Latest / The Hands That Make / S1 E4: Becca, Sojourn and Soul ~ Storytelling, Finding Your Brand Voice, & Putting Family Life First
Transcript
- Casey: Hi, and welcome to The Hands Up Make, a podcast for conversations about making things, running businesses, and raising our kids all at the same time. For this episode, I'm joined by Becca, owner of Sojourn in Soul. Becca is an artist, graphic designer, and brand storyteller whose passion for beauty and all things timeless creates immersive brand worlds that draw visitors in with intention and care. Becca is a treasure trove of insight and wisdom into finding rhythms that work for your family and The ever-evolving arts of balancing family creativity and business. And I can't wait to share our conversation with you. This episode of The Hands That Make is sponsored by Bear Hands. As a mother and artist who works with my hands, having shorter and clean nails is a must in this season of life. My favorite way to care for my hands and nails naturally is with the Bear Hands Dry Glass Manicure Kit. It's such a simple and easy way for me to keep my nails feeling polished and clean without the chemicals or upkeep of polish. I also recently purchased some of their other hand care essentials, like the hand and cuticle scrub and the restorative nail oil, and am already in love with these additions to my routine. You can find the Bear Hands Dread Gloss Manicure Kit and more non toxic hand and foot care essentials linked in the show notes below. Let's get to today's episode. go ahead and start with you. So tell us who you are, what makes Becca: So Casey: you you. Becca: all right, sounds good. Yeah, so I'm Becca. I am a 27-year-old mom of four, married to my junior high sweetheart. We met when I was 13 and he was 14, dated all through high school and then got married right out of high school and then had our first kid the within the year. So yeah, that's kind of our our backstory. I'm from Canada. which a lot of people don't realize, that follow me on social media. Whenever they hear that, they're like, I for some reason just thought you were in the US, because most of my clients are from the US. Casey: Yeah. Becca: but yeah, that's me. I am an artist, brand designer is kind of where I've taken that. that's like my specialty now, but I've been an artist my whole life. I can't remember a time where I wasn't doing something creative, whether that was music or writing or sculpture or painting or crochet, literally any creative craft was I I had my hands on it at some point. yeah, and so that's that's my my interest, that's my love, the way that I, I don't know, see the world and process the world around me. and I'm also a big, I'm a huge Tolkien fan. and that it seems like something kind of irrelevant, but I feel like that was a huge influence in my growing up as as an artist, I started reading Lord of the Rings when I was in like late junior high and was like so obsessed just with the world that that Tolkien created and the beauty in it. and all through through the the stories and the the world that he created, it just was like so, so inspiring to me. and so yeah, I think that's that's something that was a huge influence on me as an artist and something I still still love my for my birthday. My husband got me. an atlas and a dictionary of of Tolkien. So I'm like big Tolkien nerd, but I love it. I think he's incredible. I love literature. I love stories. yeah, that's that's me. Casey: Yeah. I love the Tolkien or Tolkien connection. I I I am not an expert on his realm, but I just so appreciate the incredible amount of detail that he put into his stories and creating the world and Becca: Yeah. Casey: and even just thinking of the art that you make. I just it's super evident that there's so much detail and I love looking at like the textures that you make and just everything that you do. There's just so much detail and intention and it's beautiful and I love that Becca: Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. That's something. Yeah, thank you. Casey: I loved knowing that backstory and that connection and that's that's fun. Yeah. So I guess tell us more about Sojourn and Soul. When did you start your business? Becca: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. it's funny because, you know, I see people often will be like, this today marks seven years or or whatever. And I don't have like a cut and dry, like this is when I started. because I've been doing like I would sell paintings when I was in high school, and I started doing graphic design when I was in high school, just doing like business cards for various people and logo design for people. And so There was never a clear this is when I started doing this. as it is now. So it first was under a different name when I originally was like, okay, I'm committing to doing graphic design as a business. And that was 2018, shortly after or before my husband and I got married. I knew eventually that I wanted to do something creative to support me being able to like be home when we had kids. thinking that it would probably be further down the line than it was. but that was always my goal. I knew I wanted to do something on my own time. and so it was my husband after we got married, we moved and he was doing his first year of a music and worship arts program. and I got pregnant in that year. I was just working at the cafe at the school. and it was a little bit of like extra motivation to be like, okay, you gotta figure this out now. Casey: Yeah. Yeah. Becca: and so I started just doing work for free, taking on as many like projects as I could. and I never went to school for for graphic design. It's just something I've kind of always done and just over time built up skills in. so yeah, I don't have like a cut and clear like this is when I started, but when I committed to making it a business was back in 2018, and then it has kind of just slowly grown from there. and I think growing a business alongside of being a mom, the trajectory is different than when you're like, okay, I'm gonna do this and I'm committing my nine to five Monday to Friday to it. and so it was a really slow rolling snowball for the first while. and then it really took off in twenty twenty one, twenty twenty two-ish, to where I was like, okay, now we're like, you know, actually taking on consistent projects every month and can plan and and whatnot. So yeah, it's been the last I've been doing this for, I don't know, what would that be almost 10 years? but really consistently and more of like a actual like full time, kind of full time, full time in the capacity of motherhood for the Casey: Yeah, yeah. Becca: last like four or five years. Casey: That's that's really cool and and yeah, I do feel like there's there's nothing more motivating than having a baby on the way and knowing like okay, there's kind of Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: a fur like it's a loose deadline, but it's kind of a firm deadline for some goals that I have and yeah. No, Becca: Yeah. Totally. Yeah. Casey: that's cool. So you said twenty twenty twenty one is when things really started taking up. Becca: Yeah, that was when I started really to have a lot of clarity around, okay, I brand design is what I love. and that's when I started actually just posting on social media more consistently and like putting the the effort into to find new clients and not just being like when a project comes my way, that's great. sort of thing. Yeah. Casey: Mm-hmm. Yeah. So you dabbled in lots of things coming into this, but how did you decide brand design was the right fit and what you wanted to Becca: Yeah. Casey: to move forward with? Becca: Yeah. So I think growing up, my parents were like so supportive of whatever I wanted to do. But there is always, I think, the the outlook on arts as a career as like, like you can't make a career out of that, you know, the whole like starving artist type of thing. and so I think when I was kind of looking at it, like I love illustration. That