Today we’d like to introduce you to Maddie Herbert.
Hi Maddie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always loved art and graduated with a degree in Visual Communication Design in 2014. Since then, I worked at a few different boutique agencies as a web and graphic designer, expanding my skills and knowledge of design. I never wanted to take on extra freelance work, as I was usually overwhelmed with the amount of tasks and responsibilities, I was being given at my agency job(s). However, in 2018 I bought myself an iPad with the intent to play and make art just for fun. I practiced my hand lettering and illustration and to hold myself accountable, I started an art dedicated Instagram account. A few months later, after only making a few gifts for friends and family with my new passion, I got my first commission! This started to slowly snowball into other opportunities. I had a few prints in the salon where I would get my hair & nails done (The Lacquer Gallery), I invested in a lettering class, and continued practicing for fun; occasionally posting fan art of some of my favorite podcasts and musical artists (aka Lizzo). I was casually building a side hustle, with local hair stylists and nail techs who had seen my prints in The Lacquer Gallery commissioning business cards. Then, one of the podcasts I had created fan art for reached out for a live show flyer, and then the podcast cover art itself! In 2019, I solidified my side hustle and created Dame LLC; named after a story about my grandmother who sold art and baked goods with her friends in order to raise some “fun” money to throw themselves a party. They called themselves “The Dames”.
From then, my side hustle continued to grow and clients became larger and more frequent. I could feel my passion transferring from my 9-5 design job to my side hustle work and started to make a plan to go freelance… then, COVID hit. In an unexpected advantage, working from home allowed me to connect with more of my own clients on a regular basis, and about 6 months into COVID my agency job and I decided to part ways. It was time to freelance full-time. The first few months I was also working part-time at a restaurant and quickly found myself busier and working harder than I ever had before, but I was the most creatively fulfilled and motivated I’d ever been. I was constantly looking and reaching out to potential clients and just trying to make genuine connections. I landed two retainer clients that since starting to work together, allowed me to quit the restaurant job as well as continue to be a huge part of my ongoing freelance work. Since going freelance full time I have also created my own online store, designing merchandise under the Dame brand, including my first full collection in 2021 for Halloween (my favorite holiday). I also planned, launched, and completed my first large passion project called “Slut Candy” in September 2021 — a daily illustration and lettering series throughout the month with the purpose of bringing a fun, colorful voice to the topic of sex positivity and sexual health awareness. In November of 2021, I won Best in Category in Illustration at the CSCA Creative Best Awards for my Slut Candy series.
After my first full year of freelancing in 2021, I hit my #1 goal of matching my agency job’s salary and already have plans for new products in my online store, new clients, brand collabs, and passion projects in 2022. Dame is only just getting started!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Yes and no. I have not had to search terribly hard for clients, as I truly do create personal relationships with everyone I work with and am invested in their success. Because of this, I get lots of referrals and don’t have to “hunt” too much for projects!
However, there have definitely been struggles. Navigating a pandemic and starting my own business in a time where no one knew what the heck was going on was brutal. I also am a creative through and through. I had no business background or knowledge to know how to create an LLC, do business taxes, sales tax, etc. It was extremely daunting. Luckily, I have an amazing support system with tons of experience and knowledge who helped not only point me in the right direction but remind me that I was fully capable of teaching myself everything I needed to know to become a successful business owner.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a graphic designer and illustrator, and I specialize in working with badass women! My good-natured lack of filter paired with my colorful, bold, and energetic artistic style creates a specific niche that feels like every client I work with is just a best friend I hadn’t met yet. My goal is to empower women to be their truest, baddest, boldest selves. I make “cute art for bad bitches.”
I am most proud of my Slut Candy series. It took me close to 2 years to come up with the concept, think of all the phrases, illustrate each piece and then plan how to launch, so it was one of my biggest labors of love to date. Sex positivity was not content I often saw on social media and honestly a taboo topic in general, so I was nervous leading up to the launch about how it would be received. It was the most rewarding experience to connect with people who were impacted in some positive way by the series or the act of me creating/posting the series that instantly made me feel like what I was creating was valid and important. This was validated even further when I won’t the Best in Category in Illustration in the November 2021 CSCA Creative Best Awards!
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
I can’t pick just one! I have so many amazing memories with my loving, supportive family — from long weekends of fresh air at our family Christmas tree farm, blasting the radio and dancing in the kitchen while we did the dishes after dinner, DIY-ing our Halloween costumes every year, to enthusiastically being encouraged to “go for it!” when I told my science and medicine career path parents that I wanted to pursue art as career, I was constantly empowered, challenged and supported to become exactly who I was meant to be.
Pricing:
- Dame Online Store: Items range from $25-$55
- Illustration/Graphic Design Freelance Work: Contact Me for a Quote!
Contact Info:
- Email: maddie@damecoolshit.com
- Website: damecoolshit.com
- Instagram: @dame.studio
- Other: TikTok @dame.studio
