I have such an amazing artist and woman to share with you today. I think I connected with the darling Jenna Shotmeyer the second she slid into my dms. There is something about her art you just fall in love with and then she begins to share her life and you are completely sunk. Jenna is young but in many ways she has already lived two lives and does her best to truly make the most of every single day. She is wise and thoughtful. Her life has already experienced great trauma but what she has done with it is highly inspiring. Her art shows her love for the coast, for life, and the way she seems objects and places we know and love is magical.
Not only do I have the honor to share her art with you, but I get to share her incredible story. It is a great one, and as most are when they are good, its hard to read. I hate knowing that someone has suffered in any way at all but I do love reading the after where they blossom and become something so much better and deeper than they ever thought possible. Jenna's story is hard but it is magical and she is another precious person in my life who has seen and felt what it is like to be living in a miracle.
And that miracle is just so very good.
Tell me all about Jenna ... your childhood, what you love and not so much!
I absolutely love blue and white and would live at the beach if I could. I grew up in New Jersey and fell in love with the shore at my grandpa’s house right on the beach.
I adore people, and getting along with everyone makes me happiest. Give me a day around family and friends with no arguments and lots of laughs - and it is my version of heaven on earth.
I am completely smitten with your art ... what inspires you?
Some of my favorite beach towns and anything that makes people smile. I love stepping into my client’s stories. With my Palm Beach Series and New England Drop, I included a handful of hotels and restaurants. These places mean a lot to me, and when I see orders come in within seconds of when the the product launches, it’s the best feeling. I have received messages that say how thankful they are to buy the print because of the sweet memories it brings back to them. I feel like I am a channel for happy memories and it is one of reasons why I love my job so much.
You just got married, how has your art changed during this new exciting time for you?
I feel more focused and excited than ever before. My husband is super supportive and my biggest fan. We were both working from home in quarantine for our first year of marriage, and it was really sweet.
Of course! I am sure a lot of people could relate when I say that my life did NOT go as planned….
When I was 18 years old, I was a freshman in college and had a terrible accident. Someone dropped a water cooler presumably from the balcony and it landed on my head. Had a traumatic brain injury andI lost everything I had ever liked about myself. I couldn’t read or drive. I was no longer a student, an athlete or anything I cold describe myself as. Perhaps the worst part was that I was throwing up and falling down almost everyday because of the complications.
One of the most heartbreaking parts of the accident for me was that I lost my ability to do math. I love math. It is the thing that made the most sense to me growing up. After the accident, I still understood the concepts but there were so many complications. I lost a chunk of my high school memory (including the classes I took then); my short term memory would blank at random moments when I tried to concentrate, and I could no longer see the numbers correctly from double-vision and other injury-related vision issues.
I started to paint while I was on medical leave from college and to all of our amazement, I was actually good at it! Haha! It became therapeutic for me, and was even better than sleeping for soothing nausea and dizziness. God obviously had a plan even when it was tough to see…
I wrote a book, which is coming out in October, that details the accident and how I got through that time. I share what I learned about identity, purpose, hope, depression, self-worth and more. God turned my life around. My faith was the most important thing in my life before the accident, and it was the only thing that got me through that time. I went to countless doctors and none of them could help or heal me.
God provided me with two miracles within the 5 years of debilitating injury. The first miracle was in my heart and the second was in my body.
I am so thankful for walking through the valley we walked through as a family. Definitely not the suffering or the struggle I watched but thankful for the changes it made in all of us. Are you at this place yet or still processing?
I totally agree and I definitely am.
I am eternally grateful for the life that I have lived, even though there has been a lot of pain. Because of the pain, I know for a fact that if God is all I have, I have all that I need. I sing songs in church about how big God is, and I now know it’s true because of what I went through.
Yet, when I look at a picture of myself at 17 or 18, it’s sort of crazy because I don’t know who she is. I think it will always be a sad story for me to tell. I still grieve the loss of that girl in the frame who looks a whole lot like me, but I will never know again. There was a real mourning process for what “was” and the years I will never get back. Although I am so thankful for the deeper depths to which I know God, and the identity I learned to have in just Him alone.
You started following my Instagram from a suggestion from your mother, can you share more about that? Ps, Hi!!
My mom and I were consumed with doctors every day for about 5 years and needed things to lighten the mood. We found ways to laugh and scrolled Instagram for pretty things to focus on. She found your account and loved your style so much. As time went on, we heard about some of your family’s struggles as you posted, and we really resonated with your content. She started to say things like, “Did you see my friend Paige Minear’s post today?” We would laugh because you felt like a friend even though you had no idea who we were. We loved seeing all of the beautiful things you were showing on your page, and we felt like we were with you fighting your battles as we fought ours.
Tell me five things you consider must haves.
My Bible
My watercolor paints 🖌
Coffee
Ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies 🍪
Red lipstick 💄
Coffee or tea?
BOTH! I adore coffee and drink it everyday, but I love a good herbal tea whenever I have the chance.
What colors do you love to work with, and which are not so fun for you?
My favorites are blues with the occasional pink and green. I think I sneak blue and white into every piece. Orange and brown are definitely my least favorite.
Is there a favorite thing you love to create?
Anything that makes people smile :)
Favorite place to visit?
My favorite place to visit has to be Palm Beach, Florida. Being in New England, the winters get cold and dark. There is nothing like getting on a plane when the sky is gray and getting off the plane in sunny Palm Beach. Some of my favorite memories with my grandparents and family are there. It is also where I got engaged to my husband… not sure if any place could top that!!! I hope it always represents a magical dream-land to me.
Is she not just ... amazing? I love her art but its her heart for God and her story that has completely smitten. Every single time I see a piece of her work I see the miracle that she talks about. Jenna is only one of many people in my life that had very sad and horrible things happen to them and then completely use it for good. It is inspiring and I hope you are just as changed as I am after reading her story and seeing her darling pieces.
As she mentioned she has written a book which you can pre order here. To keep up with Jenna you can follow along with her on Instagram, for art follow her here and for her book choose this account. To order any of her art check her website there are so many amazing pieces here for you to choose from and add to your home. I can not wait to show you what she created for me. It is so me, so God, and is just so precious. The best part, you will be able to order prints from my piece which I hope you do and remember the beauty, hope, and love that is available to all of us if we let it.
I adore you Jenna, thank you for letting me share your incredible journey, it is truly an honor.
💗
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