is like my favorite favorite thing to do. Graphic design almost seemed like the the safe way to be able to do that and and know that I would be paid for it. and so there was Casey: Mm. Becca: a little bit of just like it's just the more logical, like if I want to make a consistent career out of something, it was kind of like a natural, like that makes sense. rather than just trying to, you know, find people that want to buy like my paintings or whatnot, which there is nothing wrong with that. And I have so much respect for people that that commit to that because it's it's it's just it's incredible and it's different. but yeah, that was the original motivator behind that was like, okay, I think this is something that I can, make a make a consistent career out of. and just lots of there's lots of opportunity in it. especially at the time too. So 2017, 2018 era, like there wasn't as much social media was different. There wasn't as like saturated and brand design in the way that that I started doing it was different. It didn't, it's not like what it was now. and so it was more like unique. and so yeah, it was just like a it was an easy pathway for me to be able to do what I loved and have some consistency in as far as like income goes. Yeah. Casey: Yeah. Yeah, no, I and it's cool to see like how something can kind of evolve from necessity almost or like this is just kind of the logical next step or or and then to see how that I don't know, to see how that has evolved for you, like now looking Becca: Yeah. Casey: at all of the things that you are creating, it seems at least from an outsider's perspective, as if this is something you're really pouring passion and Becca: Let Casey: and Becca: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And I think over time I've been able to reconcile my two loves more because I love branding. I just the the whole thought process behind it and brand strategy, I love that. but art is is where my heart will always be. Like that's where I where I came from. and so once I got into brand design, it's easy to kind of get caught up in like all of the marketing language. and a lot of marketing is based around like creating urgency and using psychology essentially against the consumer to force a reaction out of them. and yeah, so it's really easy to like kind of get caught up in the what is expected of of the industry. And a lot of the more the beauty and the art can be stripped away in that. And so over the years, especially the last I would say like two or three years especially, I've feel like I've kind of been able to approach it in a way that reconciles why I love art with graphic design and branding and being able to fuse the two into a way that feels like really personal to me and ultimately creates incredible results for for my clients because we're not just doing the same kind of marketing approach as as everybody else and it just feels it brings me so much joy to be able to fuse the two. Casey: Yeah. Yeah, definitely. And I really do love your approach to building out a brand. I mean, kind of like a brand world almost. Like thinking about like Tolkien writing these worlds Becca: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Casey: and you're creating these worlds for this brand and and I really appreciate the but there's no urgency in it. It's not flashy or like clickbaity or and like buy now. It's something that's beautiful that somebody would see and want to enter into. And I think that's Becca: Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Casey: that's so valuable and creates a more authentic experience on both ends, like brands being able to be honest and who they are Becca: Absolutely. Yeah. Absolutely. Mm-hmm. Casey: and provide something for somebody. creating the right environment for the right person on both ends. And that's that's really that's a really beautiful thing. Becca: Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Yeah, that's exactly it. That's that's what I I would say that's my like hill to die on in Casey: Yeah. Becca: branding and marketing is that I think that it can be easier to have concrete results when you're like, okay, we know that if we, you know, put the timer at the top of the page saying like, if you don't buy something within this time, it'll be gone forever or whatever. We know that produces results. But It doesn't feel like ethical or or right in my mind to pressure and essentially like scare people or use like people's pain points as something that you'll see everywhere in like brand industry jargon of using those to to create an emotional response. but I'm a huge believer and I think my perspective on just like creating art and loving. stories and and whatnot kind of influences the way that I say. I don't think we have to do that. I think that if you can create an experience that resonates on on a personal level and creates a an immersive, like you said, world where people are like they actually long to be in it and they have trust Casey: Mm-hmm. Becca: in you because they're they experience your world, then you're not having to use these urgency tactics and this like the manipulation in order to Casey: Yeah. Becca: Make the sale, so to say. Casey: Yeah. And maybe just being in that season of young motherhood, I really feel like Becca: Mm. Casey: there's so much like urgency marketing and I'm like losing the word, but it's like predatory almost in the motherhood space of like Becca: Yes. Yep. Casey: I have the secret to making everything easier and all you have to do is buy my five hundred dollar course and and it's just I just Becca: Yes, yes, that's exactly it. Casey: that stuff just does not sit right with me and 'cause it's Becca: No, I totally agree. Casey: there's yeah, obviously that's a really there are so many things in motherhood you have to figure out and Everything is a learning curve and babies are gonna be babies and it's so Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Casey: e it just feels so icky and predatory to be Becca: Yeah, totally. Casey: like, just pay me five hundred dollars and I'll get your baby to sleep through the night. Like it's not gonna that's just man. I do not Becca: Yeah. Yeah, totally. Yeah. Casey: that is probably one of my biggest pet peeves in the in the motherhood space Becca: Totally. Casey: of just it's yeah, but anyways, to approach that in such a different way and then to find your unique voice in the branding industry, the marketing industry. and then to infuse that into people's brand stories is really it's really cool and I love to see that that it seems like more at least small businesses like want that versus Becca: Hmm. Yeah. Casey: the big buy now and and I'll solve all your problems and Becca: Yeah. Totally. Yeah. I think so too. I've seen a big shift in that that people that that value and the AI plays into this as well. yeah, I think that with the rise of AI and everything feeling so like impersonal and cookie cutter and whatnot, people are realizing that the only anecdote to that is adding more humanness into it. And so I think that with that, a lot of that comes naturally the visual expression of a brand and in incorporating all those like handcrafted elements and whatnot. But also even in just the way that you communicate your marketing when it is a more personal, relatable, and and trustworthy experience that that's what people want. and I think that's like at the core what people are are desiring right now because everybody's so burnt out from hearing the same AI whatever all the time. Yeah. Casey: Yeah. Yeah. I love that you shared multiple times that human made is the new luxury and I really do feel like there's so many people being drawn to that human made Becca: Yeah. Casey: and versus AI where everything is like not perfect but it's just it's robotic and it's cold and it's Becca: Yeah. Yes. Yeah. Casey: it's very yeah, but then to see a brand with elements that were completely hand drawn and Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: an