Lettering Works - 2022 Year in Review
As we say goodbye to 2022, I am taking some extra time to round up some highlights from the year and appreciate the life that I’ve been building for myself. I’ve always enjoyed making my own path and my business has truly allowed me to do things my own way over these past six years.
I’m so grateful to everyone who has followed along with my business journey on a monthly basis (special shoutout to those of you who have been around since my first monthly business journal back in January 2020, 36 months ago).
Dinosaur Stickers at The Field Museum
AMAC’s Emerging Leaders Cocktails & Conversations (moderating with Shawnta Young)
Engagement photo from Granada, Spain by Photographer Granada
New brand photo from Kara Hoganson Photo
New Stickers from 2022:
2022 felt like a year centered on personal growth from attending weekly therapy sessions to getting engaged in Granada, Spain to celebrating friends at their weddings to reevaluating where to spend my time in business to working less overall. Business still went well and I ultimately learned that I enjoy having a lifestyle business that allows me to live out my values and share my creativity with the world.
A lot of BIG things happened!
Top 22 Highlights from 2022:
Launched four new sticker collections: Candy Collection, LGBTQ+ Collection, Gun Reform + Abortion Collection, and a Bookstore Collection
Worked with Marshall Retail Group to get my candy stickers and magnets into LICK candy stores in airports
Developed creative branding for More Than Just Podcast + Mission 2 Organize
Listened to 60+ audiobooks (for the second year in a row)
Contributed to my first business retirement account (SEP IRA)
Fulfilled 200+ wholesale orders including 40 orders in July through the Faire Summer Market
Got engaged to Daniel in Granada, Spain
Designed new T. rex and Plesiosaur stickers for the Field Museum and transit stickers for the Chicago History Museum
Designed a trade show booth for a pharmaceutical company who developed a drug to fight polycystic kidney disease
Launched the Artist Trade Program and supported artists through scholarships to the Self-Made Artist Academy, which had two cohorts this year
Moderated the Emerging Leaders Cocktails & Conversations event at the AMAC Conference and generally made some great progress breaking into the airport industry
Started selling to Love from Chicago and Souvenir City Chicago (two stores I’ve pursued for a while)
Attended the Brand New Conference in Austin, TX on my birthday
Launched a new online course: Learn Lettering with Chelsie Tamms
Completed a Human Design Reading with Mel McSherry and focused on values-aligned business (and life) decisions between sessions with her (and my therapist)
Moved to a new apartment in Logan Square
Updated my brand photography through a photoshoot with Kara Hoganson Photography
Participated in various groups including the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC), Museum Store Association (MSA), Sunnyside Chats, AIGA Chicago, Chicago Graphic Design Club, and Lifestyle Business League
Intentionally limited participation in pop-up and vendor events for personal health reasons
Got a brand new iPad Air + Apple Pencil using accumulated business credit card points
Celebrated six years in business and three and a half years in Chicago
Client Shoutouts!
Top Clients: The Field Museum and Garfield Park Conservatory
Top Accounts on Faire: Love from Chicago, Souvenir City Chicago, Silver in the City, and Madam Clutterbucket’s Neurodiverse Universe
Top Consignment Accounts: Paperish Mess and the Peoria International Airport
Top Local Wholesale Account (not on Faire): Sacred Art Chicago
Top Custom Merchandise Clients: LICK Candy Stores (Marshall Retail Group) and CourseLeaf
Top Branding Clients: Mel McSherry (More Than Just Podcast) and Schae Lewis (Mission 2 Organize)
Top Custom Artwork + Design Clients: Palladio Biosciences, Daughters of the American Revolution Museum, CandleTit LLC, and J Kirk Perry
Passion Projects are still our jam.
Passion Projects from 2022:
Brand New Conference in Austin, Texas
Travel in 2022 wasn’t back to pre-pandemic levels, but I was able to make trips to Miami Beach to celebrating our dating anniversary, Tampa for a girls trip, Peoria to support friends in their business and art endeavors, Grand Rapids to celebrate Daniel’s birthday, Breckenridge for a friend’s bachelorette party, Post Lake for a family weekend at the lake, Madrid and Granada to get engaged, Austin for a branding conference, Indianapolis for a friend’s wedding, and Denver to visit my brother.
Interviews + Press Features from 2022:
Underscore (Podcast by the Chicago Graphic Design Club)
Meanwhile Back in Peoria (x2)
Go Solo
Urban Plains
Looking Ahead…
We are manifesting another successful year for Lettering Works in 2023. One that focuses on thoughtfulness and intentionality. With that goal, we are ditching the idea of doing what’s urgent and instead focusing on what is important. You can expect to see some slight shifts in our offerings and priorities, but rest assured that we will still be delivering our creativity through unique paper goods (mainly stickers because you all love them so much) and custom design services as well as educational resources for artists.
We will be prioritizing the following work in 2023:
Branding for artists and creative businesses and making these services more accessible through our Artist Trade Program
Wholesale and custom merchandise with a focus on museum and airport gift shops
Educational resources for artists including our online courses, signature Self-Made Artist Academy program, and 1:1 consulting sessions
Stay tuned for more creative work to come. If you are in need of a brand makeover, custom branded merchandise, or support growing your own arts business, you can book us for a project via our contact form.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Chelsie Tamms is an award-winning lettering artist and designer based out of Chicago. She is the owner of Lettering Works, a branding studio that connects businesses to their audience through creativity and strategy.
