Women who ROCK!-Contest Extended!

Remember THIS?

I’m excited to announce a new feature on my blog!




Each month, I will be featuring a local artist…a woman who rocks at what she does….a creative lady who is kicking some trash in her business…a gal with a product you just HAVE to have…a mama who works AND takes care of her family…

You follow?

You excited?

I am.

I’m kicking off this new feature with February’s lady, KATIE CARLSRUH of PICKLED PUMPKINS.

Find her fantastic work HERE

CONTEST BELOW! Don't forget to enter!




I had the opportunity to see Katie in action. She paints. She draws. She colors and gets paid for it! Her creations are so fun. I want to cover Oliver’s walls with her work. I’ve actually commissioned her to create a big huge canvas for his new room…a pirate ship! I can’t wait.

Katie describes her style as “Cartoonish, child-like, silly, playful.”

I just call it awesome. Really… Her work is fresh and fun and unique.



She’s been painting, drawing and creating since she was a little girl but only recently started her business. She’s inspired by her little boy, Noah and she rocks at being his Mama while still making time to create beautiful things for you and me. Her husband, Abe, is her biggest supporter and they make a great team. (Abe helps out with the techie stuff and even dresses up in a cheerleading outfit while Katie paints…”GO KATIE GO!” Okay, this is a lie. But he’s her cheerleader all the same.)

She pours so much love into each painting. Even her packaging is perfection. She ships super fast too! She puts so much time and effort into making sure her customers are happy.

I asked Katie to offer some advice to women who are thinking about starting a business…here’s what she had to say:

1. How do you manage work and home? How do you create balance?
Right now I can only paint and draw when Noah is napping or down for the night (too hard to keep him out of the paint!). When he’s awake is when I fill and package orders. Otherwise, my husband does a lot of the bookkeeping and technical stuff for me when he has a spare moment here and there.

2. What would you say to other women who are thinking of starting a business/side business/business at home?
Go for it! Make sure it’s something you enjoy doing, get organized and realize that it can be very time consuming. And… it will probably get spread all over your house if you’re chasing kids around too. But it can be very rewarding.

3. What mistakes have you made or what would you do differently if you could do it all over again when you first started your business?
Maybe just a little more prep and research before launching the business. I could have saved a lot of time and money if I’d researched more.

4. What advice would you give to women who want to work and be wives and mothers?
I’ll say it again…. Get organized! Get organized! Create a work area and create a schedule. Make sure you have time that is for work and time that is for kids. Don’t short your kids’ time with you or it’s not worth it. On the other side of that, don’t short your “self time” or it’s not worth it either. Be flexible! Kids force that necessity upon us. And most importantly, a happy mom is the best kind of mom! So whatever you decide to do, make sure that your happiness and well-being is your priority and everything else will fall into place.


Katie was nice enough to offer my blog readers an awesome discount, AND a freebie!

Here’s the deal….you have two ways to get your hands on some awesomeness.

Mention my name when you purchase something from Pickled Pumpkins, and receive 15% off!

(Put SARA BOULTER in the "Note to Seller" section in the checkout process and I will refund the discount right back to you. Sale ends March 4th.)

AND

Visit Katie’s shop online and come back here to tell me what your favorite item is (leave a comment.) Want an extra entry? Share this post on your blog (FB, twitter, whatever) and leave another comment with the link. I will hold a random drawing and the winner will receive a FREE print from Katie’s shop. (Contest ends March 4th at midnight, winner announced March 5th.)


You like what you see? I knew you would. Head over to her shop and check out all the goodies.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/pickledpumpkins





Are you a woman who ROCKS? Do you have a creative business that deserves to be featured on my blog? I want to hear from you! Email me at info {@} saraboulterphotography {dot} com.