honest voice, a human voice, so a real person writing their own words. It's just it's such a different experience and and really I yeah, I do feel gonna be so valuable in our increasingly AI Becca: Totally. Casey: involved, engaged world, created world. Becca: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. People ask me all the time, like, is your work being impacted? And like how what does that look like for you? Because that's I think one of the one of the industries that in copywriting, I feel like as creative industries, that people are like, they're gonna die because AI is gonna take over. And I like it has a little bit, but more in the sense that like there's almost more of a desire and more of a a growing market, I guess, for people that that specifically are seeking out anything that is not made by AI. So in in some ways it's just created more of a a divide, but almost in a good way because the people that would use AI to create their brand are not people that I would hire me in the first place, anyways. and so yeah, I I I think people like think that it is having a huge impact on the industry. And for some, for some I I think for graphic design in general it is, but for what I do specifically, I think if anything, it's actually made there be more of an appreciation for the the perspective that that I bring to branding, which I'm I'm so thankful for. And it's been really cool to have those conversations with with people over the past year or so. Casey: Yeah, yeah, definitely. so just thinking of your journey as an artist, were there any influential makers in your life who you learned from, who it taught you things or inspired you growing up and then continuing on into your into your business? Becca: Yeah, I I was trying to to think of this one and I like I had wonderful art teachers when I was in high school, but I didn't actually have and really anyone in my like personal day-to-day life that kind of like paved the way for me or that I that I learned from and I I I wish that that I did because I I see the value in like passing a craft down and I hope to be able to do that. for my kids and already seeing them love art and and whatnot is so exciting for me. but I kind of had to learn everything that I learned online. and through through my art classes as well, I took every single class possible. I'm not sure how it works where you are, but Here when I was in high school, you could pick your classes. and so I chose not to take math or science in grade 12 because I knew that I was either gonna go to art school or I was gonna get married. I was never interested Casey: Yeah. Becca: in like, I don't know, anything that would need those. and instead Casey: Yeah. Becca: I took as many art courses as possible. and we actually at the school that I went to had like a specific stream for for the arts where you did like extra classes in additional to art classes so that it was professional development in the arts to help prepare you for a career in a creative field. And so I did those and I had wonderful, wonderful teachers that were just like so supportive. and but that was kind of the only the only thing that I had as far as like another artist to kind of follow in the footsteps And other than that, it was just kind of I've always just spent a ton of time doing what I do. and then just kind of looking at following people online and whatnot. But yeah, in person I never had like somebody that was like teaching me their their craft or anything like that. Casey: Mm-hmm. No, and I think that's such a unique and and really valuable and beautiful story too. just being someone who has over so many years created your own style of art and your own voice and your own way of just making the worlds and the elements that you do and and to To almost see that just be so uniquely and one hundred percent from you, if that makes sense. Becca: Yeah. Casey: and I was just like thinking of like creating your own voice and I feel like that's something Becca: Yeah. Casey: that I've been thinking about just owning a business in general and something that if you're looking to grow your own business, I feel like you have to grow your own voice, if that makes sense. And and Becca: Yep. A hundred percent. Casey: if you want to find your like quote niche, like you are the niche and and Becca: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Casey: how can you really just, yeah, craft and refine your personal voice to reach your audience and that's something I feel like you've done really well, like crafting Becca: Yeah. Absolutely. Thank you. Casey: your your brand and your storytelling and your skill and it's really it's just I just really appreciate seeing that. Becca: Yeah. Casey: then even knowing that that's just one hundred percent you. That's just I don't know, that's really Becca: Yeah, I I have found, I don't know, especially just in in the way that social media is now, I actually choose not to follow other people in my industry, save for a couple like actual friends. because it is so easy to just get caught up in what other people are doing and either like overthink it and be worried that like, are we just doing like things that are too similar or like comparing your work and whatnot? And so I I make a specific point not to follow other designers or look at other designers' work or even on Pinterest. I don't I specifically don't look at other brand stuff on Pinterest because I don't want like the input of other people's work. because yeah, it's really, really easy just to start comparing and and wondering, you know, am I doing the right thing? and I have found I this past year, so I had my fourth child in December of 2025. and Casey: Amazing. Becca: yeah, yeah. So he's almost he'll be a year in a in a couple months. and I don't know about you, but I always find like pregnancy and postpartum to be a very like transformative experience. and I feel like I always come out of it changed. and taking some time off from my work, like Pregnancy is not the most kind to me. and so I have a really hard time being creative when I'm pregnant. and so at the end of of my pregnancy with him and then like early postpartum, I think I took a total of like four months off. and in that time, it like that's the most time I've taken off in a long time. and Casey: Yeah. Becca: so just being able to kind of like do the things that I loved again, I started reading again because it's I don't I Trying to find the time to read right now is a challenge. Casey: Yeah. Becca: and so yeah, I started picking up some reading again and making time to return to like painting and some of like the original art forms that I loved outside of doing client work. and it gave me such a fresh perspective and kind of reminded me like all the things that I love and who I am. and then returning to my work in February, it was like a a game changer because I was not so focused on creating stuff for for other people and being able to really like put who I am and my voice into my brand. and then coincidentally the this year has not coincidentally, I don't believe in coincidences, but Casey: Yeah. Becca: this year has been like a record breaking year for my business. And I'm I'm so confident that that is because not only God's provision, but because of putting my actual personality and my actual interests into what I was was putting out instead of you know thinking about what is like what do people really like, what are other people doing, and that sort of thing. And so the difference that it makes in your business when you actually are like true to your voice and your values and your interests and what makes you you is is there's nothing like it. And you can't replicate that. And people recognize that. so yeah. Casey: Yeah, definitely. Yeah. And I feel even like amongst similar similar businesses, like you can have businesses that maybe look similar, Becca: Yeah. Casey: growing alongside each other, but they're not they're never gonna be the same. And the right client is going