Delores Naskrent: [00:00:00] Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Creative Juggle Joy. I am Delores Naskrent, and today I have an old friend of mine joining me, Katie McEachern. Now, Katie and I met back in 2022 when we were both taking immersion, and one of the reasons I was so excited to have her on my podcast is that I've actually been able to watch her creative career evolve over the last four years.
A lot can happen in four years. When we first met, Katie was exploring surface pattern design and figuring out where it might take her. Today, her work has been licensed by Figo Fabrics. She had wallpaper launches with Bloomwell, and one of her designs was recognized in the Two Pages Top Curtain as Art contest, as a top 100 contestant.
And she's becoming much more intentional about building her career around art licensing. We literally just have been talking for half an hour about this. But what I find especially interesting is [00:01:00] everything that has happened in between those specific milestones. Katie's career has not followed one nice straight path.
There have been different businesses, different jobs, experiments, unexpected changes, and things she has consciously decided to leave behind. And I think there's such a valuable lesson in that for anyone who's listening who's still trying to figure out where their own creative work might lead. Katie, welcome.
I'm so happy to have you here
Katie McEachern: Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. It really does feel like the perfect time for both of us to catch up because so much has changed since we first met during Immersion. At the time, I knew I was excited about surface design, but I honestly wasn't exactly sure where I wanted to go with it.
Now, nearly five years later into my surface design journey, I have a much clearer sense of what I love, what I'm good at, and where I wanna put my energy.
Delores Naskrent: Let's go back to before [00:02:00] Immersion because surface pattern design definitely wasn't the beginning of your creative business story. We've talked about this a couple times.
You have a BFA in illustration. You have a minor in business admin. So art and business have always been two things you were drawn to. But I knew you when you had this whole Etsy chapter that started when your son was a baby. Tell us about that because I think it ended up being much more important than you probably realized at that time.
Katie McEachern: Absolutely. I started selling on Etsy when my son was little. He was probably two or three at the time long before I knew anything about licensing. My shop focused on air plant terrariums and handmade gifts, and at the time, it was exactly what I needed.
Becoming a new mom was such a huge life transition, and having something creative that was just for me gave me a sense of purpose and identity outside of being a mom. It was also honestly a really good creative outlet for my mental health. What I didn't [00:03:00] realize at the time was that I was also teaching myself how to run a small business completely through trial and error.
Delores Naskrent: Yeah.
Katie McEachern: I had no real roadmap or formal business plan, and I learned by making things, putting them out into the world, seeing what worked, making mistakes and trying again. Looking back, that little Etsy shop was such an important chapter both personally and professionally.
Delores Naskrent: And I love that 'cause it's so easy for us to dismiss something once we're not doing it anymore.
But I can remember meeting with you, and you had boxes and boxes piled up behind you, and I even ordered some. Remember those little... I had the little shells with the little air plant in it? I
Katie McEachern: do.
Delores Naskrent: I remember that. But you know what? Through all of that, you were learning how to become an entrepreneur.
You were learning customers and products and all the things that come with actually running a business. None of that disappears once you move on.
Katie McEachern: Exactly. It gave me such a strong foundation in entrepreneurship, and it taught me that so much of [00:04:00] building a creative business is about being willing to experiment and learn along the way.
Delores Naskrent: Then you spent several years working professionally in product development, which is very interesting to me. Your role was still art-related, but then that company shut down, you told me, during COVID, and you had a pretty significant realization at that point. You had those four years of professional creative experience, but you didn't have a body of work that actually belonged to you, which was interesting to me.
Katie McEachern: Yes, and that was a really hard position to find myself in. I spent nearly four years creating right out of college, but I didn't have a portfolio or a body of work that I owned and that I could continue building from. That was one of the biggest reasons why I decided to take Immersion in 2022. I really wanted to make creative work that truly was my own again and to figure out what I wanted the next chapter of my creative career to look like.
Delores Naskrent: And that's where you and [00:05:00] I met. And we had such a nice group, hey, of ladies that we met with every week.
