I'm a wife, stay-at-home mom, crafter, and blogger living in rural New England. As seen in Martha Stewart Living, Food Network Magazine, and more! | Tutorials, DIY, crafts, parenting tips, recipes, money saving tips, product reviews, local product features, New England living, intentional living, and more! |
As you know by now, I love sharing about companies and products we love on the blog and our Instagram - and most especially those made right here in New England. Next in our series of interviews from New England Makers, we have Jennifer Fisher from Simply Equine Design!
Jennifer Fisher is the woman behind Simply Equine Design - she is best known for her incredibly realistic, hand-painted horse stall portraits and signs.
Tell me a little bit about yourself and your business.
Jennifer Fisher: I am a graduate of Colby-Sawyer College and have been a full time graphic designer for the last 13 years. I've been running Simply Equine Design (SED) on the side officially since 2012. Through SED I've branched off into photography — I often would travel to people and photograph their horses for painted portraits. From there, I frequently received photo requests so 2 years ago I decided to split the two and keep SED strictly for art. So currently, I quietly run the two simultaneously alongside working full time and being a mom — it's crazy haha. Holidays get hard, as my turnaround time often takes 4 weeks from start to finish, but I'm very strict about deadlines, and once the order deadline for holidays is up, that's it. I generally will close the shop after the cut off to reduce the number of requests I continue to receive. But it's fun.
How did you start Simply Equine Design? Had you been making stall signs for awhile or was this a new leap for you?
JF: I made my first sign in 1999, for the horse I was leasing. I wanted him to have a fancy sign, but I couldn't afford one, so I hand carved and painted one myself. It wasn't long after that I was asked by other boarders to make signs for their horses. I ended up painting signs for the entire barn that summer. Ten years later, when I bought my first horse, I revisited my signs and due to the amount of interest, I decided to open up my Etsy shop.
What does a typical day look like for you?
JF: Currently, SED is a weekend job so weekends can be a little chaotic. There is no typical day for me, I grab a time to work wherever I can find it — thank goodness for nap times!
What is your favorite part about owning your own company? And least favorite part?
JF: As what I do is completely custom, I love connecting with clients and learning their stories. Each portrait is very personal to the owner. Whether it be a simple stall sign or a memorial portrait. Knowing their stories is part of my process and makes each portrait a little more personal. My least favorite part? Finances.
What has been the most exciting moment for Simply Equine Design since you started?
JF: The majority of my business comes from word of mouth, even now as I don't do any sort of advertising. So I would say one of the most exciting moments was to receive my first international order.
What advice do you have for people just starting out with a handmade business?
JF: Work hard, and keep pushing on. Small business are HARD and a lot of work.
What is your long-term goal? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
JF: I see myself expanding my product base to include a handful of non-custom products. I'd love to be able to attend some larger events such as the Equine Affair in Springfield, MA.
DO YOU OWN A NEW ENGLAND-BASED BUSINESS AND WOULD LIKE TO BE FEATURED IN AN UPCOMING INTERVIEW? OR WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN HAVING ME STYLE, REVIEW, AND FEATURE ONE OF YOUR PRODUCTS? Please drop me a note.
I recently made this custom herb planter as part of our wedding gift for some close friends and I just love how it came out! I'd love to add something similar to the Etsy shop but not sure how to ship it... hmmmm.
PS - Congratulations again to the happy couple!! We're so happy for you both!
This week I’m hosting a Giveaway for one of our Custom Zip Code Signs! Entering is easy on Instagram, so please look for this photo on my account for details and to enter - good luck!
It's been a long time coming but our first sign design has finally hit the Etsy Shop! We now have custom zip code signs available - perfect for a housewarming, wedding, or graduation gift. These signs are available in five different finishes so there's one to fit your decor style.
I'll be adding new sign designs over the coming weeks too so stay tuned for more!
With baby #2 coming, we've been more mindful than ever about where our money is going and working hard to stay on-budget. By closely keeping track of everything we're getting a better idea on where everything is going and where we can shave off a few dollars. With only one income and a lot of expenses (both expected and unexpected) it can make it very challenging to stay on-budget each month. | This post contains affiliate links. |
Here I've shared a more simplified version of the spreadsheet we use (since we're self-employed we also need to set aside money for quarterly taxes and other expenses). You can change the Expense titles in the left hand column to fit your needs, but I've tried to include all the basic expenses that most young adults will have.
Next replace the monthly Income in the example with your own monthly income (I had to put in a number here as an example so the formulas wouldn't result in error). Then go down the Budget column and fill in what you expect or budget your bills to be. As your bills come in, put in these figures in the Actual Spent column. All of the percentages and totals will auto-update as you fill in the chart.
Over the course of the next few months, you'll see how your expectations (Budget) line up with reality (Actual Spent) and will be able to identify trends. Maybe you spend more for Gas than you thought you did.. or maybe you realize that you spend too much on Entertainment and should put some of that towards other bills...? Keeping track of where everything is going is very eye-opening and will help you stay ahead. The most important thing is writing everything down and sticking to it!
In the event the doing an Excel spreadsheet isn't your thing, there are also many great paper-based Budget Planners/Trackers you can buy out there! I haven't used it myself (yet), but I have heard great things in particular about this highly rated Budget Planner Notebook.
Don't forget, I can make custom Christmas ornaments too! Here is a custom one I made for my husband's business, Build Interactive.
If you're thinking of ordering a custom ornament this Christmas season, please do so soon. As we get closer to Christmas it gets harder to take on custom orders. You can always contact me through my Etsy Shop or the contact form on my blog for more details. Thank you!
Every so often someone will contact me and ask if they can order a completely custom ornament. I'm always game to give it a try and see if I can use my wood burner to translate what they want onto a little wooden disc.
Custom Methodist Cross ornament in the making.
Recently a very nice lady contacted me on Etsy to see about ordering a set of Methodist Cross ornaments for her Church. I loved the idea of having my ornaments hanging in a Church and I was excited to give it a try. I'm really happy with how they came out and I especially love the texture of the flame on them.
Even though it's not Christmas-time, if you have an idea for a completely custom ornament please don't hesitate to send me an e-mail or a custom order request on Etsy. I'm always happy to see what I can do for you.
Meet our latest edition to the Etsy Shop, Custom Initial Heart Ornaments in Birch! These make a great gift for your favorite couple or a keepsake for you and your significant other. The wood-burned design is reminiscent of initials carved in a tree. And if you're thinking of having these as wedding favors, please make sure to send me a custom order request as bulk discounts are available.