to be drawn to the right person business Becca: Totally. Casey: because of their specific voice and that's just that I think that's a really beautiful thing and and there are some other quilters who are I feel like similar style as me and like similar pattern Becca: Mm. Casey: writing as me. But I just feel like zero sense of competition. I don't know if that makes sense because it's just like they're they're creating beautiful things and I'm creating beautiful things and they're Becca: Yeah. Casey: using their unique voice and I'm using mine and I think that's just I think it just is gonna create only more new fresh ideas and new fresh things out there because we're just doing our own thing and it's it's it's cool to celebrate other people Becca: Totally. Casey: creating beautiful things in their own authentic way and and yeah I think it's own the the more the better. Becca: Yes, absolutely. Yeah. Well, and ultimately, yeah, it totally. And that's that's the perspective that you have to have. Because if you take the perspective of like everybody's out to copy you and everybody's out to get you, then you're creating a really lonely business that is just going to drive you insane. and I've kind of had to come through that by like walking through it because I've you know, I will post my work on Pinterest and there have been times where it gets copied or it gets stolen and That's just so common within any creative industry that I know it's just like a universal experience. And not that it makes it makes it okay, but if you have the perspective of just like you don't want to, you know, commu have community with anybody in your industry. and so while I say I don't follow other people and look at their their work on, you know, in my social media or on my Pinterest, I've also simultaneously been able to create. A really awesome community of designers where there's we actually have a relationship Casey: Yeah. Becca: and we like support one another and that that's that's completely different than you know just yeah. so yeah, I totally agree. Like when you appreciate the the perspective that other people bring and you know that their voice is their voice and your voice is yours, and the people that are drawn to like I wouldn't want to have somebody that is drawn to somebody else's voice come to me because I know that if there's a connection between those two people, then the work that they create together is ultimately going to be infinitely better for them than than what we would create together. And so yeah, I think when you have the confidence in your own perspective, that that sense of I don't know, paranoia that people are going to copy you just goes away because you don't have to worry about people being able to to replicate it because you value your voice and you value theirs. Casey: Yeah, definitely. And I do feel I do feel there's like a little bit of a difference 'cause I know that your work specifically has been like copy pasted. Like not just like people Becca: Yeah. Casey: draw inspiration from your work, but like people have legitimately stolen your things and that is like that is such a bummer and like that stuff in the in any art industry is just sad to see. But I know I know there's I feel I have so many thoughts on Pinterest. Like it can be such a fun thing, but it's also I feel So yeah, in maybe yeah, I don't know, an age of people are making online creative businesses. It just is seems it's would be really easy to just like look at something I'm Pinterest and be like, I'll just do that. I'll just take that. And it's Becca: Yeah. Well, and there's a lot of like, I don't know why people don't realize that I found it on Pinterest isn't like a a license to use something. I literally had this happen the other day where and f it's this one client of mine, her, she's a photographer. For whatever reason, it's always her brand that gets like taken by people. And so she Casey: Mm. Yeah. Becca: sent me an account of somebody who had like literally just like taken the logo and put their name under it. and so Casey: Yeah. Becca: she reached out to them and she was like, Hey, that's my logo. Where'd you get it? And and their response Casey: Yeah. Becca: was really, I found it on Pinterest. And so I think there's just like a lack of understanding for people that aren't in a creative like field Casey: Yeah. Becca: that they don't they don't understand like the damage or the harm that that causes. and people just think, if it's on Pinterest, then I can just then I can just use it. But yeah, anyways, yeah. Casey: Yeah, it's such a it's such a black hole and yeah, it is I yeah, I've seen other Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: artists work or even just like other quilters who have made just quilts and it's you can click on a pin and there's no there's no way to trace it back to who Becca: Yeah. Casey: originally made that quilt and it's it's a little bit disheartening. Like I would Becca: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Casey: love to know who was the first or like who made that quilt or to be able to give people credit or just to see I don't know. If you really love somebody's quilts To be able to go back and say, is there any more? I would love to see more, but it's it's like Becca: Yeah. Totally. Casey: it'll just say like pinned by I don't know, some random profile name, but Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Casey: it's a little yeah, it seems like it's a little bit of a black hole. But thinking Becca: Yeah. Casey: of inspiration in general, where where does inspiration come for you as an artist? I know that you've t touched on that a little bit, but I'd love to hear more. Becca: Yeah, I love, like I said, I love stories. and a lot of my inspiration does come from just like reading various things. as far as like my approach to like branding. I was thinking about this the other day. I'll touch on brand strategy first, where I get that inspiration from and then where I collect inspiration for the individual brands from. but I was thinking because like brand strategy, I think a lot of people hear that and they don't actually fully know what it means. and for a long time, like I said, I was trying to kind of approach brand strategy from the typical like marketing approach, who's your ideal audience and what do they want to see and that sort of thing. and it's never fully like reconciled for me because the way that I view art is completely different. And so I had a moment the other day when I was thinking about one of the things that I love about like classic works like Crime and Punishment or the picture of Dorian Gray or like the Great Gatsby or even like Jayner. There's themes that run through them and symbolism that it they don't explicitly tell you, but you pick up on. So for example, in in Crime and Punishment, he uses the color yellow to create an environment where there's like yellow in people's faces or yellow on the walls. to make it feel like really oppressive. and it represents the the poverty and the mental decay and that thing. Obviously, that's not what we're going to recreate in branding, but the concept Casey: Yeah. Becca: being using colors and symbols and that thing to create the the world and to create a feeling rather than just saying how it is. and that was like a a light bulb moment for me where I was like, that's how I think of branding. Casey: Yeah. Becca: and so I I pull I think a lot of inspiration as far as like my my approach from that sort of concept. but then as far as like for actual brands, when I'm creating a brand itself and looking for inspiration and whatnot, I'm a big like thrifter and antique person. And so I have like little collections of little things. I always have like vintage books sitting around my house and whatnot. So a lot of my inspiration comes from from that and just real life things. Or for example, these scissors, I don't know if you can see this. They're super ornate design, that thing I love. so I'd say a