Katie McEachern: We did.
Delores Naskrent: Even after Immersion, you didn't suddenly decide, though, "Okay, licensing. That's it. I know I'm gonna do licensing. I know exactly what I'm doing."
Katie McEachern: Not at all. After Immersion, I knew I was excited about surface design, but I honestly wasn't sure exactly where I wanted to go with it yet, so I gave myself a lot of permission to just experiment.
Delores Naskrent: Yeah, I love that, Katie.
Katie McEachern: Yes. Yeah, I dipped my toes into a little print on demand. I started another small Etsy shop under my Katie Lynn Designs name. When family and friends would ask me, like, where can they buy my stuff I'd send them there and, they could get a tote bag or a tea towel or something.
I also had some work on Spoonflower, and I was experimenting with Printify on the Katie Lynn Designs Etsy shop. But I really wasn't trying to build a huge print-on-demand business. I was just trying to figure it out and what art would look like on products.
I wanted to experience some of the different possibilities within surface design and see what felt [00:06:00] exciting, what I enjoyed doing, and what I could see myself pursuing long term. The majority of my time was really spent on creating and experimenting with my artwork and trying to develop my own signature style.
I was really giving myself permission to create without necessarily knowing where every piece was gonna lead. I really want people to hear that because I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to choose the right thing. Should I license? Should I sell on Spoonflower? Should I make greeting cards?
Delores Naskrent: Should I do print on demand? Sometimes maybe the answer is simply, "I don't know yet, and I'm gonna try some things out."
Katie McEachern: Exactly. Yeah, that period was important because I wasn't only learning about the surface design industry, I was learning about myself as an artist and beginning to develop a body of work that felt distinctly mine, and especially starting to work in collections, which was a huge transition for me.
Delores Naskrent: Yeah. I remember when I was first licensing, [00:07:00] my agent saying to me at the time, "You really have to start working in collections." I was doing one-off artworks without anything else. That is definitely an important thing that we learn early on. So those experiments weren't even really detours.
They were just giving you a bunch of information.
Katie McEachern: Absolutely. Absolutely.
Delores Naskrent: Yeah. Eventually, all of that experimenting leads to some pretty significant things, and in your case, a pretty significant yes. So you submitted a collection through Bonnie Christine's Pattern Plus membership, and that collection led to your first licensing contract with Figo.
This is so exciting because I remember her talking about this and the discussions that we would have behind the scenes, like, "Do you think that could even work?" Now we know it does work. Now, what did that feel like for you after several years of working towards it?
Katie McEachern: It was incredibly validating.
[00:08:00] I did a second take at my inbox when I saw that email come through. I almost, kinda almost forgot that I had submitted it 'cause it came through a couple months later. I think that is kinda the thing with licensing. You submit these things and they don't come back sometimes for a long time.
And yeah, after about four years of exploring surface design, learning, experimenting, and trying to figure out where I wanted to take it, something I had created while developing my own body of work had turned into a real licensing opportunity. Woo-hoo. Yeah, that's really where I felt the momentum begin, it re-energized me and gave me this renewed sense that licensing was really the direction I wanted to pursue.
Delores Naskrent: Oh, that's so exciting, Katie. And now I know for you the momentum is building. So your first Figo collection called Country Comforts, what a cute name, will be available in stores starting in January.
So it's, yay, it's close. It's close, yeah. You've had several wallpaper launches with Lumwell. Oh my gosh. And one of your designs was selected for that [00:09:00] top 100 contest, which actually resulted in multiple inquiries about your work, which I find also very interesting. And there are more exciting things happening with Figo that we won't announce before you're ready.
Yeah. More on that later.
Katie McEachern: Yeah, couple fun things in the works there, so to be announced at a later date. But yeah, all those experiences have been really encouraging because they really showed me that, the work I'm creating and the direction I'm pursuing, it's all starting to gain this momentum.
And now I feel ready to niche down and really go all in on the licensing, creating collections, pitching my work, building industry relationships, and just overall being much more intentional about where I'm putting my energy.
