We were lucky to catch up with Abigail Francis recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Abigail, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.
When running a small business that sells handmade items, it can be easy to fall into the comparison game. Not just with people that make the same kind of product as you, but other makers that sell handmade art. Once you start comparing, you start doubting. What if your craft isn’t as good as theirs? What makes your art different from everyone else’s? What makes you think that your wares are even worth trying to sell to the general public? These are questions I have struggled with myself as I have worked to establish myself as a small business owner and artist. When I was first starting out, I wrestled with doubt and questioned my worth. However, the biggest factor in overcoming these obstacles was the fact that I liked what I was doing. In fact, I loved it. I made pieces of art that made me happy. I hung them in my own home to use and look at. I also worked at my craft every day, looking up ways to make it better and researching methods of presenting it in an appealing way. I still have some of my earliest work hanging in my home. Not only do they remind me of how far I have come in my art, but they remind me to continue to take just as much joy in what I do today as I did when I started out. If you lose sight of why you’re doing what you’re doing, the Imposter Syndrome can waltz right on in and steal your confidence and joy.
Today, I look for ways to continue to grow and improve my current skills as an artist, but I also try new things that may turn out to be messy the first time. Sometimes they work out great, other times, well, I add them to the pile of “Good Ideas Gone Wrong.” This not only keeps me humble in my craft as I try to learn new things, but also opens up doors of opportunity that I would have missed had I simply played it safe.
Another way I fight off Imposter Syndrome is reminding myself that My art is unique, creative, and original. No one makes art like mine, and I don’t have to make art that looks like someone else’s. People buy my art because they like it. I don’t have to rationalize their reasoning or doubt their intentions. When someone compliments my work, I can graciously accept their praise, but know that my work and my efforts are worthy of it.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I am a fiber and macramé artist who takes joy in creating fiber art with color and sustainable materials. Starting out, this was simply a hobby. In 2021, I was working as a Bank Teller at the time, and I had two cats and a lot of houseplants, so naturally I had to come up with a way to make them live in harmony. I made a few plant hangers for myself, and then I posted some pictures of some extras on my personal Instagram to ask if anyone wanted to buy them from me. To my pleasant surprise, several people wanted them! I continued to make more plant hangers and experimented with other macramé designs and eventually created a separate Instagram account for my macramé adventures. This turned into me reaching out to a local Makers Market that sells local art to ask if I could be a vendor in their store. To my great surprise, they said yes! I then participated in my first Makers Faire where I set up a borrowed tent and a crude display of my work, yet I sold more items than I could have imagined. This sparked a fire in me. I was so invigorated by the idea that people were not only willing but they wanted to buy items that my own hands had created! Around this time, my mental health was taking a toll on me due to the stressful environment at my job at the bank. I had to make a hard decision. Do I quit my steady and stable job to explore the idea of doing macramé full time? It was risky, but I knew something drastic needed to happen. After weeks of internal and external trouble, I turned in my two weeks notice and kissed the corporate world goodbye. I turned my attention and energy towards my art. No looking back now! I took the next big step of buying a website domain and setting up my first online shop. I also signed up for more markets, inquired to other shops about selling my items, and continued to grow my social media platform. Within the year, I had grown to a fulltime operation. I had a lot of No’s, but I also had some really good Yes’s, I had some great successes, and I went through some tough learning experiences. Two years later, I am continuing to grow in my business. I am selling in nine different shop locations, Increasing my online traffic, participating in yearly markets, and taking care of a new baby on top of all that! My love for creating and sharing my art with others keeps me going. I always want to look for ways to learn, grow, and improve in my business.
I want to spread my love for macramé in my wide variety of products. I think the coolest thing about macramé is just how many things you can make with it. Are you a Boho, plant-loving individual? I make plant hangers and wall tapestries for people like you! Are you super into functionality and practicality? You’ll love my camera lanyards, coasters, and market bags. Do you have someone in your life who is expecting a baby or are you decorating your own nursery? The Baby Mobiles and Pacifier Clips make for great baby shower gifts! Tired of losing your keys or needing to carry them somewhere other than your already-full hands? Check out my keychains, wristlets, and lanyards! I like to brag that I have got a little something for everyone.
