I have created many different things over the years — from crochet items like hats, scarves, blankets, skirts, and bags, to handmade jewelry, original paintings, greeting cards, and even indie-published books.

My artisan mind has been part of me for as long as I can remember. It began forming when I was only six years old. I saw the world through a different lens.

Whenever someone asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always gave the same three answers.

The Three Dreams

Full-Time Writer and Artist

I wanted to bring beauty and imagination into the world. I wanted to give those who felt lost and alone — the way I once did — a way to escape into a world of wonder.

A Doctor

Back then, I believed doctors were the healers of the sick and hurting. I wanted to help people feel better. I wanted to heal them.

A Lawyer

Today, we might say “advocate,” but back then, I called it a lawyer. I wanted to help people facing difficulties find legal solutions to their problems.

Did I Achieve My Dreams?

Short answer: not in the way I imagined.

Money stopped me from studying to become a lawyer. Over time, I also realized that my understanding of what lawyers truly do had been a bit naive. Still, I became an advocate in my own way — speaking up for those who didn’t have a voice and saying what many were (and still are) afraid to say.

I didn’t become a doctor either. Again, finances played a role — and so did my inability to handle blood.

But I did become a healer.

I worked as a caregiver for several years, caring for the elderly. Eventually, my heart could no longer handle watching them pass. For the sake of my mental health, I stepped away.

Becoming an Artist — The Hard Way

I did become an artist and writer — just not full-time. I tried several times over the past six years, but financial fears always pulled me back into my previous occupation.

It didn’t help that I gave most of my creations away.

If someone loved something I made but couldn’t afford it, I gave it to them. If someone needed a gift, I made sure they had one. Friends. “Family.” Acquaintances.

It made me feel good.

But it also trained people to expect it.

And without realizing it, I was blocking my own dream.

The Mental Shift Every Creative Must Make

Here is where the real mental shift happened.

I had to train my mind to understand that constantly giving my work away was not generosity — it was self-sabotage. I was teaching people to see my time, effort, materials, and creative talent as something they were entitled to.

Giving feels good.
But it does not pay the bills.

As an artist, I am my own worst critic. I began experiencing imposter syndrome. Worried that I wasn’t good enough.

Notice something important:
I questioned myself — not my creations.

The moment I placed a monetary value on my work, the open hands disappeared. People who once gladly accepted my handmade gifts suddenly found supporting my dream inconvenient. Even asking them to share my small Shopify corner inside Owl Hour Creative Studio felt like too much to them.

It hurt.

But it also freed me.

That was the moment I stopped feeling guilty about charging a fair price for my work.

Valuing Myself at 55

It was time to value myself, my creative energy, and my work.

That is no small mental shift for someone in her 55th year of life — someone who had been conditioned to play the supporting character instead of the lead role in her own story.

I moved from:

“I just want to make everyone else happy.”

to

“I deserve to live a happy life.”

That shift — and yes, it is still a work in progress at times — has been the biggest hurdle I’ve had to overcome.

The irony? I taught this lesson to my now-adult children. I encouraged others to embrace it.

Yet embracing it for myself felt almost impossible.

Why?

Learned experience.

I always came last.

Now, I am breaking that pattern.

If This Is You, Read This

If you are:

• the eternal people pleaser…
  * constantly putting everyone else first…
  * minimize yourself to stay likable…

Say this with me:

I deserve to live a happy life.
I am valuable too.

That is where your mental shift begins.

Shifting Your Mental Landscape

Whether you are a creative soul building a handmade business or someone who buried a completely different dream long ago, everything begins with a mental shift.

From:
“I don’t matter as much.”

To:
“I matter.”

From supporting everyone else’s dreams
to honoring your own.

From shrinking yourself to stay palatable
to taking up space with confidence.

The Birth of My Self-Affirmation Jewelry Line

This mental shift directly inspired my self-affirmation beaded jewelry line.

I wanted to create something meaningful for those in the process of reclaiming themselves. For those doing the inner work. For those who need a small, beautiful reminder that they are strong, worthy, capable, resilient — and enough.

Right now, I am crafting the prototype pieces. Each one is hand-beaded by me personally. I weave every bead together to spell out the affirmation and place focused positive intention into each creation.

These are not just accessories.
They are reminders.

Introductions to the self-affirmation jewelry line are coming soon. I will link directly to where you can purchase them and share how to request custom pieces.

Thank you for spending this time with me.

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Have a fabulous day,
Regina