Meet Jessie Mills | Leather Artist

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

Hi Jessie, what habits do you feel helped you succeed?
The habits I feel have helped me succeed are being a self starter, disciplined, determined, having integrity and customer service. It can be difficult owning your own business at times, coming up with new designs, and then finding away to make them available to the public, but practicing the habits listed above are what I believe are some of the tools to make any business successful

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
When I first started out I had no intention of creating a business out of my jewelry. It was more of a hobby and I was going to make some pieces for myself and friends. My first designs were pretty simple: cutting shapes out of embossed leather (which is a piece of leather that has been put through a machine to give it a design) and then adding stones etc. as well as different variations of feather earrings. Pretty soon people wanted to start buying my earrings and I thought well maybe I could do this as a side hustle. So I created a shop on Etsy and began selling there. I was still living in Redmond, OR at the time, and so I contacted a couple local shops and they started selling my jewelry for me, and from there it started to take off. Shortly after that I started making my leather roses which would become one of my signature items that I use a variety of different projects. Fast forward about a year later, my husband and I decided we were going to move to Wickenburg. We’d been coming down for years during the winter to rope and sell ropes and other horse tack out our mobile trailer and loved it so much down here we finally decided to just call it our permanent home. Shortly after arriving an acquaintance who knew I made leather jewelry said she had a box of tools and leather scraps she wanted to give me. Up until that point I had never tooled leather, but with a couple tips from my husband, who used to own a saddle shop and do minor repairs, and good old YouTube, I taught myself how to tool leather. I started simple with feathers, and flowers, and have now branched into larger, more “traditional” tooled pieces. As with learning any new skills there was lots of trial, error, and frustration at times when I would ruin a project and have to start over but with continued practice and perseverance I’ve continued to improve. Looking back now it’s fun to see how my work has evolved and I’m sure it will continue to in the future.

While I’m not the only leather artist to make leather flowers and feathers, I do beleive mine have their own unique twist, which is the beauty of something handmade, it can’t be duplicated. I’ve also branched out into leather floral arrangements as well as leather bridal bouquets and wraps. To me, making a bouquet or hair piece that will be part of someone’s wedding is one of the biggest honors I can receive because it is such a special day. The beauty of a leather bouquet is for one it’s different, but it never dies or dries so you will always have a momento to look back on your wedding day.

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.
I would start the day with a visit to my favorite local coffee shop, Prickly Perk. From there we would go to beautiful down town and make our first stop at Serape Bleu. They hands down have the best selection of clothing and gifts, thoughtfully hand picked, and the staff is AMAZING! You’re guaranteed to feel welcome. Next we would visit some of the other great shops including Ben’s Saddlery, Rusty Rooster, Seven Roan, Sage Gallery, just to name a few. When we were ready to eat we’d walk across the street to Rancho Bar 7 for a delicious Huckleberry Peach Margarita and choose from a variety of American/Mexican entrees or hit their amazing salad bar! After lunch I would take them by one of the many roping arenas located within city limits including Downtown, Rancho Rio, Simpsons, and Big Tree. The western/horse community is such a big reason why I fell in love with Wickenburg and I would want to share that lifestyle with whoever comes to visit. Finally we would go to Cowboy Cooking for a delicious Steak dinner inside or on their beautiful patio , and end the evening by catching a movie at our historic Saguaro Movie Theater .

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Both of my parents, Tammie Strom and Phil Mason, instilled good work ethics in me at an early age. They worked hard and expected the same out of me and my siblings. My artistic side was strongly encouraged by my mom. Most evenings you could find my brother and I drawing or coloring while she read to us instead of watching TV. We didn’t usually have a lot of extra money to spend, so when holidays or birthdays came around most gifts we gave were almost always handmade.

My husband, Brett Mills, has been a huge source of encouragement and support and business advice. He’s successfully owned and operated multiple businesses over the years, including developing and patenting his own line of Equine Protective Products, RES Equine Products, and later licensing all those patents and products to one of the largest Equine Manufacturers in the country, Weaver Leather. He’s also been a great resource for giving me tips and tricks for working with leather from his experience owning a Saddle Shop where he offered repairs as one of his services. All in all he been such a huge blessing as help.

My business really has taken off due the the support of local boutique, Serape Bleu, owned by Theresa Dunn. Theresa and I met at a local flea market and she purchased some of my products to show her customers to see if there would be any interest. By the end of the weekend we made arrangements for me to start selling my products to them to sell in their store, and it’s been hugely successful. I’m so grateful for all they do to promote me and my products.

Website: www.Etsy.com/Shop/RanchyRoseDesigns

Instagram: Ranchy Rose Designs

Facebook: Ranchy Rose Designs

Image Credits
Western Affiliations