A unique aspect about my craft is that I use recycled cotton cord to create all my pieces. I buy my material from a company that takes textiles and fibers that would otherwise be shipped overseas or thrown in a landfill and they strip it down and rebind it into the softest cord with the most vivid colors! It’s a create way to practice sustainability while adding beauty to the world.
I will be holding a website relaunch this summer to create a more cohesive and professional look to my online shop. This is my next big step in growing and improving my art and business!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
There is one a quote from a podcast that I enjoyed listening to when I first started out. “Do the next right thing.” This quote has helped me determine the next steps that I needed to take in my business. I would say having a quality of discernment is important when adventuring into the small business world. It can be tempting to do it all at once and dive head-first into the biggest and best way to do things. Start small, and then go from there. You don’t want to heavily invest yourself into something you don’t even know if you like it or not! Starting slow will also help you learn things along the way without learning them the hard way. Look around at where you are and then ask yourself, “What is my next right thing here?” Sometimes the next right thing can be a little change or a big leap, but it’s important to take it as it comes instead of all at once.
Give yourself some grace! Chances are you are doing this for the first time. Celebrate the wins, learn from the stumbles. Don’t be ashamed of your early efforts, because we all have to start out somewhere. We aren’t born with the capability to throw the perfect pottery, knit the flawless sweater, paint the spitting image of something, or stitch the immaculate piece of clothing. We are all learning and growing. Just ask any professional about their beginnings, and they’ll tell you it took time and effort to get where they are now. It sounds cliché, but it’s true that you shouldn’t give up on something you truly feel passionate about! My early efforts at macramé were nothing short of gnarly, and I am sometimes in awe that people actually wanted my earliest attempts. However, that is what inspired me to get better. I knew I could improve my art, but I had to just keep working at it to get there.
Take the risks. The saying “The greater the risk, the greater reward” rings true. Sometimes putting yourself out there can be scary. You’ll get put on waiting lists, flat out rejected, ghosted, or be told to “try again next year.” These can feel like a blow to your self-esteem, but they aren’t indicators of your worth as a small business or artist! Keep coming back. Keep reapplying. Keep putting yourself out there! Eventually, those events will be asking you to come. Those venues will be looking for your work to display. The calendar will be packed with engagements and orders. None of this will happen however if you don’t risk the fall. I was met with a lot of rejection starting out, but even if just one said yes, it was worth it to me. Keep pursuing that “yes”, even if it takes you 10 “no’s” to get there.
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
Over the past 12 months, I have been learning what it means to have a consistent product, brand, and quality of work/life balance. When I was starting out, I did a little bit of everything, I chased a little bit of everything, and I took on a lot to establish myself. Now that I am two and a half years into the business, I am turning my focus on consistency, professionalism, and quality of my brand. I am figuring out what works best for me and then sticking with it. I am still opening myself up to new ideas and opportunities, but I am recognizing where my limits are and learning to thrive within them. Sometimes this means saying no to an opportunity that might seem really amazing, but realizing I don’t have the capacity to do well in it at the moment. Other times, this looks like investing time and money into my business by hiring professional services to help me create a professional touch to my brand,
I am also a new mother to the most darling little girl, so this calls for some reprioritization! I want to grow my business, yes, but I also don’t want to miss out on this special season of life. This has caused me to take a closer look at my work/life balance. It can be tempting when you run your own business to just work whenever and however long you can stand. These days, I can serve myself and my family by setting personal boundaries in my work so I can be fully present with them. This also allows me to be completely focused on my work when I am in that zone. Creating intentional space for work and personal life has really served me these past 12 months!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.shopmerakimacrame.com
- Instagram: @meraki.macrame24
- Facebook: @meraki.macrame24
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/abigail-francis-meraki-macrame24/
Image Credits
for the Personal Photo, Mary Grace Friar, Osnap Photography
