My Story
Welcome to my life before the professional title was added.
If you’ve made it to this page, yay! I hope you enjoy learning a little bit about my childhood and how it led me to where I am today. You’ll get to see some fun photos along the way.
From as early as I can remember, I have pictured myself in a creative field. Some of my earliest and fondest memories started in the kitchen. I loved, and still love, baking. My grandmother had a knack for it. She made beautiful wedding cakes as gifts for family and friends. I was not around to witness these creations, but I think my grandma blessed me with that natural talent. By the age of 10, I began creating cakes — decorating became my favorite part. Most of my birthday cakes past the age of ten were made by me (specifically the party cake. My mom continued to make my special german chocolate cake for me— with my help, of course)!
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Pictured: Me sampling the homemade ice cream my nanny and I made together. I always loved getting into the sweet treats in the kitchen!
As for art (i.e. drawing), that love started with sketches of eyes, birds, and little doodles on the sides of notebook paper as early as third grade. At the same age I took a big interest in baking is when I began exploring drawing with more intention. It was not long before I jumped into painting. I completed my first acrylic painting at twelve years old. I followed a tutorial from a book I bought at Hobby Lobby. I was so impressed by my little painting, and adult me is glad twelve year-old-me was! Through my teenage years I continued to bake and paint. At 14, my dream job consisted of owning my own bakery where I would display and sell my original artwork.
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Pictured: My first painting
My bakery/art dream was fueled by a desire for creativity, supportive parents, and two important high school teachers that poured into me constantly. With a small bedroom closet turned into an “art studio” and a drive to paint, I continued to improve my craft. I dabbled in abstract painting, charcoal drawing, realism, etc. I decided my favorite was realism and continued to focus on that. I sold my first painting at 18.
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Pictured: The painting I sold at 18. The buyer was a professional diver who recovered lost bodies, which were then returned to their families for proper burial.
My senior year of high school was a big part of my artistic journey. I created a lot of pieces in my art class and in my little closet studio (sadly, I do not have a photo of my closet space- but my memory remembers it well). While I was a senior in high school I decided to take a dual credit course at the college right beside our campus. I took drawing 100. This class is the extent of my academic education in the arts. It is also where I met my husband.
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Pictured: My final assignment for Drawing 100 (also attached is my husband’s final — hehe). I’ll let you decide on whose is whose.
After graduating high school, the following happened: I started college in fall of 2019, covid began that spring, and I got married in the middle of all the shutdowns. Due to covid restrictions in my major, I dropped out of college and pursued other avenues. I decided to try my hand in the real estate world. I spent roughly a year and a half as a Realtor, but found that it was not the job for me. Juggling a schedule that was never predictable, on top of being a new mom, was not a good fit. I said goodbye to real estate and welcomed painting back into my life. My husband encouraged me to begin a business with my bottle art. Bottle painting has brought me several opportunities that I could not have imagined. I have painted a bottle that was gifted to the governor, I have a bottle displayed at the visitors center of Maker’s Mark, and I have been asked to create a limited time label for a bourbon brand.
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Pictured: My first bottle painting, my bottles created for Maker’s Mark & LexArt’s Whisky Wall, and a wedding painting (2025)
Bottle painting also got me into the wedding industry. I am so thankful it did. I think little me would be so excited to know what she grew up to do. Being a Live Painter has been a dream come true (better than my original one). I cannot imagine being in a different profession.
Thank you for reading!