Madison Phipps on Side Hustling, Print Clubs & Speaking Dreams Out Loud

🎧 Listen to this episode: Apple Podcasts

Madison Phipps is a Houston-based artist, mom to a toddler, and full-time professional — and she's building a creative side business in the margins of an already full life. No studio. No dedicated hours. Just nap times, evenings, and a whole lot of heart.

In this episode of the Art + Audience podcast, Stacie Bloomfield talks with Madison about what it actually looks like to say yes to your creative dreams before everything is figured out. About cold-pitching yourself onto this very podcast. About launching a print club, consigning original art, and speaking your goals out loud until they become real.

If you've ever told yourself you'll start when you have more time, Madison's story is a direct answer to that.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• madisonphippsstudio.com — Madison's website and shop, featuring coastal-inspired botanical paintings.
• @madison.phipps.studio on Instagram — Where she documents her creative journey in real time.
• The Artist's Side Hustle — Stacie Bloomfield's Hay House book, the practical guide for artists building a business in the time they actually have.

HERE ARE THE 5 KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1️⃣ Say Yes Before You're Ready — Then Figure It Out

Madison cold-pitched herself to be on this podcast before she had a big following, a polished business, or a clear strategy. That pitch — and the habit behind it — is the whole lesson.

Her guiding question is: "What's the best that could happen?" Not "what if it goes wrong" — what if it goes right? That reframe is what gave her permission to cold-pitch galleries, launch a subscription print club, and keep creating even when nothing was finished. She didn't wait for certainty. She created a roadmap by asking what would happen if things actually worked out.

Most artists are waiting for something — more time, more confidence, a better portfolio. Madison is proof that the act of starting is what creates the conditions for those things to arrive.

2️⃣ Limited Time Makes You More Focused, Not Less Productive

Creating during nap times and evenings sounds like a limitation. Madison has made it a feature. "Because my time is so limited, it forces me to focus," she says. She doesn't have the luxury of sitting in front of a blank canvas for hours hoping inspiration strikes — she has to know what she's making before she sits down.

Constraints clarify priorities. When you only have 45 minutes, you don't overthink. You make the next piece in the series, write the next email, post the thing. Artists with wide open schedules often struggle more with productivity than artists who have to protect every hour. Madison's results — a print club, consignment relationships, Etsy sales, a growing TikTok audience — are proof that time scarcity can be fuel, not a barrier.

3️⃣ A Print Club Doesn't Have to Be Big to Be Worth It

The Print Club is Madison's most personal business venture: $14/month, a coastal-themed art print mailed with a handwritten note, each one feeling like a surprise in the mailbox. It's not her highest revenue stream. It's not meant to be.

"I don't want mine to grow exponentially big," she shares. "It's a fun way to connect with my audience." Not every offering needs to scale. Some things exist to build trust, create joy, and keep you connected to the people who love your work. The print club does all three.

4️⃣ Consignment Is a Shortcut to the Right Buyers

After cold-pitching a high-end Houston boutique (Paloma & Co.), Madison sold out two collections of her original botanical paintings — and is working on a third. The boutique takes a commission. She's fine with it.

"They have the clientele, they market it, they ship it — and I didn't have those things in my repertoire yet." Consignment isn't giving something away. It's paying for access to an audience you haven't built yet. If you have originals sitting in your studio, one cold pitch to the right boutique could move your work without a single Instagram post.

5️⃣ Speak Your Dreams Out Loud — They Need Air to Grow

Both Stacie Bloomfield and Madison return to this throughout the episode: the power of articulating what you want. Not just thinking it, not just journaling it — saying it. To a friend. On a podcast pitch. In a conversation with someone who could actually open a door.

"Sometimes we talk about all the external things keeping us from what we want," Stacie says. "But what we say about ourselves can open doors or close them." Madison's entire business is evidence that speaking your dreams out loud before you're ready is one of the most strategic things a creative person can do.

MORE FROM MADISON PHIPPS

🌐 Website: madisonphippsstudio.com
📸 Instagram: @madison.phipps.studio

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Frequently Asked Questions About Building an Art Side Hustle

How do you build an art business when you have a full-time job and a family?

Work in the margins of your existing schedule — nap times, evenings, early mornings — and treat those hours as non-negotiable creative time. Madison Phipps built a print club, consignment relationships, and a growing social media presence without a studio or dedicated work hours. The key is focusing on one revenue stream at a time so your limited hours have real impact instead of being spread too thin.

What is a print club and how do you start one as an artist?

A print club is a subscription where members receive a new art print each month in exchange for a recurring fee. To start one, pick a niche you can sustain long-term, set a price that covers printing and shipping with a margin left over, and use a simple payment platform. Madison's club is $14/month and ships with a handwritten note — simple, personal, and intentional.

Is consignment worth it for artists selling original paintings?

Yes — especially when you're building your audience. Consignment at the right venue gives you access to established buyers, removes the burden of marketing and shipping, and places your work in a context that can command higher prices. The commission you pay is essentially a marketing fee. Madison sold out two collections this way and is working on a third.

About Stacie Bloomfield

Stacie Bloomfield is the founder of Gingiber, a surface pattern design and art licensing brand she built from her dining room table into a multimillion-dollar business with products in 1,400+ brick-and-mortar stores. She has earned $500K+ through art licensing and has taught 5,000+ artists how to build real income from their work.

She is the author of The Artist's Side Hustle (Hay House), a Moda fabric designer, and the host of the Art + Audience podcast. Her programs — including Side Hustle Society, Leverage Your Art, and Art Licensing Pitch Playbook — help artists at every stage turn their creativity into consistent income.