Today we’d like to introduce you to Katherine Shuler.
Hi Katherine, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Hi there! My name is Katherine Shuler, and I’m an artist, designer, and the owner of Rainey Studio. I sell my work as digital downloads and fine art prints, with original paintings coming soon.
I’ve been drawn to art ever since I was a little girl. I was in art classes as early as I can remember and followed that all the way through middle school, high school, and into college.
I was born and raised in North Carolina, and growing up we traveled all over the East Coast. That really comes through in my work today. I love the lush landscapes of the Carolinas, the tall trees, the low country, the coastal influences. Those places shaped how I see and what I make.
In college I decided to pursue graphic design. I’d always loved technology and computer science too, so it felt like the right marriage of the two. I went to the University of South Carolina and got my BFA with a concentration in graphic design.
That degree brought me to Austin for my first real adult job, working at IBM as a visual designer on mobile apps. About a year and a half in, I was approached for my second job: an early team member and in-house graphic designer at Bumble. That turned into a wonderful stretch of my career. I got to help grow a brand from its early stages all the way to an IPO, and I learned how to manage people and lead a team inside a creative organization.
Moving to Texas wasn’t on my bingo card, but I was ready for a change. Austin turned out to be such a wonderful artistic city, and living here has let me blend my Carolina influences with the charm of where I am now.
Somewhere in those years, though, I started to feel like something was missing. It took a while after I left Bumble to figure out what that something was, and it turned into what Rainey Studio is today.
At first, Rainey Studio was a small graphic design and branding business. Then one morning I felt this urge to pick up my iPad and Apple Pencil and start drawing in Procreate, an app that mimics real brushstrokes. I was having so much fun reconnecting with actual drawing that I exported a piece and sold it as a digital download on Etsy. I’ll never forget my first sale. It was so exciting.
I’m now coming up on 10,000 sales on Etsy, all hand-drawn, and I’m really proud of that. Sharing my work and getting that response back from people has meant a lot.
Picking up that Apple Pencil eventually led me to pick up a paintbrush, something I hadn’t done in about ten years. The second that brush hit the canvas, it felt right. Like I knew exactly where I’d left off and had never really stopped.
I’m proud to channel all of my memories and travels through my work, whether it’s a landscape, a botanical study, or pattern work. I still work full-time as a visual designer, and building my own art business has been one of the most gratifying things I’ve done. It’s let me use my talents in a way I hadn’t in years. Next, I’m hoping to bring custom commissions, exclusive collections, and original paintings to Rainey Studio.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Honestly, no, it hasn’t been a totally smooth road, and I think that’s normal.
The biggest challenge has been time. I still work full-time as a visual designer, so Rainey Studio gets built in the early mornings, the evenings, and the weekends. Learning to protect that time and not burn myself out has been its own skill.
There was also the leap of putting my work out there. It’s one thing to make art for yourself and another to attach your name to it and ask people to buy it. That first Etsy sale was exciting, but the wait before it, wondering if anyone would respond at all, was nerve-wracking.
And then there’s the business side. I came in strong on the design and marketing from years of working in-house as a designer in marketing departments, but running a shop means learning a hundred small things nobody teaches you: print fulfillment, file formats, customer questions, shipping, the systems that hold it all together. I’ve made plenty of mistakes and figured a lot of it out as I went.
Etsy has been wonderful for getting my work found, and now one of my big goals is building out my own Shopify store as the real home for Rainey Studio. It’s where I can tell the full story behind the work and connect with customers directly, and I’m excited to keep growing it.
None of it has made me want to stop. If anything, working through the hard parts is what’s made it feel like mine.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
At its heart, Rainey Studio is about the places and memories that have shaped me. I make botanicals, florals, landscapes, and abstract work, all of it hand-drawn or painted, and all of it tied to somewhere real. The Carolinas where I grew up, the East Coast trips from my childhood, Austin where I live now. I’m not interested in art that’s vaguely “inspired by nature.” I want a piece to come from an actual place, an actual trip, an actual memory.
I sell my work a few ways so people can find a version that fits them: digital downloads, fine art giclée prints, and original canvas paintings. Looking ahead, I’m excited to start offering custom commissions, which feels like a natural and meaningful expansion of the studio.
So far, my subject matter has leaned toward whimsical, expressive florals and botanicals, and I’m excited to branch into more subjects as the studio grows.
What am I most proud of? Honestly, the response from people. I’m coming up on nearly 10,000 sales on Etsy, and every one of those is a piece I made by hand that someone chose to put in their home. That still amazes me. I still get so excited when someone tags my account on Instagram with a framed Rainey Studio piece on their wall. It makes me smile every time. I’m also proud that I built this alongside a full-time job, in the early mornings and weekends, because I believed in it enough to keep going.
As for what sets me apart, I think it’s that everything traces back to a real place and a real hand. My background as a designer means I care about the craft on both sides: the art itself, and the way it’s presented, packaged, and shared. That mix of artist and designer is what makes Rainey Studio extra special to me.
Any big plans?
I have a lot I’m excited about. The biggest one is bringing original canvas paintings into Rainey Studio. Reconnecting with the paintbrush after years away reminded me how much I love working on canvas, and I want originals to be a real part of what I offer.
I’m also looking forward to opening up custom commissions. The idea of making something personal for someone, tied to their own place or memory, feels like a natural fit for how I already work.
On the subject side, I want to branch out beyond florals and botanicals. Landscapes are calling to me, especially scenes from the Carolinas and my travels, and I have some abstract work I’m eager to explore too.
And then there’s continuing to build out my own Shopify store as the true home for Rainey Studio. It’s where I can tell the full story behind each piece and connect with people directly, and I’m excited to keep growing it as the place to find my work.
Big picture, I just want to keep making and keep sharing. The fact that I get to do this at all still feels like a gift, and I’m looking forward to seeing how far it can go.
Pricing:
- Digital downloads starting at $16.95 (instant download, print at home or through a local lab)
- Fine art giclée prints on Somerset Velvet paper starting at $28
- Original canvas paintings coming soon, priced by size and subject
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rainey.studio
- Instagram: @raineystudio
- Other: https://shopraineystudio.etsy.com
