Check Out Hayley Sawyer’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hayley Sawyer.

Hi Hayley, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The journey to get here was slow, but organic. And when I decided to become a full time artist, it seemed like everything in my life had always pointed to this destiny all along.

Art has always been an important part of my life; I studied art and interior design in school, and have created my own art for as long as I can remember. I can draw, paint, sculpt, and build. I like for things to look a certain way, and art allowed me to do just that. Growing up, my parents had their marriage certificate framed with pressed flowers all around it that my great aunt had made for them, but it wasn’t until I was in college that I discovered my own love and knack for flower pressing too!

What started with my own small and simple flower art quickly led me into bouquet preservation, which then put my small business on the map. I’ve received bouquets from all over the United States to preserve, I’ve participated in styled shoots, I’ve done fresh and dried floral design for wedding clients, I’ve freelanced for other florists, I’ve sold my art at large artisan markets and popups, and now I’m helping at a flower farm. If there are flowers, I want in and I want to make art with them!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I’ve definitely hit a few bumps in the road. When I first started my business, it was the beginning of 2020 and I had just quit my salary position to focus full time on my art; a month later, the global pandemic happened. I had to pivot and adapt to make sure that I didn’t lose everything before I even had a chance to start.

A few years later, my business had nearly quadrupled and I was struggling with my work/life balance. I’ve always been a one-person business, and I was learning some lessons the hard way on how to handle it all. Most importantly, I realized that saying yes to everything wasn’t a practical business model.

The other bittersweet challenge was that my flower pressing skills led me into the high demand bouquet preservation industry. While I will always love a chance to create a special flower keepsake for someone, it took a lot of time and energy away from my own flower art. I’m just now at a great spot in my career where I’ve struck the perfect balance of custom bouquet preservation projects & creating my unique pieces of art to fulfill all of my creative ideas.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a flower artist! I specialize in and am known for pressing and preserving flowers inside frames, and creating unique dried floral arrangements, but I can work with flowers in any capacity and for any reason.

I’ve been a flower artist for ~18 years, and have been professionally selling my art for ~10 years. Flowers are my favorite medium: I can press them, dry them, make frames/cards/bookmarks/small arrangements/large arrangements, grow them, make fresh and dried bouquets/wreaths, host workshops/events, do floral design for weddings/bridal showers/baby showers, create fresh and dried arrangements, and teach about them.

I’m really proud of all the hard work and persistence that got me here, as well as all the family and friends who told me that my art was special and to not give up. I would have never guessed that I would be selling my art out of local coffee and tattoo shops, teaching art classes, or literally selling out of my art at markets. Despite doing this for so long, I still have to pinch myself sometimes that I get to make art for a living.

I think my experience sets me apart from the other flower artists in the area. This is a skill that I’ve practiced and honed in for almost half my life at this point. I also spent a decade working in corporate America, and that professional experience has absolutely translated into being a business owner. I just really love what I do and enjoy the people and places that my art takes me. I’ve built a wonderful flower art community so far, and can’t wait to see where I go next.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
The easiest way to support me is to follow me on social media. I am most active on Instagram where I share pictures of my art, behind the scenes snippets while I’m creating, photos when I’m working at a flower farm, tips on flower pressing, and also information on upcoming workshops and events.

I currently sell small dried flower vases & flower bookmarks at Mr. Tombstone’s Coffee Emporium in Marietta and Kennesaw, as well as teach workshops there on different flower art styles. I teach something different during each workshop so there is always something new to learn and experience.

If anyone wants to collaborate on any flower art project, styled shoot, or workshop event, send me an email with more information at hayleythefloweress@gmail.com.

I’m open to all ideas and would love to share the flower magic!

Pricing:

• Pressed Flower Cards start at $10
• Pressed Flower Bookmarks start at $10
• Pressed Flower Frames start at $45

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/_thefloweress
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/thefloweress