We recently connected with Brooklyn Mill and have shared our conversation below.

Brooklyn , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I’ve been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work going on two years now, but I started the idea of this business about 4 years ago.
When I started my business, I was working full-time and going to school. I ran my business “part time” for about two years while working a job. A big part of my business now is attending art shows around the state of Idaho. I can’t remember exactly who suggested I start doing in person events, but it was the only way to sell my product directly to my customers. So while I was working, I would take time off to do shows on my weekends. In the first two years I only did a handful of the reputable staple shows, however, I realized that if I did more in person events that at least averaged the same as the shows I have been doing in revenue, I could turn it into my full-time job.

I can’t say I planned the transition well, I was at a breaking point mentally after going through some hard situations in my day jobs. One day I told my husband I just couldn’t do it anymore and so I quit. I signed up for as many shows as I could that year to just try. However, a lot of work has gone into making a living out of my artwork. Since I was doing it full-time, I also dedicated myself to custom work, selling through social media, selling through my website, and more.

I would say something that could’ve sped up the process is eliminating the unknown. If I didn’t have opportunity cost, I could’ve had bigger and quicker success. But one artist can only do so much work, you can only do so many shows in a year, etc. Sometimes there’s no avoiding opportunity cost. You just have to do it and go through it to learn. Especially when your business is so unique that there aren’t a lot of other other people that you can compare apples to apples with. I’ve gotten a lot of great advice from other artists and vendors, however it’s hard when you don’t even come close to being similar in product or customer base. I do have a niche and that’s a blessing and a curse, it’s hard to gauge your success when you don’t know what success should look like. Of course you have your own personal goals, but outside of that, how do you make the best decisions for yourself as an artist and your business? The two can be very different. I have a lot of learning to do still, but I wish I had known making a living for your yourself full-time sometimes means choosing the business over the artist in you. I hope to get to the point one day where the two are cohesive.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve grown up in Idaho and attended Boise State University, where I graduated with a Bachelors in Business Administration and Entrepreneurship Management. While in my first entrepreneurship course, we were encouraged to create a website. It was something that as a college student you could do for free and learn a lot from it. My professor said, “You could be making money right now, why aren’t you?”. I have always had the drive to work for myself ever since I first started working. Some people aren’t meant to work for other people, and I truly believe that I had the goal in the back of my mind to use whatever degree I got to run my own business. I just never knew what that would be. I can’t say I even know where the idea came from but I wanted to combine my passion for the outdoors with my artistic talents, so I made a website that modeled a potential channel for that. It’s taken off from there.

As someone who has grown up in Idaho with a family who taught me sustainable and ethical hunting I am proud to say that it’s part of my identity that I cherish dearly. I am a hunter, and all of my inspiration comes from creation, specifically big game. I am also a Christian, whose identity is rooted in Christ Jesus. He knew what my passions would be long before I came into this world. And he wove those affections deep in my heart. so out of love for him and the things he has created for me to love, I create. He has created us to be creators. Most of my artwork includes wildlife for the great outdoors in someway. I try to source most of the product for my artwork, including shed antlers. However, I do buy antlers from a variety of individuals around the state.

I started making wall hangings with antlers and macramé. I am skilled with a wood burner and do wildlife burnings on slices of wood. Elk, deer, moose, bear and more. I also create terrariums or smaller taxidermy pieces with skulls, bones, and other organic material such as moss and mushrooms. I have a habit of collecting while I am out on the mountains. I do woodworking and create Idaho signs from recycled barn and fence wood. I also create fine art when I can, drawings and paintings of wildlife. I’ve done lots of custom work for customers with their own antlers, skulls, and more. Creating art pieces for their homes, mounts for their animals and artwork that commemorates special memories. I love when antlers have a story. Many people, especially here in the West, have antlers in their home either from sheds or successful hunts. I can create something unique out of that antler that might have just sat in the garage. I’ve turned antlers into hat hangers, candleholders, shelves, floral arrangements, tapestry hangings, picture holders, and more. My artwork is way to bring the outdoors and the wildlife of the west into your home.

For about a year and a half I have been burning on hats as well. Burnt hats were starting to become a trend so I decided to hop on the wave. I couldn’t have expected how much they’d be loved. Because of the demand these hats have taken over the majority of my business. As much as I would love to branch out, my customers love them, and they provide me with steady income. My wood-burning skill translated over to the hats. I often do mountain scenes and floral designs. However, I have done a lot of fun custom hats with designs including the big game of the West. I’ve done lots of wedding hats, which is always so special for me. Hats with antlers burned on them, wildlife tracks, arrows, feathers and so much more.

My plans for the future include creating more of what the artist in me wants to. Hopefully more fine arts, such as paintings and drawings, turning some of my designs into stickers and more. I also hope to build upon the brand I’ve already started or create branches to other passions of mine.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of leaning into this journey, or more so falling into this journey has been growing closer to Jesus. I didn’t really get to know him until these past two years. I was stuck in an unforgiving world of corporatism, a world, so demanding and draining. I didn’t realize how close I was to self-destruction, or how much my body was absorbing the effects of what I had to do to just keep going. I was on autopilot and felt like I had no autonomy or authority over my life. You know you were stuck in a bad spot when it felt like the whole world slowed down, even when you started running your own business knowing you had to make it work to provide for yourself. When everything stopped, and I realized how poor of shape I was in spiritually and mentally, I knew something had to change. I really dove into His Word, the Bible. It’s a living and breathing book that truly breathes life into you. You cannot emerge from it unchanged. Because the word is God, you get to know the creator by reading it. He transformed my heart and mind through multiple revelations and experiences in the past two years. These things happened because I was resting, pursuing my God-given talents, and seeking his glory in the passions he had placed in my heart. And because I was working for myself, I had the ability to take the time off or dedicate the time and myself to do these things and it was and is such a blessing. So ultimately the most rewarding thing is to be able to take rest, have choice, and grow closer to the Lord.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Ultimately, this is the season of business that I am in. I call it a season because I don’t know how long it’s going to last or what it’s going to bring. I have reached the point where I am at max capacity. When you are the sole creator of your product, you can only do so much. Especially when you have other responsibilities and take on the role of accountant, social media manager, marketer, customer service, administrator, and every other hat that a business owner can’t afford to hire, and so has to wear. I have found the limit of how much I can do. How many shows I can do in a year, how much inventory I can build, up how many customers I can provide my services to, and therefore that constrains how much money I can spend in certain time periods, and how much time I have to reserve, to dedicate myself to my business, while also balancing my other responsibilities as a human. So I have been brainstorming ways I can pivot my business to be more successful in the next season and to be able to take on the growing pains. A lot of time is dedicated to brainstorming and creating things that don’t have a high demand on my time. It’s hard because I want to maintain the image that has helped the business become what it is, But at the same time, sometimes things have to change if you want to keep going. So maybe this includes branching out of my normal customer base, including some of my other passions into this business, changing price points, changing the way I operate aspects of my business. I can’t say I know what all is going to change, but I have lots of ideas that take time and effort to come to life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://fernandhorn.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fernandhorn/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fernandhorn/

Image Credits

Sarah Sinopoli – Arrowleaf Photography
Chelsee Dery @ivory.outdoors