lot of my inspiration comes from that. And I'm a huge like art history person too. So I love like specifically Renaissance era painting. Not that that's applicable to every single brand, but those are the types of things that that I like to look for inspiration from. I'll also scroll through like museum archives online and that sort of thing as well, just to look for places where like go to going to the source essentially, because what happens like a lot of designers use Pinterest as as their where they're finding inspiration from. and I've noticed this more and more recently. a lot of people will share like mood boards of for a project on Instagram. and I've noticed recently that like they all have the same like design inspiration from Pinterest. I'm like, I've seen that like four or five times this week. Casey: Yeah. Becca: and so, and no, like their beautiful work, beautiful boards. There's nothing against that. I just would prefer to like find what is inspiring those things in the first place rather than just like being inspired by other work, if that makes sense. So yeah, I like to go to the real. Real source. I like in person actual pieces. I'll like collect if I see like packaging in the wild where I'm like, my goodness, this is beautiful. sometimes I will buy something just for the packaging and whatnot, just to kind of like keep my own little library of things rather than just like relying on the same algorithm that everybody else is seeing. Yeah. Casey: Definitely. And I I feel like that would add so much to the long the longevity of a brand or the timelessness Becca: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Casey: of a brand like of a brand story, just going to things that have held beauty and have held meaning in story for years and years and years. That's I I love that. I love that process. Becca: Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Casey: So you said you have four little ones at home. What does Becca: Yeah. Casey: what so what kind of a season are you in right now with home Becca: Yeah. Casey: life, business life? What how are you managing? How I I guess I'll let you talk. But yeah. Becca: Yeah, yeah, yeah. every season is different. I feel like once you start figuring out a good routine, your kid enters a new stage and then you're like, okay, now we gotta go back to the drawing board and figure this out. Casey: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Becca: but I am very blessed to have support. I live only like an hour away from my my family. and so my mom, she watches my kids one day a week so that I can work. and then my husband is home. His weekend is Fridays, Saturdays, 'cause he's a pastor. And so he will hang out with the kids on Friday while I get some work done then. And then I work evenings as well. And so it's can be a little bit all over the place depending on how much I have going on. But I'm also really blessed to have an amazing virtual assistant who happens to be one of my like in real life best friends as well. and she brings all of the organization to my very creative brain. and so having support through that just makes it sustainable because if I was doing everything myself, I would not be able to do what I do. so yeah, what season are we in with kids? our oldest, I don't know if I said this, but our oldest is just turned seven. and then we have seven, five, three, and almost a year. So it's a really busy and full season. Casey: Yes. Becca: we in the past we homeschooled and then this past year we moved and the town that we're in has an incredible town school. I honestly never thought I would put my kids in public school. but they it so our town is like less than 800 people. It's really small and the class sizes are are really small. and like everybody knows everybody and it's just they they're incredible and it's been the best thing for my kids and it's been the best thing for just our our routine. I'm not naturally like a a routine-oriented person, and just like the personality of my oldest two boys, they they need routine. and so Casey: Yeah, yeah. Becca: I know that there's a lot of discourse around like what is the best option for for schooling. And I think I dealt with a lot of grief and guilt choosing to not homeschool after I had thought that's what I was gonna do. but knowing in our specific like circumstance, we're blessed with an incredible town school and having them in school and being able to like have a little bit of the the mental separation between work time versus like time where I can be fully in mom mode. is is so important and has been the best thing for us because in the past years where I'm trying to do everything all at once where it's like okay we're homeschooling and I'm doing house stuff and simultaneously answering because this is before I had a a an assistant but I was doing literally everything on my own. It was just like there was no clear separation between things and it just for me personally was just too overwhelming. and so yeah it's been it's been a really good season of trying to figure out more routines that don't also just like sacrifice our family for for the sake of of work because that was never never my goal. my goal with doing what I do was always to support our family and not, you know, the other way around. so yeah, that's kind of where we're at. Casey: That's that's really cool and and so special to have a like a school system that you feel is a right fit for your family. That's I feel that's so valuable and it is really amazing that there it feels there are so many different options out there and I love hearing people's different combinations of what they're doing. Like Becca: Yeah. Casey: I was talking to someone who they're they do like half days of homeschool, they do some Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: homeschool, and then their child goes in for art at the public. school and then they come home and then they and it's Becca: Okay, cool. Casey: just it's I think that there's it's really cool to see that there's so many options out there right now and and yeah I we just started like a little homeschool preschool with my daughter she's four and it's but like we're thinking about the future we don't I don't know what it's gonna look like for us. I don't know what's gonna be the right the right next step for us but I I do appreciate that there's so many options and and I don't know. I don't I don't feel at least we're surrounded by people who are like hard line one or the other. It's just, it's, I feel like maybe just in general, people are more open to like there's so many different ways that we can do this. And that's that's really cool. And and finding what works for your family is is the best. Becca: Hm. Totally. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, totally. Casey: so you said having that separation between family time, business time. Something that I personally struggle with is 'cause we do we also are just so fortunate to have childcare available to us. So my mother in law comes in and watches our kids, which is amazing. And then we also have just a beautiful, wonderful friend who comes a couple of days a week and like in Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: the mornings is with our kids and that is that is the only way that my husband and I could ever work. But It was something that I still even struggle with is once once our childcare is out, like there's still like the in the back of my mind it's like, but like I could I there's still stuff that I need to do. Like how do you like how Becca: Yeah. Casey: do you approach that? And like how do you manage those those hard I guess the boundaries of of knowing when to put it down? Becca: Yeah, it's hard. Yeah. Yeah, it's totally hard, especially with phones, right? it's not like you're walking out of an office Casey: Yes. Yeah. Becca: and then you don't get bombarded with anything work related until, you're back in the office. we don't have we don't have that luxury. and so yeah, Casey: