Meet Rhonda Hartman | maker & designer of apparel & accessories

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

Hi Rhonda, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
In 2012, while I was pursuing a second bachelor’s to change careers I started making custom onesies and selling them in local stores and on etsy so when I got the opportunity to start pursuing barrel racing again I knew I needed something that gave me a bit of freedom in my schedule. I started planning to open a new business focusing on more than just baby onesies. I also wanted a creative outlet again as I was feeling a little creatively stifled by my previous careers.
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 had never considered myself an artist for the longest time. Then I realized that creating the art that goes onto my clothing or mugs or tumblers or whatever medium is still art. It’s just wearable art inspired by very specific things. It has not been easy. There are a lot of people who will tell you that you can’t make it or that art isn’t a viable way to support yourself. The biggest thing is to ignore those people because they’re likely not supporting you anyway. There will always be critics, but unless those people are paying our bills then we don’t have to pay attention to them. That’s probably the biggest lesson I’ve had to learn. I’d like the world to know that we strive to only use eco friendly ethically sourced materials, and we do as much as we can to leave the world a better place than we found it. Every month we donate to a different charity, and it’s important to me that anyone interacting with our brand walks away feeling empowered or contented in some way.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is a hard one! We moved to Tucson at the end of 2019, and then everything shut down for Covid before we really had a chance to explore so we are still sort of exploring the area. We would definitely go up Mount Lemmon as that’s one of my absolute favorite places in the city. There are also soooo many amazing food trucks all over town that we would stop and eat at. I would take them to the Pima Air & Space museum, as well as the San Xavier Mission which is absolutely beautiful.

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?
The first two that I would most like to credit are my partner, Mark, and my mom, Teresa. Both of them have been an incredible source of support, love, and encouragement as well as both financially contributing to my business. Mark technically owns half the business, but he has contributed more than half financially. My mom was my first customer and she always purchases when she knows things are slow in order to give me a little encouragement. As far as mentors, Danielle from Her Messy Bun has truly helped me to not get burnt out and create a schedule that works around my energy levels.

Website: www.clotheslineapparelcompany.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/clotheslineapparelco

Twitter: www.twitter.com/therhondamarie

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clotheslineapparelco

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr6sY8p5i0FKmfcKMI6H6Lw

Other: www.therhondamarie.com