I was born in Swansea, Wales which is a city in the UK. I would spend most of my days (when it wasn’t raining) at the beach, soaking up all the fresh sea air, collecting shells and walking my dogs. Growing up I have always been fascinated by accentuate patterns and drawn to bold and bright colours- this sort of resembles my personality and the woman I have become today through my dress sense as you won’t see me without a hint of leopard print on or a bright coloured lippy -Coachella colour by Charlotte Tilbury to be exact!
Moving to the gorgeous, quaint town of Bath, UK in 2017 helped me grow as a woman and become more independent, going to University to studying Textiles for Fashion and Interiors I was able to let my creative juices flow and continue to develop recognisable ‘style’.
I have always been very creative and drawn towards anything “arty”. I remember when I was around 8 years old, I was set a project in school which was “what job do you want to have when you grow up?” I knew straight away my project was going to be on being a fashion designer. A few years later I took Graphics and Art for my A-Levels which I loved and spent all my lunchtimes in school hiding away in the IT room practising my photoshop skills and constantly wanting to improve my work. I was never bothered or interested in
academic subjects and knew an artistic route was the only path for me (apart from the slight change of direction when I wanted to become a marine biologist, but I quickly released it was for me and returned to my creative path).
Do and make what makes you feel happy! Be proud of your work, every designer always has days where they have a creative block and don’t like anything they create- but don’t give up. Go for a walk, step away from your studio space and relax! Being in the art industry is tuff, but when you work hard and stay true to who you are as a designer- it can be very rewarding and makes all the blood, sweat and tears worth it! Keep going, you’ve got this!!
Being confident is definitely needed in the art industry, talk positively about your work. Promote, Promote, Promote- social media is an amazing platform to raise awareness of you as an artist, so share your work processes and support fellow artists too!!
My creative gig is Full time as I am a uni student, creating every day! But my business side of things is currently a side hustle and a work in progress. Using my Instagram platform I can interact with a huge variety of people, creating commissioned pieces and selling prints. I also have an Etsy shop that I sell my prints on and have sold my work at the Bath Christmas Markets which was an amazing experience- Hopefully when I have graduated from university I will be able to take my creative gig further and make it as a freelance designer.
Being heavily inspired by tropical elements, botanical plants and all things ‘leafy’ i would say my message I'm sending to the universe through my work is to appreciate the nature that is all around us. My work is busy and full of life so by bringing my designs into your home you added a slice of paradise into your life.
If I am honest sometimes I find it quite difficult to focus. One thing for me is I can’t work at home, I have to be in my studio where I can concentrate without any distractions. Staying organized is key!! On a Sunday evening, I write out my plan for the week, what I want to achieve every day. I find this helps me stay focused and motives me to complete my daily tasks.
My biggest goal at the moment is to put all my effort into my Final Major Project at university- this is going to be the biggest collection I’ve made so far and at the moment I'm so happy with how it is turning out, make sure to check out my Instagram @jmhtextiles from daily updates and to see my process. Once I have graduated university, the first thing I am going to do is TRAVEL- see the world, soak up an array of cultures, and get a load of inspiration from various places to further inspire me for future projects!!
My goals for the next few years are to work for an established textile studio as a surface pattern designer, and along the side continue to grow my social media and Etsy shop. 5 years from now I hope to have had some traveling under my belt, have my own home that I can cover in house plants with 2 little sausage dogs running around. I hope to have many experiences within the textile industry and hopefully become a freelance designer full time! That would be the dream, now I'm just working ma a** off to make it a reality!!
My new plant cutting of a variegated Monestra (cheese plant), Bali- the first place I will be going traveling once I graduate. Arteza Gouache paint- the best gouache I have ever used!!
Just do you
I'm outta love - Anastacia. An oldie but a classic.
Phone, House keys, lipstick.
Organized and know that I can have a cocktail at the end of the week!!
Pink Gin, Binge-watching David Attenborough programmes and Houseplants
How to take cuttings of your houseplants and propagate them to grow to plant collection!!
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Nisha Btesh
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