Delores Naskrent: I think that last part's really important, 'cause going all in on something doesn't necessarily mean doing more.
Sometimes it means deciding what you're gonna stop doing, right? And for you, one of those things is Etsy. I... [00:10:00] When I first met you were a super successful Etsy person, and now you're walking away from it because another door has opened.
Katie McEachern: I am. Yeah, I'm slowly winding things down there be- 'cause I still have some inventory I'd like to sell down through Christmas, but, I'm no longer building growth there.
Part of that is simply that my business has evolved and my interests have evolved. But I just feel like Etsy itself has changed quite a bit over the years, and with that, I think I'm ready to make the transition. For me, it's time to close that chapter and just put my energy towards licensing and the work that feels more aligned with where I'm headed.
Delores Naskrent: And I think that's an important distinction. Etsy definitely wasn't a failure for you. You're one of the most successful Etsy sellers that I know, and it gave you something you needed during that particular stage of your life, and you learned tons because of it, and now you're taking those skills with you.
Katie McEachern: Yeah, that's exactly how I see it. I [00:11:00] feel a lot of gratitude for everything my Etsy shop has taught me and for all the people, including my family and friends, who have supported me with it throughout the years. And now after hitting just about 10,000 sales on Etsy Fayre and in-person events combined, it's time for me to close this chapter and open a new page in my book.
Delores Naskrent: And actually, the same thing has happened with your product development career. We just had this chat just before getting starting this recording. You're currently doing contract work for a wholesale importer. You're developing custom products for their clients, which I think is super interesting.
That gives you a stable core element of your business while you continue developing your licensing work. But it also means all that earlier professional experience comes with you into surface design.
Katie McEachern: Definitely. Yeah, working in product development has just given me this valuable inside knowledge on how products are made and printed, and that definitely influences how I develop art for different products, [00:12:00] materials, and applications.
Surface design too has always been, like, a subsection of this product development. I was doing surface design before I actually knew how big of an industry this could actually be for me. And I just really enjoy being able to use that side of my skillset when it comes to developing my own licensing work.
Delores Naskrent: And you've also invested in a beautiful new website that really represents this next version of your business.
Katie McEachern: Yes. Jenny, the owner of Nine Designs, created and developed it for me, and I am just so happy with how it turned out. She understood what I needed as a surface designer, and it really gave me somewhere that I can showcase my collections, my licensing work.
It feels polished, professional, and reflective of my style. So it feels like a true representation of my work and where my business is headed, and I'm just so happy that it's finally finished and out
Delores Naskrent: in public. That's wonderful. Yeah, we're gonna put all the links here so that everyone else can also take a good look at it.
And I think it's another sign of [00:13:00] clarity, right? Instead of investing in 10 possible directions, you're reaching the point where you can say, "This is what I am building now." There's one other part of this year I wanted to talk about, Katie, because I think it adds another dimension to this whole conversation.
And of course, if there's anything you don't wanna discuss, we absolutely don't have to. I know that you lost your dad in January, which is super tough. I'm still... I feel like I'm can totally relate, 'cause having lost my dad not that long ago too it's tough. And you describe this year as a season of grief, a season of reflection, and of reevaluating what you want your life and your business to look like.
Has that changed the way you work?
Katie McEachern: It has. It really has. I've been learning how to work differently and give myself a lot of grace and flexibility. Some days I have the energy and inspiration to create something entirely new, and other days I just focus on [00:14:00] pitching existing collections, organizing, or tending to work that's already been created.
But this season's definitely taught me a lot about sustainability and creativity and trusting that productivity doesn't always look the same from season to season.
Delores Naskrent: I love that. That's the best way to put it. Productivity doesn't always look the same from season to season. Our creative businesses aren't separate from our lives.
We change, things happen, our priorities shift. - The reason I was in immersion in the first place, as I had just gotten over my own cancer scare, and I decided to treat myself and take immersion. So that was, one of those things I did for that exact reason. And sometimes the business we created years before simply isn't the business that fits us after something like that.