Yeah. Becca: I I find that's like a continual like I have to remind myself every single day and week to week that it's okay if I don't, you know, get to something right away. and I have found if I have the tendency or in the seasons where I feel like there's a lot on my plate and I'm feeling the pressure of like I need to get things done right away or there's stuff and there's always something that can get done. But sometimes it's it's harder to be like, okay, this can wait. and so I'll wake up and immediately be like, I need to check my email and I need to do these things. And then, you know, I won't clean my kitchen and the laundry will start piling up. And then it's just like more and more overwhelmed because then I'm spending the time that I would normally be, doing those things so that our house is is has some order to it, Casey: Yeah. Becca: working, but then still working the same like more than I would be, anyways. Casey: Right. Becca: Those things pile up and then it just ends up being more chaotic. And so I have found when I can just be really clear on my boundaries and stick to them, and it is a constant having to be like, it's okay, you can see you don't need to answer everything right away. and going, nothing is an emergency. if I didn't respond to this today, everything would be fine. and allowing myself to have the routines of, you know, setting aside the the morning for doing whatever needs to be done in the house, doing something creative with with my kids, knowing that everything will get done in its time. And nobody is going to be upset at me for taking, you know, A day versus two days to do something that isn't an urgent thing. nobody cares. Casey: Yeah. Becca: but it can feel so, so like burdening, I think, sometimes when we think that everybody deserves an immediate response and and whatnot. so yeah, I have found the best way for me to do that is just the daily reminder that like nobody, this is not an emergency. Your family comes first, take the time to have Casey: Mm-hmm. Becca: things in their right place. And ultimately the work that you do end up doing will be better because you won't be so overwhelmed by everything else going on. yeah, and I also have like on a more practical side, I have like notification blocks set up on my phone so that I'm not I don't have my email or or that sort of thing turned on. The only like conversational or work notification I have turned on is my communication with my assistant designer and my virtual assistant. because those are it's I don't know, it conversing with them isn't it's really quick and easy. and it brings things off my plate versus seeing emails roll in throughout the day or having Instagram notifications turned on. and then I also have a block set up on Instagram so that I can only open it a certain amount of times a day for a few minutes at a time so I don't get sucked into that whole whole rabbit hole. And having those boundaries makes such a huge difference versus just because then it is easier to have the times where you're like, Okay, I'm not working, it's not, I'm not getting the input from anything work related. And so you can focus. Cause even trying to like just tell yourself, I'm not going to do any work stuff, but then still having notifications come up is like that doesn't work. So yeah. Casey: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Yeah, I it's yeah, it's so hard for me to like yeah, when the when the constant pinging is there, Becca: Mm. Casey: it's it's hard to be like, well I'll just quick I'll just quick take a look at this and and then I get pulled in and Becca: Yeah. Yes. Casey: it's it's just yeah, having the desire to build a business that fits into your vision for your family and then actually holding fast to those boundaries is hard and it's it's a tricky Becca: Doing it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Casey: thing and a couple months ago I took all of my business stuff off of my personal phone. Well, number one, I have an older phone anyway, so I don't have that much storage on there and I was Becca: Mm-hmm. Okay. Yeah. Casey: trying to edit videos and do all this stuff and my phone was like, I I can't so Becca: Can do this, yeah. Casey: but I I invested in an iPad and I like, I'm trying to reduce my screen time. Like I don't wanna buy another screen but like having like a separation between like this is my phone and like my phone is essentially a brick now. I guess it's just I don't have anything on it. But Becca: Yeah. Casey: like having that separation has been really helpful. But I do also feel like I sometimes just like need to like put everything in a different room because otherwise it's like just like sitting out and I could just like I could still open an iPad. I can still that's still right there, but but yeah, it just Yeah, right? That's that's one thing is like I never Becca: Yep. Yeah, at least an iPad is harder to like put in your pocket and carry around with you. Yeah. Casey: like my work stuff never goes out of the house with me, when we're when we're out and about, it's not like I don't have any of my work stuff. But I don't want it to be like, well when I'm home, I'm always working and I'm always on this stuff and I like that's not the culture that I want to build in our home, but it's hard when you're when you are working from home. And so yeah, I don't know. I I love Yes. Becca: Yeah. Yeah, totally. Yeah. Yeah. It takes an active defiance against that in order for that not to happen because it will naturally happen if you're not intentionally pursuing the opposite. Casey: Yeah, definitely. are there any other so some of your kids are in school, some of your kids are Becca: No. Casey: at home, are there any other like daily rhythms that you have that are working, don't working? I know you set aside mornings just to be with your family and to have get your things done and be with your kids and but are there any other like practical daily rhythms that you're liking? Becca: Yeah. Yeah. So right now my youngest naps twice a day. And so he has his morning nap and he has his afternoon nap. And so and my daughter is like, I don't know, do you have you have one girl? Do you have boys as well? Okay. Casey: Yep, I have a daughter and then a son. Yeah. Becca: The difference between girls and boys in my experience has been absolutely wild because my daughter plays Casey: Ha ha ha. Becca: so beautifully. She will just like play with her little dolls and she'll play with her babies, and I'm actually able to like get stuff done in the house. Whereas When I had two boys that were three and under, that was all I did was just keeping them alive and keeping them from destroying stuff. Casey: Yeah. Becca: and so it's just interesting being in like a different season where I'm like, man, I can't imagine being able like when I just had my two older boys when they were in this stage, I didn't get anything done. And now it's like the baby goes down for a nap and she plays, and I'm actually able to like use those two nap times in to actually do stuff. So that's just been a unique experience. and so yeah, I try to like save the mornings for just doing anything that needs to be done in the house. I we'd like make sure we run the dishwasher every night. We unload it in the morning. My oldest, he started making breakfast. He cooks fried eggs for everybody. So that's like a super fun new stage Casey: Amazing. Becca: to be in. and yeah, so just like those little routines that kind of set up the afternoon so that by the time we get to The second nap of the day, which he usually naps 1:30 to 3 ish in the afternoon. then my daughter does her quiet time, and then I'll sit down and do any type of work stuff. and that that has worked really well because it's not then like, okay, I'm checking my email throughout the day. If things wait till that afternoon quiet time block, then we're good. I can do what needs to be done there. And then the rest of the afternoon is spent, you know, in mom mode picking