W(o)W: Jennifer Hester x Blooming Chalk
Blooming Chalk is a custom hand-lettered and Illustrated chalk and sign art business operated and fueled by the creativity of Jennifer Hester. She loves the challenges of her projects and appreciates how each one brings new surprises. Jennifer enjoys embracing the project, viewing the final project, and witnessing the reaction of the customer. She loves watching her creations bring others joy.
She has traveled all around the world to places including Bangladesh, the Philippines, Thailand, South Korea, Hawaii, South Africa and all over America. She encourages others to travel when given the opportunity. Her husband Luke is a drummer/musician and can be found playing around Baton Rouge more this year! They don't have kids, but they do have an extremely energetic, silly, and adorable Australian Shepard named Raiden!
Jennifer took art classes throughout middle and high school. She received her bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design and had a job with a sign company but didn’t feel like she was able to let her creativity run free. She came across hand lettering videos on instagram about four years ago and remembers coming to a realization that hand lettering is what she wanted to do with the rest of her life.
She attended the first CROP conference (side note: PPG will be hosting this year ;)) and heard Ashlee Jones of Small Chalk speak. This was the catalyst for Jennifer to start pursuing her own hustle. She continued learning more about hand lettering and chalk art while dreaming of working for Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s as a sign artist. About a year and a half ago Jennifer landed a job with Trader Joe’s as a sign artist! Being at Trader Joe’s has elevated her craft and allowed her to produce better work for her side hustle. Outside of Trader Joe's she runs Blooming Chalk where she create custom hand-lettered and illustrated signage for boutiques, restaurants, coffee shops, weddings, special events, and more!
When Jennifer is not creating for Trader Joe’s or operating Blooming Chalk you can find her playing with her dog Raiden, running outdoors, traveling, or eating Korean food (fun fact: Jennifer is Korean-American). For Jennifer, purpose is using your gifts, talents, skill, abilities, time, and knowledge to help the needs of others. When facing problems Jennifer admits she is a slow processor, but once she thinks it all through she is ready! She believes fear hold us back and the only way to get over fears is to face it, and Jennifer makes sure to face her problems with a lot of prayer.
As an entrepreneur and creative Jennifer appreciates being able to use her gifts, abilities, skill, and knowledge to make a living and help support her family. She loves transforming something ordinary into something extraordinary. Her advice to other female entrepreneurs and creatives is to research in order to figure out what business would best suit you. Consider finding someone to help you understand your taxes, find a good insurance plan, and address similar decisions that might not be always your first concern. Consistency is KEY, and remember there is room for everyone; don’t be afraid to advertise yourself.
To date, Jennifer’s proudest accomplishment is window art and hand-lettering window art for Sweet Baton Rouge Local Pop Up Shop in Perkins Rowe. In the future Jennifer would love to be full-time on her own. She would appreciate the opportunity to hire others and allow them to use their craft. She is looking to do more work for organizations that she feels passionate about, such as fighting against sex-trafficking and abuse of women/children.
With passion and heart Jennifer is leaving her mark on Baton Rouge!
Keep up-to-date on all things Jennifer: