We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarah Miller and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarah, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
I used to work all day long. If I wasn’t still doing some sort of work at 10pm, I felt guilty and like I was falling behind. Keeping up that energy felt manageable in the first 2 years (and because I was 22). But 2020 was the biggest shift in work life balance for me yet! The pandemic gave me some perspective to look outside of my work for self-value. Now that all my social life and weekend distractions have shrunk, I realized I had to find other ways to give myself joy and peace. When I started educating myself on other passions outside of work, it felt better to stop working at 6pm and work on being a more rounded person. And it gave my painting wrist quite a nice break!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a self-taught artist. Outside of doodling in class, I never put any energy into art. When I started painting my friends and family’s pets for fun, I never wanted to stop! Painting almost every day has given me the practice to improve my skills steadily over the years. I have developed my own watercolor painting style. But what really sets me apart from other artists is my professionalism and empathy when speaking to my customers. I ask my customers to send me all the little details they love about their pet that would make another person’s eyes glaze over. I want to see every pic on their camera roll! Especially when a client has lost a pet, I am a safe space to grieve to. The special interactions is something my customers always comment on.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
A long weekend of my favorite spots in Atlanta would basically be a brewery tour. With big courtyards and spaced out seating areas, breweries are about the only places I feel safe during covid times. My favorites are New Realm, Gate City Brewing, Monday Night Brewing, and Scofflaw Brewing Company.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Jonathan Van Ness from Queer Eye has had the biggest impact on my story. Back in Spring of 2019, orders were slowly trickling in and I started applying for part time jobs. Jonathan Van Ness posted a picture on Instagram with one of my portraits in his bedroom. He tagged me, sent a nice message, and my following exploded! To this day my customers still mention how they found me through JVN. I even got to meet him and paint another portrait for him and it is certainly a highlight of my life!

Website: www.sarahpaintspets.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/sarahpaintspets

Twitter: www.twitter.com/sarahpaintspets

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sarahpaintspets

Image Credits
Madison Crowley Photography

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutAtlana is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.