The Origin Story Behind My Greeting Card Designs (From Self-Doubt to “I Neither Want Nor Need Your Opinion”)

Every design I create has a story behind it. Not a fluffy, “inspired by nature” kind of story, but real moments, real frustration, and real thoughts that needed somewhere to go.

This is one of them.

Early in my career as an independent female artist, I had other vendors offering their unsolicited opinions. Usually telling me my work was too expensive. At this point, I had done my due diligence. Properly. I researched the abstract art market, analysed pricing across the industry, and built a detailed spreadsheet covering costs, margins, and realistic profit.

My pricing wasn’t guesswork. It was strategy.

And yet, these people spoke to me like I’d pulled numbers out of thin air.

When I say “these people”, what I mean is: men.

As a millennial woman running a creative business, imposter syndrome is already lurking over my shoulder. So being dismissed immediately, as if I couldn’t possibly understand my own pricing, wasn’t just frustrating. It was insulting.

At the time, I didn’t say anything. I let it sit. I overthought it. Questioned myself.

And then something happened.

What felt like failure turned into anger. Not just at them, but at myself for letting their opinion land at all. Because the truth is: I am a highly capable artist. I understand my work. I understand my value. And I don’t need validation from people who haven’t done the same level of thinking.

That moment turned into a design. A slightly weird, slightly chaotic doodle paired with the words:

“I neither want nor need your opinion.”

That’s my creative process.

Life happens → I have a reaction → I turn it into something visual.

No over-filtering. No softening (see my feminist rant about that here). Just getting the thought out of my head and onto the page, and it turns out that approach resonates, especially with women who are also navigating work, identity, confidence, and being underestimated.

So no, my greetings cards aren’t random.

They’re built from real experiences, real emotions, and the kind of thoughts people don’t always say out loud.

And that’s exactly why they connect.

Explore my full collection of expressive greetings cards and build your own bundle, choose designs that actually say what you mean.

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