up. My boys from school. We live right across from our school. So it's like a nice, easy, easy situation there. And then making dinner, putting kids to bed. And then I usually work like three to four evenings a week after bedtime between like seven to nine thirty or so. so yeah, I and it's having the consistent routines just makes everything so much easier and more peaceful, even though my my natural wiring is to to struggle to keep up with those. when I'm in a good Casey: Yeah. Becca: space where we are keeping up with them, it works really well. Casey: Yeah. That's I love that. taking a little bit of a turn just 'cause I'm thinking of you having a virtual assistant and something that I've been thinking about just personally in my own businesses outsourcing the things that I'm not good at. And I know I we're gonna be working together in the in December and I'm so excited, like just I'm like starting a business, did not have the budget just off the bat to like have somebody make my brand for me, but still Becca: Yeah. Right. Casey: just like piecing things together, but like it doesn't it doesn't feel it's there yet. And and coming to the realization of I'm never gonna be able to do that on my own. That's not my strength. I'm not a brand storyteller, my strength is over here, but I would Becca: Right. Right. Yeah. Yeah. Casey: love to like bringing somebody else in to to really take it to life. And that has just been like a super valuable thing for me to think about. And I'm also like thinking ahead of like taxes and year-end stuff, and there's Becca: Yeah. Casey: just so much thing, so many things that I have absolutely no clue of. And for a while I was like, I could just do it myself. That I feel like that's how I am. Is I'll just I can do that. I can do that. Becca: Yeah. Yep, totally. Casey: No problem, but Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: coming to the realization of it's gonna be better if I let somebody else who that is their strength and that is their skill set. I'm gonna if I outsource that, it's gonna be so much better. What was that like for you than like hiring a virtual assistant, Becca: Yeah. Casey: finding somebody that would be a right fit for you? Becca: Yeah, totally. yeah, I think there's always some hesitation because investing in your business can be scary. and yet I knew that especially as far as like the so I have a a bookkeeper as well. That was the first thing that I did was because I'm not math oriented. Like I said, I didn't even Casey: Yeah. Becca: take math in grade twelve. I that was the first The first thing that I brought somebody in to do or outsourced because I knew that that is going to be infinitely better. I would just put off bookkeeping until it came time to file taxes. And then I was having to do a year's worth all at once and it was chaotic. So that was easy for me. Casey: Yeah. Yeah. Becca: and then bringing in a virtual assistant, that one was like, okay, now I have to, you know, like there's a little bit of more pressure because I have to be able to pay her every month. But the way that that worked was such a beautiful thing because we had worked together in in the past. She previously, before being my VA, was doing show at web development and we connected through through that in in in real life. and so she was already familiar with me and my process and the the platform that I use to handle like invoices and and that sort of thing, because she used it herself. And so that one was it just such a seamless transition. and just through our personal relationship, I knew her, the way that she is so organized and so meticulous was exactly what I needed. and so there was just like there was already an established trust there that that made it easy to to outsource to her as well and bring her in to be able to handle communication and and project proposals and whatnot. the more challenging one was bringing in an assistant designer. and it took I've been at the capacity for a few years where like I would have been able to do that, but because my art is and my my the designs that I do are so like people hire me for for me and my my art. I was nervous to Bring someone into my design process. but it's been just the best thing to be able to, I still create the brand identity, I hand it off to her. And then Solstice is she is incredible and totally understands my vision. She's also a mom, so she understands working in like the margins and like why I'm sending emails at 10 p.m. sort of thing. and so she'll then create the like social media templates or business cards or that sort of thing that comes after the brand identity. and so being able to hand off the things that like I could do because I've done design for almost 10 years, but they don't like bring me as much joy as creating the brand identity itself. Cause the brand identity is a lot of the like creative theory and more of like the art creation versus like layout design. Layout design. functionally I can do, but I don't it doesn't bring me joy. It's not my passion. and so being able to hand those things to somebody that I know is going to do an amazing job gives me more brain calories per se to pour into the things that I do love and make me like so excited about what I do and to work every day. And so yeah, even though, you know, there's always things that you can do. Even like with the internet, you can Google anything and you can do anything yourself. Creating a logo in and of itself is not that hard. you can pick a font if that's what you want to do. You can pick a font and type out your name and there's your logo. but there's a difference between functionally being able to do something and and then having something done with excellence. and so yeah, I'm a huge proponent. Casey: Yes. Hmm. Becca: And like for myself, the other things that I've invested in for my business, I'm I've worked with a copywriter in the past, I'm working with a copywriter right now. She's amazing. and I love writing, but I know that in this season of life, I don't necessarily have the brain capacity to do my work and write all of the copy for my website. And so I know that she is going to do an incredible job with it. And I would way rather pay her to do an incredible job with it versus me being burnt out trying to find the time to do it on top of everything else. And then that having the trickle-down effect of not having as much time for, you know, things in my household and in my family and whatnot. Casey: Mm-hmm. Yeah, it's so valuable to know when where to draw your own limits and where to bring in somebody. And I also love just hearing that that's been an ongoing process for you. Cause I feel just starting a business, I wanted to have it all done right away. And I felt like I Becca: Yeah. Casey: was like, Am I just not as professional? Because I'm kind of DIYing this, like just trying to get Becca: Yeah. Casey: things off the ground. But but it's it's just encouraging to hear that it is a process and you don't have to have it necessarily all figured out Becca: Yeah. It is. No. Casey: right right when you just like kick off an Instagram. account or kick off a website like it can evolve and it can grow and it can get refined Becca: Totally. Absolutely. Casey: over time and and that's just a part of business growth and yeah, yeah. Well I Becca: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Casey: know we're coming close to up on time, so I'll ask you some closing questions. Are there any current personal projects that you're working on outside of your business that you're excited about? It could be anything. Becca: Yeah. Yeah, well, we're just about November, so Christmas is coming up and I always like to crochet little things for my kids. I in the past couple of years crocheted all of our stockings for Christmas, and then last year, so our baby that'll be a year old, he was born December 17th. So I did not get to his last year because he would have been two weeks old and he didn't need a stocking. But this year I'm