Nice to meet you!
I’m Ashley, a Michigan-based watercolor artist.
Saying Yes to Art
What was your childhood dream? Mine was to become an artist, but I didn’t think it was possible. I ended up studying plant geography at Michigan State University. You might laugh, but I’m really cut out for lab work! Just give me a cup of coffee, post-glacial soil samples, a microscope, and I can work alone for hours.
As much as I loved those plant fossils, I could no longer fight the urge to be creative. As it turns out, working alone in a creative space is much like lab work. I started by making stationery as a side project, and soon made it a full-time endeavor.
I have been a handmade business owner since 2007, working at home. My husband and I decided to plant our roots in East Lansing, Michigan, raising our two wonderful daughters and three oddball cats.
Surrounded by botanical gardens, rivers, lakes, and forests, my muse is now in my own backyard. In 2019 I switched from making stationery to painting full time, and it’s been a dream come true.
Some of my favorite natural areas
I love creating artwork from the world I observe around me. Nature is my biggest inspiration, and I am lucky to be around a lot of it. I was born and raised in Michigan, where we explored everything from towering sand dunes on Great Lakes beaches, to old growth forests, rivers, waterfalls, islands, rolling fields, and picturesque rock formations.
Lake Michigan
Hartwick Pines Old Growth Forest
Tahquamenon Falls
Lake Lansing Park North
Sleeping Bear Dunes
Arch Rock on Mackinac Island
Sleeping Bear Dunes
Elsewhere in the world…
I am a current retail artist at the Lansing Art Gallery. In the past few years I have also had my work featured at places such as:
Terrain, an Urban Outfitters company
Literati Bookstore in Ann Arbor
Birmingham Bloomfield Art Center’s Holiday Shop
The Art Council of Greater Lansing’s “Arts Night Out” event
and the HollyPOP! Holiday Art Market at the Old Art Building in Leland, Michigan
I have also contributed multiple projects and templates to the book Creative Cut Cards from publisher Lark Crafts. I have been featured in the book I Heart Stationery by Charlotte Rivers; The Sweet Spot Style Guide by Desha Peacock; and Simply Handmade Magazine. I have also created exclusive designs for Bizarr Verlag, and was Etsy's Featured Seller in 2012 and designed a pumpkin carving template to The Etsy Blog.
“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.” ― Vincent Van Gogh
Let’s stay connected