Katie McEachern: Exactly. Exactly. And my dad was always one of my biggest supporters, whether it was art or Etsy, he was always, [00:15:00] rooting for me in whatever direction I wanted to take it. So I think that it's okay to let our businesses evolve you know- Our businesses evolve not just because our interests change, but because we change too, and sometimes the businesses just need to change with us.
Delores Naskrent: Yep. Totally, and that brings us right back to where we started. When I look at your story now, Katie, I can see this chain of events. You started an Etsy shop when your son was a baby. I think I was first hanging out with you when he was about two and a half or three, and you learned entrepreneurship by doing that, right?
and you learned to make your life work around having a toddler. You worked professionally in product development. That job disappeared during COVID, and you realized you needed a body of work that belonged to you. Then you found surface pattern design. You experimented. You developed your style.
Then Figo came along. Wow, this is crazy. Then Loomwell and other opportunities, and [00:16:00] now you're intentionally narrowing that focus because you have now a much clearer view of where you wanna go, and it makes complete sense when we have your whole story. I'm guessing it didn't quite feel that tidy when you were living it though, right?
Katie McEachern: Definitely not. It's funny to look back now and see how each chapter went to the next. I couldn't have known where all these experiences were gonna take me while I was in them, but now I can see how each one of them contributed to something. And I think sometimes you really do need to just explore all the different paths before you know which one you actually want to commit to.
Delores Naskrent: So true. And meanwhile, that little baby you started your Etsy shop with is now 10.
Katie McEachern: I know. It feels impossible to say that out loud. Yeah, he's a little man now.
Delores Naskrent: Yes. Aw. I wanna finish with the person listening who is where you were years ago. This person is taking classes, she's making the art, maybe she's trying Spoonflower or Card [00:17:00] Isle or print on demand or licensing.
She's looking around at everyone else and thinking they have it all figured out, and she doesn't. What would you tell her, Katie?
Katie McEachern: I think I would tell her that she doesn't have to know yet. Give yourself permission to experiment, try things, make the work, put it out into the world. Really work on developing your true take on art and your signature style, and just see what works and make mistakes and just keep trying.
And pay attention to what feels exciting and what you enjoy doing and what you can actually see yourself pursuing long-term, because some of these platforms, they are a commitment and they do require a lot of effort and energy to make them work for you. And going really wide with all of your interests doesn't always mean more.
Sometimes if you really focus on a couple, just a handful of things, you can put more energy in there and it can return more for you. Sometimes those experiments are how you discover what you want your creative career to become, and if something isn't ultimately the path you [00:18:00] choose, it doesn't mean that experiment, that experience was wasted.
You may look back in a few years from now and realize that it was one of the things that helped lead you exactly where you needed to go And just keep showing up every day. It really does take time, and just have faith that if you continue taking the steps forward and following your dreams, that only good things can come from it.
Delores Naskrent: I love that. I think that's the perfect place for us to end this podcast. And, I am gonna be checking in with you later. We'll come back to this. I can't wait to hear those sweet things that are going on in the background and find out exactly where you are a few months from now or a year from now.
And thanks so much. I've absolutely loved catching up with you, and I'm so excited to see what happens in this next chapter of the story. What I love the most about your story is that there wasn't one giant master plan. There were clues. You tried things, you learned, you changed, life changed.
You [00:19:00] followed opportunities, and you let go of things when they stopped fitting, and gradually the direction became clearer. I think that's such an encouraging message for anyone who feels like they should have it all figured out by now. You don't. You can experiment. You can change direction. You can outgrow something that once served you beautifully, and you can take everything you learned from it with you.
We'll put Katie's website and information in the show notes so you can see her beautiful work and follow along with what she's doing next. Katie, thank you so much for being here.
Katie McEachern: Thank you for having me. I loved catching up with you.
Delores Naskrent: And thank you to everyone listening. Keep making, keep experimenting, and keep following those little clues along the way, and I'll see you next time on The Creative Juggle Joy.