like, okay. Now I have a stocking to make. and I always like to have, I don't know what it is about fall and winter, but that's the time when I like to do knitting or crochet or that thing. so I'll be working on his stocking. and then my five-year-old, there's a game. I don't know if you ever played it growing up called Little Big Planet. it's like these little sack boy characters. Yeah. Casey: I've heard of it, yeah. Yep. Becca: he he requested a little. Sack boy character. so I'm going to make one of those and then little clothes because you can dress them up or whatever. yeah. So that was that was his request. So I was like, okay, we'll try and do that. We're also, this is like complete rabbit trail, but we're in a pretty big like studio shift with the business right now. And so there's a lot of work going in behind the scenes in that. So it's a lot all at once. but having Casey: Yeah. Becca: those little creative projects and honestly having the deadline of needing them to be done by Christmas. I'm I'm Casey: Yeah. Becca: very like deadline oriented. I work under pressure better than like having it go at my own pace. and so yeah I those will be fun little projects to work on in the evenings. I try and reserve Sundays for like creative work, creative rest essentially. And so those are kind of those are usually the times when I'll work on that sort of thing. Casey: That's so fun. My daughter recently saw a crochet kit in the store, and Becca: Okay. Casey: she's four, and she asked if she could learn how to crochet. And I do not know anything about crochet, but Becca: Let's ask him. Okay. Casey: I'm also all for it. anytime she asks, can she learn something or she can she try a new craft? I'm like, yeah, of course, why not? But it was Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, totally. Casey: like, I'll have to I'll have to pick your brain about crocheting. How how do I teach a four-year-old how to crochet when I don't know how to crochet? Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Casey: as as a creative mom, obviously you have lots of creative hobbies. How are you involving your kids or giving your kids opportunities to be creative and to pick up their own passions? Becca: Yeah, totally. I it's developed naturally. I think that seeing me do illustration stuff, they're naturally curious. Like kids always just want to follow whatever their parents are doing. and so I haven't like formally introduced like, okay, let's sit down and let's do this thing or whatever, but I've tried to in the past save time in the mornings to we're all just gonna do something at the table together. and I've really started to see in my older two, like they have sought out drawing on their own accord. my oldest, my him and my husband went on a hunting trip last weekend. They went upland bird hunting, and so he came home and he was like drawing pictures of pheasants in his journal and almost kind of like nature journal-esque. and then my five-year-old is always drawing these like characters that he comes up with and like. way that he draws the details and the eyes and that thing. I'm like, that's that's impressive. and so yeah, it's just like I think they naturally do by by seeing. and then my husband is a musician as well. And actually I play drums for for years. and so I think there's like there's natural interest in that too because it's just part of life. Like it's not we're not necessarily like okay you're doing this thing. But they just kind of Casey: Right. Becca: follow in whatever our interests are or or that sort of thing. So Casey: Yeah. I love that. It's just like a part of your family culture. Drawing Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Casey: and music and being creative and trying these things is just a part of the the environment in your home and that's a beautiful thing. Yeah. Becca: Yeah. Thank you. Yeah. Casey: So you have an hour to yourself. Why what are you gonna find yourself doing? Yeah. Becca: Probably painting. That's the most like I l will paint and I'll listen to an audiobook. My comfort series. any of the so any of the Lord of the Rings or Silma Earlian no narrated by Andy Circus, who he's the actor that played Golem. Incredible. They're so good. that's my Casey: Okay. okay. Amazing. Becca: comfort, I don't know, book to listen to. And so I'll like paint and I'll I'll listen to to an audio book and that's that's my winds down rest and and relax sort of time. Casey: Yeah. There's something yeah, I don't there's something just about being being able to to make while also turning your brain off. It's just such a meditative, it's a beautiful experience. It's just so r restoring. Becca: Totally. It is. Yeah. Yeah. And it's different than when you're doing something either like for a client or for work and you do have to you don't turn your brain off. It's it's a different type of of creating when it's like, okay, put an audiobook in, just do whatever comes to mind. that's yeah, I love that. Casey: Definitely. I like in in quilting I like to batch I I'll do all of one step at one time. So then I no matter what I'm doing, I can turn my brain off 'cause it's like I'm just putting the same block over and over Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Casey: and over and over together and it like it when I say that out loud it sounds really boring even to myself. But it's like it's just Becca: Yeah. Casey: like so it is so like just I don't know, it I can't explain it. Just the feeling of making something but also not really having to think about what what I'm making. Becca: Yeah. Yeah. Totally. Casey: It's just like It's happening and it's flowing and I I love that experience. Yeah. Becca: Yep. Yeah, totally. I agree. Casey: well last question. Actually I do another impromptu question because we are kind of in a rut on like our family meals. So is do you have Becca: Mm-hmm. Casey: a go to family meal? We're looking at expand our library of recipes to use. Mm. Becca: Totally. chili is always my like go to because we have a lot of mouths to feed. So it's easy to stretch ground beef or whatever Casey: Yeah. Yes. Becca: across chili. And our whole family loves it. We're big like Mexican food people. yeah. So that's that would be probably my first go to when it's like I don't know what to make. It's super easy, just chuck everything in a pot and let it go. Yeah. Casey: Yeah. Yeah. No and yeah, that's something that can stretch, something that's right something that's gonna please the whole family. That in and of itself is an art. Becca: Exactly. Yeah, yeah, totally. Casey: Well then my last question is where can people find you? Social media, your website, anything? Becca: Yeah. Yeah, it's Sojourn and Soul on Instagram and then a website is the same, sojournandsoul dot com. And that's that's me. Casey: Beautiful. Well, I I hope that everybody listening takes a at least a minute to like take a Becca: Yeah. Casey: look at your art because it truly is so beautiful. It's it's so Becca: Thank you. Casey: detailed and and so very clearly handmade. Like in not in like a not in like a I don't know like I mean yeah I was Becca: Right. Yeah, no, no, I know what you're saying. Casey: it's handmade, beautiful, elegant art. That's the that's the my work going part. Yeah. Yeah, well thanks so much for taking the time. This was so special Becca: Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, my pleasure. Casey: and I loved hearing about your Becca: Mm. Casey: your experience as a mother, like starting a business and having four kids and creating something so uniquely and beautifully you and thanks for sharing. Becca: Thank you. Yeah, my pleasure. Casey: Thanks for listening to the handset make. If you enjoyed today's episode, follow along, leave a rating or review, and send it to a fellow mom or maker who might love it as well. You can find me on Instagram at summerflora.co and you can shop quilt patterns fabric and notions anytime at Summerfloralinen dot com. See you in the next one.