Meet Kiersten Ketcham | Floral Preservation Artist & Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kiersten Ketcham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kiersten, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Crystal Seas Resin Art didn’t really start out as a business. It started as an exploration of this desire to be creative. I literally used to say “I’m not creative at all”. But living in sobriety brought up this desire in me that I never had. I tried a handful of other things like cake decorating and tie dye, but finally landed on and fell in love with resin. After some time I realized I was good at it, and that’s when I decided to sell my work. Over the last couple years it has evolved to include floral preservation, which feels like exactly where I was meant to go! I love it so much! Being able to take flowers from one of the most Important and memorable days of someone’s life, and turn them into a piece of art to be seen and admired every single day. Something that reminds them of that important day and can be passed down to their children. It’s incredibly fulfilling and I’m so grateful to be providing this service!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve put so much time and practice into my craft over the last few years to get to this point to where I feel that I am great at what I do, and that I offer something valuable! The greatest part about resin though is that there is still so much to learn! The industry is always adapting and changing while Artists are exploring new ways to incorporate resin into their work. I’m so proud to be apart of this resin community and even the wood working community a bit as I explore wood working more and more. It’s such an amazing and helpful community! I’m proud of the progress I’ve made, including offering custom made tables and benches and am so excited to continue to explore the mix of wood and resin.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well, I live in a relatively small town called Vero Beach. So while there isn’t a ton of action, we do still have som pretty neat things going on in the area. The top priority thing I would bring a friend to is a turtle salon with Coastal Connections! They are an amazing local non profit who aims to educate the community on sea turtle conservation and over all better sustainability practices. The turtle walk though is the coolest thing. You get to spend the evening learning about sea turtles, follow by watching a mama sea turtle make her nest on our local beach, and it’s the most awe inspiring thing to witness! Id also take them down to my favorite beach and boating spot down in Palm Beach where the water is absolutely pristine and there is always something to see! We would bring a mask and snorkel and spend the day In the water, followed by a meal at Sailfish Marina!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d love to shout out my fiancé! It may sound a bit cliche but I literally wouldn’t have ever done this without him by my side. He stuck with me through a rougher part of life, uplifted and encouraged me, and supported my art from day one. He literally fostered my creativity by teaching me how to paint residential houses, and praising me for how well I painted. I think that’s what first sparked the creative desire within me. Then when I started down this crazy road of running an art business along side of working full time, being a partner and a mother, he picked up my slack and stayed patient when my art took time away from the family. His love and encouragement when I doubted myself is absolutely what kept me going!

Website: Crystalseasresinart@gmail.com

Instagram: @Crystal.Seas.ResinArt

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CrystalSeasResinArt/

Other: Crystalseasresinart.com