Today we’d like to introduce you to Vanessa Chen.
Hi Vanessa, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Growing up, I have always been drawn to making art. From doodling since I could remember to acrylic paintings, mixed medium drawings to photography, and now back to illustrations. I have always loved both making and receiving cards growing up, especially those that are handmade. During the pandemic, having switched between different jobs, I had more time and reimmersed myself in traditional arts. It started with a hand painted watercolor card for my mom and friends—the reactions I received from them brought back nostalgic memories from childhood of gifting cards I made. My family and friends gave me the idea to start selling the cards I made online. Particularly because it was during the pandemic, I wanted to spread positivity and joy through my artwork.
Soon after, I started teaching myself digital art, and some time afterward, I decided to leave my 9 to 5 job to pursue this passion of making my art into a small business full time. I began to participate in pop-up shows, allowing me to connect with people in person and I was able to better understand what resonated most with people. In recent years, I have expanded into the journey of selling wholesale and just like how I love connecting with people, I love creating partnerships with retailers and being able to reach a different audience.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve definitely had struggles and challenges along the way, and I still come across hurdles now. I struggled with finding my career path and balancing between a stable career versus starting a business which I had to learn a lot on my own. Growing up, I was always told the importance of having a safe and stable job, which meant working corporate. However, the 9-5 jobs I had made me feel burnt out, unhappy, and unfulfilled. The switch between jobs during the pandemic made me think deeper about my career path in the long run. Although I have learned a lot through running my small business, even now, I struggle with finding a balance between how much time I am spending on creating new artwork and products, social media, learning new skills, marketing, and everything in between. I have learned so much from being in the stationery industry and feel especially grateful to be in the Proof to Product community, where I receive helpful guidance to grow my business and take it to the next level. I’ve realized over the years just how much there is to learn, and I always feel inspired by other small business owners. It brings me so much joy to be able to create art that brings a smile to someone’s day. I feel grateful to be able to do what I love every day, and wouldn’t change it for the world.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an independent artist and small business owner of Sixtyeightcolors, home to cute, happy & playful greeting cards, stationery, and gifts. I love being able to express my Taiwanese heritage and incorporate aspects of East Asian Culture and my multicultural background into my art. My illustrations often revolve around themes of love, connection, and positivity through uplifting, playful puns, cute recurring animal characters with their stories, and the importance of self-care and a positive mindset. I strive to express love for all, no matter where you’re from and who you are, in hopes to transcend traditional barriers of love. A new product idea and concept I came out with this year was a personalized card that includes a motivational message in which you fill in a name of your choice, to be gifted to yourself or a loved one. I hope people will see this and feel like they can gift themselves a card as an encouraging reminder. When I first started creating greeting cards, I hand painted, scored, and hand cut each individual card though I often struggled to get them right. Thinking back on that time, I am proud of how far I have come in my business. I feel proud to have taught myself digital art and be where I am today having learned from challenges and hurdles that came in the way. I also feel proud to have branched out into Australia for wholesale this year as a new milestone. I have expanded new product categories including keychains, washi tapes, notepads and art prints, which will be included at my first trade show at NY NOW this February.
I would say what sets me apart is that I care deeply about making connections with people through my art. Whether that is a face-to-face interaction at events, online or through purchases, I especially love hearing unique stories behind who receives their cards and gifts and seeing how they resonate with my art. It always touches me to know that my art made someone smile or that my products helped connect people with their loved ones. I love it when customers reach out to let me know that they use their cards as a small art print decoration keepsake.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Even with AI becoming a big part of our world, I still believe that art is meaningful coming from the human experience and the heart of our art is irreplaceable by technology. Ultimately, I feel that people will always value an artist’s struggles and trial and error, which are elements that add value and distinguish handmade art and products. I feel the shift and change in shoppers’ habits since the pandemic, and perhaps people are leaning toward online shopping more than before. This may be influenced by the gradual change within myself, but I have noticed more of a conversation and comfortability in advocating for self-care in the past few years, so I love creating and sharing art and products that make us feel loved, valued and positive. For example, my Relax With Tea card comes from my practice of Chanoyu, the Japanese Way of Tea, and pausing for a cup of tea is one of my favorite self-care activities. There is also a growing need for sustainability toward the environment, and I aim to incorporate more eco-friendly products into my business. I want to think that, especially because the digital world is becoming increasingly a part of our daily lives, sending a handmade and handwritten card to a loved one will always be something special–a physical reminder and memory that we can look back on with our loved ones.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.
sixtyeightcolors.com - Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/vanessachen.w - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/vanessachen.w - Other: https://www.tiktok.com/
@sixtyeightcolors
