We were lucky to catch up with Madison Hahn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Madison, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Any thoughts about whether to ask friends and family to support your business. What’s okay in your view?

One of the hardest parts of starting my own business was having to be my own employer, employee, staff, support system & marketer. Advocating for myself felt weird and uncomfortable, and I hated the concept of self-promoting. However, I also hated asking my friends or family for help of any kind. I didn’t want them to feel pressured to support me or my business, and I was determined to do it all on my own. After a few years into turning my stained glass hobby into a business, I realized it was okay to ask for help, and that my family & friends truly believed in me and wanted to support me. And having them help promote me and my brand was not only a pleasure for them, it was extremely helpful to me and my business. Understanding that love and support was very difficult for me, yet extremely gratifying once I was able to fully accept it.

Madison, 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?

My papa introduced me to the art of stained glass when I was 13 years old. He was an artist of many mediums, and I would spend hours in the shop watching him create magical pieces of stained glass, paintings, wood art, trinkets, and so much more. I started helping him with his projects and he taught me everything he knew about stained glass. He guided me through the first (and probably one of the most difficult projects I ever made)— a floral window panel for my mothers kitchen. After finishing that piece, I was hooked, and I’ve been creating stained glass ever since. Over the years, I have created a versatile selection of pieces including wall panels, 3D art installations, jewelry, home decor, mirrors, and probably more that I can’t even remember.

I think what sets me apart from other artists or stained glass makers is that I am open & willing to create designs of any and all themes. In fact, I thrive off creating new things I’ve never attempted before. Of course, I have my own personal interests and preferences, but I never shy away from new concepts, even if they might not seem like “my style”. I’ve learned that there is no growth in comfort, and some of the best things Ive ever created came from me getting out of my comfort zone and pushing myself.

I’m probably most proud of that as a whole— being able to challenge myself and be okay with taking risks, no matter how they turn out.
Recently, I actually attempted something extremely new to me— a 3 dimensional replica of a coffin shaped motorcycle gas tank. It was probably the biggest headache of my career, but the challenge of it made me so excited and driven. When it was finally done, I so proud and beyond jazzed up. If I could tell any potential clients or followers anything about me or my business, it would be that I genuinely love a challenge.

As an artist, you’re going to nit-pic everything you do, it’s kind of inevitable (at least for me). But overcoming a challenge is one of the most rewarding feelings for me, and I want to continue chasing that feeling throughout my entire career. I LOVE getting commissioned for the bigger, more complex, more tedious and sometimes even more scary pieces. I thrive on the trust people put in me when making these larger, more special pieces, and I love collaborating to make things unique to the interests of the client. I want to do more things that scare me as an artist, so if you’re maybe thinking of something big & crazy you want to create— I’m all ears, let’s talk!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is one of the scariest, yet most efficient ways to market yourself and your small business in our current day in age. Like I said before, advocating for myself and promoting my business has always made me feel uncomfortable and its been very difficult at times. However the best thing I ever did to ease this struggle, was make an effort to truly connect with other artists and small business around me, and build a community (online and in the real world). based off these connections. being a part of a community of artists made promoting myself easier because I no longer felt so alone. I was able to collab with other artists, participate at in person markets and events & online/social media collabs and raffles.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

I have a website I use through Shopify to sell collections and put up made to order products available on there. It is also a nice place to showcase previous works and customs I have made in the past. Although Shopify is easy to use the only con I would say there is, is that it is not as quick and easy as throwing a listing up on Instagram. Posting pieces I’m working on or have finished on instagram is also a great way to get more clientele. I do also get orders through the app as well when customers message me inquiring about ordering a similar product.

Contact Info:

• Website: Madglassgurl.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/madglassgurl

Image Credits
Instagram.com/honeywould