We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Emily Hendrie a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Emily, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

I believe those who are artists and creatives always have been. Always having a creative perspective or a pull to make something unique to express ourselves. I’ve always had a need to draw and throughout my life that pull ebbs and flows with intensity. For many years I worked in the metal giftware industry, first making metal giftware, then eventually designing (I graduated from the Tyler School of Art with a BFA in Metals / Jewelry / CAD_CAM). While working with metal, it can be loud and abrasive, and I began to feel that familiar pull to draw and paint to help balance out my creative mind and as a way to meditate. At first, I doodled woodland scenes and whimsical animals. Then I got the opportunity to be on a design team at work and I was able to utilize my whimsical doodles. I began to draw and paint more after work and got the opportunity from a friend to create a painting for them. I loved the meditative feeling I got while creating the piece, which was a familiar feeling when I was a child. After that painting, it gave me the buzz and the idea to further this route professionally. I needed this kind of meditation in my life, it was just a part of who I was. So, I decided to dive headfirst into this creative business, painting subjects that were familiar to me and what I grew up loving. Now I create watercolor paintings and drawings for my creative business and apply them to quality home décor goods and sell them all over the country. Also because of this creative endeavor, other companies seek me out for freelance art for their businesses.

Emily, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I grew up Chester County, Pennsylvania surrounded by rolling hills, 19th century stone barns, babbling streams and fish filled ponds, serving as inspiration for my brand Meadowbrook Lane. My childhood home was lined with apple trees and in the evenings we would watch the families of deer eat the fallen apples from the trees. So, in homage to my home I created my brand Meadowbrook Lane, and used a blooming apple branch as my symbol. As I mentioned before, I worked in the giftware industry for some years and it felt natural to me to apply my splashy artwork I was creating to homeware goods. It’s always an exciting feeling when I make a sale knowing the customer connected to my work in some way.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Working for yourself, in your home can be very isolating. It can get tough when you have a creative block and not know which direction a particular design should go. What helps me is the creative community I surround myself with. Not necessarily other painters, but people with a creative eye. I have built this community to help bounce ideas off of and to make sure my vision comes through clearly. These are people who I have gone to school with, worked with previously and people I have become friendly with over social media.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I believe it’s important to branch out in several different types of selling opportunities that would compliment and further your brand. From retail (I have a personal website I sell my products on as well as an Etsy Shop), to selling on a wholesale site, to selling in person at selective craft shows and having a small retail footprint in a local co-op. With all of these opportunities you are putting yourself in front of so many different types of buyers. Not every opportunity may be good for your particular business, so whatever you end up doing make sure it shows your brand in the best light with how you want to be represented.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://shopmeadowbrooklane.com/
• Instagram: @MeadowbrookLane
• Other: My art page on Instagram @EmilyHendrieArt

Image Credits
Photographer Renee Bryant https://reflectionsofreality.smugmug.com/