Meet Meg’s Mashables | Artist, Small Business Owner, Mashable Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Meg’s Mashables and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Meg’s Mashables, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
This whole process was a wild sequence of events lining up just right (I’m sure some planets had to align and maybe a nice witch cast a spell for me too) in order to get me where I am now.

The concept of Mashables started pretty randomly when I was working on a film set. I asked someone what their favorite animal was so I could draw it for them for their birthday. She said “a whale, wait a tiger!” and me being a smart aleck, made a tiger whale. Then one of the actor kiddos on set saw it and asked if I could make a turtle fish, thinking all I made were animal combos. So of course I made a turtle fish and brought it back the next day to show him. He had another animal combo idea so that’s how it went, he would give me two animals to mash, and I’d deliver. Next thing we knew, everyone on set was wanting one of Meg’s Mashables. The rest is history.

I’ve always been an artist, so that foundation was already there, but I didn’t get into digital art until late 2019. I was then gifted and iPad by my family and soon after that, the pandemic hit, halting everything else that I was doing. Digital art just clicked with me and before I knew it I was making Mashables almost everyday, posting on Instagram, making TikTok videos, streaming on Twitch etc. People kept finding joy in what I was making, and I was having a blast doing it too, and it was paying the bills and then some, so it just made sense to keep going. So I guess starting my own business snuck up on me seemingly out of nowhere, yet at the same time I feel like I was meant to do this all along.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Mashables are where I combine animals with other animals or animals with inanimate objects, creating an entirely new creature. I’ve always been an animal enthusiast and loved drawing, so even though the concept of Mashables came to me pretty randomly, it makes sense that this is what I’m doing with my life. What I’m most proud of is my sheer dedication. I’ve always struggled with focusing on one thing for too long, especially with learning a new skill. I’m rather impatient and get frustrated if I’m not amazing at something right away, but that’s not how things work. This business, the community that surrounds it, the art that I make, and the joy that it spreads is all proof that I can achieve anything if I give myself the opportunity to commit. And not only that, but I’ve learned the valuable lesson of “trusting the process”, which is a standard term in the art world. Trusting the process artistically is essentially putting your faith in the fact that even if your painting/drawing/sculpture etc doesn’t look just right, or even looks straight up bad, that if you keep pushing through you will eventually get great results. Sometimes those results end up being better than what you were anticipating in the first place. What happens to some, myself included, is that we don’t give ourselves the chance to push through that awkward stage, and we just give up. But by doing that we deny ourselves not only a completed piece of art, but also the journey and lessons along the way. Trusting the process is something that I have been able to apply to not only my art, but my business as a whole. Trusting that even if it seems hard, expensive, exhausting, scary, that pushing through will result in something magical.

It has not been easy, and it would have been exponentially harder without the support of so many people, but I wouldn’t change a thing. A big thing I’ve learned along the way is that it will never be perfect. If you wait for the “perfect moment”, it will never happen. You will mess up. And sometimes those mistakes hurt. And that’s ok. You can only be so prepared, and quite frankly being TOO prepared can backfire. Being flexible and willing to make mistakes is crucial when running a small business or being an artist. Obviously try and learn from said mistakes and don’t make them twice, but don’t wait around until you have everything “just right” or life will fly right by you.

If there’s one thing I want people to walk away from when experiencing my art and the Mashables world in general, is this: have fun. I know that sounds so cliche and silly, but honestly, have fun! Draw something goofy that makes you giggle, give yourself permission to create something that isn’t meant to be perfect. Challenge yourself to be positive about you and your art. The world has a terrifying capacity to be awful, but it also has a wonderful deep well of happiness that you can tap into. Enjoy what you make, and be proud of yourself for making it. I know I am!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I live in Atlanta which is this magical hub of creativity, diversity, and a foodie heaven. So if you were to come to the city I would take you to one of my favorite restaurants, Carroll Street Cafe, and you would see me unapologetically devour the tuna nicoise salad. I would take you to the improv theaters around town like Dad’s Garage (where I am an Ensemble member) and see shows like the Improvised Dungeons and Dragons (yes it’s as cool as it sounds) or Puppy Prov where we literally improvise with puppies that are up for adoption at shelter we partner with. Or we’d go to Dynamic El Dorado where I also perform at occasionally and you can see local improv teams and comedians throughout the week. We’d walk the beltline and see all the beautiful murals painted everywhere. We’d go to Slutty Vegan and eat to our hearts content knowing we were supporting ecofriendly food and a black woman owned business. You would have to go to the aquarium and see their whale shark (which surprisingly is NOT a mashable, nor a whale at all). Then maybe the zoo! Honestly all of my exciting things are either food, art or animal related. I am but a simple creature.

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 have had so many loving and supportive people in my life that have helped me to where I am now. My mom was right by my side at the very beginning helping me with website development, legal work and marketing. I’m so lucky and privileged to be part of the group of artists out there that have nothing but a supportive household and family. My partner’s mom Laura was the one who got the iPad in my hands in the first place and has been a wonderful cheerleader through all of this. So a huge shoutout to the Moms! And my wonderful partner Chris who has made the commercials for both plushies with his wizardry in video editing.

But the real shoutout goes to my ride or die, Kayla. My best friend from high school, with a tremendous marketing background, unmatched website development skills, a brilliant eye for packaging and eco-friendly at that, and the hardest working nuero-spicy gremlin I’ve ever had the honor to meet. She moved across country to help me with this adventure and I wouldn’t be where I am today without her. <3

Website: www.megsmashables.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/megsmashables/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/megsmashables

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

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSU9yb3RRazXKo_ZgKj7CKw

Image Credits
Stacey Bode (https://staceybode.com/) for the photo of Kayla and myself.