Today we’d like to introduce you to Ellen Burford
Hi Ellen, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in upstate New York and went to college in New York and New Hampshire. While I loved the east coast, something has always been pulling me towards the west.
After graduating from the University of New Hampshire with a degree in Outdoor Education and Program Management, I moved to Yellowstone National Park; I lived and worked in the park for half a year and knew that I had found where I belonged. I moved to Bozeman, Montana and met my now husband, Aaron, and we got married in an alpine meadow. I worked with outdoor programs and later settled into office jobs. However, I felt unfulfilled.
I had taken my time in college, and had at one point studied art education and sculpture. I took up leather work as a hobby and creative outlet. When I decided to take my business full time, it was a dream I didn’t know I had; returning to working with my hands and in a creative way. My leather work has evolved as my confidence has grown. Five years ago, I built only basic leather goods. While these were functional and durable goods, they were not expressing me as an individual or as an artist. I was given some basic leather carving tools from my father-in-law and that was the spark. Carving leather and incorporating my own art changed the business completely, it exposed my vulnerabilities, and yet, is incredibly liberating.
Carving leather is a slow process that starts with drawing the art and planning the process. Much like sculpture, many of the hammer strikes are unforgiving and permanent. After hundreds of knife cuts and hammer strikes comes one of my favorite steps, the dye and color process. I use the leather dyes like watercolor and no two pieces ever turn out the same, which is an aspect that I love. After the art is complete, I sew each purse, wallet or journal by hand. Hand sewing is a slower process, but it is a more durable finish. I take time to create durable goods that are, not only beautiful, but also something that can be passed down and treasured for years.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I feel like life is rarely a smooth path that goes how we laid out or envisioned.
I never would have dreamed that I would leave the comfort and security of a “regular” job to become a self-employed artist. I have experienced highs and lows; challenges that I never could have foreseen, and yet the past four years have been some of the most rewarding and challenging years of my adult life. Those challenges helped to build the resiliency I needed to weather the low days in my art and business.
The past year has been one of the hardest years for me as an artist. I have faced more rejection from galleries, art shows and museums than ever before. There is something deeply personal about the rejections, but rejection is just redirection. It pushes me to go farther, try again, and it has pushed my art to evolve and grow.
I had to find value in myself and my art that was intrinsic. External validation is a short lived high, you have to build your intrinsic value to set up a stable and recoverable landing spot when you face rejection. And we will all face rejection and bumps in the road at some point in our lives, no matter your personal or professional path.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a carved leather artist and I focus on creating functional goods, like wallets, purses and journal covers. I want to create beautiful leather goods that can be used for many years.
I started my business by designing and creating all the patterns for my products with an emphasis on making the goods durable and ensuring ease of function. Just looking pretty wasn’t enough, they had to perform their task.
After a few years, my confidence grew and I dipped my toes into carved leather. The feeling of presenting my original art on a piece of equipment, like a wallet, was overwhelming. This item is something someone will use daily, that they could carry for a decade. I had not considered myself to be an artist in over a decade. It was a part of my identity that I had not connected with in a long time, it was a big shift.
Discovering that I wanted to create art full time was intimidating. I worried that people wouldn’t like my style or value my work, but my worry was misplaced. The transition from plain leather goods to carve leather goods was a huge leap of faith and it has been incredibly rewarding to create art for people that is valued, treasured, and appreciated. A part of what made that leap possible was developing myself worth and feeling confident to present my authentic self to the world.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I have always been a planner, someone who like to know what to expect and what the outcome could be before jumping in. I am risk adverse but life is all about risks, big and small.
Staying with what is comfortable and safe can be comforting, but it doesn’t encourage personal or professional growth. Owning and operating a small business feels like it is all about taking the small, daily, risks. It’s the small bets that can launch our dreams. It’s the big leaps that can redirect your vision and change the trajectory of your life or business.
Launching my own business was a big leap; leaning onto the carved art was a big leap. But those choices have led to so many opportunities and they were worth trading my sense of security for.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.windyraven.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/windyravenleather/