own sometimes. So you have to improvise and don’t be afraid to throw away a failed project. I’m always learning new techniques to help perfect what I was attempting. Not all medias are easy when starting out, but practice makes it less intimidating. I tried Pour Acrylic Painting on canvas and learned that just the smallest change of ingredients can change the outcome and look of your artwork. So, that in itself made it fun and challenging. My greatest lesson is to not be too hard on yourself. You may not love what you created and others may find beauty in what you created.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would take them to some of the pretty places like the Dallas Arboretum or some of the music venues we have in the metroplex. There is always a great country concert going on somewhere like at Dickey’s arena, AT&T stadium or House of Blues. As far as food goes, there are so many places like Tex-Mex restaurants like Joe T. Garcia, Esperanza’s, Chuy’s and Mi Concina to take them to. I would take them to Main Street in Grapevine for good food, craft shopping, glass blowing and western shopping. Then speaking of western shopping and good food, there’s no place like the Ft. Worth Stockyards. For the young in spirit, then a trip to Six Flags or for a sports venue like a Cowboy, Stars or Mavericks game would be in order. The Perot Museum is also a great place to spend a day and if there’s kids, then a trip to one of water parks would be fun. For other shopping experiences, then I would take them to Downtown McKinney where they can shop for local wares, clothes, visit Rick’s Chophouse for a good steak and then over to the Landon Winery for an after dinner visit and drink.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I think early on, I owe my love of art from my Mother. She was creative and willing to try new things as well. She and my Dad were very hands-on types of people, even building their own stereo wall unit and Mom decorating our house with her creations. She always had a “special” project to decorate the house for the holidays and that was partly the reason I like making flower arrangements and wreaths.

Website: https://peaceofmyarte.com

Instagram: peaceofmyarte

Facebook: peaceofmyarte

Image Credits
N/A