What is The Crafted Prints?
The Crafted Prints, at this point and time, has two facets. On one hand, we’re an online shop that offers a curated collection of affordable art prints (home decor) from a growing global community of artists and photographers. And on the other hand, we offer made-from-scratch, handcrafted stationery items that are intentionally, ethically and sustainably made.
Why do we exist?
1. To offer affordable art for any space (and any budget) - “bringing joy to your walls.”
2. To bring value to your lives through the development of intentional stationery products that are just as beautiful as they are well-made.
3. To bless and empower other artists through printed work.
4. To pursue one of the things we’re confident God has called us to do.
5. To help in the fight against human trafficking and child abuse through donations and awareness.
What is our story?
The Crafted Prints is a dream finally realized. For years, Josh and I had been brainstorming ideas we could pursue (thanks to Shark Tank lol), ranging from physical products, to full-on nonprofit organizations, to informational websites, and so on. It’s been our dream to open up our own business, and you can kind of say we were made for this sort of thing.
The whole idea came to mind when we moved into a new apartment (out of our parents' homes) that we loved, but we were met with BIG white glossy walls (bleh!). Basically, blank canvases that were screaming at us to do something to make it feel like home – rather than a psych ward lol. So, naturally we began our hunt for wall décor, and at the time we were lucky to even be able to afford rent, let alone be able to decorate the place. So, you can imagine it was so defeating when we saw the prices on websites offering art we loved – it was just. not. affordable.
That’s when Josh thought, maybe we should create our own wall décor business? Offering affordable art that won’t break the bank, but will bring some legit joy to any space. And so began The Crafted Prints. We sold just my art for the first few months, then some dope photographers joined in early 2020, Josue in August 2020, and now we’re bringing on some powerhouse women in 2021 (perhaps some new dope dudes, too – where you at?!). Our dream has always been to have a small community of artists here at The Crafted Prints, and we’re so humbled that dream is actually coming true. *ugly cry*
Who are we?
As far as the leadership team here goes, we’re Josh and Vanessa. "Papa" and "Mama" to our kids. "Honey" and "Brotha/Girl" to one another. Josh an auto mechanic by trade. Me... well I'm not sure :) I guess you can say I'm an artist and a singer. We're the owners of The Crafted Prints, but the artists who have and will join us comprise who we are, too. (In the months ahead we will be creating a more robust "Who We Are" page featuring info and fun facts about each artist.)
For now, know that we're simply a small team of people. And we’re merely that... People.
People with dreams. People with passions. People who don’t always know what they’re doing. People who are still figuring it out. People who are pulling a *lot* of late nights nearly to do what we love. People who are determined to see this grow. People who are passionate about giving back, and dreaming big. People who so desperately want to bless others. People who care deeply for those hurting in our world. People who can't help but create. People who are just... people.
Thanks for reading. Your support is truly cherished here.
<3 Vanessa