The Stories Behind 3 of our Most Loved Art Prints

The Cardinal: When we found out we were going to be parents!

I started this painting but didn't finish it until almost 2 weeks later.

Cardinals have always been one of my favorite birds. We have them around our house, and I remember watching them all the time growing up. It just felt right to paint one.

I was halfway through it when the phone rang. We had been in the adoption process for almost 3 years at this point and I saw the adoption agency’s number pop up and my whole body just... paused. I had this feeling. This is it. And it was it, we were matched with a baby.

I couldn’t even finish the call without crying. And I definitely couldn’t finish the painting. I just sat there at my desk, overwhelmed, trying to let the news sink in. We were going to be parents.

I called my husband right after, and he was completely speechless. That moment is stitched into this piece forever now. I can’t look at the cardinal piece without remembering the joy. The disbelief. The way everything changed in an instant.

Alabama Wildflower: The piece that changed my life

I was just painting. Not trying to build a business. Not thinking much about where it would go. And then this little drop of ink landed right beside the piece. Not enough to ruin it, but enough that I couldn’t sell it as the original.

I remember thinking, Well… I’ve been wanting to sell prints. Maybe this is the sign.

So I bought a scanner. I listed it. I had no idea what was coming.

People connected with it right away—because wildflowers, like people, are rooted in place. And if Alabama is part of your story, it hits a little deeper.

Now I can look back and see it for what it really was. A turning point. Not just for my career, but for our family. This piece played a huge part in how we were eventually able to fund our adoption.

Even though we had no idea at the time.

The Hummingbird: The piece that made me decide to paint "joy"

My happy little shift.

This was the first piece I made that didn’t tie to a specific place or state. I’d had a lot of people ask for floral animals, and the hummingbird just felt like the place to start.

Joyful. Light. Bright.

I wanted this one to feel happy—like sunshine in a frame. I chose fun colors on purpose. I wanted it to carry the spirit of the hummingbird.

Since then, it’s kind of become our little icon. Something about it just feels like the heart of what I’m trying to do—create work that brings joy. That feels hopeful. That reminds people that beauty is still out there.

And if someone looks at it and feels even a little glimmer of that... then that’s enough.

These pieces shaped the path in ways I didn’t see coming. They carry moments I’ll never forget.

And now they live in homes all over the country. Which still blows my mind, honestly.

Thank you for being part of this with me. For connecting to the stories. For seeing something beautiful in the things I’ve made.

I’ll never take that for granted.

Amanda